Facing the surging Black Water, Hanzo did not hesitate and directly canceled the Summoning of Salamander Ibuse.
As the white smoke dissipated, the salamander vanished. He raised two fingers before him.
"Water Body Replacement Technique!"
In a flash, his figure disappeared from the spot.
The next instant, he appeared at the edge of a nearby cliff.
He looked down at Shinji, firmly committing this young face to memory.
"Konohagakure brat, I remember you."
After uttering these harsh words, Hanzo, with a grim expression, activated the Water Body Replacement Technique once more and completely vanished from the valley.
Shinji quietly watched the direction of his escape and did not pursue.
He raised one hand, and the churning Black Water around him slowly evaporated and dissipated.
He needed to conserve his stamina and Chakra for the battles that might follow.
Katsuyu slowly wriggled its body, its tentacle-like eyes gently swaying, its tone filled with excitement:
"Excellent, Shinji! You actually forced Hanzo to retreat!"
"Lady Tsunade will surely be delighted for you."
Having followed Tsunade in the past, she had also clashed with Hanzo but had never gained the upper hand.
Now, accompanying Shinji—though relying on the power of his peculiar Sharingan—being able to force this former formidable enemy to retreat still filled her with joy.
Shinji chuckled softly, crouched down, and gently stroked Katsuyu's slick body.
"It wasn't a defeat; he simply chose to withdraw."
Hanzo had clearly realized he could gain no advantage against Shinji. Coupled with the complete failure of today's plan to annihilate the Akatsuki Organization, he wisely retreated.
Shinji sighed inwardly. Hanzo was indeed strong, but not invincible.
The truly troublesome aspect was only his poison.
But this poison was not unsolvable.
Chiyo from the Hidden Sand Village had once neutralized Hanzo's deadly poison.
And Shinji happened to possess two of Chiyo's notebooks. With some time and study, he could definitely concoct a targeted antidote.
Hanzo, too, had once been someone who hoped to create peace.
But now, he had been utterly corrupted by power, degenerating into a selfish, unscrupulous individual.
The dragon-slaying youth had ultimately become the dragon.
Hanzo had truly grown old.
Shinji shook his head slightly and leaped down from beside Katsuyu.
He turned to Katsuyu and said, "Thank you for your assistance, Lady Katsuyu. I will summon you again later."
Katsuyu nodded gently and replied softly, "No problem, anytime."
With that, a "poof" sounded as the Summoning was canceled, and Katsuyu vanished into a puff of white smoke.
Shinji narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed into the distance.
He happened to witness Danzo and Fugaku in a standoff. The two abruptly distanced themselves, each darting behind large rocks.
He focused his senses slightly.
His right eye—the Heavenly Stone Gate—activated once more.
Shinji moved, passing through the illusory gate before him and instantly appearing behind Danzo.
He gripped the long sword on his back with a reverse hold. Chidori erupted violently, Lightning Attribute Chakra instantly coiling around the blade.
Shinji raised the short sword and slashed down fiercely from above, showing no mercy.
He had no qualms about leaving Danzo here.
Aside from Fugaku, no one knew Danzo had infiltrated Amegakure. At this moment, the Root Ninja were all annihilated, leaving only Danzo himself.
Danzo felt a chill run down his spine. The next second, the roar of thunder exploded beside his ear.
Not daring to look back, he frantically rolled aside to evade.
The short blade, wrapped in violent lightning, slashed down fiercely, grazing past his side.
The lightning exploded, shattering the massive rock in front of him into pieces instantly.
Danzo tumbled several times before scrambling to his feet in disarray.
When he saw Shinji's figure and those eyes marked with three swirling patterns, his heart tightened.
"Another Mangekyō Sharingan."
Danzo gritted his teeth, initially puzzled as to why Shinji had suddenly appeared behind him.
But the moment he saw those eyes, he was certain—it must be some kind of Space-Time Ninjutsu granted by the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Danzo was well-informed and quickly pieced it together.
Yet his heart sank completely.
Uchiha Shinji had also awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan!
This brat was even more secretive than Fugaku. To possess such "evil" eyes at such a young age—he would undoubtedly become Konohagakure's greatest threat in the future!
Only one thought remained in his mind.
Escape!
Facing both Fugaku and Shinji, he stood no chance.
Shinji, however, paid no mind to Danzo's thoughts. Seeing his first strike miss, he pivoted and swung his short blade toward Danzo once more.
To Shinji's surprise, Danzo didn't dodge or evade. Instead, he slightly raised his right arm to meet the attack.
A flash of blade light, and the edge sliced deeply into the joint between Danzo's right arm and shoulder.
The entire right arm flew off instantly, blood mist spraying from the severed stump.
Enduring the excruciating pain, Danzo's face twisted into a grimace as he leaped backward in retreat.
Shinji was about to press his advantage when his steps suddenly halted.
A sizzling, burning sound reached his ears.
The severed arm that had flown off now blocked his path, several Explosive Tags clearly attached to it, moments away from igniting.
Boom!
A violent explosion erupted, engulfing the area in flames.
Using the explosion as cover, Danzo retreated desperately, frantically charging toward the edge of the cliff.
Shinji's figure vanished abruptly at the moment of the explosion.
He had to avoid the Explosive Tags—he had no intention of repeating Nawaki's fate. Just before the explosion hit, he escaped the scene through the Heavenly Stone Gate.
He clicked his tongue lightly, inwardly marveling at how ruthless that old fox Danzo was, willing to discard his arm without hesitation.
As Danzo was about to escape into the distance, Shinji prepared to continue the pursuit, but Danzo suddenly let out a low shout:
"Now!"
Swish, swish, swish, swish!
Over a dozen Root Ninjas leaped down from the cliff top, charging toward Shinji in unison.
Shinji frowned, surprised that Danzo had secretly stationed so many men atop the cliff.
By the time he dealt with the dozen or so Root Ninjas, Danzo's figure had completely vanished.
After a moment's thought, Shinji gave up the pursuit.
It wasn't worth wasting precious Ocular Power on chasing down Danzo.
Moreover, even if Danzo returned safely to Konohagakure, he would never dare to publicize what had happened today.
Scheming against fellow village ninjas and colluding with Hanzo—even he couldn't shoulder such a crime.
Just then, Fugaku approached slowly, clutching his right arm.
He stared at Shinji in shock, his voice trembling slightly. "Shinji, you… you've also awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?"
"Clan Leader, let's discuss this later," Shinji replied with a light shake of his head.
Fugaku nodded heavily, unable to suppress the excitement spreading across his face.
Shinji had also awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
With him, the Uchiha Clan now possessed two pairs of Mangekyō.
Even without Hanzo's support, he and Shinji alone were enough to contend for the position of Hokage!
He paid no mind to Shinji concealing the Mangekyō from him. At this moment, his eyes were gradually being completely filled with power and ambition.
Afterward, Shinji and Fugaku slowly walked together toward Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
Konan looked up at Shinji, her voice tinged with disbelief. "Is it over?"
The enemies were either dead or had fled, and the two before them seemed to harbor no hostility.
Were they saved?
Yahiko thought the same.
But this joy lasted only a moment.
An emotionless voice slowly emerged from the depths of the shadows.
"Of course, it's not over yet."
Not far away, space twisted and swirled, and a figure wearing a white spiral mask slowly appeared.
From his palm extended a sharp, hard wooden spike.
Obito moved, charging straight forward.
But his target was not Shinji—it was Fugaku.