Chapter 256: Bloodthirsty for Battle (3k)

Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!

Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!

……

A large number of Ninja Arts were released by these Elite ninjas in an instant, but Pain simply stood in place; the Preta Path Pain, who had achieved nothing while fighting Bai Cangshu, appeared before the crowd, spreading his arms to block all the Ninja Arts.

An invisible barrier began to appear, and various Ninja Arts collided before him, rapidly weakening and being absorbed; the suppression power of the Rinnegan against ordinary ninjas was beyond measure.

An Anbu appeared instantly before the Preta Path Pain, Tachi slashing down, but the Preta Path Pain did not need to move his hands; a laser had already pierced the Anbu's chest.

Under the observation of the Rinnegan, this level of Body Flicker Technique could not escape capture at all.

Hyuga Hiashi's Byakugan fully observed the entire situation; he stood before the powerful enemy named Tao Baibai, set his hands into a Gentle Fist stance, yet said,

"The terrain here is narrow; protect the elders and withdraw first."

Bai Cangshu took a step forward, his figure vanishing instantly; Hyuga Hiashi raised his arms, and Bai Cangshu appeared exactly in the direction he was defending; Bai Cangshu threw a punch, and the intense Force, almost before it was even released, caused the air to produce a wailing sound like ghosts crying and wolves howling.

Hyuga Hiashi quickly struck a finger at the side of Bai Cangshu's arm; the Gentle Fist is a style of fist technique that strikes at Apertures, utilizing the Hyuga Clan's Constitution that allows them to release Chakra from their entire body, combined with the Byakugan that can see through human meridians; in taijutsu combat, the Gentle Fist to a certain extent counters enemies of the Strong Fist type.

But as Hiashi struck out with a palm, he saw that the opponent, whose tyrannical fist momentum had clearly already formed, suddenly halted the momentum.

The violent punch turned into an empty strike.

Bang!

The air let out a roar like an explosion, and the air seemed to have been blasted out by a punch, slamming toward Hiashi; at the same time, his Gentle Fist also struck empty space.

Hiashi's figure and Footwork flowed extremely fast as well; he stepped out with his left foot, shifting his center of gravity to the left, his whole body seemingly crossing a distance of two meters in an instant, dodging the "air cannon" unleashed by that empty strike, while also appearing to the side and behind Bai Cangshu.

With hands one high and one low, one in front and one behind, his entire figure was fully extended, Chakra flowing from the Apertures all over his body, and he himself seemed to be standing within a massive Eight Trigrams Array.

Bai Cangshu merely tilted his head slightly, seeing Hyuga Hiashi's stance from the corner of his eye; the smile on his face deepened; this was what he liked about these taijutsu ninjas—relatively speaking, they possessed a certain ability to resist when facing his movements.

Combat is a game of strategy; combat is slaughter.

【Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms】!

Hyuga Hiashi trod the Eight Trigrams Steps, closing in behind Bai Cangshu in an instant, his hands striking at various Apertures on Bai Cangshu's body like phantoms.

Under the super-dynamic vision of the Byakugan, all of Bai Cangshu's movements and every tremor of his muscles were captured by him; this was the key to the Gentle Fist, with Chakra upon his two fists like a sharp weapon ready to penetrate the body and strike internal organs and Apertures at any moment.

Bang bang bang bang!

Countless fist shadows flew; within the Eight Trigrams Array, Hyuga Hiashi's expression changed drastically; every palm he struck collided with the opponent's fists and feet; the opponent, as if also possessing a Byakugan, had completely seen through his movements as well.

This was the first time he had encountered an opponent who stood before him, allowing him to complete the entire set of Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms without a single palm landing.

Other enemies mostly chose to use Ninja Arts to create distance, avoiding being closed in on by the Gentle Fist.

Once the set was finished, he saw through his Byakugan that his Chakra dissipated within the opponent's hands and feet; his Chakra had indeed struck into the opponent's body, but the opponent's Constitution was different from ordinary people, and there was actually no feeling of injury at all.

