"Sorry to keep you waiting, Sasuke-kun."
Ten minutes later, Kabuto Yakushi arrived outside the hideout.
Sasuke Uchiha turned to face Kabuto, scrutinizing his changes. "So that's it? You've swapped out one Sharingan? Are you planning to use Izanagi like Danzo to save your skin? That might help you survive ten moves, but it seems the rules will need some adjustment. Guess I'll just have to aim to kill you outright!"
Kabuto adjusted his glasses, a meaningful smile on his face. "Now that Nagato is no longer here, if anything happens to me, there's no one to revive me. I hope you remember that, Sasuke-kun."
"Hmph." Sasuke chuckled coldly. "Well, I'll leave you barely alive, won't I? You have medical ninjutsu, don't you?"
"Heh heh heh."
Kabuto lowered his head, chuckling quietly, as he formed seals with his hands.
Rustle! Rustle! Rustle!
Four white snakes slithered out from under his robe, growing larger as they swayed and flicked their tongues. Four pairs of vertical pupils simultaneously fixed their gaze on Sasuke.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought to himself, "Those are Orochimaru's summoned snakes. Did he acquire them by transplanting Orochimaru's cells? Why are they so large?"
Kabuto spoke in a low voice, "No, you've misunderstood, Sasuke-kun. I hope you take care not to inflict injuries on yourself that even medical ninjutsu can't heal. If that happens, I'll have no choice but to use Edo Tensei to resurrect you. But remember, an Edo Tensei body cannot train or enhance chakra. At that point, you'd merely be a pawn. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
"Tch!"
Sasuke tightened his grip on the Kusanagi Sword, his gaze growing colder. "Are you suggesting that someone like me, who possesses the supreme Uchiha ocular power—the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan—could lose to you? A mere dabbler who transplanted a counterfeit Sharingan and plays with Orochimaru's outdated tricks?"
"Counterfeit Sharingan, outdated tricks, dabbler? Is that how you see it? Well then."
Kabuto chuckled openly. "You're absolutely right! That's exactly what I mean!"
"How dare you!"
Sasuke's rage erupted as Susano'o materialized in response, launching a violet arrow aimed directly at Kabuto's position.
"Such arrogance! Let's see how you deal with this power!"
Boom!
The arrow pierced Kabuto's body, and his gray robe scattered into a pile of white snakes.
Sasuke's gaze sharpened. "This is Orochimaru's signature shedding technique!"
Kabuto's voice echoed from the serpent's mouth. "You're mistaken, Sasuke-kun. This isn't Orochimaru-sama's shedding technique; it's the liquefied physiology of the Hōzuki clan. I can turn my body into liquid to escape, which makes it look like shedding."
Rustle! Rustle! Rustle!
The scattered white snakes melted into water, leaving only the one hosting Kabuto's essence coiled atop a rock.
Sasuke sneered, "I thought it might be something impressive, but it's just Suigetsu's ability. Do you think evading one arrow means you can stand against Susano'o?"
Tch!
The white snake opened its mouth, and Kabuto's arm emerged, wagging a finger at Sasuke. "Tsk tsk tsk. Susano'o, is it? Then let me show you how someone with Sage powers deals with that!"
Sasuke's pupils contracted. "You said... Sage powers!"
Whoosh!
The white snake spewed forth a transformed Kabuto! Amidst the viscous liquid, Kabuto's appearance had changed drastically from before.
Paired horns symmetrically adorned his head, while pale purple eye shadows curved from the corners of his eyes to his nose.
Sizzle!
A snake's cornea covered his right eye.
Kabuto smirked with a crazed grin. "Sasuke, this is the Sage Mode of Ryūchi Cave! Its power surpasses your former Cursed Seal by dozens of times!"
"Whatever you are, burn away!"
Drip! Blood trickled down from the corner of Sasuke's left eye, veins spreading across the sclera as his gaze locked onto Kabuto's body.
"Amaterasu!"
Flame!!
Black flames ignited Kabuto's form!
