"Sorry, I didn't expect him to be able to use my chakra to perform that jutsu…" Older Sasuke smiled bitterly as his Mangekyō Sharingan activated, channeling his ocular power into his Susanoo.
Sasuke didn't respond further because, in the next moment, Kirin collided with the purple Susanoo.
Blood slowly began to drip from Sasuke's eyes, but he endured.
Eventually, the thunderclouds dispersed.
Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's fine. Fortunately, that wasn't Natsuro's chakra, and the weather wasn't suitable for a proper Kirin."
Without the added effect of stormy weather, Kirin was just a typical S-rank jutsu. Only during thunderstorms could it reach its peak power, far exceeding that of ordinary S-rank techniques.
As Sasuke spoke, he recalled Natsuro's Sage Art Kirin, which was far more terrifying than the normal version. He even suspected that Kirin wasn't Natsuro's strongest move.
After dismissing his Susanoo, Sasuke suddenly felt his vision blur. It took a while before it slowly returned to normal...
He fell silent. So this is the cost of the Mangekyō Sharingan? Losing one's sight...
"So strong…" Naruto said in awe, watching the scene unfold. Whether it was Sasuke's Susanoo or that Kirin capable of destroying the heavens and earth, both had left him stunned.
If Urashiki had used Kirin on him from the start, even with Sage Mode, he probably wouldn't have been able to defend against it…
Unbeknownst to him, his Wind Style: Rasenshuriken, when unleashed, was no weaker than an unboosted Kirin, and even had a type advantage.
However, Urashiki wouldn't use Kirin on Naruto, after all, he needed him alive, not dead.
"He got away… What now?" Boruto asked.
"Don't worry. He won't escape. The rest is up to Natsuro," Sasuke said calmly.
"Huh?" Boruto was confused, but Older Sasuke seemed thoughtful. He remembered the kunai Sasuke had thrown at the end and nodded.
If Natsuro from Sasuke's memories was anything like that, then after figuring out the fishhook's ability, he should be able to take Urashiki down.
Having Sasuke's memories gave Older Sasuke full confidence in Natsuro, even unknowingly.
Naruto nodded too. While he didn't fear Urashiki, he also had no surefire way to beat him. Urashiki's abilities were troublesome, and if he let his guard down, he might even get hooked...
Suddenly, Naruto recalled that lightning-style Kirin and fell silent again. Maybe it really was a bit tricky. Urashiki probably had even more abilities he hadn't shown. If Naruto had been alone, he might've been worn down to exhaustion...
And though Naruto had wanted to avenge Boruto, he had already hit Urashiki twice with Frog Kumite. That was enough to vent a little anger, the rest, he would leave to Natsuro.
Boruto glanced around, confused, especially at Older Sasuke. He could understand why Naruto and Sasuke trusted Natsuro… but even Older Sasuke?
"It's because… he's really strong," Older Sasuke said with a rare smile, sensing Boruto's confusion.
Boruto still didn't fully get it, but he nodded, starting to feel a little anticipation.
———
Somewhere on an open plain, a black rift suddenly appeared.
Soon after, a battered figure stepped out, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki.
Urashiki frowned, lost in thought. Finding other tailed beasts would be troublesome, but if he didn't…
It wasn't like he had no options. He could try to retrieve the Ōtsutsuki clan's treasured tool, the plow, and use it to perform another time-space jump, to go even further back in time.
But before Urashiki could decide what to do, a voice echoed in his ear:
"So, this is the grave you picked for yourself? Not bad."
Urashiki's face changed as he spotted a figure standing in the distance, twirling a kunai in hand.
That was…! Urashiki's eyes narrowed. He recognized it, the kunai Sasuke had thrown at the end. So that's it... it had a time-space mark on it?I let my guard down…
"Tch." Urashiki clicked his tongue, then looked at Natsuro, continuing in a flippant tone, "Yare yare… to think someone chased me all the way here. May I ask who you are?"
Natsuro looked up at the airborne Urashiki and frowned. "I'm not used to talking to people while looking up. Could you come down?"
"Hmph. You mortals should consider it an honor to gaze upon the noble Ōtsutsuki. Looking up to us is your greatest privilege," Urashiki replied, still using polite speech, but with a tone that made one uncomfortable.
"Is that so? Then let's see how long you can stay in the sky." Natsuro's brows lifted slightly, and then he vanished.
"What?!" Urashiki's eyes widened. His Byakugan instantly turned into glowing blue Rinnegan.
Had he activated his eyes a moment later, the attack might have landed.
As Urashiki sighed in relief, having rewound time a few times to fully observe Natsuro's moves and preparing to strike back with his fishing rod
After all, the faster someone is, the harder it is for them to change direction. Even if Natsuro reacted, he'd have trouble dodging mid-motion. So to Urashiki, this strike was certain.
