Shiraishi hovered in mid-air, the Divine Dao Sword behind him fracturing into countless shimmering glints of light.
Even though Uchiha Itachi had shattered his limits and manifested the Susanoo, he did not dare make the first move against the strongest man in the ninja world.
Under the continuous bombardment of Shiraishi's immense spiritual pressure, the rules governing the Tsukuyomi space had become almost indistinguishable from reality.
This was the result of Shiraishi's silver butterflies successfully parsing the dimension's logic just moments prior.
From analysis to modification, the supercomputing system had taken only a few seconds to achieve its goal.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Kaede stared intently at Itachi's Susanoo with his own Mangekyo.
Though both possessed the same ultimate eye technique, their developmental paths were entirely different, which didn't stop Kaede from using this chance to study the structural integrity of Itachi's manifestation.
Despite his sudden power-up, the cautious Itachi remained still. Instead, his Sharingan continuously pulsed with ocular power, attempting to regain administrative control over the Tsukuyomi world to find a way to expel Shiraishi's consciousness.
"You aren't moving because you realize this is merely a projection of a fragment of my consciousness," Shiraishi remarked, his voice echoing from everywhere at once. "Sealing it with the Totsuka Blade would be utterly meaningless."
Itachi's expression flickered as his inner thoughts were laid bare. Seizing the opening, Kaede suddenly blurred, reappearing at Itachi's flank with a hand cloaked in a sharp gale.
Itachi met the strike with a punch of his own. As their fists collided in mid-air, Kaede's elbow snapped at a bizarre angle.
His forearm lashed out like a striking viper, sliding past Itachi's guard to claw at his arm with predatory precision.
In that instant, Kaede's fingertips ignited with brilliant blue flames—the Extreme Cold Fire. He intended to inject this volatile, soul-chilling energy directly into Itachi's chakra pathway.
Cold fire?
As the blue flames began to lick at Itachi's form, his body dissolved into a murder of crows that swarmed Kaede from all directions. Simultaneously, the Susanoo acted autonomously, swinging the massive Totsuka Blade down toward Kaede.
If the Susanoo hasn't moved, Itachi is still right there!
Kaede reacted instantly. The ground beneath him erupted as he channeled force upward, mimicking a volcanic surge aimed at the spot where Itachi had just been.
"It's a double-layered illusion! Don't be careless!" Shiraishi warned.
Kaede's eyes widened as the Susanoo ahead of him vanished into thin air. A split second later, the gargantuan orange-red giant loomed behind him, the Totsuka Blade descending with world-crushing momentum.
Kaede was indeed a Mangekyo user, but compared to Itachi, he was still too reckless. His combat experience lacked that final layer of cold calculation.
Just as the Totsuka Blade was about to strike, Shiraishi intervened. He produced the Seven-Jeweled Tree, a tool refined from the Gedo Mazo's essence. It radiated a unique, divine light that clashed violently with the sealing properties of the Totsuka Blade.
Kaede used the reprieve to retreat, but Itachi appeared directly in front of him. "Though the rules here mimic reality, this is still a world governed by consciousness," Itachi said softly. "You were too overconfident."
In the face of the impending strike, Kaede's body dissolved into a torrent of white-hot embers, scattering into the sky to evade the follow-up.
Elementalization?
"Thanks for the tip," Kaede's voice echoed through the flames. "It reminded me that this is a virtual world."
As Kaede and Itachi exchanged words, the clash between the Totsuka Blade and the Seven-Jeweled Tree reached a boiling point.
The interference between the two legendary artifacts triggered a massive explosion of light that rocked the foundations of the Tsukuyomi.
Cracks began to spider-web across the dark-red sky. Rays of external light pierced through the fractured firmament as the dimension began to collapse under the strain. Neither side could maintain effective control over the crumbling mental space any longer.
The Totsuka Blade was a seal by nature, and the Seven-Jeweled Tree possessed a similar neutralizing function. Their conflicting powers were tearing the very fabric of the consciousness-based world apart.
Rising slowly into the air, Shiraishi looked down at Itachi, who was huddled behind the protection of his Susanoo. "Now, Uchiha Itachi... can you block this next move?"
The Divine Dao Sword transformed into a beam of absolute judgment. It streaked forward with blinding speed. Itachi reacted instantly, pivoting the Yata Mirror to form a blood-red shield of absolute defense.
However, Shiraishi's strike contained the power of the Core Punisher. The blade of light literally sliced through the mental world's dimensions.
The Yata Mirror attempted to intercept it, but this strike was fueled by Shiraishi's raw, concentrated ego.
The purifying essence of the Core Punisher caused the mirror's attributes to flicker for a fraction of a second.
In that heartbeat of vulnerability, the tip of the blade came to rest precisely against Itachi's forehead.
Shiraishi's gaze was meaningful. "The Totsuka Blade and Yata Mirror are temporarily useless against me. Will you still refuse to surrender?"
Itachi didn't waste words, but his body began to develop crystalline cracks, like shattering glass. Shiraishi chuckled. "Interesting..."
Suddenly, a flock of shadow crows erupted from beneath Shiraishi's feet, and the Totsuka Blade lunged upward from the ground.
Hah, this kid really doesn't give up!
"So you buried the Totsuka Blade beneath your own feet as a trap."
Facing the surge of sealing power, Shiraishi didn't retreat. Instead, he reached into the collapsing world around him, seizing the fragments of the broken dimension and compressing them into a massive wall of light.
Ancient Crane Sage Seal!
Utilizing the core logic of the "Protect" technique, the seal formed a perfect mirror that could nullify any initial assault. Even the legendary Totsuka Blade could not leave a scratch on this absolute barrier.
The mirror perfectly reflected the force of the strike. Simultaneously, Shiraishi's Divine Dao Sword pierced through the center of the Tsukuyomi world.
A moment later, Itachi felt a searing, agonizing pain rip through his mind.
With a single, decisive stroke, Shiraishi annihilated the illusion. The entire Tsukuyomi world shattered into dust.
Forcing the collapse of such a powerful mental space inflicted backlash on Shiraishi and Kaede, but for Itachi—the anchor of the world—it was devastating.
Back in the real world, Itachi remained standing for a heartbeat, but blood poured from his eyes in horrific streams. His knees finally buckled, and he collapsed into unconsciousness.
At nearly the same moment, Kaede snapped back to reality, coughing up a mouthful of blood. The massive Great Sunlight Fire he had been manifesting swirled out of control, threatening to trigger a self-destructive explosion.
Damn it!
Fugaku, remembering Kaede's previous incident at the Loulan Chamber of Commerce, moved instantly. He unleashed a pre-prepared Fire Sealing Method, drawing in and neutralizing the residual solar energy before it could detonate.
The chaotic energy and terrifying radiation had already forced the surrounding Uchiha to retreat. They watched in stunned silence.
One moment, the two had locked eyes; the next, both had collapsed in a state of mutual destruction.
A battle of the minds?
Fugaku, also a Mangekyo wielder, could sense that their ocular power had been dangerously depleted. Looking at his son, he realized Itachi's life might even be in danger.
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