On the screen, hearing that Hidan wanted to take on Asuma and his team alone and leave all the money to him, Kakuzu immediately agreed.
No need to lift a finger, and still getting paid—where else could he find a deal like this?
"Very well... but don't get careless. You'll die," Kakuzu reminded him—probably the highest level of concern he could offer.
"I told you. Don't give me that." Hidan replied, already drawing the ritual array with his foot.
Arcs and circles soon appeared on the ground, forming a bizarre pattern—the Jashin Cult's ritual circle, necessary for activating his Curse Technique. Hidan moved skillfully, clearly having performed it countless times.
"If they can actually kill me, I'd honestly want them to. But… I guess it's impossible, huh?" Hidan looked up, a confident smirk curling at the corner of his mouth.
Seeing Hidan draw a strange pattern and unable to understand his intentions, Asuma turned to Shikamaru, Izumo, and Kotetsu and gave his orders:
"I'll charge him."
"Shikamaru, exploit an opening and restrain the immortal guy with your Shadow Sewing—it doesn't have to be for long."
"I'll cut his head off immediately and stop his movements."
"Izumo, Kotetsu, you guys back up Shikamaru while keeping an eye on the other Akatsuki guy."
Asuma's orders were clear and well-coordinated.
[It has to be said—even Kakuzu still didn't fully understand Hidan. He had no idea that Hidan was even harder to kill than he was. He could survive decapitation, and his heart might as well be a decoration.]
[But Konoha also suffered from a lack of intelligence. Facing two Akatsuki members appearing in the Land of Fire, they actually dared to send one Jōnin and three Chūnin to hunt them down. Even if they didn't know Kakuzu and Hidan's strength, surely they remembered what kind of Shinobi Orochimaru and Itachi were?]
[Still, Konoha's tradition of inheritance is quite good—it's always the strongest one who chooses to sacrifice themselves so others can escape. Right, Senju Tobirama?]
[And Asuma here clearly realized he couldn't escape, so he chose to buy time with his life, waiting for reinforcements.]
---
[Konoha, Year 60. Hokage Office]
Tsunade sat in the Hokage's chair, a helpless look on her face.
She was the one who would have been in charge of Konoha at that time—but she didn't have the intelligence either.
Furthermore, if the location was in the Land of Fire, even if they were temporarily outmatched, reinforcements could arrive quickly. But it just so happened that Asuma's squad was entirely composed of close-range fighters; they couldn't even stall for time.
Still, she'd have to account for situations like this in the future.
---
[Konoha, Year 20. Hokage Office]
Tobirama's gaze moved away from the Sky Screen, and he cast a subtle glance at Danzo, who was sitting in the corner.
Danzo suddenly felt a tightness in his chest and became irritable.
His teacher was clearly still alive, and the future had changed, yet he felt the position of Hokage was still drifting further and further away from him.
Why? Among the seven generations of Hokage, he didn't have a single spot?!
Meanwhile, on the screen.
"Are you done with your little strategy session?" Hidan, still having the leisure to let the four Konoha shinobi plan in front of him, pulled the swords from his body and even asked politely.
However, his brow soon furrowed.
"Ow ow ow—getting cut up like this hurts like heck, you know."
"Divine justice will soon be handed down to you jerks who know nothing of the pain of others."
---
[Akatsuki Hideout]
The members of the Akatsuki looked at Hidan with strange expressions.
Was this guy… infected by the leader?
Why was he suddenly talking about things like "pain" and "divine"?
Deidara couldn't help chuckle. "Hidan, did you learn this from the leader's lines?"
"Shut up!" Hidan glared at him. "These are the teachings of Lord Jashin, they have nothing to do with the leader!"
On the screen, Asuma channeled Wind Release chakra into his trench knives, forming a visible layer of wind blades, then charged at Hidan.
