vncnus Chapter 520 I hope that next time we meet...
Chapter 520 I hope that next time we meet...
Chapter 520 I hope that next time we meet...
As space warped once more, Kakashi appeared, stepping on a pile of broken tree roots. His center of gravity shifted upon landing, and his knees slammed into the damp earth with a dull thud.
The Fourth Hokage controlled the Nine-Tails' chakra to support him, which allowed him to continuously activate the Mangekyou Sharingan. Even so, the depletion of his eye power still left him somewhat exhausted.
Minato appeared beside him. He sensed that the Flying Thunder God mark he had left on Obito was gone. Finally, following the smell of blood, his gaze fell on the pool of blood.
With that amount of bleeding, his fate was already sealed.
Minato said softly, "As your teacher, this is all I can do for you in the end, Obito."
Kakashi raised his hand and pressed it firmly against the Sharingan. He had prepared himself mentally for this day, but when it was all really over, the emptiness in his chest was far greater than he had imagined, so vast that his reason couldn't find a foothold.
He squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to break free from that blank state.
Shuji stood not far from the pool of blood.
His posture was no different from usual.
The shadow cast on Shuji was much deeper than he remembered. It wasn't a matter of the angle of the moonlight; something was lying on him.
The shadow was moving.
The trail slowly spread from Cong Xiusi's left shoulder to his neck, then climbed up to his jaw. It wasn't a shadow; it was alive. The marks climbed upwards until they covered the left half of his face, finally stopping there.
Then that eye opened.
"Kakashi."
Minato placed his hand on his shoulder, stopping him from instinctively rushing forward, his eyes sharpening beneath his golden bangs.
"Watch out. It's that black thing from before."
Kakashi then noticed that his hand had already reached out, but Minato stopped him.
"Yes." Shuuji's lips didn't move; his voice came directly from within the black substance. "It's me."
"Will the sealing technique work?" Minato was already forming hand seals. He noticed that Shuuji was still conscious and wanted to try to see if he could recover.
Black Zetsu's body began to flow. He spread slowly across Shuuji's skin like liquid, sliding from his shoulders to his arms, and then back up to his neck.
This put Minato in a difficult position for a while.
Shuji is of paramount importance in Konoha right now, and we cannot afford to harm him.
"Don't worry about me," Shuuji said during the struggle, his voice low. "Go—"
'
Halfway through his sentence, the black Zetsu covering his left side suddenly detached from Shuuji and slid to the ground like a puddle of spilled ink.
Minato's kunai pierced the pool of darkness, but only struck a fleeting afterimage. Much of the darkness had already seeped into the earth along with the soil.
Shuji raised his foot and stomped down hard.
boom.
Centered on the spot where he landed, a visible shockwave rippled outwards. The ground trembled violently, and the newly formed cracks were forcibly squeezed and closed by this force.
Kakashi, who was already unsteady on his feet, was jolted by the tremor and almost fell over.
The last trace of Black Zetsu emerged from the depths of the earth with a muffled thud before vanishing completely.
Shuji didn't look at the ground. He turned his head and looked at the spot where Obito should have fallen.
All that remained were the rock layers cleaved by Susanoo's spiraling sword and the soil churned up by tree roots. There were no remains, no pieces of clothing, not even a single piece of cloth belonging to the Uchiha clan.
Shuji asked, "Kakashi, can you still use Kamui?"
"Let's confirm, is it Izanagi who escaped back to the Kamui dimension?"
"I'll keep watch here."
As he spoke, he revived Susanoo.
This time it's not half-body.
A colossal war god rose from the ground, its entire body covered in seamless armor, and when its wings spread out, the shadow it cast enveloped the entire area.
The complete Susanoo holds a spiral sword, and Shuji's figure is clearly visible in the diamond-shaped crystal on its forehead.
"There won't be a second time." Shuuji's voice came from above. "Don't worry, that thing is a ground-type."
To speak in such words at a time like this, it's probably because nothing really is wrong. Kakashi looked away and turned back to Minato. The Fourth Hokage nodded to him.
Kamui activated again, swallowing the two figures into another dimension.
Beneath Susanoo's wings, the mountains and forests returned to silence.
