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Golden light scattered, and Jigen still maintained his posture with his hands clasped together, appearing before everyone.
"Hmm." He calmly looked around at the people and monsters present. "I didn't expect there to still be survivors. You rebels. But compared to a thousand years ago, your strength has dwindled to almost nothing."
"You're just a failure too!" Sato's voice became sharp with anger.
"You're not wrong; I failed." Jigen said peacefully. "Even that Kaguya was also a failure."
"But so what?" He lowered his hands, and his previously peaceful and compassionate expression turned arrogant. "It's not over until the very end, and no one can say who the final winner will be."
No one responded. They simply remained vigilant, watching him closely.
Jigen's gaze swept across the group and continued, "But since you've gone to such lengths to bring me here, I suppose I'll reluctantly praise you."
"You're too kind," Kaito said, waving his fan without fear, meeting Jigen's gaze head-on.
"Is it you, the Onmyōji?" Jigen looked at him, a smirk curling his lips. "You're the one orchestrating all of this, right? The descendant of Kaguya."
"Although you're not wrong, it's still unpleasant to hear." Kaito raised his fan, covering his mouth. "I don't want to be associated with Kaguya."
"Hah, so you look down on that greedy fool too?" Jigen asked, feigning curiosity.
"So, that's how you see her." Kaito chuckled. "But for us, we have to thank her greed. It forced you to go into hiding and severed your connection with the Otsutsuki clan."
"You should indeed thank that foolish woman for giving you a precious moment to breathe," Jigen said, his gaze sweeping over everyone once more. "But that's all it is. The main family will never abandon this seedbed."
A glint flashed in Kaito's eyes. "From what you're saying, it seems the Otsutsuki clan will send people to harvest chakra again."
"Hah, who knows?" Jigen laughed. "Maybe I'll have already won before they even arrive."
"There's no point in talking anymore."
Kaito tightened his grip on the fan, pointing it at Jigen.
"Otsutsuki Isshiki, invader of planets, shadow lurking for a thousand years, today we will eradicate you!"
"Such arrogance!"
Jigen sneered and, in a flash, his right fist was already inches from Kaito's face.
At the last moment, Kaito decisively fell backward, as a blue and red arc of light crossed just above his nose. Maintaining a near-horizontal position, Kaito slid between the sword-wielding Izuna and Sasuke, retreating a great distance.
Izuna and Sasuke, perfectly coordinated, attacked Jigen with swords blazing with flames and crackling with lightning, their blades tracing elegant arcs in the air as they assaulted him from both sides.
As the blades approached, strange blue-black markings suddenly appeared on Jigen's skin. Crossing his arms, he brought his palms together, precisely intercepting the midsection of their swords.
The moment his palms touched the blades, both the flames and lightning disappeared. Izuna and Sasuke's faces changed, and they both kicked out simultaneously.
In an instant, all three retreated, temporarily creating some distance between them.
"He can absorb our ninjutsu and chakra!" Izuna warned Kaito, who was watching the battle.
"Use Senjutsu!" Kaito reminded.
Upon hearing this, Izuna and Sasuke immediately activated their Mangekyou Sharingan, and purple markings appeared on their faces.
Exchanging a glance, the two formed hand seals simultaneously.
"Senjutsu: Sword Leaping Flames!"
"Senjutsu: Chidori Blade!"
Even more explosive flames and lightning enveloped their swords as they once again charged at Jigen.
Jigen extended his right hand, and a black rod materialized from thin air. Clutching the rod, he advanced to engage Izuna and Sasuke in close combat.
For a time, the three figures blurred as they constantly crossed paths, red flames and blue lightning dancing wildly in the air, and the crisp sound of metal clashing rang out continuously.
To follow their movements, even Kaito had to activate his Mangekyou Sharingan.
However, the situation on the battlefield was far from optimistic. Jigen's taijutsu was unexpectedly powerful, and even when facing the perfectly synchronized Izuna and Sasuke, he still maintained the upper hand.
"The enemy is strong," Chiri, wielding her sword in both hands, approached Kaito. "I should help."
Kaito raised a hand to stop her and shook his head slightly. "Let's observe a bit longer."
However, the battle between the three grew increasingly intense, and Sasuke was beginning to feel the strain, struggling to keep up with the other two's speed.
At this pace, he couldn't even find the opportunity to use the abilities granted by his Mangekyou Sharingan.
"We can't wait any longer," Chiri said, growing anxious.
Unlike Izuna, who was already deceased, she was worried about Sasuke getting hurt.
Kaito understood her concern but wasn't too worried.
"This is a rare opportunity for practical experience," he reassured her. "Trust him, nothing will happen." Unfortunately, just as he finished speaking, the situation on the battlefield changed abruptly.
Unable to keep up with the pace, Sasuke and Izuna's coordination faltered, leaving an opening, and Jigen delivered a heavy kick to Sasuke's abdomen.
"Ugh!" Sasuke spat out a mouthful of blood, his body bending like a bow as he flew backward. Fortunately, Keita, in his tanuki form, appeared just in time, using his soft belly to cushion Sasuke's fall.
Meanwhile, Izuna found himself completely on the defensive, barely holding on.
Chiri shot Kaito a glare, pink markings appearing on her face as she leapt into the fray with her sword, now blazing with flames.
Kaito also moved swiftly to Keita's side, checking on Sasuke, who was cradled in the tanuki's arms.
"Hey!" He knelt down, examining him. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Sasuke spat out another mouthful of blood, trying to stand but collapsing again, gritting his teeth. "Damn it!"
"Don't move!" Kaito pressed a hand to his shoulder. "It seems your internal organs are damaged." He placed his hand over Sasuke's abdomen, and a golden stream of life energy, the power of Ryūmyaku, flowed into his body, repairing the internal injuries.
"What should we do?" Sasuke asked hesitantly. "That guy probably has more abilities we haven't seen yet. The monsters need to maintain the barrier, and Granny Chiri and Grandpa Izuna might not be able to defeat him."
"Don't worry, this is just the beginning." Kaito smiled reassuringly. "I have more preparations than this." He glanced back at the ongoing battle, seeing that Izuna and Chiri could still hold their ground for the time being, then continued healing Sasuke's internal injuries.
"Forget about me!" Sasuke urged. "You should go help them!"
"No need to rush," Kaito seemed confident. "We need to test that guy's limits first."
"Damn it!" Sasuke watched the fierce battle with frustration. "I'm still not strong enough." The situation earlier was not something he had anticipated.
No matter how many ninjutsu techniques or abilities he had learned, there hadn't been a chance to use them. Kaito placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You've already done well. The earlier failure was mainly due to the difference in physical strength."