Let Me See It for Myself

A pitch-black chakra giant rampaged with overwhelming force.

The ability to absorb techniques had no effect on Earth Release, but ninjutsu like Earth Spear couldn't even break through Susanoo's defenses.

Earth Release: Earth Core, which could alter the terrain to buy time and control the battlefield, couldn't restrain him either. Each change to the landscape only delayed him for a moment; it did nothing to stop him outright.

And Earth Release: Earth Core consumed a considerable amount of chakra. If this continued, Ganga would only run out of chakra.

Ganga gritted his teeth, every muscle in his body tensed. He stamped his feet against the ground and sprinted toward Susanoo.

But he wasn't fast enough to catch up with Susanoo's instant movements.

All he could do was watch helplessly as Susanoo ran wild, killing his comrades.

Uchiha Yuji's Taijutsu was limited to fighting enemies in close quarters. The Iwa shinobi could at least console themselves that he wasn't near them. But when the giant stood towering over the earth and could launch into a killing spree by teleporting without warning—

The indescribably terrifying pressure was enough to make anyone break.

The courage they had just mustered faded far faster than the Iwa shinobi had expected.

And it wasn't just the Iwa shinobi fighting Uchiha Yuji who were breaking. The panic had spread to the battlefield where Hatake Sakumo was fighting, too.

In a battle fought with cold weapons, if a commander possessed the terrifying strength to take on a thousand men, that alone could affect the entire war.

The same held true in the Shinobi World.

Facing an apparently invincible enemy while their own side's morale crumbled and fear took hold—it was inevitable.

At that moment, the pure-white short blade, which had remained silent all this time, unleashed a fearsome presence unlike anything before.

Thunder roared around the short blade, and the defensive formation instantly shifted into a spearhead formation.

White blades of light ripped through flesh, pierced rock walls, and shattered Rock Fists. Blood filled those cold, piercing eyes. His lithe body darted about like a nimble leopard, and the paths carved by his blade flowed like silken ribbons.

The Uchiha spewed out torrents of flame, bringing a measure of heat to the frigid battlefield. But even that warm air could not dispel the Iwa shinobi's dread.

Under those pairs of eyes with blood-red Tomoe, the Iwa shinobi grew ever more fearful.

After surveying the battlefield, Ōnoki could no longer remain at ease, floating in the sky.

At this rate, it was hard to say whether they could kill these people, but the Iwa shinobi would certainly break.

Under the effect of Light-Weight Rock Technique, Ōnoki's short frame shot toward Susanoo like a missile.

Although he was exceptionally small, the imposing presence he displayed far surpassed that of the Iwa shinobi below by countless times.

Ōnoki made no attempt to conceal his approach, so Uchiha Yuji noticed him at once. Susanoo's swinging arms came to a gradual halt, and its blood-red eyes turned toward Ōnoki in the sky.

"Uchiha! Come fight me! I'll show you the power of the Iwa shinobi!" Ōnoki shouted as his small body plunged downward.

As he fell, his right fist was coated in a thick layer of brown earth, forming a Rock Fist even larger than his body.

He pressed his left hand lightly against the Rock Fist, and Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique made him fall even faster.

Ultra-Weight Rock Technique was an Earth Release far superior to Added-Weight Rock Technique. It not only increased an object's weight but also made it far sturdier.

Ōnoki hurtled downward like a small meteor crashing into a planet.

Amid the shrill howl of rushing air, the pitch-black blade and the Rock Fist collided with a deafening boom.

Though it was a clash between Yin Release chakra made solid and a Rock Fist, the impact rang out like steel striking steel.

Piercing, thunderous sound waves and shock waves burst outward at the same time.

After a brief stalemate, the powerful recoil and shock sent Ōnoki's small body tumbling backward like a yo-yo. He spun through countless turns before finally steadying himself. Gritting his teeth against the ache in his lower back, he looked down.

For the first time, Susanoo, which had always seemed like a god, had been damaged.

Its enormous sword had broken, and the arm that had clashed head-on with Ōnoki was battered and broken.

"Good. Just one more hit and—" A faint smile had just appeared on Ōnoki's lips.

A massive surge of cold chakra suddenly welled up from Susanoo. The damage Ōnoki had just inflicted repaired itself at a visible speed. In the brief moment Ōnoki stood stunned, Susanoo had already restored itself.

"You actually broke through Susanoo's defenses. No wonder you're the Shadow of the Land of Earth—you've got some skill, Ōnoki."

His words sounded like praise, but in truth, they were mockery.

"But is that all you can do?"

"Where's your Dust Release? Let me see it."

The solid, pitch-black chakra made it impossible to tell which part of Susanoo Uchiha Yuji was in. The only clear indication of his mood came from Susanoo's eyes, which had grown even more blood-red.

He seemed to be getting excited.

Ōnoki's mustache bristled with anger.

If he attacked with the Rock Fist again, he feared he wouldn't be able to take down Uchiha Yuji—and would wreck his own old back in the process.

Although Uchiha Yuji had baited him into using Dust Release, Ōnoki had no other choice.

This Uchiha was simply too troublesome!

"Very well, then. I'll show you my Kekkei Tōta, Uchiha!"

Ōnoki spread the fingers of both hands and held them before his chest. A pure-white, square mass of energy quietly formed in front of him.

He knew Uchiha Yuji could absorb ninjutsu. But Dust Release wasn't a Kekkei Genkai or an ordinary technique; it was a Kekkei Tōta that stood above them!

Ōnoki wanted to see whether his Dust Release was stronger or Uchiha Yuji's ability to absorb techniques.

Before they fought, no one could know whose ability was stronger. How could anyone tell without giving it a try?

If his ability couldn't absorb Dust Release, then this Uchiha, who seemed like Uchiha Madara reborn, would be disintegrated in a single strike!

If he failed, that was all right, too.

Because it would mean the Iwa shinobi had been utterly defeated, and that within just a few days of the war's beginning, they had already been driven from the stage of the Shinobi World!

Let the Kumo shinobi get beaten up on their own!

The square mass of energy changed into a cylinder under the flow of Ōnoki's chakra.

"Dust Release: Limit Removal Technique!"

A pure-white beam surged forth like a cannon blast, swallowing the dust in the air and disintegrating everything in its path.

The beam, fueled by Ōnoki's resolve, reached Susanoo in an instant. But a jade-green energy shield suddenly appeared in front of it.

The beam, powerful enough to reduce any object to atoms, was gradually swallowed by the jade-green barrier.

Ōnoki held his ninjutsu-release stance, saying nothing for a long while.