Chapter 2: A New Power
Naruto and Sasuke's arms clashed simultaneously, creating a massive crater of shattered rocks below them due to the sudden impact, followed by a massive gust of wind that could be felt by the Kages despite being a few hundred meters away from the two.
Sasuke then leaped back while Naruto skidded backwards. The Uchiha then transformed his Sharingan into Eternal Mangekyou, then projected a miniature Susanoo skeletal arm extending down from his destroyed left arm, supplementing the said missing limb. He then summoned eight regular-sized shurikens, four on his right hand and another four on his 'left' hand, and then sharply threw them towards Naruto.
The Uzumaki, on the other hand, summoned a tri-pronged kunai on both hands, much to the surprise of Kakashi and the Raikage as both of them were quite familiar with that weapon. Naruto then deflected the incoming set of shurikens using the said special kunais. The very moment that he deflected all the shurikens, Sasuke appeared right in front of him, his own sword equipped on his right hand aiming to slash Naruto using a diagonal side-swing.
Naruto deflected the sword slash with his tri-pronged kunai on his left hand, then aimed to slash Sasuke with the other kunai on his right hand. The Uchiha dodged narrowly, with Naruto cutting a part of the Uchiha's cape. However, Sasuke's still active, Susanoo's 'right arm' aimed to punch the blonde Shinobi, but Naruto tilted his head to also narrowly dodge the blow.
The two continued to clash, defending and attacking in hair's breadth, thru skillful use of Taijutsu and Bukijutsu for a few more seconds, with unbelievable speed and accuracy. Some of their deflected attacks even created shockwaves and wind slashes that could reach a few tens to hundreds of meters.
"How is this even possible?" Sakura muttered in surprise. "Sasuke-kun was using his Sharingan, yet Naruto was able to fight on par with him in such close proximity. I always thought that hand-to-hand combat was one of Naruto's exploitable weaknesses…"
"I bet the Toad Sages drilled it to his head," Kakashi replied to Sakura, but still have a surprised expression on his face. "Despite Sasuke using the Sharingan's precognitive visual abilities, Naruto was still able to fight toe-to-toe against him. And the only way for me to think how Naruto can be able to do was because of his Senjutsu's precognitive sensing ability."
"But, Naruto was clearly not yet in Sage Mode, doesn't he?" Mei Terumi asked in a side-glance towards Kakashi.
"Might be a stretch, but not entirely impossible, that Naruto might be able to use at least Senjutsus precognitive sensing despite not entering Sage Mode right now after his training. And besides, even before his S-Rank training mission, Naruto had already vastly improved his hand-to-hand combat skills. According to the reports, he was able to easily fend off hundreds of Toneri Otsutsuki's puppets that invaded Konoha while attempting to save Hinata. For an overview of how impressive that feat was, Hiashi Hyuuga, the Hyuuga clan leader who specialized in Taijutsu, barely survived the battle against ten of those same kinds of puppets beforehand." Kakashi answered without taking his eyes off the battle. "But I think that's not just all, right, Raikage?"
"That brat, for him to use those damn forsaken kunais…" Raikage narrowed his eyes, remembering the weapons that Naruto was currently using. "It would also not be a stretch if he can now also use the 4th Hokage's specialty justu…"
"You mean… that jutsu?!" Tsuchikage Onoki muttered with surprised expression, as he suddenly remembered that those were the same weapons that Minato Namikaze used to singlehandedly wipe out an army of a thousand troops from his village that earned him a flee-on-sight command from opposing army during the 3rd Shinobi World War.
The successors of the Sage of the Six Paths distanced each other from themselves after another heated exchange, both not having any hint of exhaustion from the earlier skirmish. Naruto then performed his own signature jutsu, creating two copies of Kage Bunshin on both sides.
"As if I'd let you." Sasuke then kneaded Chakra within him, then fired a massive fire-based jutsu as he landed back on the ground. "KATON: GOUKA MEIKYAKU!"
"That was Madara's…!" Gaara said in surprise.
The massive fire jutsu enveloped the land, its potency shaking the battlefield. Indeed, it was one of Madara Uchiha's signature fire jutsu, but Sasuke's version was now more potent and powerful than the said legendary Uchiha.
"Naruto-kun…" Hinata muttered in a worried tone to her fiancée.
