Chapter 27: The Demise of Chiko
The blade, formed from wind-natured chakra, descended fiercely toward Fugaku, aided by the force of its fall.
In the entire shinobi world, aside from a very select few, no one could withstand such a blow with their physical body alone, and Fugaku was no exception.
Although Fugaku sensed the attack at the last moment, his entire body, along with the kunai he used to parry, was split in two.
But the Sand ninja's expression showed no hint of excitement. Instead, it was filled with a sense of dread.
With a poof, Fugaku's "corpse" vanished into smoke.
"A shadow clone..." the Sand ninja murmured in terror. Those were his last words in this world.
Zzzzz...
The sound of crackling lightning suddenly filled the air. It was the characteristic sound of lightning-natured chakra being condensed to its absolute limit.
"Ugh..."
As Fugaku's figure erupted from the ruins, the Sand ninja clutched his chest and slowly collapsed. He had been killed in a single blow by Fugaku.
Huff...
Dispelling the lightning from his kunai, Fugaku gasped for breath. As strong as he was, he now felt a wave of dizziness. He knew it was due to excessive blood loss.
But he couldn't fall yet.
The enemy who had gone in pursuit had not returned, which meant Kyosuke and Chiko had not yet failed. How could he, the team captain, fall first?
Forcing himself to stand, Fugaku looked at the remaining Sand ninja with his Sharingan once more.
But then, the powerful observational abilities of his three-tomoe Sharingan allowed him to spot Kyosuke, hidden in the trees.
Though Fugaku maintained his appearance of being at his limit, a storm was raging in his heart.
He succeeded. He... he actually took down a Jounin all by himself, Fugaku roared inwardly.
After a moment, he finally calmed down.
I don't know how much strength Kyosuke has left, but... since he's here, it means he can still fight. In that case... Kyosuke's unexpected arrival had managed to restore some of Fugaku's strength.
And now, the situation had completely turned around.
He had gone from a 1-on-2 to a 2-on-1, with his comrade hidden and ready to deliver a fatal blow at any moment.
In this situation, Fugaku had to take the initiative and create an opportunity.
An opportunity for Kyosuke to strike the killing blow!!!
With this in mind, Fugaku slightly adjusted his stance and charged toward the Sand ninja.
Carrying the murderous aura of having already killed several Jounin, Fugaku's charge completely suppressed the enemy's spirit. The enemy was even starting to consider retreating.
Being a Jounin, this Sand ninja was no fool. His subordinate had been gone for a long time; something must have happened. Whatever it was, it probably wasn't good news for him.
He wouldn't be surprised if another enemy suddenly appeared.
I have to retreat, the Sand ninja thought, growing more and more fearful. Before Fugaku even reached him, he turned and fled.
Fugaku, slowly coming to a halt: "..."
Kyosuke, hidden in the trees, waiting for his chance: "..."
Before either of them could give chase, a figure suddenly arrived, drawing all their attention.
At the same time, the Sand ninja, seeing this, immediately stopped his retreat and slowly walked back.
The figure was the Sand ninja who had gone after Uchiha Chiko.
And Chiko... was now held in his hand, her clothes in disarray and her body covered in blood.
Fugaku's eyes widened in fury at the sight. He subconsciously gripped his kunai so tightly that it made a creaking sound.
From the trees, Kyosuke also watched the Sand ninja with a grim expression.
His bad feeling had become a reality... Chiko had been captured by the enemy.
Then Fugaku... Thinking of this, Kyosuke couldn't help but glance at him and sigh inwardly.
Then, his hands quickly formed a series of seals.
Kyosuke was preparing to make a move.
At this moment, he no longer had the mind to consider whether saving Chiko would affect the birth of the two brothers.
After all, this was a human life, a life that couldn't be measured by events that had yet to happen. If for no other reason, he had to save her for the delicious meal she had made him, which he could still taste in his memory.
After a brief series of hand seals, Kyosuke unleashed a burst of chakra from his feet and charged toward the Sand ninja who had not yet fully returned.
At the same time, he unleashed the most advanced ninjutsu he currently knew.
Earth Release: Earth Flow River.
The ground beneath the Sand ninja suddenly liquefied, and like a tidal wave, it swept him up and carried him into the dense forest in the distance.
Although he had successfully hit the enemy, Kyosuke didn't receive a system notification. This meant the attack wasn't enough to kill the Jounin.
But Kyosuke had achieved his goal.
His surprise attack had not only caught the swept-away Sand ninja off guard but had also stunned the other Sand ninja, who was holding Chiko, for a few seconds.
However, there was one person who would not be distracted by anything at this moment.
That person was the fully focused Uchiha Fugaku.
The instant the Sand ninja holding Chiko was distracted by Kyosuke, Fugaku moved.
He used the Body Flicker Technique, appearing in front of the enemy in a near-instant.
It was a low-rank ninjutsu, but one that not just any ninja could master. Aside from a very select few, only Jounin-level ninja could basically use it. And even among them, only a handful could use it with any real flair.
Fugaku's Body Flicker was no exception.
Because time was of the essence, he didn't have the luxury of forming hand seals and then gathering his chakra. So, to save time, he used an almost self-destructive method to forcibly erupt his chakra, pushing his movement speed to its absolute maximum.
This method was similar to the one used by the Fourth Raikage: using lightning-natured chakra to stimulate the cells, activating them to drastically improve the body's various abilities.
The reason this method was not used by anyone in the shinobi world besides the Raikage was because it was extremely harmful to the body. Only the Raikage, with their incredibly strong physiques, could use it. Not to mention, the Raikage had a corresponding training method to be able to use this ability freely.
This method was the famous jutsu, "Lightning Release Armor."
So, Fugaku's actions at this moment were truly desperate.
Fortunately, after paying such a heavy price, Fugaku finally managed to reach Chiko before the enemy could react.
But he was not met with Chiko's joyful gaze.
Instead, her expression was filled with terror. Although her mouth was covered, her eyes seemed to be screaming.
"Don't come here!"
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