"Otsutsuki... Rakushiki?"
Jigen's voice carried a suppressed, icy killing intent.
"Who are you exactly?"
He stared fixedly at the still-composed black-haired youth before him, his eyes filled with incredible shock and a trace of fury from having his reverse scale touched.
That elegant composure, as if everything was under control, vanished completely at this moment.
Without waiting for the other's response, Jigen flipped his wrist, and a short rod about a foot long, completely black, materialized in his hand.
It was a black Chakra Rod created using Yin-Yang Release!
He swung his arm, the black rod whistling as it tore through the air, shooting straight at Menma's face!
This attack was as fast as instant transmission, containing power enough to easily pierce steel.
Facing this sudden deadly attack, Menma didn't even bat an eye.
He just seemingly casually raised his right hand and gently waved his palm in front of him.
Ding!
A crisp sound, like copper chimes striking.
That black rod, which would make a Kage-level expert take seriously, was effortlessly flicked away by the back of his hand!
The black rod shot back at an even faster speed, stabbing towards Jigen's chest!
Jigen's pupils contracted. He reacted extremely quickly, reaching out to catch the returning black rod.
But the moment his fingers touched the black rod.
Hum!!!
A terrifying repulsive force, vast beyond imagination, transmitted fiercely through the black rod!
Boom!!!
Jigen's entire person, along with the luxurious desk behind him, the expensive carpet, and large sections of the floor and wall, were violently sent flying and shattered by this invisible tremendous force!
The side wall of the entire office was blown open into a huge hole. The gale, carrying cold rain, instantly poured in, washing chaotic tracks through the billowing dust.
Jigen stabilized his stance somewhat disheveled on the ground full of rubble. His pristine white robe was dampened by the blast's aftermath and rain, stained with dirt.
He raised his head, looking towards Menma, who remained seated safe and sound, not even a corner of his clothes disheveled.
For the first time in a thousand years, he showed gravity and suspicion.
Through the dust and rain curtain, he clearly saw that the youth's eyes had changed.
The left eye was a Mangekyo Sharingan rotating slowly like a vortex, while the right eye was pure white, with veins slightly bulging around the pupil!
"Sharingan... and Byakugan?!" Jigen's voice was hoarse with disbelief. "You... are you a contingency left by that bitch Kaguya?!"
Such a combination of Dojutsu didn't seem naturally born, making him inevitably think of that woman who betrayed and nearly killed him.
Menma slowly stood up. The rainwater seemed to slide off an invisible barrier near his body.
He chuckled lightly, with a hint of mockery, raised his right hand, Chakra condensing in his palm.
A black rod identical to the one in Jigen's hand rapidly took form.
"I have no relation with Kaguya," Menma played with the black rod in his hand, his tone flat, "If I must say, I'm just a passing Ninja."
Jigen's eyes sharpened. He said no more.
He knew words were meaningless now.
The other knew his identity, possessed bizarre Dojutsu and power. His purpose was definitely not simple.
Even though he couldn't think of anyone on this planet besides the sealed Kaguya who knew of his existence?
Hum-!
A cold and vast Chakra suddenly erupted from Jigen's body!
The skin on his body surface rapidly emerged with black wedge-shaped markings covering his entire body like tattoos. These markings emitted a pressuring aura far exceeding before!
Jigen's aura also became unfathomable.
[Kama - Stage One!]
Entering this state, Jigen's confidence returned.
He believed that with this power transcending the mundane, he could deal with any so-called 'strong' individual in the Ninja World.
Even if the other party wasn't Kaguya's contingency, it was enough to capture him.
"I don't sense the pure Otsutsuki Clan's bloodline aura on you," Jigen's voice became low and filled with majesty, like a high and mighty deity.
"You are not one of my clan. But you have learned secrets you shouldn't know... It seems now you came specifically for me?"
Although he spent a thousand years barely recovering partial strength and fully controlling this body, he wasn't completely ignorant of the outside world.
He had watched coldly from the sidelines Kaguya's war with her two sons and the Ninja World's millennia of conflict.
He had absolute confidence that even if someone came knocking, he didn't need to hide like a rat like Black Zetsu.
Menma flicked the black rod in his hand, his tone still relaxed: "To me, the Ninja World holds no secrets. I have no relation with Kaguya. I just want to..."
He raised his head, his Mangekyo Sharingan and Byakugan simultaneously locking onto Jigen, his voice carrying a smile:
"Beat you to death."
