Chapter 94: Capturing the Two-Tails Alive (Part 2)
With a thunderous crash, the massive blue paw of the Two-Tails struck a crimson circular shield. However, in its weakened state, the demon cat lacked the strength to repel Itachi's Susanoo.
The red-armored warrior's left arm, wielding the shield, countered with a powerful shove. The impact sent the Two-Tails staggering, as if it had momentarily lost its balance. Seizing the opening, Susanoo raised its glowing blade once again and brought it crashing down upon the beast's lower back.
The Two-Tails howled in agony, but it didn't give in. It still tried to struggle and flee—yet Itachi had no intention of letting it escape.
Controlling Susanoo with unwavering precision, he slammed the shield-bearing arm down, pinning the demon cat's head to the ground. Then, without mercy, the massive red sword continued slashing at the beast's body in a relentless barrage.
Thunderous booms echoed through the valley with every strike. Dust and debris were sent flying dozens of meters into the air, forming a dense cloud that shrouded the battlefield.
When the onslaught finally ceased and the dust began to settle, a massive crater was revealed. At its center, the Two-Tails lay still, seemingly drained of all energy.
Under normal circumstances, an attack of this scale might not have posed a fatal threat to a tailed beast or a Jinchūriki in full transformation. They were durable, immensely so.
But Yūgito was far from her full strength. Her mind, ravaged by seventy-two hours of torture inside Itachi's Tsukuyomi, had already reached its breaking point. She had only been acting on the last flickers of consciousness. Under the unrelenting force of Susanoo's blows, she finally collapsed into unconsciousness.
Slowly, her Bijū transformation began to unravel. The chakra cloak dissipated, the massive demon cat form shrinking away until only the human figure of Yūgito remained—still and powerless.
With care, Itachi maneuvered Susanoo to lift Yūgito gently in its massive hand.
A quiet breath escaped his lips.
"I've done it. I didn't let sensei down… This should meet his expectations."
All around, the remaining Cloud shinobi stood frozen, their expressions a mix of disbelief and dread. They stared up at the towering Susanoo and the captured form of their Jinchūriki, limp in its grasp.
"What… what kind of power is this? Even a Jinchūriki couldn't fight back…" one murmured, almost in denial.
"Is that some kind of summoned beast? But… I've never heard of a summoning like this," another said, his voice shaking.
Dodai's face was pale, his heart pounding. He clenched his fists and muttered to himself:
"So this… is the legendary Susanoo?"
He recalled ancient documents—fragments of history mentioning a terrible power wielded by those who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. Until now, it had seemed more myth than fact.
But now, standing before him, it was terrifyingly real.
Dodai knew there was no saving Yūgito now. With a heavy sigh, he immediately led the remaining Kumo-nin into full retreat, heading back along their original route.
"She was off," he muttered to himself. "Yūgito didn't unleash even a fraction of the Two-Tails' full power before going down. That Uchiha's Susanoo is powerful, yes—but under normal conditions, the Two-Tails should've been able to withstand that kind of attack."
As he retreated, Dodai replayed the events in his mind. Just before her fall, Yūgito had warned them not to look into the Uchiha boy's eyes.
"Could it be…? That Mangekyō Sharingan—did it use some kind of powerful ocular technique to incapacitate her before the battle even began?"
He quickly pieced together a rough understanding of the situation and hastened his retreat. This intel needed to reach the Fourth Raikage immediately.
Back on the battlefield, Itachi made no move to pursue. His priority now was to deliver the captured Two-Tails Jinchūriki safely to Yusuke.
He used Konoha's unique communication system to order the forward units to pull back temporarily and halt their assault on the Kumo stronghold.
Then, accompanied by Izumi and the rest of his team, he began the return journey to Yusuke's location with the unconscious Yūgito in tow.
After releasing Susanoo and deactivating his Mangekyō Sharingan, Itachi took extra precautions—sealing away Yūgito's chakra to prevent any chance of resistance, however unlikely.
In truth, Yūgito had already reached her limit long ago, staying conscious only through sheer willpower. Even if she had escaped, without immediate medical aid back at Kumo's base, it would've taken her a very long time to recover.
Much like Kakashi in the original timeline—after falling victim to Itachi's Tsukuyomi, he quickly slipped into a coma and didn't recover until Tsunade returned to Konoha to heal him… though not without scolding him first.
"I feel dizzy… my vision's a bit blurry too," Izumi murmured, swaying slightly.
Itachi instantly caught her, concern flashing across his face.
He recognized the symptoms. Having overused his Mangekyō Sharingan before, he knew exactly what was happening.
Izumi's Shin'i Flash wasn't particularly taxing on her eye power, but her innate ocular strength was still weaker than his or Shisui's. After multiple uses in battle, her vision had begun to suffer.
Handing off Yūgito to a teammate, Itachi scooped Izumi into a gentle bridal carry.
"Close your eyes. Just rest for a bit," he said softly.
Blushing, Izumi nodded and leaned her head against his shoulder.
She was light—petite and slender—and for someone like Itachi, who trained rigorously in taijutsu, holding her caused no burden at all.
"I wonder if sensei has any way to help her eyes…" Itachi thought, deeply worried.
He'd already asked Yusuke once about the possibility of transplanting Shisui's eyes into Izumi. But Yusuke had said it was impossible—for now. Only direct blood relatives could safely transplant Mangekyō Sharingan.
Meanwhile, Dodai had returned to the Kumo frontline headquarters. There, he gave the Raikage a full report on their clash with Itachi's squad, placing particular focus on the abilities of Itachi and Izumi.
In his seasoned judgment, both were unmistakably Mangekyō Sharingan wielders from the Uchiha clan.
He described their powers in detail: Itachi's devastating genjutsu, which had seemingly neutralized Yūgito before the fight even began, and his near-invincible Susanoo. As for Izumi, he explained her lightning-fast teleportation—something that far outclassed even traditional Body Flicker techniques.
"Honestly," Dodai added grimly, "it's a good thing I've spent years sparring with multiple Raikage, helping test and refine the 'Double Lariat.' I've gotten used to tracking ultra-high-speed attacks. Otherwise…"
He exhaled heavily.
"I'd probably be dead by that girl's blade already."
At the end of his report, Dodai fell silent for a moment, then murmured:
"…I have a bad feeling about this war. Declaring battle against Konoha… it might have been the beginning of our downfall."