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Impossible!
Looking at the figure that appeared before him completely unharmed, Kakuzu, split into four bodies, suddenly had this thought.
Just a moment ago, his Ninjutsu had clearly hit the target!
How could this be?
And what concerned him even more was—that Earth Release heart just now came from an elite Jonin from Iwagakure; that guy's head was worth at least twenty-two million ryo!
A loss!
Uncle Kakuzu, I've incurred a huge, huge loss this time!
However, Sawara Kiri seemed completely oblivious to his gaze, slowly stepping through the battlefield where lightning and fire intertwined, constantly giving rise to a shimmering mist.
Kakuzu keenly noticed.
The surrounding flames and lightning seemed to possess some kind of sentience, avoiding Sawara Kiri's figure.
Up until now, not a speck of dust or blood had touched him.
Even the Ninjutsu he cast had become much weaker than usual under the pouring rain, and was now constantly dissipating.
Kakuzu looked up at the small dark cloud that only covered them.
No.
Even the initial rainwater was problematic?
Since when?
"Water Release: Cutting Rain."
Sawara Kiri walked back into the encirclement of the four Earth Grudge Fear avatars, a gentle smile on his handsome face:
"A secret technique that can weaken all Ninjutsu and Chakra except for Water Release Ninjutsu."
"The colors of the masks on your avatars should represent the corresponding Chakra natures, right?"
"If I blow up this Water Release clone of yours, Mr. Kakuzu, do you have any other tricks up your sleeve?"
On the body of the central Water Release Earth Grudge Fear, Kakuzu's face slowly emerged, his expression growing more solemn, yet his voice showed no weakness:
"Even First Hokage, who fought me back then, couldn't keep me."
"Do you, a mere Konoha Ninja, dare to utter such boasts?"
Sawara Kiri's smile grew even warmer:
"I'll give it a try."
The next moment, his foot suddenly stepped forward, splashing water droplets like petals.
The four Earth Grudge Fear avatars scattered in all directions as if their nerves had been stepped on by this single step.
At the same time, they once again unleashed astonishing Chakra reactions.
"Four Release: Strange Mask Encirclement Battle Tactic!"
The four Chakra bombardment explosions, even under the weakening effect of Water Release: Cutting Rain, unleashed an incredibly astonishing power, sweeping towards Sawara Kiri like four long dragons, plowing four deep furrows in the ground.
Until finally, they converged in one spot, erupting into a mushroom cloud that shot straight into the sky.
However, the figure at the very center remained unmoving, not dodging or evading.
"Did we get him?"
The mask appearing on the Water Release Earth Grudge Fear's body seemed to murmur involuntarily, as if under some rule.
The other three avatars all looked at him.
Immediately after, an arm extended from within the smoke.
Suddenly, it swung to the side.
In an instant, the smoke and dust completely dissipated.
Almost at the same moment that the slender figure appeared, Sawara Kiri's footsteps had already moved forward again.
When he reappeared, he was already in front of the clone that had just spoken.
The whistling wind was left behind him, and the smoke and flames that blocked his path were completely dispersed by him, turning into a misty funnel chasing after him.
Twisting his body, he threw a punch.
"Boom—"
It seemed like a blow that was neither swift nor particularly powerful, but the moment it landed, it suddenly erupted with an unimaginable force, like an explosion, something ordinary people simply couldn't conceive of.
A cyclonic current, spreading in a ring, swept in all directions along the distance between his elbow and wrist.
Beneath the fist, which was deeply embedded in the center of the Water Release mask, circles of dense, spiderweb-like cracks blossomed and shattered completely.
Leaping back, flipping over.
The three Earth Grudge Fear avatars almost simultaneously smashed into the spot where he had just stood.
The earth cracked.
However, at this moment, a hint of retreat had already arisen in Kakuzu's heart.
—Negative forty-seven million ryo!
Even if this mission succeeded, it would only be one and a half million ryo, not even enough to cover the cost of his two hearts!
What's more, that speed just now—
Mr. Kakuzu was extremely wary.
This young man in front of him was a high-speed type like the Third Raikage—the kind of guy he was worst at dealing with.