But in the next moment... Urashiki's eyes went wide.
Natsuro's figure vanished, leaving behind several kunai that didn't fall but instead spread rapidly outward, seemingly propelled by some force.
Soon, the kunai formed a formation around Urashiki, from all directions.
"Time-space ninjutsu, huh? Annoying jutsu," Urashiki muttered, sensing danger.
Natsuro, meanwhile, appeared at the spot where Urashiki had initially stood, frowning. So he reacted?And not just dodged, he actually counterattacked. That means he predicted my path from the start?
Still, Natsuro felt something strange… something was off.
After a few thoughts, he realized what it was, Urashiki also possessed time-space techniques, or more specifically, ocular jutsu.
So it wasn't that Urashiki was reacting, he was using his eyes to fight back, relying purely on them.
But Natsuro wanted to know, how many more times could Urashiki use his eye technique? In contrast, his Flying Thunder God, especially over such short distances, cost him almost nothing.
In fact, Natsuro wanted Urashiki to hold on longer. He wasn't just trying to bring Urashiki down anymore, he wanted to experience his time-space jutsu.
Both were time-space based, but Flying Thunder God was more spatial, while Urashiki's was clearly temporal.
This was a rare chance to study a time-based ocular technique, Natsuro wasn't about to let it slip away.
With that in mind, Natsuro stepped on one of his marked kunai and launched himself toward Urashiki at blinding speed.
Urashiki was already starting to panic, every time was the same. He had to rewind time multiple times just to find the perfect counterattack window.
At first, Urashiki didn't believe he could always react. But the truth slapped him, Natsuro really could dodge every time with his time-space jutsu.
And then strike from a new direction.
Urashiki even tried giving up on countering and just focused on evading, which was a bit easier.
But what met him was true despair. Natsuro was too fast. And he could even move in midair, meaning he wasn't one-and-done, if he missed once, he'd just strike again.
Urashiki realized he couldn't keep up. Forget countering, even dodging would soon become impossible. His body just couldn't match Natsuro's speed!
So Urashiki was forced to rewind time again, returning to his starting move, trying another counter.
He thought about using his Paper Crane teleportation, but even that needed a brief moment to activate, and Natsuro wasn't giving him even a sliver of time.
All Urashiki could do was rewind, over and over.
But even that wouldn't last forever. His Time Reversal wasn't unlimited, and Natsuro…
Natsuro looked like he wasn't even breaking a sweat.
Monster.
Even Ōtsutsuki Urashiki, pride of the Ōtsutsuki clan, couldn't help but curse.Not only did Natsuro master time-space jutsu, his speed was outrageous, and his chakra reserves seemed bottomless...
Who's the real Ōtsutsuki here?
And worse, Natsuro's energy usage was way more efficient. Since Urashiki's time reversals undid Natsuro's attacks, all of Natsuro's chakra spent on those failed hits was effectively refunded.
For the first time, Urashiki thought his own power… might be useless.
Natsuro had always been fast, but his current speed was on another level, all thanks to mastering Swift Release. With his body's capabilities, the boost was insane.
"…Huh? Did that one land?"
Natsuro suddenly felt his fist smash against Urashiki's forearms.
In the end, Urashiki had given up, he decided to take Natsuro's punch head-on. It should be fine…
But the moment Natsuro's fist connected, Urashiki's expression changed instantly. The searing pain from his arms made it very clear just how wrong that decision was.
It was too late for regret. Urashiki's body shot out like a cannonball, crashing down into the ground below.
"Ahhh!!"
Urashiki's scream echoed as dust filled the air. A long trench, several dozen meters in length, was faintly visible on the ground where his body had torn through it.
Natsuro's expression looked a bit odd. He really took that punch head-on?
Right now, his punch strength, while still in base Sage Mode, was already comparable to someone like Seventh Gate Guy. On top of that, he'd trained his instinctual responses to perfection, each punch augmented with electrical stimulation, and layered with the monstrous strength technique he learned from Tsunade...
He figured even someone like Six Paths Madara wouldn't dare block that punch directly.
Right now, he was practically a humanoid monster, even if a Gundam stood in front of him, he'd try to rip it apart barehanded.
All he could say was that Urashiki's courage was commendable.
But then again, what other option did Urashiki have? If he hadn't blocked it, what else could he have done? His time-reversal technique didn't seem capable of rewinding very far, Natsuro estimated only a few seconds at best.
Which made sense. Time-based powers weren't so easily wielded. Even after playing around with Urashiki for so long, Natsuro hadn't gleaned the true essence of time, though in real time, perhaps only a few seconds had passed.
Now, he calmly strolled through the air above Urashiki, as if taking a walk. His Flying Thunder God kunai floated behind him under the influence of Magnet Release.
