Sasuke's Rapid Progress
Faced with this devastating Isshiki, Sasuke felt an overwhelming sense of powerlessness.
He clearly understood the essence of Madara's power system—it didn't rely on techniques or seek out weaknesses, but simply used absolute and overwhelming power to overwhelm everything, rendering all exquisite Swordsmanship and skillful Ninjutsu useless.
If you engage in a head-on confrontation, your defenses will inevitably be shattered instantly, and you will suffer severe injuries.
The thought vanished in an instant. Sasuke forcibly suppressed the urge to retreat and the panic in his heart. His crimson Three Tomoe spun rapidly, and his Observation Haki spread out to its fullest extent, precisely locking onto the trajectory of the overwhelming attack.
He suddenly pushed off the ground with both feet, and Armament Haki instantly covered the sword and his arms. The black hardened patterns firmly locked his body, forcefully withstanding the crushing air wave that rushed towards him.
The next second, Lightning Release: Eight Qiong Severing Dance suddenly erupted!
The fine, sharp lightning blades spun rapidly around him, tearing apart the overturned rock and wind blades in an instant. The explosive lightning energy neutralized the impact of the Ninjutsu layer by layer.
Using the centrifugal force of the spinning lightning blade, Sasuke suddenly retreated to create distance, perfectly switching between close-quarters attack and extreme evasion.
During the brief moment of retreat and pulling, Sasuke a slight surge of blood and qi in his chest. He quickly calmed his breathing, and his mind became increasingly clear.
He silently reviewed the attack and defense: the clones' rhythm shifted without warning, their unpredictability and domineering nature rotating at will. Ordinary people would only be thrown off balance and their mentality would collapse, but he had to adapt to this unsolvable pressure, stabilize his mind and wait for an opening in the alternating fast and slow battle.
The more desperate the situation, the calmer you need to be; the more crushed you are, the more you need to learn and grow.
The Setsuna he regained his footing, Sasuke immediately took control of the rhythm of the battle, seamlessly connecting and layering more than ten Forbidden Technique exclusive to the Night Owl Guard, making offense and defense flow smoothly.
Fire Release: Purgatory Meteor Fire explodes at low altitude, raging flames block the clone's advance path, scorching the air and locking its movement;
Water Release: Tidal Wave Collapse spreads out a horizontal water curtain to buffer the opponent's Doriki and disrupt their Chakra circulation rhythm;
Wind Release: Thousand Blades Scatter conceals itself amidst the waves of fire and water, with tiny wind blades waiting for an opportunity to harass and restrain the enemy;
Earth Release: Earth Rift Sky Surge cleaved the ground with a deafening roar, destroying the clone's foothold and restricting its movement.
The five elemental Ninjutsu intertwine at close and long range, integrating offense and defense, with layers of restraint, attrition, surprise attacks, and bursts of power, refining the details of a drawn-out battle to the extreme.
These high-level Forbidden Technique, which ordinary people would struggle to master even after years of arduous training and are extremely prone to backlash, were handled with ease and skill in his hands. Every hand Hand Seals and every exertion of force was precise and perfect.
Sasuke remained clear-headed. No matter how many moves he had or how skilled he was, without the mental fortitude honed in dire circumstances and the decisiveness to kill, they were ultimately just empty shells and couldn't support his true peak combat power.
The battlefield was filled with the roar of Ninjutsu, with Blaze spreading, lightning exploding, rocks collapsing, and winds raging. Five-colored Chakra light spread across the entire battlefield. In the interplay of light and shadow, two figures moved at lightning speed, becoming increasingly sharp and mysterious, and the tension on the battlefield was at its peak.
After a brief three-breath stalemate, the clone's rhythm shifted abruptly again, shedding its Madara-style frenzy and returning to Izuna Uchiha- style ghostly attacks.
His movements were elusive and unpredictable, his footsteps silent. He moved swiftly and agilely, constantly circling into Sasuke's blind spots. His sword strikes were delicate and cunning, each move aimed at locking onto the wrists, throats, joints, and chest—fatal openings—approaching relentlessly and applying pressure layer by layer.
