Blood Rain

Yamanaka Yuntian had never imagined that he would be the target. In this situation, he did not have the courage to take Muzan's Monster Strength Fist head-on. Hadn't he seen Shanye Song's example? Even Shanye Song, a taijutsu ninja of such strength, showed signs of fractured bones.

But just as Yamanaka Yuntian prepared to dodge, he suddenly felt an invisible lash strike his body, throwing his evasive movement off course. That slight deviation was enough to severely injure him.

"Bang!"

Yamanaka Yuntian, suspended in midair, was struck in the back by Muzan. The instant pain nearly made him pass out. He endured it through sheer willpower, but his physical condition was far from good.

His bones had broken, and it was his spine!

As the most important bone supporting the human body, a broken spine affected Yamanaka Yuntian's ability to stand.

He crashed heavily to the ground, the intense pain forcing out a beastlike roar.

Muzan, too, endured the impact of his spiritual power. That momentary lapse pulled Muzan into an illusion. The terror of the Hell Viewing Technique lay in making enemies see the scene they feared most deeply.

Even Muzan could not be immune to that. As long as someone was human, they had something to fear. Of course, the simplest way to break the Hell Viewing Technique was to overcome the fear in one's heart.

"Now! Kill Muzan!"

As for Yamanaka Yuntian, lying on the ground—sorry!

Root was an organization without emotions. Let alone an injured teammate, if a teammate affected the completion of a mission, they would kill that teammate without hesitation.

Having received the order, Shanye Song gritted his teeth. The pain in his arm made him slightly uncomfortable, but it did not greatly affect his strength. In the instant Muzan remained suspended in the air, Shanye Song had already completed his hand seals.

"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"

As an Earth Release ninja, Shanye Song was proficient in most of Konoha's Earth Release ninjutsu. He intended to bury Muzan alive with this technique.

After all, the Strength of a Hundred Technique's healing ability was too powerful. He was worried that one move would not be enough to finish Muzan, or that it might even give him a chance to escape. Thus, he chose the more reliable method of crushing and suffocating him.

It had to be said that not a single member of the Root ninja squad was useless. Even Yamanaka Yuntian, severely injured and near death, had used ninjutsu at the final moment to trap Muzan in a brief illusion.

At this moment, mudflow had swallowed half of Muzan's body, leaving him like drifting scum in a swamp. In just a little while, the Earth Flow River would completely engulf him.

Yet at the last moment, Muzan's eyes filled with brutality. His sudden awakening did not surprise Shanye Song, because victory was already within reach. Moreover, Aburame Heqing's insects were constantly devouring Muzan's chakra. By now, Muzan's chakra had surely run dry.

But Shanye Song encountered something strange. The mudflow created by his Earth Flow River had stopped.

"Something is stopping my ninjutsu from spreading. Be careful, something is very wrong with him."

More than merely wrong—Aburame Heqing felt it most directly. His insects were afraid.

"How is this possible?! My insects are actually afraid of Muzan. What is he?!"

His insects were carefully cultivated chakra insects. They had never feared even savage beasts, nor had they ever feared any kind of summoned beast. But the change in the chakra insects left Aburame Heqing with a growing sense of unease.

What exactly had happened to him?!

Muzan saw many things within the illusion, leaving him in a foul mood. There was even a risk that he might lose control.

From beneath the mudflow covering him, vines began growing from his body one after another. Looking at Yamanaka Yuntian, who lay nearby wailing, Muzan turned his head slightly. A vine shot directly into Yamanaka Yuntian's chest through his wound.

The instant pain twisted Yamanaka Yuntian's expression. He felt something destroying his cells, but he could not stop it.

The cells were even being forcibly fused together.

The pain made Yamanaka Yuntian's hunched body curl even further. "What is wrong with him?!"

Shanye Song watched Yamanaka Yuntian go mad from the pain. Every Root member possessed extraordinarily strong willpower. For something to drive a ninja's mind to collapse—

Especially when the man before him was a ninja skilled in spiritual power—it was simply unimaginable!

Just as Shanye Song wanted to go over and inspect him, Yamanaka Yuntian's body suddenly exploded.

A rain of blood scattered in every direction, carrying shattered pieces of flesh. Shanye Song was drenched from head to toe in blood.

At that moment, he admitted that he was afraid.

"What is going on?! Damn it! What did you do to Yamanaka Yuntian?!"

Shanye Song had carried out countless dangerous missions and fought many powerful opponents, yet he had never been afraid. But when he looked at Muzan now, he saw a demon.

Especially Muzan, whose body was stained with Yamanaka Yuntian's blood. A cold smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of his mouth, and he even stuck out his tongue to lightly lick it.

"What did I do to him? I merely bestowed great power upon him. Unfortunately, his body was too weak."

To bear Muzan's power, willpower was only one factor. More importantly, it depended on the amount of blood Muzan bestowed. A large amount of blood flooding into the body would transform it in a short time.

If the body was not strong enough, the result would be either a rain of blood or a puddle of mush.

"Damn it!"

Shanye Song was truly enraged at that moment. He lost the calm expected of a ninja, and that was exactly what Muzan wanted to see.

He increased his chakra output, making the mudflow even more violent as he tried to swallow Muzan completely.

Unfortunately, he had miscalculated.

"With only one arm left, how much longer can you hold on?"

His nearly unkillable body made Muzan invincible in close combat, leaving Shanye Song with a helpless sense of despair.

"I refuse to believe your chakra is endless!"

He wanted to call out to Aburame Heqing, but the latter was in even worse condition. His insects' fear had left Aburame Heqing troubled, since his strength was built upon those chakra insects.

Yet because of Muzan, he had been completely crippled.

"Idiot! Focus on the enemy in front of you. I'll help when I get the chance!"

The only key to defeating their enemy now was Shanye Song. Thus, Aburame Heqing chose to retreat to the second line. He could only rely on taijutsu, which he was not skilled at.

"It can only be this way..."

He wanted to use the mudflow to trap Muzan, yet he constantly felt that something was blocking its flow. Looking at the writhing ground below, it was obvious that something strange was approaching.

"Smack!"

Just as Shanye Song was about to dodge, something suddenly struck him from behind, leaving a bloody welt. The sharp pain made his body freeze, and at the same time, he felt a stabbing pain in his ankle.

"What the hell is this?!"

"Didn't you want to know how that Yamanaka ninja died? Now you have the honor of experiencing it firsthand!"