Konoha's Genius is a bit Ordinary?

At this moment, Itachi and Kakuzu had stopped their actions. With Natsuro now appearing on the other side of the cavern, it was clear their efforts had been futile.

As the raging flames dissipated, nothing remained in the spot where he had once stood.

"Flying Thunder God," Itachi calmly remarked.

"But when?" Kakuzu questioned, frowning. He knew of the technique, but Natsuro hadn't thrown any kunai...

Then, they noticed Hidan, his entire head still embedded in the cavern ceiling, his body dangling awkwardly while his infamous Bloody Triple Scythe hung below.

A faint, glowing mark on the scythe caught their attention. It was a Flying Thunder God seal.

At that moment, they realized the truth. When Natsuro had casually caught the scythe earlier, he'd already planted the Flying Thunder God seal on it.

"Could this technique truly be so simple?" Kakuzu couldn't suppress his frustration. "If it's this easy to use, how is anyone supposed to fight against it?!"

"It's not simple. It only seems so because he is exceptionally skilled," Itachi clarified, his voice steady and composed.

As a former captain of the Konoha Anbu, Itachi had a thorough understanding of the Flying Thunder God technique's reputation. He knew that mastering such a complex jutsu was beyond most shinobi, no matter how skilled.

To wield it with such elegance and efficiency, like the Fourth Hokage or Natsuro, was a feat that bordered on the impossible.

Meanwhile, Kisame Hoshigaki, the ever-pragmatic observer, wiped sweat from his brow as he watched Hidan's still-suspended body. "Hey, you're focusing on the Flying Thunder God, but what about that kick? If that had been one of us instead of Hidan, we'd be dead."

The room fell silent at Kisame's words. Both Itachi and Kakuzu reluctantly acknowledged the truth. Natsuro's raw strength was staggering.

Even Kakuzu, with his nigh-immortality, was forced to reassess the situation. He muttered to himself, "As long as I keep my hearts safe..."

Itachi, on the other hand, found himself wondering whether his Susano'o could withstand such raw force.

"What do we do now? It feels like he's not trapped with us. We're trapped with him," Kisame joked nervously, gripping his massive Samehada sword.

"First, get Hidan down. His abilities may be the key to dealing with him," Itachi instructed calmly.

With a nod of understanding, Itachi and Kisame moved to engage Natsuro, giving Kakuzu space to retrieve Hidan.

As Kakuzu's wind jutsu severed the rope tethering Hidan to his scythe, he stretched out his arm, extending it with his signature black threads. The hand shot forward like a missile, grabbing hold of Hidan and yanking him free from the stone ceiling with a sickening crunch.

As Hidan landed, Kakuzu glanced down at him and frowned. "You're a mess."

Hidan's body was riddled with injuries: his chest was twisted and deformed from Natsuro's Rasengan, his internal organs likely crushed. His jaw had been shattered, and his neck seemed to be unnaturally bent and possibly broken. Despite this, Hidan groaned and began to stir, his immortal body struggling to piece itself back together.

Kakuzu, a seasoned stitcher, looked at the wreckage before him and sighed in exasperation. "This is going to take forever to fix."

On the other side of the cavern, Natsuro faced Kisame and Itachi with a calm demeanor, even as they advanced with their jutsu at the ready.

Kisame wielded Samehada like a natural extension of his body, charging with brutal strength, while Itachi's Sharingan glinted ominously, every move deliberate and calculating.

Yet Natsuro stood still, his eyes closed, a tranquil smile on his face. He was testing himself, using this battle to gauge the limits of his newfound abilities.

For Natsuro, this wasn't just combat, it was an opportunity to grow.

"You seem... almost at ease," Kisame remarked, his tone carrying a mix of amusement and unease.

It wasn't his imagination. The longer the fight went on, the stronger Natsuro seemed to become. Kisame could feel it. Every exchange sharpened his opponent's precision, power, and speed.

But how was that possible?

As the two sides clashed, Natsuro reached into his arsenal and summoned his trusted weapon: the Ink Sword. Unlike regular ninjutsu, which relied on elemental chakra manipulation, this blade resonated with Natsuro's deep connection to natural energy.

"Let's see how you fare against this," Natsuro muttered, his voice tinged with excitement.

