You Made a Mistake Too

The worst of those who could serve as Danzo's guards were Special Jonin with a unique specialty.

Several Root ninja erupted into motion like wind and thunder, launching a surprise attack on Kaedeji from multiple directions. An ordinary person would have been subdued in an instant.

But Kaedeji was no ordinary person.

Puffs of white smoke rose simultaneously as several figures appeared out of thin air around Kaedeji. Sandstorm Araki, at their head, raised his hands and created a small-scale sandstorm in an instant.

The earth trembled as layers of soil were ripped up by tremendous force and became part of the storm. Within the biting gale, streams of sand and dust condensed into stone bullets and suddenly burst forth, disrupting the Root ninja's movements.

"That's an Elite Jonin from Sunagakure. This Guy can actually control ninja to this extent?" one Root ninja said.

"It isn't mere command. From being Summoned to successfully Performing the technique—even if he had prepared for this in advance, that speed is still Too Much."

That meant one thing—Sandstorm Araki had retained the greatest possible portion of his strength from life. Seventy or eighty percent? Perhaps even more!

By comparison, Kaedeji's decisive choice to resist hardly seemed worth mentioning before Sandstorm Araki's astonishing performance.

Danzo watched the sandstorm erupt from nowhere, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes.

"So Is This The Case. Kaedeji concealed the true power of this secret technique from everyone! If it can restore an Elite Jonin's power to this extent—no, perhaps it is already infinitely close to his peak strength in life—then this secret technique may even work on a Kage's corpse."

Perfect. Too perfect. As Danzo looked at Sandstorm Araki and the other zombies, he felt there was no technique more perfect than this secret art.

He simply did not know how this secret technique system, capable of developing so many supporting ninjutsu, compared in difficulty to the Impure World Reincarnation that no one had managed to learn so far. And for Kaedeji to develop a technique like Corpse Manipulation on his own, his talent exceeded Danzo's imagination.

The more this was the case, the less he could afford to let Kaedeji go easily.

"Continue. Take him alive. Must this old man act personally?" Danzo said coldly.

The Root ninja spread out around them and immediately began forming hand seals, using ninjutsu to break ninjutsu.

Under the assault of so many techniques, the sandstorm was naturally torn apart, clearly exposing Kaedeji's figure.

One Root ninja held a blade in one hand and formed seals with the other before stabbing directly at Kaedeji with astonishing speed.

"Captain Terai, is it? I can tell."

Kaedeji's expression did not change at all. The zombies Beside Him had already begun to move, and the Explosion Release Zombie stepped sideways to block his path.

Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!

Explosion Release: Exploding Thunder Palm!

One zombie pressed both Hands against the ground and used Earth Release. The instant the barrier surged up, the Explosion Release Zombie beside it extended its palm almost simultaneously, striking the wall with precision the very moment it stopped rising.

Boom!

A violent explosion erupted. Under the destructive force of Explosion Release, the barrier shattered, and the fierce shockwave surged straight toward the incoming Terai.

All of this happened in an instant, their coordination seamless. From beginning to end, the zombies had exchanged no communication at all, as though they had rehearsed it Innumerable Times.

The combination of ninjutsu with different attributes was all the more intimidating because every motion flowed so smoothly and flawlessly.

That opening was already enough for Sandstorm Araki to use a new ninjutsu.

Magnet Release: Sand Hail!

"This Guy truly is better suited to fighting in the desert. The terrain's advantage boosts his ninjutsu's power far too much."

Kaedeji stood still, yet he still had the spare attention to make an assessment.

But Terai was Terai after all. With the strength of an Elite Jonin and the assistance of the other Root ninja, lightning burst from his blade. He precisely struck the sand's path of movement, rapidly swinging his sword to knock away every sand bullet. Wrapped in a piercing Chakra hum, the blade drew an azure arc through the air.

Squelch!

Sandstorm Araki was pierced through the chest, leaving an empty hole in his left breast, yet not a drop of blood flowed out. As if nothing had happened, he created an even larger sandstorm.

"This corpse is already Very Strong, and it is unafraid of injury. That makes it even more troublesome in battle."

Terai glanced at his forearm from the corner of his eye. Every hair stood on end, a warning from instinct.

Taking advantage of the motion, he swung his blade. The strike that had originally aimed straight for the throat abruptly shifted into a diagonal slash, clearly intending to sever Sandstorm Araki's head!

At that moment, an utterly ordinary zombie Approached a step forward. A sizzling sound came from within its body, and then it exploded with a roar.

The blast wave sent half of Terai's blade flying away. Fragments of metal whistled past Kaedeji's ear and punched honeycomb-like holes into the ground several meters away.

At the same time, three figures burst from underground and trapped the Explosion Release Zombie in the center.

But Sandstorm Araki's giant hand of sand emerged from underground in sync, carrying Magnet Release Chakra and turning the ground within a twenty-meter radius into shifting quicksand.

This series of actions had indeed allowed the Root ninja to dismantle Kaedeji's defensive formation. There were no other zombies left.

"Watch out for him using the Summoning Technique again."

"One of his hands has remained in a hand-seal position."

As they rapidly exchanged information, the few of them formed hand seals.

Fire Release: Blazing Ash Seal!

A torrent of Explosive Tags surged forth, layering upon one another to form a chain of explosive tag formations before detonating at once. Everything within the formation was reduced to dust.

"Lord Danzo, he isn't dead, is he?" Terai, covered in A Bit of dust, held the broken blade In Chiyo's Hands and expressionlessly removed his Damaged mask.

"He once served as your subordinate. You saw him use Space-Time Ninjutsu with your Own eyes." Danzo's sinister face stared at the swelling cloud of smoke as he calculated the time.

"Forty-seven seconds. It took a little long, but it is within the controllable range. However, the commotion was too great. No matter how remote this place is, it will definitely draw the village's attention. I Fear many ninja have already Arrived by now."

Terai said, "His main problem is that his body is too weak. Controlling so many corpses to use techniques must have consumed most of his Chakra. After such an intense battle, I am not sure whether he has the strength left to use Space-Time Ninjutsu to escape."

Even If he successfully used the technique, the distance he could travel was also a problem. Everything within dozens of meters had already been blasted bare. Soil had been overturned from the ground, and the solid walls had long since collapsed.

The longer the distance traveled, the more Chakra it consumed and the greater the cost of Performing the technique. Judging from the characteristics of the Flying Thunder God Technique, Kaedeji's technique should work the same way.

But after several seconds passed and the dust dispersed, Kaedeji walked out from a hidden chamber, completely spotless and showing no signs of exhaustion. Everything about him seemed utterly ordinary.

Sandstorm Araki, who had been lying motionless on the ground, moved once more. But he did not attack again, merely standing quietly in place.

"So he had already transferred himself away. He used a corpse to take the explosion in his place? Terai, it seems you also made a mistake with This Guy. The consumption of controlling corpses is far lower than you imagined."

Danzo revealed a satisfied expression.

"The battle ends here, Kaedeji. This old man has seen all of your talent."