Shuji floated in the crystal, his Mangekyou Sharingan continuously outputting its power to maintain the existence of this enormous creature.
He looked down at the ground, and no movement could escape his eyes.
A few minutes later, space distorted again. Minato and Kakashi stepped out from within.
"No," Minato said. "The marks I left behind are completely undetectable."
Shuji then released Susanoo.
"That means he's dead. I was thinking about keeping his head, but I decided to make sure he was clean."
Kakashi leaned against the tree trunk, too exhausted to speak.
"While you were focused on me, White Zetsu must have digested Obito's remains completely."
The Fourth Hokage understood: "Are they worried about Obito being resurrected by Edo Tensei? If so, they might—"
Minato Namikaze considered the possibility that the enemy would directly use Edo Tensei (a form of Japanese magic).
The only thing they could use to resurrect Obito was Kakashi's Sharingan. Eyes are very delicate things, and extracting substances related to Obito required extreme care.
Shuji waved his hand: "A person who has died once will have a completely different attitude towards the world."
Obito's insistence on the Infinite Tsukuyomi was based on the premise that he had to personally lead and create that world, and that he was under a cursed seal placed on him by Madara Uchiha and could not commit suicide.
After a person dies, if they see Lin, who was always by their side, and are called back to life, it's unknown which side they will stand on.
Perhaps we can even uncover more spies.
However, all of this is predicated on killing Obito once first.
Then Shuji said to Minato and Kakashi, "Fourth Hokage, you two go back to the village first. Kakashi looks like he needs to rest for a while."
"And you?" Kakashi asked.
"I'm going to the land of the sea."
"Some diplomatic language has to be said face to face. If Nagato can't figure out who the real enemy is at a time like this, things will get complicated later."
As soon as he finished speaking, the green chakra surged once more. The complete Susanoo materialized with a roar, its wings whipping up a hurricane that swept away the surrounding leaves and pebbles into the air.
Xiu Si's figure disappeared into the crystal on his forehead. The God of War soared into the air, drawing a streak of emerald green across the night sky, and flew straight towards the southeast.
The light swept across the rolling mountains and forests of the Land of Fire, startling the birds that were roosting there at night.
As it passed over Konoha, a few ninjas in the village who were still awake looked up at the sky and saw only a green streak of light pierce through the clouds and disappear in an instant.
Flying over Izuku Port, the teams dispatched by the Joint Affairs Bureau due to the White Zetsu incident some time ago were sitting together in twos and threes by the port.
Shisui looked up, and the green light was reflected in his pupils. He smiled softly.
Hiruzen Sarutobi fastened his helmet.
"Send the order. All personnel prepare to set sail."
The sky gradually brightened behind us.
The morning light cleaved through the sea fog. The black reefs of Jiro Island emerged from the gray-blue waters. Susanoo strode onto the shallows, the water reaching his ankles. Green chakra reflected the rising sun, and the island was shrouded in the shadow of a colossal war god.
Shuji did not release Susanoo. He remained suspended in the crystal on his forehead, waiting.
Ahead, a figure with a black background and red clouds arrived.
Pain Deva Path descended towards the distant reef. His orange hair was blown back by the sea breeze, and his Rinnegan revealed no emotion. He stopped and looked up.
Those who claim to be gods appear so insignificant at this moment.
A colossal war god stood before him like a mountain, its green chakra reflecting the rising sun.
Through the eyes of the Deva Path, Nagato saw Shuji in the crystal on Susanoo's forehead, and also saw the pair of scarlet Mangekyou Sharingan in his eye sockets.
"The person who called himself Madara in front of you is dead," the visitor announced.
Nagato was silent for a moment: "Have you come to declare war?"
When he said those words, there was an emotion in his voice that he hadn't anticipated—not anger, not murderous intent, but simply disappointment.
He thought he no longer had any of these things left.
The green chakra shattered into countless fireflies at that moment. Susanoo began to disintegrate from the top, its armor peeling away layer by layer, its skeleton collapsing, and finally even the last embers scattered in the wind.
Shuuji landed on the reef closest to Nagato.
I have come seeking peace.
"Just as the owner of these eyes had hoped."
"If you have absolutely no desire to engage in dialogue, the final outcome could be war. But you still came out."
