"That kid can control iron sand… could it be that he possesses the Magnet Release bloodline limit?"
Hibiki stared with his eyes wide open, his face filled with utter disbelief.
At the same time, a question gnawed relentlessly at his mind.
Just what in the world were Kiyohara's speed and strength supposed to be?
This was completely unscientific—and not ninjutsu at all!
He had heard of Magnet Release shinobi from Kumogakure and Sunagakure, but he had never seen a Magnet Release user like Kiyohara.
"You—what exactly are you using?" Hibiki couldn't help but ask.
"Magnet Release. The power of magnetic fields. Pretty amazing, right?"
After dealing with the giant spider, Kiyohara turned back to look at Hibiki.
From this point on, the opponent would no longer be able to endlessly spawn small spiders.
Moreover, through his knowledge of the original storyline, Kiyohara more or less knew what kind of secret techniques the other party possessed.
The techniques used by the Six-Armed Spider Clan were all classified as secret techniques—jutsu that required specific special physiques to be inherited and used continuously.
Outsiders had no way to imitate them.
Bloodline limits, aside from chakra fusion and composition, also involved mutations in specific parts of the body.
For example, the Uchiha and Hyūga clans manifested mutations in their eyes, while the Kaguya clan's mutation lay in their bones, and so on.
In the anime, the jutsu used by Kidōmaru were likewise labeled as secret techniques.
So Kiyohara was perfectly clear about all this information.
And under circumstances where he held the advantage in speed, strength, chakra reserves, and even intelligence, he genuinely couldn't imagine what Hibiki could possibly rely on to defeat him.
Not to mention that, at a critical moment, he could even let Steel Release Kiyohara take over.
Just like Magnet Release Kiyohara, he could experience the power of Steel Release in advance.
Although doing so would cause the kekke genkai to put tremendous strain on his body, survival was the only correct choice!
"Magnetic fields?"
You're telling me this thing is magnetic fields?
Even though he had never received formal or systematic shinobi education and wasn't well-read, he wasn't someone who could be casually fooled!
"You little brat—go die!"
Feeling thoroughly belittled, Hibiki flew into a rage.
He spat out a viscous substance from his mouth, but this time it wasn't white spider silk.
Instead, it was a sticky fluid that shimmered with a golden metallic sheen.
With swift, agile movements of his six arms, he rapidly shaped the substance.
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow, recognizing it immediately as one of the Six-Armed Spider Clan's secret techniques: Spider Gold.
Kidōmaru could produce a golden metallic substance within his body, which could accumulate in his mouth like saliva or be secreted from his pores like sweat.
When first produced, this metal was highly malleable and could be quickly molded into various shapes, but it would soon harden over time, becoming as tough as steel.
"That really saves a lot of money on shinobi tools."
Watching the opponent manually shape shinobi tools and hurl them toward him, Kiyohara couldn't help but shake his head.
His own iron sand still depended on the surrounding environment—he needed iron sand nearby to attract and gather it.
After all, Magnet Release essentially converted chakra into magnetic force, and at its core it was still chakra, meaning it could be absorbed by chakra-absorbing techniques.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A powerful gust erupted from Kiyohara's mouth, sweeping up fallen leaves and dust from the ground as it surged toward Hibiki and the spider-crafted weapons he had thrown.
The incoming spider weapons were blown aside, along with the nearly invisible strands of spider silk hidden in the air.
At the same time, Kiyohara's figure flickered as he once again used repulsive force to move at high speed.
Hibiki spat out denser white spider webs, forming something like a shield that blocked the impact of the Wind Release.
With all six arms swinging simultaneously, even more spider silk shot toward Kiyohara from every angle, intertwining in midair as if weaving a massive cage meant to trap him completely.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"
Naturally, Kiyohara had no intention of waiting for death. The iron sand he had already gathered covertly transformed into countless fine needles, shooting outward in all directions like a torrential storm!
A continuous chorus of crisp clanging sounds rang out as the iron sand needles collided with the tough spider silk. Most were deflected or stuck, but they still managed to tear several openings in the tightening web barrier.
"I can't let this kid get close!"
Hibiki's gaze sharpened as all six arms clutched tree trunks, allowing him to dart rapidly through the forest like a true spider.
Kakashi and Rin almost held their breath.
"This speed… this power…"
Kakashi's crimson Sharingan barely managed to track Kiyohara's movements with its dynamic vision.
In this situation, he didn't dare rush in recklessly.
The idea of testing the spider silk with Fire Release was also abandoned—he was afraid of accidentally injuring Kiyohara.
As for Rin, with her ordinary eyesight, all she could see were two rapidly flickering figures.
Faced with Hibiki's high-speed movement through the forest terrain, constantly spewing and weaving webs, Kiyohara's response was simple and direct.
He stomped down hard, the ground beneath his feet cracking faintly.
Accelerated by magnetic repulsion, his body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, ignoring the sticky spider silk that tried to block him, charging straight toward Hibiki's true body in a perfectly straight trajectory!
"!"
Seeing Kiyohara close in directly, Hibiki halted his movement and snapped all six arms back in front of himself.
"Ninjutsu: Gold Spider Armor!"
In an instant, a dull metallic, liquid-like substance poured out from his pores, rapidly covering his entire body before hardening!
His skin seemed to be clad in a solid golden suit of armor, gleaming coldly under the sunlight filtering through the forest canopy.
This was another secret technique of the Six-Armed Spider Clan, capable of blocking chakra conduction and providing exceptional defense against chakra-based attacks—particularly effective against the Hyūga clan's Gentle Fist.
