Sasuke: Can I Join You?

"Earlier, you were like a sneaky little rat. After I showed a bit of mercy and let you complete a ninjutsu, you've become so confident and arrogant?"

"Kirin? In the face of Imperial power, in the face of the Severing Sword, it's nothing. Come on! Show your true strength and form! Severing Sword!"

Imperial Obito raised the strange sword in his hand, pointing it skyward.

*CRACK!*

The odd sword emitted strange sounds, growing larger, its blade slowly spinning, and a storm began brewing around it.

"Arrogant fool! If you want to die, then die!"

Sasuke's eyes sharpened, his right hand waving.

*SWOOSH!*

The lightning Kirin in the sky roared, transforming into light and diving downward.

"Sky and Earth Separation! Star Opener!"

Imperial Obito growled lowly.

The storm around the Severing Sword surged dozens of times stronger.

Orochimaru and the ordinary man, caught unprepared, were instantly flung into the air.

Giant trees were uprooted, layers of earth eroded!

This ferocious storm, in an instant, converged into a tornado, crashing into the lightning Kirin in the sky.

*RUMBLE!*

As the lightning Kirin collided with the storm, there was no stalemate. In a mere moment, the Kirin shattered completely!

The sky and earth changed color at that instant.

Countless small lightning bolts scattered in all directions.

The storm then soared straight into the sky.

"Impossible!"

Sasuke exclaimed, thrown back a hundred or two hundred meters by the shockwave from the clash, finally stopping by crashing into a large tree.

He panted, staring into the distance with a shocked expression.

The storm pierced the heavens, tearing the sky apart!

"Incredible! Incredible! This power is truly extraordinary… it seems… it all comes from that sword."

"A single sword—how can it contain such power? What technological principles are involved?"

Orochimaru stood upright, staring at Imperial Obito at the storm's center and the sword in his hand, his eyes filled with curiosity and madness.

"Help me, Orochimaru-sama! Help me…"

A terrified scream reached his ears.

Orochimaru glanced unconsciously, seeing the ordinary man who led Imperial Obito here being hurled back in the storm, alongside broken wood, crashing from tree to tree, his body tattered and bloodied…

"So noisy… can't you enjoy this beautiful scene quietly?"

Ignoring the man's pleas, Orochimaru turned back to Imperial Obito, his tongue occasionally licking his lips.

As the storm subsided, Imperial Obito lowered his Severing Sword.

At this point, within a five-hundred-meter radius around him, not a single tree remained. The ground was barren!

The Susano'o on Imperial Obito's body flapped its wings, darting close to Sasuke, looking down at him.

"Compared to my Severing Sword, your Kirin seems like nothing."

"You win…"

Sasuke paused slightly, knowing that after his lightning Kirin failed, he had no more moves to defeat his opponent.

So, he straightforwardly withdrew his curse seal, reverting to his original form and said, panting:

"But… this doesn't seem like Sharingan power… what exactly is that sword?"

He wasn't worried his opponent would rush over and stab him.

After all, they were both Uchiha.

This was just a friendly spar, not a life-or-death fight.

Not everyone was like Uchiha Itachi.

As for his earlier words about wanting to kill his opponent?

That was just stubbornness.

The Kirin's impact point was at least dozens of meters from his opponent. With his opponent's abilities, Sasuke believed it would, at worst, only injure him severely… but he didn't expect the Kirin to be outright destroyed.

"Didn't I tell you? It's a spirit sword developed by the Weapon Development Department, specifically for Susano'o's power! The Severing Sword, personally named by His Majesty the Emperor."

Imperial Obito answered, suddenly glancing toward Konoha.

"Someone's coming. The battle's noise was too loud. Let's avoid these spies for now."

After speaking, Imperial Obito's figure flickered, appearing beside Sasuke. He patted his shoulder, and his form spiraled, vanishing before Orochimaru.

"Not a body flicker… but a space-time ninjutsu? Truly a terrifying Uchiha…"

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. Just as he was about to retreat and hide, the surroundings spiraled again, and Imperial Obito, who had just vanished, reappeared.

Orochimaru instinctively wanted to back away, but Imperial Obito merely glared with his Sharingan, freezing him in place. He could only watch as his opponent patted his shoulder and vanished with him.

*WHOOSH!* *WHOOSH!* *WHOOSH!*

Several air-tearing sounds followed.

A few Anbu ninjas landed, seeing the thousand-meter barren wasteland and the vast deforested area around it, their eyelids twitching.

"Such destructive power… Could a major battle have just happened here?"

"Another Bijuu invasion from Kumogakure? Who's stopping it this time? Tsunade-sama is still training…"

"Maybe Jiraiya-sama?"

"Forget it, let's hurry back and report to Hokage-sama."

After speaking, they soon left.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

In a strange space.

Sasuke, Imperial Obito, and Orochimaru appeared one by one.

Sasuke and Orochimaru curiously observed the odd space filled with long stone pillars before them.

"Where is this?" Sasuke asked.

"Kamui's space, a realm granted by my Mangekyou's ability." Imperial Obito said honestly.

"A Mangekyou ability? So, besides Susano'o, the Mangekyou has abilities like this…" Sasuke said with a serious expression.

"What, jealous?" Imperial Obito teased.

Sasuke didn't answer, instead asking: "Back to the earlier topic—what's the Weapon Development Department? Your organization behind the scenes? Is His Majesty the Emperor a codename for the organization's leader?"

"If you insist on understanding it that way, it's fine. But… His Majesty's grandeur is beyond what you can imagine or comprehend right now. It's not something a mere 'organization leader' can explain."

Imperial Obito shrugged.

"Uchiha Shuji, through our fight, I can imagine how powerful your organization is… can I join?" Sasuke asked, his eyes gleaming.

Orochimaru, nearby, heard this, and his eyes reddened with fury.

His precious Sasuke, whom he'd nurtured for nearly three years, was about to betray him—how could this be?

Orochimaru fumed inwardly, wanting to tie Sasuke back right now. But seeing the sword in Imperial Obito's and that earlier glance, he didn't dare act rashly.

"Sasuke-kun… after betraying Konoha, you're planning to betray me too?"

He licked his lips, speaking with a hint of bitterness.

"Betrayal? That word's usually for when a subordinate is disloyal to a superior. But… my relationship was only cooperation. Our shared goal was to kill Uchiha Itachi. How can it be called betrayal?"

Sasuke retorted, his expression unchanged.