"Or, be beaten to death by you."
"Heh... It seems you're very confident in your own strength." A graceful curve lifted the corner of Jigen's mouth. "Just right, I also need some capable subordinates to handle miscellaneous tasks. In that case, I'll reluctantly take you in as a hound!"
Before his words faded, Jigen's figure suddenly vanished from his original spot!
His speed far exceeded before!
The next moment, he appeared beside Menma, the black rod condensed in his hand carrying the momentum to tear through the air, stabbing directly at Menma's side!
Menma seemed to have anticipated it. His body tilted slightly, his right hand's black rod accurately blocking Jigen's thrust!
Clang!!!
The black rods clashed, emitting a piercing metallic clang, sparks splashing in the rain curtain!
The ground beneath their feet instantly cracked and collapsed!
One strike missed, Jigen's attacks were relentless. The black rod in his hand was like a living thing, stabbing, sweeping, smashing… his moves were vicious and cunning, each strike containing the power to split mountains and crack stones.
Menma, however, seemed at ease. The black rod in his hand danced like the wind, blocking Jigen's storm-like attacks one by one, his movements flowing smoothly, as if he had already seen through all the other's moves.
In the intense close-quarters combat, a cold light flashed in Jigen's eyes as he secretly activated his ability.
[Daikokuten!]
Several barely detectable black rods, shrunk to the extreme, shot silently towards several vital points on Menma's body like invisible dust.
These black rods were stored in his different dimension and could be summoned at any time.
Immediately after, activated Sukunahikona!
He wanted to instantly restore these micro black rods shot into Menma's body to their original size!
Piercing him through from the inside out!
This was his commonly used and invariably successful combination killing move!
However, the moment he activated [Sukunahikona], attempting to enlarge those micro black rods, he clearly felt a powerful resistance!
Around Menma, it was as if there was an invisible yet tough barrier force field!
This force field wasn't absolute defense, but it greatly slowed the speed and force of the black rods' instant expansion!
Although it was only a brief moment of delay, for a powerhouse of Menma's level, it was enough!
Menma's body, as if foreseeing it, swayed with a hair's breadth difference. Those several suddenly enlarging black rods brushed past the corners of his clothes, only tearing the fabric, but failing to injure his body!
'What?!' Jigen's heart shook violently, showing astonishment for who knows which time.
'He... he can actually interfere with Sukunahikona?!'
Not only was the other powerful, but he also seemed to have a deep understanding of his two core abilities, even finding a way to counter them!
'How was this possible?!'
The more they fought, the greater Jigen's shock became.
'The other party's strength, speed, reactions, and grasp of the battle situation all far exceeded my estimates.'
'This was definitely not the strength an ordinary 'native' could possess!'
'Stage One... not enough!' Jigen instantly judged.
'To capture or even kill the other party, I must use stronger power… Kama Stage Two!'
But the tragic thing was, this vessel of his simply didn't have enough Chakra to support him opening Stage Two!
'I must replenish Chakra!'
With this thought, Jigen didn't hesitate. While violently retreating, he activated his ability again!
Sukunahikona!
This time, the target was himself!
His body rapidly shrunk at a visible rate, in the blink of an eye becoming as fine as dust, completely blending into the surrounding chaotic environment and rain curtain, disappearing.
"Tch, want to play hide and seek?" Menma looked at the vanished Jigen, smacked his lips, somewhat regretting not finding a chance to plant a Flying Thunder God's mark during the intense clash.
He quickly formed hand seals, took a deep breath, his chest swelling.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
Boom-!!!
Not aimed at a single point, but a covering, extremely wide-ranging sea of flames surged from his mouth!
The scorching flames instantly devoured a large area ahead, turning the ruined office, corridor, and even the outside streets into a sea of fire!
The high temperature evaporated the rainwater, producing large amounts of white steam.
This indiscriminate area attack sure enough forced out the target!
At the edge of the flames, a seemingly empty corner, space slightly twisted… the Fire Release was being absorbed!
"Found you!" Just then, a shadow clone of Menma suddenly leaped out from the shadows behind and to his side, several specially made kunai shooting like a storm towards his back!
"Hmph!" Jigen snorted coldly. Although he couldn't move quickly while absorbing, he wasn't without means!
Jigen's body was absorbed by a dark red vortex, dodging these kunai.
Then, another dark red vortex appeared not far away, and Jigen's figure slowly emerged.
