Chapter Twenty-Five ــ Even if I have to take your soul to find out
There was no delay in the response.
The movements of that ghostly fist accelerated, a blur of motion that defied the eye.
It grabbed the arm of a shadow soldier and obliterated its body with a single blow, a sickening crunch-squelch of dissipating darkness.
Then it turned its gaze again to the person who had, in that moment, become the commander of an army of shadows numbering over fifty.
(Ochiha Sasuke)'s eyes narrowed, the crimson and purple irises glowing with intense scrutiny.
"I'm sure of it," he muttered, the words a low, venomous hiss that cut through the din of clashing energy.
"This stinking aura... it's the same aura possessed by that person who appeared in the Volcanic Gate. I'm sure the one before me knows a lot of information about those gates."
His grip tightened, the air around his hand crackling with suppressed power.
"I will capture him."
After that, (Ochiha Sasuke) disappeared.
Not in a puff of smoke, but with a sharp shwip of displaced air.
He created an afterimage—no, several afterimages.
Those images split into multiple parts, each one a phantom of lethal intent.
They proceeded to dismantle the defenses of the shadow soldiers.
Every strike was titled a deafening thunderclap, each one disassembling the air around it.
The sound of the explosions with each punch was extremely loud, accompanied by consecutive shockwaves that sent vibrations deep into the very ground of the International Meeting Hall.
The S-rank hunters, plus the National Level hunters, immediately retreated and moved to a safe perimeter.
They moved with the frantic haste of mice fleeing a collapsing barn.
Meanwhile, the shadow soldiers summoned by (Sung Jin-Woo) were being destroyed in a matter of seconds.
One after another, they burst into plumes of inky smoke with pathetic pops.
The eyes of the Shadow Sovereign, who had summoned various shadow soldiers, narrowed further.
These soldiers, crafted from shadow, now wielded magical spears.
"Activate the lightning barrier," (Sung Jin-Woo) commanded, his voice cold and flat.
A ripple spread out as the Mage-type soldiers were ordered to activate their special technique.
A wave of lightning was sent forth, targeting the last Uchiha.
But these attacks, each one a shockwave measuring hundreds of meters of pure lightning, were far, far slower than the speed possessed by (Ochiha Sasuke).
He dodged them with immense speed, his body a flicker of black and purple.
Zip. Zap. Fizz.
Every strike was incapable of hitting him.
In one instant, he bypassed the defenses of the mages and launched his own attack.
"Lightning Style: Close-Range Chidori!"
His hand transformed into a spear of lightning, a screeching, wailing drill of pure blue-white energy that sounded like a thousand shrieking birds.
KEEEEEEEE-RAK!
He spun at speed around the group of mages and dismantled them before unleashing a wave of shock.
The blast sent an explosion that tore into the earth, creating a eruption of rocky dust.
Half of the hall, which measured over a hundred meters across, was blown apart in a single second.
The resulting lightning strike transferred directly between the shadow soldiers, attacking each one individually.
(Sung Jin-Woo) accelerated in an instant.
The thrust of the spear that was approaching his body was fast.
But he exchanged places using his skill.
"Shadow Exchange."
FWOOP.
He transferred to another location.
The place where he had been standing exploded and turned into scorched, electrified earth.
The lightning spear that hit the spot proceeded to pulverize it into fine powder with a final, sizzling crackle.
He looked at (Ochiha Sasuke) and his strange eyes—one purple, the other red—and thought continuously.
What a threat level. Now I understand why the System placed him at such a high rank. This power and speed alone surpass an S-rank hunter by a wide margin. If I hadn't raised my level in the Demon King's Castle, I would have sustained some serious losses just trying to match his speed.
But even with these thoughts, the Shadow Monarch did not retreat.
He summoned the shadows that had been destroyed, using magical energy renewal, and created even more soldiers.
Each soldier transformed into a battle-ready state and surged forward in the same line.
But this time, they possessed enhanced combat skills plus precise strikes.
"He can develop shadow soldiers," (Sasuke) observed mid-air, his Sharingan whirring as it analyzed the flow of chakra and shadow.
"His technique resembles the Nara clan's technique, but different. He doesn't just control the shadows linked to other people... he binds souls."
(Ochiha Sasuke) leapt into the air with a quick jump.
He compressed the air using chakra, creating a booming THUMP of pressurized atmosphere.
