The torrent surged forth like a silver dragon, crashing toward its target. The Sand Ninja released a fire tornado that resembled a Combined Ninjutsu, but it was only an unconscious combination of attacks. In an instant, the frigid current, laden with ice shards, swallowed it whole. Its momentum undiminished, the torrent slammed straight into the Sand Ninja!
When the attack dissipated, the Sand Ninja reappeared before Zhou Duan and the others, looking somewhat battered. A chunk of ice had frozen over his chest, and tiny frostbite wounds covered his body. He let out a pained roar. The bloodshot eyes staring at them brimmed with boundless hatred!
"Yikes, this guy's pretty strong!"
Hundred Palms' eyes widened.
"That was a Combined Ninjutsu from all four of us. It was powerful, and he only got a few minor injuries?"
"He's a bit troublesome, but that just makes him more interesting!"
At some point, the usually gentle and modest Water Gate had narrowed his eyes, a ferocious smile curling his lips. He reached into his ninja pouch and pulled out two specially made Kunai, their blades longer than those of ordinary ones.
"I noticed just now: his defense and Ninjutsu are strong, but he's really bad at close combat. Even the strongest defense and recovery have their limits. I'll go see if I can hack him apart alive!"
"Hundred Palms, don't be too cautious. Water Gate, don't get ahead of yourself!"
Nawaki looked at them with deep satisfaction.
"You both have what it takes to become Hokage assistants. That's great, but from here on, it's time for me, the future Hokage, to—ah!"
"Even though our attacks didn't do much damage to the Sand Ninja, his condition isn't exactly great either!"
Zhou Duan kicked Nawaki, who was clowning around, out of the way, then continued.
"Have you noticed? They may be small wounds, but even with the Sand Ninja's rapid recovery, they still haven't healed. That means our attacks clearly affected him. As a Medical Ninja, I suspect our frigid current delayed his cellular regeneration. And of the two attacks we've used, the worst effect seems to be on his brain. He still hasn't attacked us since we finished. I have an idea, but we'll need to hit him with another Combined Ninjutsu. This time, let's use our strongest one!"
"Got it!"
"Don't worry!"
"Understood!"
With that, the four of them began preparing their Ninjutsu again!
"Earth Release: Tiny Bullet Stream!"
At Nawaki's low shout, earth pellets the size of thumbs shot from his mouth like bullets, whistling through the air as they sped toward the Sand Ninja!
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Zhou Duan's Great Fireball Technique overtook the pellets. The flames turned them red-hot, and their power suddenly increased!
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A fierce gust from Water Gate swept in. Driven by the Wind Release, the pellets grew even hotter, showing signs of melting!
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
After several metallic whistles, Hundred Palms fired Kunai attached to Explosive Tags at the Sand Ninja. When the Combined Ninjutsu arrived right behind them, more than ten powerful Explosive Tags detonated at once!
Its force was like a meteor crashing down, its momentum like a river of lava bursting through. Countless glowing, molten earth pellets hurtled through the explosions and slammed into the Sand Ninja, who had only just begun forming his Ninjutsu. Its name was:
"Eight Thousand Blazing Divine Fire Great Burial!"
The Combined Ninjutsu was powerful. Even though it had been unleashed by just four Genin, it was still formidable. Yet once the attack was over, the result before them wasn't very promising!
The four's attacks had forced the Sand Ninja to crash to the ground. Scorch marks covered his body, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, fresh blood still dripping from the corner of his mouth. One of his wings had been burned halfway off. His injuries looked terrible, but they weren't fatal—and, even more frighteningly, his wounds were already healing at a terrifying speed!
"Damn it, seriously?!"
Hundred Palms stared at the Sand Ninja and said, frustrated,
"That guy hadn't even finished casting his Ninjutsu before our attack interrupted him. A normal Chunin would've lost half his life taking that hit head-on. How is his defense so high?!"
"Not only that!"
Water Gate tightened his grip on his Kunai.
"Maybe because we just used a Fire Release-based technique, it counteracted the delayed recovery caused by the Water Release and Wind Release. His recovery speed is back up again!"
"Heh. This guy can only attack. He has no brains..."
Nawaki brazenly looked down on the powerful Sand Ninja.
"As long as we have faith, we'll definitely win!"
"Nawaki, could you set that faith aside for now? Maybe save it for when you've got some real strength. He's already casting a Ninjutsu. Captain... Huh?"
Halfway through his sentence, Hundred Palms instinctively sensed something was missing. He glanced around and immediately realized Zhou Duan was gone. He quickly activated his Byakugan, then exclaimed in surprise,
"Holy crap, how'd the captain get behind the Sand Ninja?"
That was right. Zhou Duan was behind the Sand Ninja. He'd slipped behind him as soon as the four of them finished their Combined Ninjutsu. Nothing came without a price—that had been an unchanging truth in the Shinobi World for millennia. Even Forbidden Ninjutsu wasn't all-powerful. The sudden boost in combat strength was impressive, but the technique's flaws were magnified just as much, and its side effects were formidable!
From the very beginning, Zhou Duan had been analyzing the Sand Ninja's weaknesses. The Sand Ninja's hearing had deteriorated, and he'd lost his reason, becoming a monster who mindlessly unleashed Ninjutsu in every direction. But sacrificing only those two things couldn't possibly grant him such vast Chakra reserves, rapid recovery, and incredible durability!
The Explosive Tags in their last Ninjutsu had also caused a shockwave that made the Sand Ninja spit out a large mouthful of blood. From that, Zhou Duan had a rough idea of what the Sand Ninja's weakness might be!
"Is his insides the weak point?!"
Hidden behind the Sand Ninja, Zhou Duan watched as the enraged enemy prepared to unleash another Ninjutsu at Water Gate and the others. He reached into his ninja pouch and took out a specially made Senbon several times thicker than an ordinary one.
As the attacking Ninjutsu began to take shape in the Sand Ninja's mouth, Zhou Duan leaped up and rushed toward him. He covered the short distance of more than ten meters in an instant. Clasping his hands together, he gripped the Senbon between his middle and index fingers and thrust it toward the Sand Ninja's rear:
"Experience the secret Taijutsu technique passed down in Konoha for generations!
Konoha Secret Taijutsu Technique—Senbon Kill!"
Before you continue