At the same time, Shikamaru activated his Shadow Possession Jutsu from a distance. His shadow stretched from his feet, crawling rapidly across the ground toward Hidan, aiming to bind his feet.
Hidan grinned, "You've got a nice weapon there!"
With a leap, he easily dodged Asuma's attack and Shikamaru's sneak attack, while casually throwing a Kunai to block Asuma's second strike.
The two went back and forth, constantly attacking each other. The sound of the Chakra blades and the scythe clashing was crisp and piercing, with sparks flying everywhere.
Shikamaru crouched in the distance, his fingers forming a seal as his shadow constantly changed direction on the ground, trying to find an opening in Hidan's defense.
But he felt somewhat helpless inside.
This guy was clearly immortal, while their stamina and Chakra were limited; they'd be worn down eventually. And in this moment, he couldn't even think of a way to break the stalemate.
Just then, Asuma suddenly formed a hand seal, and a phantom image of a Thousand-Armed Buddha, slightly larger than himself, appeared behind him.
The Buddha's one hand knocked away the incoming scythe, while the other struck Hidan in the abdomen, sending him staggering back.
"How's Chiriku's Jutsu? Naturally, Chiriku's is much more impressive than mine, though."
Kakuzu, still watching the show from the side, reminded again: "Hidan, don't underestimate them."
"Shut up and just watch quietly, Kakuzu!" Hidan retorted.
On the screen, the fight continued—Hidan and Asuma exchanging blows, Shikamaru's Shadow and thrown Kunai in constant pursuit.
But in a moment of carelessness, Asuma couldn't fully block Hidan's scythe, and a tiny bit of the blade grazed him, leaving a bloody scratch.
'It's over.' xN
Countless people watching the screen, already aware of Hidan's cursed ability, instantly reached the same conclusion.
---
[Konoha, Year 60]
Hiruzen felt his head spin, and on the other side, Kurenai also swayed, barely staying on her feet. Fortunately, Shino was watching her closely and supported her in time.
[In Fact, the battle was already over here. Without exaggeration, Asuma was already a dead man in Hidan's eyes.]
[And even with prior knowledge, it would have been hard for Asuma to survive—the gap in raw strength was just too large.]
[Still, that doesn't mean Asuma wasn't an excellent Shinobi.]
[During the Chūnin Exams, Asuma took down nine enemies in the blink of an eye with his two chakra blades—a testament to his exceptional Taijutsu, likely surpassing even Kakashi's. Unfortunately, he ran into the Immortal Duo—two walking cheat codes.]
[For Hidan, you could potentially counter him if you had intel on him. But for Kakuzu, what could you do? Even if you knew he had 5 hearts, 5 lives, and 5 elemental Ninjutsu, you still had to grind him down. And on Asuma's side, with just Shikamaru and two gatekeepers, even if they knew everything, the enemy's raw strength would still crush them.]
[It was like fighting Nagato. You may know Chibaku Tensei's weakness—that it's a long-range attack centered on a dark core—but unless you've got Sage-mode Naruto, Killer B, and Edo Itachi on your team, throwing a few ordinary Kage-level fighters at it will just get them instantly crushed.]
---
[Akatsuki Hideout]
Itachi cast a subtle glance at Pain.
Chibaku Tensei—was that Nagato's trump card?
The Sky Screen had already shown his Shinra Tensei (Almighty Push) before—a single move that flattened Konoha. But he had even more techniques hidden?
So this was a Super Kage-level powerhouse, huh?
Still… he now knew the Jutsu's limitation.
And he also had a feeling that he might soon be forced to leave the Akatsuki.
Pain sat in the deepest corner, a look of indifference flickering in his purple eyes.
Just as the screen said—even if they knew the Jutsu's weakness, what difference would it make? Without the right people, ordinary Kage-level shinobi would just be feeding themselves to it.
Chibaku Tensei's core was indeed at the center—but could they break through the gravitational field?
No?
Then they'd just die.
*****
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