Chapter 475: Uchiha Yao Makes His Move
Across the blasted wasteland, the battlefield where Sasuke and Gaara clashed against Uchiha Itachi had devolved into a zone of absolute destruction.
"Damn it..." Gaara gritted his teeth. Veins bulged against the pale skin of his forehead. He slammed his palms together, his chakra surging into the arid air like a violent storm.
"Sand Release: Sky Sand Defensive Wall!"
A colossal shield of densely packed sand erupted in mid-air, curving upward in a desperate bid to block the descending sea of black fire.
However...
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.
The sand of Suna, revered across the shinobi nations as an absolute defense, withered like burning parchment before the black flames of Amaterasu. It held for barely two seconds before the terrifying heat melted a gaping hole straight through the center.
A dark blur shot through the breach. Itachi closed the distance in a fraction of a heartbeat.
"Sasuke! Get back!" Gaara roared. Countless grains of sand spewed from the mouth of the massive gourd slung across his back, twisting and coalescing into a giant hand that lunged to crush Itachi.
"Stay out of my way!" Sasuke shoved Gaara aside. The newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan spun furiously within his crimson eyes, the complex pinwheel pattern locking onto his older brother. Though he had only recently unlocked this cursed ocular prowess, the sheer, intoxicating surge of chakra it provided filled Sasuke with an unmatched, almost arrogant confidence.
"This guy... is mine!"
The two Uchiha brothers moved with blinding speed. To anyone else, their figures were nothing more than a series of violent afterimages, clashing and separating in a storm of sparks and displaced air.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Two massive spheres of superheated flame collided at point-blank range. The shockwave of the blast tore through the battlefield, sending a blistering heatwave rippling across the sands.
In the center of the inferno, Itachi's figure suddenly dissolved into a dozen scattered crows, their black feathers drifting through the smoke.
"Genjutsu?" Sasuke sneered, his lips curling into a mocking smirk. "Before my eyes, such cheap tricks..."
Before the sentence could leave his mouth, his pupils constricted to pinpricks.
A suffocating, icy killing intent materialized directly behind his back, locking his muscles in place.
"Sand Coffin!"
At that critical, razor-thin margin between life and death, a mass of yellow sand slithered upward like a living serpent, wrapping tightly around Itachi's wrist just as his blade descended.
Gaara stood in the distance, his hands clamped together in the air, sweat beading down his face.
Infuriated by the near-miss, Sasuke pivoted sharply. Lightning crackled and shrieked around his form.
"Chidori Current!"
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!
Violent arcs of high-voltage lightning surged outward, crawling up the sand and blasting directly into Itachi's body.
Sasuke did not hesitate. His left eye widened, the crimson iris flashing with a brilliant, deadly light.
"Amaterasu!"
Black flames ignited out of thin air, latching directly onto Itachi's paralyzed form and instantly consuming him in an unquenchable dark inferno.
'Did it work?' Sasuke felt a fierce surge of vindication.
But a second later, the burning figure collapsed with a dull poof, revealing nothing but a charred, smoking log.
Substitution Technique?
Before Sasuke could even process the deception, a cold, pale hand rested lightly upon his shoulder.
Sasuke whipped his head around.
He looked straight into the wildly spinning Mangekyo Sharingan of Uchiha Itachi.
"Tsukuyomi."
The entire world instantly inverted, bleeding of all color until only a stark, monochromatic wasteland remained. High above, a massive, blood-red moon hung in the sky, casting a sickening glow over the realm.
Sasuke found his body bound tightly to a stone cross. He strained against the invisible bonds, but his muscles refused to obey.
And standing before him, stretching endlessly into the horizon, were thousands of Uchiha Itachi clones. Each one held a gleaming longsword, their faces completely devoid of emotion.
"This... this is..."
"Aaaaaaaah!"
Piercing, agonizing screams echoed endlessly through the mental world as the blades plunged into his flesh.
Back in the real world, less than a second had passed.
Sasuke's body suddenly went rigid. His eyes rolled back, losing all focus. White foam bubbled at the corners of his mouth, and he collapsed straight backward into the dirt like a puppet with its strings cut.
"Sasuke!" Gaara yelled, his face draining of color.
How was this possible? In just a single, fleeting exchange? Sasuke, wielding his own Mangekyo Sharingan, had been utterly broken?
Itachi did not even spare a second glance at his fallen brother. He slowly turned his cold, dead eyes toward the Kazekage.
"Next... is you."
Deep underground, Orochimaru formed a seal, channeling his foul chakra through the Edo Tensei connection.
