Chapter 83: Kotoamatsukami! Itachi Submits!
Chapter 83: Kotoamatsukami! Itachi Submits!
"It seems your brain is functioning just fine."
Ishihara shook his head as he spoke.
Itachi was a bit confused.
Did Ishihara think there was something wrong with his mind?
"I've already solved your problem. Now it's time for you to pay the price."
Ishihara looked at him and said.
Itachi's body trembled, his face tensed, and the hand holding the teacup turned pale from gripping it too tightly.
"Does this require a price as well?"
"Of course!" Ishihara responded naturally.
Itachi asked nervously, "What price do I have to pay?"
"Everything you have," Ishihara said calmly.
Itachi's face changed dramatically, showing a look of horror. He suddenly stood up, warily staring at him.
Ishihara leisurely observed him, even taking a sip of tea.
"If you dare come to me, you better be prepared. This time, I won't hold back."
"You can use any means at your disposal. If you manage to escape, I'll let you go."
Before the words even settled, Itachi had already made his move.
"Mangekyō Sharingan!"
"Tsukuyomi!"
How decisive!
Ishihara couldn't help but admire him.
Say what you will, but Itachi's battle intelligence is truly beyond that of ordinary ninjas.
He knew that other techniques wouldn't work, so he started with his strongest move!
Buzz—
In the blink of an eye, as their eyes locked, Ishihara realized he had entered the dark and blood-soaked realm of Tsukuyomi.
He was now bound to a cross.
Despite the crimson sky, the dim moon, and the flowing blood around him, Ishihara remained utterly calm.
"The Mangekyō's ocular techniques are impressive, but they won't work on me!"
Ishihara's illusionary powers were too strong.
Not only were they enhanced by the Crystal Visualization technique, but he had also made significant progress in studying Yin Release chakra.
There was no one alive in the ninja world with stronger genjutsu than his.
Not even Itachi, with his awakened Mangekyō Sharingan, could match him!
Itachi stared at Ishihara with a serious expression, fully prepared for battle.
He didn't expect Tsukuyomi to defeat Ishihara. What he needed was to create a brief moment of confusion, allowing him an opportunity to strike.
Moreover, he was well aware of Ishihara's terrifying talent, so he kept silent, not wanting to reveal any information about his ocular techniques.
As soon as they entered the Tsukuyomi space, Itachi immediately launched his attack.
Countless Itachi figures appeared in the Tsukuyomi space, silently stabbing towards Ishihara with long swords in hand.
"Genjutsu Space!"
Swish!
The surrounding scene suddenly changed into a pure white space, with only faint traces of blood remaining.
The cross was gone, and Ishihara calmly stood on the pristine white ground.
"Damn it!!!"
Itachi's face changed dramatically, staring at him in horror.
"You overlaid my illusion with your own?!"
Ishihara chuckled lightly, "That's right. If you have no other tricks, you'll lose here…!"
Crack!
Itachi bit his lip hard, the sharp pain combined with the Mangekyō's chakra consumption allowed him to break free from the genjutsu space.
He vanished from where he stood.
"As expected of a genjutsu-type Mangekyō, your resistance to illusions is quite high!"
Ishihara was somewhat surprised. He hadn't held back.
The power of the genjutsu space had already been maximized, though he hadn't activated other illusionary abilities.
Yet Itachi had managed to break free, which was impressive enough.
Ishihara immediately dispelled the illusion.
In the real world, Ishihara gazed at Itachi across from him, and suddenly, his pupils shrank!
Flap.
A pitch-black crow appeared.
It was right behind Itachi!
One of its eyes turned toward Ishihara!
"That's Shisui's Mangekyō?!"
Ishihara was startled.
Itachi muttered softly, "It's over! Kotoamatsukami!"
Buzz—
The Kotoamatsukami, which had long been prepared, instantly activated.
The Mangekyō in the crow's eye began to spin wildly.
"Heh!"
But Ishihara suddenly laughed.
Not only did he not resist, but he even activated his Byakugan to observe the crow.
"What's going on?!"
Itachi felt an ominous premonition.
Ever since he decided to confront Ishihara, he had prepared for battle.
Tsukuyomi was not his trump card.
Kotoamatsukami was!
But now...
Itachi stared at Ishihara, who stood motionless, his expression uncertain.
"Did Kotoamatsukami work?"
He took a deep breath and cautiously called out, "Ishihara?"
Ishihara did not respond, standing there in deep thought.
"This isn't good. Did Kotoamatsukami fail? How is that possible?!"
Itachi's face changed, and he was deeply shocked.
He knew the power of Kotoamatsukami. Even Mangekyō Sharingan couldn't resist it!
From their previous exchange, he had already judged that while Ishihara's illusionary abilities were stronger than his Mangekyō, they were still within the same level.
Ishihara shouldn't have been able to resist Kotoamatsukami!
But reality was giving him a harsh lesson.
Itachi couldn't afford to linger on his confusion and shock; he immediately tried to retreat.
