NOVEL WEB Chapter 41: CHAPTER 41
"Then we can't let him go back alive." Kidomaru said, eyes fixed on Sasuke with six hands clasped together.
"Watch me suck all his chakra dry!" Jirobo yelled.
Sakon grinned wickedly at Sasuke, and Ukon, who had been fused with his body, vanished in that instant.
"Hahahaha, this brat's going to die soon. He'll feel every cell in his body rot from the inside before he dies in total agony!"
The arrogance of the Sound Four made Sasuke narrow his eyes. At the same time, he sensed something foreign invading his body.
"Feel the pain, brat!" a voice identical to Sakon's came from within Sasuke. A head with Sakon's face began to emerge grotesquely from Sasuke's back.
"Tch! You're really insidious, Sakon. You slipped Ukon into his body ahead of time," Kidomaru growled.
"Now that he's under control, I'll drain his chakra dry before we finish him," Jirobo sneered, stepping forward.
But Sasuke had enough.
"Ants… who gave you the courage to speak so arrogantly?"
Sasuke's voice was calm, deadly. He glared coldly at the Sound Four.
Inside Sasuke's body, Ukon was panicking.
"Damn it! Why can't I control him?!"
At that moment, Sasuke released his spiritual pressure—his raw killing intent honed from battles and forged by hatred. The air distorted with the weight of his aura, and his cloak flared wildly in the rising wind.
"AHHH!!!"
Ukon screamed in agony as the spiritual pressure crushed him, forcibly ejecting him from Sasuke's body.
Dust blew around them. The Sound Four staggered. The oppressive weight in the air bent their knees. Cold sweat dripped from each of their brows, and they trembled in place.
This… pressure…
It was unbelievable. The only time they'd felt this kind of overwhelming presence was near Orochimaru himself.
"The frog in the well believes the sky ends at the rim," Sasuke said, voice cold and steady. "But you're not even frogs. You're insects in the dark—your world isn't even as big as a palm. That's where your arrogance comes from."
Sasuke slowly drew his Zanpakuto from his waist, its spiritual steel humming with power.
Damn it! Move!
Under Sasuke's suffocating aura, only Tayuya—already in the second stage of the Cursed Seal—could move. The other three were paralyzed.
Dark markings crawled over their bodies as they activated the Cursed Seal Level Two, finally regaining control of their limbs.
"Let me ask you," Sasuke said, pointing his Zanpakuto at them, "Does a beast without fangs not bite?"
"Don't get cocky!!" Kidomaru shouted.
He instantly entered Cursed Seal Level Two. Spider limbs sprouted from his back, and a large bow of hardened gold chakra thread formed in his hands.
"Die!!"
He pulled the bowstring taut and fired a piercing golden arrow straight at Sasuke.
The Sound Four froze as Sasuke, without blinking, raised one hand and caught the arrow mid-flight. A soft crack echoed as the chakra-forged projectile shattered in his grip.
"Here's your answer. Beasts… devour."
"Hadō #54: Haien."
A violet flame erupted from Sasuke's hand, consuming Ukon where he lay. He screamed as he burned to ash.
Before the others could react, Sasuke flash-stepped in front of Kidomaru and slashed.
Blood sprayed.
Despite his hardened gold armor, Kidomaru's body was cleaved from shoulder to waist. Staggering, he barely jumped back.
"Earth Release: Earth Dome Prison!"
Jirobo slammed his hands down. A dome of rock rose around Sasuke, sealing him in.
Kidomaru, pale and wounded, began treating his injury with spider thread.
"Damn it! I'll kill him!" Sakon roared. With Ukon dead, his kekkei genkai was ruined. His strength would plummet. Ukon wasn't just a partner—he was his brother.
"Hadō #88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!!"
A colossal beam of lightning tore through the earth dome in a single blast, continuing straight toward Tayuya. Her eyes widened—she barely dodged, leaping clear.
Behind her, the bandaged ogre puppet was obliterated.
"Repeating failures again and again. Does that give you satisfaction?"
Sasuke appeared beside Sakon and kicked him hard in the chest, sending him hurtling dozens of meters.
"Demonic Flute: Phantom Sound Chains!"
Tayuya raised her flute. The ogre with the iron club roared and hurled it at Sasuke.
Sasuke raised his Zanpakuto.
One slash.
The club was severed mid-air. Sparks flew.
But Jirobo was ready, lifting a boulder the size of a cart above his head and throwing it.
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
Lightning flashed from Sasuke's palm. The boulder exploded into dust before it landed.
Sasuke extended one hand.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui!"
A surge of blue fire roared toward Jirobo—but a crimson gate carved with monstrous visages rose to block it.
"Rashōmon," Tayuya muttered.
Sakon, now in Cursed Seal Level Two, slammed both hands into the ground, glaring at Sasuke.
So that's Rashōmon… Let's test its limits.
Sasuke raised his Zanpakuto and aimed the blade at the demonic gate.
"Shoot to kill, Shinsō."
The blade extended instantly, a silver spear of light piercing Rashōmon and impaling Jirobo behind it through the chest.
So fast… So sharp… Enhanced by spiritual pressure, Shinsō's reach and speed had increased even further.
"That Rashōmon was paper-thin. Don't tell me it was a fake?" Sasuke taunted.
He let the blade retract.
Maybe Rashōmon wasn't all it was hyped to be. Even the Fivefold Rashōmon cast by Hashirama couldn't fully block the Tailed Beast Ball.
"Enough. I've lost patience."
Sasuke raised his Zanpakuto, its edge engulfed in flame.
"All things in the universe turn to ash... Ryūjin Jakka."
A blazing inferno consumed the blade. The heat scorched the air. The ground steamed.
"Ennetsu Jigoku."
Sasuke slashed upward. A swirling cyclone of fire spiraled up from the earth, enclosing the Sound Four in a flaming tornado. The inferno compressed inward with every turn—consuming all in its path.
Screams were heard… and then, only silence remained.
Ashes scattered into the wind.