Chapter 65: Reflect, Yukimi!
Just as Makoto predicted, Root began mobilizing.
Large numbers of shinobi emerged from spherical black openings formed by barrier techniques and scattered across Konoha, while violent tremors from the fighting above reached even Makoto and Yukinoshita underground.
"Before we begin, I need to ask you clearly. Yukinoshita, what level of enemy can you handle?"
Yukinoshita smiled confidently. "Don't worry. Even against a Kage-level opponent, I can hold out for at least twenty minutes."
Makoto nodded, then found himself wondering where that oddly specific twenty-minute figure came from. Still, Yukinoshita was a Veteran. She probably had countermeasures he knew nothing about, so he didn't dwell on it.
"Then let's go. Be ready to fight."
Makoto pulled Yukinoshita closer again and stepped directly into his storage space with her.
She still tensed instinctively at the sudden proximity, but after preparing herself in advance, she was already becoming accustomed to it.
Instead of opening a full Spatial Gate immediately, Makoto created a fist-sized observation hole thirty meters away. It opened through part of a ceiling, but Silent Echo erased the sound of the damaged material, preventing any alarm.
The room beyond resembled a storeroom packed with grain, cooking oil, and other daily supplies.
Seeing nothing that looked like a trap, Makoto adjusted the gate's orientation and brought Yukinoshita through while Silent Echo and Sky Manipulation continued concealing them.
"We made it?" Yukinoshita whispered, a trace of excitement slipping into her voice.
For a Veteran like her, the mission itself wasn't especially difficult. But sneaking directly into the stronghold of one of the world's major villains was completely different from the straightforward missions Yukinoshita had always completed before.
They could already transfer everything in this room into their shared storage. If she continued teaming up with Makoto, this ability alone could easily earn them enormous amounts of Mission Points in future worlds.
"Shh. Stay alert. They may not be able to see or hear us, but our scent, body heat, and other traces could still expose us."
Makoto had raised his vigilance to the limit. Konoha had the Aburame Clan, after all, and their reconnaissance abilities were anything but weak.
"Then what do we do? Search every room one by one?"
"No. Watch this."
Makoto smiled confidently and brought Silent Echo to his wrist. He reached one hand into his storage space, then opened a tiny ventilation hole several meters away while simultaneously using Sky Manipulation and keeping himself completely silent.
Those tiny openings appeared almost without leaving any noticeable sign. Makoto repeated the process room by room, and before long, he'd mapped out nearly the entire underground structure of Root.
The areas closest to the outer barrier were mostly unimportant. The true core lay near the center of the spherical barrier, where Shimura Danzo was located. That was likely where Root stored its valuables, research materials, and perhaps even human test subjects.
With the layout confirmed, it was time to move.
Makoto glanced at Yukinoshita and asked, "What comes next might put you at some risk. Are you willing?"
Yukinoshita answered with calm confidence. "I'm the one who's supposed to protect you during this mission. Do you really think I'm incapable of taking a little risk?"
Makoto smiled and said nothing more. He took her wrist and lightly tapped her pale arm, leaving behind a Spatial Mark.
"I've marked you. I'll keep a communication passage open at your wrist. If you're in danger, tell me immediately and I'll pull you into my storage space."
"Your job is to start fires and create chaos. Don't let yourself get pinned down, and don't fight anyone head-on."
"Most people here are at least special jonin. Some belong to clans with genjutsu or secret techniques."
Yukinoshita listened quietly to his instructions. For a moment, she had the strange feeling that she was the one being protected here. She pushed the thought aside and waited until Makoto finished.
"What about you?"
"I'm going into the core area to steal everything valuable."
Yukinoshita's expression tightened. "You're going to approach Danzo directly? According to what I know, he should already possess Uchiha Shisui's Kotoamatsukami by this point."
Makoto answered lightly, "That only matters if he can see where my real body is."
Yukinoshita was about to say more when her expression abruptly changed. Commotion sounded beyond the door, and several shinobi seemed to be rushing toward them.
Makoto frowned as well. 'Were we discovered? How?'
Neither of them noticed the nearly invisible Kikaichu hidden in one corner of the room.
They weren't nanoscale insects, but that also made them far hardier than nanoscale varieties. They could remain hidden for long periods and function as living surveillance devices.
Fortunately, Kikaichu this small could only transmit a warning that dangerous chakra was nearby, not detailed information. Otherwise, far more than two Root shinobi would have been coming.
"You go. Leave this place to me."
As if to prove what she was capable of, Yukinoshita raised two fingers like a blade and aimed them toward the door.
"Hado #4: Byakurai!"
A sharp bolt of lightning tore straight through the door and caught the two approaching shinobi completely off guard. One was pierced directly through the chest.
The attack immediately triggered alarms throughout Root.
Makoto had no chakra of his own, but through the tiny ventilation holes he'd left behind, he could feel killing intent surging toward them like a suffocating tide.
Yukinoshita remained completely calm.
"Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings..."
"Hado #31: Shakkaho!"
Makoto entered his Spatial Gate before Yukinoshita even finished the incantation and rushed toward Root's central area. He had no intention of being anywhere nearby when Shakkaho detonated.
Used by a lieutenant-class fighter, that spell alone could blow apart an entire building. Yukinoshita was already beyond ordinary lieutenant-class strength and was approaching the level required for Bankai.
Makoto had learned that earlier when Lattice Eyes analyzed her at close range.
As expected, a violent explosion thundered behind him the moment he entered the Spatial Gate.
This was an underground facility, yet Yukinoshita's attack collapsed an entire corner of Root's base. More than ten shinobi were buried beneath the rubble.
