Gorgeous Fireworks, Schemes

Shuichi was watching the show from the city wall. He didn't stop the three rogue ninjas from running away at the missing-nin. His mission was to protect Land of Glass Village and repel the invaders, so let them run away if they wanted to.

However, Sasori and Kakuzu did not stand idly by. They had previously agreed to send these relatively strong cannon fodder soldiers to the front lines, so if anyone tried to escape, the two of them would execute them swiftly and decisively, thus deterring those who were two-faced.

Now, encountering the Purple Aurora requires manpower to draw fire and limit its mobility with the threat of invasion, giving us the option to fight or run.

As the Masked Man leaped out, the scorpion immediately followed, first spitting out a large number of poisonous needles to disrupt his escape route, then rapidly closing in and striking repeatedly with its tail, putting the Masked Man in grave danger.

"Whoosh..." Suddenly, Steel Cable as thick as a finger emerged from the large body hidden under the cloak. The speed was far beyond what the Masked Man had expected. Caught off guard, he was immediately bound and killed with One-Tail as the man struggled desperately.

After taking down this man, Scorpion threw several more poison gas grenades at another person not far away. This slowest runner just happened to be grazed by the edge of the gas, and even inhaling just a little made him feel dizzy. "Oh no..."

Kakuzu on the other side also gave chase in time, while the fleeing man, using the sound to pinpoint the location, tried to launch a counterattack. As the sound of wind cutting approached, he turned and delivered a fierce blow, "Clang!"

His opponent wasn't cleaved in two; his blade felt like it had struck solid steel. Just as he was in shock, a powerful punch landed heavily on his throat. The attacker instantly collapsed to the ground, clutching his neck in pain, and soon remained motionless.

Within moments, the three deserters were all dead. Sasori and Kakuzu surrounded the remaining group from both sides. "Gentlemen," they said, "You all don't want to have come all this way for nothing, right? Let's unite and fight the Konoha Ninja."

The missing-nin cursed inwardly. They were clearly just trying to send them to their deaths while making it sound so noble. But now that their escape route was cut off, they could only wait for the battle to begin and then try to slip away.

"You're not going to run away now? You guys are being a bit unwise!" Shuichi chuckled, arms crossed, and looked down at Kakuzu, saying, "I was wondering why you looked so familiar. Aren't you the green-eyed monster I beat and made run away with your tail between your legs a few years ago? You're not even going to greet your grandpa here?"

"You brat, you're asking for death!" Kakuzu instantly enraged, but he did not lose his temper at this moment.

Encountering Shuichi in the wild would be troublesome, but since he's currently on a mission to protect the safety of Glass City, I and Sasori should be able to restrict his Flying Thunder God technique with our cooperation.

"Lightning Release: False Darkness!" Three lightning spears transformed into violent lightning bolts and attacked the city wall. The target was not Shuichi but the low city wall. As long as a breach was made first, any attack, whether it was Fire Release or Sasori, could directly destroy the city.

In this way, Purple Aurora will be forced into a passive defensive state, making it unlikely to be killed. The best course of action is to keep him from leaving his current position. However, there will definitely be more onlookers who will seize the opportunity to rush into the city.

When things get chaotic, he and Scorpion will split up, one taking the money and the other the materials. The spies have long since figured out everything about the Koizumi Family, and once things are settled, everyone will naturally go their separate ways.

Upon seeing the lightning strike, Shuichi had several thoughts flashing through his mind, but ultimately did not use Ninjutsu to intercept it, which would be a good opportunity to put pressure on the Koizumi Family.

"Boom!"

The city walls of this ancient city were quite thick. After the lightning spear pierced a large hole, it had little power left and did not harm the ninjas inside the city.

Although his escape techniques could easily handle Kakuzu and Sasori's alternating attacks, Shuichi wouldn't do that. He had to keep the initiative in the battle, and ultimately, whether to kill or let them go was up to him.

Ignoring the weak-willed missing-nin ninja, he created two Shadow Clones with almost invisible hand seals, and rushed out of the city amidst the roar of explosions. His main body, like a phantom, charged towards Sasori's location, while the Shadow Clones attacked Kakuzu on the other side.

Seeing Shuichi rushing towards him at an astonishing speed, Scorpion immediately unleashed a Hidden Weapons of hidden weapons at full power. Hiruko's cloak could no longer conceal them, and his entire body was covered by clattering mechanisms, completely covering a large area in front of him.

Even while moving at high speed Shuichi maintained his observation of the enemy. Upon hearing the slightest sound of a mechanism shifting, he began forming hand seals, "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A visible gale spewed from his mouth, clearing away all the ninja tools flying head-on before they were even halfway there. While releasing his Ninjutsu, he was still running quickly, taking the opportunity to throw several Kunai in succession, which, aided by the wind, shot to Sasori's front in an instant.