No, that was no longer a matter of being different from ordinary people; he clearly saw that the number of the opponent's muscles exceeded three thousand, far exceeding that of a normal human by several times, and the number of bones and joints were also different from a human's.

This was a guy who had a human appearance, but internally, could no longer be considered an ordinary person at all.

Unlike taijutsu ninjas who rely on Chakra to strengthen their bodies for combat, the opponent's body itself was a weapon.

Whoosh~

Flames ignited on Hyuga Hiashi's body; that sticky, sulfur-smelling fire instantly ignited Hyuga Hiashi's family white robe; the stinging pain of his skin made Hyuga Hiashi react in an Instant, and intense Chakra gushed out.

【Eight Trigrams Palms: Rotation】!

He spun suddenly, Chakra wrapping around him like a whirlwind, extinguishing the flames on his body surface in an instant.

Bai Cangshu watched Hyuga Hiashi repeat his old trick and suddenly stepped forward, purple Killing Intent Wave erupting fiercely from his right hand.

In this instant, his eyes were also dyed with the color of the Killing Intent Wave; this special Qi known as the Wave flowed through his body with extreme smoothness.

The Killing Intent Wave wrapped around Bai Cangshu; in just an Instant, he crossed the distance between the two, his body fully stretched out, and with the movement most suited to the posture of exerting force, he twisted his waist, concentrating his entire body's strength into his right fist, the Killing Intent Wave lighting up with a flash upon his right fist.

【Burst】!

Boom!

Bai Cangshu smashed a fist thunderously toward Hyuga Hiashi, who was performing 【Eight Trigrams Palms: Rotation】.

The terrifying force smashed into the high-speed rotating, intense Chakra in an instant; the Hyuga Clan's Chakra control ability was powerful, and the condensed, rotating Chakra was incomparably hard, like a barrier formed by air compressed to the extreme.

This was also the reason why this move was called 【Absolute Defense】.

Almost all Ninja Arts and attacks could be blocked by ninjas of the Hyuga main family using this secret technique.

Crack!

The air shattered in an instant; Hyuga Hiashi, who was rotating, could already observe a full 360-degree field of vision, and at this moment, he clearly saw the opponent's fist pierce into the Rotation.

"Ha!"

Bai Cangshu exhaled and shouted, his fist momentum tyrannical and resolute, his body surrounded by intense Qi; the posture of the fist striking the Rotation stalled for a brief moment, and the next moment, accompanied by a terrifying sound as if the entire building were being smashed to pieces, it erupted thunderously.

Boom!

The incandescent Rotation shattered suddenly; the intense Qi Force sent Bai Cangshu flying backward, while Hyuga Hiashi was like a black shadow, flying backward with a crash, directly smashing through the front wall of the Hokage Building and slamming into a building in the distance.

Bai Cangshu's feet stepped onto the ground as if they had taken root; the solid stone ground was instantly carved into two gullies several meters long, and his shoes were simultaneously shattered, but as his feet crushed the stone on the ground, his feet remained completely unharmed.

Clearly, Bai Cangshu's physical body had already completely surpassed ordinary "armor."

He flicked his feet casually, throwing away the two tattered shoes; he realized that he was currently still "restraining" himself by the standards of an ordinary person.

Why did he wear shoes? Because ordinary people need to protect their feet, but even if he walked on blades, he would not be harmed.

By the same token, ordinary ranges of temperature difference had no effect on him at all; the reason he wore clothes was also because human concepts were influencing him.

Bai Cangshu's intent became increasingly frantic; the purple Killing Intent Wave had already completely enveloped him.

This kind of hearty, unbridled taijutsu combat kept his Killing Intent Wave constantly being activated.

【Killing Intent Wave increased slightly, current: lv3 (44/1200)】

"Not enough, still not enough..."

Pain frowned slightly; he could feel that Tao Baibai seemed to be at risk of losing control, but before he could speak, an Enma violently knocked aside the Preta Path Pain; missiles and taijutsu attacks had very little effect on it.

Subsequently, the Enma transformed into an Adamantine Staff, which was grabbed by Sarutobi Hiruzen and swung violently in a horizontal sweep.

