Kakuzu blasted the Gato Company building to smithereens. A sea of flames spread hundreds of meters outward, standing out starkly against the blue skies of the island nation of the Land of Waves.
The residents nearby all went into "every-man-for-himself" mode and fled in every direction. Only the Kumogakure and Kirigakure squads charged toward the Gato building.
"B, hurry! We have to get the Talisman before that group of black ninja soldiers!"
Though he had no idea what had caused the explosion, A saw the Shadowkhan pour out in full force and race toward the Gato Company. He knew the Talisman had appeared.
On the other side, Raiga Kurosuki and Suikazan Fuguki saw the massive explosion and headed for the Gato building as well.
"Besides the Third Raikage's son and the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, there's another unfamiliar chakra signature..."
"Don't worry about it... Anyone who gets in the way of the village's orders can just be killed!"
Raiga Kurosuki drew his Ninja Blade, Kiba, while Suikazan Fuguki released Samehada from its bandages.
"Is that... Raiga Kurosuki and Suikazan Fuguki of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?"
The A and B Duo recognized Raiga Kurosuki and Suikazan Fuguki on the other side. The four exchanged glances and prepared for battle.
"The Third Raikage's son, Kumogakure's Jinchūriki, and Raiga Kurosuki and Suikazan Fuguki of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen...?"
"Looks like there's an unexpected bonus this time... You came looking for this, didn't you?" Kakuzu dangled the Tiger Talisman before them, then tucked it away and pulled out the booklet he always carried. After checking their bounties, he actually smiled. "Good. I'll be taking your heads!"
Kakuzu's shoulder suddenly burst open, black threads snapping apart. A mass of dark tendrils piled up behind him, and the mask monster representing Fire Release Chakra opened its mouth—
"Fire Style: Searing Migraine!"
Without hesitation, Kakuzu formed Hand Seals and spat out a small, unremarkable-looking fireball. It drifted slowly to the ground. The next instant, it transformed into a sea of flames and spread outward.
The A and B Duo leaped backward to dodge, while the Ninja Swordsmen Duo from Kirigakure stayed put and formed Hand Seals. "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
But the upright wall of water was like an insect trying to stop a chariot against Kakuzu's Searing Migraine—utterly hopeless.
The sea of flames collided with the wall of water, producing a vast amount of scorching steam. The two men were in agony, as though trapped inside a steamer, but they still managed to hold back the flames.
"Who is that guy...?"
The A and B Duo had flashed to a distant spot, their faces full of shock. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen were renowned across the Ninja World. Yet now, it took both of them just to barely withstand the stranger's Fire Release—and they were even using Water Release, which countered it.
"Kids these days really don't know anything..."
"Have you even forgotten that I once fought the First...?"
"What?! You fought the First?!"
Whether or not Kakuzu was telling the truth, no one present had lived through that era. They had no idea what it meant to have fought the First. As for the title God of Shinobi? They could easily dismiss it as a boastful gimmick made up by Konoha.
What surprised them more was Kakuzu's appearance. The First had lived at least forty years ago. Anyone who had fought him and was still alive should have been a frail old man on his deathbed. So how could Kakuzu still be a strapping young man?
"Anyone can brag, you idiot! Bastard!"
Killer B swayed as he verbally attacked Kakuzu with his rap.
"You...!"
Killer B spewed insults and waved his arms about. He even wiggled his hips at Kakuzu, instantly enraging the old man.
The black threads in Kakuzu's other shoulder snapped apart, and it burst open too. Another mask monster wrapped in tendrils opened its mouth—
"Wind Style: Pressure Damage!"
As the Earth Grudge Fear Wind Release mask monster finished charging, it spat out a high-pressure ball of wind. In an instant, it became a storm that seemed capable of sweeping away every obstacle. The blast tore through a wide area, hurling nearby buildings and chunks of earth into the air as it surged toward the A and B Duo.
"He can use Wind Release too?!"
Although Lightning Release was countered by Wind Release, A immediately activated Lightning Release Chakra Mode to endure the attack. He felt as though the cannon blast of wind was about to tear apart his Lightning Release Armor.
Compared to his older brother, Killer B, as a Jinchūriki, had a much easier time of it. His body was inevitably flung away, but the Eight-Tails' red Tailed Beast Chakra healed him, leaving him largely unharmed.
"Hmm... I didn't think it'd be so hard to collect the bounties on these heads worth tens of millions..."
Kakuzu figured he must have spent too long picking on weaklings. He'd actually thought he could pocket tens of millions of ryō with just a few casual techniques.
Well, there was still time to get serious...
—"Ugh!"
Kakuzu yanked off his coat and mask, then tossed them into the air. The black threads all over his back, patched together and marked with "stitches," snapped apart. A mass of black, writhing tendrils surged out from beneath the remaining masks, gathering into eight enormous black cords like octopus tentacles.
"Earth Grudge Fear mode...!"
"Combined Ninjutsu..."
The tendrils in Kakuzu's mouth twisted. The Fire Release and Wind Release mask monsters on his shoulders gave a slight twitch, then opened their mouths again, about to unleash "Combined Ninjutsu: Scorching Wind Wave / Strange-Faced Blast" when a streak of lightning suddenly hurtled toward them from afar.
—BOOM!
"You really think you can look down on us?!"
In the steam nearby, a blade flashed sharply. Suikazan Fuguki raised Samehada and cleaved the mist apart with a single stroke. Right behind it came Raiga Kurosuki's "Lightning Release: Thunder Fang."
A swift bolt of lightning raced toward Kakuzu like a viper. He couldn't dodge in time and was caught from behind, but immediately used "Earth Release: Earth Spear."
It was common knowledge that Earth Release was countered by Lightning Release. But in the later parts of the original Naruto story, this elemental advantage was gradually downplayed. As long as you were strong enough, who cared about elemental counters? Just ignore them.
Still, it wasn't easy to withstand the Lightning Release from Kiba. For a split second, Kakuzu felt a sharp pain in his body and was briefly paralyzed.
Seeing an opening, the A-B Combo instantly flashed in a bolt of lightning, one moving in front of Kakuzu and the other behind him—
"Double Lariat!"
A and Killer B attacked Kakuzu's head with Lariat from the front and back at the same time. Even though he had immediately used "Earth Release: Earth Spear" to defend himself, the impact from both directions slammed his body together as if it had been folded in half. His innards nearly burst out.
"Damn brats!"
Earth Grudge Fear tendrils swept fiercely around them. The A and B Duo immediately withdrew a hundred meters, but the Ninja Swordsmen Duo on the other side had no chance to watch the show and wait for their opponents to weaken each other before joining the fight. Earth Grudge Fear tendrils were surging out of the ground all around them.
The Earth Grudge Fear mask monsters representing Fire and Lightning Release detached from Kakuzu and formed bodies out of tendrils, suppressing everyone present.
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