Chương 121

Rei's breathing unconsciously became heavier as countless thoughts raced through his mind. He knew that attire. He knew every single detail of it. The flowing white cape, the crescent moon upon the chest, the living bandages and even the strange manipulation over moonlight itself. None of it belonged anywhere near the Naruto world.

"... Moon Knight..." he whispered almost inaudibly. Unlike everyone else, he wasn't shocked by Sasuke's strength. He was terrified by what that strength represented. He knew what it entailed for him the rest of his life. Without another moment of hesitation, Rei vanished in another flash of yellow.

"Hiraishin!" The next instant he appeared beside the barely conscious Kabuto. Before the silver-haired medic could even process what had happened, the edge of a Flying Thunder God kunai rested firmly against his throat. A tiny line of blood immediately formed where the blade kissed his skin. Orochimaru slowly climbed out from the rubble left by Sasuke's punch. His golden eyes immediately narrowed the moment they found Kabuto with a blade against his neck.

For the first time since arriving, the Snake Sannin found himself placed into a genuine dilemma. Rei's voice had become frighteningly calm.

"Take him."

"..."

"You came here for Tsunade-sama. You tried to brand Sasuke. You fought us." Rei continued without moving the kunai even a fraction.

"You've already overstayed your welcome. Leave now with Kabuto, or I slit his throat first. After that.... the three of us finish hunting you down." Jiraiya slowly walked beside Rei despite the poison still dulling his body. On their side Sasuke had arrived while still on his Moon Knight attire. His white cloak billowing silently behind him while the crescent blades rested comfortably within his hands. Even Gamabunta's enormous eyes remained fixed upon the mysterious new warrior.

Orochimaru quickly calculated the odds. His own arms remained permanently crippled by the Third Hokage. Kabuto had suffered Naruto's Rasengan and was out of it. Continuing this battle offered no reward, only unnecessary risk. He was still trying to understand what happened to Sasuke to be able to make those maneuvers and for some reason he always felt that this new attire which he seemed to materialize out of nothing was behind this new power. He couldn't point out why but his instincts were telling him so.

A slow smile returned to his face.

"... How disappointing." Orochimaru sighed dramatically.

"It seems today simply isn't my day." Rei's expression never changed.

"I'm counting to three." Orochimaru didn't wait for one. He immediately appeared beside Kabuto, as Rei let go and thus he grabbed the injured medic by the shoulder with his snake tongue and retreated several dozen meters away. The giant serpent dissolved into smoke while the Snake Sannin looked back one final time, his golden eyes lingering on Sasuke longer than anyone else.

"... We'll meet again, Sasuke-kun." Kabuto finally woke up and leaned against Orochimaru's shoulder, both figures disappeared into the forest without another word. Only after their chakra signatures completely vanished did Rei finally lower his kunai. The battlefield became strangely quiet. Naruto's attention immediately abandoned Orochimaru altogether as he sprinted toward Sasuke with stars practically shining in his eyes.

"Sasuke!" he shouted excitedly.

"That was awesome! Where did those clothes come from? How are you flying? Can you teach me that? And those moon knives! They came back! They actually came back!" He circled Sasuke nonstop, barely allowing him a chance to answer a single question. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Jiraiya approached much more slowly, his experienced eyes carefully studying every detail of the strange attire. Unlike Naruto, his curiosity wasn't childish excitement but genuine analysis.

"... Forget the weapons." Jiraiya said thoughtfully.

"How were you flying? That wasn't chakra standing, and it definitely wasn't any Wind Release technique I've ever seen. Even that strange slowing effect... I've never witnessed anything remotely similar." A few meters away, Rei remained completely silent. His gaze never left the crescent emblem upon Sasuke's chest.

"... Khonshu..." he muttered internally. And a rage had started to build up inside him. A rage that was going to erupt now. His breathing steadied instead of becoming erratic, yet that only made the atmosphere more oppressive. Without warning, his body disappeared from where he stood. A violent explosion echoed across the battlefield as his fist buried itself directly into Sasuke's abdomen. The force lifted the transformed Uchiha completely off the ground before launching him through one enormous tree...

then another... and another. Each trunk shattered into splinters as Sasuke's body carved a straight path across the forest.

