The Root members, along with Danzō, were all within the range of Gekko Chizan's aura.
At this moment, Danzō finally truly understood just how formidable Gekko Chizan's strength was.
"This chakra..."
"I never expected that in just a few short years, your strength would have grown to this level."
"Hmph, if Hiruzen hadn't been that overly soft fool back then, and if Orochimaru hadn't interfered in the middle..."
"A talent like you should have belonged to Root from the very beginning. A bloodline limit suited for infiltration, combined with such talent—you would have become the sharpest blade in my hand."
As Danzō spoke, he began removing the various seals on his arm, while at the same time feeling regret over Gekko Chizan.
"Unfortunately, you have already chosen to stand on the opposite side of this old man."
"For that, I will have to make certain sacrifices in exchange for your death."
He laughed. He truly laughed.
Gekko Chizan simply couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Sorry, sorry, Danzō. I really couldn't hold it in."
"Hahahahaha!"
"No, seriously—what makes you think you've got me completely figured out???"
"Those First Hokage cells and Sharingan of yours?"
Hearing Gekko Chizan's laughter, Danzō's expression did not change. The seals on his arm were not only meant to seal the Sharingan, but more importantly to suppress the First Hokage's cells.
The First Hokage's cells were far more violent than the Sharingan. With the slightest mistake, they could devour their host.
"Everyone, move. Buy me some time."
Looking at the still-laughing Gekko Chizan, Danzō prepared to let his subordinates stall him with their lives so he could smoothly initiate the battle that would follow.
But Gekko Chizan immediately stopped laughing and raised his hand.
"Don't. No rush. Go ahead and take your time."
"When you're ready, we'll start."
"No matter what, this will be the last time, Danzō. I'll turn you into a crystal statue and bring you back to Konoha."
"I wonder if your good friend Hiruzen Sarutobi will blame me when he sees it—but it doesn't really matter."
Gekko Chizan stood there, his chakra gradually retracting instead of spreading outward. Yet in this state, he was truly entering battle preparation.
After all, in real combat, no one would leak chakra outward. That was simply a waste.
"So arrogant?"
"Brat..."
Danzō stared at Gekko Chizan with a gloomy expression, but his hands never stopped moving.
"Arrogant?"
"No. This is called confidence."
"Unlike someone like you who has stayed in the village so long you've become nothing more than rotten wood."
"As for me, I've always been riding at the very frontlines of war."
"The battles I've experienced are beyond your imagination."
These words were not exaggeration on Gekko Chizan's part.
Whether facing Tailed Beasts directly, killing Tailed Beasts, confronting Kage, or killing Kage—he had done it all.
He had even fought against several enemies at the Super-Kage level at once and still continued fighting.
That was the difference.
"Hmph! Words are useless."
"Move!"
Danzō had already removed all the seals from his arm. The bandages fell away, revealing a somewhat grotesque arm, upon which three Sharingan were arranged.
Upon hearing his command, the Root members charged at Gekko Chizan without hesitation.
In the not-so-large underground space, forty or fifty people launched their attacks at the same time.
The scene was indeed quite something.
"Fighting here? Danzō, aren't you afraid of collapsing the Daimyō's mansion?"
"Well, I don't care anyway. Crystal Release—Raining Needle Barrage!"
The size of the space meant nothing to Gekko Chizan. Whether large or small, it had absolutely no effect on the power of his techniques.
The crystal needles formed instantly and unleashed a full-area barrage.
Clang!
In an instant, the dim underground space flashed with sparks everywhere.
Those sparks came from Root members intercepting the attacks with the weapons in their hands.
Short blades, kunai—these weapons collided with the crystal needles and produced bursts of sparks.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique!"
"Lightning Release: Earth Flow Technique!"
The Root members all possessed the strength of elite ANBU. Otherwise, they would never have caught Danzō's attention.
So while their ninjutsu were not particularly powerful, they executed them with flawless proficiency.
Blade after blade of wind sliced apart the crystal needles while simultaneously enveloping Gekko Chizan.
Not to mention the far more direct lightning currents.
"Tsk tsk tsk. If this were my class, I'd have to praise you."
"Nice teamwork. Nice attack coordination."
"Unfortunately, this isn't a classroom—and I can't teach you."
"So… sorry about that."
Gekko Chizan suddenly clapped his hands together.
The very next second, the entire underground space began to change.
It was chakra—Gekko Chizan's chakra.
The chakra flowed through every corner beneath the ground, and then crystallization began.
"Crystal Release: Crystalized World."
In a single instant.
With Gekko Chizan pushing his chakra to the limit and disregarding the cost, it happened in just one moment.
The entire underground area turned into a world made of crystal.
People.
Objects.
Even ninjutsu.
Nothing was spared.
Everything became crystal.
Even Danzō standing in the rear could not escape.
"My, my. As expected, things crafted from crystal are truly refreshing to look at."
"Don't you think so, Danzō?"
"Stop hiding. Just as I can say the name Izanagi, I'm also very aware of this technique's power."
Gekko Chizan looked into the distance.
At the very moment his words fell, a ripple appeared in the space there.
No… it wasn't really space.
It was more like an illusion.
This technique could turn events unfavorable to oneself within a certain period of time into something that never happened, while selecting only favorable outcomes to become reality.
It was utterly unreasonable.
But the price was equally immense.
The Sharingan would become permanently blind.
"Hmph. As expected, you're very familiar with it."
"Then you should also know—so long as this technique exists, you cannot kill me."
Danzō reappeared.
Hearing his words, Gekko Chizan burst into laughter again.
He even pointed at him with his finger.
"Is that so? Three Sharingan. Three chances not to die."
"Can you actually seize them?"
After all, Danzō had once fought on the battlefield.
Once he began fighting seriously, that presence surpassing ordinary shinobi revealed itself.
Lightning-fast hand seals.
Wind Release ninjutsu he specialized in.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!"
The attack he spat from his mouth was even sharper than wind blades.
Even Gekko Chizan had to admit that in the field of Wind Release techniques, Danzō truly possessed considerable talent.
Unfortunately, Gekko Chizan simply didn't care.
Because his techniques were stronger.
Far more destructive.
"Crystal Release: Prism Shield."
"Danzō, keep dancing. Don't stop."
"Let me see the strength of the old generation."