"Th-This... what is this?!"
Two faint clusters of flames, enveloping a great sun, slowly burned within the eye sockets of the Susanoo...
Massive shadows were cast down, directly enveloping Itachi and Shisui...
The youths opened their mouths wide, their throats tight as they looked up in horror... The blue giant, after unfurling its skeletal frame, proceeded to grow muscles and skin. In an instant, it surpassed the towering trees, growing to a height of forty meters...
Roy slowly stood up, suddenly increasing his Nen output, and calmly said, "Armor, come!"
*Crack, crack, crack...* At noon, the bright sun suddenly cast down a ray of scorching sunlight upon the Susanoo. The two great suns slowly rotating within the Susanoo's eyes suddenly shot outward with two dazzling beams of divine light...
Its massive form subsequently expanded, and a red armor wreathed in raging flames slowly materialized over its skin.
The armor overflowed with scorching heat, extending upward from the waist and tightly wrapping around half of the Susanoo's body.
Unlike Sasuke's purple, Itachi's crimson, or Madara Uchiha's azure, the moment the red armor appeared, it instantly reduced the giant tree behind Roy to ashes... It formed a cape that gave the Susanoo a majestic flair, and flowing tassels that added an indescribably free and untamed elegance to its helmet...
It was just a pity that it only covered half the body... Roy stood within the massive chest cavity of the Susanoo, feeling the Nen aura within his body being frantically consumed like a bursting dam...
The young man knew that with his current aura reserves, it was not enough to conjure the fourth form of the Susanoo—the humanoid form. Thus, he simply gave up on that and began attempting to further arm the Susanoo...
"Sword, come!" With the armor equipped, Roy's lips parted as he softly uttered a single command... Suddenly, a sharp sword chime exploded across the sky.
It shook Shisui and Itachi so hard their minds went blank. Their eardrums felt as if they had been pierced, and their bodies instinctively reacted as they hastily covered their ears.
Taking another look, they stared up in shock as the Susanoo gently reached its right hand into the empty space before it.
Following that, a hundred-meter-long greatsword overflowing with flames and golden light materialized. Then... it was tightly gripped by the Susanoo and thrust toward the sky, spilling out a massive amount of light and heat...
*Hum...* The thrust soared upward, piercing straight through the firmament... It faintly seemed to strike something, followed by a soft *pop*...
The sensory barrier covering the entirety of Konoha was instantly punctured with a hole. The momentum remained unabated until it pierced through the winds and clouds hanging high in the heavens...
"Enemy attack!" The Barrier Team responsible for maintaining the barrier was alarmed!
It was the time of the Third Shinobi World War, an already sensitive period where even the slightest rustle of grass could trigger a stress response... Let alone this.
The location of the hole punctured in the barrier was right inside Konoha, not even very far from the center of the village. Thus...
After receiving the warning from the Barrier Team, one figure with a powerful aura after another immediately dropped what they were doing and rushed madly toward the Southern Forest... Among them was a head of dazzling blond hair and a head of striking white hair...
With their deployment fast approaching, Minato Namikaze had been spending all his time lately putting Kakashi, Obito, and Rin through frantic, day-and-night training... Today was just like any other day. He was fighting one against three, constantly honing their skills through actual combat, when suddenly... The young man's gaze sharpened. He leaped onto a large tree, stepping on the treetop, and looked solemnly in a certain direction.
Without waiting for Kakashi, Obito, and Rin to react, he flicked his wrist, sending a marked kunai shooting off into the distance like lightning.
His body then flashed and completely vanished, leaving behind only a single sentence: "Stand by here, do not move recklessly."
Left behind, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin exchanged glances, looking at each other in dismay...
"What happened?"
"Sensei looked really anxious?"
"Could someone have invaded Konoha?"
Thoughts and curiosity grew wildly like weeds... Kakashi, Obito, and Rin each found a large tree and leaped up. Through the treetops, they could vaguely see a giant sword overflowing with flames and golden light faintly appearing... The three youngsters suddenly widened their eyes, their expressions filled with varying degrees of shock...
*Whoosh...*
The kunai marked with the [Flying Thunder God Formula] flew through the air... Minato Namikaze's dazzling blond hair swayed as his figure flashed again and again, rapidly approaching... At a certain moment, the young man turned his head to look behind him...
A head of striking white hair, wrapped in blinding lightning, followed closely behind him, whistling past... One could vaguely see a short sword strapped to his back... Minato Namikaze hurriedly called out, "Senior Hatake!"
His figure then flashed once more, as he and Sakumo Hatake rushed toward the scene of the incident from the left and right...
*Swish...* The kunai whistled... *Crackle...* Lightning sparked...
