Naruto: Starting from the time when the Six Paths of Pain was Kira Yoshikage

Hozuki Zangetsu waved his hand, and the Mist Ninja behind him poured out, attacking Kakuzu and his companion.

"It's up to you now."

Sasori didn't even bother to glance at the Mist Ninjas, and turned to walk straight towards where Yekura had fallen.

This reflects extreme disdain for the opponent and absolute confidence in the teammate.

A few lowly ninjas...nothing powerful...not even worth his time...

He couldn't even muster the thought of turning the other person into a human puppet.

How big is the difference between a top-tier ninja and an ordinary ninja?

The answer came quickly.

Facing the oncoming Mist Ninja, Kakuzu merely revealed a cruel smile, his hands rapidly forming hand seals, the movements fluid yet deadly.

"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"

The moment the hand seals were completed, terrifying lightning erupted from Kakuzu's fingertips, crackling and piercing. In the blink of an eye, several massive lightning spears materialized out of thin air, their shafts flashing with blue-white electricity, unstable arcs of electricity leaping across their surfaces, radiating a chilling pressure.

Immediately afterwards, countless spears formed of lightning intertwined, unfolding in the air like a giant electric net. The spear tips collided with each other, sparking dazzling electrical sparks and producing a deafening roar.

Soon, terrifying lightning swept across the entire area, and the thick lightning pillars, like wildly dancing pythons, swept towards the surrounding Mist Ninja with an aura of destruction.

A single ninjutsu caused immense damage to the Mist Ninja present.

Those Mist Ninjas directly struck by lightning instantly stiffened, charred marks appearing on their skin, their hair standing on end and emitting wisps of smoke. They screamed in agony, their bodies convulsing uncontrollably before collapsing to the ground, spitting blood. Those Mist Ninjas who miraculously escaped the direct attack were also thrown about by the powerful shockwave.

Kakuzu stood at the center of the lightning, his figure appearing and disappearing in the flashes, like a demon from hell. He coldly surveyed his surroundings, a cruel smile playing on his lips, as if admiring his own masterpiece.

The surrounding Mist Ninja had lost all will to fight. Fear spread through their eyes. They knew that continuing to fight against such a powerful opponent would only be a futile act of suicide.

During the Fourth Shinobi World War, Madara Uchiha casually used Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation, forcing countless Water Release ninjas of the Allied Shinobi Forces to exhaust their chakra before barely managing to hold back with a Water Barrier. It is not an exaggeration to say that Kakuzu's full-force Lightning Release: False Darkness instantly killed several Mist Ninjas and caused such destruction.

The ninja world is the most unreasonable place.

Although Kakuzu became a minor character or even a weakling in the later stages of Naruto, that was because his combat stats were extremely inflated in the later stages, and he didn't receive any patches to strengthen himself.

Furthermore, don't assume that the combination of Lightning Release: False Darkness and Fire Release: Head Hardening is weak just because Pain easily neutralized it. According to the official databook, even Kakashi during Shippuden had to use both Lightning Blades simultaneously to completely neutralize Lightning Release: False Darkness, which shows how strong Kakuzu is.

Kakashi's Lightning Blade is no ordinary weapon; Kakashi himself is a renowned figure in the ninja world.

Kakuzu's strength is undeniably formidable.

Let's take a look at Kakuzu's opponents after his appearance: the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Jiraiya, one of the top-ranking Guardian Ninja of the Fire Temple, Sarutobi Asuma, an elite Jonin of Konoha, and Hatake Kakashi, a top elite Jonin of Konoha.

Each of them is a powerful ninja; they could easily be the leader or number one figure in a small ninja village.

His previous defeat to Pain was purely because the opponent was stronger.

The difference between a top-tier ninja and an ordinary ninja is about the same as the difference between a human and an ant.

"Does Your Excellency truly intend to become an enemy of the Mist Ninja?"

Ghost Lamp Remnant said through gritted teeth, his entire being tense, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

The power of Kakuzu's ninjutsu just now was truly terrifying.

Even with his Water Transformation Technique, he had no confidence that he could withstand this attack. The powerful Lightning Release ninjutsu was always the most severe father of the Water Transformation Technique.

Kakuzu slowly said, "Being an enemy of the Mist Ninja? I have no interest in such a thing..."

His words brought a surge of joy to Hozuki Zangetsu's heart, meaning he wouldn't have to face an enemy with such terrifying strength. As for the dead Mist Ninja... well, that was just bad luck. Since they were ninjas, they had to be prepared to be killed at any time.

Revenge? Sorry, that's out of the question. At this point, the Mist Ninja had long lost any semblance of camaraderie among villagers.

If needed, Hozuki Zangetsu can always bow at a 90-degree angle and say, "Sorry, my voice was too loud just now."

Ninja battles rarely involve back-and-forth exchanges, especially on the battlefield, where most battles end in an instant.

A moment's distraction can often be the most deadly poison.

Just as Hozuki Zangetsu relaxed his guard because of Kakuzu's words, Kakuzu himself appeared behind him at an unimaginable speed. His figure was like a ghost, moving faster than ordinary people could perceive, without making a sound, as if he had merged into the air itself.

The cold words and chilling killing intent pierced Ghost Lantern Remnant's ears like a cold wind.

"But I'm very interested in your head."

Hozuki Zangetsu was terrified. He hadn't expected Kakuzu to be so fast, nor so decisive. Just as he was about to use his Water Transformation Technique, an unimaginably terrifying electric current suddenly swept through his body. The current was so intense that it seemed to tear every nerve in his body apart, instantly rendering him incapable of movement.

As I said before—the powerful Lightning Release ninjutsu is the strictest father of the Water Transformation Technique!

Kakuzu may not know Hozuki Gengetsu, but he certainly knows the weakness of the Water Transformation Technique.

What does it mean if you can't use water to dodge attacks?

"I'll accept your heart for now."

As Kakuzu finished speaking, countless black tentacles sprouted from his arm joints. The tips of these tentacles transformed into countless sharp blades, which plunged directly into Hozuki Zangetsu's chest. In no time, a warm, still-beating heart was ripped out, and along with the black tentacles, it dissolved into Kakuzu's body.

Poor Hozuki Zangetsu, despite being quite strong and capable of holding his own for a few rounds, was instantly killed by Kakuzu before he could even use his ninjutsu.

Ninjas are generally "squishy" – high attack but low defense. The kind of battles that the main characters fight back and forth like in the story are extremely rare. For example, the famous Yellow Flash instantly killed fifty Iwa ninjas and became famous in one battle.

"What a vibrant young heart," Kakuzu remarked with satisfaction, before his gaze slowly shifted to the group of Kirigakure ninja he had utterly terrified.

They were no match for Kakuzu to begin with, and after losing their leader Hozuki Zangetsu, the remaining Kirigakure ninja were no different from lambs to the slaughter, and were all dealt with by Kakuzu alone in no time.

The poor Mist Ninja, originally heroes who attacked Sunagakure, were unexpectedly killed by two 'monsters' who appeared out of nowhere.