Soon, as if to confirm those very words, the shadow clone began to burn and turned into flames.
Tap, tap, tap...
Footsteps echoed from nearby—deliberately loud, ensuring they were heard. Kakuzu turned toward the sound and saw a man identical to the one just defeated.
"You bastard..."
Kakuzu muttered darkly.
Having gathered enough data from the test, Uchiha Madara decided not to continue. He activated Susanoo directly, adding the Karasu Tengu armor over the second-stage form.
Kakuzu braced himself like facing a great enemy, assuming a battle stance.
Wait a minute...
This Susanoo was clearly different from before.
And it's huge...
This new form of Susanoo had undergone a leap in both quality and scale.
With effortless grace, the Karasu Tengu-shaped Susanoo raised its arm. From its palm, blue flames surged out, condensing into a massive chakra sword.
This is bad...
Kakuzu focused intently, ready to dodge the moment the blue giant swung its sword.
But this wasn't just about size—this form of Susanoo had dramatically improved in both speed and strength.
From above, the Karasu Tengu-form Susanoo slashed downward, unleashing a massive wave of blue sword energy that split the air with a thunderous roar.
So fast.
And the range...
There was no way for Kakuzu to dodge. With no other option, he hardened his body with Earth Style: Earth Spear to take it head-on.
Where the sword energy passed, the forest was leveled, carving a wide, sunken path through the ground. Nothing was left standing—not even a single feather remained of the birds caught in the blast. The power was terrifying.
Impossible...
So strong... Just what kind of power is this?
Kakuzu lay on the ground, somehow still alive. He could move, but in the face of such overwhelming power, his will to fight crumbled. He couldn't summon the will to resist.
Three of his hearts had been destroyed in one attack. He could no longer maintain his jutsu. The black threads in his body slowly withdrew, revealing his original form.
He became aware of someone slowly approaching. Kakuzu struggled to raise his head and looked up at the man standing before him. His ghostly pupils were now filled with deep fear.
"You're pretty strong..." Madara looked down at him. "You actually made me get a little serious."
Is that even something a human would say?
Kakuzu's face twisted bitterly. He had fought with everything he had and only managed to force this man to show the tip of the iceberg.
"With that kind of compliment from you, I don't feel happy at all," Kakuzu muttered.
At the same time, his thoughts drifted back to his original target for assassination: the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.
If Hashirama was of the same level—or even stronger—than Uchiha Madara, then just how terrifying was his power?
After obtaining the Earth Grudge Fear, he'd once thought he could defeat Hashirama. Now he realized how laughable that was—like a frog at the bottom of a well.
Then he thought about the higher-ups who had sent him to assassinate Hashirama. If he could, he'd drag their corpses out of the ground and beat them again for sending him on a suicide mission.
"Everyone thinks you died in your battle with Hashirama. Now you suddenly reappear. What are you after?"
Kakuzu asked as he analyzed.
As far as he could remember, he had never had any connection with Uchiha Madara.
And yet Madara had deliberately sought him out, clearly with some special purpose.
But Kakuzu couldn't think of anything about himself that would interest someone like this.
No—wait. There was one thing.
Madara was from the same era as he was, and people from that age feared nothing more than the erosion of time.
Secret Technique: Earth Grudge Fear.
That must be it. He couldn't think of anything else that Madara would want.
"Don't worry. I have no interest in that low-level secret technique of yours," Madara said, as if seeing through Kakuzu's thoughts. He removed his mask, and his sharp gaze pierced like an arrow.
Kakuzu stared at the old face, eyes narrowing in even deeper confusion.
He's that old... If he doesn't want Earth Grudge Fear, then what does he want?
Madara spoke again. "Super Peace."
Super Peace?The concept only deepened Kakuzu's confusion. "Let's cut to the chase—what do you want me to do?"
"You're pretty quick to accept your situation."
"In the shinobi world, power rules." Kakuzu's voice was low. "The strong eat the weak. Why would I refuse?"
A wise man submits to fate. Much better than those stubborn fools. Madara began to take a liking to this man.
Kakuzu stared into Madara's Sharingan. "What exactly do you want me to do?"
