Chapter 39: The Might of the Flying Thunder God
Uchiha Itachi knew exactly what Root was.
Two years ago, he had witnessed a brutal fight, initially mistaking it for Anbu turning against each other.
But as he learned more, he realized that within Konoha's Anbu, there was an even darker, more secretive organization.
One that even his father refused to talk about.
But Fugaku's silence only made it clearer—
He despised that organization.
"This guy… he came from that place?"
Itachi had no time to dwell on the thought—
Because in the next instant, Haruta's fist was already swinging toward him again!
He barely had time to react, dodging frantically as Haruta relentlessly pursued him like a phantom.
"Nii-san…!"
From the audience, Sasuke watched anxiously as his older brother struggled to keep up.
Even his mother's reassurances did little to calm his worry.
"Shisui, he's—"
Fugaku's expression darkened.
His eldest son was being completely overwhelmed, and he hated what he was seeing.
The cheers from the crowd only made it worse—
To him, they sounded mocking.
"…Haruta is actually holding back."
Shisui replied calmly.
Though even he felt a bit awkward.
After all, he had been on missions with Haruta before.
He knew exactly how strong his teammate was.
If Haruta were fighting seriously, that massive earth dragon from Sunagakure would've already appeared…
Fugaku was momentarily speechless.
But before he could say anything else—
A collective gasp echoed through the crowd.
Turning sharply, his eyes widened—
His son had just been kicked across the battlefield!
"Finally… some distance."
But despite getting knocked back, Itachi remained calm.
Even though he had been completely suppressed, he had already come up with a plan.
Fighting Haruta in taijutsu was pointless.
The guy was simply too fast—
Even with the Sharingan, Itachi could barely keep up.
And worse…
Haruta wasn't even looking at his eyes, making genjutsu useless!
"How is he so familiar with the Sharingan…?"
Itachi's mind raced.
But he knew one thing for sure—
Continuing this close-quarters battle would be stupid.
So, he intentionally took that kick to create some distance.
"Smart move."
Haruta smirked, immediately realizing what Itachi had done.
But he didn't chase.
Instead, he simply stood still, slowly pulling out several kunai.
His two mission objectives were contradictory—
One was to humiliate Itachi.
The other was to not injure him.
There was only one way to accomplish both:
"Dominate him completely, then force him to surrender."
Across from him, Itachi also pulled out his own kunai—
But seeing Haruta remain motionless, he felt a sudden unease.
"Is he… underestimating me?"
But he wasn't going to waste the opportunity—
Without hesitation, he threw his kunai!
---
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Dozens of kunai soared into the air, colliding mid-flight—
Altering their trajectories in a perfectly calculated pattern!
A dense net of kunai rapidly closed in from all directions, leaving Haruta no room to escape!
"Nii-san! You got this!"
"Itachi, keep going!"
Sasuke and Izumi cheered excitedly.
This was the famous Uchiha projectile technique—
A style so fluid and precise, it never failed to excite the audience.
The crowd buzzed with admiration.
Even some veteran ninja were impressed.
"That's incredible…!"
"I didn't know kunai could be used like that."
"Come on, this is an Uchiha specialty—of course, it's amazing!"
But amidst the excitement—
Yūgao sighed.
Shisui also quietly shook his head.
"Compared to Sasori's blanket shuriken coverage… this still has a long way to go."
Haruta, meanwhile, barely paid attention to the incoming kunai.
Instead of defending, he threw his own kunai at Itachi!
…Only, his aim seemed completely off.
It didn't look like he was aiming for Itachi at all.
"An opening!"
Itachi saw his chance—
He quickly formed hand seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive fireball roared forward, merging with the incoming kunai net—
Completely engulfing Haruta!
In that moment—
With kunai raining down from above and a blazing inferno rushing forward—
It looked as though Haruta had been completely trapped.
"Haruta…!"
Tenzo frowned.
He considered stepping in to help—
"Isn't he being too careless…?"
Even Kakashi was a little doubtful.
He respected Haruta's strength, but this seemed reckless.
"Relax."
Yūgao spoke calmly.
"I've seen Haruta's jutsu.
Taijutsu aside, his ninjutsu is even more ridiculous."
Kakashi scratched his head.
But suddenly—
His gaze landed on Haruta's kunai—
And his Sharingan widened in shock.
"That brat… he's holding back way too much."
---
On a nearby viewing platform, Hiruzen Sarutobi watched intently.
But he couldn't help shaking his head.
Unlike Kakashi, he knew Haruta's true capabilities.
He wanted Haruta to go easy on Itachi—
But this was excessive.
"…Huh?"
Suddenly—
Hiruzen's entire body stiffened.
His eyes shot wide open.
"Impossible!"
A collective gasp swept through the audience.
Everyone froze, staring in disbelief.
Even Fugaku and Shisui looked utterly stunned.
---
"Looks like… you've lost."
Itachi's gaze was still fixed on the fireball ahead—
But suddenly—
Haruta's voice whispered behind him.
"—!!"
His mind went blank.
Before he could react—
BAM!
A powerful kick sent him flying.
His body twisted mid-air—
He tried to stabilize himself to continue fighting—
But then, out of the corner of his eye—
He saw a single kunai spinning toward him.
"Wait… No—"
And then—
Haruta appeared out of nowhere.
WHOOSH!
A fist slammed into him.
THUD!
Itachi hit the ground hard.
He wasn't seriously hurt—Haruta had controlled his strength well—
But when he looked up…
Haruta was gone.
Instead, he felt a cold sensation on his neck.
Haruta was now standing behind him—
A kunai pressed against his throat.
The entire stadium fell silent.
And in that moment—
Everyone recognized what had just happened.
They had seen this technique before.
And in Haruta's silhouette, they could almost glimpse the golden figure that once struck terror into Konoha's enemies.
---