Chapter 525: The Rampaging Zero-Tails
Hidan's Kage-level status was actually quite shallow. He was young, and the Hidden Hot Water Village had no decent ninjutsu legacy. Aside from some curse techniques from the Church of Jashin, he knew almost no powerful ninjutsu.
His reliance was on his body. As a "chosen one" of Jashin, the god's power had, to some extent, strengthened him.
This not only granted him immortality but also made his speed, strength, and chakra a notch above that of a normal ninja.
Now, facing the perfectly coordinated joint attack of Fu Yamanaka and Torune Aburame, he was struggling. His large scythe was difficult to wield in the narrow corridor.
"Die! Konoha insects!" He left himself wide open, ignoring his own defense, and swung his scythe, reeking of blood, straight at Fu.
"Fu, get back!" Torune saw that Hidan's move was unusual and quickly warned his friend to dodge.
Fu had been personally instructed by Danzo and possessed sufficient insight and analytical ability.
In the original timeline, when he and Torune faced Obito, they had analyzed most of the information about the Kamui Mangekyo in just two moves. That analytical skill was not much inferior to Minato Namikaze's during the Nine-Tails' attack.
Both of them had high "Wisdom" stats and had seen plenty of dirty tricks.
Ignoring the opening Hidan presented, they both retreated.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!" Fu quickly formed hand signs, spitting out chakra like bullets.
Pfft, pfft, pfft! The Wind Release was extremely fast. Hidan had no intention of defending himself and was hit repeatedly, but he acted as if he felt nothing. He rushed forward, fanatically swinging his large scythe, trying to collect their blood.
Torune parried a blow with his short sword, pushed off the ground, and retreated quickly. Mid-air, he flicked his hand, throwing a dozen kunai.
Hidan didn't slow down, spinning his scythe to deflect the kunai.
He closed the distance and swung his scythe at Fu, who was blocking his path.
Fu believed Hidan's ability lay in the scythe itself. He flickered out of the way, using the Body Flicker Technique to dodge the attack.
"Fu, with me!" Torune drew his short sword and thrust it at Hidan's heart.
Hidan sneered, reversed his grip on the scythe, and swung the blade at Torune's neck.
It seemed to be a life-for-a-life trade. At the critical moment, Torune took half a step back, dodging the scythe's slash, and spat a cloud of purple, mist-like poisonous insects at the scythe's blade.
The poisonous insects had strong corrosive properties. In less than a second, the scythe, forged from fine steel, was riddled with holes.
Hidan cried out in alarm. "My scythe?! You dare...!"
Before he could finish his sentence, Fu, using Torune as cover, completed his hand signs and aimed his hands at Hidan. "Mind Body Switch Technique!"
His consciousness instantly occupied Hidan's body. At the same time, Torune removed his glove, revealing a purple right hand with skin that looked completely inhuman.
He reached out to touch Hidan's exposed skin.
"Idiot! You can't even handle two small fries like them?" Kakuzu had no more time to loot Shinnō's vault. After collecting about fifty to sixty percent of the money, he saw that Hidan was about to be taken down and rushed out to support him.
As a ninety-year-old veteran ninja, he had, of course, seen the Yamanaka clan's Mind Body Switch Technique before.
He wasn't sure what deadly technique Torune's purple right hand was, but he knew it was definitely dangerous.
Kakuzu formed hand signs. "Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
Among conventional ninjutsu, Wind Release: Pressure Damage was definitely top-tier in terms of destructive power. Ino herself was fond of using this technique; it required few hand signs, had a large area of effect, and was powerful.
A massive, high-pressure ball of wind formed a swirling storm and howled toward Hidan.
Fu had seen Ino use this Wind Release technique and knew how powerful it was.
Seeing the attack rushing toward Hidan with no sign of slowing down, he had no desire to die along with him. He could only retract the Mind Body Switch Technique and return his consciousness to his own body.
Torune retreated with him.
With a sickening squelch, Hidan's body was hit head-on by the Wind Release: Pressure Damage. Sharp wind blades cut more than a dozen bloody gashes into his flesh.
His black and red cloud cloak was shredded to pieces. Hidan's muscular upper body was covered in wounds, some deep enough to reveal bone. Yet, he landed on the ground as if nothing had happened. The first thing he looked at was not the fatal wounds on his body, but his precious scythe.
Torune's poisonous insects were unique even among the Aburame clan, and Danzo had used special secret techniques to cultivate and strengthen them. The corrosion that had created several large holes in the scythe was only the beginning. Now, the entire head of the scythe had been devoured, leaving Hidan with only half a handle.
Seeing his beloved weapon in such a state, he looked at Torune with rage. "You scum, I've changed my mind! No sacrifices this time, I'm going to flay you alive!"
Kakuzu grabbed what was left of his tattered shirt. "Idiot, calm down! We're not here to fight. Fighting costs extra! Let's go, there's a big job in the Land of Tea. My time is very precious!"
Kakuzu was busy making money and didn't want to fight with Konoha ninja.
Hidan had been fighting Fu and Torune for some time, and now a large number of former Root ninja were about to rush over.
Hidan and Kakuzu weren't afraid of three or five of them, but if several hundred fearless ninja charged at them all at once, they would have a headache.
Hidan's abilities weren't suited for group battles, and Kakuzu cherished his life to the core.
Kakuzu unleashed a continuous barrage of "Fire Release: Searing Migraine" and "Lightning Release: False Darkness" to force the ninja back, then turned and fled.
Fu didn't order a pursuit. He and Torune together could handle Hidan, but adding Kakuzu to the mix would be troublesome.
Targets unrelated to the mission could be ignored. This was the philosophy of both Konoha and Root ninja.
If they run, let them run. There's no need to chase.
He looked at Shinnō's secret room, which Kakuzu had turned upside down. "Leave two people to watch the scene. Wait for the clan head to make a decision."
Elsewhere.
Ino didn't want Shinnō to leak the contents of her conversation with Kabuto, so she had no choice but to silence him.
A kunai slit his throat. As Shinnō was dying, he let out a strange, monstrous cry.
Afterward, Ino encountered a not-so-small problem.
A large, deep-purple insect with a white mask on its head, with the character for "Zero" on its forehead, crashed through the walls and corridors, attacking her like a madman.
The rampaging insect extended a dozen milky-white, mucus-covered tentacles from its body. More than ten Sky Ninja who couldn't dodge in time were sucked into its body. Their chakra became the insect's sustenance, and their souls, knowledge, and beliefs all merged with the "Zero" monster in that instant.
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