In this way, he dodged a shadow soldier that was moving its sword at speed to strike him.
He then grabbed hold of numerous shadow soldiers.
With a casual flick of his Chidori-enhanced hand, he sent a normal lightning strike through them.
ZZZRAK-KAK-KAK!
Of course, this move was devastating to the hall.
It sent the nearby shadows flying several meters before they were disassembled and turned into mere threads of darkness.
Then he looked at (Sung Jin-Woo), his expression one of pure, icy contempt.
"You convert people's shadows into these things. Is this your strongest move? Disgusting."
His voice dripped with revulsion.
"You toy with people's souls. I can feel it, even if you try to hide it with your foul energy. You convert them, even the wills of these beings, for your own benefit. You really are like that despicable creature."
He was referring to the Monarch from the S-rank gate that had appeared in Korea.
Of course, (Sung Jin-Woo) didn't understand what (Ochiha Sasuke) meant, and he didn't even try to understand.
The battle had become personal for him.
After this fight broke out, all the S-rank hunters were unable to follow the afterimages.
Suddenly, while they were looking at the two individuals they were sure were National Level, a group of shadows began fighting the Japanese hunter named (Ochiha Sasuke).
For them, (Ochiha Sasuke)'s disappearance resembled teleportation, accompanied by a barrage of lightning strikes sent in every direction.
Each charge from these lightning strikes sent out a shockwave capable of destroying tens, no, hundreds of meters of solid metal and concrete.
KA-BOOM! BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
"This is terrifying! We have to leave this place!" shouted one hunter, his voice cracking as he looked at the building that was on the verge of total collapse.
The last attack (Ochiha Sasuke) had used was launched towards the support columns.
It had blown up the entire foundation of the tower and the meeting hall with a catastrophic GROOOOOAN of failing architecture.
The hunters did not hesitate.
Their bodies, which had been frozen by the pressure of the two auras, were finally able to move, fueled by adrenaline-pumped survival instinct.
They scrambled for the exits like ants from a flooded nest.
But the National Level hunters, plus some S-rank hunters who had remained in the hall, had moved to a slightly higher vantage point to watch the fight.
Their eyes were wide, drinking in the spectacle.
The speed of the movements they were seeing, plus the destructive power, were all top-tier.
(Liu Zhigang) was beside (Thomas Andre).
The Chinese Seven-Star hunter was watching the movements of (Sasuke)'s face, his own eyes narrowed to slits.
"What a madman. He started this in this place. Shouldn't you intervene, American hunter?" he said, his tone blunt.
Frankly, he wanted to intervene, but he wasn't an American hunter.
And since they were now in America, (Liu Zhigang) didn't have any authority to intervene in such a fight, even if he wanted to.
So he looked at (Thomas Andre), the strongest American hunter, with a questioning gaze.
(Thomas Andre) met his look just as an explosion of lightning occurred in the distance.
(Ochiha Sasuke) had destroyed numerous shadows before lunging towards another shadow in the form of a knight, striking it with a single blow that resembled a purple lightning bolt.
PASHOOOOOM!
He scattered the knight shadows with one hit, all while he was sipping his drink.
"Why should I care about this?" (Thomas Andre) rumbled, his voice like grinding stones.
"Especially when I'm watching such an entertaining show. Besides..."
He paused for a moment, taking a last gulp of whiskey with a loud gulp.
"Don't you notice that Korean kid has a strange energy? That power... I feel a grudge towards it. It's as if I want to intervene, but not to stop this. To wipe out that Korean hunter."
(Thomas Andre) didn't like his instincts being controlled, especially by something he didn't understand.
But this feeling in his body was like an addiction, making him want to smash that Korean hunter who had interrupted his conversation earlier.
"You're right. I feel it too," (Liu Zhigang) admitted, his jaw tight.
"But that's not a reason for me to act, and you know that."
(Liu Zhigang) was feeling the same primal urge, but he paid it no mind.
He wanted to intervene, but he respected international law.
Besides that—he felt this fight might not be fatal in the end, for a strange reason.
Of course, the National Level hunters didn't realize the immense danger in this fight, but they were focusing on the shadows (Sung Jin-Woo) was bringing out.
Their power was very strange, yet also close to S-rank.
This level of power made the National Level hunters focus more on the Korean young man than on (Ochiha Sasuke).
