Haseo pulled out the two Short swords strapped to his back, then tossed them aside under his feet. He sheathed the newly acquired weapon he had just taken... naturally, placing a Longsword into a Short sword sheath would result in piercing it through. Still, at least he had successfully secured the new weapon.
Just as Haseo exited his Chakra Control Mode, the surrounding Kumo Shinobi seized the chance and launched a fierce counterattack. Meanwhile, Renjiro, now missing an arm, managed to fall back opportunistically.
Then someone came over immediately to provide emergency treatment for his injuries.
"Did you discover anything?" B asked him.
"Mm."
Cold sweat dripped down Renjiro's forehead—whether from the tension of near-death or the pain of losing an arm was unclear. However, his earlier engagement hadn't been pointless; it served the purpose of gathering new intelligence on Haseo.
Renjiro was a spy, and every person here had acted upon the intel and judgment he provided. Yet the current situation revealed that Haseo's combat strength far exceeded what he had reported to Kumo. This was Renjiro's failure as a spy—and he must personally make up for his mistake.
Therefore, he had no choice but to sacrifice himself as bait and continue extracting more intelligence directly from Haseo.
"First," Renjiro explained while watching Haseo engage with the Kumo shinobi, "assume that he can access five distinct Chakra modes, but these powerful Ninjutsu modes cannot be seamlessly switched, deactivated, or reactivated at will."
Currently, Haseo wasn't entering those intense offensive or defensive states again. He dodged left and right under the Kumo shinobi's attacks, occasionally counterattacking, yet appeared especially clumsy in doing so... seemingly confirming Renjiro's analysis.
"Secondly, as his chakra depletes, his abilities are continuously decreasing. The Haseo we faced at the beginning of this battle was his strongest form. As time progresses, his overall power weakens—even his signature Lightning Release Ninja Taijutsu does not exhibit its usual speed and sharpness."
"Finally, his body cannot withstand such intense chakra output. Therefore, as long as we patiently keep fighting him, we will surely defeat him steadily."
By the time he finished speaking, someone had already quickly treated Renjiro's injured stump. Based on his reconnaissance and summarized intelligence, Kumo obtained a surefire strategy against Haseo—a simple stalling strategy would guarantee victory. Just drag it out, and they would win.
"So you're telling me," B asked, "even with overwhelming numbers, we have to drag this Konoha ninja into a long grind and wear him down? Especially when there's no ranged threat involved, and the Second Tsuchikage is currently clashing with the Second Mizukage?"
Are we seriously letting our pride stand in the way?
"Well... indeed, it is the most reliable approach."
But then, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki also agreed to this strategy.
Yes, if they could just defeat Haseo decisively, Kumo could afford to lose some face... Compared to Renjiro's current opinion, a certain Jinchuriki actually agreed more with the spy's earlier judgment—Haseo possessed such strength and an even scarier future. So, this enemy needed to be taken out here and now.
At the heart of the battlefield, Haseo was already panting heavily. Don't be fooled by his early victories—those Kumo Shinobi currently fighting him are still extremely strong, despite Haseo's temporary power boost.
Haseo's physical stamina was clearly deteriorating, but he couldn't stop the battle. He wiped blood from his face, yet the bloodstains all over his body continued to emit a strong, pungent odor. Most of that blood belonged to his enemies, though some was definitely his own.
"Haseo-sama, it seems like you're nearly reaching your limit," Katsuyu whispered beside him.
"But in fact, the hardest part hasn't even begun yet..." Haseo replied. Although he appeared deeply surrounded by enemies, part of his attention continuously tracked the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails Jinchuriki who hadn't taken action yet.
The strongest enemies hadn't moved yet, but Haseo seemed on the verge of collapse.
No, actually, Haseo should feel grateful for the presence of these two Jinchuriki here. Otherwise, he'd certainly suffer a crushing defeat soon enough. However, with Jinchuriki present, he now had a chance to turn things around because... once Tailed Beasts go berserk, they slaughter indiscriminately, without distinguishing friend from foe.
"Katsuyu, I'm going to use that Kinjutsu. Prepare to pull me back."
"Haseo-sama... If you use that Kinjutsu now, your body might not last even ten seconds."
"Ten seconds will be enough."
Ten seconds would make all the difference, while for anyone else, instantaneous death would result.
Haseo deflected a kunai from an enemy and leapt back while forming hand seals in rapid succession.
[Ninjutsu: Summoning Jutsu!]
With a massive form oozing abundant blood, Katsuyu appeared within the enemy's Barrier… Just as she had said, only summoned beasts' bodies could withstand the chaotic spatial fluctuations caused by this Barrier.
Standing atop Katsuyu's head, Haseo felt his own blood drip from his fingertips onto her body, mixing together with the summon's blood… much like the collaboration between them for this operation, they needed perfect coordination.
Standing at the highest point within this Barrier, Haseo stared intently at the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, though due to differences in elevation, the opponent failed to notice this downward gaze from above.
A large number of Kumo Shinobi were about to launch attacks against Katsuyu.
But before that happened, Haseo stepped down from Katsuyu's head first, beginning his free fall.
One named flower,
Suddenly, Haseo's body shone brightly.
Two called bird,
His figure vanished mid-fall.
Three summoned the wind,
Within the perception of the strongest Sensor Ninja, within the sharpest eyes of the most perceptive observer Ninja, Haseo could no longer be detected.
Moonlight marked the fourth watch.
Then, in the middle of his conversation with Renjiro, B—the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki—suddenly felt a heavy hand clamp down on his shoulder.
Something had been emitted from the searing surface of a star, continuously leaping through layer upon layer of boundless darkness across outer space. In an instant, it pierced through ten thousand miles of void and finally reached human sight… This thing is commonly known as "light."
Light—as silent and swift as Haseo at this moment…
[Lightning Release: Zero Thunder Machine Art]
High-frequency lightning chakra vibrated around Haseo, making everyone's eardrums and skulls buzz in unison. It truly lived up to its name "Senken Zettsu" (Silent Devastation), for in one sense, all sound vanished into absolute silence.
Yet in another sense, it was a mournful wail echoing throughout the mountains and forests.
The Eight-Tails Jinchuriki turned around, just in time to lock eyes with Haseo. Their gazes met head-on.
With an ambush like this, unmatched by any in the ninja world, Haseo could've taken the Jinchuriki down in a single strike. Though tailed beasts are agelessly immortal, their human vessels are still only ninjas after all.
But Haseo couldn't afford that—if he wanted to break through the barrier surrounding them right now.
The Jinchuriki turned fully toward him—and that was Haseo's cue to deliver the perfect line. So he opened his mouth and spoke:
"How many floors can you carry one bag of rice up?"
A pattern resembling spiderweb-like tadpole script spread outward from Haseo's left eye as its center, instantly covering his entire face. As the technique activated, an entire world unfolded before the Jinchuriki's eyes.
[Ninjutsu: Zero Light Shards]
Haseo's most closely guarded secret instantly sealed away the Jinchuriki's consciousness.
PS:
This is the tenth update today—come on, guys, I really need your subscriptions!
The current subscription ratio is super auspicious—50:1.
I feel… never mind, I don't feel anything at all—except maybe that I'm barely hanging on.
Man, getting those subscriptions is no joke.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>