Instantly, a terrifying aura erupted from Itachi's body. A massive, ethereal red skeletal frame rapidly manifested around him. In seconds, glowing chakra meridians and dense layers of spiritual flesh wove themselves over the bones.
Susanoo: Stage Three.
"Shukaku!" Gaara roared, his hands flying through hand seals. "Lend me all your power!"
Deep within his seal, the One-Tailed beast sensed the overwhelming, apocalyptic danger radiating from the red giant and frantically pumped its massive reserves of chakra into its host.
The desert for several kilometers around began to quake violently.
Countless tons of yellow sand soared into the sky, blotting out the sun. The earth itself seemed to rise up, forming colossal hands of sand that slammed down, attempting to pin the towering red giant to the ground.
"Desert Layered Imperial Funeral!"
However, the Susanoo merely raised its arm. Itachi swung the ethereal, flaming blade in its grasp—the Sword of Totsuka.
A massive red wave of sword light swept outward.
The towering tsunamis of sand, which looked capable of swallowing entire mountains, were cleanly bisected the moment they touched the divine blade's light. The absolute defense crumbled into useless dust.
Gaara kept retreating, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
The Sword of Totsuka was raised high into the sky, casting a long, bloody shadow over the battlefield. It slashed down with merciless force, aiming directly for Gaara, who had nowhere left to run, and the unconscious Sasuke lying helpless in the dirt.
It was over.
But just as the apocalyptic blade was about to crash down and obliterate them both, a single hand abruptly appeared beneath the descending Sword of Totsuka.
With nothing more than a gentle, upward push, the divine weapon—an ethereal blade said to be capable of sealing all things—ground to an absolute halt in mid-air.
It hung there, completely motionless.
A violent shockwave of displaced air swept outward in a massive ring, blowing Gaara's red hair into a wild dance. He opened his eyes in utter astonishment.
Standing directly before him, Uchiha Akira held the colossal sword of light with one bare hand. The Fifth Hokage tilted his head slightly, his dark eyes falling upon the unconscious Sasuke sprawled in the dirt.
Akira shook his head, a helpless sigh escaping his lips.
"Still a bit too green." His voice was calm, cutting through the roaring winds. "Thinking you can challenge Itachi just because you awakened the Mangekyo? Naive."
After delivering his blunt assessment, Uchiha Akira slowly turned his head, his gaze locking onto the towering red Susanoo looming above him.
"Heh..."
A raspy, chilling laugh abruptly echoed from within the red giant.
"What a surprise..." The voice spilling from Itachi's mouth did not belong to him. "I didn't expect that you, as the Fifth Hokage, would personally descend to this front-line battlefield. This is truly... a major miscalculation."
As the sinister voice faded, the Susanoo's massive head slowly lowered, its glowing eyes looking down at the ant-like figure of Uchiha Akira from high above.
Thousands of miles away, hidden deep within a dark, damp underground laboratory, Orochimaru spoke through his Edo Tensei puppet. His snake-like eyes flashed with a sickly, obsessive light.
Uchiha Akira.
The strongest Uchiha. The man who filled Orochimaru with both paralyzing terror and an insatiable, maddening obsession.
"Miscalculation?" Akira's lips curved into a cold, mocking smile. "Orochimaru. Have you been hiding in that gutter for so long that your brain has finally rotted away?"
Akira's eyes narrowed, his tone dropping to a dangerous whisper. "You dare to show off a toy of this level in front of me?"
A terrifying, invisible repulsive force suddenly erupted.
The massive, mountain-like red Susanoo was actually violently pushed back several steps by the sheer kinetic impact of that single palm strike, its massive feet carving deep trenches into the earth.
A hint of genuine annoyance bled into Orochimaru's voice.
"Still as arrogant as ever, Akira-kun."
Then, Orochimaru's tone shifted, dripping with sinister malice. "However... don't look down on people too much. This is Uchiha Itachi! He is the clan member you personally executed!"
A perverse, rattling laugh echoed across the battlefield. "Having him deal with you... isn't there quite a poetic flavor to it? Hehehe..."
Accompanied by Orochimaru's twisted laughter, the staggering Susanoo suddenly dug its heels in, stabilizing its massive form.
"What of Uchiha Itachi?"
Uchiha Akira stood tall, casually resting his hands behind his back as if he were taking a stroll through his own courtyard.
"He's just a dead man." Akira's voice was utterly devoid of warmth. "Now get lost."
"Get lost?"
"Hahahaha!"
Orochimaru's laughter suddenly spiked, becoming incredibly shrill and unhinged.
"Uchiha Akira! You are far too arrogant!"
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