In a quiet, almost desolate place near the village, space swirled around in an Uzumaki pattern, and from the portal emerged a masked youth.
After checking the so-called kidnapping location where the ROOT shinobi were supposed to have taken Kiyomi, he came here. Just as he suspected, Kiyomi wasn't there—only ROOT had created a large-scale trap to hunt the queen bee.
In this case, Izumi.
Sukuna didn't even have to go close; he had long since memorized Kiyomi's cursed energy signature. He was a good enough sensor to know whether she was present or not.
And here, he could feel her. He was closer to the underground ROOT base, and sure enough, he sensed her. Even Danzo's overwhelming negative emotions couldn't mask Kiyomi's subtle cursed energy signature.
No matter how similar they seemed, cursed energy was still slightly different from raw negative emotions. Since Kiyomi was the only other source of cursed energy besides him, her signature stood out like a sore thumb.
Not as loud as Naruto's—or rather the Nine Tails'—overwhelming malice, nor as vile as Danzo's disgusting darkness, but distinct nevertheless.
Kiyomi's cursed energy was quite different from his own, almost as if she were meant to be his exact opposite.
His own cursed energy was sharp, like Ryomen Sukuna's, yet also different: his was more precise in nature than Ryomen's purely destructive force. If Ryomen was like a greatsword that hacked and slashed through everything in its path, then he was like a sheathed katana—hidden until it struck with precision and sharpness.
And still, his energy carried a dark attribute Ryomen lacked. Ryomen's was malicious by nature, while his was darkness itself. Not necessarily evil, but dark nonetheless. Sometimes he wondered why.
Kiyomi, on the other hand—hers was bright. Like light, but scattered and fragmented like mist, lacking precision and concentration.
It was as if they were meant to be opposites. And that was the very reason he found her so easily.
Opposites do attract, I guess, he mused.
"Found her," he grinned.
"Now comes the preparations." He sat down, keeping enough distance from the base that the ROOT shinobi wouldn't detect him.
Taking out paper and ink, he began to write.
He was creating a talisman.
There were many arts, even in the jujutsu world, that allowed one to grow stronger. Talisman-making was one of them.
The problem was, he had only just started practicing it. His calligraphy looked like a two-year-old's scribbles.
But that was fine. The talisman he was making wasn't difficult. All it had to do was hold his cursed energy.
Something even ordinary objects could do if a sorcerer infused them with CE.
The real reason he bothered with talismans was that he needed to pour a large amount of cursed energy into them. He was preparing to use another cursed energy application before storming the ROOT base.
A barrier.
He had tried before, but they were weak. Partly because he never poured much energy into them, as he was only practicing.
The bigger reason was that barriers of real strength required more than practice. They weren't the cheap tricks second-rate curse users tossed around so easily. In the anime, they were only possible because of Tengen's existence.
Tengen's barrier practically held the jujutsu world together. Sukuna had no such luxury—no master barrier craftsman to leech off.
He had to do everything himself.
Good thing… he was Sukuna.
The biggest obstacle in creating a barrier without Tengen's help was the insane CE cost. At least in that regard, he wasn't lacking.
The second issue was barrier integrity, which was why he was creating these talismans. They would help maintain the barrier's shape while he acted as the power source.
And why go to all this trouble?
Two reasons.
First, to prevent anyone inside from escaping—especially Danzo. If anyone got out, the Hokage would learn what was happening.
Second, to keep unwanted eyes away. A barrier could make others avoid the area completely. Very effective for covert measures.
Within minutes, he held four talismans in his hands, each one looking like a toddler's love letter—crafted with great care, but ugly nonetheless.
"Moment of truth." He slowly poured CE into them, grinning when they held his energy just fine.
Without delay, he went around planting them around the ROOT base.
"Let's start this exorcism… 'Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure… Scale of the Dragon… Reverse the Flow.'"
The air above him shimmered with a quiet hum before, right in front of his eyes, a dark spot appeared in the sky and began to spread, like a curtain closing over a window. It dimmed the light, casting a shadow below.
