As the fused beast faded into a tiny black dot in the sky, everyone let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"It's finally over!"
Sasuke collapsed onto the ground, his forcibly sustained Susanoo dissipating instantly.
Yakumo stumbled a couple of steps before steadying herself.
Without the Koryugan, her chakra reserves had plummeted. After the intense battle, her chakra was utterly drained—she'd been holding on through sheer will, just like Sasuke.
Naruto reverted from his tailed-beast state, panting lightly.
Releasing so many Rasengans and losing countless shadow clones would've killed or exhausted anyone else, but for Naruto, it was just mild fatigue.
The other Leaf shinobi, catching their breath, looked around in a daze.
The battle had involved massive ninjutsu, along with Bloodline Limit powers like Wood Release and Susanoo, leaving the battlefield scarred and littered with craters.
"Anbu, maintain vigilance! Everyone else, tend to the wounded!"
Despite his injuries, Kakashi didn't pause to heal himself, immediately directing the able-bodied Leaf shinobi to start rescuing the wounded.
Hiruko's unique hatred for the Leaf had made this battle devastatingly costly. Along the path of his assault, fallen Leaf shinobi lay everywhere, many already lifeless.
Soon, waves of Leaf shinobi flooded in, treating the wounded and cleaning up the battlefield.
As they approached Shinji, standing in the center, they couldn't help but show respect. Many even nodded in salute.
It was Shinji's intervention that had repelled the formidable enemy and turned the tide. Without him, many present would likely have died at the hands of the Akatsuki in this sudden attack.
Moreover, in a world where strength reigns, shinobi naturally admired the powerful!
Shinji hadn't just driven off the mighty Hiruko—he'd killed Kurosuki Raiga, a former Mist Seven Swordsman and Akatsuki member.
This was the first Akatsuki kill by any of the Five Great Shinobi Villages!
This feat alone was enough to earn the admiration of shinobi across the villages!
Shinji lingered in the battlefield's center, not to show off.
He was reflecting on the fight, assessing his post-surgery body's strength.
Being able to punch through Susanoo's armor showed his taijutsu explosiveness had reached Tsunade's level.
But that was it.
Hiruko wasn't an Uchiha, and his pupil power control was flawed. Breaking his Susanoo wasn't much to boast about.
"Compared to Otsutsuki Isshiki, who kicked Sasuke out of a full-body Susanoo with one blow, I'm still far off!"
Shinji mused silently.
Against his ninja academy peers, even the reincarnations of Indra and Asura Otsutsuki, he held a massive advantage.
But compared to true Otsutsuki, his physical strength was still lacking.
His easy victory over Hiruko and Raiga relied on his informational edge and the combined power of his Rinnegan and Koryugan.
If his mastery of other dojutsu Bloodline Limits were known to Hiruko and Raiga, the fight wouldn't have been so effortless.
The advantage of being an "unknown" would fade as his fame grew. Future opponents would study him, analyze him, even devise tactics specifically against him.
Then, his one-sided informational edge would vanish.
Flexing his injured right arm, Shinji narrowed his eyes.
In this battle, he found his Twelve Palaces, though impressive, paled in explosive power compared to the Eight Gates Release. The Twelve Palaces focused on perfect coordination of the body's organs and structures, excelling in sustained, stable power output.
He also realized the Koryugan's blood manipulation was a game-changer in taijutsu.
Its ability had limits—Shinji couldn't simply extract an enemy's blood remotely.
More precisely, it wasn't easy.
Enemy blood was protected by their chakra, requiring Shinji to expend significant pupil power to wrestle control from it.
Spending so much pupil power just to kill an opponent gruesomely was inefficient.
In taijutsu, the Koryugan's true value was creating openings by disrupting an enemy's blood flow at critical moments, delivering a decisive blow.
Just like how he'd defeated Raiga!
Moreover, the Koryugan could be used on himself.
His right arm's injury was far worse than it appeared. It looked minor because Shinji used the Koryugan to control his blood, ensuring the wound's unprotected vessels still functioned dutifully.
As long as his pupil power held, a Koryugan wielder didn't need to worry about blood loss weakening them.
Yakumo, Sasuke, and Naruto, having caught their breath, approached.
Yakumo, relieved, said: "Shinji, we owe you big time!"
Sasuke stared at Shinji with a complex expression, silent, his pride fading with the stinging pain in his eyes.
Naruto examined Shinji's fist, muttering: "How'd you do that?"
Kakashi stepped forward: "Other Akatsuki members are attacking the village, likely targeting Naruto too. I can't leave his side. Shinji, I'm counting on you to support the other areas!"
Naruto protested: "I don't need protection! I can fight!"
Kakashi pressed a hand on Naruto's head: "Stay put!"
Yakumo stepped forward: "Shinji, I'll go with you!"
Sasuke added: "Me too!"
Shinji glanced at the exhausted Yakumo and Sasuke, shaking his head: "You two stay here and protect Naruto."
Before they could argue, whoosh—Shinji vanished.