Smoke Bombs and Flashbangs

"Sizzle... Boom!"

The force of the Rasengan sent his body spinning, tumbling and colliding with the ground multiple times before finally stopping his backward momentum.

This time, Kakuzu didn't play dead. As soon as the impact subsided, he jumped up, clutching his waist, and said, "You brat, you actually knew my information!"

"Hmph, someone like you isn't even worth my attention." Shuichi slowly approached. He still had about half of his usable chakra left, Kakuzu would indeed be a bit troublesome; he needed to plan carefully. "My eyes can predict the future; I have your every move under control."

Tremble, die in despair!

Kakuzu hearing his mocking tone, Kakuzu's expression turned extremely ferocious. "Arrogant and ignorant bastard, die!"

Fire Release: Searing Migraine!

"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"

The masks on both shoulders lit up simultaneously, and terrifying Ninjutsu was unleashed at the same time. "Whoosh..." The golden flames enhanced by Wind Release completely covered the area in front of him. Shuichi was like a tiny dot in front of the sea of fire and was instantly engulfed.

After the flames disappeared, the land turned completely charred black, and even an ant was burned to ashes.

"Swoosh..." Shuichi burst out of the ground, clearly having used the same trick of hiding underground again when he saw Kakuzu's Ninjutsu. His up-and-down movement, like a groundhog, almost rendered Kakuzu's Ninjutsu attack methods useless.

The Earth Release Heart and Water Release Heart have been destroyed, Earth Grudge Fear Black Lines can be clearly X-ray vision, so there is absolutely no need to worry about any accidents.

"They ran away?"

Shuichi was stunned. The arena was now empty. Kakuzu had used the cover of vision to escape quickly after completing his massive attack, which Shuichi hadn't expected. "As expected, the longer you live, the more afraid you are of death. This old monster is really cautious. After realizing he was at a disadvantage fighting me, he didn't even care about saving face and just ran away."

"Forget it, I won't chase him!" After thinking about it, he realized that he didn't have much chakra left, Kakuzu had 3 hearts. If they fought again, the outcome would be uncertain.

After this encounter, Kakuzu should not bother him for a while. Kakuzu only wants money and is unlikely to risk offending Konoha to attack him again. Besides, Shuichi's strength is not to be underestimated.

"Even if you don't come looking for me now, I'll still come looking for you later."

Grabbing the remaining black thread of Earth Grudge Fear, they discovered that it actually contained blood, but it was completely different from normal human blood vessels.

"Kakuzu's body has been transformed into something non-human; this secret technique seems to have significant drawbacks."

Shuichi carefully sealed away these black threads, thinking that he could borrow a dog from Kakashi later to find him quickly. "I'll let you live a few more years now. Once I've developed further, I won't let you run away again. You can earn some money for me now; it'll all be mine eventually anyway."

Although the battle that took place near the Daimyo's Mansion was large-scale, the location was more than ten miles away from the capital, so it was not discovered so quickly.

After leaving, Shuichi went straight back to Konoha. He did not report the incident to the Third Hokage. Although the attacker was a powerful fighter, it did not involve the safety of the village, so he planned to deal with it himself when he had time.

Over the next few days, his mission went smoothly. It seemed that Konoha and the Daimyo's Mansion had reached a financial aid agreement, but he didn't need to worry about the details for the time being.

In a neatly decorated shop on the main street of the Daimyo's Mansion, Shuichi's old acquaintance Inoue Danza, accompanied him to order some special ninja tools because his requirements were somewhat unusual.

"This is one of the best ninja tool shops in the Land of Fire, boasting the widest variety of ninja tools in the entire Shinobi World. Many Jonin from Konoha have collaborated with this shop," Inoue Danza and Shuichi introduced the ninja tool shop's illustrious history.

"This is the current manager of this shop, Master Sato, who is also the most skilled craftsman here, with over 30 years of experience in crafting ninja tools."

Sato was a strong, middle-aged man with a thick beard and wide, round eyes. However, his voice was quite friendly when he spoke. "This young man must be our famous genius, Takeda Shuichi, from the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. The title of 'Master of the Danza' is an exaggeration, but he is certainly skilled with ordinary ninja tools. Please take care of me, Shuichi-kun."

Please give me your guidance!

After the three talked for a while, Shuichi learned that he was a well-known figure in various ninja tool shops.

Many business owners went to watch the Joint Chunin Exam, and Konoha has been gaining momentum in recent years, so the booming business of ninja tool shops may have benefited a bit from his presence.

"To be honest, Shuichi-kun," Sato quickly steered the conversation back on track, "We can make the ninja tool you requested, but its effect seems somewhat flawed for use in ninja battles..."

"For example, the special Smoke Bomb you requested, I've already set it up. Come and try it out in the training ground."