Hidden further from the entrance of the base, Izumi and a few of her most capable clansmen waited.
The moment she saw the shadow cover the sky, she recognized it as the signal and moved into action. Behind her stood the strongest remaining members of her clan. Her job was simple—fight at the entrance and create enough chaos for Sukuna to slip inside and rescue the damsel in distress.
"Follow my lead. Today, we'll show them the true might of the Uchiha!" Izumi roared, her Mangekyō spinning to life. Gasps erupted among her comrades, many seeing it for the first time—and they were elated.
Motivation surged through them. Izumi's anger and hatred burned into determination. It was time to fight for their fallen brothers and sisters… time to avenge their blood.
"To revenge…!"
"To revenge…!"
"To revenge…!"
With a final cry, they rushed the ROOT entrance, bloodlust in their eyes.
With a single hand signal, Izumi and her team advanced. The first guard barely had time to react before Izumi's kunai struck his arm, disarming him. Tekka followed up, weaving signs quickly. A burst of fire roared from his mouth, engulfing two masked ROOT operatives and forcing them to scatter.
"Push forward!" Inabi shouted, his Sharingan spinning as he deflected shuriken with pinpoint precision.
The narrow tunnel leading into the base quickly turned into a battlefield. ROOT operatives poured out of hidden passages, their movements fast and precise. But the Uchiha fought with equal speed and ferocity. Izumi locked eyes with an enemy, casting him into a deep genjutsu before knocking him aside.
One ROOT ninja tried to flank from above, leaping from a wall. Tekka's flames forced him back, while another Uchiha hurled explosive tags, blasting a path deeper inside.
"They're trying to block the way!" Inabi warned as sliding steel barriers began to seal the passage. Two clan members broke through with raw force, their Sharingan reading every strike before it landed.
"Inform Danzo-sama immediately! Send word to the Hokage Tower!" a ROOT operative shouted. But informing Danzo was possible only inside; no one could pass through the veil Sukuna had cast.
Not until he himself was taken out or someone over power the barrier.
The deeper the Uchiha advanced, the stronger the resistance grew. Izumi's breath stayed steady, her mind locked on Kiyomi. Every strike, every step forward was for her. Another ROOT operative lunged, but Izumi's kunai slit his throat before he could even draw his weapon.
Her Mangekyō revealed every enemy's movements before they even made them.
Soon enough, the entrance would fall, and they would be inside.
But one was already there. Sukuna had slipped in with Kamui and was moving quickly toward Kiyomi. Once she was with him, he would go straight to Danzo.
At the same time, another ROOT operative rushed into Danzo's office.
"Lord Danzo," he reported quickly, "the Uchiha—they've launched a direct assault on the base!"
Danzo's visible eye narrowed. "What?"
"They've broken through the outer defenses. Izumi Uchiha herself is leading them."
Danzo's expression darkened. His hand slammed onto the desk with a sharp crack, making his operatives flinch. "Those damned Uchiha…!" he hissed. His voice was calm, but the anger beneath it was unmistakable.
This wasn't part of the plan. And now, with most of his elite forces away, this sudden attack left him at a dangerous disadvantage.
He leaned back slightly, calculating quickly. "Inform Hiruzen immediately," he ordered curtly. "Tell him the Uchiha are staging a rebellion. He will move to restrain them."
The operatives nodded sharply, but before they could leave, Danzo raised his hand. "One more thing," he said coldly. "Bring that girl to me. Now."
"She is still unconscious in holding," one operative reminded.
"Then carry her if you must," Danzo snapped. "She will serve as my hostage. If Izumi values her life, she will surrender without a fight."
The two ROOT shinobi bowed deeply before hurrying out.
Danzo's fingers tapped against the desk as he stared at the door. His pulse quickened. He wasn't afraid of the others—but Izumi.
More specifically, her Mangekyō. He didn't yet possess one of his own to counter that kind of power.
"Damn those Uchiha. Evil, all of them."
xxx
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