Kurenai's eyes became blank, devoid of light. Her body went limp and collapsed after losing consciousness without warning.
The Sharingan in Ye Zi's eyes slowly faded as he countered Kurenai's genjutsu and turned it against her.
Though Ye Zi rarely used genjutsu, the addition of the Sharingan made it a tool he could now effectively wield.
Kurenai falling unconscious happened in the blink of an eye. Seeing this, Guy, enveloped in a bright blue aura, unleashed his most powerful punch yet, aiming it directly at Ye Zi from close range.
The wind pressure from the punch distorted the air, turning it red-hot.
Yet, before it could strike, the attack was interrupted mercilessly.
Ye Zi glanced at Guy, and an invisible force struck Guy's abdomen, sending him hurtling backward like a shadow. He crashed through multiple buildings before his body was buried in rubble.
In just a few seconds, Kurenai had fallen unconscious, and Guy, who had opened the Eight Gates, had been blasted away with a single blow.
Rin and Obito stood frozen, watching in shock. Even Obito, emboldened by his mastery of the Flying Raijin, felt a deep sense of helplessness.
"Rin, I'll get you out of here first!" Obito decided immediately. He prepared to use the Flying Raijin technique to teleport Rin to safety before returning to face Ye Zi.
"Huh?" Rin hadn't yet processed his words before Obito reached out to grab her shoulder, determined to remove her from danger.
However, Ye Zi reacted faster.
A thin, sharp stone spike shot up from the ground, its slender diameter prioritizing speed over size.
The spike pierced Obito's right arm, lifting him into the air.
"Argh!" Obito screamed in pain as the spike drove him farther from Rin. He gritted his teeth, enduring the agony, and with his other hand, he grabbed a kunai engraved with the Flying Raijin mark, aiming to throw it at Rin's feet to teleport to her side.
But Obito's mastery of the Flying Raijin technique was still not smooth or fully refined.
"Obito," Rin said, recognizing the dire situation. She pushed herself backward, intending to retreat and avoid putting herself in more danger. She couldn't fall here; her role as a medic required her to survive to treat the others later.
Ye Zi, meanwhile, didn't even glance at the two of them. His gaze was fixed farther ahead, though his attacks didn't stop.
Thwack!
Another spike suddenly emerged from the ground, this time piercing Rin's abdomen at an angle as she retreated.
Rin didn't even see where the spike came from. It was only the sharp pain that made her realize it had pierced her stomach.
"Ugh…" Rin coughed, spitting out a large amount of blood. Her brows furrowed as she looked down at the spike impaling her, still struggling to process what had happened.
Her chakra... it's unusual.
Ye Zi silently noted this as he continued walking forward.
"Rin!" Obito, suspended in the air, watched in disbelief as the spike pierced Rin. His wide eyes were filled with the spinning tomoe of his crimson Sharingan, trembling violently.
The scene was unbearable. He fought with all his might to reject what he was witnessing, refusing to accept it.
"No! NO!"
Obito roared in fury as the kunai landed at Rin's feet. In the blink of an eye, his body vanished from the spike, and he reappeared in front of Rin, reaching out to her.
"Obito…" Rin looked up weakly, her face pale as snow.
"It's going to be okay. I'll get you to the hospital. You'll be fine," Obito said, his voice trembling as he spoke quickly.
Ye Zi suddenly stopped walking. Sensing a presence behind him, he used natural energy to strike Obito with immense speed, sending him flying.
Obito's outstretched hand, inches from touching Rin, was struck by the invisible force and flung away.
"RIN!"
As Obito was thrown backward, his Sharingan captured the image of Rin, slumped and drenched in blood, her head tilting lifelessly. An overwhelming sadness surged through him, gripping his heart and consuming his mind.
Was he just going to watch helplessly as Rin died? Would he be utterly defeated by this immense power?
No. NEVER.
Obito crashed into a building, and the collapsing walls buried him under the rubble. As his consciousness wavered, the world in his eyes began to shift.
At the same time, a green figure flashed toward Ye Zi with incredible speed, aiming a full-strength punch at his back. It was Guy!
Despite enduring two natural energy strikes and activating the Eight Gates, Guy was still able to move.
Launching a sneak attack from behind might be dishonorable, but in a battle between ninjas, there was no room for such concerns.
Ye Zi sensed Guy's movement and, after hastily striking Obito, turned swiftly. With a single hand, he caught Guy's all-out punch.
Boom!
A gale of wind erupted from the collision, spreading outward.
Ye Zi held firm, unmoving like a mountain, while Guy's body froze mid-punch, his stance rigid.
Despite channeling all his strength into the blow, it felt as though the force he unleashed had disappeared into nothingness upon contact with Ye Zi's hand.
Guy's eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the scene before him.
"Wouldn't it be better to just stay down?" Ye Zi said coldly, looking at Guy in front of him. "Why so persistent?"
Before the words fully left his mouth, Ye Zi exerted force with his arm, swinging Guy like a ragdoll and slamming him hard into the ground.
Boom!
The sturdy ground caved in abruptly, dust exploding into the air, and deep cracks radiated outward.
Guy's back hit the ground with full force, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Ye Zi didn't stop there. Lifting his foot, he stomped heavily on Guy's abdomen.
With another deafening crash, the ground sank even deeper. Guy spat out more blood, his consciousness wavering for a moment. The blue aura surrounding his body flickered and gradually disappeared, while his reddened skin slowly returned to its normal color.
The dual strikes left Guy in severe pain, his body unable to muster any strength.
Clang!
Blood was drawn.
Ye Zi gripped the hilt of his blade in a reverse grip, the tip of the sword aimed at the still-conscious Guy.
As the blade hovered above him, Guy's eyes flashed with a hint of sorrow.
If Teacher Ye Zi hadn't betrayed the village, I could invite him for barbecue every day now... but alas, that's just wishful thinking.
The idyllic scene in his mind was no more than a fantasy.
Though Ye Zi had drawn his sword, he did not immediately strike. His eyes caught sight of a dull yellow wallet falling from Guy's pocket onto the ground.
The wallet was old and simple, its surface patched multiple times. The uneven stitching was clearly the work of someone with limited skill, leaving the fabric bunched and wrinkled in several places.
It was the kind of wallet anyone could replace with a new one, yet Guy, even with all its wear and tear, chose to repair and cherish it rather than discard it.
Looking at the wallet, Ye Zi's gaze softened ever so slightly. Guy treasured even the smallest remnants of their shared past. Despite everything, he still addressed him as "Sensei."
But after today... that might change.
After a moment of silence, Ye Zi spoke coldly:
"When you realize your opponent's strength is overwhelmingly beyond your own, throwing your life away is meaningless. It's foolish."
With a smooth motion, Ye Zi returned Chijin to its sheath instead of striking.
"Ye Zi… Teacher," Guy murmured weakly, lifting his eyelids to look at him.
Ye Zi's gaze shifted away from Guy, focusing instead on the direction of the hospital.
"Value your life more," he said faintly. "Without it, you have nothing."
With that, Ye Zi's figure blurred and vanished, leaving the battlefield and its young combatants behind.
The disparity in power was staggering. Against Ye Zi, Konoha's brightest young shinobi had stood no chance. They were utterly overwhelmed, defeated in an instant.
And this was with Ye Zi holding back.
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Currently on Chapter 469 - The Outcome