Chapter 42: Chapter 42
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"It's okay if no one sees it; otherwise, it's too embarrassing."
"It's not necessary to bring people back to their senses like this. He's not a child anymore."
Tsunade murmured in her heart, staring at Uchiha Shin's back.
She recalled the golden skeletal structure that had just protected her, and couldn't help but think of the recorded accounts in the Senju archives about the "divine power" the Uchiha clan wielded upon awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.
According to rumors, it was the power Uchiha Madara himself had mastered, capable of rivaling her grandfather, Senju Hashirama.
But up until now, she had never seen an Uchiha manifest it.
Today, she had seen it—in Uchiha Shin.
"Does this mean he's awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?
That's absurd! He's only twelve!
Even though he carries himself like an adult, his body is still... he's still a child!"
Tsunade was shaken, but Uchiha Shin, on the other hand, was filled with nothing but exhilaration.
As he stepped closer to the lifeless corpse of the Salamander, he found the dying form of Hanzo beneath it.
His reaction speed was truly impressive. At the last moment, he had used his summoned creature as a shield against the attack.
"Impressive," Shin mused. "But against absolute power and overwhelming numbers, such efforts are meaningless."
"You…"
Hanzo struggled to open his eyes, attempting to say something.
Before he could finish, Uchiha Shin grabbed him by the throat, lifting him effortlessly.
"Kagutsuchi!"
Black flames erupted from his palm, engulfing Hanzo's body entirely.
Simultaneously, another surge of those same flames shot toward the lifeless Salamander corpse beside them.
"Mangekyō...?" Hanzo gasped in horror, barely able to voice his final words.
The searing flames of Amaterasu devoured him. His flesh disintegrated, his body shriveling until nothing remained but a pile of ashes.
Uchiha Shin closed his eyes, feeling the surge of vitality and chakra coursing through him.
A moment later, he opened them again, his eight-pointed Mangekyō gleaming ominously.
"Half of my left eye's chakra has recovered, and my vision remains unaffected.
My physical capabilities and chakra levels have improved across the board.
And… it seems I've gained resistance to poisons."
Glancing at the pool of venom left behind by Hanzo's summon, Shin made a bold decision. He sliced his own palm and allowed the venom to seep into the open wound.
With the ability of "Life Return," he could manipulate his body's cellular structure at will. If the toxins proved too dangerous, he would simply discard the infected cells.
The poison spread rapidly through his bloodstream.
Yet… nothing happened. His body neutralized the toxins effortlessly.
"The combination of the Uzumaki lineage's life force and the antibodies obtained from Hanzo has made me resistant to poison—even to the infamous Salamander venom."
A slow, wicked grin spread across Shin's face.
He understood the gravity of this.
Even Hanzo, despite his own immunity to poisons, could still succumb to the venom of his own summon under the right conditions.
But Shin… he was now immune to all poisons.
As a shinobi who often employed poison in battle, he knew exactly how valuable this was. No longer would he need to rely on merely coating his blades or iron sand with poison. Now, he could unleash large-scale toxic attacks without hesitation.
A grin tugged at his lips as the possibilities raced through his mind.
Seeing this unsettling smile, Tsunade, who had come closer, felt a shiver run down her spine.
"He's definitely thinking of something terrible," she thought instinctively.
At that moment, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and a group of Konoha shinobi arrived.
Upon seeing the remains—or rather, the absence—of Hanzo, realization dawned upon them.
Uchiha Shin had slain Hanzo of the Salamander.
"Lord Uchiha Shin!"
"Lord Uchiha Shin!"
The first voice called out, and soon, every Konoha ninja present followed suit, their cheers echoing across the battlefield.
In their eyes, Uchiha Shin had surpassed even the Sannin.
Jiraiya and Orochimaru exchanged complicated glances.
No matter how much they denied it, the "Kirin" Shin had unleashed moments ago was strong enough to annihilate them.
A twelve-year-old who had already outgrown them in power.
Orochimaru's golden eyes flickered as he studied Shin's Mangekyō.
"The Uchiha bloodline... its potential is monstrous."
Compared to Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Tsunade's feelings were simpler.
She was genuinely happy for Shin.
Well... aside from his little "antics" earlier.
While they secured the battlefield, the other fronts in Amegakure received word of Hanzo's defeat.
Hanzo had withdrawn a significant number of elite Rain shinobi for his failed offensive, and Tsunade's earlier strategy had ensured Konoha's numerical superiority at key positions.
As a result, within hours, the battle turned overwhelmingly in Konoha's favor.
The Hidden Rain Village fell. Hanzo's death sent shockwaves throughout the shinobi world.
As the news spread, so too did the names of those who had brought him down.
Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru—the students of the Third Hokage—were henceforth known as the "Legendary Sannin of Konoha."
And as for Uchiha Shin...
The young shinobi who had slain the "Demi-God" of the shinobi world...
A new title emerged.
"Konoha's Thunder God."
When the nickname reached Shin, he could only stare, speechless.
"Do people really love giving out titles that much?"
He sighed.
"Did anyone even ask for my opinion? I'm not just good at Lightning Release, you know..."
Unfortunately, his protests did nothing to stop the moniker from spreading. The entire ninja world had already accepted it.
Back in Konoha, the Uchiha clan's more militant faction was ecstatic.
The elder, Uchiha Shinji, practically grinned from ear to ear each day, eagerly awaiting Shin's return so he could assume leadership of their faction.
Even the more pacifist members of the clan began to view Shin in a different light. Many started shifting their loyalties towards the hawkish faction.
After all, where was Uchiha Fugaku?
Nowhere to be seen.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Shin, who was younger, had already carved his name into history.
The ripples of this battle had only just begun.
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Bonus Chapter - 200 Power Stones