"What the hell?!" Naruto shouted in complete disbelief. Neither Naruto nor Shizune understood what had just happened. One moment Orochimaru had retreated, and the next Rei was attacking the very teammate he had been trying so desperately to protect moments earlier. Even Jiraiya froze for a heartbeat before instinctively rushing forward to stop him. However, before the Sannin could even cover half the distance, another thunderous impact erupted somewhere deep inside the forest. Rei had already reached Sasuke again.

Sasuke's face now had a small blob of blood spot as he looked up at Rei. Instead of fear, amusement slowly spread beneath the white mask. His wings of cloth fluttered gently behind him as he rose back into the air without effort. The moonlight surrounding his body seemed almost alive. Without speaking another word, he shot toward Rei, and the two collided head-on. Their fists met in midair with enough force to produce a deafening shockwave that flattened the surrounding trees. Jiraiya's eyes widened.

"... Impossible." The ground beneath them cracked apart as the collision sent both combatants flying in opposite directions. Rei twisted through the air before landing effortlessly upon a massive boulder. Sasuke stopped himself by hovering several meters above the ground. The transformed Uchiha showed no sign of losing the contest of strength. Instead, he grinned beneath the mask before charging again, eager to test the limits of his newfound body. The next exchange became almost invisible.

Every collision echoed like artillery throughout the valley as the two disappeared and reappeared faster than ordinary eyes could follow. Trees exploded simply from the pressure generated by their movements. Massive rocks burst apart whenever either of them was driven into the ground. Even Gamabunta found himself watching silently, realizing that interfering now would only get him caught between two monsters trading blows with nothing but raw physical strength. Jiraya felt like he was watching two Tsunade fight.

At least Tsunade didn't have that much speed, but these two guys were using Shunshin while also going at each other with nothing but raw strength. He couldn't understand how that was possible. Jiraiya formed several hand seals before attempting to intercept them.

"Enough! Both of you—" He never finished. Before he could reach either teenager, Rei and Sasuke had already exchanged another dozen blows several hundred meters away. The old Sannin slowly lowered his hands, a bitter smile appearing across his face. Right now he was hating the fact that he was weakened otherwise he could have used Senjutsu to stop this farce, which he didn't understand of why it had started. His attention shifted toward Rei, and what he saw made his heart skip a beat. Natural energy.

Pigmentation slowly formed around Rei's eyes while an overwhelming aura spread across the battlefield. The surrounding wind itself seemed to become heavier as nature chakra poured into his body without restraint.

"... Senjutsu..." Jiraiya whispered.

"How.. How does a genin of his stature have senjutsu.. What is he hiding?" Naruto, meanwhile knew that shit just got serious seeing him using Senjutsu. For years Rei had never showed his full range, except for those who were under contract. Yet now he stood openly using Sage Transformation, something Jiraiya himself had only recently begun considering teaching Naruto in the distant future. Even Shizune looked completely speechless.

Another explosion rang out as Rei's Sage-enhanced fist slammed into Sasuke's jaw, sending the transformed Uchiha tumbling across the battlefield. Yet before Rei could press the advantage, Sasuke simply stopped himself in midair and slowly floated back down, brushing imaginary dust from his shoulder. A low chuckle escaped him.

"... So that's it." Rei said nothing.

"You're jealous."

"... What?" Naruto shouted. Sasuke laughed again, louder this time.

"I was chosen." His silver eyes beneath the mask remained fixed upon Rei.

"Whatever this power is... whatever frightened you so much... it chose me." His smile widened.

"And you can't stand it." Rei's fists slowly clenched until his knuckles turned white. The fury burning inside him had nothing to do with jealousy. It came from knowing exactly whose blessing Sasuke had accepted and the terrible price that always accompanied it. Rei didn't respond in words, instead he did so with a punch on his face sending Sasuke tumbling back.

"Do you have any fucking idea what you have done? Do you even know what that emblem means? Do you even know what he wants from you?" Rei shouted. Sasuke who had stood back up and slowly allowed the cowl and face mask to recede looked at Rei with confusion in eyes.

"He had asked you before?" Sasuke asked as he couldn't understand how Rei knew of his power as he only mentioned a power, not a person behind it.