[Another example; during the Five Kage Summit, a samurai was hit by Sasuke's Amaterasu. But Kankurō simply used chakra threads to tear off the samurai's armor, and that was enough to avoid the subsequent damage from the black flames.]
[There's also the case of Madara fighting Sasuke, he just took off his clothes and shed the Amaterasu flames. And then there are those who don't even need to take off their clothes, like Naruto, who simply shed his tailed beast cloak and completely ignored the flames.]
[But there are also the more reckless types who just tank Amaterasu with their bare bodies, and in those cases, there's no way around it. The prime example is the Fourth Raikage. During his fight with Sasuke, he struck the Susano'o skeleton covered in Amaterasu black flames with a karate chop, and his right hand instantly caught fire. In that scenario, if Amaterasu still didn't deliver any results, it wouldn't deserve its title as the strongest attack.]
[In the end, the Fourth Raikage was forced to cut off his own right hand to prevent the flames from spreading across his entire body. And this remains one of Amaterasu's few standout achievements.]
---
[Konoha, Year 60. Kumogakure, Raikage's Office]
A had been lounging in his office chair, feet up on the desk, hands behind his head, watching the show with an air of casual amusement. But when the screen mentioned that he would lose an arm to Sasuke in the future, his expression darkened instantly.
He sat bolt upright and slammed his fist on the desk, cracking the brand-new table yet again.
The current Sasuke was nothing more than a brat, barely even had a single tomoe; he could crush him with one finger. And yet the Sky Screen was saying that a future version of himself would be forced to cut off his own arm after fighting that kid?!
Bee stood nearby, wearing his shades, striking a rap pose with his hands, swaying his hips, and dropping a line: "Yo, big bro, the screen says you're way too reckless… yoo!"
His tone carried a mix of schadenfreude, teasing, and pure annoyance. And behind his shades, his eyes were secretly gauging the Raikage's reaction, ready to bolt at any moment.
Dodai, more tactful, also chimed in: "Raikage-sama, what the screen means is that we should pay more attention to strategy in future battles. Don't… don't just tank everything head-on. That Amaterasu stuff is a real problem once it gets on you."
"Also, please try not to rush into things so impatiently during combat." He didn't even have the heart to point out that even an ordinary samurai had dodged so-called "Amaterasu," while the Raikage himself would end up having to sever his own arm.
A's brow knitted into a tight knot, his lip twitching. He did like to fight head-on, but he wasn't brainless, okay?
"Fine, whatever." A took a deep breath and reluctantly waved his hand. "From now on, whenever I fight those Uchiha brothers—Itachi and Sasuke—I'll wear my armor. At least taking it off will let me dodge…"
---
[Another Timeline. Kumogakure, Raikage's office]
The Third Raikage sat in his office chair, arms crossed, wearing a displeased expression.
When the Sky Screen paused the battle between the two brothers, in order to complement the explanation of Amaterasu, it specifically flashed the scene of the future Fourth Raikage chopping Sasuke's Susano'o skeleton covered in black flames.
Seeing the Fourth Raikage's face, which was almost identical to his own, the Third Raikage instantly recognized him as his grown-up son, A. That jawline, that build, it was like looking at a mirror image of his younger self.
"A… you idiot! In the future, you'd better use your damn head when you fight!" He gave his young son, still only a few years old, a light thump on the head. The punch wasn't hard, but it landed with a dull thud against his skull.
Young A, teary-eyed, clutched the bump forming on his head, wincing in pain, he had no way to defy his father. Cowed by years of his father's authority, he could only nod and agree.
"Yes, Father..."
The Third Raikage looked at his son's pitiful expression and sighed inwardly. The boy had talent, and he was strong, but he was also stubborn and one-track-minded. He never defended, only charged forward.
He reached out and gently rubbed Young A's head, his tone softening a little: "Remember—when you fight, use your head first, then your fists. And if you really can't win, run. Staying alive matters more than anything."
If this wasn't A—his own son—he definitely wouldn't be teaching him like this.
---
[Konoha Year 60, Tazuna's House]
Sasuke watched intently, afraid to miss any piece of information about Itachi.
He was thrilled; he now knew both of Itachi's Mangekyō abilities—Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu—and with that intelligence, they would be much more easier to counter.
Tsukuyomi's activation range was five meters, required eye contact, and could be broken out by using the Cursed Seal transformation. Though he definitely wouldn't be seeking out Orochimaru for a Cursed Seal, Jiraiya's Sage Mode was an advanced version of it, so there was no reason it couldn't resist Tsukuyomi too.
And once he learned Sage Mode, as long as he dodged quickly enough, Itachi's Tsukuyomi would be useless.
As for Amaterasu, it was even simpler: wear more layers, or use a Substitution Jutsu. As long as your reaction time was fast enough, you could either avoid it or shake it off.
