Chapter 157: The Cornered Beast!
The blazing white longsword, burning with concentrated flames, traced stunning arcs through the air, continuously cleaving through the Wind Release: Wind Blade attacks aimed at his joints and vital points.
The exploding wind fragments left wounds across his body, but this was insignificant.
At this moment, his gaze was locked on Ebizō, calculating the distance between them:
Fifty meters!
If he could close that fifty-meter gap, with the power of the blazing white longsword and Tsukasa's taijutsu enhanced by the Cursed Seal of Heaven, he was certain he could pin Ebizō down here.
Perhaps even—defeat him!
With this thought, Tsukasa accelerated again, his feet grinding against the ground, kicking up clouds of dust as he charged toward Ebizō like an arrow!
At this moment, Ebizō—driven to the brink of desperation—also unleashed his full power!
"Puppet Technique: Three Treasures Suction Crush!"
Under his control, three cold-faced puppets wielding longswords hurtled through the air!
When Tsukasa saw the three puppets bearing the characters 'Buddha,' 'Dharma,' and 'Sangha' carved into their bodies, his gaze sharpened with recognition.
Two of the puppets raised their arms, rotating them in ways far beyond human physiology, slashing with twin swords bound to them like deadly windmills!
Faced with such unnatural swordsmanship, Tsukasa could only dodge, attempting to use his Flowing Cloud sword style to circle around and disrupt the puppet arms.
Just as he was about to execute the maneuver, the third puppet positioned behind suddenly raised its hands.
With a series of mechanical clicks, the mechanisms on the puppet's hands expanded, unleashing a dense barrage of kunai that filled his entire field of vision!
Tsukasa's eyes narrowed instantly. He immediately twisted his foot, leaping backward to dodge the approaching blade, narrowly avoiding the puppet's longsword, then flipped backward to evade the kunai storm.
These weren't ordinary kunai—they were part of the Puppet Technique: Thousand Hands Manipulation.
Kunai imbued with chakra threads possessed tremendous force. A skilled puppeteer could attach threads to an enemy simultaneously with the kunai strike, allowing them to control their opponent's movements.
It was a truly insidious tactic.
But that wasn't all.
After missing their initial assault, the three puppets immediately dispersed, seemingly clearing a path.
However, what followed was a relentless barrage of ninjutsu!
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!"
"Wind Release: Wind Blade!"
"Wind Release: Dust Wind Technique!"
A fierce sandstorm raged as Ebizō, like a living artillery battery, caused the ground beneath his feet to tremble violently while unleashing technique after technique!
Against such a calculating opponent, every move seemed designed to trap him.
Tsukasa felt frustration rising as he was forced to navigate the sea of ninjutsu, enduring injuries while trying to close the distance.
However, at this moment, after launching his ninjutsu barrage, Ebizō immediately retreated, pressing his back against the edge of the barrier. He manipulated his three puppets, placing their palms on the ground at intervals to create a sealing formation.
As Tsukasa swung his white-hot longsword, slicing through the wind blades and preparing to close in, the sealing formation on the ground suddenly lit up with an ominous glow.
The next instant, twenty meters in front of Ebizō, countless strange puppets resembling lion heads were summoned from the formation.
Ebizō panted heavily, sneered, and formed hand seals.
"Boy, against a shinobi who's mastered puppet arts, this distance will be an insurmountable chasm for you—now and forever!"
"Sealing Formation: Lion's Closing Roar!"
The lion-headed puppets rose up, facing Tsukasa and covering the entire area in front of Ebizō, forming an impenetrable puppet sealing wall!
Anyone who got close would have their chakra completely sealed by the sealing technique contained within each puppet.
This was precisely Ebizō's strategy: erect an impenetrable barrier, preventing Tsukasa—who was superior in taijutsu—from getting close, then slowly use the puppets to wear him down.
Now, having completed his preparations, Ebizō grinned maliciously at Tsukasa.
This way, the brat would have absolutely no chance of reaching him!
"So, how do you plan to deal with this move?"
"Hahahaha~"
Facing Ebizō, who had retreated into his defensive fortress while spouting arrogant words—
"Ebizō."
Tsukasa shook his head, reaching into his ninja tool pouch to pull out a special kunai. He casually tossed it to the ground. Raising his head, he stared coldly at Ebizō.
"Don't you understand?"
"The moment you stepped into this barrier, only one of us—"
"Was ever going to leave alive!"
When Ebizō saw the distinctive tri-pronged kunai stuck in the ground, with its unique seal formula etched along the handle, his pupils constricted involuntarily.
"What... what is that?"
Tsukasa stared at him, then suddenly laughed loudly.
"Old man, have you lost your mind?"
"My mission was simply to hold you here!"
"Instead of thinking about how to kill me quickly, you're busy building yourself a tomb?"
Tsukasa squinted at him, momentarily stopping all movement. Instead, he took a few steps back, a mocking smile spreading across his face.
"Hahahaha!"
"You—" Ebizō's expression changed drastically. He immediately recognized the kunai as belonging to Namikaze Minato, the student of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin!
As the commander-in-chief of the Sunagakure front and head of intelligence operations, he was intimately familiar with Namikaze Minato's abilities.
Therefore, when he saw that kunai, he immediately felt ice flood his veins.
Namikaze Minato possessed the ability to instantly traverse the battlefield using the Flying Thunder God Technique!
So when he connected the presence of this kunai with the orange signal flares that had been shot into the sky earlier, he immediately realized that Konoha's ultimate target—
Was himself!
He should have realized it! He should have known!
It's just that this brat was too insane, applying too much pressure, causing him to momentarily lose his ability to properly assess the battlefield!
Ebizō closed his eyes in anguish, clenching his teeth and letting out a long, cold breath. A terrible fear crept across his wrinkled face.
Then, he suddenly opened his old, clouded yet still sharp eyes!
Staring intently at Tsukasa, his teeth clenched, he trembled and roared:
"Why?!"
"You brat—why did you go to such lengths?!"
"Don't you know you could have been killed by me?!"
"What were you thinking?!"
"Why would an Uchiha like you risk your life for Konoha like this?!"
"Madman!"
"You're a complete madman!"
Hearing Ebizō's furious questioning, like a cornered beast driven to desperation, Tsukasa immediately raised his head and coldly shouted back:
"I understood long ago! I understood from the very beginning!"
"Only by throwing oneself into the flames of war! By offering oneself to the fires of adversity!"
"Only by facing death itself can one walk this path of desperation!"
"So I told you from the start!"
"I'll let you kill me!"
"Otherwise—just wait to be killed by me!"
The natural energy constantly replenishing the Cursed Seal of Heaven began to be released, surging violently through his body as dark patterns gradually covered his entire form!
The instant the Cursed Seal's first stage was fully unleashed, Tsukasa raised his chin, scornfully looking down at Ebizō, and roared:
"Come on!"
"Come make your choice!"
"Will you kill me here and fight for your survival?"
"Or will you cower behind your barrier and wait for death!"
A sudden silence fell over the desert—so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Tsukasa raised a hand to his forehead, a playful, mocking smile spreading across his face. His gaze pierced through the gaps between his fingers, looking at the pale-faced Ebizō, and he let out a maniacal laugh:
"Hehehehe, hahahahahahahaha~!"
"It's alright."
"It's alright!"
"You have plenty of time to think!"
"No matter what you choose—"
"I'll be right here waiting for you!"
End of Chapter 157
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