Exposing the Identity

To be fair, when it comes to assassination, Root was the professional.

Aburame Torune's Phosphorus Corrosive Insect secret technique was a nano-level insect manipulation art—touch it and you're hit, cells destroyed, conventional defenses useless.

He was also very patient, knowing the Uchiha's Sharingan had exceptional dynamic vision, so he stayed hidden in the shadows, holding still, quietly sending out a swarm of Phosphorus Corrosive Insects that crawled soundlessly toward the treetop where Uchiha An was.

Even as the Konoha ninja on the battlefield found themselves in a tight spot, with comrades falling one after another, he didn't budge an inch.

His goal was clear: complete the mission Lord Danzō had assigned him—kill "Uchiha Itachi"!

As for everything else, that was none of his concern!

If Susanoo were active, maybe "Uchiha Itachi" could keep the Phosphorus Corrosive Insects out, but in a non-combat situation, who would just keep Susanoo running for fun?

If "Uchiha Itachi" got bitten even once by a Phosphorus Corrosive Insect, he'd likely lose half his life at the very least—then even if he couldn't be taken down in one go, grinding him down bit by bit would eventually finish him off.

Under normal circumstances, his tactics couldn't be called wrong.

But the problem was, the "Uchiha Itachi" before him was a fake!

The Phosphorus Corrosive Insect's toxicity was indeed unmatched in the world—even if Princess Tsunade showed up, detoxifying it wouldn't be easy.

Yet Uchiha An's awakened Mangekyo ability happened to be "Inaba's White Rabbit," a healing-type ability that absurdly converted Chakra into Yang Release.

Yang Release was a Chakra form dominated by physical energy, representing "life creation," directly replenishing Life Force without any logic.

As long as Yang Release power was sufficient, creating organs or regenerating limbs was trivial, and healing injuries or detoxifying was a piece of cake.

In short, his Mangekyo ability was practically the natural enemy of all toxin abilities.

A hard counter to the Aburame clan!

The moment he was poisoned, Uchiha An activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, regaining control of his body.

When the Root ninja appeared to assassinate him, Uchiha An's mind stirred, and blood-red Chakra erupted like a volcanic explosion, instantly condensing into a half-skeleton form, then in the blink of an eye covering it with Muscle Fiber and armor, shielding him securely.

The sharp Short Sword scraped against the energy armor, letting out a piercing screech that stabbed the eardrums, sparks flying everywhere, yet it couldn't even leave a white scratch on the Susanoo.

The Root ninja realized the assassination had failed and tried to flee, but a massive hand came whistling down with fierce wind, crashing like a collapsing mountain, compressing the air into visible ripples.

With a "splat," it smashed the Root ninja into a pulp of flesh, blood bursting like fireworks, shattered bones and minced meat embedding deep into the ground, smearing the area several meters around with blood and bone fragments.

Uchiha An flipped his wrist, cutting off a small piece of flesh from his leg with the Short Sword, and tossed it aside casually.

That piece of flesh turned purple in an instant, and as it hit the ground, it emitted a mist-like purple vapor. Grass and trees withered and carbonized at a visible rate, even the soil turning a strange purple-black.

The Nano Poison Insects' toxicity was too strong; he couldn't fully expel the poison from his body in time. With a major battle imminent, he had no choice but to suppress the poison into that piece of flesh and cut it off.

With the Phosphorus Corrosive Insects gone, the wound glowed with an emerald light, Muscle Fiber writhing and intertwining like living things. The missing flesh regrew under the nourishment of Yang Release, restoring itself in moments, the new skin smoother than a baby's.

Staring at the group of Root ninja charging out from the shadows, Uchiha An covered one eye with his hand, blocking the mad gleam flickering in his Sharingan, and burst into loud laughter, the sound laced with endless hatred and fury.

"Haha..."

"I knew Shimura Danzō wouldn't let this chance slip—sure enough, he sent more people to die!"

"That Aburame Ryoma who died earlier must not have passed the intel back!"

"Your Aburame clan's bugs are completely useless against me!"

