Kojima Sakae Eijima, who had been waiting outside, entered after the Uchiha brothers left.
"Grand Steward..."
He dared not run away. After what happened last night, he had come to understand the difference between ordinary people and ninjas.
Aoki Tsuki nodded and said, "I didn't expect you to survive under those circumstances. You deserve a promotion and a raise."
The ninja world is steeped in fatalism, and luck is simply a direct manifestation of fate.
Upon hearing that he wouldn't die and would even receive a promotion and a raise, Kojima Sakae quickly bowed, "Thank you for your guidance, High Deacon. I will certainly do my best to serve the Church from now on."
'It seems like I'm not so resistant anymore.'
If Kojima Sakae asked to kill someone and offer them as a sacrifice to the Jashin now, he probably wouldn't hesitate any longer.
Therefore, it can be said that humans have a very strong ability to adapt.
"Our sect has always been generous in rewarding those who have rendered meritorious service. From now on, you will be the priest of the Jashin Cult in the Land of Fire. We look forward to your performance."
"Hey, I don't know what to do?"
"Let's go to Ancient Tanzaku Castle and meet up with them; we can't stay here any longer."
"Clear!"
The Jashin Cult was merely a pawn in his hands to attract attention, disrupting the situation before making his move. Xiao, on the other hand, used the opportunity to establish an intelligence network, and what was needed was to restore order.
Night fell quickly.
Asuma and Chiriku arrived at Kazuma's courtyard, ready to have an open and frank discussion.
"Please stop your plans, Kazuma. What you're doing will only cause more bloodshed and death, and trigger unnecessary war."
"War? Asuma, hasn't the Land of Fire experienced enough wars over the years? We are merely returning power to those who truly deserve it."
"The duty of the Guardian Ninja is to protect the Daimyo, not to become tools for a coup."
Chiriku spoke up, "The balance between the nation and the village has protected the Land of Fire for decades, and your actions are undermining this stable foundation."
"You call this a coup? Ha..."
Kazuma chuckled, "It seems you still don't understand. I am actually saving this country. The daimyo needs power that truly belongs to him."
Instead of relying on the so-called 'one country, one village'.
Asuma retorted, "But our declaration of allegiance to the Daimyo is intended to protect the Land of Fire, not to achieve some political ambition."
"Hmph, the Third is old, weak in his dealings with foreign powers, and only seeks peace. Look at Konoha now, how much has it declined? We need to establish a new order."
The Twelve Guardian Ninja were formed for this purpose.
"Enough! I will not allow you to harm Konoha, nor will I allow you to use the name of the Guardian Ninja to overturn the peace that our predecessors won with countless sacrifices."
"Hmph, I knew you'd say that, foolish loyalty."
Asuma, wielding the Flying Swallow, glowed with pale blue Chakra. "I'll say it one last time, Kazuma, please return to our original path."
Seeing this, Chiriku silently made a hand gesture. Don't let Asuma's usual carefree attitude fool you; when it comes to real trouble, he will stand up for justice without hesitation.
Upon hearing this, Kazuma laughed maniacally, "Hahaha... Asuma, you'll never understand. Sometimes... tearing... is for better healing."
Earth Release: Rock Spear
As Kazuma pressed his hands to the ground, his Chakra activated, causing the soil to undulate and begin spraying out countless rock spears.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
Hidden nearby, Hoshisame seized the opportunity to unleash her Ninjutsu to assist. " Wind Release: Wind Release."
The whirlwind enhances the spear, further increasing its attack speed.
The two sides no longer hid and engaged in fierce fighting.
Faced with such a dense attack, ordinary defenses were simply not enough to stop it. Chiriku was prepared and immediately activated his signature Ninjutsu.
"Come to welcome· Thousand-Hand Kill "
Bang bang bang...
The golden fist attacked wildly, shattering all the incoming rock spears.
" Wind Release: Dust Technique"
Asuma exhaled a cloud of blue-gray smoke, quickly obscuring himself and Chiriku's figures to confuse the enemy's vision.
Suddenly, there was a noise underfoot. Asuma quickly jumped away, and suddenly two hands reached out from the spot.
The Hiding Like a Mole Jutsu!
"Your senses are still so sharp, Asuma, but what about this..." Kazuma emerged from the ground, his upper body rising, and clasped his hands together.
Smack...
Earth Release: Rock Pillar Spear
Sharp rock spears rose one after another from the ground. Even when Asuma cut them with his sword, the rock spears would still thrust forward under the impetus of Chakra.
He could only dodge and fight back at the same time.
Bang!
A golden fist descended from the sky and slammed into the spot where Kazuma was standing, leaving only a deep crater.
"Did you dodge it?" Chiriku frowned.
He knocked Hoshisame unconscious with a few punches and prepared to ambush Kazuma, but he didn't expect the guy to be so cautious and always on guard against him.
When Kazuma reappeared, he was behind Asuma. With his right hand, he used an iron chain to wrap around Asuma's body, while his left hand held a four-bladed iron claw.
Pfft...