Sakumo Hatake gave Minato Namikaze a slight nod in response. He then looked straight ahead and sped forward. As he drew closer... his intuition flared, and he acutely sensed a powerful chakra!
That chakra was both unfamiliar and familiar, seemingly recognizable. In an instant, it pulled him back to a past memory. It was the day of his seventh S-rank mission, where he infiltrated the Land of Earth to gather intelligence on the Four-Tails.
It was also one of the few days he had directly faced a rampaging Tailed Beast, personally experiencing that kind of madness and terror.
Now... that feeling seemed to have reappeared... Sakumo Hatake transformed into a streak of lightning, his expression grave, as he fiercely lunged forward again.
He drew his blade from its sheath in mid-air, stepped on a large tree, and leaped to the treetop.
Flanking the area with Minato Namikaze, they finally arrived at the scene... Taking another look, they stared deeply ahead...
The blue giant was clad in fiery red flame armor. The cape behind it, branded with a great nebula, unfurled in the wind, kicking up monstrous waves of heat.
At the very center stood a young boy, immersed in feeling his own power, who uttered another command: "Shield, come!"
Suddenly, amidst the surging storm of Nen aura, following the sword of light, a massive flaming round shield was condensed!
The surface of the shield was clearly branded with the word "Dawn". It truly resembled the light of dawn piercing through the darkness, bringing infinite daybreak to this world!
"Jin?!"
*Roar!* With the zenith light sword in its left hand and the dawn round shield in its right, the Susanoo let out a roar toward the sky, sending soundwaves rippling and sweeping in all directions...
It was also at this moment that Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake finally got a clear look at Roy's appearance!
The two exchanged a glance, their expressions suddenly relaxing. But then, seeing Roy piloting the Susanoo and looking over faintly, their expressions tightened again as they gripped their kunai and the White Fang blade!
'What intense pressure!' Sakumo Hatake and Minato Namikaze exchanged another look.
They opened their mouths and shouted at Roy, "Jin, look at the barrier above your head! Stop this at once!"
The third form of the Susanoo, arming complete... It seemed that with his current aura reserves, he could only reach this level...
With a shift in Roy's thoughts, he waved his hand, and the blue giant clad in fiery sun armor subsequently collapsed... In the blink of an eye, along with the sword and the shield, it shrank back into Roy's body and disappeared...
*Phew...* Another breeze carrying a burnt smell spread through the air...
Roy gently exhaled and cast a somewhat regretful glance at the sky. A massive, hazy chakra void hung right above his head. Clearly... that was the hole he had unintentionally punctured with his conjured hundred-meter light sword...
Hmm... Looking at this... it seems I made a bit too much of a scene...
Releasing [En], it spread out like a radar beneath his feet. Following Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake who had already arrived before him, Roy saw several more shadowy figures rapidly approaching his position...
The young man stood with his hands behind his back, giving a slight nod to Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake as he said, "Sorry."
Sakumo Hatake and Minato Namikaze looked at each other, exchanging helpless, bitter smiles before slowly jumping down from the treetops...
"Apologizing to us is useless. Perhaps... you'll have to make a trip to the Hokage building..."
Sakumo Hatake glanced behind him expressionlessly.
Suddenly, a ninja wearing a fox mask appeared on the trunk of a large tree with a *swish*. Looking down at Roy from above, he said, "Jin Uchiha, by the Hokage's orders, you are required to report to the Hokage's office immediately!"
Roy cast a faint glance at him and casually created a shadow clone, saying, "You go."
The shadow clone nodded at him, took a step forward, and instantly merged into the light. When it reappeared, it was already right beside the Anbu!
"Shall we go?" the shadow clone asked, shooting him a sidelong glance.
The Anbu was clearly startled and instinctively went to draw his sword. Unexpectedly, just as a small section of the blade was exposed, the shadow clone shoved it back into the scabbard with a single palm!
"I advise you not to draw your sword in front of him. If there's anything to be said, let his clone go in his place. After all, his shadow clone is still him." Seeing this, Sakumo Hatake cast a faint glance at the Anbu.
The Anbu adjusted the fox mask on his face, looked at Roy, and then at Sakumo Hatake. Pushing off the tree trunk, he made several consecutive leaps with a *swish, swish*, turning and speeding off in the direction of the Hokage building...
"Since Lord White Fang has spoken, I will report this truthfully to the Hokage."
A lingering voice drifted back.
Sakumo Hatake remained unmoved.
Roy's shadow clone looked back at Roy, then nodded at Sakumo Hatake. Flashing into the light, it followed unhurriedly behind the Anbu, disappearing into the dense forest...
