Conviction!

At some point...

Hanzo had forgotten the Land of Rain he bore on his shoulders, forgotten that he was the leader of Amegakure.

Facing such a pure opponent, holding anything back would have been far too disrespectful!

How long had it been...

No! It had never happened before!

To breathe so freely, shout so freely, pour everything he had into it so freely!

The curtain of rain was violently torn apart, and even the clouds retreated!

Their wrists were locked together, the sword hilt braced against the sickle blade, their bodies pressed close.

They were close enough to see their own reflections in each other's pupils, close enough to feel each other's pounding heartbeats.

"What a magnificent will. There are not many who dare meet my gaze!"

The spiritual pressure inherent in Kamizuki's Sharingan had no effect on Hanzo as he was now. If Kamizuki focused his Pupil Power and used genjutsu, his speed would have given him ample room to do so.

He enjoyed it. He was deeply delighted by such a gaze!

Battle intent blazed in Hanzo's eyes as he roared, "Who do you think I am?!"

"I am Hanzo of the Salamander!!"

Emotions were contagious. Hanzo had lost the foundation that had kept him alive all this time: caution.

But he had also gained the courage to break through his limits!

Click—

Kamizuki suddenly exerted force, knocking aside Hanzo's guard before viciously smashing his head into Hanzo's.

Without hesitation or evasion, Hanzo made the exact same move.

Bang!!

Blood traced a crimson arc through the air. The one who fell was Hanzo of the Salamander.

Blood streamed from his forehead into his eyes, and stark white bone could even be seen beneath his torn scalp.

"Ha!"

Hanzo let out a low, hoarse roar and yanked the chain again, sending the sickle blade whistling through the air.

But Kamizuki had already appeared at his side, his clenched fist smashing into Hanzo's temple again.

Hanzo's vision went black, and his body staggered one step backward.

Then—

A battering-ram knee slammed into Hanzo's abdomen, a right fist struck his lower back, and a left elbow crashed down on his shoulder blade. The three blows landed almost simultaneously!

Slash—!

Kamizuki formed a sword with his fingers and thrust straight at Hanzo's brow!

Hizuki Style—Quenching!

Bang!!

Hanzo shattered into a mist of water. His bloodstained face appeared behind Kamizuki, his eyes calm and undisturbed.

Iai: Three Slashes!

A silver gleam flashed!

Fast! Fast! Fast!!

With unbelievable speed, Hanzo unleashed a three-part combo!

The specially made armor that could withstand the aftermath of explosions offered no resistance before such sharpness.

Blood suddenly bloomed across Kamizuki's back. Three wounds tore through his flesh like the claws of a savage beast.

The long-forgotten pain only made Kamizuki more excited.

The temperature of his blood was rising, accelerating.

That was not a description. It was a fact.

Slash—slash—slash—

At the wounds Hanzo had cut open, the splattered blood instantly gathered and condensed. Droplets of blood erupted with blinding light.

"Hundred Refinements: Meteor."

The next second,

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!!!

The blood droplets collided, and the terrifying explosions sent Hanzo flying. Kamizuki, who was even closer, was slammed heavily into the ground as well.

The battle not far away was even more brutal, even more savage.

Where Salamander Ibuse stood, even the rocks within several hundred meters had turned blackish purple. Raindrops were tainted by poison in midair, forming an enormous field of deadly toxin.

Had the surviving Iwagakure shinobi from before witnessed this scene, they would have been scared out of their wits.

But Ibuse was not facing Iwagakure. His opponent could not even be considered human.

Mahoraga stood at the center of the toxic miasma. Rotting black patches covered his gray-white body, while black tentacles writhed wildly. The black patches across his body were visibly fading.

He had no concept of pain, and the infusion of Kamizuki's flesh had also granted him tremendous resistance.

Takigakure's taboo that defied ethics, Orochimaru's wisdom that transcended the era, the flesh-and-blood program of one bound by Heavenly Restriction.

Almost instinctively, he began analyzing the poison and gradually adapting to it.

Salamander Ibuse knew full well how terrifying this monster was. At first, like his master, he chose a strategy of evasion and keeping his distance.

Yet no matter how many times he burrowed underground, he was instantly caught up to and forced to face those black-tentacled wings and that terrifying power capable of splitting mountains and shattering earth.

When his strongest poison attack lost its decisive edge, and even his speed and strength fell short—

If two beasts in nature had such an overwhelming gap between them, what would the outcome be?

That was right: a one-sided slaughter!

The salamander's claws were torn off by brute force, his tail was smashed apart, and deep holes were punched through his thick hide as flesh and blood flew everywhere!

Roar!!

Salamander Ibuse roared furiously, the ferocity of a beast fully awakened.

Having followed Hanzo through countless battles, he was no coward who would retreat simply because his opponent was strong!

That was how it should have been...

If Mahoraga had roared, shown anger, or even displayed contempt, Ibuse could have fought to the death!

But Mahoraga made no sound, no unnecessary movements, and showed not the slightest emotion...

Silent, cold, mechanical throughout.

He was not even like a beast. He was a walking weapon of slaughter, created for the sole purpose of annihilating the living creatures before him.

Whoosh—

A molten glow lit up within that dark, bottomless, grotesque maw filled with black tentacles.

Whimper...

Ibuse opened his mouth. Instead of gathering poison mist, he let out a cry like the wail of an infant.

It was a signal for help, the first such mournful cry he had ever made in his life.

Hanzo heard him and climbed up from the ground, his knees still bleeding.

His body trembled. He could feel that his organs had ruptured, that a crack had opened in the poison sac within him, allowing lethal poison to spread.

The numbness in his body grew heavier and heavier, but his eyes shone brighter and brighter.

He knew his body was far weaker than Kamizuki's and that close combat would drag him into a disadvantage, yet he had chosen to do it anyway.

Instinct.

For a strong man who had reached this level, instinct was indispensable.

No strong person had ever grown without experiencing battle. Battle was the only path to finding an answer.

"A person's end is not death, but the moment they lose their conviction."

For Hanzo to speak such words, his strength of character had already placed him at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World.

Between powerful shinobi, it was not merely a clash of techniques, but also a contest of convictions.

If their only goal had been to kill one another, this battle would never have developed to this point.

Kamizuki's physique naturally blocked most sensory ninjutsu. As Orochimaru had said, he should have been the perfect king of assassination.

If he wanted to kill Hanzo, he could have hidden himself and released Mahoraga at the right moment, surely finding an opportunity for a fatal strike.

But he did not want to do that.

To put it in terms fitting the Shinobi World...

This was Kamizuki's ninja way, the conviction he held.

To defeat everyone as an absolute powerhouse and ascend to the highest point in the world!

And Hanzo's conviction...

Born in the cracks between great nations, he had witnessed his compatriots suffer. As a child, he had been implanted with a salamander poison sac and endured torment from poison for his entire life.

He overcame hardship and strengthened his own conviction.

To end war through strength, to unite the world through peace.

Just as the First once had, he would end this chaotic age and bring peace to everyone!

For that... I need to overcome my weakness once more.

For this dream, the strongest power is indispensable!

I can do this!!

I will definitely do this!!

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