With a single fluid motion, he swung the sword, releasing a sharp arc of concentrated natural energy. The attack sliced through Kisame's water jutsu with ease, shattering its flow as if cutting through paper.

Kisame's eyes widened in shock. "He can cut through ninjutsu?!"

Even Itachi's Sharingan momentarily betrayed surprise. The Ink Sword had transcended mere steel... It was an extension of Natsuro's refined understanding of chakra and natural energy.

The battle wasn't over, but one thing was clear: Natsuro wasn't an opponent they could afford to underestimate.

...

At this moment, Itachi observed Natsuro with his eyes closed and understood that his opponent was guarding against the Mangekyō Sharingan. But understanding this didn't provide a solution.

Natsuro's closed eyes didn't seem to affect his combat ability. He relied solely on his chakra sensing to operate at full power, something Itachi had never encountered before. It felt as though Natsuro was a natural counter to the Uchiha's Sharingan.

The only technique Itachi had managed to copy was the Rasengan, but such a technique required specialized training and wasn't practical for him. More frustratingly, Natsuro's Flying Thunder God Technique and devastating swordsmanship couldn't be replicated at all.

The Flying Thunder God Technique was already known to be highly complex, and as for Natsuro's swordsmanship, his blade not only deflected physical attacks but also sliced through ninjutsu, disrupting chakra flow and nullifying entire techniques.

Itachi's Sharingan rotated as he considered his options. Finally, he threw a few kunai without any chakra enhancement.

When the kunai were intercepted by the faint arcs of electricity surrounding Natsuro, Itachi deduced something important: objects without chakra didn't register on Natsuro's sensory field.

However, how could he bypass Natsuro's strange electromagnetic defense with ordinary physical force alone?

"Impressive, Itachi," Natsuro remarked, sensing the kunai. He was impressed that Itachi had deduced his reliance on chakra sensing after only their second battle. "But," he added, "non-chakra objects can't breach my electromagnetic field, and metal ones especially won't work. You'll need more than that."

Even as he spoke, Natsuro recognized the subtle brilliance of Itachi's probing. If they faced each other again, he knew he'd need to prepare for Itachi's ingenuity.

Meanwhile, Natsuro contemplated another form of sensing he hadn't yet explored deeply: wind sensing.

Wind is, fundamentally, the movement of air. Any motion or action would create disturbances in the air, which Natsuro could potentially detect. However, chakra sensing had been so effective in this world that he hadn't dedicated time to mastering this alternative.

Still, in a worst-case scenario, he had another option: opening his eyes. Natsuro suspected that his dual-soul existence gave him near-immunity to genjutsu, even the Mangekyō Sharingan's Tsukuyomi. But testing that theory in a life-or-death battle was a risk he wasn't willing to take unless absolutely necessary.

Having adjusted to his newly enhanced abilities, Natsuro decided it was time to conclude this fight.

He gripped the Ink Sword, which began to emit faint streaks of white light as the blade trembled in anticipation.

With a surge forward, Natsuro closed the distance to Itachi, slashing his blade with unparalleled precision.

"Vacuum Slash!"

The technique wasn't just an upgrade to the Wind Release: Vacuum Wave. By integrating the principles of wind chakra into his swordsmanship, Natsuro had elevated it to a level where his swordplay could cut through anything, it was an unstoppable strike.

Itachi instantly sensed the lethal danger from Natsuro's sword. His body reflexively moved backward, forming hand seals as he retreated. But Natsuro's speed was far superior; Itachi was being closed in on with each passing moment.

At this critical juncture, Kisame Hoshigaki stepped in. Channeling chakra into his arms, he planted himself between Natsuro and Itachi, swinging his massive Samehada to intercept the strike.

"Boom!!"

The resulting clash was earth-shaking. Kisame gritted his teeth as the sheer force from Natsuro's blow rippled through his body. The energy from the strike seemed to momentarily bypass Samehada's chakra-absorbing capabilities, leaving Kisame visibly strained.

Itachi, now with a brief reprieve, completed his jutsu. He launched a flurry of kunai, each ignited by small, controlled fireballs, it was the Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique which was forcing Natsuro to divide his attention.