As the massive fire jutsu scorched the battlefield, an eerie, whirling sound echoed beneath the flaming land. And in an instant, a Rasenshuriken pierced the Katon jutsu, dividing the massive flames in half, dashing at massive speeds towards Sasuke.
The Uchiha then extended his left arm, attempting to use the Chakra Absorption ability of the Rinnegan against the incoming Rasenshuriken. Despite the incoming jutsu being an S-Rank technique, with Naruto's current skills and level, Sasuke knew that this jutsu was just a mere distraction against him in preparation for additional succeeding attacks, so he already anticipated to counterattack even with the smallest opening.
However, on the last moment, before the jutsu came in contact and be absorbed by the Rinnegan user, it popped, revealing one of the tri-pronged kunai that he used on their earlier clash. And the timing of dispelling the transformation caught Sasuke literally off-guard. If he hesitates even a fraction of a second, the tri-pronged kunai will inflict major damage on his left arm.
So he used his own signature space-time jutsu, the Amenotejikara, to swap places with incoming kunai. The tri-pronged kunai now was behind Sasuke, continuing its streak forward, distancing itself away from the Uchiha.
And as Sasuke anticipated, two more Rasenshurikens appeared in a semicircular, arcing direction, each incoming from both his sides. The two incoming Rasenshurikens pierced the divided remnants of Sasuke's earlier fire jutsu, creating a majestic scene for the spectators. But for Sasuke, this is not the time to join the others' amazement.
The Rinnegan user extended both his right arm and his Susanoo-limb left arm, and then performed another Rinnegan-specific jutsu.
"SHINRA TENSEI…!" The repelling impact of the jutsu dispelled the incoming Rasenshurikens on the last second from both his sides while also creating a crater beneath him in the process. He could have just maneuvered himself to dodge or deflect the Rasenshurikens, but due to the earlier surprise transformation attack from his rival, he cannot take chances and get caught off-guard once again. So repelling all the incoming attacks and recomposing himself even for a few seconds will be enough for him to regain his footing and perform a counter-offensive.
But just as the Shinra Tensei's repulsive force subside, Sasuke's precognitive visuals saw another incoming tri-pronged kunai aimed. But this time, Sasuke used his sword and aimed to repel the incoming kunai using the said weapon.
However, much to Sasuke's surprise, before he could deflect the incoming kunai, Naruto appeared a few meters behind him, grabbing the first tri-pronged kunai that he targeted thru Amenotejikara a few seconds earlier…
"I knew it… this jutsu… the 4ths…!" Sasuke muttered as he gave a side-glance to the Naruto that used Hiraishin on the earlier kunai. The said Naruto then pivot himself mid-air, then threw the same Hiraishin kunai back towards Sasuke in massive speeds.
"So this was his aim… to take advantage of Shinra Tensei and Amenotejikara's cooldown window and attack me with one decisive strike…" Sasuke then resolved to continue blocking the 2nd incoming kunai in front of him using his sword, and right after, intended to immediately manoeuvre himself to deflect the other kunai that was thrown by Naruto behind him.
As his sword was about to deflect its intended target, another Naruto 'flashed' towards his sword's targeted kunai, then used the same kunai to block the sword that was swung to deflect it, once again surprising Sasuke. With his sword swing being stalled by a Kage Bunshin, the kunai thrown by the other Naruto from behind can now hit him with Sasuke not being able to defend himself. That's why…
"To think that you would drive me to corner like this… you have grown… Naruto. However…"
Sasuke immediately cast and clad himself with the skeletal ribcage of Susanoo, just in time to protect himself from the kunai aimed at him from behind, then proceeded to cut down the Kage Bunshin in front of him using one of his Susanoo's swords.
Upon seeing the opposing Susanoo, the original Naruto who was behind Sasuke immediately leaped away, creating considerable distance from the massive Chakra Construct. The Uchiha then began aiming and firing multiple chakra arrows from the projected bow by his half-body Susanoo.
The blonde Shinobi began dodging Susanoo's long-distance attacks while Sasuke began firing more and more arrows. This time, the cooldown of his Shinra Tensei and Amenotejikara has been reset, with Sasuke resolving to only use the said jutsus once he felt like he was in a much direr situation than before. He immediately understood that due to Naruto having fought plenty of Rinnegan users, he already knew its weaknesses and that he was now capable of devising numerous unpredictable attack patterns against those who wield such powerful eyes.
