Facing Black Zetsu

A cold wind blew from the ruins, carrying a faint smell of blood. The sun, high in the sky, shone with intense heat. The pink flower buds in the crater began to slowly rotate, emitting a soft pink glow.

Seeing this, the elder of the clan showed excitement. "Is it going to succeed?" According to the records he had obtained, this change was the prelude to the completion of the bloodline refinement.

Compared to the elder's excitement, Yemo's expression was naturally very unpleasant. He absolutely could not allow the elder to obtain this bloodline power.

Yemo glanced at Kakashi, who was struggling against the flower bud, and gave Kakashi a look. Sensing Yemo's meaning, Kakashi nodded slightly and moved quietly toward the flower bud.

At the same time, Yemo quickly used Yin-Yang Release to repair his internal injuries. As the light emitted by the pink flower bud grew more and more intense, the elder's smile deepened.

Suddenly, the elder turned to Yemo and said unexpectedly, "Yemo Uzumaki, as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, I am now giving you one last choice. If you can abandon your evil ways and return to the Uzumaki Clan, I can forgive and forget your past transgressions. I can even reward you with a portion of your bloodline's power. Think about it, with your talent, if your bloodline were to strengthen further, your future would be limitless."

The elder's tone was full of temptation, and Kakashi, who was about to take action, subconsciously looked at Yemo. He was very curious about what choice Yemo would make in the face of such temptation.

Yemo's monstrous talent was noticed by the clan elders. Whether it was his earth-shattering act of killing a Jonin or breaking the Space Seal, these two points alone were enough to prove that Yemo was a genius that was only seen once in a hundred years.

The Uzumaki Clan has paid too high a price for this bloodline power comparable to their ancestors. The vast majority of the clan members have died, and who knows how many members of the Uzumaki Clan are left? Maybe only the two of them are left.

Yemo was right about some things. A powerful clan needs not only strong individuals, but also its members. The elder knew that he was getting old and that even if he obtained the power of the bloodline, he wouldn't live much longer. The future of the Uzumaki Clan still needed young people.

That's why the elder took a liking to Yemo. His talent was the highest among the Uzumaki Clan in the past few hundred years. The main reason was that Yemo was still young. The elder was confident that under his guidance, Yemo's thoughts would turn from the wrong path to the right one.

With his already high talent, Yemo's future will go even further if he is further enhanced by his powerful bloodline. He is too old to live much longer, but Yemo is different. He is only seven or eight years old and has plenty of time.

When he grows old, the Uzumaki Clan needs a young and powerful leader.

With a soft chuckle, Yemo lowered his head, as if talking to himself, "A bloodline power comparable to that of our ancestors, an immeasurable future—it's certainly very attractive."

Upon hearing this, the elder clansman revealed a hint of excitement, while Kakashi's expression changed slightly, filled with disbelief. He thought to himself, "No way, this guy Yemo can't resist such temptation?"

After a pause, Yemo raised his head to look at the Great Elder, then changed the subject, saying, "But if it's something gained by sacrificing the lives of tens of thousands of clansmen, I'd rather not have that kind of future."

Upon hearing this, the elder's smile vanished instantly, replaced by anger. Not only had Yemo refused him, but he had also cursed him as well.

Kakashi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, "This is the right thing to do. This is the Yemo I know."

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences," the elder sneered, then added, "To celebrate the success of the plan, let's start with you two brats."

Before the words were even finished, the elder clan leader had already launched his attack. His movements were as swift as lightning, and he charged straight at Kakashi, who was closest to the flower bud.

"Not good!"

Yemo cursed inwardly, not expecting that the old fox, the clan elder, had actually seen through their intentions. He hadn't made a sound, and when he attacked, he went straight for Kakashi.

Kakashi was taken aback when he saw the elder attacking. He hadn't expected the elder to target him. Realizing their plan had been exposed, Kakashi abandoned his original idea and met the elder's attack head-on.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh...

Kakashi raised his hand and shot out several Kunai, but the clan elder nimbly dodged them all. Instead of forcing the clan elder back, Kakashi allowed the clan elder to press forward.

