Hiruko lunged toward Sasuke.
Previously, to counter that frog-masked kid, he had been forced to fuse with the fourth corpse he had prepared.
And now, he was starting to lose control!
He had to fuse the fifth kind as soon as possible—
But at that moment, he found himself unable to move and falling uncontrollably backward.
An unpleasant "caw, caw" came from above—
Birds flew in a line, obscuring the lightning and sunlight.
Below, a shadow spread to his feet.
Shadow Possession Jutsu, success!
Shikaku let out a slow breath, struggling to push himself up from the ground with his shoulders.
But in the next second, his pupils suddenly shrank.
His Chakra was being frantically absorbed by the opponent along the shadow!
Clang!
Sasuke's strike was blocked by the opponent's Steel Release; Hiruko's cracked and mutated face wore a morbid smile.
"Surprised?"
"I don't know why that guy ran off after you arrived, but—you can't kill me!"
Hiruko laughed maniacally.
The Chakra absorbed from Shikaku gathered in his body and was then spat toward the heavens.
Guided by the Chakra—
The thunderclouds created by Storm Release erupted with powerful lightning, which was once again drawn down.
The thunder roared like a natural disaster descending upon the world.
At this moment, fierce winds howled and ash filled the sky.
In the distance, Asuma and his Shadow Clone—one breathing out fierce winds and the other spitting out ash—clenched their teeth the moment the lightning descended.
Bam!
Sparks flew, igniting the dust in the air.
A raging fire covered the forest, merging with the lightning, and then—
Boom!
A violent explosion whipped up a terrifying shockwave, sending Sasuke and Naruto flying; this time, even Sasuke was knocked unconscious.
As they were about to hit the ground, Asuma and his Shadow Clone caught them both.
"Asuma, we—"
"Give me back my Sharingan!"
Hiruko roared.
Instantly, the shadow snapped.
With a Body Flicker, he had already flown in front of Asuma.
Asuma's pupils shrank, and he immediately threw Sasuke toward the Shadow Clone behind him.
In the next second, he slashed downward with his trench knives, the blades cutting a shallow wound into Hiruko's body.
Blood flowed out, but—
Bam!
Asuma was sent flying by a punch.
Simultaneously, lightning fell from the heavens, striking toward Asuma in mid-air.
Right then, a hurricane howled.
Lightning, water, and trees were all swept toward the forest under the force of the gale.
In that direction, in front of the raging flames, a giant Baku was raising its trunk and inhaling everything.
Beside it, Masahiko panted, his gaze cold.
Shikaku's pupils shrank, his eyes revealing shock.
As an older Ninja, he had seen this Summoned Beast on the battlefield before.
It was Danzo's Baku!
Masahiko was actually able to obtain this Summoned Beast!
Under the fierce wind, even Hiruko struggled to steady himself.
In the next second, Asuma suddenly threw the trench knives in his hand.
Drawn by the gale, its speed was incredibly fast, with Wind Release Chakra condensing on the trench knives to form a spiraling shuriken.
Hiruko performed hand seals and immediately raised his hand toward the front.
Dark Release: Inhaling Hole!
But in the next second, the gale suddenly stopped.
Hiruko immediately felt something was wrong and performed a Swift Release Body Flicker, but following that, a melodious whistling reached his ears.
A song—
No!
"Genjutsu!"
Hiruko immediately tried to release it, only to find that this Genjutsu was continuously interfering with his Chakra, making it difficult to break free.
In the next second, a shuriken flew in from behind.
Almost at the moment it was about to reach him—
He broke the Genjutsu.
Steel Release!
But there was a sharp sound.
A rapid, sharp jet of water pierced his flesh, cutting directly into his chest.
Even though Hiruko had broken the Genjutsu quickly enough, a huge gash was still carved into his chest, and blood gushed out.
Then, their eyes met, and another Genjutsu struck.
Darkness descended once more—Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!
However.
At that moment, a staggering amount of Chakra erupted from within Hiruko, and the entire area was enveloped by a suction force.
Everyone's Chakra was being frantically absorbed!
"Careful, Hiruko has completely lost control of himself!"
Shikaku understood what was happening at a glance and immediately retreated with Asuma.
Masahiko was about to escape.
From behind, a sheet of flames swept in.
