The monster before them opened its mouth full of sharp teeth. "Not enough. This power... it's still not enough!"
Shiraishi Mori had already become completely consumed by his thirst for power.
Under Abu's terrified gaze, he leaped into the air—not to attack Abu, but to land beside another Ghoul.
That Ghoul was Shiraishi Mori's father, Shiraishi Ao.
Without the slightest hesitation, Shiraishi Mori tore the Kagune from his father's waist, tilted his head back, opened his mouth wide, and swallowed it whole.
"This guy..."
Abu's pupils trembled. He was utterly shocked by the sight.
After swallowing his father's Kagune, Shiraishi Mori let out an incomparably satisfied groan, and his body changed once more.
"Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle."
The area around his lower back seemed to boil as countless bubbles churned beneath his skin.
Then, a thick, dark-red Centipede Weihe burst from his body, swaying gently through the air like a grotesque tail.
Each of the limbs along both sides was as dangerous as a blade, brimming with violent menace.
Hidan watched from the stands, a puzzled look on his face.
"Huh? You bastard Simu, why can this kid carry so many Kagune like you?"
Though Hidan did not care much about such things, Simu had mentioned them to him before.
At their core, Kagune were parasites that required their hosts to provide them with a constant supply of energy.
Furthermore, due to their Insect Swarm nature, they could severely interfere with their host's mind.
That was why some people went berserk and became Ghouls the moment Kagune were implanted into them.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, a person's body could only endure one Kagune at most.
As for Simu?
He was the master and creator of all Kagune, so their wills could not affect his mind at all.
On top of that, his modified body could withstand the drain of multiple Kagune, so it did not matter how many he controlled.
But Shiraishi Mori was different.
He was nothing more than an ordinary person, so the fact that he could fuse with three Kagune genuinely surprised Simu.
"Looks like Hatred helped him resist the mental influence of the Kagune."
Simu adjusted his glasses and spoke with considerable interest.
The simplest way to resist mental influence was to cover it with another, stronger and more twisted state of mind.
As long as I'm twisted enough, you can't twist me.
Shiraishi Mori was probably in exactly that state now.
The deaths of his parents and his condemnation of this world's injustice had overwhelmed his identity as a human.
To take revenge on this world, he could cast aside his former identity and allow himself to fall completely into becoming a monster.
That will was even stronger than the distortion brought by the Kagune!
"This is becoming more and more exciting."
Through his lenses, Simu silently watched the entire battlefield.
After consuming two Kagune, Shiraishi Mori's mental state had become even more twisted and crazed.
At the same time, after casting off the shackles of his human identity, he had become stronger as well.
Violent power surged madly through every corner of his body.
Shiraishi Mori lowered his body slightly, his scarlet gaze locking firmly onto Abu.
An indescribable Fear suddenly descended upon the heart of this battle-hardened ninja.
Throughout all his years as a ninja, he seemed never to have encountered anything like this.
What stood before him now was not a human at all, but a demon god from hell!
"Ha!"
A blast of air erupted from Shiraishi Mori's mouth like a train whistle.
The next second, his thickened feet stomped the ground into a depression. Terrifying force burst from his legs as dense cracks rapidly spread outward.
Standing three or four meters tall and wrapped in black armor, Shiraishi Mori charged forward like an unstoppable tank!
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"
Abu squeezed out the last remnants of Chakra in his body and painstakingly summoned an earthen wall, hoping to stop the enemy's advance.
But the barely summoned Earth-Style Wall was utterly unable to withstand the demon-like Shiraishi Mori.
Like an invincible charging tank, he crashed straight into the wall.
With a thunderous boom, the wall seemed to have been struck by a cannonball and instantly exploded into countless flying chunks of stone.
Amid the shattered rubble, Shiraishi Mori's massive black silhouette emerged.
"Too weak! You're too weak!"
Shiraishi Mori roared as the enormous dark-red Weihe behind him swept aside every obstacle and effortlessly coiled around the already exhausted ninja, Abu.
The tremendous force surging from it made every bone in Abu's body creak, as though he might be crushed at any moment.
Shiraishi Mori pulled Abu before him with his Weihe, then casually released him.
As Abu fell freely through the air, two Rinkaku resembling slender sickles shot violently from Shiraishi Mori's shoulders.
The dark-red Rinkaku moved so fast that they stirred up a terrifying storm of blood.
Their sharp limbs hacked wildly at Abu. By the time he hit the ground, not a patch of skin remained on his body, leaving crimson muscle exposed nakedly to the air.
His heart was still beating, and his chest still rose and fell. Only his eyes were filled with pain and Fear.
"Your movements are too slow."
"Ha!"
Shiraishi Mori picked up a steel bar from the ground and drove it through Abu's right chest, pinning him firmly to the ground.
He had no intention of killing him immediately. That would be far too merciful.
"Next, it's your turn."
The monster slowly raised his head. His gaze fell upon Sakamoto, the president of the merchant guild.
Sakamoto felt as if a demon god had fixed its gaze on him, a chill shooting from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
"Quick!"
"Kill this thing for me!"
Sakamoto still had six ninja under his command.
Though they had witnessed Abu's miserable fate, they had taken the money and had to do the job. Besides, there were six of them. If they joined forces, they should not lose to this guy, right?
The six exchanged glances and leaped down from the stands.
By then, Shiraishi Mori had already broken into a run with his enormous strides, charging toward the stands.
"Earth Style: Ground Lift!"
This time, they did not raise the rock beneath Shiraishi Mori's feet, but the ground around him.
The ground transformed under the influence of Chakra as four walls abruptly rose up, trapping Shiraishi Mori inside like a kettle.
Immediately afterward, another Earth Release Ninja rapidly formed hand seals and slapped both hands against the ground.
"Earth Style: Rock Cannon Jutsu!"
A massive boulder suddenly rose from the ground before him and shot forth like a mortar shell, its landing point precisely where Shiraishi Mori stood!
If the four walls trapping Shiraishi Mori were a kettle, then the falling boulder was undoubtedly its lid.
As long as the boulder fell, they could seal this monster completely inside!
Before you continue