Fujimoto Tōma watched Hatake Sakumo carefully, a quiet sense of respect settling in his chest.
Every strike Sakumo chose was optimal. No wasted motion. Each slash aid for the most fragile points of the human body. His speed was sharp, his angles vicious, his blade clean and lethal.
Against almost anyone else, this would have been a nightmare.
But Tōma had an advantage.
Chakra perception.
Every movent Sakumo made arrived in Tōma’s senses before the blade did. Direction, angle, timing. All of it laid bare. What made Sakumo terrifying on the battlefield beca manageable here.
That gap in information was everything.
It dulled the edge of Sakumo’s assassination style just enough for Tōma to dismantle it thodically.
Still, Tōma could imagine it clearly. On a real battlefield, this man would have been a walking executioner. The na "White Fang" hadn’t co from nowhere.
"Hatake Sakumo," Tōma said calmly. "Would you like to see Kakashi?"
Sakumo froze.
The expression on his face twisted, guilt surfacing imdiately. The greatest regret of his life stood between those syllables. He had left Kakashi alone at an age when a child should never have been abandoned.
Did he even have the right to face him now?
Tōma didn’t push. He simply explained, briefly, what Kakashi’s life had been like since then. The missions. The losses. The silence.
Sakumo’s face paled.
How had that boy survived all of that?
And wasn’t he the reason Kakashi had needed to?
"...Please," Sakumo said at last, voice low. "Let see him. Thank you, Hokage-sama."
Tōma nodded. "It’s my duty."
In the next instant, space folded.
Tōma sent Sakumo away using Flying Thunder God. The mark he had once left in Kakashi’s sight had never been removed.
With that done, Tōma turned to the remaining three.
They were in rough shape. The relentless electromagnetic bombardnt had drained them heavily.
Uchiha Itachi was in the worst condition.
With his mind stripped away by Orochimaru, his judgnt was dulled. He attacked relentlessly, but his defense suffered for it. His overall strength had dropped sharply.
Tōma suspected there was more to it.
Orochimaru had failed to take Itachi in Konoha. Then failed again within Akatsuki, being defeated instantly. Psychological scars ran deep, even in snakes.
So matchups simply didn’t favor logic.
Tōma didn’t hesitate.
He placed both hands on the ground.
Earth surged upward, swallowing Itachi’s body completely. A sealing mark ford atop the mound. Even during the seal, Tōma avoided direct contact.
Who knew when Izanami might trigger?
"Now," Tōma said, looking up. "Only two left."
Uchiha Fugaku opened his mouth, then closed it again. The battle had unraveled far faster than he could process.
Monts ago, there had been five of them.
Now, three were gone.
Was this the power of the Hokage?
Or was this sothing unique to the Sixth?
"...Hokage-sama," Fugaku finally said. "May I see Sasuke?"
He had heard what Tōma offered Sakumo. And he dared to hope.
"Yes," Tōma replied.
He ford a single seal.
A compressed spatial wave tore through Fugaku’s newly ford black Susanoo, cleaving it apart effortlessly. A coffin of earth sealed Fugaku inside.
Flying Thunder God carried both away.
Might Dai stood alone now, gasping for breath, eyes burning.
"So this," he said hoarsely, "is the strength of the Hokage..."
"Only you remain," Tōma said. "If you have a final card, use it."
Among the earlier opponents, Uzumaki Mito’s sealing chains had been the most troubleso. But her lack of combat experience limited their threat.
Hatake Sakumo’s coordination with her had been deadly, but Tōma’s reaction speed and movent techniques had neutralized it.
The Uchiha duo were dangerous only because of Izanami. Susanoo itself was imposing, but not especially durable.
Might Dai, though—
Even now, he posed no real threat.
His speed was trendous. The Eight Gates granted overwhelming power. But straightforward force alone wasn’t enough.
Against Tōma, it simply wasn’t sharp enough.
If this were his real body, he could have t Dai head-on.
Seven Gates included.
"...You really see ," Dai said suddenly.
Tears stread down his face.
It caught Tōma completely off guard.
After a long mont, Dai wiped his eyes, expression turning solemn.
"Then please watch closely, Hokage-sama."
He crouched low.
Pain wracked his body. His skin flushed red. Blood-red chakra vapor erupted outward.
"The Eighth Gate," Orochimaru muttered, eyes gleaming. "So this is it..."
The power surged violently. Even incomplete, it distorted the air.
The ground beneath Dai cracked apart as if crushed by an invisible weight.
When he spread his arms, space itself seed to warp.
"Eight Gates," Dai roared.
"Gate of Death. Open!"
He vanished.
Every nerve in Tōma’s body scread.
Without hesitation, he disappeared.
A split second later, Dai’s descending kick obliterated the spot Tōma had stood, carving a massive crater into the earth.
A single strand of hair drifted down.
Tōma had escaped—but barely.
Reappearing midair, his hands blurred through seals.
"Swift Release. Godspeed."
Chakra flooded his body.
Dai kicked off the air itself, charging upward.
"Evening Elephant!"
The air detonated.
Tōma vanished again.
Dai followed, standing impossibly in the sky.
"Evening Elephant—Triple!"
The shockwave engulfed everything.
Orochimaru’s expression flickered. Even he was caught within its range.
But he smiled.
This body could regenerate.
What would Tōma do?
Space twisted.
"Space-Ti Ninjutsu," Tōma said calmly.
"Dinsional Blade."
Three spatial slashes tore upward, cleaving the shockwaves apart.
It wasn’t about stopping everything. Just clearing his own path.
The remaining blast slamd into the ground—
And from the smoke, an electromagnetic cannon fired upward.
Dai dodged instinctively.
Tōma appeared before him.
"The end," Tōma said softly. "Wind Release. Rift Cutter."
The slash passed cleanly through Dai’s body.
Dai smiled as he fell.
The sky belonged to Tōma alone.
Below, explosions faded.
Dai lay burned black, laughing.
"You didn’t even need that last hit," he said. "I was already finished."
Tōma nodded. "Your son surpassed you long ago."
Dai smiled proudly. "Good. I hope he never has to open the Eight Gates."
"He won’t," Tōma said. "Not while I’m Hokage."
"...Thank you."
After sending Dai away, Tōma turned to Orochimaru.
"Looks like I won," Tōma said.
Orochimaru laughed softly.
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