He soon arrived above Urashiki's position. As the dust hadn't yet settled, Natsuro formed a single-handed seal.
A gentle breeze blew through, sweeping the dust away and revealing the scene below.
It turned out that his punch hadn't just created a trench, at the end of it was a massive crater.
Urashiki lay at the bottom, in miserable shape. His arms were clearly broken, and blood flowed from his mouth.
Floating above, Natsuro looked down at him and said, "Now it's your turn to look up at me."
"Cough, cough…" Urashiki wheezed as he slowly stood up, surprising Natsuro a bit. As expected of the Ōtsutsuki clan, even after taking a direct hit like that, he can still get up.
"Looks like your time-reversal doesn't work on yourself," Natsuro commented. Otherwise, in that condition, Urashiki would have rewound and tried to dodge the punch some other way.
"Konoha shinobi… I'll remember you!" Urashiki's gaze was now sharp and fierce, gone was his usual aloof attitude.
In the next instant, his eyes turned into red Rinnegan, and a black rift reappeared behind him.
Natsuro watched calmly and hurled a kunai.
"Not this time!" Urashiki had learned his lesson. He wasn't going to let that kunai enter his portal again. He dodged back at high speed, and the kunai merely landed in the dirt.
It soon returned to Natsuro's hand. But he didn't show the slightest frustration at his "target" escaping.
Because...
He hadn't lost him at all.
In the next moment, Natsuro vanished from where he stood.
———
Above a forest, Urashiki reappeared, looking utterly battered.
"Who is that guy? Why is he so strong?" Urashiki couldn't understand, this era felt even more terrifying than his own.
Back in his time, he had never encountered someone like him!
Could it be that Natsuro had died during the course of history? But… how was that possible? Someone that strong, dying? No way…
Urashiki couldn't believe it. If he had died, it meant there were even stronger beings in this era. He was starting to despair. He had come here specifically to target a younger, weaker Naruto, and instead ended up in an even more terrifying timeline.
"Yo. What's got you so deep in thought?"
That familiar voice froze Urashiki completely.
He looked up and saw Natsuro appear right in front of him, mouth agape, eyes filled with disbelief.
Fortunately, Natsuro didn't seem to be attacking right away, and Urashiki seized the chance, his blue Rinnegan flashed, and he turned into several red paper cranes that quickly scattered.
When he reappeared again, he was far away from Natsuro.
"How are you still able to follow me?! That kunai didn't come through the portal!" Urashiki shouted.
"I can tell you," Natsuro replied, "but can you keep using that time-reversal jutsu? I want to keep experiencing it."
Urashiki's expression twisted again, now full of shame and fury.
"You… you're using me to study the power of time?!"
"So, what do you say? Want to make a deal?" Natsuro raised an eyebrow. He was dead serious, he really did want to make that deal.
"You! No way in hell!!!" Urashiki now understood he probably couldn't escape. He didn't even know how Natsuro kept following him, and he definitely couldn't afford to use Yomotsu Hirasaka for teleportation anymore. Natsuro's movement was clearly much easier than his own!
"That so? Pity," Natsuro said with a sigh.
Urashiki stared at Natsuro, who acted like he had already won, his eyes dark and sinister.
Suddenly, Urashiki kicked over his chakra basket. From it poured various kinds of chakra.
Then he began to consume them.
Natsuro watched curiously, but didn't stop him.
After all, he had already confirmed Urashiki was weak. He was more interested in using this chance to better understand the Ōtsutsuki's abilities, it would help him prepare for future encounters with the clan.
As Urashiki absorbed the chakra, his arms slowly began to heal, at least enough to move again.
"Still not enough…" Urashiki muttered, then flashed a strange smile. Slowly, he raised his hand, toward his own eyes.
Natsuro's eyes narrowed. He's really going to do it…
Indeed, Urashiki gouged out his own eyes and… ate them.
Now, that wasn't unheard of in the Naruto world, but what shocked Natsuro was what happened next…
After swallowing his own eyes, a golden Rinnegan suddenly opened on Urashiki's forehead.
Before him appeared a glowing golden portal. Urashiki's body fell into it.
Brilliant light erupted, and it was clear, Urashiki's form had changed.
A wave of unseen pressure spread out, and Natsuro furrowed his brows slightly.
When the light faded, he finally got a good look at Urashiki's new form.
His original Byakugan had turned gold. A golden Rinnegan now sat on his forehead. Black lines marked his face. A giant wing-shaped horn had grown from one side of his head, the other side was broken. His feet had transformed into sharp black talons.
"…Did you turn into a birdman or something?" Natsuro quipped at his appearance.
"I'm going to kill you. I'll definitely kill you!!" Urashiki roared from the sky, glaring down at him.
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Currently on Chapter 365 - Naruto & Sasuke vs. Sage of Six Paths Obito