When the attack went wrong, Hiruko had already changed form in advance. Using a ranged attack against a powerful Wind Release was not a good choice, and throwing Poison Smoke was also not advisable. The only option was to shrink her body and set up a steel plate at the same time.

Based on Shuichi's observation, this defense is somewhat similar to that of the Ibuse puppet; perhaps the puppet's mechanisms are constantly changing?

"Ding ding ding..."

The Kunai possibly break through such a thick steel plate, but being blocked meant its flight had stopped. Shuichi prematurely released his Wind Release, gathering Explosion Release chakra in his right hand. Seeing the Kunai circling around Hiruko, he teleported it nearby and unleashed a punch, "Explosion Release: Explosion Fist!"

Scorpion sensed something was wrong as soon as he saw the spell, and instinctively removed the steel plate and pushed forward.

This time, his rich combat experience saved his life. Shuichi's punch hit the steel plate directly, pushing it back like a cannonball. Even though Sasori tried his best to dodge at the first moment, half of Hiruko's body was still smashed to pieces.

"Boom!"

After the violent explosion, Shuichi found himself surrounded by nothing but a large number of puppet wreckage on the ground, demonstrating the astonishing power of the attack.

Scorpion retreated in a disheveled manner. His puppet body's right arm was shattered, and he could no longer use Hiruko. If he had been any slower, even his Regeneration Core might have been damaged.

The two clashed so quickly they barely had time to speak. Seeing the terrifying power of the Purple Aurora, he immediately pulled out a Scroll. Unrolling it, countless puppets leaped into the air, forming an army. Simultaneously, chakra threads shot from his right chest opening, connecting to the Chakra Threads. "Red Secret Technique: Hundred Puppet Performance!"

Shuichi, curious, counted around; about 80 puppets floated densely in the sky, all wearing red cloaks. Such a number would put immense pressure on the enemy. "They're really ugly..."

"Crack crack crack..." As if hearing the opponent's mocking voice, all the puppets swooped down towards Shuichi like cannonballs.

The missing-nin standing not far away were completely dumbfounded. So many puppets that they could even block out the moonlight—were these people even normal ninjas?

Shuichi was also enveloped by the massive shadow, but he showed no sign of panic. Instead, he chuckled softly, "Perfect for testing Kakashi's modified version of that technique."

"BOOM!"

Two Shadow Clones appeared beside him, and the three of them simultaneously began forming hand seals, "Explosion Release: Explosive Sand Bullets!"

"Wind Release: Great Blow!"

The two used Explosion Release to spew out a massive amount of yellow sand, an improvement on Kakashi's Explosive Barrage, because Shuichi possessed a stronger level of Shape Transformation.

Each grain of sand can create a small explosion, with a range and flexibility far exceeding that of small stones. With the help of Wind Release, it can be inserted into gaps in the enemy's defenses to launch an attack.

"Combination Jutsu: Endless Explosive Sandstorm!"

A cloud of yellow sand surged upwards into the puppet horde, covering an almost uniform area. Instantly, countless Kakkō and plumes of smoke lit up the sky, accompanied by a series of crackling explosions. The missing-nin were utterly astonished by this spectacular fireworks display, a sight they had never witnessed in their lives.

A large number of puppets fell from the sky like dumplings being dropped into a pot, each one in a tattered state. Such an alarming rate of loss alerted Scorpion, who immediately manipulated the rear half of the puppets to spread out and simultaneously sent several puppets to surround Shuichi from different directions.

After the Shadow Clones dissipated, Shuichi calmly dodged the ranged Hidden Weapons, then charged up his Lightning Cutter Blade and slashed at them as they got close, easily destroying these weak puppets.

"Huh? It ran away?"

The chaotic battlefield suddenly fell silent. Shuichi the distance. Sasori had used the previous harassment and attack to buy time, and then turned around and retreated into the Yamanaka.

This brief exchange was a devastating blow to Sasori, as he lost more than half of his accumulated puppets. However, he dared not continue fighting, for if the Third Kazekage Puppets were destroyed by his Explosion Release, it would be an irreparable loss.

"So this guy is Sasori of the Red Sands. As expected, a master can't just appear out of thin air." Kakuzu occasionally glanced at the battle on the other side, and upon seeing the puppet, he understood Sasori's background.

Before him, two Shuichi's Shadow Clone stood in a staggered formation, one Lightning Release for close combat while the other used Ninjutsu for cover. Their brief burst of power even put Kakuzu at a disadvantage. "Damn brat, he's actually this strong!"

