Toneri stared at Tomoki, who seemed perfectly fine, in disbelief.
How could that be!
For the two attacks just now, Toneri had used a considerable amount of power.
The extent of that power was evident from the current state of the Tenseigan, whose brightness had dimmed significantly.
Below it, more than a dozen grayish-white, stone-like eyeballs had already fallen out.
Toneri was the last Ōtsutsuki on the moon, and the Tenseigan was a formidable weapon created from the accumulated sins of the moon clan.
It wouldn't simply run out of power from normal use; the reason for its current state was that Toneri had launched two overloaded attacks.
Normally, the giant Tenseigan could continuously generate its own power; in a sense, the Tenseigan was more like a living being than an inanimate object.
It was like a Uchiha clan member: normally, their Sharingan could be used without issue, just as Toneri had previously used the Tenseigan to control the force field, slowing down Tomoki and Orochimaru.
However, once a Mangekyo dōjutsu was used, it was a one-time use ability, just like the two attacks Toneri had just launched against Tomoki and Orochimaru.
In Toneri's eyes, whether it was Orochimaru, the insidious and cunning thief, or Tomoki, the descendant of Hagoromo with various powerful abilities, including the will of fire—
As long as he could eliminate both of them, expending some of his reserves was nothing, as the number of Byakugan accumulated by the Tenseigan had long exceeded the standard anyway.
Orochimaru and Tomoki, one out of spite, the other out of respect.
Although Toneri felt a bit like a prodigal son, his actions were actually not problematic.
However, when a cheater meets another cheater, it's a competition of who can cheat harder.
The result was obvious: Tomoki was completely victorious. The first moment Tomoki obtained the template, upon learning there was no Eternal Fire, he had labeled Surtur.
At this moment, the Surtur template fully demonstrated the value of that 'tough and durable' label!
Surtur without the Eternal Fire might indeed not be able to kill anyone, but similarly, no one could kill him!
After returning to his original form, Tomoki felt the greatly reduced pressure around him, and a familiar smile reappeared on his face as he strode into the room.
Thanks to the two large holes Toneri had created, Tomoki didn't even need to look for a door.
Tomoki's confident smile, indicating everything was under control, sharply contrasted with Toneri's flustered and incredulous expression.
It was as if the Big Bad Wolf was grinning and walking towards Little Red Riding Hood.
Watching Tomoki approaching step by step, Toneri hardened his heart, no longer caring whether the Tenseigan could hold up.
After all, none of the eyes inside belonged to him, Toneri.
Just as Toneri was about to go all out, even if it meant draining the Tenseigan dry, to kill Tomoki—
Someone acted even faster than him.
It wasn't Tomoki, but Orochimaru, who had been on the sidelines observing and playing the role of a bystander all along.
Time rewound about ten seconds.
When Tomoki endured an attack and returned to his original state, the body released from the sealing scroll that Orochimaru had pulled out at the last moment of his 'death' slowly stood up.
[Immortality Jutsu!]
Orochimaru's soul had already escaped before his 'death' and entered this body he had specially prepared.
Orochimaru, who opened his eyes, had a normal snake-like eye on his right, while his left eye was almost cosplaying Toneri, a hollow void.
After standing up, Orochimaru went to the side of his discarded body and reached his hand into the already bloody and mangled head.
After a moment of searching, he pulled out a Byakugan covered in blood, minced meat, and brain matter.
Orochimaru showed no trace of disgust, extending his long tongue to lick the Byakugan clean, then directly inserted it into his hollow left eye socket.
At this moment, Toneri had just made up his mind to use all his reserves to kill Tomoki.
"Haha, hahaha!"
A burst of sinister laughter echoed in the silent space.
This thief wasn't dead yet!
Toneri's attention was almost entirely on Tomoki, so Orochimaru's recent series of actions had not caught his notice.
Tomoki, however, was not surprised.
Orochimaru, who had prepared for a full three days before the operation, meant that Toneri trying to kill him was nothing short of a fool's dream.
Do you understand the value of a 'cheating snake'!
Toneri's surprise lasted only a moment; in his eyes, Orochimaru was simply useless, and he could deal with him casually later.
Not to mention Orochimaru was extremely exhausted now, his Chakra reaction was only about 0.2 units, no more than that.
With a thought, the Tenseigan's light burst forth, like a newborn star, declaring its existence to the entire universe.
Tomoki was blinded and closed his eyes, simultaneously transforming into Surtur again, ready to face Toneri's counterattack.
If the Tenseigan were a real star, Tomoki wouldn't just look at it; he'd want to embrace it.
Unfortunately, the light of the Tenseigan was essentially an intense Chakra reaction, forcing Tomoki to temporarily close his eyes.
One second, two seconds...
The expected attack did not come, and Tomoki was slightly puzzled.
Such a long cast time?
Who gave you the courage to prepare such a large skill in front of me!
Tomoki, opening his eyes, intended to teach Toneri a good lesson, telling him that real combat was not a turn-based game.
However, everything he saw was beyond Tomoki's expectations.
Toneri had an expression of doubting life, and the Tenseigan next to him flickered like a large, dying light bulb.
Something's not right!
Tomoki immediately turned his head and looked at Orochimaru behind him.
At this moment, Orochimaru's face was extremely fanatical, his expression abnormally excited, and his entire face was almost distorted.
However, upon seeing Orochimaru, Tomoki instantly understood everything.
Orochi-shisho, it's really you!
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