XX-level Hokage

Just then, Shiro suddenly spoke up: "Shiro, would you like to hear a story?" Hearing this, Shiro put down his pen and nodded gently.

"Once upon a time, there was a cursed family. The members of this family had a special constitution, which gave them a very delicate and sensitive heart, and thus endowed them with a powerful force."

This power is generated based on their special constitution; the more turbulent their emotions and the more intense their resentment, the stronger their power becomes.

Even advancing to this level of power requires killing friends and family with one's own hands, leading to friends turning against each other and brothers killing each other. Hearing Zhenzi's words, Bai frowned slightly and said softly, "Then this family is too pathetic."

"Yes, it's so tragic, especially after this trait was discovered by people with ulterior motives. This curse was gradually artificially amplified, and then..."

Thus, tragedy struck. (Author's Note)

These two chapters are almost entirely based on the original work, including the dialogue. It was a huge amount of work, and I'm exhausted.

Chapter 151: Susanoo

Meanwhile, as the battle intensified, Sasuke and Itachi began to unleash their hidden techniques. Sasuke activated the cursed seal attached to his body.

After Kabuto's modifications, Sasuke has basically mastered the power of the seals.

A huge claw emerged from behind Sasuke, slamming into Itachi's attacking hand and sending Itachi flying.

Itachi landed on the ground and looked at Sasuke. "Amaterasu"

Instantly, black flames clung to the fleshy claws on Sasuke's back, and a sharp, searing pain caused Sasuke to let out a pitiful howl. At that moment, Itachi lunged at Sasuke, kicking him against the wall, then extinguished Amaterasu and stepped on Sasuke. Sasuke tried to resist, but Itachi had already gripped his neck.

Reaching out, and amidst Sasuke's terrified gaze, he removed Sasuke's left eye.

"Aa ...

Then a black power surged from his body. "The mask."

Sasuke used the power of the shadows and kicked Itachi, sending him flying and crashing heavily into the opposite wall.

Itachi got up from the ground, took out a transparent jar from his pocket, put Sasuke's eye into it, and then looked at Sasuke opposite him.

Sasuke, clutching his gouged-out eye and covered in black and purple markings, stared intently at Itachi. "Are you ready to hand over your other eye too?" Itachi asked.

But Sasuke laughed and said, "I sensed it." Then everything turned black and white, and the scene before him shattered instantly.

Sasuke, panting heavily, looked at Itachi not far away. It was still Itachi's genjutsu.

"The backlash must be unpleasant," Sasuke said, looking at Itachi.

Itachi was currently facing the backlash from the Mangekyou Sharingan, his eye closed. "You, you broke my Tsukuyomi..." Ryou said in disbelief.

"Strange, why didn't Sasuke fall down after being hit by Tsukuyomi?" White Zetsu asked, who was spying on him. "No, he wasn't hit; he broke free from Tsukuyomi," Black Zetsu said.

"Huh? How could someone who only has Sharingan possibly defeat someone with Mangekyou Sharingan?" White Zetsu said in disbelief.

"The Sharingan is just a ninja's weapon, and the strength of a weapon depends on the user's power. Even someone with shuriken can lose to someone skilled at throwing stones. The important thing is the difference in power. In other words, Sasuke's talent has already surpassed Itachi's imagination," Black Zetsu explained.

“I should have said it before, no matter how you use those eyes, I will kill you with my hatred,” Sasuke said coldly. He was most wary of Itachi's genjutsu, especially the genjutsu from the Mangekyou Sharingan, and he had specifically consulted Mashiro about it. Mashiro told him…

"Itachi's Tsukuyomi adjusts its intensity based on the target. If the genjutsu intensity of Tsukuyomi is 100, the intensity released by Itachi will vary depending on the type of enemy."

If Itachi uses a level 100 Tsukuyomi against you, you have absolutely no chance of winning. However, if it's level 10 or 20, you still have a chance.

Only those with Sharingan power surpassing that of the caster and possessing strong mental fortitude can break Tsukuyomi.

"The masked state can increase your eye power several times over, naturally enabling you to break through Tsukuyomi at strength below 100." Sasuke firmly believed in Shinji's words because he knew who was behind Shinji; Ryo had been killed by that person once.

As for whether Mashiro was right or wrong, she was actually just guessing, because she knew Itachi would never kill her. Just then...

Sasuke swiftly threw out two scrolls, which turned into smoke in mid-air. Itachi used his other eye to observe the smoke, which appeared to be just ordinary mist. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique"

As soon as the mist dissipated, Sasuke instantly unleashed a ninjutsu.

