Chapter 88 : Action
Now, it seemed that it was Ayaan's act of stealing Kakashi's Sharingan that had provoked him and fired him up.
However, Kakashi remained silent in response to Ayaan's praise. He stared intently at Ayaan's movements, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
Losing the dynamic vision of the Sharingan had, for a short time, made Kakashi unable to properly control Raikiri. But in truth, for ninjas in the Naruto world, even their nerve reflex abilities could be improved through training.
Otherwise, how would the Fourth Raikage—who used Lightning Release Armor—or Might Guy—who opened the Seventh Gate of the Eight Gates—both faster than Kakashi's Raikiri and Chidori, be able to control themselves?
Three years of hard training had greatly improved Kakashi's dynamic vision and nerve reflexes, and he no longer had that gap in reaction speed. But it was precisely because of his increased strength that Kakashi could now fully sense the threat emanating from Ayaan.
Damn it, no matter which direction I attack from, it feels like there's no opening, Kakashi thought. He didn't know that Ayaan possessed the ability of Observation Haki. He only noticed that whenever his Raikiri trembled, Ayaan would subtly adjust his posture, making it impossible to find an opening.
"The Sixth Gate—open!" Guy, who was beside Kakashi, roared angrily, his hair standing on end, and punched forward without hesitation.
Being simple-minded had its advantages—Guy never overthought things. No matter how strong the enemy was or whether victory was possible, as a master of fierce taijutsu, he would never lose in terms of momentum!
With a loud bang, Guy's fist was caught by Ayaan. When their palm and fist collided, the sonic boom almost created a strong gust of wind, and cracks spread across the ground.
"What?!" Guy exclaimed in shock. It wasn't that he couldn't accept someone catching his punch—it was that Ayaan had done so without using much chakra at all. His arm didn't even tremble. This kind of raw physical strength was almost unbelievable to Guy.
Then, a black mist emanated from Ayaan's palm, and Guy immediately felt the chakra in his body being drawn out. Since he was in the state of the Eight Gates, his chakra was already violent and overflowing—once given an outlet, it gushed out uncontrollably.
In moments, Guy's upright hair drooped, and the red flush on his skin from the chakra surge faded back to normal.
But with the massive loss of chakra, his physical strength was also drained completely. His whole body went limp, and he nearly fell to his knees.
At that moment, with a dazzling flash of lightning, Kakashi's Raikiri struck!
However, Ayaan simply shifted his body slightly, causing Kakashi's attack to miss. Instead, Ayaan grabbed Kakashi's wrist.
Oh no! This guy can sense attacks! Kakashi was shocked. When he had attacked, he timed it for the moment when Guy blocked Ayaan's vision. He thought that even if Ayaan dodged without sight, he could at least save Guy.
But Ayaan had not only dodged Raikiri with a minimal movement, he had also grabbed Kakashi's wrist with perfect accuracy. It was obvious that both his reaction speed and sensory ability were far beyond Kakashi's expectations.
Most importantly, no matter the opponent, once they touched Ayaan, their chakra was absorbed rapidly. This technique—similar to the Star Absorbing Technique or the Northern Ocean Divine Art—gave Ayaan a massive advantage in close combat, where he was already highly skilled. Unless they were chakra-less fighters or Jinchūriki with vast reserves, any ninja caught by Ayaan would instantly lose most of their fighting ability!
Kakashi's chakra, once considered barely sufficient for a jonin, had grown in the three years since losing his Sharingan, but was still only average for a jonin. Ayaan only held his wrist for a moment before Kakashi's entire body went weak.
"Kakashi! Guy! Let them go!" At that moment, a mass of thorns erupted from the ground, attempting to bind Ayaan.
However, Ayaan's body was already coated in a layer of black Armament Haki. The tough thorns creaked and splintered against his hardened body, having no effect.
Ayaan shook his body slightly, snapping the wooden thorns to pieces, then casually hurled Kakashi and Guy aside.
Two black-clad figures flashed in, catching Kakashi and Guy. From the animal masks on their faces, they were clearly members of the village's Anbu.
No matter how much Konoha wanted to turn a blind eye, they couldn't ignore Ayaan's open assault in the village. It was obvious that many reinforcements had already arrived.
With a whoosh, a large group of Konoha ninja appeared, surrounding Ayaan.
Ayaan's gaze swept the area, spotting two Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan, the Ino–Shikamaru–Choji trio, the Third Hokage, and even the head of the Hyuga clan, Hyuga Hiashi.
The one who had used Wood Release earlier to restrain him was clearly the Anbu standing next to the Hokage—most likely Tenzo, also known as Yamato.
Ayaan smirked. He hadn't expected Yamato to survive after the last time he'd uprooted him. Now, it seemed he'd become one of the Third Hokage's Anbu.
But with this level of Wood Release… no wonder people said: The First Hokage used Wood Release to conquer the world, Yamato uses Wood Release for landscaping.
He guessed Danzo must have initially placed great hopes on Yamato's Wood Release. Unfortunately, compared to the God of the Ninja World, Yamato was at best an elite jonin.
"Black Shadow Ninja, what are you doing in Konoha again?!" the Third Hokage demanded, swinging the diamond staff in his hand.
However, Ayaan could tell there was hesitation behind his words. Logically speaking, a ninja who had caused such massive losses to Konoha should have been eliminated on sight.
Yet the Third Hokage's words, though outwardly threatening, actually put Konoha at a disadvantage. It was clear he only hoped Ayaan wasn't here to cause trouble, rather than truly seeking revenge.
"Let's not talk about my purpose yet," Ayaan said with a smile. "Let's warm up first."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ayaan's figure flickered, easily dodging Shikaku Nara's Shadow Imitation Technique. Then he punched forward—the air cracked with a deafening burst, and a shockwave erupted like an exploding cannonball.
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