Chapter 574: Mutual Destruction
"Tenseigan?" The Hyūga branch members clenched their fists.
They saw hope. Tenseigan... it must be the Tenseigan! It's what let Neji resist the Caged Bird!
If the Byakugan can evolve into the Tenseigan, then we have hope too! If we awaken it, we can be free!
Although everyone knew it would be difficult, it was a hope they had never had before. The conflict between wanting a genius child and fearing the seal was suddenly, potentially, resolved.
Hiashi Hyūga was also muttering the word. "Tenseigan..."
He was more shocked than any of the branch members because he could feel the Caged Bird seal on Neji's forehead activating.
He knew it was working.
But no matter how hard he pushed, there seemed to be a barrier between the seal and Neji.
Hiashi's eyes were filled with confusion. Why?
Why is it blocked on both the physical and spiritual levels?
Inside Neji's soul, the Caged Bird seal was firmly blocked by the Yata Mirror.
The seal writhed like a disgusting worm, trying to burrow into Neji's soul, but it was futile. It could only crawl across the surface of the mirror, unable to touch him.
Physically, Ishiro's seal had only bought Neji a few seconds before the Caged Bird broke through.
But in those few seconds, Neji had connected to the fully awakened giant Tenseigan.
The massive influx of Tenseigan chakra repelled the Caged Bird seal, keeping it outside Neji's body.
Faced with a Neji overflowing with Tenseigan chakra, Hiashi could activate the seal all he wanted; it would just scramble around Neji's forehead without penetrating his brain.
A moment later, Hiashi released his hand. He slumped to the ground, his proud head finally lowering in defeat.
The fight between Neji and Hiashi, while significant to the Hyūga, didn't draw as much attention from the general crowd. They were more interested in Sōkai, who was piloting a giant "Gundam" (Susanoo) against a blue-steaming blur.
The Uchiha name was still synonymous with power. Even with the clan gone, that hadn't changed.
In fact, as a survivor, Sōkai was even more fascinating to them.
Sasuke's Sharingan evolution had excited the crowd, even if Neji had slapped him down a moment later.
But now, they were seeing a Mangekyō Sharingan, a level above the three-tomoe.
And when Sōkai unleashed the demon-god-like Susanoo, the cheers never stopped.
Likewise, Might Guy, glowing with blue steam and fighting a demon god head-on, was equally captivating.
When word spread that Guy's father, Might Duy, had single-handedly decimated the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the crowd went wild (even if they didn't really know what the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were).
The brutal, head-on clash drew wave after wave of cheers.
In reality, the fight was dull. It looked cool, but it lacked technique.
Sōkai hated fighting Guy. His Susanoo was too slow to hit the speed demon. And thanks to Kakashi's training, Guy could fight without looking at his eyes, rendering Sōkai's genjutsu useless.
Sōkai's only hope was the Totsuka Blade, which could seal anything it touched.
But he couldn't hit Guy.
Conversely, Guy was landing heavy blows on the Susanoo.
Sōkai's dōjutsu was limited. Against anyone else, he would have fled. But he knew Guy's Seventh Gate couldn't last long, so he gritted his teeth and held on.
Despite having Kage-level power, being forced to turtle up in his Susanoo was frustrating.
Whoosh!
Sōkai's Susanoo swung its blade at Guy.
Boom!
It hit only the porcelain platform where Guy had been standing. Guy was gone.
"Hirudora!" Guy roared from the side, his blue steam exploding outward.
As he shouted, his punch flew toward the Susanoo.
Bang!
Crack-crack-crack!
To Sōkai's horror, cracks rapidly spread across his Susanoo, and then—boom!—it shattered.
His defense broken by the Daytime Tiger, Sōkai was left exposed, tears of blood streaming from his eyes. He needed time to gather his dōjutsu again.
But Guy was charging. Sōkai had no defense.
He quickly formed hand seals for a massive Fire Release jutsu. But he knew it wouldn't stop a Seventh Gate Guy.
