White Fang of the Leaf Village

A figure appeared without warning in midair directly above the six puppet masters.

Hatake Sakumo.

One hand rested on the hilt of the White Fang sword at his back as his calm gaze swept downward.

In an instant...

A figure Body Flickered into the very center of the six puppet masters.

A simple horizontal slash.

Efficient and precise, without a single superfluous movement.

There was no overwhelming eruption of chakra, only the most direct path.

In an instant.

"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" The puppet masters at the outer edge—

A red line abruptly appeared across the sides of their necks, and the terror on their faces had not even had time to change.

Their bodies went limp and toppled forward.

Another puppet master, the quickest to react, had already summoned two defensive puppets before him.

Yet a slanted, smooth cross-section appeared down the center of his body along with his two sturdy puppets.

The puppets' mechanism cores and his body silently shifted apart along that plane and slid down, the cut as smooth as a mirror.

The third puppet master, who had tried to dart toward the rock wall at the side, had taken only half a step.

His right leg was severed cleanly at the knee, blood gushing from the stump like a fountain.

He let out a shrill scream and crashed heavily onto the sand.

Fast!

Inconceivably fast! Was this... a Kage-level expert?

No, this was a swordsman like Hatake Sakumo, one born of the samurai tradition.

A Kage-level expert who had honed a single trait to its utmost limit, specializing in slaughter!

The remaining three puppet masters, including their captain, seemed frozen in place.

Relying on instinct, the captain roared hoarsely, "Move!!!"

Then he formed hand seals. "Summoning Technique: Rock-Armored Centipede!"

Rumble!

A massive centipede-shaped puppet, formed from