The three of them walked together towards the area behind the shop. When they reached the center, Shuichi took a cloth ball with a radius of more than 2 centimeters from Sato. It was almost the size of a small apple in his hand.

Walking to the center of the field, after channeling a little chakra according to the instructions, the Smoke Bomb exploded instantly, filling the entire training ground with smoke. Although the concentration was not high, those inside could barely see anything.

"Cough cough..."

From the sidelines came the sound of Inoue Danza choking, while Shuichi, standing in the center, was very happy. The smoke covered a very large area, with a distance of more than 30 meters between the front and back.

This was the inspiration he got after upgrading his Flash; by using the X-ray vision function, even with his eyes closed, it wouldn't affect his combat at all.

In addition, having previously ambushed a large group of people at the Sunagakure camp Water Severing Wave, he immediately went to the Daimyo's Mansion upon returning to the village to order some exclusive killer weapons.

"Perfect! The area inside the Smoke Bomb is my territory. This is even more practical than a dust-type Fire Release."

Previously, a 10-meter field of vision was a bit too small, making it easy for opponents to escape during intense combat. Now, with the upgrade to 20 meters, its practicality is greatly enhanced.

"As soon as the enemy gets close, I'll throw Smoke Bomb." Shuichi's mind started conjuring up all sorts of underhanded tricks. "Ordinary Jonin can be easily killed once they're trapped in the smoke. When facing multiple opponents, I can even Water Severing Wave to swarm them. No one can see my Hand Seals, or even know the direction of my attack..."

Once he masters the Water Severing Wave technique, its destructive power will be astonishing, a method completely opposite to that of the Second Hokage.

"Shuichi, this smoke screen covers too much area!" After the smoke cleared, Inoue Danza voiced Sato's concerns. "This will affect you and your teammates, making it easier for the enemy to take advantage."

Having seen much, he also knew about ninja Smoke Bomb. They were usually thrown at the enemy's feet to cause interference, but such a large area would also engulf the user, increasing the unpredictable risks in battle.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Shuichi smiled calmly, this was exactly the effect he wanted. "Uncle Sato, next up is something else..."

On the Land of Fire Border, in a desolate wilderness, a figure was fleeing at breakneck speed. He hadn't expected the great battle between Konoha and Sand Village to end so quickly, resulting in Konoha capturing him, a Jonin who had infiltrated the Land of Fire Jonin the chaos.

After running for several hours, just when he thought he had shaken off Konoha Anbu, a voice came from beside him and startled him.

"You must be Sunagakure, the rogue ninja from Nakaya?"

After slamming on the brakes, Nakaya looked up at the sound and saw that the newcomer had an extremely bizarre appearance. He was wearing a thick, dark blue, tight-fitting combat suit with black bulletproof armor on top. His gas mask had round protective goggles that were bigger than light bulbs, and the large mask sticking out of his mouth was completely different from the ninjas of the Land of Rain.

The man, wearing thick leather boots, stood on a tree trunk, arms crossed, looking up at the sky with an arrogant expression, completely disregarding him.

"Who are you? Anbu of Konoha?"

Nakaya's face showed wariness. The Konoha Anbu were known for their decisive actions and wouldn't act in such a way. So, did this person want to recruit him, Jonin fighter?

"No." A mature and steady voice came from behind the mask, "I am Agent Zero, captain of the 1st Division of the Seal Unit from the Land of Fire. I have been sent by the Security Bureau to end your life."

"What Seal Unit? Do you think I'm an idiot?" Nakaya felt insulted. He had already deduced that the opponents were likely Konoha Ninja, and it seemed that things couldn't end well today.

"Whoosh!" Agent Zero leaped down from the tree, drawing a dagger with white patterns on the blade. "For my first mission, to ensure everything goes smoothly, I'll use my signature Seal Short Sword to finish you off."

Nakaya drew his Katana and instantly sped off, unleashing his maximum speed to strike the enemy. "You idiot, die!"

"Alright, let's have a speed race then, and see who's faster."

Agent Zero adopted a standard ninja run and charged at Nakaya, seemingly intending to take the blow head-on, though it was unclear what he was thinking.

The two figures closed in an instant, and just as they were about to enter the combat zone, Agent Zero's hand on his prop bag flicked, and a small square box floated up from behind him.

"Flashbang!"

"BOOM!"

A slightly strange explosion rang out, and the small box flew over his head and exploded instantly. The sudden, intense white light almost blinded Nakaya.

"Ah..."

Agent Zero, having successfully dodged with his back turned, easily avoided the slash that had been aimed to the side; the short sword seemed to pierce through Nakaya's throat with a casual thrust.

"Phew! Serves you right for laughing at the Seal Unit. Today, the agent will teach you a lesson."