As Asuna saw the opponent's figure blur, her expression shifted slightly. Without hesitation, she pulled out a kunai, infused it with wind-style chakra, and threw it with force.
The wind-style nature transformation Asuna used not only sharpened the kunai to an incredible degree but also allowed it to accelerate using air. Furthermore, in Sage Mode, her strength was astonishing. The kunai pierced through the figure in the tree almost instantaneously.
After the kunai passed through the opponent, their figure seemed to split, forming numerous shadowy figures that lunged towards Asuna.
Asuna, expressionless, raised her hand to form a seal. The kunai, which had flown away, suddenly turned back, arcing like a boomerang and cutting through all the shadowy figures.
Skilled Wind Release ninja can even retrieve weapons they've thrown and can even snatch weapons from an enemy's hand.
The figures struck by the kunai vanished like smoke. Asuna frowned slightly, then suddenly leaped forward from the ground. Numerous sharp spikes erupted from where she had been standing. Asuna didn't stop after her initial leap, continuously flipping and jumping to evade all the ground-based sneak attacks.
Although the opponent's methods were very subtle, they weren't a major problem for her Sage Mode perception. Just as Asuna stabilized her body, a black-robed man appeared behind her, thrusting a black spear.
Asuna swiftly turned and blocked with a kunai. The opponent's black spear snapped instantly. When facing weapons wielded by a Wind Release ninja, one either needs to infuse their own weapon with chakra nature transformation or possess a rare divine weapon; otherwise, breakage is the only outcome.
Asuna raised her hand and hurled a ball of natural energy, shattering the black-robed figure before her, which vanished as if it were never a physical entity.
Asuna couldn't help but fall silent. She hadn't yet discerned the opponent's method, but she sensed a hint of strangeness.
These figures felt like clones to her, but they were even more elusive than ordinary clones, resembling illusions more closely.
Senju Touka was adept at incorporating genjutsu into her clones, thereby restraining the Uchiha clan's Sharingan. This was considered an excellent tactic for defending against the Sharingan in one-on-one combat.
The Anbu of Konohagakure had a specialized tactical squad dedicated to researching how to counter secret techniques. They developed feasible combat methods against different enemies, and their research yielded abundant results. If one could master all of them, they would have basic countermeasures against ninja both within and outside the village.
For instance, Senju Touka's clone tactic against the Sharingan was further refined by the Anbu's secret technique squad. All Anbu members were required to learn these tactical achievements.
As the Hokage's direct force, the Anbu sometimes undertook missions to suppress traitors within the village. Although there hadn't been any major traitors in the village recently, early preparation was always good, and it wasn't as if these tactics had never been used. During the Uchiha Setsuna incident, the secret technique squad's findings proved useful in apprehending his accomplices, though the resistance wasn't very fierce due to internal cooperation from members of the Uchiha clan.
Although Asuna wasn't part of the Anbu, Hattori Heizo was, and both were Wind Release ninja, so they had experience learning about this matter.
In Asuna's view, the black-robed man's technique had a similar effect to Senju Touka's genjutsu clones, but it was definitely not the same, and its underlying principles were likely completely different.
Asuna didn't feel like she was caught in genjutsu; her chakra flowed very smoothly. Not to mention that in Sage Mode, her perception was extremely subtle and wouldn't miss any unusual chakra flow. Furthermore, Sage Mode itself wasn't easily susceptible to genjutsu.
The Senjutsu chakra required to enter Sage Mode is formed by mixing natural energy into regular chakra. The sheer magnitude of natural energy is immense; human chakra is no match for vast natural energy, which is why cultivating Sage Mode is so difficult.
In such a state, Senjutsu chakra, mixed with natural energy, demands extreme balance. Any imbalance will cause problems. However, in this triune state, Senjutsu chakra is also very stable; only exceptionally powerful forces can destabilize it.