He had absolute confidence that no matter how hard Kiyohara's punch was, even if it carried chakra, it wouldn't be able to break through this defense easily!
Not even the strength that had sent the giant spider flying would be enough!
Hibiki prepared to spew spider silk at point-blank range before Kiyohara could launch a second attack.
His chakra reserves were still sufficient to support this.
"Kiyohara, be careful—there's something strange about that armor!"
Kakashi called out, his Sharingan keenly sensing the chakra flowing across the armor.
However, Kiyohara's fist was already hurtling forward with unstoppable momentum!
There was no dazzling chakra glow on his fist—only an almost imperceptible magnetic field that subtly distorted the air.
Kiyohara's punch, empowered by magnetic acceleration and augmented strength, slammed squarely into Hibiki's crossed arms, which were covered in Gold Armor!
BOOM!
The expression on Hibiki's face froze, instantly replaced by sheer terror.
The chakra he had gathered in his throat was disrupted by a violent surge of blood, spilling from the corner of his mouth.
Crack—
A sound like something shattering echoed.
The Spider Gold Armor he so prided himself on—capable of withstanding kunai strikes and even some ninjutsu—began to fracture.
"Gah!"
Hibiki let out a miserable scream as all six arms twisted at unnatural angles, a clear sound of bones cracking echoing from his chest.
His entire body flew backward like a kite with its string cut, smashing through several small trees before finally crashing heavily to the ground in a cloud of dust.
For a moment, the forest was silent, save for the rustling of leaves in the wind.
Rin stared blankly at Kiyohara, who was still holding his punching stance, then at the enemy lying motionless amid the wreckage in the distance, her heart filled with indescribable shock.
One punch.
Just one punch!
Seeing that Kiyohara had defeated Hibiki, Kakashi pulled his forehead protector back down to reduce chakra consumption.
Even he was shaken by Kiyohara's sheer strength.
It took Rin a long while to find her voice again. "Kiyohara—you—you're okay, right?"
Kiyohara slowly withdrew his fist, exhaling a breath of turbid air as the magnetic field dissipated.
He turned around.
"I'm fine."
He walked over to Kakashi and Rin.
"Let me help you get free first."
He manipulated the iron sand into thin, razor-sharp blades, carefully cutting through the spider silk binding Rin.
Without Hibiki's chakra sustaining them, the spider silk had lost much of its toughness and was quickly severed under the iron sand's edge.
"Feels like you've gotten stronger again, Kiyohara," Kakashi said.
Since entering the battlefield, he felt that Kiyohara's chakra and neural reaction speed had been changing almost daily.
Although Kakashi was confident that if he faced Hibiki again, he could defeat him directly, the initial lack of information about the enemy's secret techniques had put him at a disadvantage.
Yet before he could even coordinate an attack with Kiyohara, Kiyohara had already finished the enemy off alone in such a short time—more than enough to prove how rapidly his strength was growing.
Rin also hurriedly thanked Kiyohara, then looked toward the unconscious Hibiki. As a medical shinobi, instinct compelled her to ask, "He—he's still alive, right? Should we take him back to the village for interrogation?"
"Yes, he's still breathing," Kiyohara nodded.
"Rin, please treat his injuries and see if you can keep him alive. He's from a shinobi clan in the Land of Rice Fields. There may be valuable intelligence on him."
"Understood."
Rin immediately ran over, crouched down, and began examining Hibiki's injuries.
When she saw the sunken fist imprint on his chest and the shattered fragments of armor, she couldn't help but gasp again, unable to imagine just how terrifying the power behind that punch had been.
Steeling herself, she let green medical chakra glow from her hands and began emergency treatment.
Kakashi walked over to Kiyohara and asked quietly, "Was that also an application of Magnet Release?"
"More or less," Kiyohara nodded.
"That technique of yours is pretty interesting," Steel Release Kiyohara also commented.
He had been floating outside the body the entire time and had clearly seen Kiyohara take down Hibiki single-handedly.
"Is this another inheritance from a different Kiyohara, or something you developed yourself?" Steel Release Kiyohara asked curiously.
"Another future. He's an expert in this area," Kiyohara replied.
Capturing Hibiki would undoubtedly yield a batch of military merits.
At present, the Land of Rice Fields seemed to have dealings with Iwagakure.
If handed over to the village for interrogation, they would likely be able to extract some useful information about the Land of Rice Fields.
"I might not be able to save him," Rin said, looking at Hibiki's condition.
Most of his internal organs were already shattered.
That was because Kiyohara's punch—its force had passed straight through the armor and destroyed everything inside.
"It doesn't matter. Leave the rest to the interrogation department. Even a corpse can talk," Kiyohara said.
Shinobi corpses were always recovered and handled.
Especially the bodies of shinobi carrying intelligence or bloodline limits.
Because a shinobi's corpse could reveal a village's unique jutsu, chakra nature, and even traces of special drugs used.
Once a shinobi died, the body had to be thoroughly disposed of and buried in a designated place to prevent information leaks.
No sound, no scent—this was the end of a shinobi.
Back during the Land of Waves mission, Naruto, Kakashi, and the others had been deceived by Haku of the Ice Release, mistakenly believing he was disposing of Momochi Zabuza's body, only to later realize it had been a case of feigned death.
Hearing this, Rin continued treating Hibiki.
Luck was on his side—his life was barely preserved.
"Poor bastard," Kiyohara muttered after checking Hibiki's belongings.
Aside from a few thousand ryō in loose change, all he had were basic shinobi tools and dry rations—nothing else.
Armor?
None.
Shinobi tools?
None.
Everything he used was woven from spider silk, and once his chakra was gone, those items quickly lost all effectiveness.
(End of Chapter)