Kisame, emboldened by Itachi's support, swung Samehada again, attempting to drain Natsuro's chakra directly.

But Natsuro smirked. "Interesting teamwork."

He pivoted with almost inhuman speed, redirecting Kisame's attack while parrying the incoming fire-imbued kunai with precision.

In a fluid motion, Natsuro channeled wind chakra through the Ink Sword, releasing a blade-like arc of compressed air. The gust surged toward both Kisame and Itachi, threatening to engulf them.

Watching from a distance, Kakuzu finished stitching up Hidan, who grumbled as his body was restored. "Finally done," Kakuzu muttered, his frustration evident.

Hidan sneered, "That bastard's going to pay for this!"

"Focus, idiot," Kakuzu snapped. "If we don't work together, we'll all end up like you, embedded in the ceiling."

As the repaired duo moved to rejoin the fight, Kakuzu glanced at Natsuro, who stood unfazed in the center of the battlefield.

"This one's dangerous," Kakuzu thought grimly. "Too dangerous."

In that moment, he realized that Natsuro was no ordinary shinobi. He wasn't just someone who had honed his skills, he was evolving mid-battle.

The sound of swords clashing reverberated through the cave as Kisame's face twisted in shock. The overwhelming power of Natsuro's strike instantly numbed his arms. More alarming, however, was the anguished cry of Samehada, Kisame's sword. It couldn't absorb the chakra flowing through Natsuro's blade fast enough and was overwhelmed by the Vacuum Slash, which carried an unparalleled cutting force.

If he continued to block, Samehada would be destroyed!

Realizing this, Kisame gritted his teeth and retreated, though his arms throbbed with pain. Thankfully, Itachi had already pulled back and prepared his next move.

"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"

A massive inferno surged forth, roaring toward Natsuro with relentless heat. Kisame, meanwhile, ignored his numbed arms and began forming seals. In this battle, Natsuro had yet to deploy a kunai, meaning the only Flying Thunder God mark was on Hidan's bloodstained scythe embedded in the wall. Kisame prepared his Water Release technique, intending to ambush Natsuro should he teleport.

Yet, as the colossal fireball rushed toward him, Natsuro smiled. He had no intention of using the Flying Thunder God Technique to evade.

Calmly, Natsuro raised the Ink Sword above his head. Instantly, a radiant white glow erupted from the blade, extending upward until it nearly touched the ceiling of the cavern. The blade seemed to hum with an unearthly power, its brilliance illuminating the entire cave.

Kisame's eyes widened. "He's not going to dodge it?"

Then, with a deliberate motion, Natsuro brought the sword down in a powerful slash.

"Sword Splits Fire!"

A brilliant arc of energy erupted from the sword, cutting through the raging flames as though they were nothing more than air. The Great Fire Annihilation was cleaved cleanly in two, the split inferno roaring harmlessly past Natsuro on either side. The sheer force of the slash created a powerful shockwave, extinguishing the remaining flames and sending debris scattering throughout the cave.

Itachi's normally composed expression shifted slightly, his eyes narrowing as he observed the aftermath. The idea that such a devastating Fire Release technique could be casually cut apart was staggering.

Kisame's shock was far more apparent. "He… sliced through Great Fire Annihilation? Just like that?"

From where he had been slammed into the wall earlier, Hidan, now recovered, stared in disbelief. "What the hell kind of monster are we dealing with here? Is there anything he can't cut?"

Natsuro stood tall, his sword resting at his side as if the display had taken no effort. He glanced at the Akatsuki members before him, a faint smile playing on his lips.

For a moment, the cave was eerily silent. Then Itachi spoke, his voice as calm and measured as ever. "This is no ordinary opponent. We can't afford to take him lightly."

Kisame nodded reluctantly, his usual cocky demeanor replaced by grim determination. "Yeah. If he keeps pulling stunts like that, we're going to have a real problem."

From the shadows, Kakuzu muttered to himself, his stitched face betraying no emotion. "This isn't just strength. He's mastering us in every way."

Natsuro adjusted his stance, twirling the Ink Sword with practiced ease. His calm demeanor, even in the face of such powerful adversaries, sent a clear message:

He was far from done.

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Currently on Chapter 254 - The End of the Sky Ninja