After exploiting Danzo’s lack of rationality and his eagerness to absorb the ocular power of his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan to kill him instantly once, Kagami did not relax in the slightest. On the contrary, his nerves grew even more taut!
Orochimaru’s greed had caused the situation to take a sudden turn for the worse.
If the reanimated bodies of the First and Second Hokage were still present, they could have overwhelmed Danzo with their numerical advantage. Even if they had to kill him eight or nine times, it would have been a simple matter, posing no real difficulty whatsoever.
Moreover, the First and Second Hokage possessed all manner of terrifying fuinjutsu from the Senju and Uzumaki clans. Once they confirmed that Danzo could use Izanagi, a forbidden technique capable of rewriting fate, then with their extensive experience and the overwhelming advantage in combat strength on their side, Danzo would never have had the opportunity to exhaust all nine Sharingan on his body.
Yet, driven by greed, Orochimaru had made an exceedingly foolish decision. He had hastily released the Impure World Reincarnation, sending away the two most important combatants on the battlefield.
Although Kagami was somewhat irritated, he did not look down on Orochimaru too harshly.
After all, forget Orochimaru—even the First and Second Hokage had been deceived by Madara using the forbidden technique Izanagi back in the day.
In the original timeline, even someone as powerful as Shisui had lost one of his Mangekyo Sharingan to Danzo through Izanagi.
It could be said that without prior knowledge of the forbidden technique Izanagi, falling victim to it was perfectly normal.
Looking down on Orochimaru’s decision simply because he possessed an informational advantage was, to a certain extent, another form of arrogance.
Thus, Kagami cleared his mind and focused on the situation before him.
Concealed within his golden Susanoo, he pushed the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in his eye sockets to their limits, using their extraordinary perceptive abilities to pinpoint the location of Danzo’s next resurrection.
Through the previous kill, he had vaguely sensed that Danzo seemed to have completely lost his rationality and was now acting entirely on instinct.
Acting on instinct was not necessarily a bad thing.
After all, there were times when instinctive intuition could be sharper than rational analysis. Under such circumstances, Danzo’s perception of danger, as well as his ability to execute various ninjutsu and forbidden techniques, would not suffer any noticeable decline.
However, there were also things that instinct alone could not accomplish, such as formulating tactics and analyzing the situation.
"Hmph! Don’t you want my eyes? Then come and take them!"
Kagami snorted coldly.
At this moment, a sharp glint flickered in his eyes. The Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in his eye sockets were something Danzo was determined to obtain, and that very obsession was something Kagami could exploit.
RUMBLE...
As Orochimaru sent away the First Hokage’s soul and released the Impure World Reincarnation, the tremors within the volcanic cavern suddenly intensified.
The Wood Release that had been maintaining the volcano’s structural integrity lost its chakra supply from the First Hokage. Cracks began appearing in the wooden pillars supporting the mountain, while the vines holding the rock walls together started to wither.
As falling rocks became increasingly frequent, the magma within the cavern churned violently, and thick smoke filled the air!
There was no doubt that with the First Hokage’s Wood Release losing its effectiveness, the volcano, whose internal structure had long since been damaged, was beginning to collapse naturally.
Once the Wood Release completely failed, this towering volcano would cease to exist.
And amid the violent shaking and acrid smoke, Danzo’s dark-red Susanoo suddenly appeared, lunging at Kagami’s golden Susanoo from the side!
BANG...
The two Susanoo, locked in a fierce grapple, crashed heavily to the ground, smashing a massive crater into the already unstable terrain!
At this moment, Kagami and Danzo were both situated within the crystals on the foreheads of their respective Perfect Susanoo. As their two giants struggled against each other, the two men locked eyes, glaring fiercely at one another.
Sensing the almost feverish desire in Danzo’s eyes, Kagami became even more convinced that Danzo had completely lost his rationality and was now being controlled by the sinister pair of Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in his eye sockets.
Just then, out of the corner of his eye, Kagami noticed a pool of magma not far away.
A grin immediately spread across his face. He manipulated his Susanoo, seized Danzo’s Susanoo, and plunged into the scorching magma pool together with it.
SPLASH...
As the two enormous Susanoo plunged into the magma pool, molten lava splashed high into the air, making the already chaotic volcanic cavern even hotter, as though it had become hell itself!
In a conventional one-on-one battle, the combat strength of Kagami’s Susanoo and Danzo’s Susanoo was roughly equal. Their chances of victory were fifty-fifty, and it would be impossible to determine a winner in a short amount of time.
However, thanks to the Blaze Release Kekkei Genkai, Kagami’s Fire Release clone and his Golden Flame Susanoo were virtually immune to ordinary flames and high temperatures as long as their chakra remained sufficient.
Thus, the magma in the pool was nothing more than a minor inconvenience to Kagami.
Danzo, however, was a different story.
The high-temperature magma could greatly suppress the corrosive blood mist surrounding Danzo’s Susanoo. Moreover, the confined and viscous environment of the magma pool would restrict his Susanoo’s movements, suppressing the advantages of its sharp claws and fangs in close-quarters combat.
Roar...
Roars echoed intermittently from within the magma pool.
Not far away, Orochimaru stared at the pool, where magma continuously churned and flames scattered in every direction, his expression dark and gloomy.
After witnessing Danzo’s two bizarre resurrections, he had finally realized that his earlier actions had amounted to shooting himself in the foot.
Forget seizing Danzo’s body—whether they could even deal with Danzo at this point was now an open question.
Because he knew very well that with his own strength, without the assistance of the reanimated bodies of the First and Second Hokage, he was simply no match for the current Danzo.
Even if Danzo had lost his rationality and could only act on instinct like a wild beast, the outcome would be no different.
Suddenly, the churning magma pool fell silent.
There was no doubt that the fierce battle between the two Perfect Susanoo within the magma pool had finally reached its conclusion!
"Who won?"
Orochimaru stared anxiously at the surface of the magma pool.
If Homura had emerged victorious, Orochimaru could still hold on to some hope. But if Danzo had won the battle within the magma pool, then his only remaining option would be to flee for his life.
Just then, a massive hand gleaming with golden light emerged from the surface of the magma pool, sending flames and molten lava splashing in every direction.
Immediately afterward, Kagami’s golden Susanoo gripped the edge of the magma pool and leisurely climbed out.
"Phew..."
Orochimaru first let out a long sigh of relief, but in the next instant, his pupils suddenly contracted.
Because he had noticed that within the golden Susanoo, Homura was actually holding a severed arm!
An arm embedded with numerous Sharingan!
"That... that’s Danzo’s right arm?!"
Although the volcanic cavern was filled with thick smoke and visibility was extremely poor, Orochimaru instantly recognized the arm he had personally transplanted onto Danzo...