The elder clansman swept his leg across, but Kakashi leaped to dodge. At the same time, he raised his Kunai and thrust it straight at the elder clansman's shoulder. However, the elder clansman seemed to have seen through his attack. His right hand, like a long snake, reached out and tightly gripped Kakashi's arm. Kakashi immediately felt as if he were being held by a pair of iron pincers, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not break free. Kakashi quickly turned around and kicked the elder clansman in the chest with both feet.

The elder clan leader was faster Kakashi. He raised his hand and punched Kakashi in the chest. A tidal wave of power surged out, and Kakashi felt as if he had been hit by a boulder. Kakashi opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The elder clansman snatched the Kunai from Kakashi's hand and thrust it straight at Kakashi's heart. He was determined to kill him, and his attacks were ruthless and deadly.

Swish...

A cold glint flashed through the air, followed by the clanging sound of metal striking metal, and Kakkō flew. It turned out that Yemo had arrived just in time, using his Kunai to block the elder's attack.

"Yemo, do you think you can block my attack!" the elder said disdainfully, and with a sudden increase in the weight of his hand, Yemo's hand was immediately forced to descend. Yemo gripped the kunai with both hands and Kunai all his strength, but he couldn't stop it. He watched as the Kunai approached Kakashi's head.

"I know, Elder, your Taijutsu are even stronger than the Second Elder's. I certainly won't make such a low-level mistake," Yemo said through gritted teeth.

As soon as he finished speaking, Yemo changed his hands and formed an ugly hand seal. Upon seeing this, the elder's eyes narrowed, and he immediately understood what Yemo was going to do, but it was too late.

"Lightning Release: Turbulence!"

Yemo gave a low shout, and a large amount of azure current immediately emerged from his hands, flowing into the elder's body through the kunai that Kunai touching. The powerful current struck, and even the elder couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, his body trembling slightly. It turned out that Yemo had already prepared Ninjutsu, but hadn't released it until the two made Lightning Release Ninjutsu.

Although the electric current had already affected the elder's body, he could still withstand its destructive power. However, the current paralyzed the elder's muscles, slowing his reactions and giving Yemo time.

With a flick of his wrist, Yemo Kunai his kunai diagonally toward the elder's heart. The elder, who had no intention of killing Kakashi at this moment, quickly withdrew his hand to Kunai Yemo's kunai.

Taking advantage of Yemo situation, Yemo rescued Kakashi and then rapidly retreated with Kakashi, covering more than ten meters before stopping when he felt the distance was safe.

For Taijutsu master like a clan elder, his Ninjutsu would only be effective for a few seconds at most. To think he could kill the clan elder in those few seconds was a joke. It was more realistic to find Kakashi.

Not only was he outmaneuvered by Yemo, but the brat he was supposed to kill was also saved. The elder's rage was obvious, but Yemo had already retreated to a relatively safe distance with Kakashi.

"Are you alright?" Yemo asked worriedly, glancing at Kakashi beside him who was panting heavily and had a pale face.

"I can still hold on!" Kakashi replied, panting heavily.

Upon hearing this, Yemo felt even more uneasy. Kakashi's statement that he could hold on instead of being fine was itself a huge problem. He knew that if Kakashi were truly capable of fighting, he would definitely say he was fine. The fact that he said he could hold on meant that Kakashi had little strength left to fight.

Yemo scanned the surrounding terrain with his eyes. He was trying to figure out a way to escape. Kakashi was seriously injured, and he couldn't possibly defeat the clan elder on his own. If he didn't try to escape now, he would miss his chance.

Yemo's movements did not escape the eyes of the elder, who said, "It's too late to run away now. If you had tried to escape earlier, you might have had a chance. Now, no matter how much you struggle, you can't escape my grasp."

"Clap clap clap clap..."

Before Yemo could speak, a slapping sound suddenly rang out. Everyone present, including Yemo, Kakashi, and the clan elder, changed their expressions. They had been fighting for so long without noticing that someone had been hiding in the shadows all along.

Silence... a deathly silence. Even the howling wind seemed to have stopped, and there was not a sound in the sky except for the sound of the slap.

The three of them looked in the direction of the sound at the same time, and saw a figure wearing a black robe standing on the pile of rubble. His whole body was covered by the black robe, and they could only see his face when he raised his head.

Yemo's face instantly turned to disbelief, as if he had seen something terrifying, and he made a sound that only he could hear.

"Black Zetsu!"