Chapter 170: This Slash – Twenty Years of Prison's Might
Orochimaru raised his gaze.
A sky dyed in red.
Even someone like him—who regarded flesh and blood as trivial and dared to touch upon forbidden jutsu—couldn't help but feel a chill before this terrifying sense of oppression.
---
"Kagami…"
"Will your evolution… truly never end?"
---
Elsewhere on the moon:
Zzt—
Boom!!
An emerald Susanoo blade shattered.
It crashed to the ground, embedding itself into the lunar soil.
Inside the Susanoo, Hatake Sakumo and Kakashi could sense the disparity in power more clearly than ever.
Such an immensely powerful figure—Shisui, who had singlehandedly shattered Hamura's stone statue and bested countless other top-tier foes, the third Mangekyō Sharingan user of the modern era, direct protégé of both Uchiha Kagami and Namikaze Minato, had showcased near invincibility…
Yet a single confrontation with that monster had left him entirely outmatched!
That four-armed demon hardly spared the towering Susanoo a glance, turning his head as though peering off into the distance.
The gap has grown even wider…
Kagami, how will you let me catch up?
Sukuna felt no shame in admitting it to himself.
After truly recognizing reality, he understood: while Kagami's creed was "break or be broken, no regrets in death," Sukuna's creed was "no matter what, I must live."
Live alone.
In his view, a real strong man would never fear solitude nor require anyone's sympathy—if he wished to kill, he killed; if he wanted to devour, he devoured.
Utter freedom.
He wouldn't use this chance to flee Kagami. For one, running was impossible; more importantly, he knew Kagami would help him grow stronger.
Only after killing Kagami himself could he gain genuine freedom.
A grin stretched across his mouth.
I'll relish this fight.
I'll laud you over your own corpse.
---
Sukuna turned toward Shisui, who stood ready. His expression shifted with scorn.
"Kagami did so much for you, and this is all you've got?"
"At your age, Kagami was far more formidable."
Cold sweat ran down Shisui's brow.
Facing Sukuna directly, Shisui felt a brutal, overwhelming killing intent. It was purely bestial, as though humans were mere livestock in this being's eyes.
For the first time, Shisui confronted such an enemy…
He forcibly steadied his nerves and replied with a faint smile, "There's no point comparing me to him. I feel no shame in it."
"It's not just me—no one in the history of the ninja world can match my brother."
Sukuna paused, letting out a barely perceptible smirk.
"I like people who know their limits."
"I wasn't even planning to kill you—there's no fun in it."
"But now…"
"I'll be merciful—and take your life!"
Whoosh!!
In a single step, Sukuna lunged, black-red lightning erupting around him midair.
"Black Flash!"
"So fast!!"
Because Kagami had showcased it before, the term "Black Flash" was by now well-known throughout the ninja world. Namikaze Minato had once tried to learn it from Kagami but deemed it unsuitable.
Likewise, Shisui had heard about it but found it not fitting his style.
Regardless—
In a flash, Sukuna appeared before the three, pressing a hand against the towering Susanoo.
His lips moved soundlessly:
"Hachi."
Slash!!
A slash larger than the entire Susanoo fell diagonally, shattering Susanoo's armor with ease!
Boom!!
That colossal force hurled Susanoo back several kilometers!
Watching the battered, green giant tumble away, Sukuna frowned.
He'd calibrated Hachi precisely—one strike should have annihilated them all at once, not simply send them flying.
---
As dust parted—
A gigantic Susanoo bearing a yawning maw stood steadfast.
But the once-emerald Susanoo was now laced with black markings.
"Natural energy, huh…"
Sukuna muttered. He wasn't unfamiliar with natural energy, having been imprisoned near the dragon vein's immense reservoir.
Within Susanoo's interior:
Shisui's face bore the Sage Mode markings.
Originally, he needed a significant interval to enter Sage Mode, and its duration was limited. But after merging with the White Slug's reconstituted body, he could now freely activate Sage Mode. The abundance of Senjutsu chakra let him reinforce Susanoo with another layer of armor, just barely surviving Sukuna's slash.
"Sakumo-senpai, Kakashi-senpai…"
Shisui gripped Shirayuki firmly, speaking in a low tone. "I can't protect you any longer in what's coming. Hurry and escape."
"Understood." Kakashi didn't hesitate. Placing a hand on his father's shoulder, he used Flying Thunder God to vanish.
Had he enough chakra, he would've left the moon entirely. This place was far beyond them. Even merely dodging the shockwaves of these colossal clashes was draining him to his limit.
He thought of the ninja world.
And, at that moment, the ninja world thought of him.
---
A battlefield littered with bodies and gore. Four figures in black-red clouded cloaks stood alone.
"Tsk, a few rats got away. What a pity," Kakuzu said, retracting his tentacles from the corpse beneath him—Ringo Ameyuri, the wielder of the Kiba swords.
"Dammit. I only managed to nab a single heart. The hell's the point of participating in this so-called tournament?"
His words brimmed with anger and dissatisfaction.
Sasori, controlling his puppet, carefully gathered two newly claimed human puppets, then cast a glance into the distance.
He'd deliberately let Chiyo go. Even though he claimed to have no emotions in his core, certain memories still weighed heavily. Father, Mother…
After stowing the puppets, Sasori said coolly, "At least our objective is accomplished."
"After extracting the Tailed Beast, I want that Lava-user's body."
At Obito's feet lay three unconscious captives, bound by chains: Yugito Nii (Two-Tails), Yagura Karatachi (Three-Tails), and Roshi (Four-Tails).
Obito pressed a hand on them, sealing them within his Kamui dimension. "We'll see. White Zetsu has locked onto the Six-Tails Jinchuriki. We can snag him on our way out."
He glanced up at the moon.
"Holding the final round on the moon… So typically Kagami, so far-fetched."
Kakashi…what are you seeing now?
Do you lament your own helplessness?
---
Mention of the moon made Black Zetsu tense.
He spoke in haste, "We must hurry to capture the Six-Tails. Once Nagato returns with the other Tailed Beasts' chakra, we'll revive the Ten-Tails immediately!"
"If we're missing only the One-Tail, we can manage somehow."
He was truly anxious. Kagami was on the moon. If he discovered "Mother," the consequences were unimaginable. Mother was certainly weak now. If that unfilial descendant found her…
---
Akatsuki's plan was always about capturing Tailed Beasts. Sasori and Kakuzu knew it involved reawakening some horrifying being.
But…
"Zetsu, you really think reviving a Tailed Beast with just an extra tail will make us equal to Uchiha Kagami?" Kakuzu sneered. "If you ask me, we should do like Hashirama once did—sell the beasts for a profit. Why bother with all this?"
---
Naturally, Obito and Zetsu weren't about to clarify the truth.
"How do you know unless you try?" Obito said. "Kagami's a Mangekyō user, so am I. I might yet reach his level."
"You're human, I'm human."
Kakuzu merely scoffed internally but held his tongue. While Obito surely fell short of Kagami, the might he'd shown was terrifying enough—singlehandedly crushing the Cloud, Mist, and Stone ninja, among whom stood two former Kage…
Not far away lay A's body, pinned and mutilated by Obito's Piercing Stake Technique, a ghastly sight.
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