Chapter 41: Shisui is Attacked, Akira Watches Coldly
Uchiha Shisui was moving through the crisscrossing tree shadows at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. Tonight, Shisui had arranged to meet his close friend Uchiha Itachi by the cliff of the Naka River.
Danger was approaching.
"Whoosh!"
Dozens of cold, gleaming kunai completely sealed off all paths for Shisui to advance, retreat, or dodge!
"Oh no! An ambush!" Shisui's heart sank, and all his muscles instantly tensed to the extreme. In a flash, Shisui's body twisted in mid-air in a way that completely defied the laws of physics. He narrowly slipped through the gaps between the kunai.
"Body Flicker Technique!"
At the same time, Uchiha Akira also learned of Shisui's ambush through a system alert.
"It seems you still walked towards your end, Shisui!" Akira sighed helplessly!
Perhaps this was Shisui's destiny! Akira did not choose to rescue him; he had already given Shisui a choice. But Shisui still chose to trust the Third Hokage. Shisui's death would completely shatter the Uchiha Dove Faction's unrealistic fantasies! For Akira, this was the best opportunity to consolidate the Dove Faction.
Mercy? Sympathy? In the cruel Ninja World, these were the epitaphs of the weak! He, Uchiha Akira, was not a saint, much less a savior!
[Ding! Detecting that the host's current mindset and behavior pattern meet the trigger conditions for the hidden strategic mission [Coldly Observing the Fire: Sacrifices of the Era].]
A virtual light screen appeared before Uchiha Akira. On the light screen, everything happening by the Naka River cliff was being broadcast in real-time.
Back to Shisui. At the top of the earth wall, dozens of figures wearing various animal masks quietly emerged.
"Root!" Shisui's heart instantly sank to rock bottom. He recognized the identities of these people! It was Danzō Shimura's Root! They… they actually dared to make a move on him!
"Uchiha Shisui." Danzō Shimura, leaning on his cane, stepped out of the shadows, flanked by two Root ninja.
"Lord Danzō, what is the meaning of this?" Shisui forcibly suppressed the surging anger in his heart and bowed to Danzō.
"What meaning?" "Uchiha brat, you don't need to understand. You only need to know that those eyes of yours do not belong to you. For Konoha, hand them over!"
Before he finished speaking, Danzō's bandaged hand suddenly swung! He had suddenly launched a sneak attack on Shisui. Shisui's reaction was quick, but at such close range, Danzō's kunai still cut his arm. Shisui felt a sharp pain throughout his body, a sense of powerlessness, and immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to retreat rapidly. Danzō's kunai was poisoned.
"Attack!"
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
"Earth Release: Earth Wall!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Dull roars came from underground, and the earth trembled violently. From all directions, thick, towering earth walls rose from the ground, rapidly closing in a pincer movement, forming a huge and sturdy square cage that firmly trapped Shisui in the center!
Dozens of Root ninja, from all directions, unhesitatingly rushed at Shisui!
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Bastards!" Shisui roared, the Three-Tomoe in his eyes spinning rapidly, and a terrifying ocular power far exceeding that of an ordinary Sharingan erupted! The Mangekyō Sharingan instantly activated!
"Susanoo!"
Green Chakra energy surged out of his body like a volcanic eruption, quickly condensing on his body surface into a giant skeletal armor wielding a spiral longsword!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Countless Ninjutsu violently bombarded the green Susanoo! However, the number of Root ninja was simply too great. Although Susanoo's defense was astonishing and the Root ninja could not cause effective damage, Shisui's Chakra was not infinite, and with the poisoning, Shisui's condition was getting worse and worse. Shisui was extremely anxious. Under such a suffocating siege, he would eventually be exhausted to death here!
He had to break through!
"Kotoamatsukami!"
He placed his last hope on his strongest genjutsu, attempting to control Danzō and thus dismantle the encirclement. However, a cold, knowing sneer appeared on Danzō's wrinkled old face! He seemed to have anticipated this step long ago!
"Impossible!"
A cold light flashed in Danzō's eyes, and a Root ninja wearing a bird mask beside him quickly formed hand signs!
"Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!"
A strange Chakra wave instantly spread out. Shisui felt his vision suddenly go black, all light in the world instantly drained away, plunging him into endless, pitch-black darkness where he couldn't see his own hand! Although Shisui, relying on the powerful ocular power of his Mangekyō Sharingan, broke free from the illusion's bondage in almost 0.1 seconds, this brief moment of visual deprivation was enough to be fatal for a top-tier ninja!
"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
Yamanaka Fū's figure appeared from the right, using the Yamanaka clan's secret technique. Shisui felt a powerful and crude mental force, like a steel needle, attempting to forcibly invade his mind and seize control of his body!
"Get lost!" Shisui roared again, his Mangekyō's ocular power erupting without reservation, forcibly scattering Yamanaka Fū's invading mental energy! But Shisui's Chakra was consumed even more rapidly as a result! The intense battle caused the poison to spread faster. Shisui couldn't even maintain his Susanoo anymore.
"Heh heh, Uchiha Shisui, your struggle is futile."
Danzō's right eye, which should have been covered by bandages, was now a scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan!
"Izanagi!"
Danzō growled, and the three tomoe instantly lost all their light, turning grayish-white! And Danzō's figure appeared out of thin air in front of Shisui!
Pfft!
A bandaged right hand fiercely gouged out Shisui's right eye!
"Ah—!"
An intense pain instantly spread through every nerve ending in his body! Shisui let out a shrill scream, warm blood mixed with tears, pouring madly from his empty right eye socket! Shisui staggered backward and fell heavily to the ground, instinctively covering his bloody right eye with his hand.
Just as Danzō was about to reach for Shisui's remaining left eye, a furious shout!
"Stop!"
A figure, like a black lightning bolt, suddenly burst in! It was Uchiha Itachi!
Itachi roared, the Three-Tomoe in his eyes spinning wildly, giving Danzō no time to react as his body transformed into an afterimage, rushing straight towards Danzō! Dozens of shuriken and kunai shot from Itachi's hands at various tricky angles, targeting Danzō and all the Root ninja around him!
"Hmph! Uchiha brats, one after another coming to their deaths!" Danzō snorted coldly but dared not be careless in the slightest, quickly retreating.
The Root ninja immediately stepped forward, forming a formation to block Itachi's storm-like attack.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of metal clashing was incessant.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"
Itachi spat out several fireballs, like a celestial maiden scattering flowers, yet precisely blocking the Root ninja's movement paths, creating a chaotic blaze. The chaos lasted only a second. But for Uchiha Itachi, it was enough!
Itachi seized this fleeting opportunity, his figure flickering again, appearing beside Shisui, and grabbing his severely wounded close friend.
"Shisui! Hang in there!"
"Go!"
Itachi had no intention of prolonging the fight. Holding Shisui, he pushed the Body Flicker Technique to its limit and continuously used Fire Release Ninjutsu, forcibly breaking through Root's encirclement!
"Lord Danzō!"
"No need to pursue." Danzō looked in the direction where the two had disappeared, his bandaged face showing no expression. He slowly opened his left hand, and in his palm lay a freshly gouged Mangekyō Sharingan, still warm with blood.
Half of his objective had been achieved.
"Give the order. Uchiha Shisui attacked a Hokage Advisor and attempted to defect, then committed suicide out of guilt. Let this news spread throughout the Village before dawn."