Naraku continued to watch. The animator didn't show him observing from a safe distance with Matsukata Seigou; instead, the entire battle between Minato's group and Kakuzu was played from beginning to end, providing the audience with a more coherent story experience.
In the scene, Ishikawa and Kazama were responsible for containment, while Might Duy unleashed several powerful taijutsu attacks on the enemy, finally delivering a heavy blow with the Reverse Lotus.
Boom—
As Might Duy landed the kick, the animator zoomed out, expanding the range of the ground's collapse three times in a row. The solid earth rolled and churned like giant waves, cracking in all directions until it shattered into a chaotic spiderweb pattern, creating a powerful visual impact.
Even a monster of this caliber was severely wounded by Might Duy. The next moment, Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique to appear behind him, piercing his chest with a blade and pulverizing his heart.
[I feel like Uncle Dai is the one who's truly 'unleashed' (laughing crying)]
[So cool!]
[This battle was absolutely exhilarating.]
[It's the Flying Thunder God Mark after all.]
[So the Tentacle Monster's defense is an active skill, huh?]
[You have to knock him out cold to kill him properly.]
[Minato is still very detailed; he twisted the blade.]
[Now his heart is just a mess of rotten flesh.]
[Madara: Déjà vu.]
[Finally dead.]
Just as the audience was still replaying the battle, the enemy, who should have been dead, broke free and fled into the distance.
[He's a zombie! A zombie! A zombie!]
[Could it be that his heart is on the right side??]
[No, with that blow from Minato, even if his heart was on the right, he wouldn't survive. His arteries would be severed.]
[The Tentacle Monster was already strong; does he have several lives then?]
[The importance of finishing blows.]
Minato's group reacted and immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to pursue. Fortunately, the Flying Thunder God mark Minato left was still there, and he quickly teleported to intercept the opponent.
But in the corner of the screen, the figures of Naraku's trio appeared. The enemy actually chose to flee in the direction they had evacuated, and the audience was speechless at their bad luck.
Naraku and Matsukata Seigou's backs appeared in the enemy's green pupils. Then, the masked figure marked by Minato detached from the body, along with a mass of black tendrils, forming a bizarre clone that blocked the pursuing ninja.
[No, how did they run into each other? Couldn't you have chosen different directions to escape?]
[It seems this direction is really good for escaping, hahahahahahaha.]
[Matsukata Seigou: Damn it, the Tentacle Monster is still chasing me!]
[He can even create a physical clone???]
[An earthworm that became a spirit?]
[In that case, he has four masks!]
[One person is a small squad.]
[Such a difficult BOSS to kill.]
Kakashi cut off the hand that almost touched Matsukata Seigou, while Minato teleported the latter away. The next shot showed Minato hiding him back in a room in the Matsukata mansion, entrusting him to others' care, and then immediately teleporting back to the battlefield.
[Well done, Kakashi!]
[Matsukata Seikō: Good, good, my third son didn't die (clutches heart).]
When Minato returned, he saw that the powerful and troublesome enemy had not fled; instead, he was chasing Naraku.
"Naraku!"
As Minato's cry echoed, the screen went black.
[Ahhhhh—!!!]
[The Old Thief, how cruel you are!]
[The next episode will take seven centuries, wuwuwuwuwuwu.]
[Nooooo!]
[Ending here is going to kill me (crying).]
[No, why is he going after Naraku? Could it be that Uchiha are also wanted?]
Naraku: I have to say, the animator knows how to end an episode.
If he didn't know what would happen next, he'd probably be scratching his head in frustration, wishing he could fast-forward a week.
In the very next episode, the animator replayed Minato's cry.
With that shout, the camera rapidly zoomed from his side to behind Naraku.
Naraku glanced sideways behind him, immediately drew his sword, and with extreme precision, blocked the enemy's right hand with his blade. The opponent's force was too great, sending both him and his sword flying a considerable distance.
This shot followed Naraku continuously, and even the bumpy rolling upon landing after being knocked back made the audience feel it viscerally.
[Finally! I waited seven centuries!!!]
[It's a critical hit right from the start.]
[The immersion is too strong; I feel like I'm in a washing machine drum.]
[I get motion sickness! (faints)]
[Ah ah ah ah Baby Naraku!]
[Just opened the new episode and saw the Tentacle Monster hitting my precious darling T-T]
[Stupid Tentacle Monster! You're not allowed to hit our Naraku! (angry)]
After Naraku got up from the ground, he didn't continue to flee but chose to turn and face the enemy. Unfortunately, the power gap was too great; after only a few defensive moves, he was accidentally struck, breaking his ribs.
The animator even gave a close-up of the wound, with blood rapidly soaking his clothes.
Just as he was about to be overwhelmed and pierced through the chest, a flash of lightning suddenly appeared in the dark night, severing the arm covered in Earth Release.
The camera switched to a slightly further position; it turned out to be Kakashi who had darted out from the side, then quickly hoisted Naraku up and disappeared from the enemy's sight.
[It takes great courage to face an enemy of this caliber.]
[I heard the sound of bones breaking.]
[That blow definitely broke ribs; if it pierced his lung, he'd be done for!]
[Naraku, quickly block, quickly, wuwuwuwu.]
[Ah ah ah ah ah it's over! It's over, it's over, it's over!]
[Kakashi!!]
[Kakashi, you did well!!]
[Run, run, run!]
The perspective shifted to Kakashi, who was running for his life, carrying Naraku and darting through the dense forest.
A close-up was again given to Naraku's rib wound; blood had already soaked half of his clothes. The warm, sticky sensation crawled from between Kakashi's fingers all the way to his chest, feeling like a large hand squeezing his heart.
He heard his own voice trembling. "Naraku, how are you?"
"I'm... I'm fine..."
Naraku gasped for breath with difficulty but still answered his question. He then used Kakashi's back to prop up his upper body, nervously watching the constantly receding trees, wary of where the enemy might appear, and urged him to leave alone.
"You go on ahead, Kakashi..."
Kakashi refused adamantly. "No!"
"Go..."
Naraku urged him to go again, his voice even more broken than before.
He retorted, anxious and angry, "I said no!"
[Kakashi is truly panicked; his hands are covered in Naraku's blood.]
[Naraku can barely speak clearly anymore.]
[Run, wuwuwuwuwu.]
[Wuwuwuwuwu my poor ship.]
[If either of them dies, I'm sending The Old Thief a knife!!!]
[Naraku and Kakashi are still so young... they can't die!]
[I'm crying my eyes out; Naraku is still thinking of letting Kakashi run alone.]
[But Kakashi would never abandon him; they'll die together if they have to.]