In Fumori masaki's estimation, to break the balance of a skilled Sage Mode practitioner, either an uncontrollable influx of natural energy or a Tailed Beast-level chakra influx would be required to have any effect.
And genjutsu users often do not possess such powerful chakra. Given that the basic condition for genjutsu is to disrupt the opponent's chakra with one's own, it is almost impossible to affect Sage Mode with genjutsu.
However, there is one type of person who, despite not possessing such powerful chakra, might still be able to affect Sage Mode with genjutsu: those who wield Mangekyo Sharingan-level genjutsu.
Mangekyo Sharingan genjutsu is based on dōjutsu. Due to the Uchiha clan's physique, while chakra and dōjutsu power are directly proportional, the requirements aren't as high as for ordinary people. The power of the Mangekyo Sharingan can even control Tailed Beasts, so dealing with Sage Mode is naturally also possible.
Of course, it's not a major problem for a Sage Mode user to deal with the Sharingan. With the powerful sensory abilities in Sage Mode, they can fight with their eyes closed. No matter how powerful the Mangekyo Sharingan is, its dōjutsu is activated through sight; as long as eye contact is avoided, it won't work.
In the original story, Kabuto Yakushi fought against Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha by sealing his own vision, rendering Mangekyo Sharingan-level genjutsu completely ineffective. The only thing that could affect him was a special genjutsu not activated through sight—Izanami—which ultimately turned the tide.
Asuna was certain she showed no signs of being under genjutsu, yet these shadowy figures gave her a sense of mental illusion, which put her on high alert.
At this moment, the indistinct figures reappeared, this time surrounding Asuna from all directions and lunging at her.
Judging by the feel of her previous attacks, these figures seemed to be non-existent entities. However, Asuna didn't believe she would be unharmed if these creatures struck her. Her opponent had explicitly stated their intent to kill her, so they wouldn't use meaningless techniques.
Asuna dared not get close to these figures. Relying on the physical enhancements from Sage Mode, even with the numerous figures appearing and seemingly surrounding her impenetrably, they still couldn't trap Asuna.
Asuna, using her speed, gradually separated them and eliminated them with ninja tools like kunai and shuriken. So far, none had managed to get close to her.
Uchiha Kokuya watched Asuna's movements, frowning slightly. He hadn't expected Asuna to be this powerful. From Black Zetsu, he knew about Sage Mode, a technique that mimicked the Sage's body, but he hadn't realized it was so formidable.
"Tsk, as expected of a state mimicking the Sage's body. Even an ordinary person, once they learn it, can fight against those with Sage bloodline," Uchiha Kokuya muttered to himself.
These indistinct figures were one of Uchiha Kokuya's Mangekyo Sharingan abilities, allowing him to project mental illusions into reality to strike at enemies. Like Amaterasu, it was a dōjutsu that could materialize illusions into the real world.
They appeared weightless and harmless, but if they actually struck, it would be a dual blow to both mind and body. Due to their unique nature, they appeared and disappeared unpredictably and could even be swapped with Uchiha Kokuya using a substitution jutsu. While their direct destructive power might not be particularly strong, if used well, it was a very formidable dōjutsu.
However, for Asuna, it didn't seem to have much effect. This was Uchiha Kokuya's first realization of Sage Mode's power.
During this time, Uchiha Kokuya also used the mental illusions for substitution, launching attacks at Asuna, but he was sensed by her keen Sage Mode perception beforehand. And his attack speed was clearly not as fast as Asuna's in Sage Mode, so all his attacks were dodged.
However, Uchiha Kokuya knew from Black Zetsu that while Sage Mode was powerful, it wasn't without weaknesses. Ordinary people had a time limit for maintaining Sage Mode; if no one replenished their natural energy, the duration would only be five minutes.
In Uchiha Kokuya's impression, Fumori masaki definitely knew Sage Mode as well, and Fumori masaki gave him the feeling of having the exact same aura as Asuna currently, even in everyday situations. He didn't know what was special about Fumori masaki, but at least he could confirm that Asuna was not like her father.
