Battle Chapter One

The winter forest is monotonous, with thick snow weighing down the bare branches, and a strong wind blowing, shaking off the falling snowflakes.

In these days when all things lie dormant, apart from the sound of the wind and the shallow sound of flowing water under the ice, there is not a single other sound in the world.

"Smack!"

With each step, the branches beneath his feet trembled violently.

"Come out here! Stop sneaking around. You thought you'd finally amount to something after destroying Kumogakure, but you're still such good-for-nothings!"

Katsuki stared coldly at the wooden house by the stream.

"Senior Katsuki, it's great to see you again!"

The wooden cabin door opened, Senju Zen slowly walked out, a gentle smile on his face. Looking at the death row inmate in Katsuki's hands, a burning desire stirred within him.

That was the aura of the Nine-Tails.

"Enough with the nonsense, stop your wind right now, this guy is yours."

Katsuki flung the condemned prisoner away.

A glint flashed in Senju Zen's eyes. He stood still, while the towering figure of Asura Path crashed through the wooden hut and rushed out, reaching out to catch the condemned prisoner.

"Tsk! You've got quite the nerve. When you came to me for the Five-Tails, you were pretty bold, weren't you? How come you're getting more and more cowardly now?" Katsuki sneered, watching as Asura Path examined the death row inmates. After confirming there were no problems, he carried the inmate on his shoulder and retreated behind Senju Zen.

Better safe than sorry.

Senju Zen straightened his back and met Katsuki's gaze.

"What? Isn't the wind going to stop?"

Katsuki pointed to the sky, where the north wind howled, carrying distant clouds toward Konoha.

"I'm sorry, Konoha's existence is really too much of an eyesore. For the sake of the greater plan, it would be better to destroy Konoha. Also, Senior Katsuki, since you're here, don't leave. Stay here too!"

Senju Zen raised his hand towards the Katsuki.

Shinra Tensei.

An invisible and traceless repulsive force swept across the sky like a cannonball, its immense power crushing the tree into dust, and even sending Katsuki, who was standing on the tree, flying away.

"Ah! As expected, they won't listen unless we fight!"

Flying in mid-air, gazing up at the moving dark clouds in the sky, Katsuki sighed, letting herself fall, crashing through six or seven large trees, before landing flat on the snowdrift.

"Lightning Release: False Darkness"

The instant Katsuki landed, a dark figure leaped up from the snow. It was tall and broad, with hands and feet, but it was pitch black and did not resemble a human. A bizarre bull's head mask with a yellow nose was also present.

The mask's mouth opened, and a dazzling display of azure lightning erupted from it.

A bolt of lightning shot out, like an indestructible spear that could pierce through everything, and struck Katsuki directly in the snowdrift.

The intense heat from the lightning instantly evaporated the snow, and the white vapor hissed and rose into the air, quickly condensing into water droplets in the cold air.

However, Senju Zen's expression remained extremely serious.

"Lightning Release Technique? Hmph! A boring trick." Katsuki's clothes were torn at the chest, with charred marks visible at the edges. He frowned, looking at the masked monster crouching on the treetop, his killing intent surging.

"Haha! Die!"

Suddenly, a massive, three-sectioned, blood-red scythe slashed down from behind.

"Clang!"

Hidan's excitement hadn't faded yet, and he stared blankly at the scythe held in one hand, momentarily stunned.

"Get the hell out of here, you piece of trash, what are you doing here?"

A fist gleaming with the luster of steel slammed heavily into Hidan's face. With a crisp cracking sound, a spray of blood flew up, and Hidan released his grip on the scythe. He was sent flying backward, half of his head smashed into a pile of mud by the punch. His body crashed into the snow and was dragged for dozens of meters before coming to a stop.

However, this guy is indeed very special. Half of his head is gone, but his body is still moving. It's just that without a brain, his hands and feet are just grabbing around randomly.

"Immortality?"

After glancing at Hidan, who was wriggling like a maggot, Katsuki lost interest and gripped the scarlet scythe in her hand, her gaze sweeping across the surrounding forest.

Besides this masked monster and Hidan, there are quite a few other people hiding nearby!

Perhaps they were frightened by the fact that he had smashed half of Hidan's head, because for a moment no one dared to make a move. Even the masked monster remained quietly perched on the treetop, motionless.

"It's dragging on and on, not pleasant at all."

Katsuki looked up at the howling wind in the sky, clicked her tongue, and decided that she couldn't let the other side stall for time any longer. If the wind continued to gather strength, Konoha would probably be blown away in a little while.

"Arm Strength Enhancement".

The muscles in his arms suddenly bulged, and veins coiled beneath his skin like Aoda. His arms grew thicker, and the scarlet scythe in his hands was twisted into a lump of iron.

"Foot Strength Enhancement."

He stomped his feet on the ground, and his shoes shattered with a crack, leaving several overlapping footprints that were a finger's width deep in the ground.

"Phew! It's been a long time since I've used these methods." Katsuki stretched his shoulders, staring at the masked monster on the treetop in the distance. Suddenly, he moved his hand, and the lump of iron flew out with a whoosh, instantly crossing a distance of fifty or sixty meters, piercing through the masked monster's body, and even shattering the mask into pieces.

That was too fast! So fast that the masked monster couldn't react at all.

Even those who hadn't shown themselves were caught off guard. Senju Zen, standing in front of the wooden house, stared wide-eyed, his arm only half-raised, unsure whether to raise it further.

Senju Zen was horrified; with just such a simple strike, he had destroyed one of Kakuzu's hearts.

It's so powerful it's suffocating.

"So crispy."

Katsuki's lips curled up; she hadn't taken the masked monster seriously from beginning to end.

With his eyes fixed on the wooden house and the Senju Zen standing in front of it, he slightly bent his waist, moved his right foot forward, and his whole body was like a drawn bow. With a snap, as the tendons in his body throbbed, he shot out like an arrow released from a bow.

Boom!

The heavy punches were like cannon fire, directly knocking the Asura Path blocking his way backward, shattering the ground within ten meters beneath his feet.

The force of the blows whipped up the snow, plastering it all over the wooden house. The powerful wind pressure caused the house to creak and groan under the weight, and small cracks appeared in the walls.

Senju Zen's face turned pale. Fortunately, his Six Paths Clone were of one mind with him, and the Asura Path's reaction speed was unparalleled in the Shinobi World. In that brief moment, they protected him. Otherwise, he was not sure if he could have withstood that punch.

He spent a lot of time and effort collecting the Asura Path back then, and now it seems that his efforts were truly worthwhile.

But.

The natural disasters in Konoha were truly terrifying; the mere Taijutsu attacks alone were enough to make him break out in a cold sweat.

Seeing the Asura Path's somewhat distorted right hand, a look of horror flashed in his Rinnegan. (To be continued)