He looked back to see Uchiha Itachi spitting flames, which enveloped shuriken as they swept forward.
Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Nail Crimson!
In the next moment, Masahiko's feet were entangled by vines, and the fire-wrapped shuriken changed direction under the guidance of Chakra Threads.
They were like a phoenix flower, closing in on Masahiko.
Masahiko's expression was one of shock.
At some point, a large patch of vines had appeared beneath his feet.
These vines bound his lower body, with Chakra constantly pouring out to enhance the Wood Release ability.
Itachi's eyes also held surprise and disbelief; he couldn't believe why his hands were uncontrollably using Chakra Threads, and—
Why was there Wood Release?
Zetsu's previous actions flashed through his mind, and he suddenly understood everything.
It was Zetsu!
In the next second—
Hiruko completely lost control!
Lightning filled the sky like the heavens were collapsing, and a sheet of silvery-white light poured down from above, enveloping the entire forest.
Boom!
A sea of lightning fell, clones expanded and exploded, and the mysterious light was dazzling, like a sky burial.
Not until all the commotion died down did everyone stare blankly at that area.
As far as the eye could see, all life was gone.
The entire forest had turned into a sea of fire and scorched earth, devastated like a living hell, with no trace of life remaining.
Shikaku's eyes widened, and he staggered—
"Masahiko!"
His face was pale as he rushed into the scorched earth.
On the ground was a charred corpse.
From the size, it should be Hiruko.
On the other side were carbonized remains and severed limbs; it was impossible to piece together a complete body, as even the bones had been shattered by the explosion and lightning.
Asuma was completely dumbfounded.
He muttered to himself, unable to believe it: "How could this happen? Masahiko was so fast, how could he—"
"How could he fail to escape!"
"No! There must be a mistake!"
Shikaku murmured to himself.
The two of them knew very well that even if Itachi appeared, Masahiko should have been able to escape with his own abilities.
Because Masahiko's speed and reflexes were arguably the strongest in Konoha!
But now, Masahiko hadn't made it out and had been blown to pieces by the lightning and fire—
It was only then that Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived late.
After assisting Guy in defeating Shinno, he had been stalled by Orochimaru.
Seeing this scene now, he looked on with disbelief and confusion: "Where's Masahiko? Where's Masahiko? This... this... how could this happen?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's body swayed, his head spinning as he started to fall backward.
Clang!
The adamantine staff transformed, forcefully supporting his body.
"Hiruzen!"
Enma called out anxiously.
Hiruzen Sarutobi regained his senses slightly, forced himself to stand, and slowly straightened up.
As the Hokage, he could not fall!
But at the same time, his heart was filled with grief and sorrow.
Why did the people he favored always leave in various ways—
Was all of this his own doing?
Was it because he had placed high hopes on this child too early that he had caused his downfall?
Hiruzen Sarutobi's head buzzed as he forced his body and spirit to stand straight again.
"Hokage-sama!"
Shikaku immediately rushed over.
Masahiko seemed to be gone; if something happened to Hiruzen Sarutobi as well, Konoha's loss would be too great!
Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze swept across the scorched forest.
He muttered to himself: "Where is the body? Maybe, maybe Masahiko isn't dead and escaped with some secret technique. He's so resourceful—he's a genius, he won't die!"
Seeing this, Shikaku couldn't help but feel the grief in his heart and silently lowered his head.
Right then—
Swish!
A Kunai flew through the air.
Asuma jumped up to intercept it; as he was about to knock it away, he looked closely and saw that what was attached to the back wasn't an explosive tag, but a scroll.
He caught it, opened it, and then ran over in a daze to hand it to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately took it.
Written on it was—
"He was caught in a Wood Release Technique, a suspected accomplice of Itachi."
As Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the handwriting, his eyes gradually brightened, and he looked around excitedly.
And then—
He swallowed hard.
"Shikaku, did you notice anything strange just now?"
"Yes, I saw that Masahiko was about to retreat, but in the end, he didn't make it out—it was as if he was held back."
Shikaku voiced his suspicions, "I believe there's something fishy about this."
Hiruzen Sarutobi gripped the scroll, his voice excited: "Check the bodies carefully! Use every means possible to confirm the identities of the corpses! Collect anything that might be a body part!"