The puppeteer's ten fingers danced, and the puppet on his back quickly flew down.
It was a spider puppet, with six spider legs, each joint filled with complex and razor-sharp mechanisms.
"Da-da…"
The spider puppet clattered as it rapidly lunged toward Kairen. He didn't dodge, letting the spider puppet bind him.
One of its legs pierced a needle into his body, releasing a neurotoxin.
Kairen immediately felt his head go numb, as though he was about to drift into unconscious sleep.
"Anesthetic?! They're trying to knock me out!"
Anesthetic—the precursor to gunfire and explosions!
The Sunagakure ninja had truly come prepared. Since Kairen would resurrect completely after death, their plan was to put him into a coma with drugs.
With his mind fogging over, Kairen suddenly bit down hard on his tongue, nearly severing it, using the pain to resist the creeping paralysis.
His right hand formed half of the Tiger seal, and a torrent of chakra surged forth, flowing through 361 chakra points.
Spinning rapidly like a top, Kairen released a whirl of black smoke around him, forming a tornado-like cyclone.
"Rotation Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning!"
Gunpowder smoke spread out over a wide range, enveloping half the hillside.
Maire, analyzing the intel, quickly realized what it was: Kairen's smokescreen Fire Release, capable of continuous burning.
He shouted, "Fall back! Don't get caught in that gunpowder smoke!"
The Sunagakure shinobi, quick-witted, immediately withdrew from the spreading black smoke.
Kairen spat out a single spark. The gunpowder ignited, exploding relentlessly, blasting apart the spider puppet on his back.
From a distance, Sarutobi Asuma clenched his fist.
"Isn't that my Sarutobi clan's Ash Pile Burning? How did Moku Kairen learn it?"
Sarutobi Shinnosuke also saw it, equally bewildered.
Shimura Masao immediately supplied an explanation: "When Konoha was first founded, the clans were required to hand over some of their ninjutsu to the Senju clan. Moku Kairen must have inherited the Senju Clan's legacy, which is why he possesses so many advanced techniques."
"Oh! That explains it."
...
Kairen didn't bother to explain—others had already done it for him.
As the smoke cleared, Kairen stood bare-chested, his white clothes tied around his waist. One foot on a stone, he looked down upon the Sunagakure shinobi.
Just like Uchiha Madara once looked down upon the nine tailed beasts—though Kairen still lacked a bit of Madara-sama's flair.
"Sunagakure shinobi, I'm done holding back!"
He had been patiently enduring their attacks, not fighting back, while they even found the time to chat.
So Kairen would force them to reveal their ninjutsu.
"Chirp—!"
Two ninja hawks cried out from above.
Kairen narrowed his eyes. Two hawks dared perch upon his throne of the heavens? Was that not mocking the king?
He formed a single seal with one hand. "Fire Release: Fire Gun!"
From his mouth shot a fireball the size of a ping-pong ball, blazing forth at incredible speed, leaving a faint red line in the air.
In the blink of an eye, it struck the white hawk's feathers.
"Boom—!"
The fire round exploded like a bomb. The white hawk screeched in pain, eyes flashing with anger as it unleashed a slicing wind blade from its beak down at Kairen.
Kairen spread his arms wide, welcoming the Wind Release strike.
"Ding!"
[You were killed by the advanced summoned beast's Wind Release. EXP +180!]
"Fire Release: Multiple Fire Guns!"
Upon reviving, Kairen again formed a seal, spewing volley after volley of fire rounds at the two airborne summoned beasts.
The barrage resembled anti-aircraft fire.
"Retreat!"
One of the Special Jōnin above controlled the white hawk to climb rapidly, evading the continuous fire explosions.
Meanwhile, on the ground, the Sunagakure shinobi weren't idle either. Seeing Kairen attack their ally, Jōnin Tobioto quickly formed seals.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique!"
Dozens of wind blades slashed out, shredding Kairen into pieces.
"Ding!"
[You were killed by Jōnin Tobioto's Wind Release. EXP +100!]
Kairen burst from the white smoke, clapping his hands together and weaving seals at lightning speed.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
"Roar—!"
A massive fire dragon erupted from his mouth, roaring toward Jōnin Tobioto.
A clear female voice rang out. "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
From the ground surged a massive wall of water, blocking Kairen's fire dragon.
Water beats fire—the hiss of steam filled the air as the raging dragon was quenched.
Kairen turned his gaze. A female shinobi—a Water Release user, the kind who could spray water from her mouth.
Though rare in the deserts of the Land of Wind, Water Release users weren't nonexistent.
After all, spitting water wasn't that impossible.
Unfortunately, this kunoichi wasn't pretty—far inferior to Rikako, the desert beauty Kairen had slain before. He had sighed over her death for quite some time.
In a flicker, Kairen's afterimage lingered where he had been, while his real body lunged toward the Water Release kunoichi.
She reacted swiftly, hands flashing into seals.
"Water Release: Water Blades!"
Dozens of razor-sharp water blades materialized around her, some even tinged with Wind nature. They sliced toward Kairen with a hiss.
But Kairen neither dodged nor flinched, even mocking her.
"Let's see if the water you spray can really drown someone!"
"Brat!" The kunoichi's eyes blazed.
The water blades pierced through Kairen's body, severing his fragile muscles and veins.
"Ding!"
[You were killed by Jōnin Yukino's Water Release. EXP +100!]
Revived again, Kairen formed a one-handed seal, condensing chakra in his throat.
"Fire Release: Fire Gun!"
His mouth became a living turret, spewing fire rounds—1! 2! 3!... 10 in total!
Ten blazing bullets shot from all directions, enclosing Yukino.
She quickly sealed.
Her body dissolved into water, darting at incredible speed out of the firestorm's range.
"Shu-shu…"
Yukino evaded the blasts, but as she landed, several shuriken whistled toward her. She dodged again—
But the shuriken danced mid-air, wires snapping taut and binding her in an instant.
On the other end of the wire was Kairen, biting down on the steel thread with a cold smile. He formed seals.
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"
A straight lance of flame shot toward Yukino, too fast for the eye to follow.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
A massive earth wall rose before Yukino. It was another Sunagakure Jōnin—Daisuke, an Earth Release user.
Flames and earth collided, sizzling violently.
Kairen shouted with fervor.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Song Technique!"
Leaping into the air, he inverted himself, weaving seals mid-flight. Four fire dragons erupted from his mouth, howling toward Yukino and Daisuke.
But Daisuke's hands blurred through seals.
"Earth Release Barrier: Earth Prison Dome!"
The ground swelled, enclosing both Daisuke and Yukino inside. Originally a jutsu to trap enemies and absorb chakra, he reinforced its durability, turning it into an unbreakable defense against the fire dragons.
Meanwhile, the two Special Jōnin circling above weren't idle. Seeing Kairen airborne, they unleashed their combined attack.
"Come! Roar of the Wind!"
Kairen spread his arms wide, taking the brunt of their assault.
"Ding!"
[You were killed by two Special Jōnin's Wind Release. EXP +120!]
...
The chapter for the Power stones. Thank you for your activity. 200 is really a lot