The Demigod's weakness

Anyo asked Kakuzu as though no one else were there, "Uncle, what do you think of this so-called Demigod?"

"Just a junior." Kakuzu's words dripped with contempt as a familiar assessment slipped from his lips.

Anyo nodded. Kakuzu certainly had the right to look down on him. Having practiced a secret technique, he was no longer merely flesh and blood. Poison would have no effect on him at all, which essentially neutralized half the Demigod's abilities. If the two fought, the Demigod would stand no chance of winning.

The Rain Ninja could not stomach their conversation and shouted angrily, "Where did you two idiots come from? You have no idea who you're dealing with! Lord Hanzō stands at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World..."

"Shut up." With a cold bark, Kakuzu unleashed an abrupt Earth Release Technique, impaling the Rain Ninja before him. Blood and intestines spilled across the ground. Their deaths were exceptionally gruesome.

Seeing this, Anyo tilted his head and asked, "What, in a bad mood? There's not much of a bounty for killing those guys."

Kakuzu was indeed in a rather bad mood. Having vented his frustration, he calmed down and said, "With them blocking the way, we couldn't get to Sunagakure anyway. I might as well deal with them."

"I've changed my mind," Anyo suddenly said. "Before going to Sunagakure, I want to meet this Demigod."

Kakuzu asked, "Why the sudden interest in him?"

Anyo said with great interest, "His individual abilities are actually quite impressive. Although he hasn't killed any powerful opponents yet, he can kill everyone on the other side except the powerful ones. I want to study his poison."

Kakuzu fell silent for a while before saying, "If you get poisoned by him, you could very well die."

Anyo was unconcerned. "I'll be careful. Besides, I've got you here, haven't I? There's no need to fear him."

"Then let's go." Kakuzu took the lead, with Anyo following close behind.

They had not gone far before a series of thunderous explosions came from the distant forest, startling countless birds into flight. From the looks of it, a large-scale battle was underway up ahead.

Looks like he's started fighting Sunagakure. This guy really knows how to stir things up. He declared war and went straight into action without a hint of hesitation. If he'd just kept a low profile and built up his strength, Konoha wouldn't have sent an army to his doorstep and battered Amegakure into such a sorry state.

Then again, if he hadn't been so high-profile, he wouldn't have earned the title of Demigod. Small nations have their limitations. Perhaps this Demigod is thinking further ahead than anyone else. Is he trying to reshape the world order through war?

At this moment, Anyo truly became intensely curious about him.

Seeing Anyo lost in thought, Kakuzu could not help asking, "What, are we waiting here for him to return?"

"No, let's catch a ninja first and ask about the situation on the battlefield."

With Kakuzu around, capturing a Rain Ninja was easy. Seeing the ninja trembling in fear, Anyo stepped forward and cast a genjutsu on him to interrogate him.

After the interrogation, Anyo murmured to himself, "Looks like things are going well for Amegakure. They've already gained the upper hand at the front. Sure enough, there's no good way to defend against a poison attack over such a wide area."

Kakuzu was not optimistic. "That poison can't be endless. The weakness is obvious. It just depends on whether Sunagakure can spot it. In any case, Amegakure can't win by relying on him alone."

Anyo suggested, "Let's go closer and take a look."

The two entered the forest and saw clusters of corpses on the ground, giving off all manner of foul, rotting odors. The ninjas' faces were filled with pain. There were some Rain Ninja among them as well, but gas masks covered their faces, hiding their expressions.

"Right, wearing gas masks is one way to handle it."

They continued forward. On the vast battlefield ahead, not a single person could be seen. Purple poisonous mist blanketed almost the entire battlefield, forcing Sunagakure to retreat again and again without any ability to resist.

At that moment, Hanzō stood atop the salamander's head, brimming with ambition. He believed that if this continued, the day when he occupied Sunagakure and led Amegakure into the ranks of the Five Great Nations would come sooner or later.

Just then, figures appeared in the poisonous mist, heading straight toward him. Hanzō was puzzled. Strange. Who could walk through the poisonous mist?

Hanzō decided to test them. "Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"

Countless droplets shot from his mouth, hurtling like bullets toward the shadows in the poisonous mist.

The shadows in the poisonous mist seemed to have anticipated this, leaping nimbly to evade wave after wave of attacks.

"How is that possible?" Hanzō could hardly believe it and waved a hand to disperse the poisonous mist.

The figures revealed before him were not ninja, but puppets. A short, middle-aged woman stood atop the largest one.

So they're puppets. Hanzō breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought Sunagakure's ninja had become immune to poison. But who was this person, and how had she survived in the poisonous mist?

"Who are you?" Hanzō voiced his question.

The middle-aged woman looked at Hanzō with a chuckle and said, "You may call me Lady Chiyo the Beauty."

"A beauty?" Hanzō replied disdainfully. "Just an old puppet hag."

At that name, veins bulged on Chiyo's face in fury, and she roared, "You old man with a breathing tube! Haven't you realized it yet? I've already countered your poison! Prepare to die!"

With that, Chiyo sent her puppets charging forward.

Utterly unafraid, Hanzō raised his sickle-like weapon and met her head-on. For a time, the two fought fiercely, neither gaining the slightest advantage.

Unwilling to give up, Hanzō released his deadly poison again, sending a potent cloud of poisonous mist surging toward Chiyo.

Standing atop her puppet, Chiyo directed the puppets to retreat.

Seeing that it worked, Hanzō brightened and sent the poisonous mist chasing after her.

One pursued while the other fled, quickly stretching out the battle line. Wherever they passed, not a blade of grass survived.

Watching this, Anyo asked Kakuzu beside him, "Strange. Chiyo has clearly countered Hanzō's poison, so why is she still running?"

Kakuzu saw through Chiyo's aim at once and said gravely, "Have you forgotten what I just said about his poison? It has a weakness. I think she's trying to find the interval when Hanzō replenishes his poison, so she can determine what strategy large numbers of Sand Ninja should use against him in the future."

Hearing this, Anyo understood. As expected of an old hand-the more he had experienced, the more he knew.

Sure enough, after a running battle, both combatants stopped almost simultaneously. One was replenishing his poison, while the other was timing him.

When they clashed again, Chiyo gave a cold smile. "Five minutes, right?"

Hanzō was inwardly startled. "What do you mean, five minutes?"

"I've already timed it. Replenishing your poison gas takes five minutes." Having discovered this weakness, Chiyo no longer lingered in battle. She gave Hanzō a cold look, then turned and left.

Hanzō's heart sank. He knew that the next time they met, it would be a fight to the death. But now that Sunagakure had discovered his weakness, did he still have any chance of winning?

For a moment, Hanzō began to doubt his own strength.