Konoha Notes

Chapter 144 Is this ten million?

Kakuzu actually showed up here, so according to Akatsuki's usual practice, there should be... oh, maybe not. The Akatsuki organization likes to recruit rogue ninja, and these people all have a price. Those who partner with Kakuzu basically become his side income.

However, it doesn't seem to be considered Kakuzu's extra income; in the end, it all went into the Akatsuki's coffers.

Hmm... if you think about it this way, isn't the Akatsuki organization a kind of industrial park?
Shuji brought his somewhat erratic thoughts back on track.

Since Kakuzu is now openly assisting Kirigakure's attack within their ranks, it's almost certain that the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, is under Obito's control at this stage.

This seems to partially explain the reasons behind the many unusual actions taken by the Hidden Mist Village recently.

However, the most pressing issue right now is not to investigate the mastermind behind it all, but to deal with the enemy at hand.

Kakuzu has five masks. Besides the Wind, Fire, Earth, Grudge Fear Mask Monster that has already been released, there are three more. Each mask can unleash incredibly powerful ninjutsu, and they can also combine to form compound ninjutsu with multiplied destructive power.

If he is allowed to unleash his full power here, the situation will become extremely difficult for Shisui and his team, who need to deal with the Hidden Mist ninja.

We must lure him away, or... resolve this as soon as possible.

Earth Escape Technique: Flying Sand and Gravel!

Shuji pressed one hand to the ground, and the ground in front of him shook violently. Countless stones of different sizes were forcibly stripped away and shot towards Kakuzu.

Faced with an attack of this magnitude, Kakuzu didn't even attempt to move; his exposed skin instantly turned black.

The pebbles rained down on him, but only kicked up a little dust, not even enough to make him sway.

"A pointless little trick."

Kakuzu's voice was devoid of emotion, and his green eyes narrowed slightly.

The earth-flowing wall and the wind-style technique just now both prove that this Konoha Jonin has considerable strength.

Was this attack a test? Or a provocation? Was it an attempt to engage him one-on-one, preventing him from interfering with his comrades' battle against the Hidden Mist Village?
However, this was exactly what Kakuzu wanted. Normally, due to the intimidating power of the five great ninja villages and the order from his organization's leader to keep a low profile, he found it difficult to take action against a high-value target like Shuuji.

Now that we have Wuyin's endorsement, it's the perfect time to get our hands on the ten million.

With his mind made up, Kakuzu's figure suddenly blurred, transforming into a black line that moved swiftly along the ground, and he charged towards the direction where Shuji was.

Seeing this, Xiu Si turned around without hesitation and retreated into the denser woods behind him. The two figures, one after the other, quickly disappeared into the trees.

During the high-speed chase, the masked monster floating beside Kakuzu opened its huge mouths again, its two masks, one of wind and one of fire.

Composite Ninja Art: Flaming Wind Chaos!

The blazing flames and whirlwind intertwined and merged, forming an even stronger shockwave that blasted straight toward Xiu Si.

Sensing the terrifying heat and impact behind him, Shuji did not turn around, and his hands had already formed hand seals as he ran.

A thick earthen wall rose up, blocking the torrent of flames.

Flames crashed against the earthen wall, sending out scorching heat and billowing smoke. Taking advantage of this brief moment of obscured vision, Shuji quickly completed the hand seals for another technique.

A wood clone, identical to the real person, took advantage of a brief lull in the smoke and dust to assume a posture ready to perform a ninjutsu.

"As expected, they only know how to use this kind of defensive method."

Seeing the earth wall rise, Kakuzu sneered inwardly, already expecting his opponent to continue relying on earth-style defense, which was exactly the effect he wanted.

Earthly Grudge: Lightning Release Masked Monster separated from his body, its huge mouth opening wide, and highly condensed lightning release chakra transformed into an incomparably sharp azure lightning spear.

Lightning Release: False Darkness!

The lightning spear shot out at an astonishing speed, instantly piercing through the still-lingering smoke and dust and the earthen wall that was already at its last gasp.

Almost simultaneously with the collapse of the earthen wall, Kakuzu's right wrist snapped off, and countless black, tentacle-like threads of resentment shot out, seizing Shuji, who was caught off guard and frozen in place by the breach in the earthen wall. "Got it, ten million..."

With a slight exertion of his right hand, the incredibly tough black lines immediately tightened, pulling Shuji, whose entire body was tightly bound and restrained, toward himself.

However, just as he was about to deliver the fatal blow, a subtle sense of unease swept over him; something felt off...

Long-forgotten memories suddenly flooded his mind uncontrollably, and without thinking, Kakuzu instinctively wanted to release the black line and retreat rapidly.

But just as his nerves were issuing the command and his limbs had not yet fully reacted, several extremely sharp branches suddenly shot out from the surface of the "Shuji" body that he had grabbed.

These branches not only easily pierced through the entangled black lines, but also stabbed towards Kakuzu!

This is... Wood Release?!

That person's... Wood Release!
Kakuzu's eyes widened, and his body nimbly leaned backward.

The three masked monsters representing wind, fire, and lightning gathered in front of him at top speed, unleashing their immense chakra without reservation. The resulting torrent of energy slammed into the wood clone that was frantically growing branches.

Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot!
The violent explosion instantly engulfed and destroyed the wooden clone. The blinding light flashed and disappeared in an instant, and countless charred wood chips and broken branches flew in all directions. The powerful shock wave kicked up layers of dust from the ground.

However, before the thick smoke from the explosion had completely dissipated, a figure approached Kakuzu at an astonishing speed.

So fast!

Before Kakuzu could think further, his skin transformed back into that dark and hard form, and he raised the defensive power of Earth Release: Earth Spear to its limit.

The next moment, a fist that didn't look particularly strong, wrapped in a light blue stream of chakra, landed solidly on his chest!

This...divine power...

Bang! ! !
A deep, chilling explosion rang out!

Kakuzuna's dark defensive layer, reinforced by the Earth Spear and capable of withstanding most ninjutsu attacks, emitted a faint cracking sound as it struggled to withstand the strain.

He was as if he had been hit head-on by a speeding train. His feet left the ground, and he was thrown backward uncontrollably, rolling, bouncing, and crashing down on the ground in a messy manner, leaving a long trail in his wake.

It wasn't until he was more than ten meters away that Kakuzu managed to stop his retreat by inserting his hand into the ground.

A sharp pain and an indescribable emptiness shot through his chest.

My heart... is broken...

Ten million?! This is ten million?!
He was given no time to catch his breath or curse. Before Kakuzu could even recover from the dizziness of the blow, the ground around him began to churn violently once more.

Countless thick plant roots and vines broke through the soil, wrapping around and strangling him from all directions.

Seeing this familiar power reappear, Kakuzu finally lost his composure and became somewhat flustered.

He roared, and black threads burst forth from his entire body as if in an explosion.

The "Earthly Grievance and Desire" model is fully underway.

Countless black lines supported his body, allowing him to evade the Wood Release techniques with bizarre and dangerous movements that defied human physics.

Those green eyes peered through the wildly growing trees, fixed on the faintly visible, eerily calm figure behind the smoke and dust.

"Wood Release... Are you kidding me?!"

"A ten million tael bounty on a ninja who can use Wood Release?! Do those idiots who issued the bounty even know what they're doing?!"

(End of this chapter)