The flames touched the smoke, instantly igniting it and turning the entire shrine into a sea of ​​fire. Itachi reacted instantly, breaking through the wooden partition and reaching the rooftop, with Sasuke following closely behind. "What, afraid to face those flames representing revenge?" Sasuke said coldly, looking at Itachi from the rooftop.

Itachi ignored Sasuke's words and instantly formed hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique"

Seeing this, Sasuke quickly formed hand seals as well.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique. Two balls of flame clash."

"Unexpectedly, Sasuke actually came out on top." White Zetsu said in disbelief. Black Zetsu responded calmly.

"It's coming." "Amaterasu"

Black flames appeared out of thin air and were engulfed by Itachi's Fireball Jutsu, instantly suppressing Sasuke's flames and attacking him. Just then, Sasuke gently hooked his hand.

Two Claw Clan ninjas appeared out of thin air, blocking the attack of the black flames and burning to ashes. "What is this? What strange creatures," White Zetsu said, looking at the Claw Clan ninjas that had appeared out of nowhere.

Black Zetsu didn't answer; his eyes were also full of confusion. Just then, Sasuke rushed towards Itachi.

Blood kept flowing from Itachi's eyes, and black flames kept appearing around Sasuke.

But Sasuke, in his "mask" form, was incredibly fast, and all the incoming Amaterasu attacks missed their mark. Sasuke instantly appeared beside Itachi and kicked out.

Itachi reached out to block, but Sasuke's strength at that moment far exceeded his expectations. Itachi was instantly sent flying, crashing heavily into the chimney window. Itachi quickly got up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

But Sasuke's attack came again. Itachi quickly placed his hands on the ground. "Earth Release: Earth Wall!"

An earthen wall appeared instantly, blocking Sasuke's attack.

Then Itachi instantly created three clones, each running in a different direction. "Itachi, do you think you can escape like this?" Sasuke mocked.

In response, Itachi said, "Your current state should have a time limit, and with such a significant increase in power, you shouldn't be able to use Shadow Clone Jutsu. I just need to stall until your time is up."

Itachi quickly noticed the flaw in the "mask".

"Is that so? But Itachi, you can't escape." After Sasuke finished speaking, he stretched out his palm, and dozens of shadowy soldiers from the Claw Gang emerged from the shadows and attacked the two Itachis.

Sasuke himself swiftly charged towards the nearest Itachi. "Thud!"

Itachi sighed softly and dispelled the clone technique.

"What, are you surrendering?"

Sasuke rushed over quickly. "Shadow Extreme Chidori".

Black power, crackling with lightning, appeared on Sasuke's right hand, and a black Chidori was born. The terrifying power, combined with the upgraded Chidori, swiftly reached Itachi.

It struck directly at Itachi's body. But it made no move.

An orange-red skeleton appeared out of thin air, blocking Sasuke's attack. With the attack ineffective, Sasuke quickly retreated.

Looking at the orange-red skeleton protecting the itachi within his body, he asked with a grave expression, "What is this?"

Chapter 152: The Ten-Fist Sword

"Without this, I might really have been killed. I've really become stronger, Sasuke. This time, I'll show you my final trump card."

"The technique of Sasuke." Itachi's face was extremely pale, and blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth.

"Susanoo?!" Sasuke exclaimed, his face deathly pale. At that moment, the "mask's" duration ended.

"This is another ninjutsu that resides in these eyes when Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu awaken. Sasuke, is this the end of your ninjutsu? If you still have hidden power, don't hesitate to use it. The real show is just beginning." Itachi coughed up blood, looked at Sasuke, and said.

“Sasuke’s duration in that state has ended,” Black Zetsu, who was observing from the shadows, said gravely.

At this moment, flesh and blood began to emerge from the skeleton of the Susanoo summoned by Itachi. The flesh and blood intertwined, making the Susanoo even more terrifying.

Seeing this, Sasuke's eyes showed confusion and panic, and he involuntarily took a step back. "What's wrong? Are you helpless because you've run out of chakra?" Rong said softly.

Sasuke's face was extremely pale, but at that moment, Orochimaru's voice echoed in his mind. "Do you need power? I can lend you power."

Immediately afterward, the cursed seal on Sasuke's body began to throb with pain, as if it were tearing his body apart. "Damn it! Is Orochimaru still alive?" Sasuke muttered, rubbing his forehead.