Under the extreme close-quarters attack, Sasuke a chill run down his spine, his mind tense to the extreme.
He feared this style of fighting the most. While overwhelming strength could be countered with skill, this kind of sneak attack that targeted blind spots and the limits of reaction could always accurately seize his fleeting weaknesses, forcing him to be passive and on the defensive at every step.
In the past, a series of passive defenses would have made him impatient, reckless, and full of openings, ultimately leading to defeat.
But after being tempered by thirty crushing defeats, his mindset had been completely transformed.
Even though he was in grave danger and being targeted at every turn, he still retained a sliver of absolute composure.
While precisely parrying the barrage of cunning blade attacks, his arms trembled, his hands went numb, and his blood surged. At the same time, he silently memorized the clone's changing moves, movement habits, and rhythmic gaps, turning every suppressed detail into nourishment for self-improvement.
He finally understood that Natsu's rigorous training was not simply about honing techniques, but about gradually eroding one's impetuousness and naivety in desperate situations, and forging the iron-willed resilience and composure unique to the strong.
The kaleidoscope Mangekyo Sharingan indifferently observed his every subtle reaction, its cold gaze like the fairest examiner, showing no leniency or mercy, only forcing him to break through his limits with extreme pressure.
The offensive remained fierce and deadly, yet deliberately left a sliver of oppressive space, neither completely crushing nor severely injuring the boy, but only to gradually crush his impetuousness and forge his mindset and combat prowess.
Just as the clone's unpredictable attack was exhausted and its old power had just been depleted while new power had not yet been generated, a sudden glint of light flashed in Sasuke's eyes!
He knew perfectly well that this brief opening was the only chance to break the deadlock that he had discovered after countless defeats and countless reviews. It was fleeting and he absolutely could not afford to miss it!
With a thought in his mind and a movement in his body, without the slightest hesitation, Sasuke abandoned his conservative defense and suddenly charged forward, instantly switching from extreme stalemate to a fast-paced close-quarters attack!
Swords danced wildly, lightning and fire intertwined, close combat speed was pushed to its peak, the clanging of metal was continuous, and the flying sparks illuminated the stubborn eyes of the young man. Two figures rapidly overlapped, separated and attacked again in the smoke and Kakkō, leaving many afterimages, and the naked eye could not capture the complete moves.
Faced with the boy's fierce and decisive counterattack, the clone remained as steady as a rock, his mind unmoved.
At times, he would unleash Madara's Doriki to directly clash with Sasuke, the immense force causing Sasuke to retreat step by step, his blood and qi churning.
At times, Izuna Uchiha's exquisite skills to break through Sasuke's attacks at close range, and his tricky methods forced Sasuke dangerous situations and made every step difficult.
One forceful, one skillful; one swift, one heavy—these two top-tier combat tactics seamlessly alternate, firmly controlling the rhythm of the battlefield. The layered oppressive force penetrates to the bone, suffocating the enemy.
Despite being repeatedly defeated, Sasuke's stubbornness not only did not diminish, but instead grew stronger and more intense with each defeat.
He repeatedly told himself: Thirty crushing defeats are not humiliation, but stepping stones!
Being young and weak, or suffering repeated defeats, is not scary. What is scary is being crushed by adversity and stopping in your tracks!
The strongest members of the Uchiha have always grown stronger through crushing defeats and risen from the ashes in desperate situations!
The stronger and more intense the pressure from this clone, the more it can fill my weaknesses and hone my shortcomings. Every time I grit my teeth and endure, dodge at the last second, and forcefully break through the opponent's moves today, it will be the foundation for me to return to the Ninja World, wash away my humiliation, and defeat my nemesis in the future!
Two whole months, thirty duels, thirty times covered in wounds.
Every time he dragged his injured body back to his residence, Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto were heartbroken, but they never stopped him.