"Ah, right, those disgusting bugs he raised couldn't break through my defenses, so he had no intel to offer."

"But this time, you should know, Aburame Torune!"

Aburame Torune's face darkened, but he wasn't provoked by the taunt. His eyes were cold, the expression beneath his mask like a frozen lake, seemingly devoid of any emotion.

He stared at Uchiha An's Mangekyo for a moment before frowning and asking:

"You're not Uchiha Itachi. Who are you?"

"Hm?" Uchiha An tilted his head curiously, a playful smirk curling at the corner of his mouth. "Why do you say that?"

"I've seen Uchiha Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan before. The pattern in your pupils is completely different."

"Ah, so that's it!" Uchiha An nodded in sudden realization. "Uchiha Itachi wouldn't casually show his Mangekyo Sharingan—even the Ino-Shika-Cho didn't catch that flaw. But you knew it clearly, so..."

His gaze turned icy, his voice dropping low, the killing intent in his eyes solidifying like a tangible force, the air around them growing thick and heavy.

"The one who led the blockade outside the Uchiha District that night—that was you, wasn't it?"

"That's right. You're Danzō's right hand, the one he trusts most."

"He wouldn't trust Uchiha Itachi. He must have had you ensure everything went according to plan. More likely, you had a task to gather intel on Uchiha Itachi, didn't you?"

"Killing the donkey after it's done the work—that's Shimura Danzō's specialty!"

Feeling the surging killing intent from Uchiha An and the bone-deep hatred in his voice, Aburame Torune poured oil on the fire, nodding calmly and saying flatly:

"The evil Uchiha clan should have been purged from the village long ago."

Those words were like a fuse, fully igniting the fury in Uchiha An's heart.

"Haha... 'Evil Uchiha,' is it?"

Uchiha An felt the killing intent boiling within him, impossible to suppress any longer. He covered his forehead again and laughed wildly, the laughter growing more manic and sorrowful.

Aburame Torune just stood there watching, not launching an attack.

He knew Susanoo consumed a lot of Chakra—the longer the delay, the more advantageous it was for him.

The laughter gradually subsided, but Uchiha An did not, as Aburame Torune had expected, lose his mind and charge over to fight to the death. Instead, he let out a strange, twisted laugh.

"Hey, Aburame Torune, I almost forgot—you and Yamanaka Fu were friends, weren't you?"

His smile warped, the corners of his mouth stretching to an unnatural degree, a sickly light flickering in his blood-red eyes, filled with the glee of revenge.

"Your friend was killed. I wonder what you're feeling right now?"

"Ah?"

He tilted his head exaggeratedly, putting on a confused expression, but his eyes brimmed with cruel amusement.

"I've heard that you Root ninjas must sever all emotions and attachments, that having normal human feelings makes you a failure."

"By that logic, you and Yamanaka Fu should have been eliminated long ago!"

"Now that I'm cleaning house for Danzo, he ought to thank me!"

"Haha..."

He laughed wildly, arms spread wide, the Mangekyo in his eyes spinning to its limit.

Under this maddening mental stimulation, the Chakra Fluctuation around him grew increasingly intense. Susanoo had already begun its slow advance toward the third form. The chakra energy outside his body condensed further, faintly taking shape as legs about to emerge.

With Uchiha An striking at the wound in his heart, Aburame Torune could no longer remain composed.

His body trembled slightly as he slowly removed his gloves and shed his outer coat, revealing bare skin that rapidly began to turn purple.

The Root Ninja behind him, seeing him like this, immediately scattered far away, retreating as if fleeing from a plague, terrified of being contaminated by his Nano Poison Insects.

Aburame Torune's Phosphorus Corrosive Insects showed no distinction between friend and foe; anyone who touched them was as good as dead.

"Well, whether you're Uchiha Itachi or not, you're definitely a remnant of the Uchiha Clan."

"Killing you won't violate Lord Danzo's orders."

"Since that's the case, there's no point in wasting words. Let's settle this with our skills."

The moment the last word fell, Aburame Torune's figure had already turned into a purple flash, charging forward to engage Uchiha An in close combat.