Chapter Eighteen: Genjutsu

"Get out!"

The members of Kumogakure's Shadow Guard were all renowned figures in the Shinobi World. At the very least, they were Elite Jonin. Inoichi Yamanaka had to keep track of the entire battlefield, and his mind technique couldn't be sustained for long. He was driven out of his target's mind.

And just then, Danzo unwound the bandages around his right eye.

"Die!"

The Kumogakure Jonin wielding a greatsword broke free of the control. Seeing his opponent—the enemy commander—right in front of him, riddled with openings, he unleashed the Lightning Release Chakra Mode. His wrist blurred, and his sword swung so fast that even Shikaku Nara and the others could barely follow it.

"Lord Danzo!"

"He got him!"

Amid the crowd's various reactions, Danzo turned his head and opened his right eye.

The fastest movement in the human body was the movement of the eyeballs.

So by the time the Kumogakure shinobi met the Sharingan's gaze, it was already too late for him to finish his swing.

"Damn it, I can't move! It's Genjutsu!"

Schk!

The familiar sound of a blade piercing a throat rang in his ears. He had enjoyed hearing it countless times before, but with himself as the one being stabbed, it was impossible to take any pleasure in it.

"Heitai!"

As blinding lightning flashed, the Raikage arrived beside Danzo. A single Lariat forced Danzo back, and the Raikage snatched the Kumogakure Jonin's corpse from beneath his blade.

A head-on clash was the worst kind of fight for Guo Wang.

So he always did his best to avoid the Raikage's Nintaijutsu. Even as he retreated, he pulled his blade from his opponent's throat. The sight of blood spraying everywhere was chilling.

"This is... war. Yotsuki, we're both halfway into our graves. Have you still not understood any of this?"

Lightly flicking the blood from his blade, Guo Wang looked at the Raikage, who had fallen silent with grief, and couldn't help but laugh mockingly.

"How would someone like you, who has extinguished all emotion, understand my love for my subordinates?"

Since the Third Shinobi World War began, this was the first time the Raikage had lost one of the Shadow Guard at his side. To the people of Kumogakure, who would rather sacrifice themselves than let one of their subordinates come to harm, this was probably more painful than death.

"Nothing in this world goes exactly as you wish. If there's such a thing as a victor, then there must also be a loser. If you selfishly wish to preserve peace, you'll start a war. If you want to protect something, love will inevitably give rise to hatred. They're bound to one another and cannot be separated. That's the way things are... Ah, forget it. There's no point explaining this to someone as simple-minded as you..."

Boom!

Before Guo Wang could finish speaking, a huge, burly man wreathed in black lightning suddenly appeared before him and slammed an elbow into his head.

Shikaku Nara's eyelid twitched. If the Raikage's God Speed were directed at them, he'd probably knock them out one by one. He began to worry about Danzo, too. This kind of opponent couldn't be countered with Chakra nature alone.

"What... is that?"

As the smoke from the two combatants' clash cleared, Danzo's smiling face came into view. Faced with the Raikage's Lariat, Konoha's commander hadn't taken a single step back. A half-transparent set of emerald-green ribs had appeared in front of his forehead, like armor covering his upper body.

"You have it in your right eye... Kagami Uchiha!"

The Raikage knew exactly how powerful his punch was. When he saw the Mangekyo in Danzo's right eye, he remembered the Uchiha boy he would never forget for the rest of his life.

"Your memory's good. After Kagami returned to the village, he told us about fighting alongside you. I should thank you for that."

The Mangekyo pattern in Guo Wang's right eye rotated slightly, and an invisible surge of spiritual power burst forth. But the Raikage was perhaps the most battle-seasoned fighter in the world. He immediately avoided meeting Guo Wang's gaze, dispelling the Genjutsu before it could take effect.

"That was a truly exhilarating revenge. I avenged my father's death, and Kagami repaid his debt to the Second."

Kinkaku and Ginkaku were an enduring source of hatred and pain for both Konoha and Kumogakure. When Danzo heard that the Third Raikage had killed them, he had lamented that he'd lost the chance to take revenge himself.

"A man like you has no right to those eyes of Kagami Uchiha."

The Raikage tore off his already-shredded shirt, exposing his lean, muscular torso. His hair, which had stood straight up, began to fall. The black lightning that had covered his body turned a brilliant white, and his entire presence shifted from sharp and aggressive to restrained and weighty.

"Oh, you've changed modes. From speed to strength? You seem to know a lot about the Mangekyo. You understand that you'll need more power to break through my current defense."

They were old enemies who knew each other inside and out. The instant the Raikage's appearance changed, Guo Wang found the reason in Danzo's memories.

Kumogakure's secret Nintaijutsu, the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, had several forms, each emphasizing a different quality, such as toughness, agility, speed, or strength.

The Third Raikage before him had mastered the secret technique to its utmost limits, far surpassing the First and Second Raikage. His defense could withstand Danzo's strongest Wind Release, his speed rivaled Namikaze Minato's, and his strength could match Tsunade's in an arm wrestle. He was the ultimate War Machine.

"Though it's been a while, if I remember correctly, Kagami Uchiha's right-eye Dojutsu was 'Goji Chongshi.' It was powerful, but still within the realm of possibility. What I feared most was his left eye—that 'Mirror Flower, Water Moon.'"

After raising his strength and defense to their limits, the Third Raikage had calmed down completely. He set aside the deaths of his comrades and his own pride, leaving only the battle-hardened heart he had forged on the battlefield. He desperately recalled his fight alongside Kagami Uchiha against Kinkaku and Ginkaku, using every detail to improve his chances in this battle.

"Fortunately, I only crippled Danzo's right eye back then, and he only transplanted one Mangekyo. Now I just need to test which three techniques are stored in that right eye."

With his Primordial Spirit, which far surpassed anything in this world, Guo Wang had mastered the Sharingan to perfection. He had deliberately unwrapped the bandages to reveal only his right Sharingan. It was all part of the plan he'd set in motion from the start.

He knew full well that the Third Raikage had fought alongside Kagami Uchiha and must have learned something about "Mirror Flower, Water Moon." He would be wary of that ultimate Dojutsu.

The final strike could only land when the enemy believed it impossible.

"But first, I need to make him lower his guard completely."

As Guo Wang calculated his next move, the Raikage was devising his own strategy on the other side.

"End it quickly. Use the ultimate Hell Stab to pierce his Susanoo!"