Ten Million Ryo!

Boom!

Asuma's head exploded.

But the next moment, the headless corpse burst into a cloud of smoke.

"A Shadow Clone? How is that possible?"

Kakuzu's pupils contracted in disbelief.

He turned to look at the battlefield on the other side.

Amid thunderous roars, waves of fire rolled back and engulfed his two masked clones.

The next moment, Asuma and Hatake Sakumo vanished at the same time.

The masked monster that had just blocked Asuma's two ninjutsu split in two as white and blue light burst forth.

Crack!

Boom!

The Wind Style and Fire Style masks exploded.

"Damn it!"

Kakuzu's expression darkened as the tentacles extending from his body rapidly withdrew.

Asuma, falling from the sky, spun around and opened his mouth, unleashing Wind Style: Great Breakthrough at Kakuzu from over a hundred meters away.

"Asuma, that wastes too much Chakra!"

Sakumo said.

"Sakumo-sensei, he has mastered five Chakra Nature Transformations, which means he has five hearts. He only has two left now—one Earth Style and one Lightning Style. We need to kill him two more times!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Asuma vanished with the storm.

Whoosh!

Sakumo vanished as well.

Kakuzu retreated again and again, but he was still caught by the storm.

Electric Light swirled around him. Asuma flickered through the wind, and blue blade light flashed continuously with him, slashing at Kakuzu.

Wind Style VS Lightning Style!

Kakuzu was at a disadvantage, completely suppressed by Asuma's Swordsmanship.

When the storm passed, a blazing white light flashed, and Kakuzu's body split in two.

Hatake Sakumo's killing blow had directly cut down Kakuzu.

But both men immediately frowned.

Kakuzu's fallen corpse transformed into a masked monster. The mask then split in two, followed by an intense burst of Electric Light that swept in every direction.

Electric Light surrounded both Asuma and Sakumo as they flashed away from the attack.

"He still got away!"

Asuma sighed, touching the ground with one hand. "He's fast. He's already escaped my sensing range!"

"No need to chase him. We still have a mission!"

Sakumo said.

If they had not been on a mission, he would certainly have pursued Kakuzu to the death.

That man was far too powerful and capable in every aspect. Alone, he was worth an entire squad of Jōnin.

Asuma nodded, though he could not help feeling regretful.

Even with a powerhouse like Hatake Sakumo present, they had failed to kill Kakuzu. It would only be harder to kill him in the future.

Moreover, if a powerhouse like Kakuzu was determined to flee, he would be difficult to keep.

Next time, I need to find a chance to use a big move and decide life or death in one strike!

Asuma silently made up his mind, then returned to the merchant caravan with Sakumo.

Shizune was busy treating the wounded here, while Kurenai assisted her.

Fortunately, although many were injured, no one had died.

After their injuries were initially treated, the group continued onward until nightfall, when they entered a small town.

However, the town was extremely desolate as well.

Since the Second Great Ninja War, Hanzō had withdrawn his forces into Amegakure. As a result, all kinds of ninja organizations had sprung up throughout the Land of Rain like mushrooms after rain.

Combined with ninja from various countries appearing here, the place had become utterly chaotic, and countless civilians had been displaced.

They found an abandoned house and settled down.

Only then did Sakumo ask, "Asuma, you seem to know that person quite well?"

"Mm!"

Asuma nodded and lied without batting an eye. "I've read a lot. That man's technique is a secret art of Takigakure called Earth Grudge Fear."

"It can absorb and implant other people's hearts into one's own body. Each heart represents one life."

Both Kurenai and Shizune changed expression upon hearing that.

There was actually such an evil technique!

"That man should be called Kakuzu. He was originally a ninja of Takigakure. Back then, he even attempted to assassinate the First Hokage. After failing, he stole the secret art Earth Grudge Fear and defected from the village. He's a powerhouse from the same era as the First and Second Hokage!"

Asuma said.

Sakumo nodded. "I see. He truly is very powerful. He has mastered all five kinds of ninjutsu to an extreme degree, and those masked monsters can even leave his body and fly through the air. He's difficult to deal with!"

"Kurenai, use Genjutsu to assist me in interrogating that survivor. Asuma and Shizune, you're responsible for keeping watch. Do not lower your guard!"

Asuma and the other two nodded in unison.

Ten minutes later.

The four gathered again.

The interrogation results were already in.

Before Sakumo could speak, Kurenai anxiously said, "Asuma, they were after you!"

"Huh?"

Asuma raised a brow. "A bounty?"

"Mm!"

Kurenai nodded. "Your bounty must have appeared at the bounty office after we left the village. Ten Million Ryo!"

"Ten Million Ryo?"

Asuma frowned, deeply dissatisfied. "Am I worth that little?"

"I'm the Third Hokage's second son, after all, and I even created an S-Rank Wind Style Ninjutsu, didn't I?"

Both Sakumo and Shizune could not help laughing.

But Kurenai grew anxious. "Asuma, don't take this lightly!"

"This is already the price of an A-rank mission!"

Asuma immediately turned serious. "Kurenai, I understand. I'm taking this very seriously, especially since that guy Kakuzu has his eye on me."

To keep Kurenai from worrying, he added, "But that man lost four hearts. He probably won't have time to come cause us trouble anytime soon."

"You still can't let your guard down."

Sakumo added, then said, "Although word of your creation of an S-Rank Wind Style Ninjutsu has spread widely, people outside the village have not seen it. There probably aren't many who believe it."

"However, after this, your bounty should increase by quite a bit."

"So you need to be even more careful."

The other ninja villages would not want Konoha to produce such an extraordinary genius.

"Yes, Sakumo-sensei!"

Asuma nodded.

That night, while resting, he opened the system and used his remaining 1 Attribute Point, adding it to his Constitution attribute.

Constitution +1 = 63!

The next day, a continuous drizzle fell as the group set out early in the morning.

Along the way.

Asuma and Sakumo left behind Shadow Clones while their real bodies departed from the group and headed south. Moving at top speed, they arrived at the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Rain to begin reconnaissance.

This kind of infiltration was a technical job.

Fortunately, Asuma was highly skilled with the Transformation Technique, and with Sakumo leading him, he learned quickly.

By noon, the two returned to the group.

But the intelligence they had gathered was far from encouraging.

Ninja activity was frequent along the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Wind.

On the surface, those ninja appeared to be wandering ninja or small ninja organizations.

But how could they possibly escape Hatake Sakumo's sharp gaze?

At a glance, he could tell that many Sand Ninja were mixed among them.

Two days later.

The group entered the Land of Birds.

Asuma continued investigating the situation at the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth with Sakumo.

The Land of Earth was fine; it was not in a wartime state.

But on the Land of Wind's side, the supplies stockpiled at the border outposts clearly exceeded normal levels.

Asuma knew that war was about to come.

Even without Sasori of the Red Sands killing the Third Kazekage, the Third Great Ninja War would still break out.