And that wasn't because they couldn't assess (Ochiha Sasuke)'s abilities.
It was because the aura (Sung Jin-Woo) possessed attracted them, as if it was telling them to start a fight with it.
This desire was in their bodies, but they were people of strong will, so they were able to control themselves.
Meanwhile, in the scene of the fight between (Ochiha Sasuke) and (Sung Jin-Woo), things had become more difficult.
The Korean hunter was starting to take things seriously.
Skills for increasing stats were activated in a big way.
FWUMP. FWUMP. FWUMP.
A series of palpable power surges rolled off him.
In one moment, (Sung Jin-Woo) disappeared like a ghost.
He appeared in front of the lightning-element user like a phantom, executing a swift kick.
This kick was circular, compressing the air with a WHOOSH.
The rogue ninja raised his fist in a block.
The kick collided with the fist, sending out a shockwave.
BAM!
The Shadow Lord exchanged places with one of his shadows.
FWOOP.
In the next second, the shadow soldier was pierced directly and destroyed.
(Ochiha Sasuke) looked at the distant place where the Korean hunter had arrived and quickly deduced in his mind:
He can exchange places with shadows. Another ability, isn't it?
Then something happened that (Sung Jin-Woo) did not expect.
A shadow disappeared beside him.
And (Ochiha Sasuke) appeared.
This sudden, close-quarters appearance confused the shadow user for a single moment.
It was enough.
Enough for (Sasuke) to send forth and activate his technique.
"Lightning Style: Chidori!"
KEEEEEEEEEE-RAK-KAK-KAK-KAK!
The sound of a thousand shrieking birds appeared in an instant.
An explosion of brilliant blue-white light was formed, transitioning to blinding white.
The heat that concentrated in a single second was dazzlingly bright.
A sound of explosion happened with a BOOOOOOM that seemed to swallow the world.
This attack expanded directly to a size of one kilometer.
The international reception halls, plus the conference halls on the carefully chosen island for the international meeting...
The entire meeting tower was blown apart within it.
The force of the explosion was like a meteorite that destroyed everything around it.
"What in the hell is this madness?!" a hunter screamed, his voice lost in the cataclysm.
The hunters who had exited the tower witnessed with their own eyes the explosion of white light that destroyed the upper half of the tower.
Rocks flew from above, crashing into the ground with earth-shaking THUD-CRUNCHes.
The rocky area nearby was completely blown apart.
And in that moment, a black light shot out directly like a comet and collided with the ground.
CRASH-BOOM!
(Sung Jin-Woo) took a deep breath while droplets of blood fell from his fingers.
He looked up at the sky and stared at (Ochiha Sasuke), who was floating in the air thanks to the Rinnegan's ability to control gravity.
Then he let out a pained sound before raising his energy and boosting his stats.
Numerous of his skills were activated simultaneously.
And at the same time, the Shadow Army appeared.
150 shadows.
They appeared all around.
All of them were A-rank, plus six shadows that were S-rank.
They all surrounded him, looking up at the floating figure of (Ochiha Sasuke).
"Skill: Shadow Domain. Skill: Shadow Reinforcement. Skill: Dark Consciousness. The three skills have been activated."
This announcement was made synchronously by the System.
The power of (Sung Jin-Woo) rose several-fold in an instant.
(Sasuke) watched this.
He could see it clearly with his Sharingan, which allowed him to see the flow of the strange energy swelling around (Sung Jin-Woo).
But that didn't matter to the Last Uchiha in the slightest.
He let out a sneering laugh.
Heh.
"Do you think just raising your power a little will let you stay alive?" (Ochiha Sasuke)'s voice was audible to all the hunters who were far away and observing the situation, plus (Sung Jin-Woo) who was below.
As the pressure from his power rose after using his enhanced skills, they could all hear the underlying mockery and arrogance in (Ochiha Sasuke)'s voice.
"I will take the information about the gates from you, whether you like it or not. Even if I have to take your soul to find out."
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End of Chapter.
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A note from your (slightly deafened) narrator:
Well, the property damage bill just reached "national debt" levels. At this point, the only thing left intact on this island is probably the concept of personal space, and these two are violating that too. Who do you think is winning this wildly destructive conversation? Will Jin-Woo's army be enough, or is Sasuke about to pull out something even more... final? Let me know your predictions in the comments!