Back on the battlefield within the Hidden Leaf Village.

Smash!

Susanoo's giant sword sliced through the air, shattering Sai's ink bird into a splash of ink!

Sai plummeted from the sky.

Kakashi Hatake quickly formed hand seals.

— Earth Release: Mud Wall!

Gurgle, gurgle... The earth softened into a fluid, allowing Sai to land unharmed!

Kakashi's face was grim: "That strike was clearly meant to kill Sai. Sasuke shows no mercy. There's nothing more to say, Sasuke...!"

"You're next, Kakashi!"

Sasuke's expression was icy as Susanoo's hand once again formed a giant sword.

Swish!

At that moment, dozens of Nara clan members, led by Shikamaru, simultaneously performed their technique.

— Ninja Art: Shadow Strangle Jutsu!

Swish, swish, swish!

Dozens of shadows shot out, connecting with Susanoo's shadow...!

Clang! Susanoo's sword-raising hand halted!

Sasuke frowned: "A bunch of clowns!"

Without our fathers, we can't hold that thing for long...

After analyzing, Shikamaru calmly said: "Everyone, use long-range ninjutsu attacks. Do not engage in close combat!"

Boom, boom, boom, boom...!

The ninjas skilled in long-range attacks launched their assaults. Earth Release, Water Release, Fire Release, Wind Release, Lightning Release... all intertwined! The roar of the attacks was deafening!

Crash... The chaos subsided, and debris scattered, but Susanoo stood tall, its armor unscathed!

"Our attacks are ineffective!?"

"What is that thing...!"

"Its defense is terrifying!"

Shikamaru had never seen Susanoo before and was momentarily stunned, but he quickly regained his composure and observed closely.

"A chakra-formed giant protecting Sasuke and his comrades. But if you look closely, they're all standing on solid ground. Maybe this will work..."

Shikamaru changed his hand seals.

Swish!

The shadow behind Susanoo shifted, silently infiltrating Susanoo's interior, reaching Sasuke's feet!

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Hmm!? Something's wrong with the chakra...

Karin sensed the anomaly and quickly warned: "Sasuke, behind you!!"

Sasuke squinted, swiftly dodging to the side, and Susanoo moved with him. The Nara clan's shadow technique was already nearing its end, and this pull quickly broke it!

"Ugh...!!" The Nara ninjas staggered!

Shikamaru wiped the sweat from his face but smiled: "Just as I thought, the weakness is at the feet. Earth Release from underground can effectively target it!"

"Hmph!" Sasuke snorted, his eyes gleaming!

Swish!

Susanoo's heavy armor vanished, elongating its form, and legs appeared, allowing it to stand!

This was Susanoo's 'complete form,' usable only with the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. Though not the perfect form, it sacrificed some defense for increased mobility... and the weakness at the feet was gone!

Boom!

With the Heavenly Bow in hand, Susanoo drew an arrow, targeting a figure!

Neji Hyuga, with his Byakugan, observed: "Not good! That arrow is aimed at Shikamaru!"

"Die...!" Sasuke's hand clenched coldly!

Swish!!!

The arrow shot through the air...

"Damn...!!" In the rush, Shikamaru had no way to dodge and almost closed his eyes, awaiting death.

Crash...!

But suddenly, flowing sand gathered, forming a barrier in front of Shikamaru!

Boom!!

The arrow pierced the barrier but was halted...

"Wind Release: Great Sickle Weasel Technique!"

Temari swung her giant fan, further blocking the arrow with a gust of wind!

"Puppet Performance: Human Bullet Yo-Yo!"

Swish! Kankuro used his chakra strings to entangle the arrow's tip, yanking it aside!

Clang...!

The arrow finally veered off course, embedding in the ground beside Shikamaru...!

"Phew..." Shikamaru exhaled deeply, looking at Gaara and his team, asking: "Did you stop the enemies outside the village?"

Gaara, with his arms crossed, replied: "They're tough, so only my sand clone is here to support."

Shikamaru said: "I see, thanks. You were a big help."

Temari said: "I told you not to stand out too much on the battlefield. Now you've been targeted, huh?"

Shikamaru shook his head with a wry smile: "What a drag..."

Inside Susanoo, Sasuke coldly glanced: "Gaara of the Sand, your absolute defense is a joke!"

— Daytime Tiger!!!

Boom...!!

Just as Sasuke finished speaking, Might Guy, having opened the Seventh Gate, launched a powerful attack!

"Roar...!!"

The air pressure formed a tiger, slamming into Susanoo's back, sending it flying hundreds of meters!

Seeing this, Sakura shouted: "Sasuke-kun...!!!"

Boom, boom...!

The Daytime Tiger subsided, and Susanoo lay on the ground, with Team Taka members inside, shaken but unharmed!

"What just happened!?"

"Hey...! Did we get knocked that far!?"

"Could it be that person...?"

Sasuke recalled the man stronger than Kakashi from the Chunin Exams.

"It seems that the taijutsu technique used by that thick-browed guy [Rock Lee] on Gaara back then wasn't its limit. Fine..."

Uchiha Sasuke closed his eyes!

"This was originally my ultimate move to kill Naruto. Let's use it to baptize the Leaf Village!!!"

— Susanoo: Perfect Form!

...

Back to Naruto's battlefield!

— Wood Release: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees!

As Tobi clasped his hands, the ground broke, and trees sprouted, rolling forward...

Rustle, rustle! Flowers budded on the trunks, blooming and releasing poisonous pollen!

Naruto's gaze was stern: "No doubt about it! That's the real 'Flowering Trees'! The pollen is poisonous, don't inhale it!"

Konan held her breath, thinking: Naruto just used a large-scale Shinra Tensei, so the Deva Path's ability should still be recovering...

Naruto thought: "Shinra Tensei is temporarily unavailable. To disperse the pollen, Wind Release is best, but the scale of this pollen requires more than a regular Wind Release... Got it!"

An idea flashed, and Naruto formed hand seals.

— Summoning Technique!

Poof!

Amidst the white smoke, Danzo's former summoning beast, Baku, appeared... but now it was covered in black rods, and its eyes had become Rinnegan!

"Roar...!"

Baku opened its mouth, and under the Rinnegan-enhanced summoning technique, it unleashed a suction force several times stronger than before!!

Swish...!

The dispersed pollen was sucked into Baku's mouth!

Poof...!

Baku vanished in the white smoke...!

The pollen crisis was averted, but the forest continued to advance!

Poof...!

Naruto formed hand seals again, creating shadow clones on either side. The real body used oil, while the clones used Fire Release and Wind Release!

— Sage Art: Five Right Guard Gates!