Chapter 67: Kakashi vs. Kakuzu
As the Tailed Beast Ball rushed towards Kakuzu, a hint of pride flashed in Kakashi's eyes.
When he received the entrustment from Sarutobi Hiruzen to privately instruct Uchiha Ren, he was actually secretly observing Ren's character, to see if he was a Konoha ninja worthy of cultivation.
Now it seems, everything is as he hoped.
This was a ninja truly worth pouring all his efforts into cultivating!
Even if Ren wanted to learn forbidden jutsu, Kakashi was ready to teach him!
Facing the charging Tailed Beast Ball, a hint of disdain flashed in Kakuzu's eyes.
He didn't hesitate, forming hand signs and releasing "Wind Style: Pressure."
The immense Wind Style power took shape in his mouth, like a fierce wind, directly blowing away the Tailed Beast Ball, and the flames scattered in all directions, but did not harm him in the slightest.
Not only that, Kakuzu even cleverly adjusted the direction of the Wind Style, drawing Kakashi into the wind pressure as well.
Although Kakashi reacted quickly, under the influence of the wind pressure, his movements were restricted, and it was difficult to stabilize his body for a moment.
Kakuzu seized this opportunity, flying forward, preparing to finish off Kakashi first.
At the same time, Hidan finally extinguished the flames on his body. His body was severely burned, and the pain was unbearable.
He was full of hatred for Kakuzu and Kakashi, but more urgent was to deal with the enemy in front of him.
He looked towards the distant Uchiha Ren, preparing to unleash all his rage on this little brat!
However, when he saw the tail and wings growing on Uchiha Ren's body, he couldn't help but feel suspicious.
"What exactly is this guy? Is this normal? Is it some unknown jutsu?"
Although he wasn't clear, under his great sword, no matter what jutsu it was, there would only be one outcome—death.
Hidan wielded his great sword, leaping towards Uchiha Ren, preparing to deliver a fatal blow.
Although his speed was not as good as Kakuzu's, his strength and momentum were extremely shocking.
The great sword cut through the air, creating streaks of cold light, aimed directly at Uchiha Ren's neck!
With the assistance of his Sharingan, Uchiha Ren's dynamic vision and reaction speed greatly increased.
Hidan's great sword attack was swift and fierce, but in Uchiha Ren's eyes, every strike became predictable and avoidable.
His figure weaved through the blade light, like a butterfly dancing in the rain, precisely dodging the fatal "raindrops."
At the same time, the feathers on Uchiha Ren's wings, like black lightning, shot towards Hidan.
These feathers cut through the air, leaving sharp trails, pointing directly at Hidan's vital points!
Hidan, as a member of Akatsuki, possessed strength that was not to be underestimated.
Facing these flying feathers, he relied on his rich combat experience and keen reflexes, raising his great sword to deflect them one by one at a shocking speed.
The crisp sound of metal clashing echoed through the forest, scattering sparks.
However, just as Hidan was fully focused on dealing with the frontal feather attacks, a feather he had never noticed before silently arrived from an unexpected angle.
This feather, like a ghost, avoided his line of sight and defenses, accurately piercing his shoulder.
The pain instantly spread throughout his body, causing his body to stiffen!
But any member who could join the new Akatsuki had strength no less than a Jonin. Enduring the pain, he held his great sword and lunged towards Uchiha Ren in the sky!
"Not good!"
Uchiha Ren's pupils contracted slightly; he detected a powerful shockwave rushing towards him!
And the feathers on his wings hadn't regrown yet, reducing his speed significantly, making it difficult to dodge.
Thinking of this, Uchiha Ren clenched his teeth and stopped in mid-air.
"Hmph!"
The great sword's shockwave hit Uchiha Ren, surprisingly emitting a sound like striking a hard object, making Hidan freeze for a second!
"Iron Block!"
Uchiha Ren's heart raced, and he felt a slight discomfort in his internal organs.
He had barely managed to block that last attack with Iron Block.
"Little brat, how did you block that? What's with your tail? A Tailed Beast? How many tails do you have?"
"I'll show you!" Uchiha Ren quickly formed hand signs, condensing chakra in his throat, and aimed a Tailed Beast Ball at Hidan!
"Boom!"
The flames of the Tailed Beast Ball were extremely hot. Hidan clearly feared Fire Style ninjutsu, so he slammed heavily onto the ground.
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
A high earthen wall rose from the ground; flames and the earthen wall collided, emitting a deafening roar. Heat waves and dust surged, and the battlefield was thrown into chaos.
Hidan stood behind the earthen wall, his heart filled with doubt and alarm.
"How can such a small brat possess such an enormous amount of chakra?"
"Is it a Tailed Beast not recorded in the intelligence reports?"
Before Hidan could think further, he looked up and saw Uchiha Ren's figure flash above the earthen wall.
Hidan's reaction was swift; he leaped over.
"Bang!"
The great sword fiercely smashed onto the earthen wall, stirring up a cloud of dust.
Hidan immediately realized that this was just a simple clone, not even a shadow clone, with no physical body, let alone attack power.
To think he had actually been tricked by a mere little brat! Hidan smashed down at the earthen wall again!
At this time, Uchiha Ren's true body had already appeared silently beside Kakashi.
He didn't give Kakuzu any chance to breathe, consecutively spitting out three Tailed Beast Balls. The flames covered the sky and the earth, heading towards Kakuzu!
Even Kakuzu, a Kage-level expert, facing these three Tailed Beast Balls, had to spare time to deal with the high-temperature flames, unable to focus on anything else for a while.
While Kakuzu was restrained by the flames, Uchiha Ren quickly relayed crucial information to Kakashi: "This guy has five hearts; don't underestimate him, one strike won't be enough to kill him!" His voice was low and urgent, every word revealing a sense of urgency.
A trace of solemnity flickered in Kakashi's eyes. Though he didn't know where the information came from, he had to believe the facts Uchiha Ren presented.
He nodded slightly, and his mind began to quickly formulate a new battle plan.
Flames soared into the sky, heat waves rolled, and Kakuzu's figure suddenly swelled in the blazing inferno, becoming huge and terrifying.
His body size increased several times, almost occupying the center of the entire battlefield.
Kakashi's Sharingan rotated rapidly, reflecting Kakuzu's bizarre and massive figure, clearly shocked by the changes in Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear mode.
In the Ninja World, Hatake Kakashi, the Copy Ninja, who was said to have copied a thousand ninjutsu, had never seen such a bizarre ninjutsu.
Kakuzu's body was covered by black tentacles, which moved in the air like living things, as if they had a will of their own.
Two giant masked monsters, the avatars of Fire Style and Wind Style, merged onto his shoulders, making Kakuzu look even more ferocious and powerful.
This was also why Uchiha Ren hadn't directly flown away with Kakashi, despite his Heavenly Curse Mark's armored wings.
This guy, Kakuzu, could also fly.
In the shared vision, Pirate Ren Arakawa and Stephen Fang didn't dare to breathe.
Facing Kakuzu, with only a Kakashi from the Konoha 12 era as the main combat force, they found it difficult to imagine any way for Uchiha Ren to survive.
Unless…
He could activate the Mangekyo Sharingan.
The problem is, where could a Two-Tomoe user activate the Mangekyo?
Could it be, that it really has to end here?
(end of chapter)