Swift as Thunder

"..." Naruto and Sasuke faced each other in silence. Some things seemed destined to happen!

Orochimaru's eyes shone, anticipation stirring within him. The two winds I've been looking forward to most are about to collide already...

Naturally, Sasuke also noticed Orochimaru, who should not have been there. His face remained expressionless as he thought, Orochimaru's back too. Looks like Naruto did that as well. Was that why he attacked Jugo?

And earlier, he had that woman from the Akatsuki block my way to buy time to deal with Danzo. Naruto's using his position to do the things I want to do. Is it a coincidence? This makes no sense. That idiot who only ever charged straight ahead... now even I can't quite figure him out. Damn it...!

Sasuke clenched his fists in irritation.

Whoosh!

A strange vortex swirled, and the masked Obito appeared!

Everyone glanced toward him, their expressions varied.

Konan made no attempt to hide the coldness in her eyes, then went on full alert.

Orochimaru's thoughts were unreadable, but he was clearly on guard as well.

Naruto covered his face with his mask again, his thoughts churning like the sea. Obito. We're meeting sooner than I expected. He's one of the very few people I'd call an SSR-level threat. I'd better be careful...

Note: In Boruto's era, a ninja card game had become popular. The Seventh Hokage, Naruto, had been an SSR card. Ever since then, he had liked using SSR to describe those who could match him evenly.

The Naruto Obito had been searching for all this time stood right before him. Yet now that he had actually found him, he was surprisingly calm.

"Go ahead and talk. Don't mind me..."

He straightened his clothes and sat down unhurriedly, radiating the composure of a fisherman who remained steady in his boat no matter how rough the waves grew.

It had to be said: the more he acted like this, the harder he was to ignore!

Rustle, rustle, rustle!

The White Zetsu accompanying Sasuke slipped underground and emerged beside Obito, asking in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Are you sure this is all right? Nagato's Rinnegan is right within reach."

Obito said, "At this point, another moment won't matter. With Orochimaru and Konan here, taking it won't be that easy."

White Zetsu asked, "Did things go smoothly at the Five Kage Summit?"

Obito pondered for a moment before saying, "Naruto beat me to it. After thinking it over, I decided this wasn't the best time to declare war anyway. Kisame has already gone to hunt the Eight-Tails. Naruto, who has the Nine-Tails, has defected from Konoha and become everyone's target. The whole purpose of the war is to seize the tailed beasts inside those two. If there's a good shortcut, why take the route of all-out war?"

Through this unexpected turn of events, the Fourth Shinobi World War, which should have begun immediately, was postponed.

White Zetsu said helplessly, "I keep feeling that sending Nagato to attack Konoha was a mistake. All our original plans have gone off course."

"There's no use regretting it now. I underestimated Naruto before. Who could have imagined he'd take Nagato's Rinnegan along the way, revive Orochimaru, and even get Konan, who worked for me, to join his side..."

At that, Obito's gaze deepened. "Let me see for myself just how strong he's become...!"

It looks like... he really doesn't intend to make a move here.

Somewhat reassured, Naruto stopped watching him out of the corner of his eye, but continued tracking Obito's movements through his Sage Mode senses.

Sasuke paid none of that any mind. Right now, he had eyes only for Naruto, and he could no longer contain his urge to test how strong Naruto had become!

He ordered, "Jugo, Suigetsu, keep an eye on the Akatsuki woman and Orochimaru!"

"Got it!"

Whoosh! Jugo darted in front of Konan, releasing his Cursed Seal to the brink of going berserk.

Konan remained calm. With Obito to watch out for, she had never intended to waste time on minor skirmishes.

As for Suigetsu, he held the coolest sword while saying the most cowardly things. "Lord Orochimaru, I'm so happy to see you alive again..."

Orochimaru teased him with a smile. "Heh heh, Suigetsu, my adorable subordinate. You look quite lively. I wonder if your skills have improved..."

Suigetsu smiled wryly. "You must be joking. I'm just here to help out. Please don't make things difficult for me..."

Orochimaru smiled. "Heh heh, that sounds interesting. Shall I ask Naruto-kun for permission to spar with you a little?"

Suigetsu hastily said, "Don't ask him! This is fine! Let's just keep looking like we're about to fight and have a nice chat!"

Karin adjusted her glasses. "Sasuke... what about me?"

Sasuke said in a low voice, "Just stay to the side and cover me...!"

Is Sasuke... worried about me? Hee hee hee hee...

Though Karin's imagination ran wild, her face remained concerned. "If you get hurt, I can heal you."

"Hmph." Sasuke snorted and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his Mangekyō Sharingan once more revealed their fearsome edge. "Hurt? That's not going to happen!"

Whoosh!

His hands rapidly formed hand seals, and his chest swelled.

Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

He spat out fireballs in rapid succession, their trajectories spreading like the seeds of a balsam flower. They not only engulfed Naruto's position but also sealed off every surrounding escape route. There was no dodging them-only blocking!

Though this Fire Release technique was not especially famous, its effectiveness in real combat was outstanding, making it a favorite of masters like Itachi!

"Here it comes!"

Naruto's gaze sharpened. He drew the samurai sword he had carried with him at the Five Kage Summit and advanced as he swung, meeting the Phoenix Flower Fire head-on.

Screee!

Chidori's shrill cry rang out. Using the Phoenix Flower Fire as cover, Sasuke closed in at tremendous speed, his eyes locked on Naruto. Lightning gathered in his hand as he lunged!

Clang!

Naruto swept his sword with his left hand to knock away the remaining fireballs, instantly forming a Rasengan in his right and thrusting it forward.

Boom!!!

Rasengan met Chidori, unleashing a roaring blast of air!

When the clash subsided, both figures recoiled!

"Hmph!" The corner of Sasuke's mouth lifted. He drew the Kusanagi Sword and surged forward.

"Heh!" Naruto refused to give ground, swinging his sword to meet him.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Their swordplay collided fiercely, the dazzling interplay of their blades so intense that even the swirling snow could not approach their battleground...

The longer Sasuke fought, the more shocked he became. When did Naruto, who was always so careless and mostly relied on brute force backed by his huge chakra reserves, learn such refined, precise swordsmanship?!

Naruto was also impressed. Swordsmanship honed from childhood and supported by the Sharingan really is something else. Sasuke was already this accomplished at such a young age. After we sealed Kaguya back then, I had to put in a tremendous amount of work to make up for my weak ninja fundamentals!

"How about this!" Unable to break through after his sustained assault, Sasuke wreathed the Kusanagi Sword in crackling Lightning Release chakra.

"I can do that too..." With a hiss, Naruto enveloped his samurai sword in Wind Release chakra!

Clang!

Their blades struck, their eyes met!

Sasuke said coldly, "Is your left eye just for show?"

Naruto replied, "I don't want to use this eye's power against my friend!"

"Friend?" Something stirred deep within Sasuke's eyes, only to be replaced by coldness. "Still so naive. You'll regret that!"

Hum!

Light shifted within the Mangekyō in Sasuke's eyes.

Genjutsu: Sharingan!

Naruto looked puzzled. "Why are you glaring at me??"

Sasuke was stunned. My genjutsu doesn't work on him!?

Naruto's Rinnegan rendered him completely immune to the genjutsu of Sasuke's Sharingan. He had not even realized Sasuke had used genjutsu on him!

Shing!

"Enough..." Sasuke withdrew his sword and retreated, his eyes radiating genuine coldness.

Drip. A trail of blood ran from the corner of his left eye and fell onto the snow, while a web of blood vessels spread across his eyeball.

"Naruto, if you don't get serious, you'll die!!!"

Amaterasu!