Just then, two tendrils of porcelain shot up from the platform, wrapping around Sōkai's legs.
The floor beneath him vanished, opening a hole to the ground below.
The tendrils yanked him down, throwing him through the hole.
Just as Sōkai disappeared, Guy arrived. He smashed through the fire jutsu unharmed.
But he was a split second too late. He hit empty air.
Below the platform, Ishiro caught Sōkai with a cushion of porcelain mud.
Sōkai let out a breath of relief. He carefully wiped away the blood tears, closed his eyes for a moment, and then reopened them.
After that exchange, both were exhausted.
But Sōkai was better off. Although he had nearly died, Ishiro's save had given him a moment to recover. Now, he had the advantage.
Guy, however, was in bad shape. He had maintained the Seventh Gate for too long and used his ultimate move. He couldn't hold on much longer.
Still, just in case Guy had any strength left, Sōkai activated his Susanoo again—though this time, only the initial ribcage form.
Behind the stadium, out of sight of the crowd, another battle raged.
Itachi Uchiha and Orochimaru were fighting, moving further and further away from the village center.
Itachi was intentionally leading Orochimaru away, and Orochimaru, for some reason, was playing along.
Hashirama Senju had been hit by Amaterasu early on and was stuck in a cycle of burning and regenerating, effectively removed from the fight. That left Orochimaru with only Fugaku Uchiha and Jiraiya.
But Orochimaru himself had joined the fray.
Itachi had used his Susanoo for a while, but even with it, he was being suppressed.
Unlike in the original story, where Orochimaru lost to a single glance, this Orochimaru had a Byakugan. With it active, his resistance to genjutsu was much higher.
Furthermore, his body now combined Kaguya and Hyūga bloodlines. His chakra was superior to a normal Hyūga's.
So, while Itachi found opportunities to cast genjutsu, the effects were mediocre.
Itachi knew that unless he used Tsukuyomi, he wouldn't be able to catch Orochimaru.
But the chance was gone. Orochimaru, like Neji, had put on a pair of goggles.
Orochimaru had been startled earlier; he had avoided Itachi's eyes, but Itachi had cast a genjutsu using just his finger movements.
Luckily, Orochimaru was prepared. He had several small snakes inside his clothes, constantly exchanging chakra with him. They broke him out of the genjutsu instantly.
After that, Orochimaru became even more cautious. He put on the goggles and spent most of the fight with his back to Itachi, relying on the shared vision of his Edo Tensei puppets.
With his best weapon neutralized and shurikenjutsu useless against the undead and Orochimaru, Itachi was left with Fire Release, Susanoo, and Amaterasu.
But his Fire Release was inferior to Jiraiya and Orochimaru's Water Release.
He could only hold on with Susanoo.
Bleeding from his eyes, Itachi fought his father's Susanoo while dodging Orochimaru and Jiraiya's large-scale ninjutsu. His dōjutsu was draining rapidly.
He felt like he was running on fumes, that if he relaxed for a second, he would go blind.
But strangely... he didn't go blind. His dōjutsu, which felt on the verge of collapse, just kept holding on.
At first, Orochimaru didn't think much of it. But as the fight dragged on, he noticed something was wrong.
He didn't know what it was, but Itachi's condition didn't match his expectations.
In this life, Orochimaru focused on the Byakugan, so he knew less about the Mangekyō. He only knew from Black Zetsu that overuse led to blindness.
His intuition told him Itachi should be out of power, but he was still standing.
Orochimaru decided to investigate. He had Fugaku use his Mangekyō dōjutsu.
Orochimaru knew Fugaku's ability best: it could predict the future to a certain extent.
After Fugaku used it, Orochimaru saw the future of the battle.
He saw Itachi run out of power, go blind, and be cut in half by Fugaku's Susanoo.
But as the fight continued in reality, Itachi maintained his "on the verge of collapse" expression... and didn't go blind.
