After several deep breaths, Kazuki decisively opened the Eight Gates to the fourth gate—the Gate of Pain.
A surge of violent green chakra exploded from his body, radiating an overwhelming aura.
"Haa! Haa!"
The intense energy distorted the air around him, sending shockwaves in all directions. The sheer force of his presence was both oppressive and awe-inspiring, shaking the battlefield.
A flash of white light gleamed in his hand, revealing a dark brown leather glove on his right fist.
Four-Star Ninja Tool – Violent Fist (Wind Attribute).
It boasted an astonishing 300% critical strike chance and had the ability to randomly trigger small-scale Wind Release jutsu.
Slipping on the Furious Fist, Kazuki's power surged exponentially, enhancing his strength more than threefold. His combat ability ascended to a fearsome new level.
"Come at me!"
As his words fell, Kazuki's figure vanished in a blur, reappearing in the path of Kakuzu's writhing tendrils.
With a single punch, a gust of wind erupted. The force generated by his strike manifested into countless razor-sharp wind blades, swirling around his fist like a storm. In an instant, these blades condensed, fully enveloping his fist in a lethal vortex of chakra-infused air.
BOOM!!
A deafening explosion resounded.
The violent air current swept outward in a chaotic storm, kicking up clouds of sand and debris. The sheer impact resembled a small-scale explosion.
Kazuki's punch not only shattered Kakuzu's tentacles into fragments but continued forward, slamming directly into Kakuzu's chest.
The immense force surged through his body, sending Kakuzu flying like a broken kite, crashing into the ground with devastating force.
"Cough… cough…"
Through the lingering dust, Kakuzu could be seen coughing up blood, expelling fragments of his damaged internal organs.
His gaze darkened, his expression filled with murderous intent.
"The same taijutsu as Konoha's Green Beast?" he muttered.
"Heh… My intel only mentioned your ninja tools. I never expected you to have such monstrous taijutsu prowess."
"In that case…" Kakuzu's voice turned grim.
"It's time for you to witness my true strength!"
Recognizing the overwhelming power of the young shinobi before him—the combination of his formidable physique, enhanced by the Eight Gates, and the ninja tools at his command—Kakuzu clenched his teeth.
A massive surge of chakra erupted from his body.
"AHHHH!!"
His back bulged grotesquely as if something monstrous was clawing its way out. The sudden pressure tore through his clothes, revealing his grotesque form beneath.
Onlookers from a distance gasped in horror.
Kakuzu's body was riddled with black thread-like stitches, holding together his very flesh like a crude, unnatural puppet. He didn't look like a normal human at all.
"H-he's a monster…"
From afar, Sunflower covered her mouth, eyes wide in disbelief.
Even after having his heart destroyed, Kakuzu had risen again, unscathed.
How could a normal person possess multiple hearts?
Before they could even process the horror, three masked entities burst forth from Kakuzu's back—a blue mask, a green mask, and a red mask.
The three masked creatures are distinct in form, yet all are composed of countless dark, writhing blood vessel-like tentacles, twisting eerily behind Kakuzu.
Sunflower was right.
At this moment, Kakuzu's body had completely shed any resemblance to a normal human form. He could no longer be considered purely human. His limbs were held together solely by black, sinewy tendrils, and from his grotesquely wide mouth, a mass of twisting, wriggling tentacles emerged—just the sight of it was enough to make one's skin crawl.
"Three masks... that means three remaining elemental chakra nature transformations…"
"To reveal all three of your remaining hearts at once—so you've decided to fight me to the death?"
As Kazuki observed the scene before him, Kakuzu unleashed the full force of his Earth Grudge Fear technique.
Having already lost two of his five hearts, Kakuzu activated the remaining three simultaneously, pouring all his power into the battle.
Kazuki narrowed his eyes, his stance subtly shifting to a more guarded one.
"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
Kakuzu's deep, rasping voice resonated as the blue-masked creature on his back inhaled, instantly condensing a massive surge of wind-natured chakra within its maw.
In the blink of an eye, a colossal sphere of compressed air was launched at Kazuki, expanding rapidly as it tore through the battlefield.
This high-level Wind Release jutsu, augmented by Kakuzu's monstrous mask, compressed the surrounding air into an ultra-dense, devastating storm bomb.
The instant it made contact, the sphere exploded, unleashing an overwhelming shockwave of cutting wind. The resulting vortex swallowed everything in its radius, scouring the battlefield with extreme, unrelenting pressure.
"I won't let you die so easily, you cunning brat," Kakuzu sneered.
"But if this is all you've got… then this fight is going to be disappointingly dull."
Dark tendrils slithered and expanded all over his body, writhing ominously.
As the powerful wind release technique engulfed Kazuki, Kakuzu's tone took on a mocking edge.
"That should finish you."
However, as soon as the words left his lips, a voice cut through the raging winds—calm and unshaken.
"Kill me? With such a mediocre jutsu?"
The battlefield, which had been reduced to ruins, revealed a deep crater where the attack had landed.
And from within that destruction, Kazuki emerged, his Sun Wheel Blade gleaming in hand.
"This level of combat... is nothing but a warm-up to me."
"Your jutsu couldn't even scratch my barrier. It lacks the power to harm me."
Barrier Technique—Enclosing Dome!
The dissipating dust unveiled Kazuki, standing in perfect condition.
His expression remained calm, his hands behind his back.
Before him stood a massive, translucent arc-shaped barrier, shimmering with energy.
Kakuzu's pupils contracted slightly.
That stone he's holding…
It wasn't just for sensory shielding—it possessed formidable defensive capabilities.
The entire battlefield behind Kazuki had been devastated by the wind-release attack, yet the ground beneath his feet remained untouched. Even the mask covering his face bore no signs of damage.
"Tch. Annoying brat… what a pain."
Kakuzu's frustration mounted.
Not only had Kazuki withstood his Wind Release attack unscathed, but now, he had revealed yet another ninja tool—one capable of defending against B-rank and lower-level jutsu.
Kakuzu's jaw clenched, nearly snapping the tentacles protruding from his mouth.
Just how many strange ninja tools does this kid have?!
He had been manipulating weapons and artifacts throughout the battle, each one more irritating than the last.
"I'll rip out your heart… and sell your body and every last one of those ninja tools for a fortune!"
Madness flickered in Kakuzu's jade-green eyes, his bloodlust intensifying.
Red veins bulged around his pupils—he was completely enraged.
"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
Once again, the wind mask monster gathered an immense concentration of wind chakra, forming a massive storm sphere.
But Kakuzu wasn't finished.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
With a guttural growl, the masked creature on his back fired a jagged, concentrated bolt of lightning from its mouth—an attack powerful enough to pierce through solid rock with ease.
A searing beam of electricity tore across the battlefield, splitting the ground apart as it streaked toward Kazuki.
"Fire Release: Searing Migraine!"
And then, a third low, rumbling voice joined the fray…
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