CRASH—BOOM~
Viewed from high above, the densely vegetated forest looked as if it had been plowed through by a speeding train. As dust plumed upwards, countless trees toppled, revealing a clear path wide enough for four vehicles to drive abreast.
At the end of this path, Shimura Danzo was impaled by an arrow glowing with a dark purple light, left half-suspended in mid-air.
Amidst the brownish-yellow dust, a bizarre scene unfolded: the ashen-faced old man, hanging lifelessly in the air, slowly vanished like a flower in a mirror or the moon in water. Then, in a nearby shadow, his figure reappeared. Inspecting his entire body, apart from some dust clinging to his clothes, there was no sign of the wound where the arrow had pierced him.
On his right arm, one of the crimson Sharingan slowly closed.
"Two eyes left."
Witnessing this, Future Sasuke thought to himself. He estimated his remaining Dojutsu. If he only maintained the third stage of Susanoo, holding out for two more minutes wouldn't be a problem.
"Future me, let me take over."
Just as he was about to strike again, an incomparably cold voice sounded from behind him. Sensing the frigid chakra emanating from behind, Future Sasuke was slightly startled.
Does it have to be this dramatic…?
"Is this the process of awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan?"
In the distance, Naruto's Number Two Shadow Clone narrowed his eyes. Several small birds perched on his shoulders and the top of his head. Just moments ago, he had clearly sensed a terrifying leap in both the quantity and quality of Young Sasuke's chakra. Previously, his chakra had been at the level of an ordinary Jōnin; now, it was beginning to touch the Kage level. That so-called method for opening the Mangekyo was indeed just a misleading rumor.
"If the Uchiha clan is already this formidable, then the Senju clan, who clashed with them head-on and even held the upper hand during the Warring States Period, what kind of terrifying clan talent must they possess?" Naruto's Number Two Shadow Clone mused. "I wonder what Mangekyo abilities Young Sasuke has awakened?"
He hadn't forgotten that the greatest enhancement for an Uchiha when evolving from a Three-Tomoe Sharingan to a Mangekyo wasn't the incidental boost to their chakra, but the unique abilities awakened as the Mangekyo reflected the owner's heart and responded to their deepest desires.
"Since you've awakened the Mangekyo, you should be the one to put an end to this battle." Future Sasuke retracted his Susanoo. "Watch your Dojutsu consumption. Your current Mangekyo isn't an Eternal Eye," he cautioned.
"I know."
Uchiha Sasuke stepped forward, moving past his future self, and walked unhurriedly towards Shimura Danzo, who was hiding in the shadows.
"I never thought the day would come when I, Danzo, would become a whetstone." Seeing this, Shimura Danzo's mind instantly raced. Being treated as a mere whetstone was certainly shameful, but the glimmer of a chance at survival hidden within it was incredibly tempting. He couldn't deal with that Uchiha remnant who could use the Perfect Susanoo, but he was confident in handling a wet-behind-the-ears brat.
"It seems watching me get slaughtered repeatedly has given you some ideas you shouldn't have." He stepped out from the shadows, slowly unwrapping the bandages around the right side of his face. He had thought he would never use this eye, even in death…
"Twelve Sharingan… You're good." Uchiha Sasuke paused, the killing intent in his eyes deepening by several degrees.
"Hmm?" Shimura Danzo's hand movement halted. "It seems you care a great deal about these eyes." "Merely putting waste to good use. This is the last contribution you Uchiha can make to Konoha."
Crack~
The ground beneath Sasuke's feet fractured. In an instant, his figure appeared before his enemy. The Mangekyo in Uchiha Sasuke's eyes spun rapidly. He had never felt such an insane urge to kill someone.
"So fast!" Not only Shimura Danzo, but even Future Sasuke and Naruto's Number Two Shadow Clone, who were observing from the side, were startled.
Zzzt! A flash of purple lightning coated the Kusanagi Sword, tracing a purple crescent moon in mid-air.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!" Shimura Danzo's hands quickly formed seals, and he exhaled a narrow, cutting stream of air, viciously lashing it towards his airborne opponent.
Their attacks collided, and the powerful shockwave kicked up a thick cloud of dust. The Three-Tomoe Sharingan in Danzo's right eye quickly locked onto the enemy who had vanished from sight, just as he was about to unleash his next ninjutsu.
Puchi! A blade of light sliced through the shockwave, bisecting his body.
"Why? How can a Lightning Release attack cut through Vacuum Serial Waves?" Shimura Danzo's fading eyes were filled with disbelief. Wind Release was supposed to be strong against Lightning Release!
"Did he retract the Lightning Release chakra infusion mid-attack?" Unlike Danzo, Future Sasuke, who was watching the battle, had seen the details of the exchange clearly. In the instant before the Kusanagi Sword clashed with the Vacuum Wave, Young Sasuke had suddenly withdrawn the Lightning Release chakra coating the blade. This meant the scenario where the supposedly weaker Lightning Release overpowered Wind Release hadn't actually occurred. The reason Young Sasuke could slice through the Vacuum Wave was purely due to the Kusanagi Sword's hardness and his own physical strength.
"Is his Mangekyo ability physical enhancement?" Naruto's Number Two Shadow Clone replayed the recent battle in his mind over and over. In Sage Mode, his perception differed from that of Future Sasuke and Shimura Danzo, who were using their Sharingan. He could see things the other two couldn't. From the moment Young Sasuke had stepped out from behind Future Sasuke, his body had been enhanced by a strange energy. In that instant, Naruto's Number Two Shadow Clone even felt that Young Sasuke possessed a physical body as terrifying as that of the Fourth Raikage.
"Heavenly Restriction… Is it because my intervention changed the regrets in his heart?" Future Sasuke had naturally also noticed the abnormal change in Young Sasuke's body. The Uchiha clan had a very long history. Even if the conditions for awakening the Mangekyo were incredibly harsh, over such a vast expanse of time, the number of Mangekyo users was still terrifyingly large. When faced with extreme situations, people's inner thoughts inevitably converged. This led to the Mangekyo Sharingan, which reflected the user's heart, awakening similar abilities. Heavenly Restriction – this ability was clearly documented in the clan's records. It was a terrifying Dojutsu that could multiply the user's physical strength severalfold in a short period. The degree of multiplication depended entirely on how much Dojutsu the user was willing to expend. Using such a Dojutsu, cutting through an A-rank ninjutsu like Vacuum Wave was not surprising at all.
"Probably no one would have imagined that the last remaining Uchiha in the ninja world have both awakened the Mangekyo," Shimura Danzo's bisected form re-materialized on the ground nearby. "You two brothers… which of you will fuse the other's Mangekyo to unlock the Uchiha clan's final forbidden eye—" "The Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan." His eyes were filled with solemn gravity. The Mangekyo Sharingan and the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan were entirely different concepts. Konoha had plenty of individuals who could contend with a Mangekyo Sharingan, but an Eternal Mangekyo… Konoha would not see the birth of a second Wood Release.
"That is none of your concern." Before his voice had even faded, Uchiha Sasuke's figure once again vanished from his spot.
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