Chapter 258: The Shinigami Appears, Possession of Yin Spirit! (1200 Monthly Votes Bonus, 3.5K)
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Tao Bai Bai, who was invulnerable to swords and possessed immense taijutsu. Although the intelligence was still incomplete, he already realized that the person before him was probably a Tailed Beast in human skin.
Just standing there, ordinary ninjas would likely be powerless against him; their attacks couldn't penetrate his defense, and they themselves would be burned by his sticky flames.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's battle armor was now pitch black. He specialized in Water Release and various Substitute Techniques, which allowed him to avoid significant damage during the series of probes.
Seeing his five Shadow Clones ready, he was releasing this jutsu near Konoha for the first time. If there was even a slight chance of avoiding it, he would not unleash such a destructive attack in his own home.
"Old man, I'll ask you one last question, Tao Bai Bai, why are you attacking Konoha?!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze was firm at this moment, his eyes radiating a fierce determination.
Although the Third Hokage had many political issues, with both merits and demerits, he was the man personally chosen by Senju Tobirama to be Hokage, and the "Will of Fire" in his heart had indeed never extinguished.
The difference between him and Danzo was that, in a moment of life and death, he was truly willing to become ashes for the village.
Bai Cangshu's eyes narrowed. He liked this kind of gaze.
The gaze of a powerful person ready to give their all and fight him to the death.
He heard Hiruzen Sarutobi's question, tilted his head, thought for a moment, and muttered,
"Why... indeed..."
Seeing Tao Bai Bai seemingly deep in thought, Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart stirred. As long as there was a possibility of communication, it was a good thing.
"Were you harmed by a Konoha ninja in the past?"
Bai Cangshu shook his head.
"Was your hometown destroyed by war, and your family and friends lost?"
Bai Cangshu still shook his head.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart gradually sank. These two reasons were the motivations of most people who opposed Konoha, but he could explain them. In war, there was no absolute justice, but this Tao Bai Bai wasn't like that...
"Then is it because you couldn't stand some of Konoha's actions and wanted to uphold justice?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi made the worst guess. This kind of enemy was the most troublesome; people who would resort to any means for a certain ideal were the hardest to persuade.
But Bai Cangshu still shook his head.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was somewhat puzzled.
Bai Cangshu, however, let out a chuckle. He stopped teasing the other party, his Killing Intent Ripple growing more intense, now enveloping him like a torch. This energy was not as difficult to move as the ceaseless Yellow Springs and Yin Spirit power within his body; this surging Killing Intent Ripple was almost constantly assaulting his nerves.
Bai Cangshu began to understand why even a powerful Martial artists like Akuma would be dominated by this ripple, because... it felt so good!
This surging power, this constant adrenaline secretion, the thrill of combat continuously stimulating his nerves—this feeling was truly intoxicating.
Bai Cangshu spread his arms, leaning forward at an angle that almost defied physics. His bare feet gripped the ground from the force of his push, and cracks, long and narrow, began to appear on the Third Hokage's Hokage Rock.
"Why am I attacking Konoha?"
"Naturally..."
"For the thrill of it!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's pupils dilated. He was astonished, never expecting to hear such an answer.
"This world, only a place like Konoha would gather so many powerful ninjas, hmm... though it has declined quite a bit now."
"But I want to fight powerful individuals, and Konoha is naturally the first choice."
Bai Cangshu's gaze drifted, and his tone rose continuously. That natural pleasure was not a disguise; he genuinely craved such things.
"Moreover, after Konoha collapses, this world will quickly descend into war, won't it? The so-called Five Great Nations will all quickly mobilize."
"Chaos, unprecedented chaos!"
"The greatest throne can only be forged by the greatest chaos. I..."
"Five Elements: Great Fireball Barrage!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi could no longer listen to this madman's speech. This was a complete lunatic, even more insane than a Tailed Beast. Such a fellow must be completely eradicated for the world to be safe...
Hiruzen Sarutobi's five Shadow Clones simultaneously unleashed powerful Fire Release, Lightning Release, Wind Release, Water Release, and Earth Release from their mouths. The five elemental powers mixed again in mid-air.
This was a high-level jutsu that only Hiruzen Sarutobi, known as the "Professor of Ninjutsu," could control, embodying the essence of elemental nature transformation and various combined ninjutsu.
A terrifying torrent of energy, capable of instantly destroying a city block, roared towards Bai Cangshu.
But Bai Cangshu merely shook his head. This wasn't the jutsu he wanted.
Bai Cangshu tapped his foot.
Bang!
A large chunk of the Hokage Rock instantly shattered, and the head of Hiruzen Sarutobi's statue cracked open. Bai Cangshu himself leaped directly into the sky. Hiruzen Sarutobi watched this scene, enduring the immense Chakra drain.
His five Shadow Clones simultaneously formed hand signs, pointing towards the sky.
The elemental torrent reversed its trajectory in mid-air, directly lunging at Bai Cangshu in the sky.
Boom!
A terrifying explosion erupted in mid-air.
A brilliant white smoke cloud spread outwards like a giant ripple.
This commotion made even Uchiha Shisui, inside his Susanoo, glance slightly. Uchiha Obito, who had once again dodged an attack, seized the opportunity to provoke.
"See? The Third Hokage is probably cornered by that Tao Bai Bai. Instead of wasting time fighting me here, why don't you go help that old man?"
"I know, you still can't let go of the village, can you..."
The unparalleled frontal combat power brought by Susanoo was something Uchiha Obito's Wood Release couldn't resist. He hadn't mastered large-scale Wood Release techniques like Wood Golem, and was currently still relying on Kamui to dodge.
