I Am Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 408 - 408 How Much Did Tsunade Lose This Time?

The next second, Menma's figure vanished.

Not a Body Flicker, but an equally pure burst of speed!

His movement didn't even stir the wind, as if merging with the surroundings!

Hikari's pupils contracted, her Rinnegan spinning wildly.

She 'saw' it!

Menma's movement trajectory left faint Chakra Afterimages in the air. Those afterimages seemed to guide her in predicting his next position.

'Left?'

'Right?'

'Or above?'

Hikari's mind calculated rapidly, but Menma was too fast. Even though she could 'see', her body couldn't react in time!

In the instant she hesitated, Menma had already appeared behind her.

"Too slow."

The voice came from beside her ear.

Hikari whirled around, clapping her hands together. "Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"

Whoosh—!!

A surge of purple flame erupted from her mouth!

This wasn't the ordinary B-Rank Great Fire Annihilation, but an enhanced version empowered by the Rinnegan and mixed with Natural Energy!

The flames covered an area over five hundred meters. The temperature was so high the sand instantly vitrified!

Facing this terrifying attack, Menma merely raised his right hand.

Palm facing forward.

"Almighty Push."

Hum—!

An invisible repulsive force field erupted from him!

The purple flames crashed against the force field like hitting an invisible absolute wall, instantly repelled, annihilated!

Splashes of flame scattered in all directions, turning the surrounding dunes into molten glass.

Guided by the repulsive force, those flame remnants actually shot back towards Hikari!

And from all directions, sealing off all evasion space!

Hikari's expression changed, her Rinnegan spinning wildly.

She tried to 'see' the flow of the repulsive force, tried to find gaps to evade.

But those force flows were too complex, too rapid. Her perception could keep up, but her body couldn't!

At the critical moment, a thought flashed through Hikari's mind.

Not evade.

But… exchange!

The six-ring pattern in her Rinnegan suddenly brightened!

Hum—!

Space seemed to distort for an instant.

The next moment, Hikari's figure vanished.

In its place, a piece of sandstone dozens of meters away.

And Hikari herself appeared where the sandstone originally was.

Amenotejikara!

Menma's eyes flashed with approval.

"Good. Amenotejikara… instantly exchanging positions with an object within your field of vision. The ultimate 'Shukuchi' technique, even the precursor to spatial traversal."

He raised his right hand. The black Chakra Rod that had been aimed at Hikari had somehow returned to his grasp.

"But how many times can you exchange?"

Menma's figure vanished again.

This time, he was even faster!

Hikari's Rinnegan spun wildly. She could 'see' Menma's movement trajectories, but those trajectories overlapped like phantoms, reality and illusion indistinguishable!

Even more frightening, Menma left Chakra Markers with each movement. Those markers interfered with her judgment, making it impossible to distinguish which was the real body!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Within three seconds, Menma launched four attacks from four different directions!

Hikari barely dodged the first two. Seeing she couldn't dodge the third, she used Amenotejikara to exchange with another piece of sandstone, but her shoulder was grazed. The fourth—

Menma's fist stopped one centimeter from her forehead.

The wind pressure from the punch lifted her bangs. Her skin could even feel that terrifying oppressive feeling.

"That's enough."

Menma's fist transformed into two fingers, lightly tapping Hikari's forehead.

Hikari panted, sweat beading on her forehead.

Not from exhaustion, but from the mental strain of extreme concentration.

Using the Rinnegan's perception, using Amenotejikara for spatial jumps… these placed a huge burden on her mental energy.

"Today you've grasped the preliminary use of Amenotejikara," Menma withdrew his hand, saying with satisfaction. "What you need to practice next is gravitational control with Almighty Push and Universal Pull, and—"

He raised his hand, a pitch-black black Chakra Rod forming in his palm.

"—the power of Yin-Yang Release."

Hikari looked at that black rod, her Rinnegan blinking.

She tried raising her own hand, Chakra surging in her palm, attempting to condense something similar.

Chakra began gathering. A faint black silhouette appeared in her palm, but collapsed and dissipated into light particles in less than a second.

Hikari frowned.

"Yin-Yang Release isn't that easy to master," Menma said, watching Hikari's frustrated expression, and smiled.

He put away the black rod, patted Hikari's shoulder. "That's it for today. Almighty Push, Universal Pull, Amenotejikara, Yin-Yang Release black rods. These four abilities are enough for you to study for a long time."

"Understood. I'll study hard," Hikari nodded, closing her eyes.

When she opened them again, the Rinnegan had deactivated, reverting to ordinary Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

Menma turned, looking at the four observers on the ruins.

Minato, Shisui, Inabi, Izumi… each had different expressions.

Minato's was serious analysis, his recording board already filled with data.

Shisui's was deep shock. Though his Mangekyo was powerful, he knew deeply that if he were in that fight, he might not survive a single move.

Inabi and Izumi's were pure reverence and worship. They finally understood why Shisui said only Mangekyo bearers could observe such battles.

"See everything?" Menma asked.

All four nodded simultaneously.

"Any thoughts?"

After a few seconds of silence, Shisui spoke first. "The level of power… is completely different. If Hikari-sama fought me in that state, without using Susanoo, I probably wouldn't last ten seconds. Even using Susanoo would just prolong it slightly."

Inabi and Izumi didn't speak, but their eyes said it all.

Menma nodded. "The Rinnegan's power far surpasses the Mangekyo. But you needn't belittle yourselves. We've found the path for Mangekyo evolution. Next, you must prepare yourselves."

Shisui, Inabi, and Izumi's faces showed emotion and excitement.

Menma looked at Minato. "Father, after organizing the training data, give a copy to Hikari. Also, arrange for a medical team to regularly check her physical condition, especially her eyes."