The Adamantine Staff had astonishing hardness, and as it was swung, it crashed into the Hokage Building—which already had two walls shattered—and broke it in half at the waist; all the ninja took the opportunity to dodge outside.

Pain and Konan both took a step back, naturally falling from the edge of the building.

As for Tao Baibai, who was already crazed with the lust for battle, he did not dodge or evade, but simply raised one hand.

Pfft!

After sweeping across the building, the Adamantine Staff was caught by the opponent with one hand.

The terrifying Force seemed to dissipate within his grip.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression changed; the upper half of the building had already collapsed with a roar, and he could only release the Adamantine Staff and mentally command Enma to dispel his transformation.

Boom!

The building crashed down, submerging Tao Baibai within it, and Enma was buried as well.

Sarutobi Hiruzen only looked back once; he had no heart to concern himself with his old companion, as the strength of those who had attacked today was extremely terrifying.

And...

"Uchiha Fugaku, does your Uchiha Clan truly intend to betray Konoha!"

He shouted sternly; although his voice already carried the frailty of age, that aura caused the image of the 【Ninja Hero】 from his youth to appear in Uchiha Fugaku's mind for a moment.

This Third Hokage was also a powerful Kage who had risen from the fires of war; was the Uchiha Clan truly prepared for slaughter?

No, the Uchiha clan was not yet fully prepared; the Uchiha were not a nation of soldiers, and there were ordinary people who could not master the ability to refine Chakra, just as there were ordinary ninja who could not awaken the Sharingan...

A so-called coup d'état was absolutely not a decision that could be made on a whim; once the wrong choice was made, it would implicate a large number of innocent clansmen and cost them their lives.

"Lord Hokage, the Uchiha Clan has nothing to do with today's rebellion."

A cold, youthful voice rang out; Uchiha Itachi appeared before the Third Hokage with his eyelids lowered, holding the sharp blade that had just slain the Konoha Hokage Advisor Utatane Koharu.

Blood dripped continuously from the blade; he raised his eyes, his Three-Tomoe meeting Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze, and the latter instantly shifted his eyes away to look at the shadows.

Uchiha Itachi did not activate any Sharingan Illusion Technique; he simply tore off the lining of his combat uniform bearing the Uchiha Clan Crest and sliced the Gunbai crest in two with his blade.

"Today's slaughter was decided entirely by me, Uchiha Itachi, alone. I believe that compared to Konoha being completely destroyed, my cooperation with Tao Baibai to selectively massacre a portion of the high-ranking officials and ninja is the approach that causes the least harm to both Konoha and the Uchiha."

"Lord Hokage, surely you will understand this way of thinking of mine."

There was no mockery in his tone; it was terrifyingly rational and calm.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart sank continuously; he had indeed praised this youth, who had been drawn into a cruel war at the age of only four and possessed a vision that transcended the narrow perspective of the Uchiha Clan, for having the capacity for Hokage-style Thinking.

But... when the other party applied that Logic to the current situation, it was so cruel and cold-blooded.

He turned his head and saw his old friend with only half his body visible amidst the collapsed ruins, and for the first time in many years, he felt that pain in his heart.

Hokage-style Thinking... so the side being sacrificed is in such pain...

Uchiha Itachi did not wait for an answer; his own heart grew colder, for he did not like Tao Baibai, yet Tao Baibai's words were being verified bit by bit by these Konoha high-ranking officials.

So this world is all for the sake of profit...

"Heh..."

"Lord Hokage, our Capacity seems to be far from enough."

Clang!

The blade shone once more, and the next moment, a figure suddenly blocked Uchiha Itachi's path; Uchiha Fugaku, holding a Kunai, precisely blocked Uchiha Itachi's longsword, and their Three-Tomoe Sharingan locked gazes, their ocular power seemingly clashing as well.

Uchiha Fugaku's face was as heavy as water; he could hardly believe that his eldest son, who had been kind, sensitive, and exceptionally intelligent, had actually reached this point.

"What on earth have you encountered... Itachi."

"Where is Shisui? What has Tao Baibai done to Shisui?!"

(End of this chapter)