Simultaneously, Jigen released the Fire Attribute Chakra he had just absorbed, mixed with his own Chakra!
A violent flame not inferior in the slightest to Menma's Great Fire Annihilation erupted from within him, crashing fiercely against the Fire Release continuously spat by Menma's main body!
Boom!!!
The collision of two huge Fire Release Ninjutsu produced an even more violent explosion!
Flames shot towards the sky, illuminating the night sky as bright as day. The explosion's shockwave completely flattened the already precarious buildings around!
Before the flames completely dispersed, two figures collided again like lightning!
The sound of black rods clashing was like a movement of death, playing urgently on the ruins interwoven with fire and rain.
The movements of the two were extremely fast, and ordinary people couldn't even capture their afterimages.
After one intense black rod clash, Menma took advantage of the momentum to close in, his empty left hand's fingers together, covered with a layer of Lightning Release chakra, stabbing straight at Jigen's heart!
A fierce light flashed in Jigen's eyes. He didn't dodge or avoid. His right leg, like a steel whip with a whistling wind, arrived later but hit first, kicking Menma's chest hard!
Thud!
A dull sound. Menma was sent flying back by this tremendous force, crashing through the wall of a tall tower behind like a cannonball, leaving deep footprints on the pipe-covered wall before barely stabilizing his stance.
He rubbed his somewhat sore chest, but his eyes became sharper.
He slowly raised his right hand. Above his palm, an energy ball the size of a basketball, its interior showing a deep dark red, tightly wrapped by rapidly rotating pale blue Wind Attribute Chakra, rapidly took shape.
At the core of the energy ball, the dark purple energy squirmed like a living thing, emitting an aura full of destruction and ill omen, completely different from this world's chakra.
[Mini Spiralling Ring!]
Menma pushed off with his feet, his figure shooting out again, holding this ominous energy ball, charging straight towards Jigen, who had just retracted his leg!
Watching Menma charge again and the energy ball in his hand, Jigen in Stage One was full of confidence.
For this kind of 'Chakra Form Change' Ninjutsu, he, who possessed the Kama's absorption ability, can be called an absolute counter!
He didn't even make any defensive posture. Instead, he arrogantly raised both hands, palms facing Menma and the Mini Spiralling Ring, sneering coldly: "This kind of move has no..."
Before he finished speaking, his expression changed drastically!
The moment his Kama's absorption ability touched the Mini Spiralling Ring, the situation he anticipated, of the energy being rapidly devoured and absorbed, did not occur!
That dark purple core energy seemed to be a completely foreign substance he couldn't understand or compatible with. His absorption ability... failed before it?!
"Impossible!!!" Jigen's exclamation was filled with shock and incomprehension.
In that split second, Menma had already charged before him with the Mini Spiralling Ring!
Boom!!!!!!!!
The Mini Spiralling Ring solidly struck Jigen's arms, which were hastily crossed to block!
It wasn't the roar of a Chakra Explosion, but a deeper, stranger loud noise, as if it could tear and annihilate even space!
"Pfft-!"
Jigen's entire person was as if struck by a meteor. Blood spurted from his mouth like a fountain!
He clearly heard the sound of his arm bones shattering!
His entire person flew backward like a kite with a broken string, continuously crashing through several walls before stopping in a pile of ruins.
He struggled to get up but felt a sharp pain and a strange sensation in his chest.
He looked down and saw the black on his stomach spreading, indicating his body couldn't hold up under the repeated blows.
And a pale blue Flying Thunder God's mark was slowly fading into the skin where he had been hit.
Jigen sharply raised his head, looking towards Menma walking over slowly from afar, his eyes filled with unprecedented shock, anger, and a trace of fear of the unknown.
"Why... why... can't it be absorbed?!" Jigen's voice became hoarse and distorted due to internal organ damage and extreme confusion. "What kind of power is that exactly?!"
He couldn't understand, 'The other party was clearly using Ninjutsu based on the Chakra System, so why did it contain a foreign energy I couldn't absorb or even comprehend?'
'And that bizarre barrier of his could also delay my Spatial Ability...'
'This youth... what is his origin?!'
And at this moment, Menma's heart had verified his guess.
'As expected... the core of the Spiralling Ring is the [Dark Chakra] from the Limited Tsukuyomi World. And this world's Chakra System simply doesn't have the [Dark] attribute! Jigen's Kama's absorption ability is based on the cognition of this world's Chakra. So faced with a completely unfamiliar foreign energy, it naturally fails!'