Chapter 58 – Hanzo's Retreat
"Summoning Technique!"
A massive salamander, as large as a mountain, appeared beneath Hanzo's feet.
"Body Flicker Technique."
In the blink of an eye, Hanzo reappeared beside Yusuke, his scythe now shrouded in a poisonous green mist. At the same time, the summoned salamander burrowed underground.
Yusuke raised his blade, Enma, in time to block the surprise attack.
He leapt backward immediately, his Observation Haki alerting him to the presence of the creature below. Just as he was about to move again, the salamander's mouth opened wide—and swallowed him whole.
Konan's heart sank. Yahiko's face darkened, while Nagato narrowed his eyes and scanned the area intently.
"So fast… I didn't expect Konoha to produce a monster like this. The son of the White Fang of the Leaf…" Hanzo muttered to himself.
"'White Fang,' huh? That's a good title… But your 'Demi-God' name isn't for nothing either," Yusuke replied coldly.
Hanzo's Body Flicker Technique was truly fast. From what Yusuke knew, only he himself and Namikaze Minato could match that speed. And since Minato hadn't yet mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, Hanzo might even surpass him in raw combat speed.
"Water Style: Rain of a Thousand Needles!"
The sky suddenly darkened with countless falling needles of water.
"One Sword Style: Hawk Wave."
A crescent-shaped energy slash—amplified by Armament Haki and flowing with advanced Ryūō—sliced through the downpour like it was nothing.
Their clash reignited. Hanzo launched jutsu after jutsu, while Yusuke deflected them with precise swordwork. But a new challenge emerged: Hanzo's body was laced with poison, making close combat extremely risky.
"Young man, if that's all you've got, this is where you die," Hanzo warned, eyes sharp.
"Hardly. You deserve to see my real power," Yusuke replied, his gaze cold as steel.
Hanzo's subordinates scoffed—thinking Yusuke was all talk.
But Hanzo began to grow wary.
"Light-Speed Kick!"
Yusuke vanished. In less than a heartbeat, he appeared at Hanzo's side and landed a brutal kick across his face. Even though Hanzo managed to raise his scythe to block, the sheer force sent him crashing through debris.
"What?! Hanzo-sama was blown away?! What kind of speed was that?!"
"That move again…" Yahiko murmured, recalling the time he had been struck by it too.
"He… he actually landed a hit on the Demi-God…" Konan's heart raced, but a strange calm bloomed within her as she looked at the furious swordsman.
Hanzo emerged from the rubble, bruised and breathless.
But before he could catch himself, Yusuke was already in front of him again. Hanzo could only go on the defensive, barely keeping up without time for hand seals.
The giant salamander surfaced again, releasing toxic gas across the battlefield. Even Yusuke was reluctant to approach.
"Water Release: Water Shockwave!"
A massive wave surged toward Yusuke.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
A solid wall of earth rose instantly, halting the assault.
But Yusuke frowned. The poison in the air was becoming a serious problem. Even with his light-transformation body, he wasn't immune.
"In that case… Konan, evacuate the Akatsuki members!" Yusuke shouted.
"Everyone retreat!" Yahiko echoed, recognizing the buildup for a large-scale attack.
As Akatsuki began to pull back, Yusuke's body started glowing, transforming into radiant particles of light that floated up into the sky.
"What… is that some kind of Kekkei Genkai?" Hanzo muttered warily.
Above, Yusuke hovered midair, his form shimmering with blinding light. His hands crossed over his chest, forming a mudra resembling an orchid. The sky was suddenly bathed in pure brilliance.
"Everyone fall back! NOW!!" Hanzo roared, sensing the incoming surge.
"Too late…" Yusuke's voice echoed coldly from above.
"Yasakani no Magatama."
Hundreds of radiant projectiles rained down like a meteor shower, each one trailing deadly energy.
"Damn you!!" Hanzo cursed, but it was too late. He had no means to defend against it.
"…Beautiful…" Konan whispered in awe.
The storm of light lasted for nearly a full minute. When the dust finally settled, the battlefield was unrecognizable. Mountains had been flattened. Hanzo's forces were decimated. A few survivors remained—paralyzed, broken, unable to continue.
"Is… is this really the power of a human?" one Akatsuki member gasped.
"So this is… his true strength…" Nagato murmured, eyes wide as he stared at the glowing figure who now seemed like a sun-god descending upon the earth.
"…He escaped, huh?" Yusuke muttered, realizing Hanzo was nowhere to be seen.
Yasakani no Magatama was one of his strongest techniques—capable of massive destruction, even surpassing most S-rank jutsu. Its range and sheer force could rival the Super Almighty Push. However, it came at a steep cost; he couldn't use it more than once in quick succession.
In terms of raw destruction, the Tremor-Tremor Fruit had even greater power, but its shockwaves were too spread out. For focused devastation against clustered enemies, this was far more efficient.
Still, he couldn't deny Hanzo's strength. Even with low-tier jutsu, the man achieved devastating results. His taijutsu was formidable—just slightly inferior to Yusuke's swordsmanship. Paired with his poison resistance and that summoned beast, Hanzo remained a terrifying opponent.
More shocking was Hanzo's ability to react to Yusuke's speed. Even though Yusuke was fast, he hadn't yet reached Admiral Kizaru's level. And even Kizaru wasn't invincible.
(Even though Yusuke had fused multiple Devil Fruits, all that gave him was potential. He still had to hone it. His light-speed techniques were still immature. Kizaru had years of mastery—Yusuke had less than two.)
He looked down toward the surviving Akatsuki members. His glowing body gently descended, reassembling into his human form in front of Yahiko and the others.
"…I'm sorry. This happened because I wasn't careful enough," Yusuke said plainly.
"It's okay. If you hadn't come, we'd all be dead," Konan replied softly, her cheeks flushed pink.
"Then I'm glad I did," Yusuke said with a faint smile.
"…You win, Yusuke," Yahiko muttered, finally letting down his pride.
"Yeah… I was too naive. I thought we could change things without sacrifice."
"Yahiko…" Konan gently held his arm, eyes full of sympathy. She'd known him for so long—it hurt to see him carry that weight.
"…Akatsuki will cooperate with Konoha… or at least with Hatake Yusuke," Yahiko declared, locking eyes with him.
"Good. I knew I wasn't wrong about you—and neither was Jiraiya-nii."
"…Are you leaving already?" Konan asked, her voice barely above a whisper. The moment she realized everyone was watching her, her face flushed even redder.
"Yeah. I've stayed long enough. I'm still a shinobi… I have to return."
(The other Akatsuki members thought: "This guy… his entire existence revolves around fighting. A true steel-blooded man.")
Yahiko just sighed softly as he looked at Konan. He'd loved her for so long.
"Then I'll be going."
With those final words, Yusuke opened a dimensional gate using the Door-Door Fruit—and vanished into the swirling portal.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Join my Patreon here:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ Enjoy 55+ chapters ahead of WebNovel
✅ Get 2 new chapters every day exclusively on Patreon
Join now and dive deeper into the story—weeks ahead of public release!
Thank you for your amazing support 💖
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —