Chapter 32: Farewell, Teacher Shinnosuke
Sarutobi Shinnosuke had been constantly distracted controlling the chakra in his body to alleviate the Sharingan Illusion Technique’s effect on himself, and during that time he even avoided making eye contact with Uchiha Ikeizumi.
But he didn’t expect that he had still fallen for the opponent’s “Sharingan Illusion Technique”!
When he saw the last Anbu Ninja fall into Uchiha Ikeizumi’s hands.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke’s face was both shocked and horrified, and extremely ugly.
The former genin had now grown to the point where even he, a guiding Jonin, could no longer suppress him.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke realized that he had become the wave before the beach.
The half ninja sword remaining in his hand gave him no sense of security at all.
Uchiha Ikeizumi asked: “Shinnosuke Teacher, even now, are you still unrepentant?”
Sarutobi Shinnosuke was silent for a moment, then suddenly “tch” laughed.
“Uchiha Ikeizumi.”
He threw away the half-melted ninja sword in his hand, straightened his body, his face turned serious, and he properly formed a Counter Seal, saying in his mouth: “Tonight, let me correct your mistaken justice. A ninja’s justice starts from the village’s interests; justice that is good for the village is true justice.”
“And your justice is merely self-centered justice; no one in the entire Ninja World will acknowledge your justice. Because everything you are doing now is almost making enemies of the whole world!”
Uchiha Ikeizumi also stood in place, only less than ten meters from Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
He too formed a standard Counter Seal.
“Shinnosuke Teacher. My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror; everything I do is for justice—this sentence… I remember saying it to you, Teacher, a very long time ago when I was still a genin.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi said calmly.
“Ha…” Sarutobi Shinnosuke sighed: “You’re truly beyond saving. Someone like you will one day destroy Konoha.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi said: “Shinnosuke Teacher thinks of me too extremely; you don’t even want to spend any effort understanding your student. Teacher’s understanding of me is not even as much as that of a Police Force trainee who followed me for just a few days.”
Sarutobi Shinnosuke narrowed his eyes: “I’m afraid I won’t have the chance to understand you in the future, because you will be deeply trapped in the underworld.”
The words fell.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke quickly formed seals, his chest suddenly expanded, and he opened his mouth to spit: “Fire Style: Red Ground Spider!!!”
Surging flames spewed from his mouth, transforming into a giant spider that charged fiercely at Uchiha Ikeizumi.
Uchiha Ikeizumi did not rely on his “Lava Release Chakra Body” to ignore the flames.
He also formed seals.
“Fire Style…”
“Great Fire Annihilation!!!”
Flames even more exaggerated in scale and temperature than the Fire Style used by Sarutobi Shinnosuke spewed from Uchiha Ikeizumi’s mouth; the roaring blaze almost instantly engulfed the oncoming flame spider and charged toward Sarutobi Shinnosuke with devastating force.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke immediately dodged to a side corner; the terrifying flames nearly grazed the tip of his nose, and even his eyelashes were scorched and curled by the high heat.
“Tch, in a master-disciple battle you’re still holding back! Uchiha Ikeizumi! Has your self-centered justice become soft-hearted now?”
Sarutobi Shinnosuke gritted his teeth, directly bit his right thumb, and slammed his palm on the ground.
Dense summoning patterns spread across the ground.
“Summoning Technique!”
“Great Ape!!!”
Bang—
After a puff of white smoke flashed, a massive ape over three meters tall covered in red fur suddenly appeared. This was Sarutobi Shinnosuke’s strongest summoned beast, a robust ape comparable in strength to a Konoha Jonin—Great Ape!
The moment Great Ape appeared, it saw the lava and sea of fire before it, and further ahead, Uchiha Ikeizumi.
“Shinnosuke, this scene doesn’t look good! Should I avoid this conflict between you master and disciple?”
Great Ape said in a deep voice with a half-joking tone.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke took a deep breath: “Great Ape, it’s a life-and-death moment now; don’t make such cold jokes.”
Great Ape stood behind Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
Facing off against Uchiha Ikeizumi.
“Uchiha Ikeizumi’s so-called Absolute Justice has already threatened Konoha.” Sarutobi Shinnosuke said in a deep voice.
Great Ape said: “Isn’t this something you should have expected long ago? Although you’ve always been unwilling to understand this disciple of yours, from his displayed personality and way of acting, today’s confrontation was bound to happen sooner or later, isn’t it… However, Shinnosuke… do you really think this child is wrong?”
Sarutobi Shinnosuke was silent for half a second, then said: “Justice that is not beneficial to Konoha is wrong. Ninjas should stand on the village’s stance. Great Ape, let’s settle this here today.”
“…Understood.”
…
On the other side, Sarutobi Hiruzen, rushing hurriedly to the Secret Research Base with a group of Anbu Ninjas, could already see the base that had been destroyed into ruins by lava.
He could even see the dense forest ahead that had turned into a sea of fire.
Although he hadn’t fully approached yet, he could smell the faint sulfur smell permeating the air.
Sarutobi Hiruzen’s heart sank.
“Go immediately to put out the fire!” He decisively gave the order: “Don’t let the fire spread to Konoha! At the same time… immediately go stop this unnecessary conflict and hold both sides back!”
“Yes, Hokage!”
The Anbu Ninjas forcibly increased their speed; they all knew that the one stationed at the Secret Research Base was the Hokage’s eldest son.
They also knew that the one who forcefully broke into the Secret Research Base was a genius from the Uchiha Clan whom the Hokage quite favored.
It seemed.
The Hokage was unwilling to give up either of them.
He wanted to replicate stopping the conflict between Uchiha Ikeizumi and Shimura Danzo, to stop tonight’s…
Conflict that was probably already too late to stop.
…
Inside the Secret Research Base, the battle between Uchiha Ikeizumi, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, and the summoned beast Great Ape had entered a white-hot phase.
“Roar!!!”
Great Ape picked up a ten-ton cement pillar and, with an angry roar, charged toward Uchiha Ikeizumi carrying the pillar.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke circled behind Uchiha Ikeizumi, gritting his teeth while lightning surged in his right palm.
“Lightning Style…”
“Lightning Blade Technique!”
Dazzling lightning transformed into a two-meter-long blade that heavily slashed toward Uchiha Ikeizumi’s back; the massive cement pillar nearly covering Uchiha Ikeizumi’s diameter also rushed in from the front.
Whoosh!!!
Bang!!!
The lightning blade split Uchiha Ikeizumi’s body “in two” with one strike; the cement pillar slammed down heavily, “bang,” smashing Uchiha Ikeizumi’s severed lower half deep into the ground.
“Shinnosuke, be careful! Something’s off with the feel! His body is strange!” Great Ape suddenly warned.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke suddenly widened his eyes.
Because he saw Uchiha Ikeizumi, whom he had split in two, slowly “stand” up amid the wriggling of his lava body.
“Water Transformation Technique?” Sarutobi Shinnosuke was stunned; he could no longer tell how many trump cards Uchiha Ikeizumi had revealed.
“Shinnosuke! Dodge quickly!!!” This was Great Ape’s urgent shout.
“If you were good at Water Release, you could have fought me longer.” Uchiha Ikeizumi’s right arm fingers slightly bent, his right arm turning into a massive Lava Demon Dog with a ferocious maw, viciously “biting” toward Sarutobi Shinnosuke’s chest.
“Farewell, Shinnosuke Teacher.”
“Shinnosuke! Dodge quickly!!!” This was the Third Hokage’s panicked shout that came too late.
…
…
