Seeing Uchiha Tonan looking confused, Naraku paused and continued, “It was midsummer when Seimei sensei came to the Fire Capital. I can boldly guess that you killed the real Abe Seimei and thoroughly dealt with his corpse and the clothes on it. Before leaving, you changed into his appearance. For insurance, you also took a cloth from the wardrobe and wore it. Right? Am I right?”
Naraku became more and more excited as he spoke. His face was filled with the joy of a winner and he continued, “But you forgot one thing. In the hot summer, not only won’t people use a quilt, but they also won’t wear a coat to sleep. So, Abe Seimei’s coat was hung on the door and you didn’t notice it.”
Tonan’s expression didn’t change. He calculated in his mind and lightly said, “Perhaps, it was dirty and not washed.”
Hearing this, Naraku laughed and applauded, “I really like to see you refusing to admit a mistake.” After speaking, he stared at Tonan’s eyes. He didn’t hide his excitement and his sense of superiority was growing. After a few seconds though, he realized he was a bit out of control. He straightened his expression and said, “In fact, you should know that your Hokage-sama has already told me about your identity.”
Tonan was stunned. At first, his face was full of disbelief. Then his expression became gloomy and he sighed, “I killed Sarutobi-sensei’s favorite disciple, Orochimaru-senpai. Then I exposed Tsunade-senpai’s unfairness and forced her and Jiraiya-senpai to flee the village. Sarutobi-sensei holds a grudge against me. I fell out with him long ago. Now, I follow Danzo-sama. I didn’t think that Sarutobi-sensei would slander me with such an outrageous thing.”
Tonan looked heartbroken and Naraku frowned. He thought for a while and nodded, “Is that so? But I just said that you are Abe Seimei. He was my sensei. Even if I thought incorrectly, how can it be called slander? Could it be that you know something?”
Staring at Tonan, Naraku’s eyes were full of playfulness, trying to observe the subtle changes in his expression. Before Tonan could reply, he continued, “Don’t be anxious, let me guess what you’ll be saying. You’ll say that you know from various sources that Abe Seimei was likely to be an enemy spy who wanted to sow discord between the Daimyo Residence and Konoha, right?”
Tonan looked up and sighed. He nodded, “Yes.” Naraku sneered. The excitement from his face disappeared, replaced by his usual sinister look. Then he said word by word, “It’s a pity… I was just interested and wanted to see your reaction. In fact, I already knew the truth the third day you left. I sent people to capture all the animals in Zhifu Mountain and searched their memories one by one. You thought everything was flawless and wanted to use lies to deceive me. Your stories just now were just a big joke.”
Tonan chuckled. By now, he was too lazy to continue pretending and slowly stood up. With his hands behind his back, he gave Naraku an indifferent look and said, “Naraku, you shouldn’t play with people like this. Going round and round… wasn’t your final purpose to make me come here? It seems you’re still not mature enough. What a naughty child!”
As he spoke, Tonan made hand signs and activated Reconstruction Technique. His appearance changed at a speed visible to the naked eye. His pitch-black hair turned white from the roots until his entire head was filled with white hairs. His skin gradually wrinkled and age spots appeared. On his old face, the cheekbones on both sides protruded sharply.
The dry and shrunken triangular face matched Tonan’s eyes, which were deep and serene like an ancient pond. He looked like an eagle watching a wolf. Just the appearance alone made many soldiers feel a strong sense of oppression. “Now that your sensei is here, you can begin your performance.”
Naraku looked at the figure below, who he had been thinking about day and night, and took a few breaths. He said with a look of greed, “Sensei, do you know why I wasted so much effort to tell you these things in such a big scene? I not only wanted to avenge my father but also wanted you to see that I’m better than you.”
The corners of Tonan’s mouth rose slightly and he made a sign with one hand. In the next moment, a stone pillar rose from the ground below his feet and stopped when Tonan was at the same height as Naraku. The twelve guardian ninjas stood in front of Naraku and called out, “Protect His Majesty!”
Swish, swish, swish… The soldiers pulled out their swords, ready to fight. “Step aside!” Naraku shouted and pushed the guardian ninja in front of him. He took a few steps forward and stared at Tonan. Gritting his teeth, he said, “In terms of controlling people’s hearts, I’m much stronger than you. Looking at these orphans you saved. In the end, they surrendered to me. Do you feel betrayal? In fact, I’ve a guess but I’m unsure. Sensei… will you tell me the truth?”