However.
Kakuzu looked at Sawara Kiri in front of him, a smile involuntarily spreading across his mask.
"Do you think your only opponent is me?"
Almost at the instant his voice fell.
Several Root figures, who had already been lying in ambush around, seized the brief moment of Sawara Kiri's retreat and pause, and all leaped down from the surrounding rooftops.
Among them, the leader had long, snow-white hair and a red mole between his eyebrows.
On Hiruko's face was an expression of extreme ferocity and killing intent.
"Die!!!"
The blade gleamed with cold light.
However, neither Sawara Kiri nor Kakuzu looked at the dozen or so figures who suddenly leaped down from the rooftop; instead, they both looked at each other simultaneously.
'This is the moment!' x2
As if in perfect telepathy, the two suddenly retreated in exactly opposite directions.
Suddenly leaping out dozens of meters.
"Hm?!"
Hiruko's blade plunged into the ground, and he looked at Sawara Kiri and Kakuzu, who had suddenly retreated, instinctively letting out a questioning grunt.
"Wait, you bastard...!
"Could it be?!"
However, when he saw the direction Sawara Kiri was retreating, a bad premonition immediately arose in his heart.
"Boom!"
Unfortunately, just before his voice fell, Sawara Kiri's figure had already shot out.
Only at the very last moment did he give him a somewhat subtle look.
It's over.
He's definitely done for this time!
At the same time, the real Hiruko was... running for his life!
Almost the moment he saw Sawara Kiri crush a heart with one move, that 'Space Ninjutsu,' Hiruko realized that he, responsible for carrying out this mission, had become a 'pawn.'
The reason was simple.
The intelligence he received from Lord Danzo simply did not contain such a terrifying technique.
Not only that, the Kumogakure unit that had originally agreed to help was now nowhere to be found.
The mercenary Ninja who appeared out of nowhere had now 'died' on the spot under such a terrifying technique—the moment he discovered that the 'god' hired for thirty-five million ryo was instantly killed, he fled, completely unaware that Kakuzu's 'avatars' could still move after his death.
So, after leaving a Shadow Clone and giving orders to his direct Root squad to eliminate Sawara Kiri, Hiruko began his escape.
Now, he no longer hoped to complete the mission; he only hoped to delay him for a bit longer at the end.
"Damn Kumogakure!"
"Damn Danzo!"
"Damn Sawara Kiri!"
"Once my Chimera Technique is complete, I will definitely, definitely—"
Hiruko's eyes flickered with deep-seated resentment.
However, just as he was about to escape the center of this storm.
A sudden, yet incredibly real sense of danger arose deep within Hiruko's heart.
It was an intuition honed through countless life-and-death situations on the battlefield.
Immediately after, the Chakra feedback and memories from the Shadow Clone's dispersal flooded into his body, making him suddenly uneasy.
'That clone was defeated so quickly?'
'Wait, the direction Sawara Kiri retreated was—'
The moment Hiruko saw the memories transmitted by the Shadow Clone.
Almost instinctively, he suddenly turned his head to look in the direction from which the crisis came.
However, the moment he turned, his gaze looking back was completely covered by a suddenly appearing large hand.
Shadow obscured his vision.
"Bang—"
In an instant, an unimaginable inertia and weight, at an incredible speed, completely covered his head, making Hiruko even wonder if his fragile neck bones would suddenly break after this second.
His body floated, his steps stumbled, and his entire being was pressed and rolled by this inexplicable weight, deeply scraping against the ground, plowing a trail that stretched for tens of meters.
The sonic boom caused by suddenly traversing a full kilometer echoed in the distance, yet it still pierced through clouds and shattered rocks, making one's entire body tremble.
On Hiruko's back, the young man maintained a half-kneeling posture, one hand pressing the back of his head, the other pressing his wrist gripping the Kunai, and even his foot was on his other elbow.
He was completely unable to move.
Hiruko's body trembled slightly.
Beside his ear, Sawara Kiri leaned down, his voice close, asking him gently:
"What did you say you absolutely must do?"
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