Five Paths vs. Two Heroes (Part One)

—Illusion: Bringer of Darkness Technique!

A forbidden genjutsu developed and used by the First Hokage, it caused visual hallucinations and stole away all light, specifically countering the Uchiha clan! (In the anime, it was used by the Second Hokage; the manga setting took precedence.)

"Whoosh!"

Fugaku and Shisui's vision both plunged into darkness!

"This is...!!"

From the hump Shisui faced, Konan swept her sleeves. Paper shuriken came whistling toward him in a high-speed spin!

"Clang, clang, clang!"

Shisui drew his ninja sword in the darkness and swung it rapidly before him, deflecting every paper shuriken!

Fugaku turned in surprise. "Shisui... can you see!?"

"I can't!" Shisui said gravely, his eyes shut. "Our clan relies too heavily on its eyes in battle. To overcome that, I underwent specialized training and learned Blind Sword Style, which lets me fight by locating targets through sound alone, but..."

"Not bad~" From the hump at the side, the Asura Path: Third Kazekage puppet praised him. He formed hand seals with both hands, and the Iron Sand scattered around them began to move!

"That sound..." Shisui's ears caught the faint rustling of flowing Iron Sand, and his expression changed drastically.

"Not good!!" He sheathed his ninja sword and rapidly formed hand seals!

A summoning formula appeared beneath his feet. Crows poured out from it and circled him and Fugaku at high speed. At the same time, he breathed out flames, igniting the flock and creating a magnificent firestorm...!!!

—Fire Release: Crow Hunt Crimson Lotus!

Rumble, rumble, rumble!!

The attack of Sand Iron Drizzle was blocked and cut off by the firestorm!

Though Fugaku could not see, he felt the scorching heat swirling around him and sighed inwardly. Shisui has already grown this strong. Then I can't keep getting in his way!

He closed his eyes, refined powerful spiritual energy, and gathered it toward his optic nerves...

The Crow Hunt Crimson Lotus storm waned as the flock of crows burned itself out in sacrifice!

Watching the figure reappear amid the firelight, Deva Path Pain raised his palm.

—Banshō Ten'in!

"Whoosh!"

The sudden gravitational pull in the darkness caught Shisui off guard and dragged him over!!

"What... is this!?"

Even Uchiha's greatest prodigy was truly startled!

But his exceptional battle instincts allowed him to make an astonishing response through intuition alone!

I'm being pulled over by some kind of enemy technique, but... if I use that pull against them!!

His hands formed a seal, and fire gathered at his chest!

—Fire Release: Great Dragon Flame Technique!!

Boom!!!!

A blazing fire dragon erupted from his mouth, drawn by the gravitational pull as it charged toward the Deva Path...!!

"This monstrous level of resilience... I'm liking you more and more, Shisui!"

"Whoosh!" The Preta Path beside the Deva Path flashed forward. He bent his knees slightly and spread his rough hands before him, deploying a Sealing Jutsu Barrier!

—Preta Path: Sealing Technique Absorption!

"Whoosh!!"

Before the fire dragon could even ignite, it vanished into nothingness...

"What exactly... is this!!"

At this point, even Shisui's face showed despair!

Black Rods slipped from the Deva Path's sleeve into his palm as he thrust straight forward!!

"Even you... are helpless now, aren't you!"

"Hm!?" Suddenly, the Deva Path yanked his arm back and leaped away!!!

Boom!!!!

A dark crimson skeletal fist swept in. The Preta Path, unable to evade in time, was caught in its grasp!!

"Crack!" The other skeletal hand gently caught Shisui!

"Release!"

As Fugaku raised his hand and released the seal, light returned to Shisui's vision!

"Uncle Fugaku, your eyes!!!"

Fugaku's eyes had turned into the Mangekyō Sharingan, and the power he had activated was Susanoo!

"This is the Mangekyō Sharingan. During the battle at Bellflower Mountain, I witnessed my dear friend's death and awakened these eyes."

"Thanks to this power, I was able to break that darkness genjutsu and save you."

"I had intended to keep this power as a trump card to protect the clan. I didn't expect it to be exposed so soon."

Killing intent suddenly flashed in Fugaku's eyes!

Crack!!

Susanoo's skeletal fist suddenly clenched. Pain's Preta Path, made from the Root member Dingmao, was crushed directly into a bloody slurry that flowed through the gaps between its bones!

"So powerful...!"

Fugaku lowered Shisui to his side. "Shisui, catch your breath while you can. I can't maintain this power for long!"

"Yeah." Shisui did not dare waste time. He took out a soldier pill and swallowed it, then closed his eyes in concentration to restore his chakra and stamina.

Fugaku stood within Susanoo, his eyes sweeping over the surroundings, his expression grave to the extreme.

"Not one of them is a face I've seen before. Danzo's Root shouldn't show their true faces. Who exactly are they?"

"Whoosh!"

Deva Path Pain leaped onto Konan's hump.

"That is..."

"Uchiha Fugaku's ocular power. According to Orochimaru, that thing should be called Susanoo."

"Susanoo..." Sweat trickled down Konan's cheek as she thought, The Uchiha clan's eyes really are troublesome. Can Madara use that too?

"Don't worry, Konan. He can't use it for long."

The Deva Path had noticed that in just over ten seconds, cold sweat had appeared on Fugaku's face, and his body was trembling faintly.

His reaction was about the same as Sasuke's back then... It seemed Fugaku had only just tried activating this power as well.

"Put some pressure on him."

Ever since the Third Kazekage puppet had been turned into Pain's Asura Path... that move had not been used yet.

"Whoosh!"

Pain's Asura Path: Third Kazekage formed a cruel sequence of hand seals...!

—Magnet Release: Iron Sand World Method!

Boom!

The entire battlefield shook.

Endless Iron Sand burst through the air. After bursting apart, it reassembled into a terrifying barrier!

Long Iron Sand spikes viciously stabbed into Susanoo's skeleton from every direction!!

"Scrape!" "Scrape!!" "Scrape!!!"

Fugaku truly felt the pressure. His expression grew incomparably grave as he squeezed his ocular power dry. A longsword condensed in Susanoo's hand, sweeping and slashing as it forcefully met the piercing Iron Sand...!!!

Boom! Boom!! Boom!!!

In the forest beneath Bellflower Mountain, Nagato watched the battle through Pain's eyes, his gaze shifting with keen interest.

"Iron Sand World Method is only this much. The reason its power has been exaggerated is that ninjas are mostly glass cannons with high offense and low defense, making them extremely wary of a large-scale technique like Iron Sand World Method that has such terrifying lethality against the body."

"And Susanoo happens to make up for the weakness of a ninja's physical body, raising its margin for error to an unbelievable degree."

"Well... if it weren't for that, I wouldn't be so eager to obtain Uchiha's ocular power."

"That form of Susanoo has a weakness beneath its feet. Iron Sand World Method is just a smokescreen. The true killing move should make its entrance now."

On the battlefield, Deva Path Pain said, "Konan, get ready to collect the blood sample."

—Asura Path: Drilling Projectile!

Boom!!!

Seeing the projectile emerge beneath Susanoo's feet, Uchiha Fugaku's pupils abruptly contracted...!!