Hizuki Style: Quench!
The blade's tip erupted with supreme sharpness, carving a path straight through the sea of fire.
Sparks flickered in his eyes as Kamizuki located Kakuzu and flicked his hand, sending a black chain shooting from his sleeve.
Whoosh—!!
The chain's tip gleamed purple. It was poisoned.
Kakuzu tilted his head slightly, and the razor-sharp edge brushed past his ear, slicing off several strands of hair.
At the same instant, Hatake Sakumo's short blade slashed in from the other side. White lightning danced along its body, its utter sharpness painful to behold.
Kakuzu's remaining hearts all shuddered. The tentacles beneath his feet shot out, barely carrying him clear.
White lightning tore through his vision. Even without being struck, he felt a stinging pain across his body.
This guy...
The Blade of the White Fang had not been crafted by any renowned master. It was merely a ninja blade mixed with a small amount of Chakra metal, nowhere near the level of the Kusanagi Sword.
Yet in Sakumo's hands, even a ninja renowned for his immortality truly felt the threat of death!
"White Fang of Konoha... you'll become famous throughout the world..."
"Brat, so will you!"
Clang!!
Kakuzu raised a hand to block. The crimson blade tip pierced his tentacle-hardened palm, stopping only an inch from his throat.
Boom—!!
Kakuzu's shirt was completely shredded as three enormous tentacles shot forth, one toward each of them and one between them.
The massive tentacles seemed to have been fed into a meat grinder, rapidly being consumed amid flashing blades.
Using the brief moment he had bought, Kakuzu slammed both hands onto the ground.
"Earth Style: Earth Dome!"
Just as the two closed in once more, a massive stone slab rose from the ground, standing between them.
Boom!!!!
Kamizuki shattered the slab with one punch.
But there was nothing behind it.
Kakuzu leaped into the air, his hands rapidly forming seals.
Another blue mask appeared on his shoulder, filling the gap left by the Wind Style Mask.
The ninjutsu was Water Style!
"Water Style: Water Curtain Wall!"
Roar!!!!
Like a bursting flood, an enormous torrent instantly engulfed the area.
Within the raging current, Kamizuki and Sakumo used drifting logs to continue closing in, like two fish swimming upstream.
They were both close-combat ninja. Once someone like Kakuzu, who excelled at large-scale ninjutsu, pulled away from them, the battle would become extremely difficult.
Before one's strength broke past its limits, the restraining relationships between ninjutsu, combat systems, and the natural environment were all key factors that determined victory or defeat.
That was why all-rounder ninja like Sarutobi Hiruzen, Jiraiya, and Kakashi were so exceptional.
No matter the opponent or environment, they could always produce the best possible response.
At that moment, Kakuzu's next technique was ready.
A third white mask emerged from his back, blue-green arcs of lightning gathering within its mouth.
"Of course, that assumes you can survive!"
"Lightning Style: False Darkness!!"
Screech—screech—screech—crack!!!!
A massive spear of lightning tore through the air, striking the nearest patch of water!
Blue-white arcs exploded across the surface, spreading at incredible speed toward the two of them.
Compound Ninjutsu: Water-Lightning Chain!!
When one person fused two or more Chakra natures within their body, the resulting new release technique was known as a Kekkei Genkai.
Combinations created by multiple people or multiple techniques, meanwhile, were called compound ninjutsu.
The two belonged to entirely different categories of difficulty, but they shared one thing...
Their power was terrifying!!
Kamizuki's pupils shrank. The moment he turned to meet Sakumo's gaze, they reached an understanding without words.
There was no time to sink down and leap away again. The lightning arcs spread too fast; once struck, paralysis was inevitable.
Against an enemy like Kakuzu, one second of paralysis was enough to die several times over.
Whoosh—whoosh—!!
Kamizuki threw the Crimson Blade toward Sakumo, whose movements were perfectly synchronized with his own.
Smack!!
Kamizuki grabbed the hilt of the White Fang's short blade, using the force of its flight to pull himself into the air.
"You can do that..."
Kakuzu muttered as he watched the two escape the Sea of Lightning Water like birds.
Then...
A cruel smile spread across his stitched face.
"Then... how will you dodge in midair?"
"Fire Style: Searing Migraine!"
Rather than a fan-shaped attack, the Fire Style Mask fired two blazing pillars of flame. Wherever the flames passed, even moonlight was swallowed, dyeing the entire night sky dark red!
Expressionless, Sakumo gripped the Crimson Blade's hilt and charged toward the fire pillar.
I can cut through it!
Just as he circulated his Chakra, a tug from the hilt threw his body off balance, sending him veering aside.
The sudden change in direction caused the fire pillar aimed at him to miss, roaring off into the distant sky.
This was?!
Seeing the steel wire wrapped around the hilt, Sakumo understood. He quickly looked up toward Kamizuki.
He had not tied any steel wire to the White Fang's short blade. How was Kamizuki supposed to dodge?
No miracle happened. Kamizuki failed to evade it.
Boom boom boom boom!!!!!!
The pillar of fire struck its target, erupting into a huge ball of flames!!
"Kamizuki!!"
"Is this the so-called bond between companions from the same village... hehe."
Kakuzu's tone was full of mockery.
"For the sake of someone more valuable like you, that guy chose to sacrifice himself. Quite a worthwhile trade."
His voice became calm, as though he were not speaking of what had just happened before his eyes.
Sakumo could not sense Kamizuki's Chakra...
Rather, aside from special ocular techniques like the Byakugan, few sensory ninjutsu could detect Kamizuki's condition.
He did not believe Kamizuki would die, but that attack had likely left him seriously injured.
The mission had failed. He needed to take Kamizuki and leave immediately!
Having made his decision, Sakumo landed on the water after the lightning arcs faded and sprinted toward the explosion, ready to catch Kamizuki.
The firelight gradually dimmed.
Boom—!!
A human figure actually burst straight through the flames!
His clothes were still burning, exposing large patches of scorched skin. Red marks left by the flames covered both his arms and face.
Kakuzu's pupils contracted sharply, his smile freezing on his face.
How was that possible!!
There was absolutely no time for this guy to use a defensive ninjutsu!! That was an extreme temperature capable of melting even rock!!
"Impossible!!"
How could someone struck directly by Searing Migraine suffer only burns of this degree!!
Was this guy even human?!
"What exactly... are you?"
The corners of Kamizuki's mouth curled up. The burn marks made his smile look savage and terrifying.
"Do you, an ugly bastard who barely looks human, have the right to ask me that?"
Kakuzu fell silent for several seconds, as though he had figured something out. Then he suddenly laughed.
"I see..."
"You really are an unprecedented freak!"
"It's not that you refuse to use ninjutsu. You simply can't use ninjutsu at all!!"
"It's not that my senses are malfunctioning. You simply can't release Chakra outside your body!!"
His stitched mouth split into a grin.
So that was it. An Uchiha with such combat power but no Sharingan was one thing, but how could he possibly not use even a single Fire Style technique...?
That was the reason!
"I wasted my time following the tactics for dealing with the Uchiha and avoiding eye contact with you."
Kakuzu stared directly at Kamizuki, sneering without restraint.
"You traded everything for physical strength far beyond that of ordinary people. Being born into the Uchiha... your life is truly tragic!"
"Is that so?"
Kamizuki smiled faintly. The fiery red marks on his face seemed to flow toward his eye sockets.
"Then..."
"It's your turn to lament your miserable fate of not being born an Uchiha."
Scarlet lit up.
The Sharingan...
Open!!
Before you continue