To Lock's right, the ink mist gradually dispersed, revealing four figures hidden within the darkness.
At the front stood Sai, breathing heavily with a brush in hand.
Behind him were three shinobi of the Ino–Shika–Chō clans, their hand seals already completed.
"Buy me time!"
Sai shouted before snapping open a scroll midair.
His brush swept rapidly across it with sharp, continuous strokes.
The three moved at once.
The Nara clan ninja stepped forward first. His shadow stretched outward like a venomous serpent, shooting across the ground like an arrow.
In an instant, it connected with Lock's shadow.
An invisible restraint descended.
It felt like countless strands of iron thread binding Lock's body in place.
At the same moment, the Yamanaka clan ninja formed a triangular seal with his hands, releasing invisible mental energy.
The attack flashed forward like lightning and plunged directly into Lock's consciousness.
The final attacker was the large-bodied Akimichi ninja.
His hands rapidly expanded, swelling larger and larger until they became two gigantic palms that blotted out the sky.
With a tearing roar of air, they smashed down toward Lock.
All three were elite Special Jonin under Danzo.
This perfectly synchronized combination had defeated true Jonin before.
Unfortunately—
Their opponent was Lock.
The first to die was the Yamanaka ninja.
The moment his consciousness entered Lock's mind, he saw only a towering figure resembling Lock himself.
Scarlet vertical pupils opened.
A furious roar erupted.
"Scram!!!"
The sound exploded through the mental world like a hurricane.
The Yamanaka ninja didn't even have time to scream before his consciousness shattered completely and was blasted out.
Outside—
Blood burst from all seven of his orifices as his technique collapsed.
He fell lifelessly to the ground, terror frozen on his face.
Before the others could react—
The Akimichi ninja screamed.
"AAAAHH!!"
Though Lock's body remained restrained by Shadow Possession, his nine fox tails shot upward like spears.
In an instant, nine bloody holes pierced through the gigantic palms.
Then the tails tore outward violently.
Boom!
The enormous hands exploded midair.
Flesh and blood rained down across the plaza.
"Damn it! Hurry up!"
The Nara ninja trembled, sweat pouring down his face as he desperately poured chakra into the technique.
"My Shadow Possession is reaching its limit!"
"Almost done!"
Sai's brush moved faster, leaving afterimages.
Lock chuckled softly.
Ignoring the restraint entirely, he stepped forward.
The shadow binding snapped like rotten rope.
He appeared directly before the Nara ninja.
"What made you think… You could control me?"
"What—?!"
Swish!
A fox's tail swept across.
The Nara ninja's head flew into the air, disbelief still frozen in his eyes.
Sai was now alone.
His eyes were bloodshot as his brush carved the final stroke.
Just as Lock's gaze landed on him—
The technique is completed.
"Super Beast Scroll: Wind God and Thunder God!"
Ink surged forward.
Two colossal divine figures, each over ten meters tall, materialized instantly.
Their fists—like falling hills—crashed toward Lock.
BOOM! BOOM!
The underground base trembled violently.
The fists were blocked by Lock's nine chakra tails, yet the ground beneath him shattered and collapsed from the force.
Cracks spread across the walls of the base.
"It didn't even hurt him…!"
"Our strength isn't on the same level!"
"Retreat!"
Sai immediately turned and fled toward the passage.
The wounded Akimichi ninja followed, clutching his ruined arms.
"Running?"
Lock raised an eyebrow.
His fox tails sliced outward like a storm, severing the divine figures' arms.
Just as he prepared to pursue, the mutilated constructs slammed down again, forcing him to dodge.
"Not bad," Lock muttered. "That scroll has some tricks."
The stronger Sai proved himself, the more valuable he became.
And the more satisfying Danzo's despair would be.
Lock released a surge of Nine-Tails chakra.
It condensed into a massive claw larger than the divine figures themselves.
The claw swung.
The constructs were sliced cleanly in half.
They still crawled forward with their upper bodies, trying to block him.
Another swing.
This time, they shattered completely, dissolving into ink mixed with blood.
A rumbling sound echoed from the passage.
Before Lock could move, his shadow clones returned.
Moments later, they dragged out more than ten injured ANBU, along with Sai.
The Akimichi ninja had already died while fleeing.
One ANBU stepped forward quickly and bowed.
"Uzumaki Lock-sama! We are Hokage's direct ANBU, not your enemies!"
"We came to protect Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura Haruno!"
"Please show mercy—otherwise you will have difficulty explaining this to Hokage-sama!"
The threat hidden beneath politeness made Lock glance at him coldly.
The ANBU instantly felt frozen in place.
After a long silence, Lock spoke calmly.
"Whether you are enemies is not for you to decide."
"All of you are coming with me to see the Third Hokage."
Golden-red chakra threads shot out instantly.
They pierced through everyone's hands.
Blood splashed across the already soaked ground.
"AHHH!"
"What are you doing?!"
"Aren't you afraid of Hokage-sama's punishment?!"
Lock ignored them.
Dragging them like livestock, he strode through the passage, smashing through the collapsed entrance and emerging outside.
The sudden movement triggered another chorus of screams.
Shadow clones followed behind, carrying Sasuke and Sakura.
Lock raised one finger toward the Root base.
Scarlet and bluchakrasra gathered rapidly.
A black sphere of absolute destruction formed.
The air trembled.
Looking at it, Lock murmured.
"Danzo. Hiruzen Sarutobi."
"This is the first payment of interest."
Flick.
The Tailed Beast Ball shot forward, carving a tunnel through the air and plunging into the underground base.
The next moment—
A blazing red sun descended upon the earth.
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