On the Sky Screen, the young Sasuke stood on the bridge, facing Danzō with his ten Sharingan, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
Then—
His chakra exploded forth!
Muscle fibers rapidly covered a skeletal frame, and tough armor gradually solidified amidst a purple glow.
The terrifying oppressive aura made everyone in the Shinobi World feel palpitations, even through the screen.
"What is that?!"
"So huge!"
"Is that the Uchiha's Susano'o?!"
---
Land of Lighting, Kumogakure.
The Fourth Raikage, A, shot to his feet: "So this is the legendary power of the Uchiha? I wonder how the defense of that chakra armor compares to my Lightning Release."
---
Land of Earth, Iwagakure.
Ōnoki had a grim expression on his face. Though the form of this Susano'o was no match for Uchiha Madara's, it still stirred unpleasant memories for him.
On the scree:
The massive Susano'o hand suddenly exerted force, grabbing Danzō directly in its grip!
SPLAT!!!
The sickening sound of cracking bones and squelching flesh echoed out!
Danzō's body instantly burst into a shower of blood and gore. The scene was extremely gruesome.
Gasps rang out across the Shinobi World. Some people even covered their eyes, while those who hadn't processed what happened felt nauseous.
Too bloody.
Danzō had been crushed to death outright!
But in the next moment—
Danzō's figure appeared completely unharmed behind Sasuke, withdrawing a kunai and preparing to counterattack.
The cost was merely a single three-tomoe Sharingan, forever closed.
"That's way too unfair!" Countless people exclaimed in unison.
Didn't this mean that, as long as you had enough three-tomoe Sharingan, you were practically immortal?!
That guy Danzō had ten Sharingans on his arm—did that mean he had ten lives?!
He would be incredibly difficult to kill!
And just how many Uchiha had this guy slaughtered to gather those ten eyes? After all, these weren't ordinary one-tomoe or two-tomoe Sharingan—they were all three-tomoe.
An Uchiha with a three-tomoe Sharingan was at least Jonin-level, or arguably even stronger than an average Jonin. Each such individual was a precious asset to both the Uchiha and Konoha.
'What extravagance. Konoha truly lived up to its reputation!'
For the first time, everyone clearly understood what the Sky Screen had meant by a "heaven-defying technique."
---
[Konoha, Year 60.]
Kakashi watched the Sky Screen—Sasuke, wearing the Akatsuki uniform, striking at Danzō—and his eyes were filled with shock.
Sasuke becomes this strong in the future?
And what was that purple giant? The hand formed from it could crush Danzō in one squeeze.
After all, as the Hokage's advisor, Shimura Danzō absolutely possessed Kage-level strength. The title "Darkness of the Shinobi World" wasn't just picked up off the street.
Shinobis from all nations loathed him. Even within Konoha, there was no shortage of those who hated him. Yet Danzō continued to live on just fine.
Without formidable strength, that would be impossible.
And Kakashi himself had trained for so many years, yet was only an Elite Jonin. Sasuke, on the other hand, still looked young in the future, yet his strength had already reached the Kage-level—daring even to assassinate Danzō?
Or was it that each stage of the Sharingan represented a qualitative change? After awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan, Sasuke's power naturally rose to the Kage-level?
So… this was the Uchiha.
Unfortunately, as an outsider, he had no way to improve further.
Kakashi's right hand unconsciously rose and touched his left eye.
If anyone with a three-tomoe Sharingan could use Izanagi, then wouldn't that mean he could also use it if he learned the Jutsu?
Though he would never go learn Izanagi.
If he encountered the most extreme situation, he would rather die than let the Sharingan in his left eye go blind.
After all… that was the last thing Obito had left him.
Meanwhile, Sasuke stared at the scene on the Sky Screen, feeling somewhat confused amidst his anger.
Who was that old man wrapped in bandages? Why did he have so many Sharingan on his arm? And why would he be fighting him…
One question after another filled Sasuke's mind. But what frustrated him even more was… how did his future self become so strong?!
This guy Kakashi—his current strength wasn't even as good as his future self's, and in the future he would probably never match up either…
So where did his own strength come from?
Could it be that he was destined to defect from the village and join the Akatsuki?
But that man was also in the Akatsuki; if he went, he would probably be killed by him at the first opportunity.
And after the clan was massacred, all secret inherited knowledge was gone.
If it weren't for the Sky Screen, he wouldn't even understand the inheritance of the Sharingan!
Unable to find an answer no matter how much he thought, Sasuke had no choice but to patiently continue watching the Sky Screen.
---
On the other side.
At the former Root base, Shimura Danzō—who was concentrating on recording the Sharingan's abilities—was in for a much worse time.
The only two people left by his side, Yamanaka Fū and Aburame Torune, didn't even need to look to know that their boss's face was definitely dark enough to drip water.
"The Sky Screen… just exposed what I had hidden like this!"
"But what do these people know about my contributions to the village? The Uchiha were about to launch a coup."
"Through my plan, the village suffered no losses, and I eliminated that cancerous tumor. That was a great merit of mine. And besides… I wasn't the one who personally carried out the Uchiha massacre!"
Even his right arm—those Sharingan were just a few transplanted by Orochimaru! During the night of the Uchiha massacre, he had no idea where most of the Sharingan had gone. He was taking the blame for nothing.
But he wasn't a fool after all. He might not have noticed if a few were missing, but how could he not have sensed something was wrong when so many were gone?
Danzō had even once suspected that Hiruzen had secretly taken them, leaving Danzō to take the fall—a move Hiruzen would have played masterfully.
It was only later that he felt it didn't seem like Hiruzen, and after he had the Root investigate, they found no trace, so he gradually dispelled his suspicion.
The ten Sharingan on his right arm were originally one of his trump cards, but now the entire world knew about them!
Danzō's left hand trembled slightly, his voice dripping with hatred: "Back then… I should never have agreed to Uchiha Itachi's request to spare that evil bloodline."
He had thought a child of a few years wouldn't be able to cause much trouble, and that Itachi was the real threat. Who could have imagined that Uchiha Sasuke would also be able to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan in the future?
He wondered whether he won or lost that battle.
Unfortunately, before he could make his next move, several ANBU sent by Hiruzen had already arrived at his doorstep.
The one in the lead wore a cat-faced mask, he stepped forward lightly and said in a low voice: "Danzō-sama, Lord Hokage requests your presence. Please come to the Hokage office immediately."
Then he glanced at Fū and Torune, who had already assumed defensive stances, and at Danzō, who hadn't moved at all, and continued: "Lord Hokage has requested only you. Please proceed to the Hokage's office at once."
The other ANBU behind him had already spread into formation, adopting combat stances—as if they would attack immediately if Danzō and his men made any suspicious move.
Just as tensions reached a breaking point, a voice came slowly from behind the ANBU: "Danzō-san, the old man misses you terribly. He invited you over, yet you won't go. Are you really going to throw away decades of friendship?"
As the voice trailed off, a tall figure walked in—face painted with oil markings, long white hair, with a toad perched on each shoulder.
Seeing who it was, Danzō waved his hand at Fū and Torune.
"So it's you, Jiraiya. What, if I don't go, are you going to lay hands on me?"
"Hey, hey, hey… the old man's order can't be disobeyed. He asked, so I came to invite you. If you can't walk, how about I carry you on my back, Danzō-san? Hahahaha…"
"Hmph! Still as brash as ever."
Danzō said no more. He picked up his cane and, under the gaze of Jiraiya and everyone present, slowly walked toward the Hokage Building.
*****
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