Chapter 71

In the Valley of the End, the river, which should have been clear and visible to the bottom, was now turbid and murky.

On both sides of the river, the cliffs were pitted and scarred. Some areas were charred black, while others were covered with soil and rock debris.

Naruto knelt on the ground, one hand supporting him. One of his eyes was swollen to a slit, and the other was filled with tears.

"Sasuke, why are you leaving Konoha! Isn't it better to stay?!" Naruto shouted, filled with frustration.

On the opposite side, Sasuke's skin had turned grayish-black, and there was a black cross on his forehead. More terrifyingly, a pair of web-like wings had grown from his back.

At the ends of five bones, sharp, claw-like keratin protrusions glinted with a cold light.

His expression was stern, and a complex look flashed in his eyes before it turned resolute.

"I have my own things to do. Staying in Konoha won't help me achieve them."

"I can help you, everyone can help you," Naruto said urgently.

"If you really consider me a friend, don't stop me. Revenge is what I most desire, just as you want to gain recognition from others. If I were to stop you from achieving your dreams, what would you do?" Sasuke said calmly.

Naruto was suddenly stunned.

"Revenge doesn't necessarily mean you have to leave Konoha. Kakashi-sensei is so powerful; why don't you ask him to teach you? And there's the Perverted Hermit; I can beg him to teach you..."

Sasuke's figure suddenly disappeared and silently appeared behind Naruto.

His right hand formed a knife, and he struck Naruto's neck with a moderate force.

Caught off guard, Naruto fell to the ground with a thud.

"Kakashi-sensei, how long are you going to watch?" Sasuke suddenly turned and said to the stone wall behind him.

The hard stone wall suddenly softened, and its color changed from dry, dull yellow to a more vivid and bright hue.

Kakashi emerged from the stone wall.

"This is the power of the Cursed Seal? So sharp!" Kakashi's face was serious.

He had long lifted the forehead protector that covered his eye. At this moment, Sasuke's strength was astonishing, and he could no longer be careless.

Kakashi had practiced with Sasuke many times and knew him very well. Because of this, Kakashi understood how difficult it would be to deal with Sasuke, who had gained immense power.

Suzuki had laid a solid foundation for Sasuke.

After suddenly gaining immense strength, Sasuke controlled it with ease, especially in taijutsu, where his power had increased exponentially.

Kakashi had observed for a long time. Naruto, whose body had been greatly enhanced by chakra, was completely outmatched in taijutsu, and was only on the receiving end of attacks!

"Sasuke, are you really going to betray Konoha? Can you let go of your comrades?" Kakashi glanced at Naruto, who was lying on the ground unconscious, his brows still furrowed.

Sasuke calmly looked at Kakashi and turned to leave.

He no longer had any interest in these obstacles. He now only cared about how to gain even greater power.

Driven by intense hatred, Sasuke's heart became even calmer and purer.

He began to understand Suzuki. In his eyes, Suzuki was a person who was cold and even cruel about everything except for power.

Now Sasuke knew this state. It wasn't coldness or cruelty, but indifference.

Once all his focus was on one thing, it was hard to care about anything else.

"Sasuke, stop! I won't let you leave Konoha!" Kakashi's eyes turned fierce.

No matter the reason, he could not allow his student to betray Konoha!

Sasuke stopped, turned his head, and gave Kakashi a half-smile, his eyes briefly glancing at the unconscious Naruto on the ground.

"Are you sure you want to stop me?"

Kakashi's face suddenly changed, as if he were meeting his student for the first time.

He understood the meaning in Sasuke's eyes. Sasuke was using Naruto as a hostage!

"Aren't you afraid of hurting Naruto?!"

This was an outright threat.

Kakashi's heart sank, and his face turned grim.

"How can you say such things?!"

Sasuke's lips curled, and he chuckled, showing no concern.

Kakashi's whole body trembled; he saw the shadow of another person in Sasuke.

Uchiha Shū!

That domineering and daring person who killed a Konoha ANBU right in front of him.

Is this another Uchiha Shū?!

"If the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki were to have a problem, the entire Konoha would suffer," Sasuke said with a sinister smile.

"You can't stop me!"

Rip!

A large bulge suddenly appeared on Sasuke's back, and the fabric quickly tore, growing rapidly.

With a splash, a web-like wing grew out.

At first, it was more like a mutated hand, but now another one had grown, making it a true wing.

Ignoring Kakashi's shocked and disbelieving expression, Sasuke flapped his strange meat wings and wobbled into the air.

At first, he swayed and seemed about to fall, but after a few attempts, he flew steadily.

Silent Killing Technique was a skill that manipulated air currents. Since learning it, Sasuke had never stopped practicing.

Now, using these new meat wings to fly, he quickly mastered the technique.