Naruto then leaped high, about a few good hundreds of meters above the ground. Naruto then sharply threw the single Hiraishin kunai from his hand towards the morphing Susanoo. However, Sasuke aimed to deflect that Hiraishin kunai and hit Naruto at the same time with his Susanoo's arrow.
"If you will not access your transformations, then I will no longer intend to prolong this battle," Sasuke said as he fired the Susanoo's arrow, its trajectory aimed directly towards Naruto and his speeding kunai.
Naruto simply smirked. And with a completed hand seal…
"TAJUU KUNAI KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" The lone thrown tri-pronged kunai then multiplied from tens to hundreds, and all the multiplied kunais rain down towards Sasuke and his Susanoo. Naruto, on the other hand, created a Rasengan to block and shatter the chakra arrow fired towards him by Sasuke's Susanoo. The impact sent him hurling further above the ground.
The Susanoo barely received any damage due to the rain of kunais. While still wary, Sasuke wondered why Naruto fired such mere kunai against the impenetrable defense of his Susanoo. However, he can't take his eyes away from Naruto right now, or he will be once again bombarded by chains of various unpredictable jutsus.
"KONGO FUSA!" And with a single hand seal while still flinging mid-air, Naruto's voice suddenly echoed on the battlefield. In that instance, multiple Chakra Chakra Chains emerged from the tip of the handle of each Hiraishin kunais that was pinned from the ground. The so-called Adamantine Chakra Chains, a sealing jutsu that can only be used by those from Uzumaki Clan with powerful Chakra and life force, suddenly completely wrapped Sasuke's half-body Susanoo.
"This is… similar to Karin's Chains… no…. this is much stronger!" Sasuke muttered once again in surprise. The Chakra Chains began tightening one after another, and each layer of wrapped chains started to inflict damage to the struggling Susanoo, forming cracks on each part of its body. Sasuke gritted his teeth, as he began channeling additional Chakra to his Susanoo to prevent it from totally breaking apart and inflicting huge damage to him.
On the other hand, on the apex of the impact between Naruto's Rasengan and Sasuke's Chakra arrow, Naruto began descending, with another massive jutsu in tow.
"AMENOMIHASHIRA!" Naruto fired a massive semi-translucent sphere charged from both his hands that were cupped together to one certain point. The semi-translucent sphere was acting as a pseudo-container for the swirling multiple regular-sized Rasengan within it.
"WOOAAAAHHH!" Sasuke began releasing his full power, as his Susanoo began glowing within the bindings of Naruto's Chaka Chains. The Susanoo began increasing its size, shattering the Chakra Chains that were binding it simultaneously. And with one mighty yell, the Chakra Chains shattered, as the Perfect Susanoo was formed, blowing away and popping all the Hiraishin kunai clones that were spread all over the ground.
However, it was too late for Sasuke to realize as the Amenomihashira was already halfway towards him and his Perfect Susanoo.
Sasuke then used his Perfect Susanoo's sword to slash the incoming sphere that enclosed multiple Rasengans. The slash created a massive crevice in the ground below, enough to fit a mountain range or two. However, as the sphere of Amenomihashira dispersed, the multiple amounts of Rasengan swirling within it have been released and continued their aim towards Sasuke's ethereal construct.
Naruto landed on the ground, and with a single hand seal, the multiple Rasengan then transformed into Rasenshurikens, each of the Rasenshurikens landed on the right side of the Perfect Susanoo, shattering major parts of the chakra construct in the process.
"Amazing…" Sakura has her mouth hanging, together with the other Kages watching the scene. Naruto's combination of Shinobi fundamentals, Hiraishin, Kage Bunshin, and such was able to fight and even once again corner a Rinnegan user, and he did all these without entering any of his power-ups.
Hinata, on the other hand, while she also felt surprised, was more proud of how strong Naruto is right now. Some Shinobi said that Naruto was only strong due to him having access to Tailed Beasts' power. But this time, he was clearly showing his full potential without using any of his power-ups. Just imagining the combination of Kage Bunshin and Hiraishin will be more than enough to keep his opponents at wit's end…
However…
"Shall we continue, Sasuke…" Naruto said calmly with a small smirk on his face. He still has the same confident smirk, but his calm demeanor was entirely different than the usual boisterous self that he used to have up to the end of the 4th Shinobi War.
