Chapter 86: A Glimpse of That Man
Faced with Uchiha Dali's current onslaught of large-scale jutsu, unleashed as if chakra cost him nothing, only someone like Minato Namikaze with the Flying Thunder God Technique could barely keep up.
If it had been any other ninja standing against him, they'd have already been defeated by Uchiha Dali.
Though Minato was still maneuvering around the battlefield, a storm of emotions was already raging in his heart.
"Whoosh—"
He used the markers of his Flying Thunder God Kunai to instantly teleport a hundred meters away.
But to his astonishment, Uchiha Dali appeared hot on his heels a second later.
This astonishing speed, combined with the absence of any signs before executing such a powerful space-time technique, not only left Minato feeling inferior, it also stunned him to his core.
"I've long heard that the Uchiha clan's Sharingan can replicate any technique that isn't a Bloodline Limit… Today, I finally witnessed it for myself!"
Despite his admiration, Minato was left with no choice but to keep evading.
Against Uchiha Dali, his speed held no advantage whatsoever.
And his attack options were severely limited. Facing such a formidable opponent, he found himself struggling in a battle like never before.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Fire Technique!"
Uchiha Dali switched tactics, casting another jutsu to chase Minato down.
Countless fireballs, resembling blooming phoenix flowers, danced through the air and surged forward, overtaking their target with overwhelming momentum.
As this fiery downpour blanketed the entire training field like a meteor shower, Minato's pupils contracted slightly.
"Even his Fire Release… is this powerful?"
Naturally, he wasn't the only one stunned—many other ninjas were equally shaken.
The spectacular blaze, raining down like celestial fire, left even the strongest present—Hiruzen Sarutobi, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo Shimura—utterly speechless.
"Though the Uchiha are known for their Fire Release jutsu, for someone to produce such an effect with a C-rank technique… I'd wager he's the only one in the world capable of this."
Koharu muttered in disbelief.
"In my memory… only that man could ever reach this level."
Homura followed.
The "man" he spoke of made Hiruzen and Danzo's eyes narrow slightly.
Because only those of their generation would understand what that title meant.
That man.
The forefather of the Uchiha clan—a being once considered the equal of the God of Shinobi.
At this very moment, in Uchiha Dali's overwhelming presence, they saw the shadow of that man.
While everyone was caught in awe, a massive wave of firestorm surged from the direction of the battlefield.
All vegetation along the path was instantly engulfed in roaring flames, loud explosions echoing nonstop.
Countless trees and rocks were blown apart by the force of the blast.
Hiruzen and the others could only stare in shock as one colossal tree after another was engulfed by fire and reduced to splinters.
Only now did they truly grasp how terrifying Uchiha Dali's power really was.
"It seems we were wise not to go to war with the Uchiha clan."
Homura muttered, heart still pounding, and turned to glance at Hiruzen.
He was silently grateful that his foolish idea back then never came to pass.
Fortunately, Danzo had rejected the proposal from him and Koharu to have Root intervene directly.
Otherwise, Uchiha Dali alone could've turned all of Konoha upside down, inflicting unimaginable devastation.
And it wasn't just the high-ranking officials thinking this way.
Right now, Hiashi Hyuga, Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, Choza Akimichi, Tsume Inuzuka, Shibi Aburame—and so on.
The clan heads of Konoha's noble families, all the Anbu members, and even the well-known jonin of the village…
Each and every one of them had the same thought in their hearts.
They were all secretly grateful for having chosen to follow Uchiha Dali's advice.
Grateful they hadn't interfered in the conflict between the Uchiha clan and Konoha.
If they had, their families would've been drenched in blood by now.
Among everyone watching the battle from the sidelines, the only one with a complicated expression was likely Danzo Shimura.
On the surface, he looked as calm as still water.
But deep inside, a storm had already erupted.
Even he hadn't expected that Uchiha Dali, once he got serious, would be this strong.
Minato was using the Flying Thunder God Technique invented by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.
That space-time jutsu had once allowed Minato to instantly annihilate fifty elite jonin from Iwagakure in a single strike—a feat regarded as legendary.
Of course, the upper echelon was well aware of such feats.
Yet now, even with that powerful jutsu and Minato going all-out, Uchiha Dali wasn't remotely threatened.
On the contrary—he was completely suppressing Minato, leaving him without even a chance to counterattack.
This man's strength had far exceeded Danzo's expectations.
He now had to reconsider his plans.
Originally, he had intended to let Dali and Minato fight each other to exhaustion before sending his subordinates to finish them off.
But now, it seemed Minato might not even be able to hold his ground, let alone fight Dali to a draw.
Unless they were locked in a true life-or-death struggle, fighting with the intent to kill, Danzo's people wouldn't even get an opening.
A glint of calculation flashed through Danzo's eyes—subtle, unnoticed by anyone.
Then, he gave a signal to Aburame Ryoma, his loyal follower from the Aburame clan.
Ryoma instantly understood, silently releasing the insects on his body to notify the Root operatives to hold their positions and not make any moves for now.
"Boom boom boom…"
The battle between Uchiha Dali and Minato Namikaze continued unabated.
With this level of destructive firepower unleashed, the battlefield was practically in ruins.
Thick smoke blanketed the area, obscuring nearly all visibility.
The rampant winds and blazing chakra posed a real threat even to the onlookers.
People had no choice but to keep retreating, searching for safer vantage points.
But wherever they went, the area of effect from Dali's techniques followed—his jutsu seemed to have no limit in scale or power.
"Is he even human? At this rate, even Tailed Beast-level chakra would be drained dry!"
Choza Akimichi couldn't help but exclaim.
"It looks like the outcome of today's battle is already decided."
Shikaku Nara murmured to himself.
No one objected. Nearly everyone could see it clearly—if Minato still couldn't mount an effective counterattack, his defeat was inevitable.
"Don't be too quick to draw conclusions."
Hiruzen Sarutobi said calmly.
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