Therefore, according to the experience provided by Black Zetsu, Asuna's Sage Mode could only be maintained for a maximum of five minutes. After five minutes, Asuna would no longer possess her current strength and speed.
If it was only five minutes, Uchiha Kokuya believed that Black Zetsu's side could still endure it, so there was no need to worry. He could slowly engage in a war of attrition.
And coincidentally, Uchiha Kokuya's Mangekyo Sharingan ability was very suitable for a war of attrition. He had accumulated a great number of these elusive soul illusions over the years, and they were very difficult to completely destroy. Asuna's recent attacks hadn't actually eliminated many of them.
If too many were truly destroyed, Uchiha Kokuya would also feel a pang of regret, as these souls were precious assets that could be used for substitution jutsu.
Of course, Uchiha Kokuya knew that Asuna carried chakra reserve blocks produced by Konohagakure, and she relied on them to quickly enter Sage Mode. However, he didn't believe Asuna would have time to absorb the Senjutsu chakra from them amidst the continuous attacks of the soul illusions.
Uchiha Kokuya silently calculated the time. He knew that Asuna's Sage Mode wouldn't last much longer. The moment Asuna exited Sage Mode and experienced that instant of weakness, the soul illusions would swarm her.
Just as Uchiha Kokuya was anticipating this, Asuna also felt that time was running out. Although Sage Mode provided incredible speed, she couldn't absorb new Senjutsu chakra amidst so many illusions. This was also the difference between her and Fumori masaki.
Fumori masaki was like he used the Two-Lives Technique; as long as his own chakra was sufficient, Senjutsu chakra would be endless, without time limitations, but Asuna couldn't achieve that.
"It can't be helped…" Asuna let out a soft sigh. She hadn't sensed Kakashi Hatake and the others approaching, but she vaguely felt the chakra signatures of battle, fearing they too had encountered trouble. Now, she could only rely on herself.
"I really have to thank you this time, big sister. The things you left me are coming in handy." Asuna used a wide-range Wind Release to temporarily clear an open space. Simultaneously, the summoning jutsu formula on her body glowed, and with a puff of smoke, the Wind Wings were donned.
"What is that!" Uchiha Kokuya watched the scene in shock.
The Wind Wings' thrusters quickly expelled air currents, and Asuna leaped high into the sky, leaving the indistinct illusions far behind. She soared through the forest into the sky, looking down at the ground from above.
Uchiha Kokuya looked up. Asuna was silhouetted against the light, causing him to squint. He thought, "Is that the flying combat tool Zetsu mentioned? I miscalculated; this person actually has a summoning formula on her!"
Uchiha Kokuya never expected Asuna to have a summoning formula for the Wind Wings on her. Although he had heard of the Wind Wings before, he had never seen them and had somewhat underestimated them. He also didn't know that Asuna would have the formula on her body to summon the Wind Wings at any time.
This one detail threw Uchiha Kokuya's plan into disarray. Uchiha Kokuya had never considered dealing with enemies in high altitudes. If the flying distance wasn't too high, there might have been a way, but Asuna, for caution's sake, flew particularly high. That was a distance that ordinary means couldn't catch up to, and even Uchiha Kokuya's Mangekyo Sharingan had a range limit.
Just as Itachi Uchiha's Tsukuyomi only worked within a five-meter range, Uchiha Kokuya's Mangekyo Sharingan, while capable of projecting further, couldn't reach that far. Uchiha Kagami's Mangekyo Sharingan, however, could achieve such a projection distance; this was a matter of individual talent.
During the observation period, Asuna had already absorbed new Senjutsu chakra and no longer had to worry about time. At this moment, she formed hand seals and softly said, "Sage Art: Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Spheres!"
Countless invisible air bullets shot towards the ground, like bullets from a machine gun, dense and extremely fast, engulfing the entire area on the ground!