"Don't worry, leave it to me," Minato nodded, his smile full of warmth.

Northern Land of Stars, the port city bordering the Land of Earth… Aomori City.

This city's style was completely different from the rapidly modernizing Star City.

If Star City represented solemnity, order, modernity, and technology, then Aomori City was the epitome of chaos, desire, and a mix of old and new.

This was the concession ceded by the Land of Earth after its defeat, established by Land of Stars as a [Special Economic Zone], enjoying extremely low taxes and lax management.

Thus, casinos, izakayas, nightclubs sprouted like mushrooms after rain, attracting merchants-

-and Ninja from across the Ninja World.

In this city, traditional Japanese architecture mixed with modern buildings.

To the left might be a geisha house with red lanterns… to the right, a neon-flashing modern casino.

Passersby wore all sorts of attire: elderly in kimono, businessmen in suits, scantily clad hostesses, Ninja in rugged gear.

The air was thick with the smells of tobacco, alcohol, perfume, and an indescribable scent of desire.

Jiraiya walked along the busiest [Casino Street], his eyes constantly scanning the scenery, especially the lightly clad women.

"Hehehe… this one's legs are nice… that one's chest is perfect… oh oh! That one in the cheongsam over there, such good bearing…"

He muttered to himself as he walked, a lecherous smile on his lips, occasionally taking out a small notebook to jot something down.

"All for research, research… as a writer, immersing in life, experiencing life is necessary…"

Just as he was eyeing the profile of a blonde, wavy-haired woman, preparing to go 'interview' her—

"Move aside! Move aside!"

Several urgent shouts came from ahead on the street.

Jiraiya turned to look. A few young men were running panicked, knocking over roadside stalls, trampling goods.

Stall owners cursed, trying to grab them, but were pushed aside by one.

Immediately, five or six men in black uniforms, the words [Concession Patrol] embroidered on their chests, gave chase.

They held short batons and rope lassos, moved with trained efficiency, quickly surrounding the young men.

"Halt! Restoration Society rebels!"

"Surrender quietly!"

A bespectacled man among the youths shouted, "We're not rebels! We're just spreading truth! The days of the Daimyo and nobles exploiting the people must end!"

"Shut up!" A patrolman struck his back with a baton, knocking him to the ground.

The other youths tried to resist, but they were clearly no match for the trained patrolmen. Soon subdued, pressed to the ground, handcuffed.

Chaos filled the street. Passersby avoided it, some pointing and commenting, some watching coldly.

Jiraiya stood in the crowd, frowning.

Then, the discussion of several merchants and hostesses beside him reached his ears.

"These Restoration Society people again…"

"How many times this month? Causing trouble every other day."

"I heard they started a riot in Toriwatari City, killed the castle lord, wanted to establish some new country… then were suppressed by Ninja and samurai sent by the Land of Earth's Daimyo, and fled to the concession."

"Hmph, Land of Stars doing that set is one thing, but they want to copy it? They should weigh themselves."

"Speaking of which, Land of Stars' theories are indeed attractive to commoners… I have a distant cousin who was a carpenter, and heard he went to Land of Stars. Now, he works as some technician and living much better than before."

"But the Land of Earth is different… the Daimyo and nobles' power runs deep. These youths are too naive."

Jiraiya listened to these discussion, his expression growing graver.

He remembered the debate with Menma in the Land of Rain two years ago.

Back then, Menma said the root of the Ninja World's conflicts lay in unfair resource distribution, in the exploitation of commoners by Daimyo and nobles.

Only by breaking the old feudal system, establishing a new order, could true peace be achieved.

Jiraiya had refuted him then, believing violent revolution would only bring more bloodshed, that problems should be solved through mutual understanding and compromise.

But now it seemed…

Menma's theories were no longer just theories.

Land of Stars' success was like a banner, attracting oppressed people from all over the Ninja World.

These [Restoration Society's] members in the Land of Earth were the earliest followers.

And this was only the beginning.

A strong unease welled up in Jiraiya's heart.

He remembered the conversation with the Great Toad Sage after returning to Mount Myoboku.

When he reported Menma's existence and Menma's warning to Mount Myoboku about interfering in the Ninja World, the millennia-old sage was silent for a long time, finally saying something ambiguous: "The trajectory of destiny has changed… the future is filled with mist…"

Then said no more.

Jiraiya understood. The Great Toad Sage had seen something but was unwilling, or unable, to reveal it.

"Sigh…"

He sighed, turning to leave this troubled place.

"—Jiraiya-senpai!"

Just then, a slightly surprised woman's voice interrupted Jiraiya's thoughts.

Jiraiya turned to see a woman in black-grey casual clothes, with medium-length black hair, standing not far away. In one arm she cradled a small pink pig… the other hand held a heavy-looking suitcase.

"Shizune?" Jiraiya was startled. "What are you doing here?"

Shizune made a pained face, hefting the suitcase. "Why else… of course to pay off Tsunade-sama's debts."

She pointed across the street at a resplendent, golden casino with a sign reading three large words: "Aomori Grand Casino."

The corner of Jiraiya's mouth twitched.

'Right. This was the Ninja World-famous gambling city. For Tsunade, this was practically her second home.'

'Given her gambling luck, she'd probably lost quite a bit.'

"How much did Tsunade lose this time?" Jiraiya stroked his chin, curious.

Shizune sighed, saying softly with a bitter face, "Tsunade-sama lost all the money she brought yesterday, then borrowed fifty million ryo from the casino. This morning I brought money to redeem her, but heard she gambled all night again, lost the borrowed money too, and now owes another thirty million…"