Rising to the height of the statues in the Valley of the End, Sasuke carefully examined the two legendary figures.

"Shū was right; Madara's statue does look better," Sasuke muttered to himself, then flapped his wings and shot off like an arrow, quickly disappearing from sight.

Kakashi stared at the rapidly shrinking black dot that was Sasuke, his face complex and gloomy. He then looked at Naruto, who was lying on the ground, occasionally twitching.

Finally, he sighed, bent down to pick up Naruto, and quickly headed back to Konoha.

...

In the dense forest, Suzuki held a bloody human head in his left hand, his face expressionless as he stared at the incoming attack.

His arm, now twice as thick as usual, was raised high.

A green dragon coiled around Suzuki, and the air within a hundred meters was stirred by his fist.

Great Dragon Fist!

With a low shout, Suzuki's right hand shot forward.

Roar!

The massive green dragon let out a roar and charged forward.

At the same time, a piercing, ear-splitting screech, like metal scraping against metal, rose into the sky!

The entire forest was awakened by this ear-shattering sound.

Birds flew away from the trees, and various wild animals ran quickly to escape the center of the battle.

The green dragon, fierce and swift, collided with Kakuzu's attack in an instant.

Roar!

The combined ninjutsu attack was instantly shattered by the green dragon.

When the Wind and Fire Release techniques hit the dragon, they froze in mid-air, then violently shook and dispersed.

When the Water Release technique touched the dragon, it was like touching a red-hot iron, instantly turning into a cloud of white smoke.

Only the Lightning Release technique penetrated the dragon's body, but halfway through, it dissipated into a cluster of small sparks.

Kakuzu's green eyes suddenly narrowed, and his five hearts beat simultaneously.

A strong sense of fear rose from the depths of his heart; he never expected Suzuki's attack to be so sharp.

With the dragon charging at him, he wanted to escape.

But Suzuki's well-prepared attack not only poured all his energy into the Great Dragon Fist but also used the high-frequency vibration he had been thinking about for a long time.

Kakuzu had no time to dodge and was instantly hit by the green dragon, which entered his body.

A shrill, inhuman scream suddenly rose, filled with intense frustration and anger.

The green dragon roared and burst into a cloud of green gas, spreading in all directions.

A strong wind immediately swept through the forest.

White, hiding on a tall pine tree, stepped on a branch and hugged the trunk, watching from a distance.

Caught off guard by the sudden wind, he almost fell.

When the wind subsided, White jumped down from the tree and quickly approached the battlefield.

Upon arriving, White was immediately stunned.

Within a hundred meters, everything was empty. All the trees, mounds, and rocks had disappeared.

The ground was covered with green, yellow, and other colored dust. Stepping on it felt like walking on a beach, but even the finest sand was not as soft as this ground.

White's face was full of shock. He knew that this dust was what had been on the ground.

But now, whether it was delicate grass or hard rocks, everything had turned to dust!

Suzuki stood in the center of the empty area, very noticeable. White quickly came to his side.

He immediately noticed that Suzuki was holding a still-living human head in his left hand. A chill ran down his spine, making his scalp tingle.

"Sir? The enemy...?" White asked cautiously.

"Oh, isn't it here?" Suzuki stomped his foot, indicating the dust on the ground. He then lifted his left hand and shook the strange head.

White's body trembled. He remembered the small trick Suzuki had shown a few days ago.

The trick of breaking chopsticks into dust, except without the burning. The dust was identical to the chopsticks from that day. He quickly understood the key.

Thinking of the waiter whose internal organs had been shattered, he immediately understood what Suzuki's foot-stomping meant.

The enemy had turned to dust!

White felt an itch in his feet, always feeling like he was stepping on something, which made him feel inexplicably terrified and nauseous.

"Seal him up. His ability is quite interesting; we can study it later," Suzuki handed the head to White.

Hidan, at this moment, did not resist, his eyes blankly staring at the scene. He was truly frightened.

An attack that could turn enemies into dust was undoubtedly the nemesis of his immortality!

He and Kakuzu, though always arguing, knew the old monster well.

Because of this, he was even more shocked. The fact that one punch could kill Kakuzu made him lose all will to resist.

White immediately took out a scroll, resisting the urge to kick the living head away, and quickly sealed it.

After sealing it, he carefully placed it in a corner of his backpack, feeling uneasy.

Although the ninja world was full of monsters, a living human head still made his nerves jump!

"Let's go," Suzuki called and led the way.

Killing a member of Akatsuki would certainly draw the organization's attention. He was in a hurry, and while Suzuki was not afraid of them, he did not want to waste time.

He hoped to quickly get what he wanted and find a secluded place to train. Let the outside world do as it pleased.

As long as they didn't bother him!