Two hours ago. The Hidden Rain Village.
A toad opened its wide mouth, spitting out Jiraiya.
He donned a travel cloak and slipped silently into the village, which was perpetually shrouded in a torrential downpour. Rain cascaded off the broad brim of his hat, merging with the streams of water flowing through the industrial streets.
His gaze was sharp and deep, as if he could pierce through the curtain of rain to uncover every secret hidden within this mysterious village. As the water drenched him, a faint smile played on his lips.
"Infiltration successful. That was unexpectedly easy."
"However... what now?" Jiraiya looked out over the skyline of the Hidden Rain.
Standing atop a high spire, Pain seemed to sense something.
"What is it, Pain?" Konan asked beside him. "We should be heading out to observe Kanon's battle."
"Someone is obstructing my rain," Pain said tonelessly. "This chakra signature... it's remarkably strong."
Another half-hour passed. Jiraiya moved through the streets, attempting to gather intelligence on the elusive leader known as "Pain."
Unbeknownst to him, he had been detected the moment he entered.
"Konan. Once the rain stops, use your technique to find the intruder," Pain commanded while weaving a rapid series of hand signs.
"Leave it to me," Konan replied softly.
"It's beginning," Pain warned.
"Understood."
Under the influence of Pain's jutsu, the downpour gradually ceased, and the clouds began to part.
"Go, Konan," Pain said, turning away.
Behind him, Konan's body dissolved into countless sheets of paper, transforming into a swarm of paper butterflies that vanished into the mist.
After interrogating a Hidden Rain ninja, Jiraiya summoned the Scroll Toad, Gerotora.
"Jiraiya! What do you want me for this time?" the toad grumbled. "The key to Naruto's seal is already—"
Jiraiya waved his hands dismissively. "It's not for training. For certain reasons, you need to leave here for a while."
"Leave? What's going on?"
"I'm about to face someone quite formidable."
Gerotora narrowed his eyes. "Formidable enough that I have to run away?"
"No... it's just a precaution. More importantly, I want to finish the storage seal as quickly as possible."
Once the seal was completed, Gerotora asked suspiciously, "How long will this take?"
"I don't think it'll be long. However, if anything happens to me, move yourself into Naruto's body."
"Don't talk nonsense! My belly holds the key drawn to complement the Eight Trigrams Seal on Naruto. The Fourth Hokage's seal is weakening; this key was left specifically in case it needs to be resealed."
Gerotora continued to protest, "You can't just keep a key like this in the same place as the vault!"
Jiraiya interrupted him. "Be that as it may, this key is a legacy left by Minato. One day, it must be given to Naruto."
"It's still too early! Last time you coaxed me into turning the Four Symbols Seal a bit with the key, don't tell me you've forgotten what happened then!"
Jiraiya nodded, his expression turning solemn. "Minato left the formula for that key's jutsu to me because he believed that, one day, Naruto would need to complete that technique!"
"That technique... are you serious?" Gerotora asked. "Does Naruto really need it? He can't even control the Nine-Tails' chakra as it is!"
Jiraiya nodded slowly. "Minato only used the Reaper Death Seal to seal the Nine-Tails' Yin chakra. He specifically split the power into Yin and Yang, sealing the Yang chakra within Naruto. He did that specifically to leave the Nine-Tails' chakra to his son!"
Gerotora remained skeptical. "Even so... why would Minato go so far as to seal such a power inside his own child?"
"I was Minato's teacher, so I know," Jiraiya said quietly. "He wasn't a man who did things without reason. Minato must have discovered a significant truth. If he entrusted the power of the Nine-Tails to his child for the sake of that truth..."
"You're overthinking it."
"Looking back now... was the Nine-Tails' attack truly just a natural disaster?" Jiraiya mused, though he had no clear answers.
…
The Uchiha Hideout.
Another massive explosion rocked the area. Kanon's Sage Mode was proving to be incredibly troublesome, even forcing Itachi into a state of grim concentration.
Itachi felt as though a pair of Sharingan, framed by pink sage markings, were constantly staring into his soul. This sensation filled him with an uncharacteristic sense of unease.
Finally, Itachi retreated back to the rooftop. Kanon sat cross-legged as her remaining shadow clones dispersed.
"It seems the outcome is decided. You cannot defeat my Sage Mode," Kanon said flatly.