Anyone else might have thought Itachi was just holding on through sheer will. But as a scientist, Orochimaru sensed an anomaly.
He stopped attacking, entering a standoff to observe Itachi.
Outside Konoha, two other battles were taking place.
No one was paying attention to Mito Uzumaki fighting the five Edo Tensei. But the battle between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō commanded everyone's attention.
Danzō was, after all, one of the main characters of this drama.
He had brought in Orochimaru and the Sky Ninja to "restore order."
However, for some reason, while his allies were fighting fiercely, Danzō was just... sparring with Hiruzen.
Even Ishiro, who had promised not to interfere, was going all-out against Kisame.
But Danzō hadn't even used Wood Release. He hadn't even activated his Sharingan.
Ishiro suspected Danzō was under a genjutsu... or maybe he was just bewitched by Hiruzen's "charm."
Today, Hiruzen was resolute, his eyes filled with determination. Perhaps this version of Hiruzen was what Danzō found most captivating.
After wasting a lot of time, Hiruzen suddenly said, "Danzō, I have a secret technique. Do you want to see it?"
Danzō felt like he was back in their youth. Back then, Hiruzen, master of all five elements, would often say this during their spars.
Back then, Danzō, inwardly envious, would scoff and mock him. But his restless heart would always look forward to seeing Hiruzen's new move.
Hiruzen was always like that. Always something new! Always exciting! Koharu and Homura could never compare.
So, Danzō scoffed again. "Hiruzen, with your skills, you think you can be like Tobirama-sensei and invent jutsu? Come on, show me. Let me give you some pointers!"
His tone held a hint of anticipation, his heart beating a little faster.
Hiruzen smiled, but deep in his eyes was a trace of apology.
He was indeed using a "Honey Trap," though he wouldn't call it that.
He had noticed Danzō's mental instability. From the moment they met, he had been guiding Danzō, leading him into their shared memories with words and actions.
He believed he was awakening the bond buried deep in Danzō's heart.
And it worked! The mentally unstable Danzō took the bait.
Hiruzen judged that Danzō truly believed they were back in the past, having a friendly spar. A contest of skill, not a fight to the death.
After half a day, Hiruzen decided the time was right.
Under the pretext of showing off a new jutsu, he began forming the seals for the Reaper Death Seal!
The seal sequence was long. To keep Danzō steady, Hiruzen kept talking, distracting him.
"Danzō, I've been thinking about this one for a long time. It's going to surprise you!"
Danzō pouted. "Hiruzen, I've heard that a hundred times! And every time, I figure it out in seconds!"
Hiruzen laughed heartily as he wove the seals. "Haha! This time is different, Danzō!"
Danzō snorted. You always say that.
"There are a lot of seals," Hiruzen continued. "Later, you have to help me figure out how to simplify them."
Hearing Hiruzen ask for his help, Danzō looked smug. "Finally realizing my brilliance? Bring it on! Let me see how 'amazing' this jutsu is!"
He couldn't wait to critique Hiruzen, to see that look of admiration on his face again.
Thinking of this, Danzō laughed out loud.
And so, Hiruzen finished the seals.
Danzō looked around. Nothing happened. But for some reason... he felt a chill in the air.
He subconsciously activated his Mangekyō Sharingan to look. Still nothing.
"Hiruzen," he muttered, "where is it? Even my Mangekyō can't see it."
But then, he felt something was wrong. Mangekyō Sharingan? Why do I have a Mangekyō Sharingan?
Hiruzen, seeing the eye, was startled. But hearing Danzō's confusion, he relaxed slightly. He laughed, "Haha! That's the beauty of this jutsu! To see the effect, you have to touch me!"
He walked quickly toward Danzō.
Danzō felt something was wrong. The sense of danger was growing stronger.
But the man walking toward him was his closest teammate, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Hiruzen wouldn't hurt him. He wasn't even holding a weapon.
Danzō scanned the area with his Mangekyō. Is there an enemy hiding nearby?
