Uchiha Itachi drew out his longsword.
Ōtsutsuki Suishiki's body dropped from the sky and slammed heavily into the ground, smashing out a human-shaped pit.
Hyuga Neji panted hard, staring at the longsword in his hand, now stained with golden blood, and froze for several seconds.
Then he turned to look at Uchiha Itachi.
Uchiha Itachi was looking at him too.
Their expressions were almost exactly the same—not the thrill of killing an enemy, but something that had been suppressed for far too long finally being released.
"Haha, hahahahahahahahahaha!"
Their eyes met, and they burst into wild laughter.
"We did it!"
Hyuga Neji's voice was terribly hoarse, but his eyes were astonishingly bright.
Uchiha Itachi did not answer, but the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
At last, they were no longer fledglings sheltered under Big Brother Akira's protection—their teacher's protection.
They could finally stand on their own.
In the pit on the ground, Ōtsutsuki Suishiki was not completely dead yet.
His body was twitching. The golden Rinnegan had gone completely dim, and the black curse marks covering his entire body were rapidly fading.
But his mouth was still moving.
"Lower-realm scum... how are you worthy of killing me..."
His voice was as thin as a mosquito's buzz, yet every word carried resentment carved into his bones.
"I devoured Moshiki. I evolved the golden Rinnegan. Even the top five of my clan have to give my Heavy Water Domain a wide berth—how could two ants like you possibly—"
Smack.
Uchiha Itachi's gaze was ice-cold as he planted a foot on his chest.
Precisely beside the bloody hole that was still oozing outward.
Ōtsutsuki Suishiki's words cut off abruptly. In his golden Rinnegan was reflected Uchiha Itachi's face looking down at him.
"It's lower-realm scum like us."
Uchiha Itachi's tone was very