"You..." Itachi stood his ground, blood once again seeping from his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Behind him, an orange-red ribcage flickered into existence. It grew, manifesting muscle and sinew over the skeletal frame, finally shrouded in a cloak of ethereal chakra.
In its complete state, Itachi's Susano'o held the Yata Mirror in its left hand and the Sword of Totsuka in its right, the ultimate combination of absolute defense and offense.
"Is this your final trump card?" Kanon asked.
A flash of sorrow crossed Itachi's heart. He had initially believed he could kill Kanon easily. Instead, his Tsukuyomi had been shattered. Now, his only remaining options were Amaterasu and Susano'o.
He couldn't use Izanami as the price was blindness, and he had to preserve his eyes for Sasuke. With Kotoamatsukami no longer in his possession, Itachi faced his most desperate crisis: he was being utterly suppressed by his own younger sister.
Seeing the towering orange Susano'o, Kanon's calm expression shifted into one of manic intensity.
"Itachi Uchiha! Is this the limit of your eyes? Then it's my turn."
A monstrous surge of chakra erupted around Kanon. Fueled by her terrifying visual prowess, a rose-red Susano'o, wielding twin blades, manifested.
Two titans, each dozens of meters tall, faced off, one rose-red, the other orange-red.
"Yasaka Magatama!" they roared in unison.
The rose and orange magatama collided, triggering an explosion so violent it leveled every tree in the surrounding forest.
Kanon's Susano'o was clearly the more agile of the two. Her twin blades slashed at Itachi's Susano'o, and in a single exchange, Itachi was sent flying back.
"You!" Itachi staggered, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
"Not enough!" Kanon gave him no room to breathe. Her twin swords retracted as she began gathering chakra at the center, preparing for a devastating strike.
Itachi maneuvered his Susano'o to raise the Yata Mirror, bracing for the impact.
When Kanon swung her twin blades, the force was so immense the entire region trembled. Though the Yata Mirror blocked the direct hit, the shockwave forced Itachi to cough up more blood. He was losing the war of attrition.
Kanon's eyes began to bleed as well, her vision blurring slightly. She dropped to one knee. She wasn't holding back in the slightest; Itachi's Susano'o possessed too many spirit weapons, but she was still winning.
However, visual prowess is not like chakra; it doesn't just deplete, it fades. Kanon's ocular focus was beginning to waver.
Damn it... the Susano'o drains my eyes so much. She let out a cold laugh, knowing Itachi's burden was undoubtedly heavier than hers.
Kanon dispersed her Susano'o and wiped the blood from the corners of her eyes. She immediately re-entered Sage Mode.
Seeing Kanon drop her Susano'o, Itachi sensed an opening. A trail of blood ran down his right eye. From his mouth, a massive Great Fireball erupted, trailing black embers as it surged toward Kanon.
The fireball was coated in the flames of Amaterasu.
Facing the "Amaterasu-Fireball" that descended like a meteor, Kanon's expression remained unchanged. She simply raised her hand and began to weave signs.
"An Amaterasu-infused fireball? Itachi, that trick is outdated."
Suddenly, the rose patterns in both of Kanon's eyes began to spin. Space itself warped, drawing the black flames into a rotating vortex.
"Amaterasu."
"Die, Itachi Uchiha!"
"Storm Dance!!!"
A mass of black flames swirled within the rotation of her Flower Realm, instantly devouring Itachi's fireball.
Itachi was horrified. Not only was the technique powerful, but its speed was incredible. He hadn't expected his own attack to be so effortlessly neutralized.
But a moment later, he realized the true danger: his own attack had been absorbed and amplified by the Storm Dance, and now it was turning back toward him!
"How is this possible?! You can control Amaterasu?!"
Hearing Itachi's panicked voice and seeing his shocked expression, a wave of pure catharsis washed over Kanon.
"Itachi, this is Flame Control, prepared specifically for your Amaterasu!"
"I can't dodge it!" Itachi leaped back into the protection of his Susano'o, frantically raising the Yata Mirror once more.
Itachi Uchiha was forced to use the Yata Mirror to defend against his own Amaterasu, redirected by the Storm Dance.
"Let's see just how powerful your Yata Mirror really is," Kanon sneered, blood and tears streaming down her face.
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