"Yeah…" Sasuke replied, this time, with a much more serious expression. His Perfect Susanoo was now levitating a few hundred meters above the ground, its form fully restored after the earlier damage, his serious eyes fixated on the one challenging him and driving him to the corner.
After all, he didn't expect Naruto to grow this much. Sure, he was also training to fully master the abilities that he acquired from the Sage of the Six Paths and his Rinnegan, and was quite sure that his mastery over these powers can now even rival that of Uchiha Madara. But the level of Naruto's growth greatly surprised him to the point that he is quite envious of him.
The Uchiha shook his head. He was already able to finally let go of this darkness within his heart during the last time he fought with Naruto. Despite the crimes he committed, the Shinobi Nations still accepted him. That's why he will never betray that trust again. If Naruto had grown this much, the more reason for him to also try harder and continue surpassing his closest friend.
On the other hand… Naruto clapped both his hands in front of his chest, his eyes now closed. The supposed-to-be prosthetic arm created from Hashirama's Cells now became a natural part of his body, as if it was now his own flesh and blood. Naruto knew by himself that this was likely because both he and the First Hokage were transmigrants of one of the Sage of the Six Path's sons, Ashura Otsutsuki. So the 1st Hokage's and his very own flesh, Chakra, and life force melded properly after continuously training with the Toads during the past year.
And as he opened his eyes, he released a torrent of massive Chakra that greatly surprised everyone watching the fight, including Sasuke.
"This Chakra..." Sasuke muttered as he felt a shiver down his spine. Sure though, the Chakra he was feeling right now wasn't on the level as that of Kaguya Otsutsuki, but his body remembered the fear he felt when he first felt such a potent, powerful Chakra. "…is similar to the 1st Hokage… no… this Chakra levels now surpassed that of the 1st's…!"
The Chakra that Naruto emitted shook the ground and caused the atmosphere around them to tremble. Then, the Chakra enveloped him into a dense, thick cloak akin to Bijuu Chakra Mode, albeit a version way different than his past power-ups…
Naruto was now clad in a bluish-white Chakra shroud, the shroud itself radiating flickering flame-like Chakra reminiscent of Toneri Otsutsuki's Tenseigan Chakra Mode. And the most surprising part is that the form also has ten Truth Seeking Balls levitating in a circular pattern behind him.
"What… is that form?" Sasuke asked with narrowed eyes. His voice was low enough for the Kages not to hear them despite him being on his Perfect Susanoo.
"Ashura Chakra Mode…" Naruto muttered calmly in more or less the same volume of voice as Sasuke's. "A Chakra Mode that can originally can be used by those who were able to mutate their Byakugan to Tenseigan. The form itself was used by the Six Paths old man's brother, Hamura Otsutsuki, so that both of them can fight together against the Ten Tails from the past."
"But you don't have the Tenseigan, let alone the Byakugan." Sasuke retorted. "How come you can access such transformation?"
"Well, this wasn't the Tenseigan Chakra Mode to begin with. But it is from the same concept. When Hamura departed from Earth to Moon to guard Kaguya's sealed body, he left a scroll to the Six Paths old man. That scroll contained the secrets of accessing this specific jutsu. Hamura said that the said scroll must be given to the person whom Hagoromo will choose as the successor of Ninshu." Naruto continued. "And that was Ashura Otsutsuki, as we knew it."
"And the Sage of the Six Paths gave that scroll to Ashura to give him a better chance while fighting against Indra, the son who inherited his powerful Chakra and eyes. And that same scroll was stored for eons on Mt. Myokobu, waiting for someone capable of unlocking it like Ashura." Sasuke summarized. "But that still doesn't answer my question."
"Well, the Tenseigan Chakra Mode indeed was only accessible to Tenseigan users. But according to Hamura's scroll, it was a misconception." Naruto then continued with a smirk. "The Tenseigan merely acts as a cheat to bypass the requirements to unlock that power. After all, the main requirement was for a Shinobi to have multiple Chakra Origins that were compatible with each other and meld them together. However, it can only be meld thru certain conditions."
