Jinin Akebino swallowed hard. From Cloud Village intelligence, they had already learned about Seiki's other signature ability—the Spirit Transformation Technique.
So he roughly understood who his current opponent was.
"That thick-browed guy's speed and strength, combined with Seiki's combat awareness? Damn it, I might have real trouble here!"
Akebino could only desperately try to calm himself. "Splitting focus means neither of his bodies can reach full power. If I just stall a bit longer, maybe Biwa Juzo can defeat his original body!"
However, if Biwa Juzo knew what Akebino was thinking, he'd probably respond in furious disbelief. He himself was nearly getting beaten to death—was he really supposed to wait for someone else to rescue him?
Besides, Seiki had no intention of drawing this out either.
Controlling such overwhelming power against an opponent already seriously injured—if he still delayed, then he truly would be terrible.
His figure flashed. Might Duy materialized almost instantly before Jinin Akebino's eyes.
"How could he be so fast?" As this thought barely formed in Akebino's mind, the opponent's fists rained down on him like stormy wind and rain.
Dada dada...
In an instant, hundreds of punches rained down. Akebino hadn't even managed any reaction before being blown apart.
One-second kill!
Seeing this, the five figures within the chakra barrier all felt panic surge.
"How is this possible? Just switching controllers made such a huge difference?"
"Damn! This guy controls two bodies at once—doesn't it cause even the slightest hesitation or resistance?"
"We must break through this barrier as soon as possible, or we're all going to die here!"
Under pressure from imminent death, they all unleashed unprecedented potential. The already near-limit barrier started to crack.
Shimaseki glanced at the barrier, zeroing in on its weakest point. "Break Samehada Gorō's barrier!"
This originally imprisoning barrier had now become their protective wall.
Samehada Gorō, who was struggling to attack the barrier, stood there stunned. His strength ranked merely mid-tier, so why did this spot seem the weakest?
Thinking this, he instinctively looked toward the others. "Are you guys backstabbing me?"
The other four remained extremely cold. Though called members of the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist, they had never actually worked together.
Meanwhile, Biwa Juzo also suffered effects from Jinin Akebino's death, causing a brief moment of disorder. Immediately, Shimaseki entered one-punch mode.
[Monstrous Strength: Meteor Shower!]
As though a volcanic eruption occurred, explosive power pushed air itself into thunderous sonic booms.
Biwa Juzo instinctively raised the Cleaver Sword to block, as before.
However, the overworked Cleaver Sword had long been unable to withstand further punishment.
With a loud explosion, in Biwa Juzo's disbelieving gaze, the Cleaver Sword snapped right in half.
Then that unstoppable fist struck Biwa Juzo's waist, splitting him cleanly in two.
Witnessing this scene, Samehada Gorō got scared enough to turn tail and flee immediately.
This was exactly why Seiki chose to eliminate Biwa Juzo in such a straightforward and brutal manner instead of using genjutsu.
The barrier was already on the verge of collapse. If Samehada Gorō could buy just a little more time, there was a chance the others could break free from their seals.
Those inside the barrier had darkened eyes and shouted loudly:
"Idiot! How could you expose your back to the enemy like that!"
"That Seiki Shimaseki isn't nearly as strong as he appears. Juzo and Jinin only died because they lost the initiative!"
Hearing their voices, Gorō Samehada snorted contemptuously. Of course he knew that Seiki Shimaseki wasn't that powerful—but the problem was, even so, Seiki was still far too strong for him.
He'd already run the numbers. They probably still needed twenty more seconds to escape the barrier. By then, he'd probably already be six feet under with grass three meters high growing on his grave.
Better not waste my life buying time for those pricks—better to take a gamble. Maybe while Seiki was chasing him down, something unexpected would happen to the barrier and force Seiki to return prematurely.
Might Duy became a streak of light chasing after Gorō Samehada. Seiki remained in front of the barrier, calmly sweeping his gaze across the remaining four individuals.
"Don't pick me, don't pick me!"
Fuguki Suikazan and the others silently prayed in terror. At this moment, they felt like pigs being selected for slaughter.
Soon enough, Seiki picked the fourth piglet.
"F*cking hell! So it's actually me?" Unlike Gorō Samehada, Onigiba Yamatake had relatively high confidence in his own strength. Instead of fleeing, he roared furiously and wielded his dual swords Hiramekarei, charging directly at Seiki.
