"Is he the guy who's been tailing us for months? His presence does seem different from that of an ordinary wandering shinobi."
The young man codenamed "Suzaku" spoke, looking him over critically.
"Kakuzu, an S-rank rogue shinobi from Hidden Waterfall Village. He possesses the secret technique Earth Grudge Fear, which allows him to seize other people's hearts. Not only can he use them for himself, but he can also achieve a state of 'immortality' through this technique..."
A masked young man spoke, briefly laying out Kakuzu's information and giving his companions an immediate understanding of him.
"Immortality? Then I'd like to see whether he really can't die!"
A curious yet icy female voice spoke. The pattern on her mask was a three-eyed leech, outlined in blood-red and creating a striking visual impression.
After speaking, the girl charged forward alone, completely ignoring her companions' reactions.
"Blood Leech is still as impatient as ever."
The speaker's voice was rough and booming. His mask bore the image of a one-legged, hornless bovine creature.
"After all, among us, only Blood Leech and Suzaku can charge forward so recklessly without considering the consequences..."
The young man who had first spotted Kakuzu spoke in an utterly calm tone, merely stating a fact.
"What? Yinglong, are you jealous of their abilities?"
The young man who had described Kakuzu's intelligence earlier spoke. His voice was somewhat childish, like that of a child.
The young man called Yinglong looked at him, studying the mask on his face depicting a white skeletal bird with two horns, before slowly saying, "G Diao, you should know that our abilities were bestowed upon us by those above. We never had a choice. Every one of us has a specific role to fulfill, so I would never envy Blood Leech or Suzaku, because I do not wish to 'take' their 'codenames'..."
"Yinglong, you really are still the same. You always talk so seriously. How boring."
The young man codenamed G Diao said with a bored expression.
"Yinglong is right. We are a complete team. As long as everyone fulfills their assigned role, we will remain undefeated, and the mission assigned by those above will be completed perfectly!"
The rough voice came from behind Kui Niu's mask. He greatly agreed with Yinglong's words.
"Hey! Blood Leech and that Kakuzu are about to fight!"
At that moment, the girl codenamed Tengshe called out brightly. Her gaze shifted toward Blood Leech and Kakuzu in the distance, and Kui Niu, G Diao, Yinglong, and Suzaku all turned to look as well...
The impatient Blood Leech reached Kakuzu in just a few breaths, blocking his path. Her blood-red eyes beneath the mask carried a hint of bloodlust as she looked at Kakuzu like he was prime prey.
Kakuzu stopped. Looking at the masked girl before him, he unconsciously furrowed his brow because he could sense intense malice from her.
"Sixty million ryo."
Kakuzu spoke abruptly, catching Blood Leech off guard.
"What sixty million ryo?"
Blood Leech asked in confusion.
"Over the past few months, you have accepted million-level bounty missions totaling thirty million ryo. And each of your heads is currently worth five million ryo on the black market. Therefore, you need to pay me sixty million ryo. Only then will the time I spent finding you not be wasted, and you can live a little longer..."
Kakuzu spoke with a businesslike air. After all, wandering shinobi with as much potential to "appreciate" as these six naturally had to wait until their bounties rose higher before their heads were collected. Killing them now would be somewhat unprofitable...
"Only then will I have a reason to let you go."
Yet after Kakuzu finished speaking, Blood Leech seemed unconcerned. She said to him, "So you're someone who values money over his life..."
After saying that, Blood Leech extended her right arm and rolled up her sleeve, revealing an arm covered in scars. Then, under Kakuzu's watchful gaze, she dragged the nails of her left hand hard across the skin of her right arm. Bright scarlet blood immediately began to flow...
"Then I'll send you to your death!"
As Blood Leech's voice fell, the blood flowing from her right arm instantly turned into a cloud of Blood Mist that wrapped around her body. Then she shot toward Kakuzu at lightning speed, too fast for the naked eye to follow, and drove a punch straight into his face!
Kakuzu had no time to react before Blood Leech's punch smashed him uncontrollably into the ground with a deafening crash. His body was driven deep into the earth.
"Cough, cough! How is this possible?!"
Kakuzu crawled out of the crater with difficulty, coughing several times before muttering in disbelief. That masked girl's speed and strength were simply inhuman!
"Huh?"
Blood Leech stared in surprise at Kakuzu as he slowly got back up. Ordinarily, any shinobi without a strong physique would be severely injured by a single punch from her, yet he clearly seemed completely unharmed!
"Is that what I should expect from an S-rank rogue shinobi? Or is it because of his 'immortality'?"
Blood Leech muttered.
"But now that you've been tainted by Blood Mist, what will you do?"
Blood Leech's ability relied on "blood." Her usual attacks consisted of two steps. The first was using Blood Mist to enhance herself, granting her multiplied speed and strength. The second was using Blood Mist to enter the enemy's body during an attack, where it would begin devouring the enemy's blood and Chakra...
"Fire Release: Searing Migraine!"
Having roamed the Shinobi World for many years, Kakuzu was shocked and surprised by Blood Leech's speed and strength, but he would not be frightened off by a masked girl. He immediately used a ninjutsu, spewing flames like a raging sea from his mouth and engulfing Blood Leech...
"That guy's physique is extraordinary. He took a punch from Blood Leech as though nothing had happened."
Suzaku spoke in a frivolous tone, clearly surprised.
"Is this the powerful physique that comes with 'immortality'? Even my 'pets' are getting eager to try their luck!"
Rice-grain-sized insects crawled back and forth deep within the eyes beneath G Diao's mask, looking incredibly eerie.
"But Blood Leech's Blood Mist should already have been planted. Now we just need to see when he notices..."
Yinglong analyzed the situation. Blood Leech's Blood Mist needed a certain amount of time to corrode its target, and its corrosive power was directly proportional to that time. The longer it lasted, the stronger the Blood Mist's corrosion became, and naturally, the greater the damage it would inflict on Kakuzu!
Tengshe and Kui Niu said nothing, but both continued watching Kakuzu closely. Especially when he used a large-scale Fire Release ninjutsu, identical flashes of delight appeared in their eyes.
Blood Leech's Blood Mist most enjoyed it when an enemy was using a technique, since that was when the Chakra within their body was at its most active...
Blood Leech watched Kakuzu finish his ninjutsu and spew Fire Release at her. She had no intention of dodging. Instead, she stared at him with blazing eyes, as if anticipating some sort of change.
Kakuzu, having completed his Fire Release, was also full of confusion. He looked at Blood Leech, already engulfed in flames, unable to understand why she had such a bizarre "suicidal" reaction. Yet before long, his expression suddenly darkened. The hearts in his body, modified by Earth Grudge Fear, began to force their way out uncontrollably in the form of "mask monsters"...