Kakuzu vowed something harsh to himself, but his body remained obedient, daring not to linger any longer.

Those missing-nin were terrified; even though Shuichi came straight to hunt him down, they dared not attack Land of Glass Village.

"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"

A wide-range high-pressure Wind Ball forced Shuichi's Shadow Clone to dodge, Kakuzu's figure flashed away from his original position, running wildly in another direction without looking back.

Shuichi moment, then decided to let Kakuzu go. If he really wanted to pursue him relentlessly, he could definitely kill him.

But this person might be more useful if he's still alive. With my current strength, killing him in a few years would be a piece of cake.

Both powerful leaders were driven away, and the missing-nin who hadn't managed to leave were trembling. When they saw Shuichi and two Shadow Clones forming a triangle around them, the guy who had mocked Konoha for having only four people was the first to back down.

"I... I'm sorry, Lord Purple Aurora!" He had completely lost the courage to resist and said in a tearful voice, "We were forced to come here, please have mercy and spare our lives?"

Despite the hopeful glances around him, Shuichi remained expressionless. His pleading act did not affect his judgment; few of these greedy fellows were good people, and they would not be worth killing.

But he didn't do that. Instead, he grinned and said, "Alright, just agree to a few conditions, and I might let you go..."

"..."

Under the threat of life or death, a total of four people signed an unequal treaty with Shuichi, one of whom was unwilling to accept the Cursed Seal implanted in his brain.

He suddenly jumped away as the Shadow Clone disappeared, but he didn't even feel the first landing. He was sliced in half in mid-air by the Chidori Sharp Spear. This made everyone else completely obedient, letting Shuichi do whatever he wanted.

"Since everyone's been so enthusiastic, I can't let you sit idle!" Shuichi felt he'd won over a bunch of subordinates with his charm, and needed to find something to keep them busy. "I'm assigning you a few tasks now, listen carefully..."

As the great battle on this side came to an end, the battle on the other side of the Land of Glass was also drawing to a close.

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

Several fireballs flew out from Shisui, all hitting the enemies trapped in the corner. Then, as they screamed, Shisuikou Body Flicker Technique rushed in and, with the help of his Sharingan, quickly killed all the attackers.

"Huff, huff..."

"Shisui!" Yūhi Kurenai and Anko had just arrived to provide support. The area had calmed down, and apart from the corpses scattered all over the ground, only a slightly exhausted Shisui was panting heavily.

"Whoosh!" Shuichi appeared instantly through a spell, and seeing the scene before him, praised him, "Well done! Your application of the Three-Tomoe technique has improved rapidly. It seems your arduous training during the holidays has been very effective!"

Kakuzu and his group sent out more than just a few subordinates. Shisui encountered even more enemies than Shuichi had. Among the second wave of more than ten people were several Chunin, but he took them all down by himself. Shuichi finger.

"Senior Brother, the Koizumi Family is despicable!" Anko said indignantly. "They openly conducted a transaction, luring a large number of enemies directly to us for them to deal with. This has long exceeded the scope of an ordinary A-rank mission."

"If it weren't for you, the other Konoha Squad would have been completely wiped out..."

Speak of the devil, and he appears! Seeing that the battle had subsided, Koizumi Kenzō, accompanied by a number of guards, approached Shuichi's squad with a fawning expression. "Lord Shuichi, thanks to you today, the country was able to ensure peace. Would you like us to help dispose of the bodies?"

"Of course, of course, I'll teach you here." Shuichi replied, "My companions are very tired, please allow us to rest for a while."

After dealing with Koizumi Kenzō, the four of them headed to their temporary accommodation together.

When all was quiet, Shuichi patted Shisui on the shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Since you still have energy, why don't you make another trip later, even if it's tiring..."

"This..." Shisui hesitated, "Captain, is this really the right thing to do?"

"You're still too young. You need to learn to be flexible within the rules." Shuichi decided to show him what it meant to be Shuichi the Skin-Peeler. Since the Koizumi Family wanted to outmaneuver Konoha, let's see whose methods are more sophisticated.

The reason Kakuzu was let go was because Shisui was there. Once Kotoamatsukami is acquired in the future, Kakuzu will definitely be one of the most suitable targets.

By secretly taking control of Akatsuki's financial manager, the problem of the village's undercover agent would be solved.

When the Akatsuki Organization had amassed enough money to capture the Tailed Beasts, they had Kakuzu defect with the vast sum of money he had accumulated over a decade...

Shuichi chuckled inwardly, "Tsk tsk, the scene is too beautiful to imagine."