Grind is My Ninja Wa Chapter 420: Defeating One by One

*Sssshh~*

The sound of a blade slicing through flesh echoed.

Yamada Shinichi had managed to narrowly avoid the lethal blow from the first strike, but he had no way to dodge the seemingly simple second strike.

Seii didn't give his opponent any ti to react. As soon as he closed in, he used the "Phantom Sword Technique" and, seizing the mont when Yamada was vulnerable, sliced his throat.

*Clang~*

The kunai in Yamada's hand dropped to the ground.

Yamada looked at Seii in front of him, clutching his throat. His mouth opened as if to say sothing, but no words ca out.

*Thud~*

His body fell heavily to the ground.

Seii let out a quiet breath, then turned to look at the two others who were being tangled up by his shadow clones.

By this point, the two had noticed the situation and saw Yamada Shinichi's demise.

While Mizuki Zangetsu remained confident—believing that even if he couldn't defeat Seii, he wouldn't be easily taken down—Takeshima Ichiro, the elite Jonin, had a very different reaction. His pupils contracted, and he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of fear toward Seii.

Yamada Shinichi's strength was sothing he knew well. It was certainly greater than his own. Now that Yamada was dead at Seii's hands, he feared his own fate would be no better—perhaps even worse.

And judging by Seii's deanor, it was clear that either he or Mizuki Zangetsu would be the next target. This realization made him extrely anxious.

Though he tried not to show it outwardly, Seii imdiately noticed.

Seeing Ichiro's bleeding left arm, Seii wasted no ti. He used his "Instant Sword Technique" and charged toward him.

Not long ago, Ichiro had intervened in the clash between Seii and Mizuki Zangetsu, which led to Seii injuring his left arm. He had barely survived thanks to Yamada Shinichi's help.

But now, with Yamada dead, who could possibly save him next?

*Whoosh~*

Seii appeared before him.

The shadow clone that had been fighting Ichiro imdiately stopped its attack. Without needing any instructions, it abandoned its current opponent and moved toward Mizuki Zangetsu, clearly intending to team up with another clone to put pressure on Zangetsu.

Seeing this, Seii nodded to himself, thinking, "As always, working with myself is the most seamless."

His shadow clones inherited his combat experience and mories, so they understood his style and thoughts perfectly.

At critical monts like this, they could make the best decisions without any need for communication. Just like now, they smoothly switched targets.

This left Takeshima Ichiro with no chance to escape.

Seeing the pale figure in front of him, weakened from blood loss, Seii swung his blade without hesitation.

*Clang~*

The sound of tal clashing rang out.

Ichiro felt a powerful force from the collision between his kunai and Seii's long blade, causing his arm to go numb and forcing him to stumble back half a step.

But that half-step was enough to worsen his already dire situation.

Without pause, Seii stepped forward, swinging a second strike and using the "Phantom Sword Technique" to finish him off.

However, though Ichiro was weaker, he was still a Jonin, and his battle experience kept him from falling for the sa trick twice.

Sensing the incoming attack, he bit his tongue to use the pain to break free from the illusion.

As a result, Seii's technique had no effect on him.

*Clang~*

Their weapons clashed again, sparks flying as the long blade t the kunai.

The force of the impact allowed Ichiro to retreat a step, trying to put so distance between him and Seii.

But Seii wasn't going to give him that opportunity.

A faint blue glow appeared around Seii.

In the next instant, he vanished from sight.

"That move again?"

Having seen Seii's "Instant Sword Technique" a few tis, Ichiro recognized it the mont the blue glow appeared. He imdiately focused his senses on the surroundings.

As a ninja skilled in stealth and intelligence gathering, Ichiro's sensory abilities were far better than most. With so preparation, he quickly detected Seii's presence.

But it was useless.

All he could do was evade. In a head-to-head fight, he wasn't Seii's match, and whenever he tried to create distance, Seii was on him again in a flash.

Thus, the fight remained at a stalemate.

But the rule of "the longer you defend, the more likely you are to slip up" holds true everywhere.

With Seii's relentless attacks, Ichiro's defenses began to falter.

Seii, like a cold machine, analyzed Ichiro's movents through his Sharingan, searching for any opening.

As ti passed, after about three minutes, Ichiro dodged another strike and managed to gain so space. At that mont, Seii's eyes lit up—he'd found an opening.

Without hesitation, Seii reached into his pouch and pulled out several shurikens, then hurled them at Ichiro.

*Whoosh whoosh whoosh~*

The faint sound of slicing air filled the space.

Ichiro, on high alert, imdiately noticed the incoming shurikens.

While he didn't have Seii's Sharingan to track all their flight paths in an instant, years of combat experience told him that Seii had already blocked off his escape routes.

If he dodged recklessly, he wouldn't just fail to evade the attack; he might even make things worse.

So, he swung his kunai to intercept the shurikens head-on.

Of course, he didn't take his eyes off Seii.

He knew that this attack wasn't just to limit his movents; Seii definitely had a follow-up plan.

Sure enough, as soon as Ichiro turned his gaze to Seii, he saw him quickly forming hand signs. Seii opened his mouth and unleashed a fire jutsu—*Fire Style: Dragon Fla Jutsu*!

*Fwoosh~*

A line of fire shot out from Seii's mouth, transforming into a blazing dragon that hurtled toward Ichiro.

At that mont, Ichiro had just deflected the shurikens and was too drained to imdiately use another technique for defense.

With no other option, he dodged to the side.

*Boom~*

The fire dragon crashed into the ground, leaving a scorched crater, dirt, and debris scattering everywhere. So of the debris struck Ichiro, but he paid no mind.

His focus was on what happened next: nurous fireballs streaked toward him—Seii's *Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu*.

Earlier, when the shadow clones had been using jutsu, they couldn't precisely aim because the Sharingan used by the clones was only a copy.

But now that Seii had found an opening, his precise control brought imnse trouble for Ichiro.

Dodging left and right, Ichiro tried to avoid the fireballs, but they seed to have a mind of their own, relentlessly pursuing him.

Though he was quick on his feet, and the fireballs couldn't change direction too sharply over short distances, it was only a matter of ti before he was overwheld.

And indeed, he managed to survive only one more round of attacks.

When Seii unleashed another *Phoenix Flower Jutsu*, this ti hiding shurikens within the flas, Ichiro had no chance.

A burning shuriken sliced across his waist, leaving a charred wound amid his screams of pain.

The other fireballs followed, engulfing him in a fiery blaze.

When the flas finally subsided, only a charred figure remained.

*Step step step~*

Seii walked over.

The burned figure weakly lifted its head, gazing at Seii with eyes full of bitterness.

*Thud~*

A kunai flew from Seii's hand, striking Ichiro directly in the heart.

"You..."

Ichiro's eyes widened in agony as he struggled to utter a word, but then he fell silent, lifeless.

*Sss sss sss~*

A faint hissing sound could be heard.

Ichiro's hand fell limp, revealing an exploding tag that had begun to burn.

In the next mont, a massive explosion ripped through the area, blowing Ichiro's body to pieces as a ball of fire consud everything nearby.

Seii raised his hand to shield his face, ignoring the dust and debris stirred up by the blast, silently watching the scene.

Though Ichiro had feared him, Seii had to admit his courage in trying to take Seii down with him at the end.

But in the end, an enemy is still an enemy, and Seii felt no rcy.

(Chapter End)