"Ninja Art—Spider Lily Technique!"
The guys on the left and right had already been claimed, so Kazeka's only target was the one in the middle, who looked like their leader.
The guy was tall and skinny, like a walking skeleton, but his waist bulged with what was clearly a whole stash of supplies.
Sure enough, as he formed Hand Seals, a small swarm of spiders suddenly appeared at his waist.
Looking closely, they weren't alive. They were paper spiders, folded from sheets of paper.
They looked fragile, but they were incredibly fast. Judging by their swollen abdomens and the name of the technique, they were clearly full of poison!
"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"
Seeing that the enemy meant business, Kazeka immediately decided to intercept him halfway. He hadn't quite mastered the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, but it still had the power of a C-rank Ninjutsu.
Several blasts of palm wind shot out, bursting the paper spiders in midair. The poisonous powder and scraps of paper were all blown back toward the Rain Ninja!
"Just as I thought. You're not an opponent I can take down easily!"
Seeing his attack turned against him, the Rain Ninja didn't panic in the slightest. He didn't even dodge, walking straight through the poison powder. With Kazeka now close, he formed Hand Seals again.
"Secret Art—Poisonous Thorns Technique!"
A mass of purple thorns shot out from his sleeves, like venomous snakes ready to devour their prey. They relentlessly pursued Kazeka.
That wasn't all. The moment the purple thorns were exposed to the air, they began releasing a pale purple mist.
Liquid gathered on them and dripped onto the stones below, corroding them!
"Kid, accept your fate like a good little boy..."
Watching the poisonous thorns close in around Kazeka in the blink of an eye, the Rain Ninja finally broke into a smug grin.
"The poisonous mist coating my thorns is even more potent than the last one.
And the poison inside can turn someone into a pile of bones in no time.
Surrender now, and you'll suffer less!"
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch!"
Seeing how pleased the other man was with himself, Kazeka just smiled. He pulled out a strange, two-centimeter-square syringe and jabbed it into his right forearm.
The next second, the veins in his hands bulged, and his fingernails grew long and sharp, like a tiger's claws!
"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Blade!"
Kazeka shouted as he swung his hands at incredible speed, sending out countless blades of wind. They cut through all the surrounding thorns, and the remaining blades hurtled toward the Rain Ninja in a relentless barrage!
"My Laboratory just restocked its experimental materials.
You've piqued my interest a little, but I doubt I'll feel too bad about taking an arm and a leg!"
"Damn you! You've only blocked a few of my attacks, and you're already running your mouth..."
As the incoming attacks bore down on him, the Rain Ninja formed Hand Seals again while retreating.
Perhaps Kazeka's gaze—like that of someone inspecting experimental materials—had enraged him. Chakra gathered around his body in huge quantities. He was clearly preparing something big!
"Secret Technique—Earth Poison Spikes!"
With a sharp shout from the Rain Ninja, countless Earth Spears suddenly burst from the ground around him.
The spears were as thick as an arm and thrust out in every direction, densely packed.
They not only blocked the blades of wind Kazeka had unleashed, but were powerful enough to pierce stone and trees.
More dangerous still, there was a hole at the tip of every spear, and a steady stream of purple poison mist poured out through them!
"Seems like another new poison. Never mind. I'd have liked to see more of it, but having Hinata and Kiba here is a bit of a problem..."
Kazeka pursed his lips. While dodging the Earth Spears, he pulled out two more syringes and fired them toward Hinata and Kiba Inuzuka in the distance, hitting them in the arms.
"Anyway, your time's up. You can show me the rest of your poisons at the Laboratory once we get back!..."
"My time's up? What the hell are you talking about?"
The Rain Ninja watched Kazeka warily, alert for any possible attack. But Kazeka stood still, showing no signs of attacking, which left him puzzled.
Before long, though, he realized something was wrong.
The Chakra coursing around his body no longer obeyed his will. Instead, it surged out of control toward the space between his legs.
By the time the Rain Ninja realized what was happening, he stared in shock at the basketball-sized poison gas balloon where his most precious parts had been!
"Remember the medicine I injected into me and my teammates at the start?"
Kazeka looked at the Rain Ninja, whose terror was tinged with fear, and spoke at his leisure.
"Along with the antidote, I added a drug of my own making.
As you fight, it races through your body, then leaves through your sweat and evaporates.
That evaporated mist is the culprit behind what's happening to you now!"
Kazeka nodded with satisfaction.
"I've always wanted to develop a poison that lowers the enemy's guard. This is a successful case study!"
"Kazeka, you're not just a freak—you're a bastard!"
Kiba Inuzuka dragged his opponent over to Kazeka, his expression incredibly conflicted.
"I was in the middle of a great fight, and I was just about to win, but before I could even use my big move, he went down!"
Kiba Inuzuka glanced at the water balloon in his opponent's crotch, swollen to the size of a watermelon.
"He's great with Water Release. I was hoping to beat him fair and square..."
"In a ninja battle, you should never fight fair and square. The ultimate principle is that whoever wins in the end is the victor!"
Hinata spoke coldly. After tossing the Rain Ninja in her hands beside his teammate, she continued, sounding somewhat indignant.
"That guy was full of fighting spirit before, but he lost it in an instant because of a little problem with his crotch.
What a disgraceful loser!"
"This isn't about whether it's disgraceful or not...!"
The Rain Ninja Hinata had thrown down glared resentfully at the Konoha Ninja before him, then futilely tried to cover his water balloon.
"To use such a despicable trick... th-that's truly shameless!"
"As a ninja, you have to overcome even the most difficult dangers..."
The other man's pathetic, "cowardly" attitude clearly disgusted Hinata in her delinquent heiress mode.
"Where's your courage? Where's your fighting spirit? Don't worry about something unimportant—keep fighting me! Does that little thing really matter?"
"It really matters!"
Hinata's passion didn't inspire the Rain Ninja. At that moment, he looked downright pitiful.
"I've never had a girlfriend. I still want my little brother to have some fun!"
"Someone with nothing but dirty thoughts on his mind really deserves to die..."
A trace of disdain appeared in Hinata's eyes, just as expected. The next second, she picked up a Kunai from the ground.
"We may not be from the same village, but your attitude is truly contemptible.
Can someone like you even be called a ninja?
It looks like I'll have to help you get rid of the root of this evil!"
Rain Ninja x3: "..."
Before you continue