Juzo Biwa had barely finished speaking when he appeared beside Genye in an instant, the Kubikiribōchō swinging straight for Genye's head.
Boom!
Genye quickly twisted aside. The blade grazed his arm and slammed into the ground, carving out a massive crater.
Thud.
Juzo kicked the Kubikiribōchō, using the force to swing it up. The enormous blade seemed weightless in his hands as it became a blur, chopping relentlessly at Genye.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Faced with an overwhelming flurry of slashes, Genye's scalp prickled. He could only rely on his senses to dodge from side to side, using his nunchucks to intercept the attacks.
"Kid, weren't you running your mouth just now? Why are you scurrying around like a quail?" Juzo Biwa sneered.
The longer the weapon, the greater its reach.
With his exquisite swordsmanship and formidable physique, Juzo kept Genye pinned beyond the nunchucks' range, giving him no chance to attack.
Every slash landed with the force of a boulder crashing into the sea. Genye could barely keep up with the defense, let alone run his mouth.
If I keep fighting at Juzo Biwa's pace, he'll turn me into a limbless torso in fewer than thirty moves!
...There's no choice. I have to risk using that move! I'll gamble on it!
When the Kubikiribōchō came down again, Genye didn't dodge. He roared and raised a palm, striking the blade.
"Gentle Fist—"
He had only one chance to catch his opponent off guard. It had to be completely unexpected if he wanted to win through surprise!
Try to close the distance and attack Juzo Biwa directly?
Too slow!
Dodge the Kubikiribōchō, then punch it flying?
Still too slow. Juzo Biwa would see through his intentions at a glance!
Genye decided to make a big gamble.
He bet that before the Kubikiribōchō could hit him, he would knock it flying—or even shatter it outright!
Has this kid lost his mind?
Watching Genye slam his palm into the Kubikiribōchō, Juzo Biwa could think of nothing else.
His grip was strong enough to lift a thousand jin, and the Kubikiribōchō was indestructible. Did this kid really think he could knock it out of his hands?
"You're asking for death! Just wait until the Kubikiribōchō cuts you in two—!"
Thud.
Genye's palm struck the Kubikiribōchō with a muffled impact, and Juzo Biwa's expression changed dramatically.
A tremendous force traveled along the blade into his wrists. His hands shook violently, as if a beast had clamped its jaws around his wrists and was tearing at them. He used all his strength just to keep hold of the Kubikiribōchō.
But the next instant, three more forces just as powerful struck the blade. The four forces intertwined, unleashing a power that left Juzo Biwa aghast.
"Collapse!"
Cracks spread across the blade like a spiderweb. The next moment, before Juzo's stunned eyes, the supposedly indestructible Kubikiribōchō shattered into pieces!
"Th-this... How is this possible?" Juzo Biwa murmured in disbelief.
Even the Mizukage couldn't easily break the Kubikiribōchō. Yet this kid had smashed it to pieces with his bare hands!
Is this guy some kind of human-shaped Tailed Beast?!
Juzo Biwa had no time to think. The instant Genye shattered the Kubikiribōchō with one palm, his other fist followed right after.
"Gentle Fist: Collapse!"
Genye's all-out punch was unbelievably fast. Juzo Biwa had no time to use the Body Flicker Technique, so he brought the broken blade up to block his chest.
Thud!
The remaining pieces of the Kubikiribōchō shattered completely. Juzo Biwa flew backward and slammed hard into a thick tree, then tumbled to the ground in a sorry heap.
"Cough... Cough, cough!"
Juzo Biwa's throat filled with blood, and he coughed it up. By an odd stroke of luck, a fragment of the Kubikiribōchō had pierced his abdomen.
"Huff... Huff..."
Genye wasn't much better off. His arms hung limply at his sides, blood seeping through his skin and dripping from his fingertips.
Force acted both ways. Gentle Fist: Collapse unleashed astonishing power, but it put an equally astonishing strain on the body.
He had just forced his body to wield several times its own strength. No one could say how many of his blood vessels and pathways had burst in an instant. He had dealt a thousand blows to his enemy, but taken eight hundred himself.
Genye took a deep breath, forcing himself to endure the piercing pain in his arms.
Then, without even glancing at Juzo Biwa lying on the ground, he turned and ran!
"You're in a sorry state, Juzo. A kid backed you into a corner like this."
A few seconds later, a seemingly frail figure dropped from a tree and looked down at Juzo Biwa slumped beside it, taunting him mockingly.
The bastard has time to stand there and laugh at me, but can't hurry up and kill the kid!
Juzo Biwa rolled his eyes in anger, nearly choking on his breath.
"Oh? You're not about to die, are you?" Kushimaru Kuriarare asked with a malicious laugh. "Before you do, is there anything you'd like me to tell someone?"
"Bastard! I don't have anyone like that!" Juzo Biwa finally burst out, cursing him. "Enough talking—hurry up and kill that kid!"
"Hey, you could've just said so." Kushimaru Kuriarare swung Nuibari and bowed elegantly to Juzo Biwa. "As you wish."
In the woods, Genye's arms hung uselessly behind him as he sprinted away.
Luckily, he usually ran like this anyway, so even with his arms out of commission, he could just barely keep his balance.
This is the worst! The worst! The worst! Genye raged inwardly.
I nearly killed myself to beat Juzo Biwa, and now another member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen has shown up!
Is it because this is my zodiac year?!
That's right. At the last moment, Genye had sensed Kushimaru Kuriarare approaching.
That was why he'd crippled his own arms rather than let Juzo Biwa retain the ability to move.
Otherwise, he would never have survived with both men pursuing him. He could only hope to stay alive by taking one of them out first.
"To hurt Juzo Biwa that badly, you're pretty strong, little guy."
A flippant voice came from behind him. Genye ignored it and kept sprinting with all his might.
"Ignoring someone when they're talking to you..."
Seeing this, Kushimaru Kuriarare pursed his lips and reached back to draw Nuibari.
"...is really rude!"
Kushimaru shouted and hurled Nuibari at Genye with all his strength, aiming to skewer him right through.
But Genye's back seemed to have eyes. He twisted aside, dodging the blade, and kept running without slowing down.
"Oh, right. You're from the Hyuga Clan." Kushimaru Kuriarare tapped his mask with a finger and muttered ruefully.
"But..."
He pulled on the steel wire to retrieve Nuibari, then sprang forward with both legs. In a flash, he had closed the distance by more than ten meters.
"A Hyuga Clan member without arms is no different from a cripple!"
Before his words had even faded, Kushimaru Kuriarare appeared beside Genye, thrusting Nuibari at him like a spear.
"You're right. But unfortunately for you, you ran into me..."
Genye seemed to have planned this all along. He suddenly twisted his body, using the force of his run to fling himself into the air.
As Kushimaru Kuriarare stared at him in surprise, Genye threw all his strength into a midair kick.
"Leaf—Kai!!"
Before you continue