Crack! The Susanoo skeleton disintegrated in an instant!
Hiss! Hōsuseri-no-Mikoto's protective black flames surged like raging waves, forming a fierce tornado of fire that took the rain of punches from every direction in Sasuke's place!
Crack-crack-crack! Countless blazing holes burst open across the curtain of flame, only to be smoothed over by fresh torrents of fire. Suppression and resistance rose and fell in turn, weaving together a barrage of sound like beans popping!
Before the fiery formation, Black Zetsu watched anxiously. "The stronger the external attack, the stronger the defensive flames it generates? What an unreasonable technique! But even the strongest technique has its limits. That's an indisputable fact! Naruto, push harder! I want to see this arrogant little young master's defenses crumble!"
"Aaaaaaargh...!" Naruto unleashed a scream as he pushed beyond his limits, the whisker marks on his contorted face blurring into streaks!
But no matter how he drove the external natural energy to add more frenzied punches, he could only create a few more insignificant ripples across that curtain of flame!
"Damn it!! Even this can't break through?!" Naruto's eyes reddened with frustration—and then, something else turned his eye red.
"Fists aren't suited to breaking through a formation. Turn them into 'swords,' and you'll get twice the result with half the effort." Just then, a contemplative voice sounded in his mind.
"Swords? I don't know how!" Throwing a curveball while already at his limit was an impossible task in itself!
"It's all right. I can do it. Try to relax your body and mind. Don't resist anything that happens next..."
The voice was deeply beguiling, and all Naruto could think about at that moment was crushing Sasuke's defenses, so he instinctively did as he was told.
At the junction of the chakra network in Naruto's abdomen—the [root chakra]—the