Danzō lowered his gaze to his own body.
"169 eyes remaining," he muttered to himself. "Far more than during the battle at the Land of Iron. And it's not just the number of eyes—I've become a completely different being in every sense. As long as neither the First Hokage nor Uchiha Madara returns, I am invincible in this era!"
He raised his head to look at Naruto.
"That's a Lightning Release Chakra Mode similar to the Raikage's, but it's on an entirely different level. Earlier, it nullified my Wind Release—clearly, it's that power. Combined with his Rinnegan, conventional ninjutsu is useless against him. But I, too, have a trump card you won't expect!"
Clap! Danzō clasped his hands together in front of his chest.
Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!
Boom!
The forest erupted from the ground, trees surging upward in chaotic waves.
"This time, my Deep Forest Emergence is slightly more presentable than during the Land of Iron battle," Danzō thought. "But it still pales in comparison to the true master of this technique."
Naruto remained calm. After forming hand seals, two shadow clones appeared beside him. With their hands joined, a purple lightning arc stretched between their palms as they charged forward at high speed.
Lightning Prelude: Thunder Current!
Slash! Slash! Slash!
The Thunder Current severed swathes of the forest, cutting through the trees before slicing Danzō in half at the waist!
Whoosh! Izanagi activated, and Danzō reappeared some distance away, fully restored.
Lightning Prelude: Thunder Current, Second Strike!
The two shadow clones turned and unleashed a second attack, slicing Danzō in half once more!
"Damn it!" Danzō cursed under his breath as he resurrected again.
Poof! Poof!
The shadow clones vanished.
Naruto smirked, darting through the gaps in the shattered trees to close in on Danzō.
This time, Danzō was prepared. The moment Naruto got close, his right eye locked onto Naruto's gaze, activating its ocular power.
Heavenly Subjugation of the Omnipresent God!
Slash!
Naruto's left hand, cloaked in purple lightning, mercilessly pierced through Danzō!
Danzō's face twisted in disbelief. "Why… why doesn't the Heavenly Subjugation of the Omnipresent God work on him!?"
From a distance, Kabuto observed the scene, adjusting his glasses as he murmured, "Of course it doesn't. The Rinnegan is unique. It is immune to all Mangekyō Sharingan-based visual genjutsu, including Kotoamatsukami. Additionally, someone with the complete Senju body and mastery of Sage Mode, like Hashirama Senju, can also fully resist Mangekyō genjutsu. This is a conclusion I've reached after years of research."
At that moment, Naruto's gaze shifted to the edge of the night.
"Hmm!?" Kabuto's heart skipped a beat. "Did Sage Mode's sensory ability detect my presence? As expected of the Myōbokuzan Sage Techniques. Their grasp of external natural energy surpasses that of Ryūchi Cave and Shikkotsu Forest, making their sensory capabilities the most refined among the Three Great Sage Techniques."
"Well, no matter," Kabuto mused. "I've already achieved my goal of using Danzō to provoke Sasuke. Whether Danzō lives or dies is irrelevant now. It's time to abandon this base in the Land of Fields."
The moment he realized he'd been detected, Kabuto swiftly retreated.
Naruto withdrew his gaze.
"Curse you!!!"
Danzō resurrected once more. After forming hand seals, he took a deep breath.
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
Boom!
A high-pressure wind sphere shot toward Naruto like a rocket.
Shinra Tensei!
Boom! The repulsive force deflected the wind sphere. Naruto extended his hand.
Banshō Ten'in!
Whoosh!
The gravitational pull dragged Danzō toward Naruto.
Forming hand seals, Naruto pressed his left hand against Danzō's chest.
Summoning Technique!
A summoning seal spread across Danzō's chest.
"AAARGH!!!" Danzō let out a blood-curdling scream.
Screech! The beak of a monstrous bomb bird burst through Danzō's back, followed by its head and body, forcing its way out in a grotesque display.
Naruto leapt onto the bird's back as it spread its wings, ascending hundreds of meters into the sky.