After all, the speed of Amaterasu wasn't actually that fast; it had a wind-up and focusing time. So unless you were reckless enough to catch it barehanded like the Fourth Raikage, you'd generally be fine.
And although his future Mangekyō ability might also be Amaterasu, and having its counter exposed by the screen would be a problem, at least right now he didn't have it. So knowing the counter in advance was still a net gain.
---
[Konoha, Year 83. Somewhere in the Shinobi World, a Forest]
Adult Sasuke had grown used to finding a tree to lie on while watching the screen. He leaned against a branch, one leg dangling, the other propped up, one hand tucked behind his head, casual and at ease.
When he heard his own Amaterasu's secret being exposed, his expression didn't change. By this point, Amaterasu was just a feint for him, no different from a standard Fire Release Jutsu, only slightly easier to land.
What he truly relied on were his Rinnegan abilities, Amenotejikara, and Susano'o; even his Uchiha-style swordsmanship was more useful than Amaterasu.
But soon, the Sky Screen's next words made his expression shift. He sat up straight, eyes locked onto the screen, pupils contracting slightly.
[Of course, there are also other ways to counter Amaterasu.]
[For example, when Boruto—possessed by Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki—faced Sasuke, he simply used a Shadow Clone to block Amaterasu. However, using this requires incredibly fast reflexes, as we're talking about Six Paths-level Sasuke, not some Tom, Dick or Harry.]
On the screen, a scene flashed: Future Sasuke's right eye instantly became a Mangekyō Sharingan and fired Amaterasu at his opponent.
But incredibly, his opponent—Boruto—first flipped backward to create distance, his body tracing an arc through the air in a fluid motion.
And the moment he landed, he rapidly formed hand seals. With a puff of smoke, a Shadow Clone appeared before him. The clone spread its arms like a shield, blocking the black flames.
The flames burned through the clone, which vanished in a puff of white smoke.
Boruto had even thrown a Rasengan at some point, striking Adult Sasuke seemingly out of nowhere.
Bam!
Adult Sasuke was struck by the rolling mass of Chakra, hurtling backward and tumbling across the ground in a clumsy roll.
Across countless timelines of the Shinobi World, countless people stared in utter disbelief.
That Adult Sasuke on the screen, wasn't he supposed to be Six Paths-level? The kind that could split the moon and destroy the world, as previously described?
If the screen hadn't said that, they would've thought he was just an ordinary Chūnin! He got hit by an enemy's jutsu that easily?
Someone muttered quietly: "This is way too fake, right? Six Paths-level getting clobbered by a Genin?"
Another person chimed in: "That's not just any Genin though, that's Boruto, the Seventh Hokage's son."
"The Seventh Hokage's son would still be a Genin at that age?! And a Genin beating a Six Paths-level fighter—and winning? Who wrote this script?!"
---
[Konoha, Year 83. Naruto's Home]
Naruto, who had been feeling somber over the tragic life of Itachi, suddenly felt his entire mood collapse.
So… this was why Boruto would later be jokingly called "Ōtsutsuki Boruto"?!
It wasn't that Boruto was that strong himself, it was that he had an Ōtsutsuki living inside him! That damned Momoshiki had possessed Boruto and was using his body to fight Sasuke!
Naruto clenched his fists. He would never let that Momoshiki guy get away, and he would absolutely never let him possess Boruto!
Never!
Even if it cost him his life, he would protect Boruto. And no wonder Boruto would become a rogue-nin in the future; was it because he was being controlled?
But still, Naruto had some doubts. When the Sky Screen had previously mentioned his Sage Fox Mode, it had also referred to this same Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki, apparently one of the most powerful of the Ōtsutsuki clan.
But this guy had seemed to be roughly on par with his Sage Fox Mode. So Naruto should have been able to win, or at least not lose.
Then how did Momoshiki get the chance to possess Boruto?
Did he win the fight and then possess him? Or did he lose and use the opportunity to latch on?
Naruto rubbed his temples, his mind swirling into a mess. He decided that after this episode of the screen ended, he'd sit down with Shikamaru and carefully analyze the intel.
Did the Ōtsutsuki clan have the ability to possess others? The rabbit lady (Kaguya) and the Sage of Six Paths hadn't shown any such ability, so it was most likely a unique power of this Momoshiki.
Naruto took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He then looked up at the screen, his gaze turning firm.
No matter how powerful that guy Momoshiki was, he would punch him into oblivion.
Himawari sat beside him, looking up with wide, worried eyes: "Dad, will big brother be okay?"
Naruto reached out and ruffled his daughter's hair, forcing a smile onto his face: "Don't worry. Boruto's my son. I won't let him be pushed around that easily."
Himawari nodded vigorously and buried her face in Naruto's arms.
*****
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