Just as Itachi's figure reformed, a terrifying black thunderbolt, like a coiled dragon, instantly rushed toward him.
Naruto's form flickered, and he reappeared beside Sasuke, gently helping him into a sitting position against a nearby tree.
Itachi Uchiha's Sharingan stared straight ahead, unblinking. He could clearly see the stream of black energy, seemingly both illusory and real at once.
Genjutsu? Or ninjutsu?
He wasn't sure, and he was not reckless enough to take it head on.
But the Black Thunder was far faster than he had imagined. Before Itachi could make any evasive maneuvers, he was completely enveloped by it. In an instant, a powerful spiritual will washed over his mental barriers like an ocean tide. In his perception, he had become a lone ship caught at the heart of a raging storm.
In the ninja world, a person's spiritual will was closely related to Yin Release chakra. A ninja with greater talent in this area could cast more powerful genjutsu. The ocular power of the Uchiha clan's Sharingan was a manifestation of this very power, meaning nearly every Uchiha who awakened it possessed a formidable spirit.
Similarly, in the world of pirates, Haki was inseparable from spiritual will. The difference was that they could not cultivate their mental fortitude through Yin Release chakra. The strong on the seas could only master this strange ability through the crucible of life and death battles or through arduous training to temper their will.
Conqueror's Haki was even rarer. Only when an inherently indomitable will and a powerful spirit merged could one possibly obtain the qualifications of a "king."
The two powers had their similarities and their differences. Ninja spiritual attacks generally had a smaller range but offered more precise control, allowing users to manipulate or even destroy an enemy's consciousness. Conqueror's Haki, on the other hand, was more of a raw projection of one's own will. Its essence was to overwhelm the enemy's spirit with a powerful sense of self, and it had a much wider range.
One was a hardened kunai, the other a howling gale. In a direct clash, neither could easily overpower the other.
Just as it was now, Itachi, enveloped by Conqueror's Haki, felt his spirit suppressed to a degree, but he did not feel any actual harm.
However, this was precisely the effect Naruto needed.
Being able to restrict your movements is enough.
The Kusanagi Sword drew a brilliant arc of light in the air. The slash was flawless, a seemingly indefensible strike.
Naruto's speed was immense. The velocity he could generate in his current body was incomparable to even the most skilled taijutsu specialist on the field.
But just as he brought the Haki-covered sword down, he stopped abruptly, twisting his body to dodge in another direction.
The slash that could have cut Itachi in two was diverted, only slicing through the hem of his Akatsuki cloak.
Itachi's expression did not even flicker as the blade passed within a hair's breadth of his body. He stood firm, his eyes fixed on Naruto's previous position.
"Amaterasu."
Itachi spoke the word softly as two lines of blood slowly trickled from the corners of his eyes.
Just as Naruto moved, black flames erupted from the ground where he had stood, igniting the damp bushes out of thin air.
If he hadn't dodged, those flames would have consumed him.
"What is this stuff?" Naruto muttered, watching the black fire burn through even the water-soaked tree trunks.
Amaterasu's flames ignited instantly, making them almost impossible to dodge. But Naruto's Observation Haki was even more of a cheat. Seeing their intensity, he finally put away any underestimation of his opponent.
Easily defeating Kisame Hoshigaki had indeed made him somewhat careless. As soon as he saw their distinctive attire, he remembered Kakuzu, the Akatsuki member who had died by his hand. He had initially thought the two were here for revenge. Looking at it now, it seemed he was the one who had dragged Sasuke into this.
I can't be touched by those black flames.
They gave Naruto a very dangerous feeling.
"Good reaction speed," Itachi said, his voice flat. "If you were touched by Amaterasu's flames, the only end waiting for you would be to be completely burned to ashes."
This wasn't entirely true. Although Amaterasu's flames could not be extinguished, they could be sealed into a scroll. Unfortunately, Naruto didn't know this.
He moved to attack again, but the future he glimpsed with his Observation Haki forced him to dodge once more, this time closing his eyes as he moved.
Itachi had used the Tsukuyomi that had just tormented Sasuke. He seemed to realize that Naruto possessed some ability to predict his attacks, but he did not seem bothered by this. Instead, he used it to his advantage, constantly forcing Naruto to react and evade.
Tsk, how troublesome.
Naruto cursed inwardly. Itachi Uchiha was on a completely different level from Kisame Hoshigaki.
It could only be said that Naruto's use of chakra was still too unrefined. With Haki alone, he could at most avoid being hit, but he had no effective counter to the powerful genjutsu of the Mangekyo Sharingan. With his current abilities, his long-range attack methods were too scarce. For now, he truly couldn't do anything to Itachi.
He lamented again. If only he still possessed his original physical strength, he could simply unleash a Haki-infused shockwave and obliterate everything in his path.
No, next time I have to ask Jiraiya-sensei to teach me some ways to deal with genjutsu.
Suddenly, Naruto sensed something and relaxed his fighting stance, withdrawing all the Haki he had released.
Itachi, a beat slower, also stopped and quickly retreated.
Dozens of figures appeared on the battlefield. They were Konoha's ANBU and the jonin team leaders of the Konoha 12.
The ANBU's arrival quickly tilted the scales of victory toward Anko and the others. Soon, the ordinary Sound and Sand ninja were subdued one by one.
Kakashi, Guy, Kurenai, and the other jonin approached the standoff, some of them already in attack stances.
"Looks like this capture mission has failed."
Even with his clothes torn, Itachi Uchiha still maintained his cool demeanor. He looked deeply at Sasuke, who was still unconscious against a tree not far away.
"My foolish little brother, if you want to kill me... then continue to hate me. Hate me, and live on in your ugliness..."
His words and his figure gradually dissipated into a murder of crows, scattering into the air. As an undercover agent for Konoha, Itachi had no intention of fighting to the death with Naruto for an Akatsuki mission. Since the jonin had arrived, it was a good opportunity to make a graceful exit.
"You guys finally came, Kakashi-sensei. I was really exhausted just now."
As soon as the enemy disappeared, Naruto seemed to revert to his previous lazy demeanor.
"You did all this?"
Kakashi asked in a low voice, his visible eye constantly darting toward the surrounding Forest of Death, which had been destroyed beyond recognition. Under Naruto's previous attack, almost all the trees within a massive radius had been uprooted, and even the top layer of soil had been scraped away.
It was fortunate that this place was far enough from the residential area; otherwise, the damage would have been far greater.
Hearing this, Naruto began to whistle innocently, an expression on his face that clearly said, It has nothing to do with me.
"I don't know. It was like this when I got here."
[Chapter Complete]
***
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