"This'll be the biggest mistake of your damn life!"
[Hiramekarei Release!]
Blue light spewed out from Hiramekarei's air holes, gathering into a massive chakra energy sphere that surged forward with terrifying momentum toward Seiki.
Facing him, Seiki looked strangely at his opponent's actions. "You want to compete in chakra quality?"
He knew that Hiramekarei was a weapon designed for killing—it grew stronger with each enemy slain, increasing its chakra output accordingly.
But here's the thing—you haven't even killed one person yet!
Do you really think chakra of this level can rival mine?
Seiki didn't even bother activating the Eight Gates again. After re-entering One-Time Sage Mode, he instantly gathered an equally massive chakra energy sphere.
[Sage Art: Super-Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!]
Since Seiki used Flying Thunder God and Rasengan most frequently on the battlefield, intelligence about Sage Mode was relatively scarce—mainly because it required an extremely long charge-up period. Therefore, Onigiba Yamatake never even considered this possibility.
So when he saw Seiki go for a direct clash, Onigiba Yamatake was secretly overjoyed. What he feared most was the opponent's taijutsu ability. He hadn't expected this idiot to abandon his greatest advantage just to engage him head-on!
Thinking this, Onigiba Yamatake sneered viciously. "How could a single individual's strength possibly compare to the combined power of a shinobi and his ninja blade? Let me show you just how truly powerful a ninja blade can be… pfffft!"
Although both were chakra spheres, the difference in quality between them was simply too vast. The energy ball released from Hiramekarei practically shattered upon contact.
Then, the remaining energy was unleashed entirely onto Onigiba Yamatake.
In the next moment, he became nothing more than "trash."
Seiki Shimaseki couldn't help but sigh inwardly. If not for his opponent's overconfidence in his ninja blade and their lack of updated intelligence, dealing with him wouldn't have been this easy.
Hmm, at the very least, it would've taken about ten seconds or so.
Yet just as the energy storm erupted, the remaining three barriers shattered simultaneously, and three maniacal laughs rang out.
"Haha, we're free..."
"Great job, Onigiba Yamatake..."
"We'll join you right away..."
But before they could finish laughing, they saw familiar body parts drop right in front of them.
Seeing this, all three were stunned.
They had originally planned to break through the barrier and ambush during the fight between those two—but seriously, Onigiba Yamatake, you died way too quickly and gruesomely!
Then, they witnessed a rain of blood scattering through the air, Seiki Shimaseki's icy stare, and screams coming from afar.
The three felt cold sweat run down their spines.
Asuma and the others were alarmed. Shit, they still couldn't stabilize the barrier—it's broken.
As they were thinking whether the remaining three members of the Swordsmen might pose trouble for Seiki Shimaseki, they saw Fuguki Suikazan and Raiga Kurosuki fleeing in opposite directions at top speed.
"They... ran away?" The Konoha shinobi instinctively widened their eyes—these were supposed to be members of the legendary Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist!
And yet now, they'd fled like frightened rabbits simply from Seiki Shimaseki's glare!
Well, not all three ran off, though.
"He's got two bodies! If we split up, we each only have a one-in-three shot at getting away!" Kushimaru Kuriarare turned toward the nearby Konoha ninja, his eyes fierce. "Take a hostage while he's distracted by their escape!"
Kushimaru Kuriarare didn't hesitate—he lunged at Asuma with his Needle sword.
But in the next instant, Seiki Shimaseki appeared beside him via teleportation and struck him with a Rasengan, sending him flying.
"Cursed! He actually noticed me!" Kushimaru Kuriarare thought bitterly. Just as he braced himself for death, however, realization dawned on him—"Wait, I'm not seriously injured!"
Previously, Biwa Juzo and Onigiba Yamatake had both been brutally killed, yet now he remained alive.
Could it be that Seiki Shimaseki's chakra has already...
Suddenly realizing this, Kushimaru Kuriarare shouted joyfully, "Come back quick—he doesn't have much chakra left!"
At his shout, Fuguki Suikazan and Raiga Kurosuki paused briefly—then sped off even faster, leaving Kushimaru Kuriarare completely behind, left in nothing but despair.
Then, he saw everyone around him grinning sinisterly as they closed in.
"You stay away from me!"
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