"Stop it now!"
The Third Hokage's voice thundered across the battlefield, his weathered face twisted with urgent desperation. He understood all too well that this transparent dragon possessed the terrifying ability to devour human souls.
If it were allowed to reach the civilian evacuation zones in the surrounding mountains, it would instantly cause catastrophic casualties among Konoha's innocent population.
Just as Hiruzen prepared to intercept the attack himself, Kisame suddenly swung Samehada in a brutal arc, forcing the aging Hokage to defend against the massive blade rather than pursue his intended target.
At the same moment, Jiraiya moved to assist but found his path blocked by the colossal bulk of Orochimaru's Eight Branches construct.
"Get out of my way!" Jiraiya snarled with uncharacteristic fury, his sage-enhanced features reflecting both determination and frustration.
True to his serpentine nature, Orochimaru proved as resilient as his namesake. Despite being in Sage Mode and delivering devastating blow after devastating blow, Jiraiya had been unable to permanently end his former teammate's threat.
"Susanoo: Tsukumo!"
At that critical moment, the only defenders in position to act were Shisui and Kushina, who had been engaged with the Third Raikage. Brilliant green arrows erupted from Shisui's construct, streaking through the air toward the transparent dragon with deadly precision.
BOOM! BOOM!
The concentrated barrage struck the dragon's head like supernatural rain, each impact creating explosive bursts that temporarily disrupted the creature's form.
ROAR!
However, within moments, transparent energy surged throughout the dragon's body and rapidly condensed into a new head, regenerating the damage as if nothing had occurred.
"Simple attacks appear to be useless against it," Shisui concluded grimly, his analytical mind already working to identify alternative strategies.
He turned to his ally with newfound resolve. "Lady Kushina, I'm entrusting the Third Raikage to you."
Kushina nodded with fierce determination, and the golden chains extending from her body suddenly intensified, their suppressive power increasing dramatically as she focused entirely on containing the legendary lightning-enhanced warrior.
Swoosh!
Shisui's Susanoo first contracted in size before transforming into a streak of brilliant green light, rushing directly toward the source of the transparent dragon—the ancient Gedo Statue itself.
"Uchiha Shisui..." the man in black observed with calculating interest as his opponent approached.
A moment of hesitation crossed his features before he spoke again. "Are you planning to attack the main body directly?"
Whoosh!
Just as Shisui closed the distance to the massive statue, green chakra suddenly blazed around his form and condensed into the familiar shape of his ethereal warrior.
The construct gripped its spiral sword with both hands and brought the weapon down in a devastating arc that cleaved directly through the center of the transparent chakra dragon.
The serpentine entity was immediately bisected, its front half—including the deadly head—continuing forward for several meters before finally dissipating into harmless energy.
Shisui's eyes tracked the threat's elimination before he redirected his Susanoo's movement, the construct moving in perfect synchronization with his intentions as it thrust the spiral sword toward the Gedo Statue's massive head.
At that moment, the man in black launched himself from the statue's back to intercept the attack, positioning himself directly in the weapon's path.
Looking at Shisui's approaching assault, the black-clad figure raised his palm, and overwhelming repulsive force instantly exploded outward, compressing the air into visible distortions as it rushed toward the Uchiha warrior.
"Shinra Tensei!"
CRASH!
The massive boulders and debris surrounding the green Susanoo were blown away by the tremendous repulsive force. Even the construct's forward momentum was forcibly halted, and hairline cracks began appearing across the warrior's ethereal armor.
"What incredible power! To think that Minato-sensei was fighting two opponents of this caliber simultaneously!" Shisui marveled internally, his respect for his teacher's abilities reaching new heights.
While this man in black was clearly no match for Minato's current capabilities, his strength was undeniably formidable—easily placing him among the most dangerous shinobi in the world.
Apart from the masked man who had just manifested the perfect form of Susanoo and Minato himself, this opponent represented the most powerful ninja that Shisui had ever faced in direct combat.
Just as Shisui's advance was halted, numerous mechanical appendages erupted from the man in black's back, each one bristling with advanced weaponry.
These artificial limbs lacked conventional hands, instead terminating in missile launchers and energy cannon muzzles that gleamed with deadly purpose.
Whoosh! Buzz!
The next instant, missiles and concentrated purple energy beams launched in rapid succession, creating a devastating barrage aimed directly at Shisui's position.
BOOM!
The missiles and energy beams detonated in coordinated sequence, engulfing the green Susanoo in a series of overlapping explosions that sent shockwaves rippling across the battlefield.
