"How boring. Is this what battles between Uchiha are like?"
"Don't rush, this is just a contest of Genjutsu! The outcome will be decided soon!"
Black Zetsu and White Zetsu analyzed the current battle from different perspectives.
As for this kind of Genjutsu duel, it's a matter of opinion.
Outsiders cannot see the perilous Genjutsu competition, but it is extremely intense for those involved.
Sasuke took off his coat, drew his katana from his waist, and without any hesitation, slashed at Itachi.
Itachi remained seated quietly on the stone chair, but with a slight blink of his eyes, a Crow Clone was launched at Sasuke.
The outcome of this level of probing was self-evident; Sasuke quickly pinned Itachi to the ground, and the utterly helpless Itachi immediately realized that something was wrong.
Even without Itachi's prompting, Sasuke had already noticed that Itachi was still sitting on the stone chair, and that what he had killed was just a clone.
Sasuke was not discouraged and used Body Flicker Technique to pierce Itachi's body again. Just when he thought he had it in the bag, the white snake on his shoulder flicked its tongue at him, and the Eight Inner Gates Seal in his body began to rotate in reverse.
At that moment, he knew he was still trapped in the Genjutsu.
And so it went, one thing leading to another, like an infinite nesting doll, with neither side able to overpower the other.
The two exchanged trash talk while fighting, some of which were quite insightful.
For example, information that Uchiha Madara, another perpetrator of the massacre, is still alive.
"Why isn't it over yet? Are they going to stand there all day?"
White Zetsu was starting to get impatient. In their eyes, the two hadn't said a word since they met, just staring at each other, seemingly doing nothing.
"Impossible! The results will be out in a little while at most! Can't you see they're both covered in sweat?"
Just moments after they finished speaking, Sasuke and Itachi reacted almost simultaneously.
As if by prior arrangement, the two knelt down on the ground, supporting themselves with their hands and panting heavily.
Judging from their expressions, Itachi seemed to have expended more energy.
"Who won? Itachi or Sasuke?"
"It looks more like a draw!"
This time, it wasn't Zetsu who spoke, but rather Izumi and Orochimaru, who were spying on them.
Quan's face was filled with worry. Although the final outcome was already determined, the process was still heart-wrenching.
"You certainly didn't disappoint me! I take back what I said earlier; I underestimated you!"
Itachi forced himself to stand up first, and looked at Sasuke with a mixture of approval and relief in his eyes.
However, Sasuke couldn't stand the way the strong looked at the weak. He struggled to get up as well, and the white snake behind him disappeared.
"Your Mangekyō Sharingan is nothing special! If you don't bring out your strongest Susanoo, you probably won't have a chance!"
Sasuke's face once again showed a confident smile. The Genjutsu duel just now was enough to prove that his strength was enough to fight Itachi, and his younger and stronger body was still beyond the opponent's reach.
Both of them were adjusting their state, and neither of them made the first move.
"Oh? I didn't expect you to know about Susanoo! You really are a good younger brother to me, always surprising me!"
Indeed, that was the case. Since Sasuke knew about Susanoo, he Susanoo power, but the other party remained calm.
If they weren't confident they could handle this move, they wouldn't have mentioned it at all.
This also demonstrates that Orochimaru's teaching of Sasuke was very comprehensive. Whether it was the Ninjutsu and Taijutsu he displayed in the previous Genjutsu or the knowledge he showed now, he had already far surpassed the Sasuke in the Original Work.
"The surprises are yet to come; this is just the beginning!"
Before he finished speaking, Sasuke had already removed the bandages from his hands. The wristbands below the bandages were engraved with sealing patterns, clearly indicating that they were specially made.
Itachi also pulled his wrist back from his chest, put his sleeve back on, and his face became serious.
"Looks like the two of them are getting serious!"
"That's what makes it interesting!"
While White Zetsu and Black Zetsu were discussing, Sasuke and Itachi moved almost simultaneously.
Sasuke threw shuriken at Itachi first. His wrist guard was a small Ninja Tool Scroll from which shuriken kept flying out.
A dense barrage of shuriken rained down on Itachi's face. Itachi, equally unwilling to back down, engaged in a shuriken duel within the cramped basement.
This process tests both parties' ability to dynamically capture information with their eyes and their hand speed.
Both of them had been single for over ten years, so their hand speed couldn't be that bad. Even if Itachi's shuriken had a more tricky angle, Sasuke's physical abilities were superior, so he made up for it with quantity when the quality wasn't good enough.
The clanging sound echoed throughout the basement until Sasuke seized an opening, took a step back, and dodged several shuriken that were being fired at him.
Seizing a moment, Sasuke quickly formed several hand seals with one hand.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"
A greater number of shuriken easily deflected the shuriken Itachi threw, and returned the favor with even more.
The shuriken struck him without any resistance, riddling him with holes in an instant.
However, with a "bang," the itachi's corpse turned into a piece of wood.
To become one of Konoha's top geniuses, his skills are no joke. He can perform simple Ninjutsu like Crow Clone and Substitution Technique without even needing to Hand Seals.
"It has some merit! But it's still not enough!"
The shuriken exchange had just ended when Itachi reappeared in Sasuke's sight.
However, with a single glare from Itachi, the distance between them, which was originally seven or eight meters, instantly turned into a stark contrast to Sasuke 'Sasuke.
A powerful front kick was aimed at Sasuke's chest. Sasuke neither dodged nor avoided it, and he had no time to dodge. He could only cross his arms in front of him to block.
The scenario of being kicked away as expected did not occur. Sasuke stood firmly in place, and when he met Itachi's slightly surprised expression, a smile appeared on his lips.
"Not good!"
Upon seeing that smile, Itachi immediately felt a bad premonition. Before he could retract his foot, Sasuke's large hand had already grabbed his ankle, and a tremendous force came from his ankle.
"Drink!"
As Sasuke shouted, Itachi's body was swung up and slammed hard onto the ground beside him. But that wasn't all. Sasuke then flung Itachi toward the ceiling.
Blood trickled from Itachi's mouth the moment his body hit the ground, and by the time he tried to retaliate Sasuke had already thrown him away.
It had another close encounter with the ceiling, smashing through it.
Sasuke followed closely behind, arriving at the shrine platform above. When he saw the Susanoo behind Itachi, his pupils contracted slightly.
Although Itachi in front of me looked a bit disheveled, with a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, he didn't seem to be seriously injured. It was clear that the Susanoo played a role.
"So this is the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan! I'd love to see it for myself!"
As he spoke, Sasuke charged forward again, showing no fear whatsoever at the power his opponent displayed.
At the same time, a faint blue light appeared on his hands, which was the Chakra that he had condensed and squeezed out. If Tsunade were here, she would definitely recognize it at a glance. Isn't this the use of Chakra-Enhanced Strength?
"Good timing!"
The Susanoo skeleton behind Itachi condensed another bone arm, which went straight to meet Sasuke's fist.
The moment the two forces made contact, a powerful energy surge erupted from the platform, and the ground beneath them instantly cracked...