Just then, Hiruzen reached him. He placed both hands on Danzō's shoulders.
Instantly, Danzō's scalp went numb. He saw the enemy. It was behind Hiruzen. A figure floating in the air, a blade in its mouth, prayer beads in its hands.
Danzō, knowledgeable as he was, recognized it instantly. "The Reaper! It's the Reaper! Hiruzen, watch out!"
Then, he froze. The Reaper? What is the Reaper doing here?
Only then did Danzō remember when he was.
This wasn't their youth. This wasn't a spar.
He and Hiruzen were in a deathmatch!
Danzō looked away from the Reaper, down at the spectral arm connecting their stomachs, and then up at Hiruzen's aged face.
Feeling his strength rapidly draining, Danzō said only one word: "Hiruzen?"
Hiruzen was silent for a few seconds. "The Reaper Death Seal allows the caster and the target's souls to enter the Reaper's stomach, to be entangled forever."
"Danzō... whatever we have to say... let's say it inside the Reaper's belly!"
Danzō's body shook. The Izanagi he had prepared to activate... stopped.
The next moment, Danzō's soul was ripped out by the hand extending from Hiruzen's stomach.
Both men, losing their life force simultaneously, fell.
This time, Danzō fell on top of Hiruzen.
The Reaper, having consumed both souls, vanished.
The first to notice this was Ishiro. His Mind's Eye had been watching.
He saw the Reaper appear. He watched Hiruzen perform the entire ritual, noting every hand seal.
He had been so focused on it that he had neglected his pursuit of Kisame.
Although Ishiro was exasperated by Danzō falling for Hiruzen's "Honey Trap," being able to observe the Reaper Death Seal in detail was worth it.
Seeing the Reaper this time felt different from when he had summoned it himself to seal Tobirama.
He felt he might be able to do something with this later.
But for now, Danzō was dead. Kakashi was about to finish his fight. Ishiro couldn't waste any more time.
His eyes narrowed. He continued to fire Light Release at Kisame, while simultaneously redirecting his porcelain mud. A few volleys later, the two Kiri ANBU guards were riddled with holes.
Earlier, with Kakashi present, Ishiro hadn't targeted them, fearing it would unite Kakashi and Kisame against his disciples.
But since they had intervened at a critical moment, he couldn't let them live.
Kisame saw it but couldn't help.
Because Ishiro was weaving seals again.
Kisame dodged frantically. But this time... no blue light appeared.
Not good! It's not Light Release!
From the start, Ishiro had only used Light Release, Porcelain Release, and Gravity Jutsu. Only Light Release required hand seals. Kisame had assumed this was another attack.
He was wrong. It was a fatal mistake.
Ishiro had cast a genjutsu.
Iwa didn't have high-level genjutsu, but Ishiro's Yin Release level crushed Kisame's.
Normally, against a chakra powerhouse like Kisame, Ishiro's genjutsu wouldn't be very effective.
But this wasn't a normal situation.
Kisame was caught. Realizing it instantly, he scrambled to disrupt his chakra flow and exchange chakra with Samehada.
He broke free quickly—too quickly for Ishiro to cast a ninjutsu.
But Ishiro hadn't been casting. While using the genjutsu, he had opened his mouth and fired a small Light Release blast.
Breaking free, Kisame saw the light beam almost upon him.
He gathered chakra to move.
But just then... his body went numb. He froze for a split second.
Kisame was horrified. He had seen this before—the Iwa genin, Sakura Haruno, had used it on Sai.
Mind Body Disturbance Jutsu!
The effect didn't last long; the caster clearly couldn't control his massive chakra.
Kisame regained control quickly, but the delay was fatal. He couldn't dodge.
Samehada spat out another water bullet. Due to the angle, it couldn't hit the Light Release.
Instead, Samehada used the recoil to forcefully shove Kisame's body.
The blue light flashed past, slicing through the space between Kisame and Samehada... taking Kisame's arm, still gripping the sword handle, with it.
(End of Chapter)
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