The man in black's eyes flickered with professional assessment. Uchiha Shisui, wielding the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan, was indeed extraordinarily strong—far beyond what most elite shinobi could hope to achieve.
However, with Namikaze Minato's departure from Konoha, no remaining defender possessed sufficient power to truly stop him from accomplishing his objectives.
Just as this confident thought crossed his mind, a brilliant flash of chakra erupted from within the explosion's smoke. Shisui's previously cracked Susanoo was suddenly encased in an additional layer of protective armor that gleamed with enhanced power.
"So you've pushed those eyes to their absolute limits?" the man in black observed with slight surprise at this display of Mangekyō mastery.
Even so, he remained confident that Uchiha Shisui alone would be insufficient to defeat him or prevent the completion of their mission.
"With my current level of ocular power and chakra reserves, if I activate Kotoamatsukami again, I'll probably lose all combat effectiveness," Shisui calculated grimly, acutely aware of his own limitations.
He understood perfectly well that his current strength wasn't sufficient to defeat the man in black through conventional means. Moreover, he had personally witnessed this creature withstand Might Dai's devastating Eight Gates technique during their previous encounter.
If even Dai's ultimate sacrifice hadn't been enough to destroy it, then Shisui's only chance of victory lay in using his unique ocular technique to deliver a decisive psychological blow to the man in black himself!
Swish!
Observing Shisui's renewed approach, the man in black formed rapid hand seals, and pale purple chakra began gathering within the Gedo Statue's cavernous mouth.
ROAR!
The ancient creature released a bone-shaking bellow as the lavender chakra formed into a concentrated shockwave that erupted with tremendous force.
However, the man in black seemed to have deliberately adjusted the attack's trajectory. His true target wasn't Shisui at all—it was the civilian evacuation zones in the mountains beyond.
"Damn it!" Shisui cursed internally, recognizing the tactical trap immediately.
If the attack had been aimed directly at him, he could have used his superior speed to evade the blast. But with innocent lives at stake, he had no choice but to intercept the technique head-on.
Susanoo positioned itself to block the lavender chakra impact wave, and blue light suddenly flared around the construct as it braced for the collision.
BOOM!
The next moment, a violent explosion swept through a significant portion of Konoha, engulfing everything within a hundred-meter radius in devastating force.
The energy shockwave generated by the Gedo Statue was easily comparable in destructive power to a Tailed Beast Ball—a testament to the creature's terrifying capabilities.
Flash!
Using the smoke and debris as cover, a figure burst through the chaos and rushed toward the man in black atop the statue with desperate speed.
However, the black-clad figure seemed to have anticipated this move. A knowing smile crossed his features as he slowly lifted off from the statue's surface, rising into the air beyond Shisui's reach.
"You're so eager to close the distance... perhaps you're planning to use some form of ocular technique?" the man in black's voice drifted down from his elevated position with mocking amusement.
Upon hearing these words, Shisui abruptly halted his advance, his blood running cold at the implications.
"Konoha's intelligence security is indeed impressive. Even our extensive research failed to uncover that Uchiha Shisui had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan," the man in black continued with clinical detachment.
"But did you really think we hadn't investigated what occurred in the Hidden Mist Village several years ago?"
The masked man had maintained operations in Kirigakure for many years. Even after his identity had been exposed, he retained certain intelligence assets and information networks.
"The Mist ANBU operative known as Ao seems to have become a completely different person after participating in the mission to hunt you down," the man in black observed with calculated precision.
"Based on current evidence, his dramatic personality change was most likely related to your unique ocular abilities."
During this assault on Konoha, the man in black had engaged Shisui in combat twice, and on both occasions, the young Uchiha had relied exclusively on Susanoo for his attacks.
Given the characteristic limitations of Mangekyō Sharingan usage, Shisui's chakra reserves shouldn't have been sufficient for such sustained combat if he had been using his unique techniques.
The fact that he consistently avoided using his Mangekyō's distinctive abilities while instead relying on Susanoo—which consumed far more chakra and ocular power—suggested a very specific tactical consideration.
Shisui's Mangekyō techniques were clearly different from the direct assault capabilities of techniques like the Rekka no Ken or Amaterasu.
Combined with their intelligence regarding Ao's behavioral changes, deducing the general nature of Shisui's abilities wasn't particularly difficult for someone of the man in black's analytical capabilities.
"The power to modify others' minds and souls through ocular manipulation... such abilities are indeed quite rare and dangerous."