"In Ashura's case, it was his own Chakra and the Sage of the Six Paths Chakra being compatible and melding together, creating a more powerful Chakra that allowed Ashura to access that Chakra Mode despite not having Tenseigan. After all, he is not even a Hyuuga to begin with. That's why it was named Ashura Chakra Mode. That's also why Ashura was able to enter Chakra Modes and even use Bijuu Mode-like Chakra Avatars capable of fighting against Indra's Perfect Susanoo despite him not being a Jinchuriki on his own."
"So in my case, since I have my own Chakra, then with the installation of my right arm, an arm created from the 1st Hokage's DNA and Chakra itself, my body was suddenly able to contain additional Chakra Origin from the 1st Hokage himself, and that happened to be completely compatible with mines since both of us are Ashura's transmigrants."
"I see. However, a lot of other Shinobi such as Danzo and Madara used the 1st Hokage's DNA. But how come they weren't able to unlock that power? There is an additional requirement, doesn't it?" Sasuke asked again. It is a concept similar to Mangekyou to Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. To access such amounts of power, a requirement or sacrifice must be met in return.
"There are multiple requirements according to the Elder Toad Sage. One, the multiple Chakra Origin must be compatible with each other. You can't mix oil and water, right?"
"Second, it can only be unlocked by a Shinobi with huge amount of Chakra reserves and life force. According to the Toad Sages, the Chakra Modes require huge amount of Chakra to activate. It requires a certain threshold of Chakra for the user to even access it. For example, Chakra Modes require at least 1000 units to be accessible and 500 units to maintain up to a specific amount of time. A regular Shinobi only has 50 units more or less. I'm merely making up those numbers and units, in fact, it might be far greater than that actually, but that's the overview more or less."
"Third, both Chakra Origins in question should be on the same level, more or less. It is because even if the Chakra Origins are compatible, but if not on the same level, then one of the Chakra Origins will overwrite or consume the other. That's why I still trained hard so that my very own Chakra, without Bijuu's influence, to reach the levels of the 1st Hokage's before trying to access that Chakra Mode."
"Fourth, despite meeting the above-three conditions, the original Chakra Origin and the other Chakra Origin must be able to meld together and make the original Chakra Origin of the user 'evolve' into an entirely new, more potent Chakra. Because some Chakra might be compatible, but they will create different results. Just like that of Madara using Hashirama's Chakra and DNA, but the end result will be the creation of Rinnegan. This Chakra Mode, however, is the by-product of such compatibility. Even if the two Chakras are compatible, the end result may be different and might result in a different kind of power, let alone if that power itself will manifest, or if the user has enough Chakra and life force to contain that power."
"So basically, it is impossible for almost anyone other than you to use that Chakra Mode unless they cheat away and use a Tenseigan." Sasuke sighed in defeat. "Lastly, does this Ashura Chakra Mode of yours is capable of stacking with your other modes?"
Naruto simply grinned in confidence. Sasuke then simply closed his eyes. If this Ashura Chakra Mode, a power-up created by melding Naruto and the 1st Hokage's potent Chakras, with both of which being already Bijuu-levels in their own right, then he can't just imagine how powerful Naruto would be if the blonde Shinobi ever stack it even with, at the very least, his already formidable Sage Mode?
However, more than anything, the Uchiha can't believe that someone like Naruto, a certified school dropout, can make a very cohesive, technical explanation just like what he just heard right now. However, part of him doesn't even want to know what kind of nightmarish training he has gone through for him to be able to dish out such information right off the bat. If Naruto was able to explain something like this, then it really was an S-Rank Training Mission that can only be completed by no one except Naruto himself.
"I guess that's it for now." Sasuke then dispelled his Perfect Susanoo, then landed on his feet. "During our days in the Academy, you're always trying to keep up with me. During the War, you have shown your growth and are able to surpass me. And this time, I'm the one having a hard time keeping up with you."
"Well, I guess I just matured quite a bit. Ahahaha." Naruto said, scratching the back of his head as he dispelled his Ashura Chakra Mode. The two of them then began walking towards each other.
"I actually still have plenty of other tricks on my sleeve. But that's enough for now. I don't want to reveal all my new abilities since the others are also watching. We might be at peace right now, but this era still is a blank period. The current peace that we have was still very fragile, and one wrong move could incite conflict once again. And with the other Otsutsukis possibly lurking somewhere, it would be best to keep getting stronger and prepare for whatever future might hold." Sasuke muttered while walking towards Naruto as well.
