Shinji cast a glance at the Executioner's Blade. All seven Kill Lamps along its spine were lit, filling him with confidence.
At this mont, he could advance or retreat at will.
If things were truly pushed to the brink, he could even find a way to kill Kakuzu and Konan right here, then retreat with Hidan back to the Jashin cult.
The Six Paths of Pain were terrifying, yes—but Nagato's true body was immobile.
If he seized the right mont, it wasn't impossible to take his head with a single strike!
With that in mind, Shinji dragged his blade and charged forward, planning to probe first and estimate the cost of killing his opponent.
Seeing the insolent brat take the initiative, Kakuzu stopped hesitating.
His back writhed violently as two eerie mask-beasts erged on his shoulders.
"Fire Release: Searing Migraine!"
A ferocious sea of flas surged toward Shinji in an instant.
At the sa ti, another mask opened its mouth—
"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
Compound Ninjutsu — Blazing Wind Chaos Waves!
Fire borrowed the power of wind. Once the two techniques overlapped, the resulting compound ninjutsu grew vastly more destructive.
Already wide in range, the inferno expanded further under the violent wind pressure—its power more than doubled!
Faced with such large-scale AoE, even Shinji had to take it seriously.
Crimson Blood Manipulation: Blood Crystal Prison!
He slashed his wrist. Blood poured out and instantly wrapped around his body, then condensed into a hard, solid form.
Because its shape resembled crystal, Shinji nad it Blood Crystal Prison.
It could protect him—or be used to restrain enemies.
Boom!
The raging flas swallowed Shinji whole, crashing down like ocean waves against a solid reef.
But a reef was still a reef—it wouldn't shatter so easily.
At the center of the firestorm, Shinji stood firm as a mountain. Flas could evaporate blood, but once he condensed it into crystal with Crimson Blood Manipulation, its lting point soared to an entirely new level.
A level of ordinary flas simply couldn't breach.
So when the fire finally died out, under Kakuzu's dark gaze, the blood crystal around Shinji shattered into glittering fragnts—
And the man inside was completely unscathed.
"Crimson Scale Surge · Load!"
Blood patterns etched with mysterious markings quietly surfaced on Shinji's face.
Feeling the blood inside his body boiling and surging, he crossed the final dozen ters in the blink of an eye, appearing before Kakuzu as he swung the Executioner's Blade straight for his neck.
The blade's icy edge carried a chilling glow. Though it hadn't yet arrived, Kakuzu's skin already felt a sharp sting.
Kakuzu's heart tightened. He didn't dare underestimate him anymore.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
Forming a seal one-handed at top speed, Kakuzu barely managed to raise his hardened left arm in front of him.
Clang!
When the Executioner's Blade struck his pitch-black arm, it rang out like violently colliding tal.
Then—boom!
Kakuzu was sent flying sideways, smashing into a nearby ruined house in a cloud of dust.
Shinji didn't believe in the "no damage if there's smoke" rule. Without hesitation, he hoisted his blade and chased after him.
At that mont, massive black threads erupted outward, tearing apart the entire ruin and forcing Shinji back.
Looking again, Kakuzu had entered his Earth Grudge Fear state. Horrifying black threads writhed through the air like living creatures, completely shrouding his body.
Through the gaps, Shinji noticed Kakuzu's left arm torn open, black threads rapidly stitching it back together.
Without a doubt, that strike had wounded him—just not enough to fully break through his defenses.
The result only made Shinji relax further.
"Rude little brat. I've already reserved your heart. Die!"
Forced to reveal his true power in just a few exchanges, Kakuzu flew into a rage. The black threads spraying from his back intertwined, forming eight additional "limbs" to support his movent and attacks.
Like Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man, Kakuzu controlled massive bundled whips of black threads, smashing them down toward Shinji.
Boom!
The ground caved in, forming a huge crater.
And that was only the beginning.
Boom! Boom! Boom!—
Shinji darted and weaved at high speed, narrowly evading each falling "fist" in advance.
Kakuzu soon noticed the problem. Gritting his teeth, he decisively "released" two massive bundles of threads, turning them into a dense web to restrain his opponent.
Shinji slashed left and right a few tis, realizing they were endless. Glancing with his peripheral vision at Konan—who had already pulled so distance away—he imdiately activated a blade technique!
Piercing Shadow Strike!
All seven Kill Lamps on the Executioner's Blade flared to life, transforming into a special energy that wrapped around the weapon.
Shinji vanished from his spot in an instant—
Then reappeared behind Kakuzu like a ghost.
Throughout the entire process, neither Kakuzu nor Konan managed to react.
But the mont Shinji swung, Kakuzu felt an intense tearing sensation surge from behind. At the sa ti, Konan shouted—
"Behind you!"
"Too late!"
A flash of vicious resolve crossed Kakuzu's eyes. Forming a seal one-handed, a water-attribute mask burst from his back at maximum speed.
Slash!
Shinji's seemingly guaranteed strike was blocked—yet not completely.
Because after breaking stealth, that strike carried double its usual destructive power!
The mask Kakuzu sacrificed to block was sliced cleanly in half, smooth as butter. The Executioner's Blade continued onward, crashing into Kakuzu's pitch-black back.
At the critical instant, Kakuzu activated Earth Release, entering his hardened defensive state.
A screeching sound like tal being cut rang out.
Just a little more ti—and Shinji would have split him in two.
But the thick tentacles erupting from Kakuzu's body weren't for show. With a heavy crash, they smashed Shinji away.
"Ugh—cough!"
Kakuzu's face twisted as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Though he had escaped imdiate death, his condition was terrible. One heart destroyed, and a long, deep gash split across his back.
Had he reacted even a fraction slower, he'd already be in two pieces.
As for the countless black threads severed in the exchange—that wasn't even worth counting.
"How did that bastard break through my Earth Grudge Fear and appear behind in an instant…?"
Kakuzu was shaken, utterly unable to understand.
At the sa ti, he couldn't fathom how such a troubleso, terrifying—yet completely unknown—kid had suddenly erged out of nowhere!
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