Danzō's expression darkened as he looked up at the nearly invisible figure above him. Even with Izanagi to escape death, his techniques couldn't reach such heights!
Standing on the bird's back, Naruto gazed down.
Rustle, rustle, rustle!
Paper sheets gathered, forming Konan's figure.
Having sensed Sasuke's danger earlier, Naruto had rushed at full speed, which explained why Konan arrived only now.
"Did I make it in time?" Konan asked.
"Of course," Naruto replied. "I won't let anything happen to Sasuke."
Crackle!
Naruto deactivated his Purple Lightning Chakra Mode and sat on the bird's back.
"Now, let's take our time," he said. "I'll exhaust every last one of those eyes on his body, one by one, and then finish him off. It's that simple."
The bomb bird began dropping egg-shaped explosives from high above. Each one packed immense power.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The bombardment blanketed the area below, requiring no precise aim.
"Damn it! I can't let this continue!!!"
Danzō resurrected outside the blast zone and unfurled a scroll, summoning a large number of blades pre-marked with ocular power.
Clang, clang, clang!
The blades combined into a flying contraption that carried Danzō into the sky.
Once within range, some of the blades detached, adjusting their angles before shooting toward Naruto's bomb bird.
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So Shin's ocular power for manipulating tools can be used for aerial combat as well? That's quite innovative. But those marked blades are consumables, aren't they? How many can you afford to lose?"
Sage Art: Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!
Whoosh!
A roaring inferno descended, burning the blades and spreading toward Danzō!
Danzō hastily maneuvered his flying contraption to evade. While he wasn't afraid of being burned thanks to Izanagi, those precious blades were not so fortunate.
Adjusting his position, Danzō continued launching blades. Naruto countered with more fire techniques, and the two engaged in a prolonged aerial duel that lasted over ten minutes.
Though Danzō's blades were being depleted, he still had enough to last at least another hour.
Konan observed intently. "To evade effectively, he's deliberately keeping his distance from us. The blades he uses for attacks are carefully calculated to minimize waste. At this rate, the chakra expenditure between both sides is uneven. This could work against us."
Naruto chuckled. "Ah, but that's only temporary. I think it's about time."
Rumble!
"Hmm?" Konan looked up, sensing something. The moon above had become shrouded in dark clouds, and the sound of thunder cracked through the sky like tearing fabric.
Her eyes widened in astonishment. "Could it be… all that fire you've been using was for this purpose?"
"Exactly," Naruto replied. "This is Sasuke's specialty—using intense Fire Release to heat the atmosphere."
Standing on the bird's back, Naruto slowly rose to his feet. "Then, by creating updrafts, we generate cumulonimbus clouds, resulting in a natural thunderstorm."
Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!
Wild lightning raged through the high skies, forming the shape of a mighty kirin.
"This… this is…"
Under the overwhelming force of nature, Danzō trembled in fear.
Crackle!
A lightning sphere formed in Naruto's left palm as he raised it above his head.
"And all I have to do," he said, "is guide this natural lightning to you. There's no escaping it, Danzō."
As his words fell, Naruto brought his hand down.
Lightning Release: Kirin!
Roar!!!
The kirin roared as it descended, striking Danzō in an instant.
Boom!!!
The flying contraption beneath Danzō shattered and disintegrated!
In the cratered earth below, Danzō resurrected once more through Izanagi, but he had completely lost his means of aerial combat.
This meant that in the ensuing battle, he was nothing more than a sitting duck for Naruto.
Rustle, rustle!
After the thunderstorm, torrential rain poured down.
"As long as I live, I can regroup in Konoha," Danzō thought. "Once there, I'll consolidate the village's power under the Hokage's authority to fight Uzumaki Naruto!"
But as he fled toward Konoha, seeking a sliver of hope, Naruto's cold voice echoed behind him.
"Danzō, you won't make it back to Konoha alive."
Riding his bomb bird, Naruto pursued the fleeing figure.
The hunting hour had begun.
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