"Yeah. We will keep getting stronger so we can protect those who are dear to us. We already have lost a lot. I don't want to keep losing anyone anymore." Naruto said while looking towards the 'moon' of the Genesis Dimension. The two of them now standing just a few meters away from each other.
The Five Kages, Sakura and Hinata then also approached the two powerful Shinobi. Hinata immediately ran towards Naruto's right side and lightly hug him, while Sakura also approached Sasuke with a smile, with the Uchiha returning the gesture with a small one.
"That ending was rather, well, anti-climatic," Kakashi said with a wry smile.
"This is for the better. We don't want the two of them to get hurt just because of a mere spar." Gaara followed a response.
"But still… with the two of you with such powers being official Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, there is definitely an imbalance of power between the Nations right now," Raikage said with bitterness in his words.
"And that itself was the reason why the Daimyos were taking action right now." Mei Terumi ushered in, earning the attention of the four younger Shinobi that was together with them.
"The Daimyos of the Elemental Nations are taking action? What do you mean?" Sakura asked on behalf of Naruto, Hinata, and Sasuke, with the former two having confused expressions while Sasuke narrowed his eyes.
"Hokage. How come the Shinobi of your village still wasn't familiar with the latest law that was announced for implementation by the Daimyos during our last closed-door meeting with them?!" Oonoki lightly yelled towards Kakashi.
"Well… Naruto and Sasuke still weren't in the Village yet by then." Kakashi replied, his expression now serious. "If I will announce such absurd law, then it would be best to announce it to Clan Heads of the Village with both these two in attendance. After all, these two will definitely be the most affected Shinobi once that law was fully implemented."
"And what is that law, Kakashi." Sasuke said with a glare. Naruto also found himself looking towards Kakashi with a much serious expression.
"Two days from now," Kakashi replied. "I already have the Hokage Office staff to contact all the Clan Heads and their prospective successors for a meeting on that schedule. And I will announce this new law by then."
"Why do I have this feeling that this is indeed a very troublesome situation?" Naruto said as he crossed his arm in front of his chest.
"It is, in all sense, very troublesome." Kakashi retorted. "But, before anything else, I tried my best to reason out why that law shouldn't be implemented, or at the very least, be revised in favor of the Shinobi who will not be in favor with it. But it seemed like… the Daimyos have some other plans."
"…" Naruto and Sasuke then looked towards each other. 'This definitely has something to do with us.' Their thoughts are conveyed to each other with just eye contact.
"Very well. Then you're on your own now, Hokage." Raikage then said seriously. "The backlash from the four other Hidden Village due to the implementation of that law was not that good. But it has to be done. We might have achieved peace right now, but the Daimyos are aiming for another kind of war. So prepare yourselves."
"It would be better to return to our home dimension so that we can depart from Konoha right after. Our Villages are still dealing with that law. And we don't want to get caught up into possible trouble once Konoha announces and starts implementing that law in the next few days." Oonoki said as he began levitating.
Sasuke then cast his Rinnegan space-time portal. The Mizukage, Tsuchikage, and Raikage entered immediately. Gaara then approached Naruto and placed a hand on his right shoulder.
"Once you have heard the new law and come to terms with it, I would like to have a personal talk with you in Suna. There is someone from my Village who desperately needs to talk to you." Gaara said in a serious tone. "And it would be for the better if you would take Lady Hinata with you, as your fiancé."
Naruto and Hinata then gave a confused expressions towards Gaara. As the Kazekage bowed and entered the portal, Naruto and Hinata looked towards each other and tightly held each other's hands.
"Smells like another trouble for you, huh?" Hinata said with a small smile.
"Yeah… one after another." Naruto just sighed. "But for now, let's enjoy our time together. I have a feeling that the day after tomorrow is gonna be a long day."
The lone Uzumaki and the Hyuuga Princess entered the portal, then followed by Sasuke and Sakura.
"I really have a bad feeling about this law," Sasuke muttered.
"Don't worry too much about it," Sakura replied with a reassuring smile. "No matter what happens, I'll always be by your side."
Sasuke then gave Sakura a small smile as the portal disappeared from the side of the Genesis Dimension...