But he could already sense that Uchiha Shisui was close to his limit. Given his age, no matter how talented he was, his Chakra was ultimately finite. Compared to himself, who possessed Senju Hashirama's cells, Shisui couldn't possibly win a war of attrition!
The only thing he needed to be wary of was the ability within the Mangekyo Sharingan that the opponent had yet to use.
He had Kamui, so what about Uchiha Shisui? What ability did he possess?
Uchiha Obito considered that Uchiha Shisui had consistently not released that jutsu, speculating that it must be a technique with an extremely high cost, which he was unwilling to easily use.
But a high cost also meant the effect might be extremely powerful, which was why Uchiha Obito had been stalling.
The battle between Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Itachi was calmer but equally dangerous. Father and son used cold weapons and the insight of the Sharingan to constantly engage in close-quarters combat, interspersed with numerous Sharingan genjutsu.
Uchiha Fugaku was both astonished by his eldest son's talent and alarmed by Itachi's choice today.
He understood Itachi's personality; he wasn't a bloodthirsty person. His actions today meant that, in Itachi's judgment, even with him and Zhi Shui, Konoha was still doomed to lose this battle... So he chose to separate himself from the Uchiha Clan, becoming the executioner, and exchanged some kind of future from Tao Bai Bai.
Uchiha Fugaku's attention drifted towards the Hokage Rock. He saw that the Third Hokage's Hokage Rock had completely vanished, along with the forest behind it. Flames swirled, and intense air currents appeared in the sky due to the massive elemental changes.
The Third Hokage was still there... Had he won?
Pfft!
A cold light flashed. Uchiha Fugaku's heart chilled. He barely dodged, but a cut still appeared on his arm.
Uchiha Itachi frowned, his expression still cold.
"Father, step aside. If a certain number of people don't die today, those guys won't stop."
He was preparing to kill Danzo again. If he did, Konoha's upper echelon would be almost completely wiped out, which he thought would satisfy Tao Bai Bai's appetite... In Uchiha Itachi's mind, he actually thought more than Fugaku. He wasn't just doing it for Konoha, but he slowly came to agree with Tao Bai Bai's crazy theory.
War couldn't end because the Five Great Nations stood in opposition, with countless smaller nations interspersed, leading to constant conflicts of interest. War naturally couldn't be eradicated. The so-called hatred of ninjas was just "minor grievances" swept up in this larger trend.
To end war, the ninja villages couldn't do it... Therefore, he would use the collapse of Konoha to plunge the ninja villages into chaos, and then, together with that madman, go and see if the Daimyo who controlled the world... would suffer!
Clang!
He forced his father back with a sword, his body dissolving like a crow, and he lunged towards other places...
Hiruzen Sarutobi gasped for breath, his mind still tense. He had a premonition that it wasn't over yet.
Whoosh!
A golden aura instantly pierced through the smoke, and Hiruzen Sarutobi's brow was instantly impaled.
Bang!
This Hiruzen Sarutobi exploded into smoke.
But the remaining figures rushed into the smoke together.
As he sprinted, he continuously formed hand signs.
"Old friend, are you really going to..."
Enma, transformed into the Adamantine Staff, saw this and tried to speak, but Hiruzen Sarutobi instantly swung the staff.
Bang!
In a clash with a fist, a terrifying shockwave caused air to flow, dispersing the smoke. Hiruzen Sarutobi's sprinting motion was also interrupted. The power gap was too great; almost every one of the opponent's moves rendered his actions impossible to continue.
Bai Cangshu stood before Hiruzen Sarutobi, enveloped in fire and lightning. The wounds on his skin, cut by wind blades, healed rapidly. He then tore off the skin and flesh covered in flames and lightning and threw them away.
Beneath that skin, countless cells condensed into rapidly twitching granulation tissue. Soon, the muscles completed their self-healing, followed by the skin.
Hiruzen Sarutobi watched this scene, exhaling the stale air from his chest.
"Indeed... an immortal monster..."
Bai Cangshu continued to walk towards Hiruzen Sarutobi, whose hand signs were now complete.
He spoke.
"Tao Bai Bai, come with me and leave this world..."
Then, he spread his hands, took a step forward, and grabbed Tao Bai Bai. He left himself wide open, using this vulnerability, the price of being punched through the body, as bait, hoping to seize Tao Bai Bai.
Bai Cangshu could naturally dodge, but he didn't. Instead, the smile on his face grew more fervent. He took a step forward, allowing Hiruzen Sarutobi to grab him.
Although Hiruzen Sarutobi was slightly surprised, he had no time to think now.
He roared,
"Reaper Death Seal!"
A cold and ominous aura appeared behind him. Although he couldn't see it at that moment, he knew clearly that the jutsu was complete.
Next, it was... He roared, and the giant Shinigami's hand passed through his body, through his soul, reaching into the chest of the immortal monster, Tao Bai Bai.
Bai Cangshu looked at the Shinigami's strange face, feeling the cold touch enter his body. His lips curved into a smile, no longer able to hold back.
"Hahaha, here it comes!"
The Shinigami pulled hard, but Hiruzen Sarutobi was surprised to find that Tao Bai Bai, who should have been seized by his soul and gradually immobilized, was still smiling. A black spirit, helpless, was dragged out halfway by the Shinigami.
The opponent's silver-white hair and black clothes were completely different from Tao Bai Bai's.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was utterly bewildered.
"What... what is going on..."
Gojo Satoru looked at the one who had grabbed his spirit, shaking his head helplessly.
"Hey, hey, you're my host, aren't you? How can you let someone so easily drag out your tenant!"
At this moment, Bai Cangshu also had a fervent expression. He looked at the Shinigami, and the Yellow Springs in his bloodline began to surge.
"Possession of Yin Spirit!