"You need me now, Sasuke-kun. Don't you want revenge against Itachi? Come, unleash my power, and your wish will be fulfilled..."

Orochimaru's words kept echoing in Sasuke's mind. "Aa ...

A sharp pain shot through him, the Heavenly Curse was unleashed, and eight white snakes emerged. Meanwhile, in the other half, at the headquarters of "Root," in Kabuto's laboratory...

The part of the plant that Kabuto had deliberately left behind, bearing Sasuke's Heavenly Curse Seal, began to revive rapidly, as if it were faintly gaining consciousness. Seeing this, Kabuto sensed something was wrong and quickly disappeared into the shadows.

At this moment, Mashiro was still in the study, holding Shiro. A knock came at the door.

“Master, someone is looking for you,” Tayuya said.

Upon hearing this, Mashiro placed Shiro on a chair and said, "I'm going out for a while." "Okay," Shiro replied obediently.

Going downstairs to the living room, Kabuto was anxiously waiting. "What's wrong, Kabuto?" Mashiro asked softly.

"Lord Mashiro, Orochimaru is not dead," Kabuto said with a serious expression. "Oh, is that so?" Mashiro poured Kabuto a cup of tea and said nonchalantly.

Kabuto respectfully accepted the tea and said, "It's like this, Lord Mashiro. I just observed in my experiment that the part of the Heaven's Seal that was taken from Sasuke suddenly showed signs of revival, and it was a conscious revival. If that's the case, Orochimaru might be able to be resurrected in Sasuke's body."

“Don’t worry, I already guessed that,” Mashiro said softly.

Just as Kabuto was about to say something, he suddenly remembered that the Seki no Kagami seal on Sasuke's body was something Shinichi had requested to be preserved.

This was indeed within Mashiro's expectations. After all, Orochimaru could reincarnate into too many bodies, and she couldn't guarantee she could completely kill him. Therefore, she deliberately preserved the Heaven's Seal on Sasuke's body. Orochimaru had been controlling the Uchiha clan's power for a long time, and given the opportunity, he could use it...

They will definitely not let Sasuke's body go.

This way, it can be left to Itachi.

In the duel with Itachi, Sasuke will inevitably exhaust his chakra, and due to the backlash of the "mask" state, Sasuke's physical strength and mental strength will also be greatly weakened, which is the best opportunity for Orochimaru to take over Sasuke's body.

In order to ensure Orochimaru's plan to seize the body would proceed smoothly, Mashiro even deliberately disabled the counterattack function of the mask on Sasuke's body. It should be noted that Sasuke's body was inhabited by the power of a general of the Shadow Legion. If Orochimaru wanted to seize the body, he would definitely be instantly killed by the counterattack of the mask.

"Let Itachi handle this. Hopefully, the Totsuka Blade can completely destroy Orochimaru," Mashiro muttered to himself as he entered the study. Accompanied by Sasuke's agonizing screams, white snakes continued to emerge.

Sasuke put on the purple mask, as if he wanted to do something, but then stopped moving as if he had received some kind of command.

Finally, all eight white snakes emerged, enormous, like a colossal beast. The weasel watched the scene with icy eyes.

"Is this... Orochimaru's Eight-Headed Serpent Technique?" Itachi muttered to himself. "What is that?" White Zetsu, witnessing this, asked softly.

“Sasuke’s own chakra was already exhausted, but he still forced out more power, so Orochimaru’s suppressed chakra escaped to the outside,” Black Zetsu explained.

At this moment, Itachi, carrying the enormous Susanoo, walked forward step by step. Orochi, dragging Sasuke's body, also walked towards Itachi, and the two met.

One of the Yamata no Orochi's heads instantly charged towards Itachi's Susanoo, but a sword instantly appeared in Itachi's right hand, severing the attacking snake head in a flash.

Three more snake heads charged at Itachi's Susanoo, but a shield appeared in Itachi's left hand, blocking the attack. Then Itachi swung his sword and slashed, and three more tongues fell to the ground.

Of the remaining three snake heads, two quickly moved forward and tightly bound Itachi's Susanoo.

Itachi controlled Susanoo and swung his sword again, sending two more snake heads crashing to the ground. The Yamata no Orochi was now reduced to its last head.

The snake's head opened its mouth, and Orochimaru's image appeared in its throat.

"What was bound to happen, did indeed happen," he said softly.

Although Sasuke has stayed in Konoha all these years, Itachi is still concerned about the cursed seal Orochimaru left on Sasuke. He knows Orochimaru well and has always been wary of such a madman.