Chapter 55:
"Good thing I made it just in time."
After the explosion, Uchiha Itachi vanished and reappeared on a nearby tree branch. Next to him was a yellow sponge.
"Where's Patrick Star?" Uchiha Itachi asked.
"I rushed over to help you, so I didn't bring Patrick along. But she should be arriving soon," SpongeBob Minato Namikaze replied.
Itachi said, "Send me away first. I can't reveal my identity just yet. I'll come back to help once I transform into an adult."
Minato nodded and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport himself and Itachi away.
"What an interesting jutsu..."
Before Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki could finish his sentence, SpongeBob reappeared—this time with the adult form of Uchiha Itachi.
"Now I can fight without holding back. SpongeBob, be careful. The enemy has Rinnegan in both hands. The right-hand Rinnegan can create black rods formed with Yin-Yang Release and absorb ninjutsu. The left-hand Rinnegan enhances the absorbed ninjutsu and fires it back."
The bewitching Mangekyō Sharingan appeared in Itachi's eyes.
"That's going to be tricky," Minato said. According to Itachi, the best counter to such an opponent would be a pure taijutsu user. Unfortunately, both Minato and Itachi specialized in ninjutsu.
"No, there's still another way. SpongeBob, I need you to cover me."
Minato nodded, then instantly teleported in front of Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Although Minato was better known for his ninjutsu, he was still a Hokage—his taijutsu far surpassed that of ordinary shinobi.
Momoshiki's black rod clashed with the shuriken in Minato's hand, sending sparks flying.
Minato kept shifting his position to block Momoshiki's view, shielding Itachi behind him.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!"
Itachi formed hand seals and launched his jutsu just as Minato vanished from Momoshiki's sight.
"Clever... but useless!" Momoshiki sneered as SpongeBob vanished and flames surged toward him. Without panic, he raised his right hand.
"Ah!" Momoshiki cried out in pain, looking at his right hand.
A shuriken was embedded in the Rinnegan on his right palm.
Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson was an upgraded version of Phoenix Fire Jutsu, a ninjutsu technique that conceals shuriken within the flames. While Momoshiki could absorb the fire, he couldn't absorb the hidden shuriken.
"You bastard! I'll kill you!"
"Now you can't absorb our jutsu anymore, can you?" SpongeBob smiled. He sensed the Flying Thunder God mark he had left on Momoshiki during their close-quarters battle.
"Rasengan!" SpongeBob suddenly appeared behind Momoshiki, his right hand spinning with a ghostly blue orb, which he drove into Momoshiki's back without hesitation.
Momoshiki flipped forward from the impact, stirring up a cloud of dust.
"That should be enough to take him down," Itachi said as he looked at the fallen Momoshiki.
Even after taking a direct hit from Minato's Rasengan, it only resulted in injuries. As expected of the Ōtsutsuki clan—tough as ever.
"Well, well, Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki-senpai, you sure look pathetic right now." A tall man appeared—judging by his appearance, clearly from the same clan as Momoshiki.
"You're late, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki," Momoshiki said as he stood up.
"Huh? That kid is your senior?" Minato said with a smile.
"You damn bastard! Are you mocking me?" Momoshiki snapped furiously at SpongeBob's goofy grin.
"Hey, hey, Momoshiki-senpai, since you're already injured, how about we retreat for now?" Urashiki said, resting a red weapon that looked like a fishing rod on his shoulder.
"Are you kidding me?! I only lost because I was outnumbered! Now that you're here, the two of us can take them down together!" Momoshiki growled. The pain still throbbed in his right hand and back, and veins began to bulge around his eyes.
"Our Hidden Leaf Village is a peaceful place. We won't allow you to fight here,"
Naruto suddenly appeared, having entered his Sage Fox Mode.
The moment he heard from his son that enemies with Byakugan who called themselves Ōtsutsuki had appeared in the village, Naruto had dropped everything and rushed over.
He realized that the clansmen of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, the one who sparked the Fourth Great Ninja War, had arrived—and there were at least two of them. Naruto knew all too well that even Kaguya alone had been almost too much to handle. If more of them were here, another war could break out.
"So this is the power of the Tailed Beasts... intoxicating," Urashiki murmured, his greedy eyes narrowing at Naruto. He then turned to Momoshiki, "Momoshiki-senpai, can we retreat now?"
Momoshiki clenched his teeth, his face twisted with frustration. "We retreat."
Urashiki gave a sly smile. His left eye morphed into a dojutsu above the standard Rinnegan—Six Tomoe Sharingan—and activated his Bloodline Encompassing technique: Yomotsu Hirasaka.
A portal opened in the sky. Momoshiki and Urashiki began to rise and disappeared into the hole.
"You two..." Naruto turned to Flaming Cloud Evil God and SpongeBob.
"We've already moved Shuyu to a safe place. Naruto, you should hurry and support Sasuke," Flaming Cloud Evil God said, vanishing with SpongeBob.
Though Naruto had many questions, his concern for Sasuke took priority, and he rushed off to help.
Ōtsutsuki Kinshiki, who was fighting Sasuke, suddenly sensed something. After knocking Sasuke back, he looked toward the sky and saw the portal. From it came Momoshiki's voice: "Ōtsutsuki Kinshiki, retreat for now."
"Yes." Kinshiki floated upward and entered the portal.
"Sasuke, are you alright?" Naruto arrived just in time, landing beside Sasuke.
Sasuke glanced at Naruto's concerned expression and silently nodded.
Neither of them tried to stop Kinshiki from escaping—after all, neither was fully prepared for battle, and they couldn't be sure whether the enemy had any tricks left.
Naruto and Sasuke were no longer the reckless young men who'd launch massive attacks at the first sign of a fight. With age came families, people they wanted to protect—and many more responsibilities.
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