-Itachi... - Sasuke said, placing his hand on his sword.
-Sasuke... you've gotten taller.- Itachi said calmly, his eyes retaining their coldness and indifference.
-You, on the other hand, haven't changed one bit, you still have cold eyes.- Sasuke, however, maintained an outward indifference, but his eyes still betrayed the pain in his soul.
-You're not going to act like a madman and attack me like you did last time, are you, Sasuke?- Itachi ignored Sasuke's comment and asked.
Sasuke let out a cold snort, a smile slowly forming on his face as he closed his eyes, a soft, yet sarcastic laugh soon followed, his eyes opening again. - I've changed a lot since that time, Itachi, I trained like crazy, all for this moment.
As Sasuke spoke, Itachi's eyes widened violently. From behind him, a hand emerged from the ground, the Chidori in Sasuke's hand perfectly struck Itachi's heart.
Sasuke, standing in front of Itachi, slowly began to fade away, his voice sounding ethereal as he spoke. -You have no idea how much hatred I harbor for you inside me.
Itachi spat out a mouthful of blood, glancing sideways at Sasuke who was slowly emerging from the ground.
-You don't know me anymore, Itachi.- Sasuke said, emerging from the ground, hatred etched on his face.
In the next moment, the Chidori blade spread out, creating several blades that pierced Itachi's body from the inside out.
Blood fell while Itachi was unable to speak.
The Chidori was retracted as Itachi fell to the ground, but before Sasuke's astonished eyes, Itachi's body transformed directly into a flock of crows, flying everywhere while Itachi's voice pierced the silent atmosphere.
-You're still in a hurry, little brother.- Itachi's voice rang out, and when Sasuke realized what was happening, Itachi's figure was already in front of him, his fingers poised to pluck out his eye.
But in the next moment, Itachi froze slightly, his eyes flashing for a moment as a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, hidden by the high collar of his Akatsuki cloak, the smile fading as quickly as it had appeared.
Itachi turned around while focusing chakra in his eyes, the environment around him changed again. They were both standing still, in the same places they had been at the beginning.
Sasuke used Bishamoten as soon as he realized he was in a genjutsu, creating a cross genjutsu, in the end, everything they did was just an illusion.
Sasuke smiled slightly, a soft laugh escaping his lips, drawing his katana, he spoke again. - This time, you die, Itachi.
Itachi didn't answer, only stared back, his hand slowly becoming visible as the wind passed, revealing a kunai already in his hand.
//-//
On the other hand, the battle between Suigetsu and Kisame was far less illusory, Kisame and Suigetsu had the same plan, to avoid fighting. So when Kisame received the heavy blow from Suigetsu's Kubikiribocho, he defended with Samehada while allowing himself to be thrown away.
Suigetsu quickly followed, and as soon as they were far enough away, Kubikiribocho was covered by a layer of extremely sharp wind. Kisame's eyes focused on this, and he prevented the defensive movement with Samehada, instead dodging to the side as the sword spun on his back. With a lateral movement, Samehada, still covered in white bandages, went towards Suigetsu's chest.
Although Samehada could absorb chakra, some of the cutting damage could still 'hurt' the sword, so Kisame preferred not to defend and instead counterattacked.
Kisame was used to using Samehada for a long time, he knew it had a temper, and if it got hurt, even slightly, it would get angry with him and could hinder his fight.
Suigetsu's eyes narrowed as he opened his mouth and spat out an extremely thin, yet highly concentrated stream of water. Kisame's eyes widened slightly. Using his Hitai-ate and covering himself with chakra, he defended the sneak attack, but gave Suigetsu enough time to jump away.
Kisame smiled and spoke. -You've grown so much, Suigetsu. Even Mangetsu would have a hard time dealing with you now. I bet he'd be proud of his brother.
Suigetsu gave a mocking, sideways smile without replying, he knew exactly how Samehada worked, so he wanted to avoid touching the sword at all costs.
Suigetsu stepped back, briefly releasing his sword in the air and quickly sealing it. Kisame recognized the seals, his smile widening.
The next moment, a dense fog began to cover the area.
-Using Kirigakure no Jutsu against a shinobi from the Mist Village? You're really not very bright, Suigetsu.- Kisame joked lightly, treating the fight with the nonchalance of someone who already knew the outcome.
Closing his eyes, he prepared himself, the next moment, his smile faded as he lowered his body completely. Above him, a blade of air slashed directly where he was standing, but it didn't stop there. Coming from behind, another blade surged directly towards his position.
Suigetsu didn't use Kirigakure no Jutsu to turn this into a battle of perception, instead, he wanted to employ a guerrilla tactic, using wind blades to cut Kisame to death.
He didn't consider using water, as that would only replenish Kisame's chakra. Instead, he used wind, which, while absorbable, could cause significant damage if sharp enough.
With years of practice against Sasuke, his wind technique was extremely sharp.
He split into several water clones and began attacking Kisame from multiple sides. As for chakra? He activated the first stage of Jugo's cursed seal, constantly replenishing his chakra.
Kisame realized something was wrong, and he stopped taking it lightly, taking Suigetsu completely seriously!
//-//
The fight between Kakuzu and Karin was different.
Karin was initially getting the worst of it, Kakuzu directly separated 4 hearts, keeping the Earth's heart for himself. Karin was surrounded as they fought at a fast pace.
As a ninja focused on Ninjutsu, Karin was subjected to a barrage of ninjutsu attacks, having to use her chains to defend herself.
-Kid, you'd better give up and let me go after the Jinchuuriki.- Kakuzu said.
By this point, the mist Suigetsu had created had begun to cover even their area. Karin frowned slightly, but she didn't really care much, their team was used to fighting in this environment. Sasuke had the Sharingan, Ranmaru his red eyes, and Karin...
Mind's Eye of the Kagura!(Kagura Shingan!)
Karin scoffed slightly at Kakuzu's words as she closed her eyes. The next moment, her curse mark went directly to the first stage, Karin's speed increased greatly, and before Kakuzu's shocked eyes, Karin appeared directly in front of the lightning string puppet.
A punch. Focusing chakra on a single point of contact.
The next moment, the strands of hair were thrown everywhere while the mask was sprayed directly onto nothing.
Karin smiled slightly, still with her eyes closed, chains coming out of her back that directly attached the wind string puppet.
The water string puppet aimed a water cannon directly at her, but Karin quickly sealed it while slamming her hands on the ground, a wall of earth forming between them, while at the same time, a chain of hers pierced directly the center of the trapped wind puppet's mask.
Kakuzu's eyes widened slightly.
In terms of battle power, Kakuzu could be considered both strong and weak, he and his four puppets could handle Kage-level battles, but once his puppets were destroyed, Kakuzu could be considered an elite Jonin at best.
At most, he could use the Jiongu's surprise effect to kill an unsuspecting opponent, but unfortunately for him, Karin knew his technique well.
She dealt with 2 of the string puppets at once due to Kakuzu's lack of information, but at that point Kakuzu became completely on guard, he stopped worrying about the mission and instead took Karin completely seriously.