Chapter 188

"Sage Art: Great Dragon Dance!"

Gensou wasted no more words. He clapped his hands, and under the infusion of sage chakra, ferocious fire dragons formed in the air, circling around him, making him look noble and solemn.

"Retreat!"

Seeing this, Jiraiya's pupils shrank sharply, and he decisively ordered a retreat.

The Konoha ninja, already sensing the dire situation, hurriedly retreated.

Sakura looked up at the now not-so-distant Naka Shrine, clenched her teeth, and felt very unwilling.

However, with Kakashi and Yamato each placing a hand on her shoulders, she had no choice but to retreat with the main force.

Roar~~

The deafening roar of a dragon echoed through the sky.

With Gensou's command—

The Great Dragon Dance.

One after another, majestic fire dragons descended from the sky, bringing with them an overwhelming, world-destroying momentum, rushing towards the Konoha forces.

"Sage Art: Goemon!"

At this moment, Jiraiya was ready. Using a large amount of sage chakra, he spewed out an unprecedented amount of oil from his mouth. Simultaneously, Fukasaku and Shima used all their strength to cast wind release and fire release techniques.

The combination of these three techniques produced a blazing inferno with temperatures exceeding thousands of degrees, capable of devouring all tangible matter, clashing head-on with the incoming fire dragons without yielding.

Boom~~~~

At the moment the two sage arts collided, massive flames shot skyward, forming a colossal crimson curtain that completely covered the sky, turning daylight into a deep red hue.

Next, the air twisted, the ground melted, and all tangible objects rapidly disintegrated.

The Konoha ninja behind Jiraiya felt as if they were in the legendary Flaming Mountain, with the moisture in their bodies rapidly evaporating.

Before they could do anything—

Boom!!!

Like a giant balloon being punctured.

Under the mighty roar of the dragon, the sage art known as Goemon didn't last long before it was entirely devoured by the Great Dragon Dance.

Seeing the fire dragons still surging forward unabated—

Jiraiya retreated swiftly, and Shima, on his shoulder, exclaimed repeatedly:

"This youngster! How in the world did he train to become so powerful!!"

Looking at the approaching fire dragons that seemed almost corporeal, Jiraiya's eyelid twitched as he joked wryly, "Shima-sama, that person just now isn't exactly a youngster. If we count correctly, he's probably around seventy or eighty now."

Having lived for over eight hundred years, Shima disagreed, "Not even a hundred yet—of course, he's still a youngster."

"The young are truly formidable! Truly formidable!" Fukasaku echoed from the other shoulder, his tone more earnest than before.

Jiraiya had no time to continue talking.

The residual power of the Great Dragon Dance was still wreaking havoc, and seeing that it was about to crash into the Konoha forces, he immediately stopped and used another jutsu to block it.

Not only him, but all the Konoha ninja were also casting defensive jutsu.

"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"

"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"

"Wood Release: Wood-Style Barrier!"

"...."

One after another, defensive jutsus stood in front of everyone, struggling to hold off Gensou's sage art.

In the ranks, Shikamaru watched all of this with a complex expression, his heart filled with shock:

"Is this the power of one of the Three Great Heroes of the Warring States?"

In that moment, he understood why the highly intelligent and resourceful Nara clan was never prominent during the Warring States era, always sticking with the Yamanaka and Akimichi clans, keeping a low profile.

Because no matter how brilliant your strategy or how cunning your plan, it could never compare to the overwhelming power of a direct punch.

With an IQ over 200, Shikamaru felt a little defeated.

Nearby, Sakura, Kakashi, and those who had close ties with Sasuke felt a deep sense of powerlessness as they watched the scene unfold.

With Gensou standing like an insurmountable mountain, they had no hope of bringing back Sasuke, who was beyond that mountain.

"Naruto, if you were here, no matter what, you would never give up, right? But... I can't see any hope at all!"

Looking at the unprecedented sea of fire that seemed to connect heaven and earth, Sakura clenched her fists. She had thought she had made considerable progress.

But now, the gap was just too vast!

It was vast enough to make her despair!

Although Kisame, temporarily on Gensou's side, did not feel despair, and was even grateful for the Great Dragon Dance, which forced Guy and the others who had been pressuring him to retreat, the shock on his face was no less intense.

He glanced at the still-rampaging fire dragons, then at Gensou, whose breathing was as steady as ever, and a chill suddenly ran through him.

Thinking about how he had just been talking and laughing in front of Gensou, and even disagreed with him, he realized just how bold he had been.

He couldn't afford to be so bold anymore.

Seeing both Gensou and Konoha occupied—

Kisame took one last look in the direction of Naka Shrine.

No surprise, Itachi should already be dead by now.

There was no reason for him to stay any longer.

After nodding politely towards Gensou, Kisame slung Samehada onto his back and took the opportunity to retreat while Konoha was preoccupied.

Gensou glanced at Kisame's departing figure but paid no mind.

"Let's add one last push."

He turned towards Konoha, and with another burst of sage chakra, the previously dwindling Great Dragon Dance reignited with fierce flames, accelerating towards the Konoha side.

"Damn it!"

Tsunade's voice rang out.

Then, with a loud boom, a giant blue and white slug was summoned.

Gensou did not pay attention to what happened next.

Taking advantage of the Konoha ninja being occupied with his sage arts, he arrived at Naka Shrine.

Standing amidst the ruins where Amaterasu's black flames still burned in several places, Gensou looked around at the many Uchihas who were still laughing in their elation.

He counted the numbers—fifteen, none missing. Some were heavily injured, some lightly, but none were dead.

"Did he hold back after all?"

Gensou looked at Itachi's corpse.

With his strength, it was impossible that he couldn't kill a single Uchiha.

So, did he hesitate at the last moment?

Or was it for Sasuke's future, to avoid doing anything that would anger him?

Gensou shook his head slightly.

He really was a loving brother.

Although, the way he showed that love was something ninety-nine percent of people wouldn't be able to handle.

Soon, after the excitement and joy subsided, the laughter atop the ruins of Naka Shrine faded.

It was replaced by faint sobbing.

Extreme joy and extreme sorrow—nothing surpassed this.

Gensou withdrew his gaze from Sasuke, whose Sharingan remained in its three-tomoe form. He was considering whether to reveal the truth to him, as in the original story, to help awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan.

Suddenly, he sensed a strong chakra fluctuation.

Gensou turned his head:

"Huh?"

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! For Only $5!!][www.p@treon.com/zaelum] 

[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]

[Thank You For Your Support!]