Staring at the three shattered heart masks lying on the ground, Kakuzu's mind was shaken.
How had Gekko Hoshiyomi suddenly appeared right in front of him? Could it be that even the terrifying aftershock of his own jutsu hadn't been able to harm him at all?
And another thing—how did Hoshiyomi know the secret of his Earth Grudge Fear? Other than Hashirama, no one had ever escaped his grasp. There was no way this information should have reached Gekko Hoshiyomi's ears. How could he know about the secret of his hearts?
But this wasn't the time to dwell on such things—because Hoshiyomi was already upon him.
Absolutely never fight Gekko Hoshiyomi in close quarters—that had already become an unspoken iron law of the shinobi world. It was the priceless lesson bought with the lives of countless strong shinobi. Kakuzu had no intention of challenging such an iron law.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear Technique!"
Facing Hoshiyomi, who stood right before him with the Mikazuki Munechika gleaming coldly in hand, Kakuzu didn't hesitate. He instantly used Earth Spear to harden and reinforce the eight thick black threads around him, weaving them into a massive web to block Hoshiyomi.
At the same time, he activated the Body Flicker Technique, trying to put distance between them as quickly as possible.
At that moment, the thought of retreat had already taken root in Kakuzu's heart. Unlike other Kage-level fighters, he was not one built for prolonged battles.
With all five hearts intact, he could use all five chakra natures, making him stronger than the average Kage-level ninja. But once his hearts were destroyed, his strength inevitably dropped off a cliff.
Every lost heart meant losing one-fifth of his techniques.
Even before this, Kakuzu had been slightly on the back foot against Hoshiyomi. Now that he had lost three hearts in one go, the balance of battle had tipped decisively in Hoshiyomi's favor.
If he kept this up, death was inevitable. He had to replenish his three hearts if he wanted even the slimmest chance of standing against Hoshiyomi again—or so Kakuzu thought.
But what Kakuzu didn't know was that unless someone could move at the lightning speed of the Third Raikage, or use a space-time jutsu like the Flying Thunder God, all other body flickers were useless before Hoshiyomi.
Hoshiyomi swung his blade into one of the black thread bundles. The clash between the Mikazuki Munechika and Kakuzu's hardened threads actually rang out with a metallic clang.
That surprised Hoshiyomi a little. He knew Kakuzu had a jutsu often nicknamed "Armament Haki" by fans online, but he hadn't realized the Earth Spear Technique could harden threads to this ridiculous degree.
The Mikazuki Munechika was sharp enough to slice through steel and stone. Yet even his slash hadn't completely severed Kakuzu's threads—only half of them had snapped.
But that was all.
If one slash wasn't enough, Hoshiyomi could swing ten. A hundred. Against someone like Kakuzu, whose speed wasn't remarkable, Hoshiyomi—who excelled in speed—felt no pressure at all.
The Mikazuki Munechika gleamed with a greenish-blue chakra as he infused it with Wind Release. With the wind nature sharpening its edge, the sword's cutting power rose another level
Hoshiyomi casually swung three times. One strike severed the half-broken thread from before, and the other two slashes sliced apart three more threads in different directions.
With four threads cut, the great black web collapsed. Hoshiyomi didn't pause—he activated Moon Shadow Step, his figure dissolving into afterimages as he shot straight at the fleeing Kakuzu.
Hearing the sound of his threads snapping behind him, Kakuzu's heart lurched. He glanced back while retreating but couldn't see Hoshiyomi anywhere at first glance.
Relieved, he exhaled. Looks like he'd managed to shake him off after all. So many years of ninja experience weren't for nothing—when it came to running away, Kakuzu had his methods.
But just as he thought this, a sharp slicing sound suddenly cut through the air behind him.
Kakuzu's instincts screamed danger. He reflexively activated Earth Spear to harden his body.
But the next second, he realized Hoshiyomi had already appeared silently before him. A streak of blue-silver blade light was lodged in his chest.
It had pierced straight through his fourth heart.
This guy… is he even human? A monster?
Staring at Hoshiyomi's back, Kakuzu finally recalled the terror of once being crushed under Senju Hashirama's might. That same helplessness—like an ant about to be casually squashed.
Hoshiyomi said nothing. With his back still turned to Kakuzu, he simply and quietly slid the Mikazuki Munechika back toward its sheath.
Kakuzu's heart leapt—could it be that Gekko Hoshiyomi had forgotten he still had a fifth heart? Or did Hoshiyomi believe that destroying the original was enough to kill him?
This was his chance! Hoshiyomi was right in front of him. If he could just drive his blackened hand into Hoshiyomi's chest, both the heart and that five-hundred-million bounty would be his.
Five hundred million!
The thought of that money gave Kakuzu one last burst of strength. His hand stretched toward Hoshiyomi's back, fingers just about to brush against his clothes.
But then—
Clack! The crisp sound of the blade sliding fully into its sheath.
Zheng! The clear ringing of steel.
The collision of hilt and scabbard was like the whisper of the Grim Reaper.
The instant Kakuzu heard it, his entire body froze.
Eyes rolling wildly in terror, he tried to see what had happened—only to catch sight of his body, already cleaved into two halves, as blue-silver motes of light scattered in the air.
The three sword lights left behind by Heavenly Rift Flowing Light had done their work—
one piercing straight through his chest,
one skewering the Water-nature heart at his left shoulder,
and the final stroke slicing that heart clean in two.
Even as he collapsed, Kakuzu's eyes were wide with disbelief.
Dead? I… actually died?
He had once survived clashing with the God of Shinobi, Senju Hashirama, yet here he was—slain by a mere junior.
Unwilling to accept it, he tried to command his black threads to patch himself one last time—but before they could even twitch, his last Water-heart mask shattered into pieces.
Kakuzu's eyes closed forever.
Hoshiyomi turned and glanced at the corpse. After a moment's thought, he tossed an explosive tag onto it.
For a so-called legendary figure, better to be reduced to ash than left to rot in the wilderness.
That was his final courtesy to Kakuzu.
As for whether killing him would change the future plot—Hoshiyomi no longer cared.
If before, he had hesitated about altering the storyline, now that he had mastered Perfect Sage Mode, those concerns were gone.
Because at this point, Gekko Hoshiyomi no longer needed the "plot" to protect him.