"Konoha..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's body blazed with dazzling blue Chakra. The power surging through him lent his aging body astonishing explosive strength.
"Strong Fist Whirlwind!"
"Bang!"
The hunched Demon took a direct hit to the abdomen and was sent flying at incredible speed.
It tumbled dozens of meters across the flat ground before finally coming to a stop.
"Cough, cough..."
"Human..."
Blood filled the Demon's mouth as it stared at the old man before it in astonishment.
"How did you do that?!"
"That kind of strength..."
"Are you a Demon too?!"
A human was actually stronger than it. The thought filled it with terror. This was nothing like the humans it had slaughtered in the past.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had no intention of talking to a monster like this. Instead, he quietly watched the Demon recover at high speed.
That Konoha Whirlwind had snapped the Demon's spine through its soft abdomen.
While the Demon spoke, its bones began to writhe unnaturally. In mere moments, an injury that would have been impossible for a human to heal had completely disappeared.
"Old man..."
"You're awfully quiet."
"You remind me of those guys who specialize in hunting Demons..."
"But you're not having much luck today..."
The Demon slowly rose. Even after its spine healed, its bones kept writhing. The skin on its back bulged and shifted, as if something were about to grow out.
"I've eaten a lot of people today!"
"My strength..."
"It's about to burst out!!!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression shifted slightly.
"So it can evolve by eating people."
"And it has tremendous physical abilities and regenerative powers."
"So this is the so-called Immortality Entry in this world..."
Seeing the Demon, Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help looking at it with distaste.
If this was what Immortality meant, he'd rather go without it.
Aside from the side effects and prospects of turning into a Demon, the mere thought of eating people made Sarutobi Hiruzen feel queasy.
Under Sarutobi Hiruzen's disgusted gaze, the Demon's back swelled further, sprouting an extra pair of arms bristling with bone spikes and horribly twisted in shape.
"You get to witness my evolution..."
"You should feel honored, human!"
The Demon's grotesque face twisted again. Its mouth stretched almost to its ears, and its pupils shrank to pinpricks.
Then, four arms erupted from its body, lashing through the air at tremendous speed as they attacked Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Sarutobi Hiruzen displayed a flexibility at odds with his appearance, twisting in midair with astonishing agility to dodge the attacks coming at him from every direction.
He could have easily evaded them, but for some reason, he deliberately let his movements lag for a moment.
The Demon's arms looped through the air, and its sharp claws sliced open Sarutobi Hiruzen's arm, scattering droplets of blood.
"Slurp."
The Demon retracted its elongated arm and licked the blood from its fingertips.
"Hm?!"
The Demon's expression visibly brightened, as if it had tasted some peerless delicacy.
"I have to get you..."
"I have to have you!"
"What a delicious body!!!"
The Demon let out a cry that sounded half like laughter, half like sobbing. Its body blurred into a streak as it rushed toward Sarutobi Hiruzen at nearly invisible speed.
Its four arms spread like a spider's as it hunted, blocking off every route Sarutobi Hiruzen could use to retreat.
"It can evolve extra organs..."
"And it's especially interested in a body containing Chakra..."
Faced with the Demon's fierce charge, Sarutobi Hiruzen calmly analyzed everything he knew about it.
"After consuming a large amount of flesh and blood..."
"Its Taijutsu can reach a level close to Jonin..."
"And even its regenerative ability and vitality are beyond human..."
"However..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen calmly watched the Demon's hideous face, now mere inches away.
"Compared with a ninja, its fighting methods are still far too limited..."
The Demon's claws plunged straight through Sarutobi Hiruzen's chest as it grinned with excitement.
"Hm?!"
The Demon froze. This didn't feel like piercing flesh—and not a single drop of blood had spilled.
"Earth Release: Earth Clone Technique."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's steady voice drifted over. The Sarutobi Hiruzen before the Demon turned into a puddle of mud that splashed in every direction.
Then the Demon felt an irresistible pull beneath its feet, dragging its body straight down.
The ground flowed around it like water, enveloping its entire body.
In its place, Sarutobi Hiruzen's true body slowly rose from beneath the earth.
"Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the Demon's head, which thrashed helplessly above the ground, and spoke.
"It's no use."
"I reinforced the ground around you with the Hardening Technique."
"Granite is strong enough..."
"Even if you evolve a few more times, you won't break free..."
This was why Ninjutsu reigned supreme in the Ninja World, while Taijutsu was merely a supplement.
With enough skill in nature transformation—or by learning a secret technique—a ninja could easily strengthen their Ninjutsu to a degree that would leave even scientists astonished.
But the body had its limits, and strengthening it required an extremely long time and arduous training.
As a Doctor of Ninjutsu, Sarutobi Hiruzen had countless ways to finish off a purely physical fighter.
"Well then..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked down at the Demon's snarling, grotesque face.
"Thump!"
He kicked down with a world-class shot, and the Demon's head burst like a watermelon hitting the ground.
But the shattered pieces of its head didn't die. They moved as if they had lives of their own, drawing toward the body buried deep underground.
In just a few dozen seconds, the Demon, which had been decapitated, had fully recovered.
With a researcher's curiosity, Sarutobi Hiruzen then tried the other four elemental releases besides Earth Release, destroying the Demon's body with each in turn.
In the end, Fire Release only made the Demon scream for a little longer. None of the attacks did much else.
The Demon still recovered from its injuries at astonishing speed, as if nothing had happened.
Ignoring the Demon's arrogant taunts, Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed.
"What terrifying vitality."
"Even a man-eating Demon of this level can nearly achieve immortality."
"Most so-called vampires can't even match that."
"Looks like I really did choose the right Transmigration Entry."
"With such incredible survival abilities, Immortality is just an extra perk."
Sarutobi Hiruzen crouched down and looked at the Demon before him.
"So, tell me... who created a monster like you?"
The Demon answered with nothing but curses and malicious taunts.
"I'll **** you!!!"
"**** kill **"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression didn't change. He formed a hand seal with one hand.
"Looks like you won't talk until you've hit the coffin."
"Wind Release: Wind Blade!"
A razor-sharp blade of air howled forth, but it wasn't aimed at the Demon.
It was aimed at the thick vegetation above the valley.
The Wind Blade tore through the dense trees growing along the valley, opening a gap.
Sunlight streamed through the opening overhead and fell directly onto the Demon's head.
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