Boom—
Jūzō brought his sword down and struck Takemi. But at some point, the Takemi before him had turned into a puddle of mud on the ground.
"Earth Clone?" Jūzō frowned.
He truly hadn't noticed when Takemi had cast the ninjutsu.
Swish... Swish... Swish—
Just then, countless senbon and kunai assailed him from all directions.
"Hmph, mere child's play." Jūzō snorted coldly.
In the next instant, the blade in his hand danced, creating dazzling sword trails.
Accompanied by the grating sound of metal clashing, he managed to block all the incoming senbon and kunai at once.
As expected of a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, he could defeat most enemies with just his swordsmanship.
Moreover, while blocking the projectiles, he also pinpointed Takemi's location.
"Found you, kid."
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
Takemi didn't hold back in the slightest. He immediately formed hand signs without hesitation, and a massive fireball rushed towards Jūzō.
Water Release: Water Formation Wall!
Jūzō didn't dare to be careless. After all, a ninja must never be negligent.
Even a Jonin can be taken out by a Genin if they aren't careful.
Furthermore, he was still somewhat worried about the Anbu reinforcements Takemi had mentioned, so he wouldn't hold back even more.
Hiss—
The surging fireball struck the rising Water Formation Wall, instantly creating boundless steam.
For a moment, the high-temperature mist spread all around, obscuring everyone's vision.
Facing this situation, Takemi quickly formed hand signs.
Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!
As he formed the hand signs, several earth walls instantly rose from the ground, surrounding him completely, seemingly forming an effective protection.
"His hand seal speed is quite fast..."
Within the mist, Jūzō saw clearly. He had long been accustomed to the thick fog of the Land of Water, so this situation was nothing to him.
Soon, he dismissively shook his head, and then he also quickly began forming hand signs.
"Truly foolish, to actually attempt to fight a Kirigakure ninja in the mist. In that case—"
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!
Jūzō's Chakra rapidly intensified, and a colossal beast raised its head and burst through the mist, the massive water dragon lunging towards the earth walls.
Boom—
In an instant, Takemi's Earth Style Wall was shattered into pieces by the surging water dragon, which itself dispersed into countless water droplets.
Almost at the same moment, Jūzō's figure flickered, and he instantly rushed over.
Since the defense had been destroyed, he naturally wouldn't miss such a good opportunity.
"Hm?"
However, as he avoided the splashing rubble and water droplets and arrived, he suddenly felt something was wrong.
A very peculiar Chakra was continuously rising at this moment, giving him an inexplicable feeling of dread.
"What... is this?"
Looking closely, amidst the rubble and water droplets, he saw that Takemi was tightly closing his eyes.
And on his body, a purple lightning, carrying a strange aura that Jūzō had never seen before, was shining.
The eerie purple lightning shone with brilliant arcs, like a neon light in the mist, reflecting colorful rays.
"I've been waiting for you for a long time."
Just then, Takemi suddenly opened his eyes and looked up, with a smile on his face.
"Also, thank you for creating a better environment for me."
As soon as he finished speaking, the purple electric arcs on Takemi's body instantly expanded, surging and raging.
Jūzō's face turned a little pale. He watched with wide eyes as these electric arcs, following the water droplets in the air, roared towards him...
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!
On the other side, the battle between Kakashi and Itachi had also begun.
Itachi's hand sign speed was astonishing, making even Kakashi feel strained.
However, this was somewhat normal, as strictly speaking, Itachi was a prodigy.
Whether it was Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, or Genjutsu, he was proficient in all aspects, which made his fighting style extremely diverse.
Furthermore, Kakashi knew that his battle IQ and combat experience was also extremely high. Regardless of the opponent's strength, he preferred to cautiously decipher the enemy's techniques and adopt a suitable counter-strategy.
In this regard, they were quite similar...
"I must find a way to make him expose a weakness intentionally, only then can I provide support."
Kakashi quickly pondered to himself, but in that instant of distraction, Itachi had already appeared behind him.
"Kakashi-senpai, you can't be distracted during combat." Itachi's voice was extremely indifferent.
At this moment, the kunai in his hand had already pierced Kakashi's back.
"As expected of you, Itachi."
Kakashi slightly turned his head, and electric arcs suddenly appeared on his body.
"But it seems you've mistaken me for someone else!"
Buzz... Buzz... Buzz—
The Kakashi who was stabbed by Itachi instantly turned into electric plasma, and this plasma spread onto Itachi, making him unable to move.
And at that very moment, the real Kakashi suddenly burst out of the ground, with the lightning of Chidori still blooming in his hand.
"Is that so?"
But Itachi's expression still remained indifferent, and his voice was still extremely calm.
"Then what about you, Kakashi-senpai?"
"Hm?"
At this moment, Kakashi's expression changed. He realized that the Itachi before him was a Shadow Clone.
And the most concerning thing was that the Chakra within this Shadow Clone was flowing irregularly.
Boom—
With a loud bang, the Shadow Clone exploded at this moment.
The intense blast wave snapped the surrounding trees, and an invisible shockwave violently approached Kakashi.
Kakashi's reaction was lightning-fast. He widened the distance almost immediately, narrowly avoiding the impact from such close range.
Although he was still somewhat disheveled from being caught in the explosion, he was at least not injured.
"He is too dangerous..."
Kakashi's left Sharingan slowly spun, searching for Itachi while also wanting to check on Takemi's situation.
The roaring sounds and Chakra bursts from over there made him agitated, but with Itachi blocking him, he truly had no chance to help Takemi.
"Kakashi-senpai, this eye still doesn't seem to suit you well."
Just then, Itachi voluntarily walked out of the thick smoke, standing calmly before Kakashi.
"Your Chakra doesn't seem to be much anymore."
"Indeed."
Kakashi shook his head. He naturally knew his own condition.
"But holding you back is enough. As long as I wait for the Anbu reinforcements to arrive, none of you will be able to leave."
"Is that so?" Itachi replied indifferently.
After a moment, he spoke in a deep voice, "But you've got one thing wrong. You don't know how to use the Sharingan at all, nor can you unleash its power. Today..."
As he spoke, he slightly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his eyes had already transformed into the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Let me show you the true power of the Sharingan!"
In an instant, a strange Chakra blossomed under these eyes.
"Damn it!"
Kakashi felt his breath hitch. In his vision, the entire world had become distorted.
When he could see everything clearly again, the entire world had become a mix of black and white, and he was tied to a cross.
"This is the world of Tsukuyomi. In this world, whether it's space, time, or mass, everything is under my control."
Itachi, holding his blade, walked up to him. The blade instantly unsheathed and fiercely stabbed into his abdomen, the intense pain making his eyes widen.
"And don't think this is just a genjutsu. The damage you take here is the same as in the outside world. For the next 72 hours, I will continuously stab you with this blade."
Thud—
Thud—
Two more piercing sounds echoed, and that extreme pain once again swept through Kakashi's nerves.
"This kind of Genjutsu..."
Kakashi gritted his teeth and endured, but at this moment, the Itachi before him seemed endless. Countless blades, emitting terrifying cold light, stabbed towards him again.
Kakashi's eyes turned bloodshot. He tried to break free from the Genjutsu, but he found that he couldn't do anything at all.
"Don't worry, we still have a lot of time."
Itachi's voice rang out again, the layered sounds seeming ominous.
"Then, let's continue..."
He raised his blade again, but at this moment, he suddenly paused. Even Kakashi noticed this change.
Moreover, within this Genjutsu world, he seemed to see a strange purple light flickering...