"Heh heh heh. Amaterasu, huh? In this Sage Mode, I can freely use Orochimaru-sama's shedding technique!"
Tch!
The white snake connected to Kabuto's abdomen opened its mouth, spitting out a completely new Kabuto. The Kabuto consumed by Amaterasu was reduced to shriveled snake skin and burned to ashes.
"Let me test this further!"
Sizzle! Sasuke's gaze focused once more.
"Amaterasu!"
Flame!!
Amaterasu ignited again, but Kabuto repeated his escape.
After four repetitions, Kabuto's chakra showed no signs of depletion, and Sasuke finally realized Kabuto hadn't been bluffing.
"Kabuto, is shedding all you can do?" Sasuke snarled in frustration.
Kabuto adjusted his glasses, a sinister smile on his face. "Of course not~ But Amaterasu is indeed troublesome. Without the Rinnegan or Jiraiya-sama's sealing techniques, I can only use this method to counter it. Speaking of which, aren't you going to keep burning? Or are you running out of chakra? Even with the Eternal Mangekyō, it doesn't mean you don't consume chakra, right? If you're done burning, I'll begin my technique. I'll even tell you upfront—I'm targeting the weak point beneath your half-body Susano'o!"
"Damn it!!"
Sasuke cursed as his right eye focused.
"Kagutsuchi!"
Flame! Flame! Flame!
Black flames surged around Sasuke's feet, forming a protective barrier.
This way, he could guard against attacks aimed at the base of his half-body Susano'o.
However, Kabuto remained unfazed, forming seals with his hands.
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation!"
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The ground beneath Sasuke's feet seemed to come alive, sprouting sharp spikes that instantly pierced through the protective barrier created by Kagutsuchi!
Sasuke dodged clumsily, his expression shocked. "This is Earth Release?! Impossible! Earth Release can't break through Kagutsuchi!"
Kabuto adjusted his glasses. "Inorganic Reincarnation grants life to inanimate objects, allowing me to control them. It's not merely a chakra manipulation technique. Naturally, its power is on a completely different level!"
"Damn it! Don't underestimate me!!"
Boom!
Susano'o transformed into its full-body form.
Flame! Flame! Flame!
Arrows imbued with Kagutsuchi shot toward Kabuto's position.
Whoosh!
Kabuto's body twisted unnaturally, evading all the arrows with minimal movement.
"In Sage Mode, natural energy is my ally. Such attacks are meaningless against me."
Sasuke roared, "Then how about this!!"
Whoosh! A Kagutsuchi-infused arrow tore through the air, exploding and igniting the atmosphere. The resulting updraft formed cumulonimbus clouds, and soon, the violent natural lightning took shape as the majestic Kirin.
Crackle~~!
Sasuke held a sphere of Chidori lightning in his hand, raising his arm high to direct the natural lightning toward Kabuto's location.
"Lightning Release: Kirin!"
Kabuto smirked. "A lightning strike? Indeed, without reflexes on par with Minato Namikaze, it's impossible to dodge this move. Even Sage Mode is no exception!"
Boom!
Kirin descended with divine wrath, roaring toward Kabuto.
"However, the ocular powers of Kagami Uchiha are a different matter!"
Sizzle!
Kabuto's left eye transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan!
He commanded, "Stop!"
Whoosh!
The mighty Kirin halted three feet above Kabuto's head.
Sasuke stood in shock. "What?!"
Kabuto's left eye glowed red as he slowly rose, issuing another command. "Disperse!"
With his words, Kirin's massive form shattered into nothingness.
Sasuke stared in disbelief.
Kabuto's gaze deepened. "The left eye of Kagami Uchiha possesses the ocular technique 'Words of Command.' As its name implies, it allows the user to manipulate the power of words freely. It pairs perfectly with the Six Paths' linguistic tools—the Red Gourd, Seven-Star Sword, and Golden Rope. Unfortunately, those tools are now with Naruto. But even without them, dealing with you is more than enough, Sasuke!"
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