"The power of that technique is truly terrifying," White Zetsu remarked, his voice tinged with lingering fear as he surveyed the battlefield.
The dust and sand gradually settled, revealing the aftermath of the lightning explosion. Every tree and rock had been instantly annihilated, reduced to shattered rubble and charred black embers.
Even from their distant vantage point, the surging shockwave buffeted them with gale-force winds.
"Another divine weapon? How does this guy keep getting his hands on such powerful weapons?" White Zetsu wondered aloud, but he quickly reverted to his usual carefree demeanor, mocking, "Kakuzu managed to survive from the Warring States Period until now? Must be luck. Freezing up at such a critical moment? What a total idiot."
"Probably too fast to react," Black Zetsu suggested hesitantly, his tone uncertain.
Uchiha Sasuke's Ninjutsu had unfolded with blinding speed—from start to finish, less than a thousandth of a second—faster than the speed of sound.
Moreover, the lightning's blinding brilliance would have triggered an instinctive reaction in most creatures: either to reflexively close their eyes or to avert their gaze.
None of the three noticed the faint purple flicker at the heart of the lightning.
Even if they had, they likely wouldn't have given it a second thought.
Natural lightning typically appears blue-white, but its color can vary due to humidity, atmospheric composition, dust, and other factors.
Beyond blue-white lightning, there are also purple, yellow, even red and green varieties.
While White Zetsu and Black Zetsu chattered among themselves, Uchiha Obito stood with his hands clasped behind his back, calmly observing the battlefield with his usual air of detached indifference.
Sasuke's formidable attack seemed to have stirred no emotion within him whatsoever.
"Hmm?"
White Zetsu, who had been prattling on, let out a soft murmur.
"Uchiha Itachi's arrived, heh heh. This is going to be good!"
On the battlefield, Sasuke froze upon hearing that calm, detached, yet utterly familiar voice.
At the same moment, the bloodthirsty killing intent that had been building within him after several battles threatened to erupt uncontrollably.
Taking a deep breath to suppress his surging negative emotions, Sasuke turned his head slightly toward the newcomer, as if to "see" him.
"Oh?"
Uchiha Itachi murmured softly, his lips curving into a faint smile as he gazed at Sasuke's tightly closed eyes.
"After all these years, you still can't bear to face me?"
Faced with Uchiha Itachi's mocking tone, Sasuke remained silent.
The Futsu-no-Mitama Sword transformed into a bolt of lightning and reappeared in his hand.
Simultaneously, the Mangekyō Sharingan in his eyes reverted to its three-tomoe state.
In the final moment of unleashing Heavenly Cloth Flowing Clouds, he had still resorted to the Mangekyō's power.
To prevent Uchiha Obito and Zetsu, who were observing the battle, from detecting anything amiss, he had closed his eyes.
He had also subtly infused a trace of purple lightning into the tip of the Futsu-no-Mitama Sword, concealing it within the overwhelming blue-white thunder.
"Kakuzu, you're still alive, aren't you?"
Seeing Sasuke's complete indifference, his expression utterly calm, a flicker of surprise crossed Itachi's mind.
Yet his outward demeanor remained unchanged as he glanced sideways at Kakuzu lying on the ground and spoke in a detached tone.
Kakuzu lay gasping for breath, surrounded by a grotesque tangle of black threads clinging to fragments of crimson flesh and debris, emitting a nauseating stench of burnt flesh.
"Why are you here?"
Kakuzu's face darkened at Itachi's arrival, showing no relief.
"The leader sensed you had encountered an enemy and sent me as backup."
"A pointless gesture," Kakuzu scoffed, forcing himself to his feet.
As he rose, globs of thick black fluid dripped steadily from his skin and the black threads.
"I can handle this myself," Kakuzu insisted, his voice strained.
Uchiha Itachi shook his head, his tone calm. "You're severely injured. Retreat now, Kakuzu. Leave the rest to me."
"No, I can still fight!"
