"Ah... how could that be? I only used two ninjutsu..."
Suddenly, the Cloud Ninja Amai, who had been fighting fiercely, screamed and froze. A worm-shaped bulge appeared on his chest—it was obvious he, too, had been parasitized by the Exploding Insect.
The scene made everyone turn sharply, their expressions growing grim.
"The thing I least wanted to see has happened," Kakashi sighed. It was precisely this risk that had kept him from acting to take down the enemy sooner. And yet...
"Now!" Seeing Amai forced to retreat from battle, the Nokizaru Group Leader made a snap decision and charged straight at Tsunade.
"Don't underestimate me!" Tsunade shouted, seeing him approach. Instinctively, she unleashed her monstrous strength.
But just as she was about to strike, she remembered she might also be parasitized by the Exploding Insect—and quickly suppressed her chakra output.
Bang! Her chakra-restricted punch collided with the fists of the Nokizaru leader!
"Hehe, do you know why I didn't turn to smoke to dodge?" The Nokizaru leader grinned as he caught her right fist, now locked in his clawed grip. "Because this way... I can capture you."
Without waiting for a response, his eyes flashed coldly. He pulled a kunai with his left hand and drove it viciously toward Tsunade's chest.
If he could eliminate this medical ninja, the entire tide of the battle would shift instantly.
"Oh no!" Ishikawa, who had been observing the battle with full focus, changed expression and rushed forward, chakra bursting beneath his feet.
But no matter how fast Ishikawa moved, he couldn't outpace the enemy's strike. The Raikage and Kakashi were tangled up with other Nokizaru people—rescue was impossible in time.
At that critical moment—"Heavenly Pain Kick!"
With no hesitation, Tsunade's beautiful eyes narrowed, and she launched a sharp upward kick!
Boom! In an instant, that monstrous strength traveled through her jade-white leg and slammed into the stunned Nokizaru leader, who had only turned his legs to smoke just in time to partially dodge.
"You... you tricked me! I didn't expect... not enough time to fully transform... Damn..." The leader stared at the blood-soaked bulge on Tsunade's lower abdomen, a mix of pride and agony flashing in his eyes. A stream of blood gushed from his mouth as his body was sent flying.
"Damn it…" Tsunade's hand moved to the worm-shaped lump now visible on her lower abdomen. She opened her mouth to speak, but then her pupils suddenly dilated—her gaze caught sight of the blood around her.
Her body trembled uncontrollably. She collapsed, overcome by despair.
'That's… Lady Tsunade's Hemophobia!?'
'It's over. Why is this happening again!?'
Kakashi and Ishikawa instantly realized things had gone south. What terrified them more was the confirmation that Tsunade, too, had been parasitized by the Exploding Insect.
This was very bad...
"Lady Tsunade!" Ishikawa, already mid-rush, accelerated further, picked Tsunade up by the waist, and rushed her back to Shizune.
"Blood...? Tsunade, the famous medical ninja, is afraid of blood? Then what about our deal? Who's going to remove the Exploding Insect now?" The Raikage's expression twisted in disbelief and confusion.
"This is bad. He might not trust us anymore," Kakashi muttered as he flashed beside Ishikawa, his face unusually tense.
Kakashi quickly scanned the situation and made a swift decision. "Shizune, take Ishikawa and the others. Escort Lady Tsunade back and find a way to treat both her and yourself. I suspect all of you may have been infected by the Exploding Insect."
As he spoke, Kakashi pulled out two scrolls and handed them to Ishikawa—one was the Lightning Chakra Mode scroll, the other a sealing scroll containing 300,000 Ryo.
Obviously, they were going to burn their boats!!
"No, I refuse." Ishikawa rejected the order without a second thought, for the same reason as before. Even though the Raikage and Kakashi were currently holding the enemy at bay, he still wasn't willing to give up on Kakashi, give up the 500 million ryo, or abandon his friendship with Tsunade.
Just as Kakashi was about to scold him, he saw the Nokizaru attackers approaching.
"Fire Style: Flaming Hail..."
"Water Style: Water Bullets..."
The two enemies simultaneously formed hand seals and unleashed a sudden combined ninjutsu assault. The intent was obvious—to force Kakashi into using chakra-based jutsu so the Exploding Insect could absorb his chakra and rapidly grow.
"Earth Style: Earth..." Kakashi began to form hand seals the moment he saw the incoming fire arrows and dozens of water bullets, preparing to cast an Earth Style defense.
But just as he began, Ishikawa suddenly interrupted his seals with a sharp elbow. Kakashi turned, about to reprimand him—when he saw Ishikawa finishing the seals and slamming his hands onto the ground.
"Could it be?" Kakashi's expression shifted at the sight of Ishikawa's familiar hand signs.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall..."
To Kakashi's surprise—as well as his two younger companions'—a thick earthen wall with a carved dog head surged from the ground instantly after Ishikawa's low chant.
Puff, puff, puff… boom…
In the very next moment, the enemy's ninjutsu slammed into the wall like torrential rain, causing it to tremble violently from the impact.
"Earth-Style Wall? You already learned this B-rank Earth Release Jutsu?!" Kakashi exclaimed without thinking.
"B-rank Earth Release? I thought it was C-rank?" Ishikawa feigned surprise and looked at Kakashi with a confused expression, making the latter feel awkward.
"Ahem... now's not the time for that. You should leave while you still can." Kakashi touched his nose, smiled awkwardly, and urged them again.
Yet deep in his heart, he reaffirmed Ishikawa's talent. This guy was definitely a wasted genius! Such a promising student couldn't be allowed to die here.
"Teacher, haven't you noticed yet?" Ishikawa didn't respond directly but pointed to his chest.
"Huh? What the—?" Seeing the gesture, Kakashi turned on his Sharingan and scanned Ishikawa in confusion.
Ishikawa had clearly used chakra to cast ninjutsu, but the Exploding Insect on his body had only grown a tiny bit. It was so subtle that Kakashi had to squint carefully to even locate it.
More shocked now, Kakashi turned to Taro and Jiro. With the help of his Sharingan, he examined their bodies—only to be even more stunned. The Exploding Insects in them not only showed no signs of absorbing chakra, but their presence was nearly undetectable!
"As expected." Seeing Kakashi's reaction, Ishikawa smiled faintly and let go of most of his anxiety.
When the Exploding Insects in Tsunade and the Kumo ninja were first revealed, Ishikawa had checked his own body but found nothing out of place. And now, with the Earth-Style Wall test, he was sure of one thing.
"Teacher, it seems this parasite needs a large amount of chakra to mature. Our chakra isn't enough to make it grow rapidly to the point of explosion. That's why—only the three of us can assist you now." Exhaling a deep breath, Ishikawa stared calmly into Kakashi's Sharingan, neither amused nor bitter.
They had escaped danger only because they were too weak. Was that ironic, or just blind luck?
"But that's still not enough! Even if you don't have to worry about self-destruction for now, the power gap is too wide. If you fight them, you will probably, no, definitely die!!" Kakashi shook his head, locking eyes with Ishikawa and the others. "Don't you fear death?"
At those words, Ishikawa and the two Genin shuddered in unison, their faces turning pale. Fear surged in their eyes...
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P@atreon/Arvinstorm (45+ Advanced Chapters)