Chapter 94: Everything of Yours Belongs to Me!
As the sounds of the battle gradually faded, the thick smell of blood quickly permeated the entire base.
With his right hand, Hagoromo Gengetsu gripped a water whip, tightly strangling Aburame Torune, a user of the innate poisonous body. While watching the now unguarded Shimura Danzo in front of him, he smiled faintly and said:
"All your men are dead, yet you remain quite composed."
Hearing this, Danzo, whose sinister old face was partially covered by his sleeve, remained unmoved and said indifferently, "Dying for Konoha is their honor."
Earlier, he had already undone the seal on his right arm, which meant he could have joined the fight much sooner.
However, the enemy this time was Hagoromo Gengetsu, who had once fought the First Five Kage.
There were still too few ninjas in the Root base.
Knowing that these men could hardly play a significant role in a real battle, Danzo had no hesitation in using them as expendables, sacrificing their lives to exhaust Hagoromo Gengetsu's chakra and stamina.
Not everyone had the special physique of Senju Hashirama.
No matter how strong Hagoromo Gengetsu was, his chakra and stamina were limited.
Depleting a portion of it meant increasing his chances of winning the subsequent battle.
As for what to do if all his subordinates died?
Konoha has never lacked talent.
As long as he remained, the Root would still exist.
By then, having absorbed all of Hagoromo Gengetsu's secrets, he would build an even stronger Root, and perhaps even a stronger Konoha!
Danzo's eyes shone with greed and ruthlessness as he looked at Hagoromo Gengetsu and said:
"Hagoromo Gengetsu, your arrogance will destroy the second life you have so painstakingly gained. Though Konoha no longer has the First Hokage, it remains powerful."
"Today, I will replace the First Hokage and bury you once again!"
"Bury me?"
Hagoromo Gengetsu seemed to hear a great joke and laughed,
"I'm curious where you get your courage from."
Danzo snorted coldly and said no more.
His courage naturally came from the combined powers of Wood Release and Sharingan, two of the strongest abilities in the ninja world.
So what if it was Hagoromo Gengetsu? Even he was defeated by the First Hokage who mastered Wood Release.
Now his right arm not only possessed the power of Wood Release but also Sharingan, even Mangekyou Sharingan!
Drip, drip.
The sound of blood dripping from some corpse, or perhaps multiple corpses, echoed throughout the empty, desolate Root base.
Maybe it was a few seconds, maybe it was dozens of seconds.
The moment the dripping sound paused, Danzo swiftly formed the hand signs of Hare, Boar, and Goat, and then attacked first:
"Wind Release: Shuriken!"
More than a dozen shuriken, infused with Danzo's wind chakra, transformed into high-speed rotating giant fans, rushing toward Hagoromo Gengetsu.
"Enough with the tricks."
Without even looking at the incoming shuriken, Hagoromo Gengetsu moved, turning into a more violent gale. In the instant Danzo's pupils slightly contracted, he closed the distance in a flash and threw a punch.
Boom!
Invisible shockwaves rolled in all directions.
Danzo used all his strength to block the incoming fist.
Even so, he was involuntarily pushed back, his legs dragging long marks on the hard floor.
Seeing Hagoromo Gengetsu making another move, Danzo hurriedly opened his mouth, shooting two fine needles formed by wind chakra from his mouth, aiming at Hagoromo Gengetsu's eyes which were close at hand.
In fact, Danzo should have competed for the position of Kazekage rather than Hokage. With just these few wind techniques, even Hagoromo Gengetsu had to take notice.
But facing him, mere tricks were insufficient.
Hagoromo Gengetsu tilted his head, dodging the wind needles just in time, and then swung his right leg like a battle axe forward.
Danzo, unable to dodge, was sent flying. With a loud crash, he hit a thick wall behind him, creating a big hole and embedding himself deeply in it.
Thick dust covered Danzo.
Taking advantage of the obscured vision, Hagoromo Gengetsu summoned a shadow clone.
"So this is what you meant by burying me?"
While the main body sank into the ground, the shadow clone spoke, giving Danzo no chance to catch his breath, and charged into the dust, aiming to finish him off.
"Wood Release: Tree Spikes!"
A gigantic tree suddenly shot out from the dust.
Hagoromo Gengetsu quickly retreated, chuckling,
"Wood Release? Is this your trump card?"
"A counterfeit is still a counterfeit. Compared to Senju Hashirama's Wood Release, it's far inferior."
Hagoromo Gengetsu extended his right hand, and the sound of chirping birds filled the air.
As the relentless tree spikes approached,
The chirping birds instantly transformed into a thousand-bird spear, slicing the tree spikes in half.
If Danzo hadn't dodged in time, his right arm would have been cut off too.
Crack!
In an instant, lightning flashed again.
Before Danzo, clutching his right arm, could stabilize himself,
Hagoromo Gengetsu's shadow clone, moving like lightning, charged forward. The thousand-bird spear in his hand turned back into a thousand birds, piercing Danzo's heart in an instant, leaving him with an expression of disbelief, panic, and despair.
"Your words don't seem to match your strength."
Looking at Danzo, who was vomiting blood, Hagoromo Gengetsu leaned in close to his ear and said calmly.
The chirping of birds faded away.
Hagoromo Gengetsu's shadow clone withdrew his hand and stepped back.
Thud.
Danzo collapsed heavily to the ground.
"You Konoha..."
He wanted to say something but lacked the strength, futilely reaching out his left hand toward Hagoromo Gengetsu, only to let it fall halfway.
"It's over."
Looking at the now lifeless Danzo, Hagoromo Gengetsu calmly declared. Then, lifting his head towards the sky, he added, "Xingtie, I've avenged you," before turning to leave the Root base.
However, in the next second,
A familiar voice rang out from behind.
"It is indeed over."
Hagoromo Gengetsu's expression changed. He hurriedly turned, only for an old hand to press down on his shoulder first.
Curse of Self-Destruction!
Black patterned curses quickly spread from the spot where Hagoromo Gengetsu was touched, covering his entire body.
Hagoromo Gengetsu felt a sudden numbness all over and could no longer move.
"How..."
Hagoromo Gengetsu began to speak, but then saw a perfectly unharmed Danzo walk over from behind, staring coldly at him.
"I told you, today I will bury you."
After speaking, Danzo's face revealed a confident smile as he declared,
"Hagoromo Gengetsu, everything of yours now belongs to me!"
In the next moment,
The two locked eyes.
The Mangekyou Sharingan activated.
"Kotoamatsukami!"