Ignoring Itachi's advice, Kakuzu glared at Sasuke, who had remained silent since Itachi's arrival.
Gritting his teeth, he snarled, "I must kill this brat with my own hands!"
"You've already exhausted yourself," Itachi said, his Sharingan flaring crimson. "I don't want to carry a burden in the coming battle."
Under the Sharingan's gaze, Kakuzu took a half-step back, narrowed his eyes at Itachi, and suddenly chuckled.
"I'll remember this, Uchiha Itachi."
With that, Kakuzu dragged his severely wounded body away, leaving a trail of thick, viscous liquid behind him, without the slightest hesitation.
Uchiha Itachi was one of the few members of the Akatsuki whom Kakuzu truly feared.
In his prime, Kakuzu would have no reason to fear Itachi.
But with four of his hearts destroyed and his main body severely wounded, he was in no position to voice any objections.
Although the Akatsuki forbade internal strife and private attacks between members, its members were all fiercely independent and rebellious.
Kakuzu had never taken the Akatsuki's rule against internal conflict seriously, having personally killed several of his own teammates over the years.
'Was I mistaken? Or was I stunned by that Ninjutsu?'
As he retreated, Kakuzu couldn't shake the memory of a fleeting, eerie purple flash he'd glimpsed amidst the lightning just before being struck.
That momentary distraction had left him virtually defenseless against the attack.
'It must be a special effect of that Ninjutsu.'
The experienced Kakuzu quickly reached this conclusion, though he didn't immediately suspect the Mangekyō Sharingan.
While mind-altering Ninjutsu were rare in the shinobi world, they weren't unheard of.
Seething with frustration, Kakuzu deliberately withheld any information about Uchiha Sasuke from Uchiha Itachi.
Sasuke silently "watched" Kakuzu's departure, showing no intention of intervening.
He felt a pang of regret that Kakuzu had only been severely wounded rather than killed, but this outcome had been anticipated and was ultimately acceptable.
Sasuke's attention had shifted entirely away from the departing Kakuzu, drawn instead to the sudden appearance of—
Uchiha Itachi!
His sudden appearance caught Sasuke off guard. The Akatsuki typically operated in pairs.
Sasuke had no desire to confront Itachi at this moment, still deeply wary of Itachi's Heavenly Shine and Izanami.
Leaving Izanami aside for now, let's consider Kotoamatsukami.
In Sasuke's past life, debates about this technique had raged fiercely. Some claimed it was a truly overpowered, almost bug-like dōjutsu.
Others argued that it was ultimately just an application of Yin Release, its effectiveness against a Mangekyō of equal caliber uncertain.
Sasuke leaned toward the latter view, but he dared not test it. Even with his current Mangekyō, let alone an Eternal Mangekyō, he had no intention of finding out.
Uchiha Itachi was a master strategist, at least where Sasuke was concerned.
In the original timeline, the Kotoamatsukami technique he had implanted in Naruto's body had been intended for Sasuke, who would eventually wield the Eternal Mangekyō.
Given Uchiha Itachi's cautious nature, he wouldn't have taken such a risk without absolute confidence in his plan.
The idea that a regular Mangekyō's ocular technique could alter the will of an Eternal Mangekyō wielder seemed utterly absurd.
Yet, considering how Six Paths Madara had been powerless against the Kamui Dimension, and how Kamui Shuriken could tear apart Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's Ten-Tails form, the truth became clear.
Some ocular techniques of the Mangekyō Sharingan simply defied logic.
Thus, until Sasuke could completely neutralize Kotoamatsukami and Izanami, he had no intention of confronting Uchiha Itachi.
Moreover, Uchiha Itachi was rumored to be Kishimoto's author avatar in his past life, even nicknamed "TV's favorite character" by fans.
His arsenal of hidden cards seemed endless, with Kishimoto always granting him new, plot-convenient abilities at critical moments—secret techniques that appeared out of nowhere, defying all prior setup and possessing ludicrously overpowered effects.
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