At this moment, a look of joy flashed across the face of the Butō who had just unleashed Dust Release. He had received the Dust Release technique from Ōnoki a long time ago, but he had never been able to use it.
Or rather, it can only produce a small, unfinished product, which, while incredibly powerful, can also severely damage the user.
Unexpectedly, when he was facing a desperate situation and risking everything, preparing to Jörmungandr, he actually gained a preliminary grasp of the Dust Release that he had never been able to master before. This made him sigh at the irony of fate.
Having successfully used Dust Release, Butō's previous despair vanished, and he now possessed the ability to kill Jörmungandr.
He aimed the Dust Release crystal he had condensed at Jörmungandr, also subtly including Aizen, who was not far away, within it.
He planned to use Dust Release to kill the two of them directly. He had already felt a great threat from Jörmungandr, so he figured that as Jörmungandr's companion, their strength couldn't be too bad either.
Therefore, in order to avoid causing trouble for Iwagakure, he made up his mind to eliminate Aizen as well.
Just as he was about to unleash Dust Release to kill Jörmungandr and his companions, a strange breeze blew across his face, and he found that the Dust Release in his hand, which had been stable, began to fluctuate again, as if a strange force was affecting the composition of the Dust Release.
Seeing this, Butō was terrified and immediately increased his Chakra output in an attempt to stabilize the structure of Dust Release.
But a strange thing happened: no matter how much Chakra he released, the Dust Release crystal in his hand just wouldn't stabilize.
He could sense that there was nothing wrong with the Dust Release he was using, but he just didn't have enough Chakra.
After several consecutive failures, Butō immediately realized something was wrong. He abruptly looked up at Jörmungandr and demanded, "Was it your companion who did this?"
Why suspect Jörmungandr instead of Aizen? Because in Aizen's eyes, Jörmungandr was a pure Taijutsu ninja.
Such a bizarre method that can affect Dust Release could only be possessed by Jörmungandr's mysterious companion.
Aizen was sitting to the side being questioned by Butō, merely glanced at Butō with disdain, then ignored him and continued to close his eyes.
His demeanor appeared nonchalant and composed to others, but to the Butō, it was nothing short of blatant mockery.
He strained forward, trying to charge at Aizen. But as soon as Butō foot touched the ground, he felt a sudden weakness and fell face-first forward. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and braced himself with his hands, preventing his face from hitting the ground.
"What exactly did your companion do to me?" Butō asked Jörmungandr angrily. He didn't know when he was hit by the attack, nor when his enemy had begun to use it.
Faced with Butō's angry questioning, Jörmungandr simply said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Butō- san, the technique you used was far too dangerous, so I banned it."
Although Jörmungandr verbally apologized, his tone did not convey any real remorse, which only fueled his anger in the Butō.
"You? Banned? What do you mean? What are you talking about?" Butō didn't understand Jörmungandr's words at all and shouted Jörmungandr.
"Well, to put it simply, I've disabled your Dust Release. Do you understand now?" It has to be said that Jörmungandr very tolerant of Butō; he didn't get angry even in the face of such a rude question, and still spoke in a calm tone.
Now Butō understood Jörmungandr's meaning. He looked at Jörmungandr with a shocked expression. "You? Forbidden? You're saying that my failure to use Dust Release was your fault, not your comrades'?"
"Yes, that's right, it was my fault," Jörmungandr replied to the Butō with certainty.
"But aren't you a pure Taijutsu ninja? How do you know such a technique?" Butō looked incredulous. In his eyes, Jörmungandr such abilities?
" Butō Master, first of all, I never said I was a pure Taijutsu ninja. Secondly, who says Taijutsu ninjas can't have these kinds of techniques? Can't these kinds of techniques be innate?"
Jörmungandr's words jolted Butō awake like a bolt from the blue. He suddenly remembered that before the battle, Ōkura Suke had told him about the enemy's information, and that the subsequent fight had confirmed the information's authenticity. However, Jörmungandr had never explicitly admitted that he was a pure Taijutsu ninja.
In other words, he was misled, which made him realize that Jörmungandr had never used his full strength since the start of the war.
The more Butō thought about it, the more alarmed he became. He hadn't expected Jörmungandr so well-hidden. With some fear, he asked Jörmungandr, "So all of this was your plan?"
Butō never expected that Jörmungandr looked like a brute, would have such a deep mind; he was deceived by Jörmungandr's appearance.
If Jörmungandr could hear the thoughts in Butō's mind, he would definitely shout that who was so scheming? He was a sunny and upright young man.
Besides, he's useless. Wasn't his use of Dark Release just to test his strength and also to help with the Butō?
If he uses Dark Release, the battle with Butō will only end more quickly, further damaging Butō's confidence.
"I wasn't planning anything, it's just that you Butō -san, don't understand what you're facing."
"Perhaps it's because you, as a ninja from a great nation, lack reverence for the unknown. You think you understand me, but you don't know if what I've shown is all I am. In the end, it's because you're too weak, Butō Arts Master. If you were a little stronger, you could have forced me to reveal my trump card, instead of making wild guesses here."
Jörmungandr's words shattered Butō's pride, plunging him into self-doubt. He kept replaying Jörmungandr's words in his mind.
Jörmungandr probably didn't expect that his blunt words would directly cause the Butō to lose confidence.
The fragility of Butō is not without reason. From childhood, he was a genius in the eyes of the people of Iwagakure. He became Jonin at the age of fifteen, participated in many battles, and made great contributions. Later, at the age of twenty-three, he broke through to the Kage Level.
At the peak of his life, he only experienced one setback, which was being taught a lesson by Ōnoki for being too arrogant.
However, what Ōnoki called a lesson was actually a form of instruction. Ōnoki valued him highly and wanted to groom him to become the Tsuchikage Tsuchikage succeed him.
To cultivate his political abilities, he was given the position of assistant to the Tsuchikage, and the Tsuchikage continued to teach him diligently. He was even taught the Dust Release, which could only be practiced after becoming the Tsuchikage, ahead of schedule.
It can be said that Butō's life has been smooth sailing. His extraordinary strength has earned him the respect and trust of Iwagakure, and the Tsuchikage also has high hopes for him.
He also encountered difficulties with Dust Release, but he has overcome them by now.
His seemingly perfect life made him appear strong inside, but in reality, he was incredibly fragile.
He performed exceptionally well when he did not encounter any more talented or younger opponents of the same level.
However, if a ninja stronger and younger than him defeats him, his inner vulnerability will surface, plunging him into endless self-doubt.