Tonan expressionlessly glanced at Naraku and said, “Ask.”
Naraku took a deep breath and slowly said , “Although it’s inconceivable, I think it’s impossible for a person, who is just a few years old, to know so much. Without a huge accumulation of resources, regardless of how good your talent is, you can’t become strong so quickly. I’ve read through all the literature in recent decades and found a person who is very similar to you. Sensei… are you Uchiha Madara?”
Tonan’s pupils shrank as if someone stepped on his foot and he shouted in rage, “You are courting death!” He used the Lightning Style Secret Technique – Spirit of Thunder God and gathered natural lightning ions in the air, condensing them. Tonan’s white hair fluttered, lightning wrapped around his body as a powerful aura spread out.
Seeing this, the soldiers’ eyes widened and they held their swords nervously. As for Naraku, he looked ecstatic and laughed loudly, “Hahaha… Sure enough, I’m the smartest person.”
Tonan, who was covered in lighting at this moment, seemed to be burning with rage. He gloomily said, “My good disciple, don’t you know? The smarter a person, the faster he dies.”
The dark clouds at the horizon seemed to be summoned and gathered above Tonan’s head. It now seemed that Naraku had made a guardian ninja and Uekawa Ozora dissipate the dark clouds earlier to make it difficult for Tonan to use the Lightning Style Secret Technique.
At this moment, Ozora and two guardian ninjas stood together again and made hand signs at the same time, “Senjutsu – Void Explosion Bullet Technique.” Countless void explosion bullets shot up and exploded in the sky, setting off a powerful air current. For a moment, the dark clouds were forced to retreat. “I know all of your moves. How could I not expect that a cornered dog wouldn’t jump over a wall?”
“Uchiha Madara, today is your day of death. I’ll make you experience what despair is. Play music, dance, drink!” Naraku looked very happy. He turned around and sat on his seat, watching his ‘great show’.
Tonan looked up slightly and glanced at the dark clouds that couldn’t be gathered. He thought for a bit and used senjutsu chakra. “Senjutsu – Spirit of Thunder God.” The dark clouds in the sky seemed to be injected with energy. They gathered again against the strong wind current. Then, muffled thunderclaps resounded.
Blue lightning streaks spread in all directions, forming bizarre branches, cutting the entire sky into pieces. The lightning flashes continued as if they would strike down in the next second.
Ozora and others below used Void Explosion Bullet Technique again, but the lightning clouds just rippled a little. Seeing this, Ozora said, “It’s completely unstoppable.”
Naraku, on the other hand, looked confident, and said without the slightest fear, “Don’t worry. Let’s drink first and let this old fellow make his move.”
Tonan’s eyes were filled with pure indifference. No human emotions could be seen. He raised his right hand, forming a claw shape. In the next moment, the lightning around him condensed in his palms and turned into a blazing white lightning ball. Instantly, the lightning ball emitted dazzling white light.
The white light beam pierced through the sky, stimulating the dark clouds. The entire sky lit up with a dazzling blue light. “Senjutsu – Myriad Heavenly Lightning Prison.” Rumble… Countless lightning dragons poked their heads out of the clouds and dived towards the ground. A guardian ninja wanted to use ninjutsu but Naraku stopped him.
“Don’t be afraid, believe in science.” In an instant, the lightning dragons bombarded the entire Zhifu Mountain indiscriminately. The entire world was filled with blinding white light, making it impossible to see what was happening on Zhifu Mountain. Most of the soldiers heard an earth-shattering rumbling sound and they temporarily became deaf.
As for Naraku, he closed his eyes and listened to the continuous rumbling sounds. His hands were swaying gracefully following the rhythm as if this destructive sound was nothing but nature’s music. After a few minutes, the dark clouds in the sky seemed to have released all energy and dissipated.
Heaven and earth regained clarity. Tonan withdrew the Spirit of Thunder God state and looked at the scene in front of his eyes with surprise. “What the…”
The thousands of stone carvings that were standing on Zhifu Mountain had been shattered by lightning, revealing the metals inside that were already glowing red under the lightning strikes, spreading a heat wave.
Naraku shook his head playfully and said, “Sensei, this thing is called a lightning rod, and what you are seeing is just a small piece. Below… they are already connected to the underground river. Your lightning style is useless…”