Asuma used his Flying Swallow to intercept, but Kazuma still managed to leave four deep wounds on his body.
Seeing this, Chiriku dared not help. Although his magic was powerful, he could not control it at will and was afraid of accidentally injuring someone.
Kazuma this, Kazuma revealed a smug smile. He knew Chiriku's technique, of course. Its biggest weakness was that it was not flexible enough and consumed a lot of energy. If it was delayed for a while, it would automatically lose its fighting ability.
Asuma swiftly cut the chains binding him and broke free.
" Whirlwind Blade "
The blue Chakra light on the twin swords intensified, transforming into two enormous wind blades that unleashed a series of spinning slashes, like swallows flapping their wings.
Agile movement and nimble actions, yet carrying deadly danger.
While parrying with Kazuma four-bladed iron claws, Chakra into the remaining iron chains and lashed them out, attempting to create an opening.
After dodging a barrage of chain strikes, Asuma immediately lunged forward.
" Flying Swallow!"
Click...
Kazuma's four-bladed iron claws on his left hand were severed in one blow. He hurriedly jumped backward to dodge, and at the same time, the iron chains flew out of his hands and smashed towards Asuma.
Asuma crossed his arms and slashed, cutting the chain into several pieces that scattered on the ground. Then, Asuma threw the Flying Swallow he was holding at Kazuma.
" Wind Release: Emerald Mist and Gale"
" Earth Release · Earth-Style Wall "
An earthen wall rose up, blocking Kazuma's path. However, to his surprise, the Chakra- encased Flying Swallow passed through the Earth-Style Wall without any hindrance.
puff...
Flying Swallow cut a large gash in Kazuma's ribs, and blood flowed incessantly.
"Ah...!!"
Kazuma clutched his wound in pain, exclaiming in surprise, "I never imagined your strength had improved so much!"
"My progress is for better protection. Over the past few years, I've gradually come to understand something: the most important person for the country and the village may never be the Daimyo or the Hokage."
"What... is that?"
"It's 'jade,' a newly sprouted tree bud. The future belongs to them, and all we can do is bring everything to a complete end."
Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning
Asuma exhaled another cloud of hot ash, enveloping the injured Kazuma. A tiny flame ignited the ash.
Boom boom boom...
After a series of explosions resembling a dust explosion, only a pile of mud and debris dried by the flames remained.
"This is Earth Clone?!"
In the distance, a figure was sprinting across the rooftops and had entered another battlefield, where the conservative Lightning Release Four-Man Squad were fighting against Kazuma's remaining supporters.
Kazuma wanted to join forces with the others to launch a counterattack.
Seeing that Kazuma had actually run over, the Lightning Release Four-Man Squad seized the opportunity and immediately activated their trump cards to wipe them out in one fell swoop.
" Lightning Release: Lightning Dream, Lightning Man"
The four people simultaneously released electricity into the air from four directions, and the lightning crossed and converged in the sky to form thunderclouds, with intense energy pouring down.
Rumble...
The lightning, controlled by Chakra, struck straight down, turning one of the enemies into a charred corpse.
"What kind of technique is this? We're doomed..." The others wanted to escape, but how could they possibly outrun lightning?
"How could this happen? Damn it!"
Kazuma was both shocked and furious. He never expected that the Lightning Release Four-Man Squad would possess such a combined attack Ninjutsu, an S-rank secret technique comparable to the power of natural lightning.
"Stop it! You'll all die if you keep going like this. Such foolish behavior proves nothing!"
Nauma of the Lightning Release Four-Man Squad, retorted, "The existence of Guardian Ninja is never about proving anything, but about protecting. Let's die together, Kazuma!"
Then, the four of them poured all their Chakra into the thundercloud and launched their final attack.
Boom boom boom...
More than ten bolts of lightning struck in succession, covering the entire area.
"No!... Stop..."
Kazuma desperate cries were drowned out by the raging thunder; he, his supporters, and their ideals were shattered.
After the lightning strike, only ruins remained.
Kazuma and his few supporters all turned to dust.
The Lightning Release Four-Man Squad fell one after another. Such a large-scale attack had drained their Chakra, in addition to the injuries they had sustained in the battle.
Nauma, Tōu, Seito, Kitane died on the spot.
Asuma and Chiriku watched all this in silence. The internal strife caused by differing ideologies rendered the Twelve Guardian Ninja in name only.
Swish, swish, swish...
Hayama Shirakumo and his men emerged from the shadows. They had been lying in ambush, ready to intervene if Asuma couldn't handle the situation.
Arrange for someone to take Hoshisame, who is still alive, away for interrogation. This person is very likely to know about the Jashin Cult.
"What are your plans?" Hayama Shirakumo asked.
Asuma sighed, "Where else can we go? We can't stay here any longer. We'll have to go back to the village to do our quests."
If he weren't forced to, he would rather stay here, live off the government, and earn a good income. Why would he suffer through all sorts of dangerous missions?
" Chiriku, you're going back to the temple too, right?"
Chiriku nodded. "Yes, this trip has allowed me to see my own heart more clearly. I need to go back and focus on studying Buddhism."