"You are willing to appear before me, whose current combat strength is unknown, as the guardian of this area and the maintainer of order."
"This shows that you now understand the Joint Affairs Bureau. You understand why we have maintained such a cautious attitude throughout this period."
Facing the gaze of the Rinnegan, Shuji said, "With a shared goal to achieve in the real world, there is a basis for dialogue and coexistence between the two parties."
"This is why I came here, Nagato."
"9
Nagato did not answer directly, and the doubt in her eyes lessened slightly.
Shuji never intended to eliminate Obito and Nagato in one fell swoop, especially Nagato, whose whereabouts are currently elusive.
It's unnecessary for a single action to result in a complete severing of communication with the other party, leading Nagato to choose to disappear first with his Rinnegan.
"Let's temporarily halt the duel agreed upon in December, until both sides accept the current situation."
"As for the venue, you don't need to waste it either. You can organize the competition yourself and broadcast it to the public."
Nagato replied calmly, "We don't have enough manpower overseas to do this."
Shuji said, "Then we can consider it later."
Then, Shuji extended his hand.
Nagato looked at him and asked, "Why?"
"To maintain world stability, we need to solve the problem of ninjas first; to promote the development of the world, we need to ensure that non-ninjas can also have a place to live and develop."
"Now, this is the first step."
Nagato said, "They won't give up so easily."
"The person who killed the Mizukage has been executed. As for the others, the grudges between the five great ninja villages far outweigh the issues between you."
He looked at Nagato and suddenly smiled.
"Once they realize you're someone they can work with, some might be even more eager to cooperate with you. After all, the Joint Affairs Bureau will be imposing more and more rules on ninjas, and some people won't be able to handle it."
Nagato didn't take the joke seriously.
"I will not let them do whatever they want."
There was no smile in Samsara's eyes. That was his answer: no handshake, no reconciliation.
It just stopped.
Shuji didn't care.
"The opinion on whether the rules are strict or not is probably not as simple as you think."
He withdrew his hand.
"There's one more thing. These eyes of mine don't belong to me, just as the true owner of your eyes isn't you."
.
"The person who always wanted to take it back when the time was right never gave up."
Whether you believe it or not, please judge for yourself.
Nagato remained silent.
"Did you receive Jiraiya-san's letter? He's been waiting for your reply."
The topic suddenly shifted, so fast that Payne was a beat slow to react.
Payne replied, "—I don't have time."
"Then let him come and gather material." Xiu Si turned around and walked along the reef towards the sea. "He's getting restless at the Joint Affairs Bureau and is worried about not finding a place to publish his new book."
That's all I wanted to say.
He stepped onto the sea, chakra spreading beneath his feet as if walking on flat ground. After a few steps, he waved to Pain with his back turned.
"I hope we'll have the chance to shake hands next time we meet."
Pain stood on the reef, watching the figure recede into the distance. His arm twitched subtly, as if to rise, but ultimately remained hanging limply at his side.
Shuji, who was traveling on the ocean, saw a ship bearing the Konoha insignia.
The bow of the ship cut through the waves, and people on the deck were waiting for him.
Shuji stepped onto the deck.
"How did it go?" the Third Generation asked.
"This trip should buy us one or two years."
If Nagato doesn't intend to refuse Jiraiya, then with Jiraiya present, the probability of Nagato being ambushed and having his Rinnegan stolen will be greatly reduced.
As for Black Zetsu, since they have already included Edo Tensei Obito in their plan and put it into action...
Then the whole thing wouldn't end with Obito's death and Nagato's wavering.
But whatever the other party's plans are, in the future, we must take into account his combat power after he adds the Mangekyou Sharingan.
In other words, even if Madara Uchiha were to be resurrected, the probability of him choosing to dance directly would be significantly reduced.
He was someone who looked reckless, but in reality, he was able to be cautious and discreet for many years.
"This time, I owe it all to your eyes," Shuuji said to Shisui, pointing to the kaleidoscope in his eye socket, "but I probably squandered a lot of my eye power."
"After I get back, it will probably take me a while to recover before I can return it to you."
Upon hearing this, Shisui blurted out, "Shuji—can't we keep them?"
"My eyesight is good enough for me now."
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