But!
"Where do you think you're going?"
Before he could act, he felt a weight on his shoulder.
Ishihara was already beside him, pressing a hand on his shoulder.
"Such speed!"
Itachi's heart sank. He still wanted to resist.
But!
Swish!
Numerous seals spread from Ishihara's palm onto his body. Itachi's body instantly stiffened, leaving him unable to move.
"Damn, it's a sealing technique!"
Itachi's heart sank into despair.
He knew he had lost, utterly and without any means of countering.
But he couldn't understand one thing.
"Did you really not fall under Kotoamatsukami?"
He didn't bother asking how Ishihara knew about Kotoamatsukami; he knew he wouldn't get an answer.
Ishihara stood beside him, seemingly lost in thought, and replied, "No, I did fall under your Kotoamatsukami!"
"Then why didn't it work?"
Itachi was even more confused.
Ishihara should have succumbed to Kotoamatsukami, so why was this happening?
Upon hearing Itachi's question, Ishihara laughed.
Because the person standing there wasn't his real body!
It was just a Wood Clone!
The Wood Clone was incredibly unique. Neither the Byakugan nor the Mangekyō Sharingan could see through it.
Coupled with the immense strength Ishihara had displayed, no one ever doubted whether this was his real body.
Ishihara knew full well about Konoha's Kotoamatsukami and Might Guy, so he would never let his true body take such a risk.
At this moment, his real body was training in Kirigakure!
Itachi, being sharp-minded, quickly ran through the possible reasons for Kotoamatsukami's failure in his head and soon came to the realization, exclaiming in shock:
"This isn't your real body?!"
After considering everything, this was the only plausible explanation for what had just happened.
Seeing Ishihara nod, Itachi's heart sank even deeper.
Recalling the strength Ishihara had displayed earlier, he was even more shocked.
Defeating Fugaku with Susanoo, defeating Tetsuka with Mangekyō Sharingan, shattering mountains with a single punch!
If this terrifying battle power wasn't even his true body…
How strong could his real body be?!
It was unimaginable!
Itachi's mind was completely in turmoil.
He knew he had lost. No longer harboring any delusions, he couldn't help but ask, somewhat unwillingly:
"But even if it's a special clone, it should still be affected by genjutsu, right?"
Clones like Shadow Clones were composed of chakra.
And the essence of genjutsu was to disrupt the flow of chakra. Though ocular techniques were different, they still had the same effect.
Kotoamatsukami's genjutsu interference should have been strong enough to disperse a clone!
Yet Ishihara's clone not only didn't disperse but also resisted Kotoamatsukami!
"Kotoamatsukami is special, but it failed precisely because of that special quality."
Ishihara responded with deep meaning.
Originally, he had planned to abandon the Wood Clone once it fell under Kotoamatsukami, then summon another one.
But he underestimated the effects of the Crystal Visualization technique.
The moment Kotoamatsukami struck, a crystal-like shield of spiritual energy, or perhaps soul energy, automatically formed within him, protecting him like an impenetrable barrier.
Kotoamatsukami's will-altering ability was blocked so easily!
As for its genjutsu interference, it was still just at the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Ishihara easily neutralized it!
That's why he said Kotoamatsukami failed due to its own special nature.
Seeing Itachi still struggling to comprehend, Ishihara smiled and said,
"Don't overthink it. This is my secret technique. You won't figure it out, no matter how hard you try."
Itachi could only force a bitter smile at these words.
He hadn't expected Ishihara to be so terrifying that he could even develop a secret technique capable of resisting Kotoamatsukami.
Truly a monster!
"Since you failed to escape, from now on, everything about you belongs to me!"
Ishihara said indifferently.
Itachi's expression drastically changed.
But with his body completely immobilized, he was unable to resist Ishihara's sealing technique.
"Seal Lock Technique 3.0!"
Ishihara muttered in a low voice, and the new seal immediately landed on Itachi!
Itachi sighed, resigned to his fate.
But Ishihara knew well that Itachi wouldn't accept this easily and would definitely look for a countermeasure.
Smiling, he added, "This seal was partially inspired by the Hyuga clan's Caged Bird technique."
From the very start, the Seal Lock Technique had incorporated aspects of the Caged Bird technique.
Back then, Orochimaru had tried to research it, but he had abandoned the project due to a lack of progress.
However, Ishihara had learned from both the seal and Orochimaru's research data.
When designing the Seal Lock Technique, he had integrated these elements.
Now, in the 3.0 version, he had further enhanced the seal, adding the ability to control the body!
Itachi's face grew pale, and his body trembled slightly.
Seeing this, Ishihara chuckled.
"That's right. Even in death, you'll still be under my control!"
Itachi's body slumped as his will to resist completely faded.
Ishihara lifted the technique on Itachi, restoring his freedom, then returned to his seat.
Itachi knelt on one knee. "Itachi greets Lord Ishihara!"
Ishihara burst into laughter.
"Stand up!"
"Yes!"