"I want you to help me deal with someone."
Kakuzu narrowed his eyes. "If even you can't deal with them, what makes you think I can?"
"You're mistaken," Madara corrected. "It's not that I can't—just that it's inconvenient for me to take action myself."
"Ah, right," Kakuzu nodded. "There's no way anyone exists in this world that you can't handle..."
Kakuzu let out a self-deprecating chuckle and slowly stood up."So, who do you want me to deal with?"
"That's not urgent. You'll find out in due time,"Uchiha Madara replied, his tone deep and mysterious.
Kakuzu hated cryptic talk. It always sounded profound but meant nothing."Can I at least ask why you chose me?"
"Your strength is impressive, and your principles aren't too rigid,"Madara stated bluntly.
Kakuzu stayed silent. He didn't deny it—his strength was on par with Kage-level, and he could handle most missions with ease.
Madara then added,"Of course, more importantly… you have a certain connection to that person. That's the real reason I chose you."
"That person?"
Kakuzu caught onto something unusual.Could this mission be related to someone I know...?
"Sort of," Madara said flatly.
"Who?"
Kakuzu's expression twisted with confusion as he probed.
Most of the people connected to him were already dead. And for one of them to be important enough for even Uchiha Madara to take notice…
At that moment, he stared deeply at the enigmatic man in front of him.
But even with all that, he still wasn't prepared for the name Madara spoke next.
"Uchiha Tōshirō…"He said it slowly, as if speaking of a memory.
Him?
It's really him!?He's still alive?
Kakuzu's pupils dilated in shock at the news.
From his perspective, this was just too bizarre.
"I don't get it. You two are from the same clan, aren't you? Did he offend you?"
Madara's deep voice denied it."No. He never offended me. On the contrary, I have high hopes for him."
"Then why—?"
"Don't misunderstand me. I don't intend to kill him."
"Then why did you come to me?"
Kakuzu didn't have many talents. His one true skill was killing.
Everyone who had ever sought him out had one purpose: to send him to kill someone.
"I told you—I'll explain more as time goes on."
"…Fine."
Since the other party didn't want to talk, Kakuzu had no choice but to accept.
Still, he'd already begun to speculate. This mission most likely had something to do with Tōshirō himself.
To be honest, Kakuzu had mixed feelings about Tōshirō.
He found him quite likable—but only to a point.
He wasn't about to go against Uchiha Madara's will for the sake of some kid he'd known for just over half a year.
If Madara did ask him to kill Tōshirō, he would.
In the face of survival, everything else was insignificant.
The shinobi world was always full of betrayal—sometimes by choice, sometimes by necessity...
Konohagakure — Training Grounds
A large number of trees had been cleanly sliced apart, their bare rings exposed to the air. Tōshirō looked at the masterpiece he had created with his ninjutsu, sweat dripping down his face but a contented smile forming.
"Looks like your new technique's ready. Now all that's left is to find some poor bastard to test it on."
A voice, melodious like an oriole's song, rang in his ears. Tōshirō turned his head and saw a girl walking toward him with a relaxed, graceful air. The heavy fruits wrapped in white cloth swayed conspicuously.
Noticing his completely unfiltered stare, Tsunade frowned slightly, her tone sweetly scolding:"Seen enough? If you keep staring, I'll dig your eyes out."
"Sigh…"Tōshirō turned his head away, feigning dejection.
But this only made Tsunade more annoyed. She puffed up her ample chest with irritation and laughed angrily:"I tell you not to look and you just listen like that? What are you, a dog?"
Being called a dog didn't bother Tōshirō. He just laughed and said,"Well, if I weren't a dog, how would you feed me, house me, and keep me around?"
Since sticking with Tsunade, Tōshirō had all his expenses covered by her.
Food, drink, lodging—he mooched it all.
In short, he was being kept, living the carefree life of a pretty boy.
"Heh… At least you know your place."Tsunade beckoned him with a hooked finger, eyes sparkling with amusement."Come. Call me Mistress Tsunade."
"Tsunade."
"???"
(End of Chapter)
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