Kimimaro!

Naruto Uzumaki froze at Ye Chuan's sudden appearance, then shouted at him:

"Hey! Ye Chuan! Thanks! This guy's bones are hard as hell! He's a real pain to deal with!"

"That bastard Sasuke... I'm bringing him back, no matter what! I'll leave this to you! I'm going ahead!"

With that, Naruto no longer hesitated. He turned and ran with all his strength in the direction Sasuke had gone.

Ye Chuan did not even glance at Naruto. All his attention was focused on Kimimaro before him.

He could sense that this opponent was strong. Very strong.

Kimimaro paid no attention to the departing Naruto either. His eyes held only Ye Chuan, his pale face expressionless.

He studied Wado Ichimonji in Ye Chuan's hand and spoke in a hoarse voice:

"A white sword... black hair... you must be that... swordsmanship prodigy from the reports."

"Maybe." Ye Chuan's tone was flat.

"Come on, then. Let me see just how powerful the Kaguya Clan's Kekkei Genkai really is."

"Just what I wanted."

Kimimaro leaned forward slightly, like a venomous snake poised to strike.

"For Lord Orochimaru's long-cherished wish, every obstacle must be eliminated!"

Before his words had faded, Kimimaro moved!

His speed was astonishing. He closed the distance in an instant, five sharp bone spikes suddenly shooting from the fingers of his right hand!

"Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets!"

Facing the swift attack, Ye Chuan neither ducked nor dodged. He stepped half a pace forward with his left foot, instantly unleashing the explosive power of [Soru] combined with the [Body Flicker Technique]!

His figure blurred in a flash!

Not only did he evade Kimimaro's bone spikes, he closed in on him at even greater speed!

"So fast!"

Kimimaro's pupils contracted. He immediately changed tactics, denser clusters of bone spikes bursting from all over his body to form a defense with no blind spots.

"Dance of the Clematis: Vine!"

But Ye Chuan's Observation Haki had already discerned the paths along which every bone spike would emerge!

His body slipped nimbly through the gaps between the dense bone spikes, while Wado Ichimonji, coated in jet-black Armament Haki, delivered slashes from tricky angles!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sounds of blade clashing against bone rang out as densely as falling rain!

Sparks flew everywhere!

The longer Kimimaro fought, the more alarmed he became.

The boy before him was impossibly fast, every movement taking him just beyond the reach of his attacks.

Even more terrifying was his perception. His bones could clearly jut out from any part of his body, yet his opponent always anticipated them, as though he could see the future!

And the white katana in his opponent's hand was terrifyingly sharp!

The bones he took such pride in, as hard as steel, were actually as fragile as rotten wood beneath that blade coated in a strange power!

In several clashes, his bone spikes had even been cut clean through!

Ye Chuan knew Kimimaro's strength very well.

The power of Shikotsumyaku, combined with his exquisite Taijutsu, was enough for him to defeat most Jonin with ease.

In the original story, if his illness had not brought him to death's door, Rock Lee and Kimimaro would have long since died at his hands.

Kimimaro's strength was at least on the level of an Elite Jonin!

What kind of monster... is this guy?! Kimimaro was horrified.

The pressure this boy put on him far exceeded that of any opponent he had encountered before.

I can't drag this out any longer! I have to finish this quickly!

Kimimaro's gaze hardened, and the chakra inside him surged wildly.

"Dance of the Willow!"

"Dance of the Camellia!"

He combined Shikotsumyaku's flexibility and brute force, dancing like a phantom. His arms became bone whips, bone blades sprouted from his legs, and his entire body became an efficient, elegant killing machine as his offensive instantly turned ferocious!

Facing Kimimaro's storm of attacks, Ye Chuan's gaze grew serious as well.

"Taijutsu at this level, paired with Shikotsumyaku, really is powerful."

He calmly analyzed the situation while relying on Observation Haki to dodge.

"If I rely on swordsmanship and Haki alone, finishing him quickly will probably come at a considerable cost."

Although his Observation Haki could anticipate movements, Kimimaro's attacks covered too wide an area.

Although his Armament Haki could cut through bone, his opponent's bones regenerated almost endlessly and were extremely hard. Each one he severed consumed a fair amount of Haki.

"In that case..." A sharp light flashed in Ye Chuan's eyes. "Let's try the move I just learned!"

As he dodged another attack, he poured his Lightning Release Chakra into Wado Ichimonji without holding anything back!

Bzzzt-!!!

The jet-black blade was instantly covered in a layer of flickering, leaping blue arcs! They gave off a piercing shriek!

The entire sword exuded an even more dangerous aura!

"That's... Lightning Release?!" Kimimaro was startled.

In that instant of distraction, Ye Chuan seized his chance!

Coated in Lightning Release Chakra, Wado Ichimonji slashed out like a flash of lightning!

Kimimaro instinctively blocked with the bone blade on his arm!

Clang! Bzzzzzt!!!

The instant blade met bone, a powerful electric current traveled along the bone and spread through half of Kimimaro's body!

Kimimaro felt half his body go numb, and his movements instantly locked up!

Now!

Ye Chuan clearly "heard" the fatal opening the paralysis had exposed inside Kimimaro's body!

The "line" that existed like the breath of all things had never been so clear!

Without further hesitation, he poured his entire understanding of "severing" into this one slash!

Shhk-!

There was no earth-shattering display, only a streak of black sword light condensed to its utmost limit!

Like a fine line slicing through space, the sword light flashed across the location of Kimimaro's heart with absolute precision!

"..."

All of Kimimaro's movements stopped.

He lowered his head and looked at the thin wound across his chest, blood gushing from it.

He could feel that his heart had been completely destroyed.

There was no pain on his face, no resentment, only a kind of... almost peaceful release.

He raised his head and looked at Ye Chuan, the boy's calm figure reflected in his green pupils. He seemed to want to say something, but in the end, his body simply went limp. He slowly sank to his knees, then collapsed completely, never to stir again.

The last bloodline of the Kaguya Clan, the genius Orochimaru had regarded as the perfect vessel, had ultimately met his end.

Ye Chuan slowly sheathed his sword. The lightning and Armament Haki faded from the blade, leaving Wado Ichimonji as white as ever.

Looking at Kimimaro's face on the ground, still marked by obsession, he fell silent inwardly as well.

So this was... what a fight to the death felt like.

So clear. So cruel.

He could die.

His opponent could die too.

People died when they were killed.

That seemingly pointless truth only felt so real and heavy after he had ended one life after another with his own hands.

[Detected that the host has slain a powerful enemy: Kaguya Kimimaro...]

[Overall assessment... Inheritance Experience gained: +1,673 points!]

[Current Inheritance Progress: 62.6%]

"...An increase of 1.5%?"

Ye Chuan felt the insights within him grow once more, but his eyes held no joy, only unfathomable depth.