The month Itachi and Sasuke spent preparing for their confrontation was also the month the Akatsuki completed their hunt for the Three-Tails.
The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, was long dead. The Three-Tails, now wild, dwelled in the depths of a lake in the Land of Water. Deidara and Tobi were dispatched to capture it and bring it to a nearby base for sealing.
Six participated in the sealing: Pain, Konan, Deidara, Tobi, Kisame, and Zetsu.
Kisame stayed silent about his fight with Sasuke. Only when Pain asked about Itachi's whereabouts did he respond, "Itachi and Sasuke are on the verge of their battle. He has no mind for Akatsuki affairs right now."
Zetsu chirped, "Missing one person for the sealing just means more work for us. If Itachi eliminates the Sasuke problem for us, that's a far greater contribution…"
Deidara snapped, "Hey! I've said it a million times! Sasuke is my prey, yeah!"
Tobi wailed, "It's the hatred from losing an arm, after all~."
Deidara ignored Tobi's nonsense and barked at Kisame, "Hey, Kisame! Tell me where they're fighting! I'm going to intercept Sasuke, yeah!"
Kisame stood rigid on the Gedo Statue's finger, hands forming the seal, his gaze low. "Deidara. Not to look down on you, but I'd advise against a suicide mission."
Deidara bristled at the dismissal. "My art has reached new heights! This time, I will send Uchiha Sasuke straight to heaven, yeah!!!"
"…" Kisame simply closed his eyes.
Seeing this, Deidara turned to Pain. "Leader! I've fulfilled my quota for the Akatsuki, right? So, handling my private business shouldn't be a problem, yeah!"
Pain's voice was flat. "Your personal grudges are not our concern."
"But that bastard Kisame knows where Sasuke is going and won't share the intel, yeah!"
Pain turned his Rinnegan gaze. "Kisame. Tell him the location."
Resigned, Kisame spoke. "West of the Land of Fire. The Uchiha stronghold."
Deidara grinned. "Heh. Just you wait, Uchiha Sasuke. You will witness my new art!"
Kisame muttered under his breath. "Some people just can't be saved from their own stupidity. Don't say I didn't warn you…"
…
Kabuto had already scouted the area around the Uchiha stronghold beforehand. He'd placed Futodama markers across a wide swath of land, just in case.
Yet, when they departed from Azure Moon Island, Sasuke ordered Kabuto to send him to a more distant marker. He would approach on foot.
He moved through the forest.
Behind him, the eyes of his three companions never left the white-cloaked figure.
Kabuto adjusted his glasses. "I'm concerned. Facing the brother he once adored… Can Sasuke really seize the opportunity and go all out to kill, like he did in the previous three clashes?"
Orochimaru's serpentine eyes gleamed. "Whether Sasuke can strike to kill depends entirely on his trust in Itachi."
Kabuto was puzzled. "Trust… is what allows him to kill? That seems contradictory."
Orochimaru's voice was low. "Indeed… It is precisely because of trust. Trust that it is Itachi he's facing. Trust that Itachi will surely withstand his full-force assault. Only with that certainty can he unleash his attacks without reservation."
Kabuto's eyelids lowered. "To achieve that state of mind… It must be incredibly difficult."
Orochimaru's gaze turned distant. "Itachi likely felt something similar all those years ago. That is why Sasuke must walk this same path as before. To align himself as closely as possible with the self he was back then…"
—"Because he knows this is not just their brotherly clash. It is the Fourth Clash of their Ten Battles—a plan forged to race against time, to absorb the White Cursed Seal as swiftly as possible, to prepare for the coming heavenly conflict!"
Tree shadows blurred past on either side. Sasuke's gaze remained fixed straight ahead.
"Even walking the same road… my heart is filled with the image of you sitting on that cold, dark stone throne, waiting for me. Itachi. Perhaps only now do I truly understand the resolve you made back then—to die in our battle. But because of that… I must answer your resolve with my all…!!!"
Just then… an uninvited guest descended from the treetops.
On the back of a diving white clay bird, Deidara's voice screeched. "UCHIHA SASUKE! FIGHT MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"
"…" Sasuke didn't even glance sideways. Susanoo flared. A tendril of Chakra Absorption Tentacles shot out, snatching Deidara right off his bird!!
"Eh? Ehhhhh?! What kind of move is this?!"
WHOOSH-WHOOSH-WHOOSH-WHOOSH…!!!
The Susanoo's tentacle-arm spun above Sasuke's head like a propeller…!!!
—The Uchiha Yeet.
SWISH! Deidara traced a perfect parabola into the distant sky…
BOOM…!!
At the same moment, his clay bird crashed into the trees… and erupted into fireworks.
From behind the forest, Tobi wailed as if bereaved. "DEIDARA-SENPAIIIIIIIIII…!!!"
SWISH!
The moment Sasuke passed him, the Sharingan behind the mask observed intently. Obito's lips curled into a faint smile beneath the orange spiral. Oh? Not bad. That's the look I need. Someone who could replace Nagato in the future…
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Karin flashed past in succession.
Kabuto: "He's here too…"
Orochimaru: "Expected."
Karin: "That Tobi guy… he won't interfere, will he?"
Orochimaru: "If he does… Karin, you can teach him the meaning of heart-rending pain."
ZZZT—!!!
A bloody cross-pattern flashed in her pupils!!
Karin: "I'm ready!"
The forest gave way. A towering mountain came into view. A structure bearing the Uchiha crest stood at its peak, touching the sky.
Orochimaru's voice turned solemn. "Well then… we stop here. What follows is Sasuke's fight alone."
SWISH!
The white cloak billowed. Sasuke stepped onto the stone stairs leading up the mountain.
In the dark hall, seated on the stone throne, Itachi slowly opened his eyes. A bloody light flowed from his pupils.
"You've come…"
Sasuke stood in the hall's entrance, his own Sharingan shimmering. "You haven't changed a bit…"
SWISH!
In the next instant… Itachi's robes fluttered as he vanished from the throne and reappeared at Sasuke's side!
"So, Sasuke… how far can your Sharingan see now?"
CHAK—!
In the next instant… a blade pierced through Sasuke's chest.
Blood gushed from his mouth. "Do you want to know… what I see in my eyes, Itachi?"
Itachi smiled. "Could it be… my death?"
CHAK—!
In the next instant… a giant purple sword from a Susanoo pierced down from the ceiling, impaling both Itachi and Sasuke together!
Both figures vanished.
The sword disappeared. It was as if none of it had happened.
"…" Itachi still sat on the stone throne in the hall.
"…" And Sasuke, whose foot had paused on a step halfway up the mountain path, continued his ascent.
The corners of their mouths each curved upwards in unison.
—"It seems… we've both grown."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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