*Tap, tap...* The footsteps gradually faded away...
Without turning his head, Roy said to the two youngsters behind him, "This doesn't concern you. Continue practicing your sword skills."
Shisui and Itachi replied in unison, "Yes!"
They scrambled up from the ground awkwardly and walked to the side, shakily gripping their swords. Their calves were trembling, clearly not yet recovered from the shock of what had just happened...
'What was that?'
'I think I saw Nii-san's Sharingan!'
'His seems different from mine.'
'Could there be an even stronger eye above the three tomoe?'
'Was that giant just now a form that can be freely manifested after visual prowess is further enhanced?'
Thoughts exploded in their minds...
On this bright, sunny noon, Shisui and Itachi took a deep breath and struggled to lift their swords. Their worldviews and understanding were cleaved apart as they swung their blades down...
"Three thousand five hundred and twenty-seven... Three thousand five hundred and twenty-eight..."
The youths' shouts, accompanied by the flashes of their swords cleaving through the hot wind, slowly echoed out...
Roy then looked at Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake, pointing to a large bluestone nearby. "Care to sit for a bit?"
Following that, three stone chairs and a stone table impressively took shape as Nen aura surged from the young man's fingertips!
'Earth Style?'
'Looking at this masterful application of chakra, it doesn't seem like an ordinary Earth Style...'
Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake exchanged a glance, each finding a stone chair and sitting down around Roy...
There were trees, wind, and chairs, but no tea... It seemed a bit improper. Roy simply pointed his finger again, successively conjuring several stone cups and a stone teapot. He filled it with water and applied [Scorching True Intent] to boil it...
With a wave of his hand, two cups of tea emitting curling steam floated over and landed in front of Minato Namikaze and Sakumo Hatake.
The two watched quietly as the young man said, "There are no tea leaves, so just make do with this."
Minato Namikaze smiled slightly, saying nothing. He picked up the stone cup, tilted his head back, and gulped all the hot water down. He then set the stone cup down, stood up, and said to Roy, "Jin, Kakashi, Obito, and the others are still waiting for me."
"When I return from the front lines, we'll have a proper talk."
Saying that, he nodded at Sakumo Hatake, turned around, and flashed away along the path he came from...
The Third Shinobi World War was about to enter a meat-grinder phase. Orochimaru had defected, and Jiraiya was struggling to lead the team alone... Roy could understand the anxiety in Minato Namikaze's heart. Watching him leave, he chuckled softly and said, "Say hi to Aunt Kushina for me. Tell her my mom made some good dishes and will send some over later."
Minato Namikaze paused his steps, a warm, faint smile curving on his lips. With his back turned, he waved at Roy.
"Got it."
He then... flashed and disappeared into the jungle...
*Whoosh...* A gust of wind blew, rustling the green leaves...
Seeming to feel a trace of the sorrow and melancholy of parting, Sakumo Hatake's white hair swayed. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and glanced at Roy with a smile. Much like Minato Namikaze, neither of them brought up the matter of the [Susanoo].
It seemed their arrival... was also just to say goodbye...
"Jin, I have to go too."
"The front lines are tight. Jiraiya has already written back several times urging for reinforcements. Knowing that guy's lazy and idle nature, I bet he's already losing his temper," Sakumo Hatake chuckled.
Mentioning Jiraiya, Roy deeply agreed.
The Pervy Sage was definitely frustrated without women's bathhouses to peep at. But when it came to the war and missions, Roy knew very well that Jiraiya, as one of the Legendary Sannin, knew his priorities—especially in the current situation where Orochimaru had defected and Tsunade had essentially given up...
Roy picked up his stone cup, lightly clinked it against Sakumo Hatake's, and said, "Same here. Me too."
Sakumo Hatake was slightly taken aback, looking at Roy in surprise. "You're going to the front lines too?"
Roy slowly shook his head. He looked up through the sunlight at the lush forest and the swirling leaves, narrowing his eyes as he said, "Not the front lines, but something just like it. Anyway,"
"A man's gotta fight!"
The hot blood in his body, filled with [Scorching True Intent], was faintly boiling...
A faint, uncontrollable fighting spirit surged out from within him...
Sakumo Hatake looked at Roy, seemingly seeing starlight in the young man's eyes. It was a confidence in his own strength, as well as a deep anticipation and thirst for the battles to come.
So,
who was he going to fight?!
In the Hunter x Hunter world,
inside that massive study at the east end of the second floor,
a man doing the splits, with his left and right feet resting on separate chairs, suddenly sneezed.
His waist-length silver hair draped across the floor like spilled mercury, faintly gleaming with a cold light...