Yukinoshita protected herself with Bakudo #8: Seki, repelling falling debris and creating enough open space around herself to move.
One battered shinobi after another crawled out from beneath the earth. Yukinoshita tightened her grip on her Zanpakuto and calmly faced them.
"Reflect, Yukimi."
Cold white light suddenly erupted from her Zanpakuto and engulfed every shinobi emerging from the rubble. In an instant, all of them froze in place and completely lost their ability to move.
Yukimi no longer resembled an ordinary sword. It looked more like a long, narrow mirror, reflecting every enemy before her.
Inside the mirror, the trapped shinobi struggled with faces twisted in pain and despair. None of them appeared capable of resisting Yukimi's power.
That was because Yukinoshita's Adaptability had already surpassed 20. She was one of the rare Veterans who had chosen Adaptability as a primary stat, and the reason for that choice was now obvious.
It was all for this Zanpakuto.
What Yukinoshita did next was simple.
She walked from one immobilized shinobi to another, drawing her blade across each throat and ending their lives.
Against ordinary enemies, Yukinoshita might hesitate before killing. But she had no such hesitation toward Root.
Even as someone visiting the Naruto world for the first time, she'd already heard more than enough about Root's reputation.
The execution continued until a massive swarm of Kikaichu erupted from beneath the soil.
Yukinoshita was forced to retreat, but she immediately raised her hand.
"Hado #11: Tsuzuri Raiden!"
Lightning struck the Kikaichu and spread through the tightly packed swarm as though the insects themselves were conducting electricity. The Kikaichu, normally difficult to deal with because of their overwhelming numbers, were almost completely wiped out.
Before Yukinoshita could catch her breath, a fist nearly a meter across smashed toward her from behind.
An Akimichi clan shinobi had already activated the Multi-Size Technique.
At the same time, a finger quietly pushed through the soil in one corner and created a tiny hole. Two pairs of eyes stared through it at Yukinoshita.
A shadow shot through the opening like an arrow and raced toward her feet.
Beside its user, another shinobi was already forming hand seals for the Mind Body Switch Technique.
Danzo's Root actually had a complete Ino-Shika-Cho formation hidden here.
Each of the three possessed special jonin-level strength. Working together, they could probably defeat an ordinary jonin, especially with an Aburame shinobi assisting from the side.
Most shinobi in the entire world would fall to an ambush like this.
Yukinoshita merely flicked her Zanpakuto.
The mirror-like blade shattered into seven fragments that surrounded her. Another cold, brilliant flash followed, and the faces of all four attackers appeared within the mirror shards.
Invisible threads of spiritual power shot outward and bound three of the attackers. Anger, shock, and fear immediately spread across their faces.
The stronger those emotions became, the tighter the spiritual threads constricted. Bitter cold quickly spread through their bodies and began freezing them in place.
Yukinoshita, meanwhile, stood expressionlessly at the center.
She seemed to suppress every emotion she possessed, even slowing her own thoughts, yet the spiritual power inside her only continued rising.
Eventually, the entire underground base began to tremble.
Elsewhere, Shimura Danzo had been waiting for good news from the Konoha Crush. His expression turned livid as he slammed his cane against the ground.
"What is happening? How can this many people still fail to bring down one intruder?"
He pointed toward several nearby Root shinobi. "You lot, go as well!"
"But Danzo-sama, I still need to protect you..."
"Silence. I have no need for your protection."
"Understood!"
The Root shinobi obeyed and left.
Danzo had sent them away partly because he was completely confident that he could deal with the enemy himself.
Outwardly, he simply stood there in silence.
Behind the bandages covering one eye, however, Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan began spinning rapidly.
At this point, Danzo had not yet implanted the First Hokage's cells into his body, nor had he filled his arm with Sharingan.
Using Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan placed an enormous burden on him. Once used, he would have to wait more than a decade before he could activate it again.
But he no longer had another choice.
Silently, Shisui's eye focused on the hidden observer and activated Kotoamatsukami.
The moment Kotoamatsukami took effect, Danzo slowly turned toward the figure hidden in the darkness.
"Come out and face your master."
He had used Kotoamatsukami to alter the target's mind and force absolute loyalty toward himself.
Now Danzo wanted to see who had dared infiltrate Root and what kind of ability had allowed them to reach this far.
Instead of stepping out, however, the owner of those hidden eyes gave a mocking laugh.
"Long time no see, Danzo. We haven't met since the Uchiha massacre."
Danzo's pupils contracted. He even took an involuntary step backward.
"You!"
"Yes. Of course it's me."
Makoto's voice carried faint amusement. "I'm the only person capable of freely bypassing Konoha's barriers and bringing someone directly into your Root base."
"This is the power of Space-Time Ninjutsu granted by the Uchiha clan's Mangekyo Sharingan."
"And because I possess this power, no genjutsu can affect me. Not even your Kotoamatsukami."
[Ding! Making Fake Become Real has activated...]
[Shimura Danzo: Fate Value 30. Trust: 30%.]
[Manifestation Points: 9.]
[You have acquired a One-Tomoe Sharingan, which has merged into the S-rank Talent Lattice Eyes.]
[You have gained talent for Space-Time Ninjutsu, and your resistance to genjutsu has increased by 9%.]
A sharp pain stabbed through Makoto's eyes, forcing him to blink several times. He could clearly feel them changing again.
A cold, sinister power flowed from his eyes into his meridians.
It seemed to be showing signs of merging with his cursed energy, which possessed a similarly dark and chilling quality.
Before Makoto could examine the change any further, Danzo sensed the fluctuation in his presence and immediately moved.
He spun around, formed hand seals at high speed, and expelled a powerful jutsu straight toward Makoto's position.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!"
…