"Th...this is my Chakra Cannon!?" Kakuzu watched in disbelief.
In front of Uchiha Shigure, a super-powerful three-element composite Chakra Cannon quickly gathered.
"No, it's my Chakra Cannon!" Shigure declared, and the Chakra Cannon grew even more potent, its destructive chakra amplifying.
"No way! He absorbed my ninjutsu? And then amplified it to this extent?"
"Such a terrifying Chakra Cannon! If I took that head-on, even ten hearts would be instantly destroyed! Run!"
Kakuzu wasn't stupid; he immediately released his Earth Grudge Fear and quickly retreated into the forest, where abundant cover made it easy to hide.
"That brat! He possesses such an incredible, unbelievable ability! He doesn't need his hands or feet? Just his eyes… he can… what kind of strange eyes are those? Sharingan… but not quite like it..."
"And that brat deliberately didn't use this reflective move on me at first! He was waiting for my strongest attack, to amplify it and reflect it back at me!"
"How insidious! When he caught me! To trick me into using a high-powered ninjutsu! He even brought up 'respect for a ninja'! I haven't encountered someone so cunning in decades! And it's a kid who's not even seven or eight years old!"
Kakuzu thought he was safe, having put enough distance between them, but the next second, something else happened that shocked him.
"Sorry, Kakuzu! Did I keep you waiting?" Uchiha Shigure suddenly appeared in front of Kakuzu, pointing a hand at him and saying, "Takama-ga-hara!"
Immediately after, a Chakra Cannon shot from his hand, directly and overwhelmingly towards Kakuzu's body.
"Boom!" A dazzling light instantly swallowed everything around them.
The earth and air trembled, and the once-dense forest was left in ruins by the Chakra Cannon.
A large crater appeared on the ground, the immense power of which was, of course, due to the amplified Chakra Cannon.
And near the center of the large crater, Shigure walked forward, completely unharmed.
"Kakuzu is indeed Kakuzu! Even after being hit head-on by the three-element amplified composite Chakra Cannon, he still has a breath left." Kakuzu was shattered all over, his masks completely broken, and naturally, only one heart was making its final beat.
Kakuzu asked, extremely weakly, "Why... why... after running so far, were you still able to catch up to me?"
Shigure pointed to the shattered demon mask and said, "I already marked the demon and you from the very beginning, but you were too engrossed in the battle to notice. But even if you had, it wouldn't have mattered; it would have stayed on you for life."
Kakuzu's eyes widened as he asked in disbelief, "The beginning? Was it when my hand went through the Water Wall and I knocked down the mask monster with you… you already marked me then? I see... It seems this battle was destined to end in defeat..."
"Yes, fighting you was merely to experience the joy of battle between strong individuals and to confirm my own strength," Shigure said calmly.
Kakuzu shook his head, unwilling to admit defeat, and used his last ounce of strength to ask, "I... I still don't understand... If you used such a large-scale Chakra Cannon at such a close range, even you would be affected."
"That? That's the ability of my Mangekyō Sharingan! One eye absorbs ninjutsu, amplifies it, and reflects it. As for the other, I won't say much, but in short, time is always on my side."
Undoubtedly, Shigure first used the Takama-ga-hara ability of his left Mangekyō to absorb Kakuzu's composite ninjutsu, then accumulated and amplified it, allowing Kakuzu to retreat quickly. Once Kakuzu had distanced himself, Shigure used the Flying Thunder God to instantly appear before Kakuzu and unleash the attack.
Immediately after, in that instant, he used the Shin-Takama-ga-hara ability of his right Mangekyō to freeze time, then used the Flying Thunder God to instantly return to his original position, thereby avoiding self-inflicted damage.
"I understand... I never thought... I would be defeated by you." Kakuzu shook his head, on the verge of death.
"No, you can't die yet." Shigure placed his hand on Kakuzu, then absorbed Kakuzu's bloodline power, stimulating a portion of Kakuzu's chakra.
Kakuzu's complexion instantly improved, but his body remained immobile.
"Why?"
"Why, when you're about to kill me, would you give me chakra? Are you trying to humiliate me? Although I am a rogue ninja, I am still a ninja," Kakuzu asked with a cold expression.
"Kakuzu, I have a job for you. The pay is so-so. Are you interested?"
Kakuzu chuckled, "Ha, it's useless. Even if you give me chakra, without a heart, I'm still destined to die. But I am interested in this job you mentioned, so tell me about the compensation for now."
"Eight million a day!" Shigure said calmly.
"Eight million?! A day?!" Kakuzu was shocked again. Was this kid, who had just killed him, playing such a joke on him?
"Are you talking about eight million yen or eight million ryō?" Kakuzu confirmed again.
"Of course, eight million ryō! What, is that too low?! I don't know how the underground exchange works, but a Leaf Village S-rank mission is only about one million ryō or more. And even in the Leaf Village, which has the highest-paying commissions among the Five Great Nations, a jōnin can't take on too many S-rank missions in a month."
"How about it? Want to work with me?" Shigure asked.
"How is that possible! You're just a kid, how could you have so much money? If that were true, why would you even be a ninja?" Kakuzu was highly skeptical.
"Being a ninja and being rich aren't mutually exclusive. The reason I have so much money is because, in my free time, I founded a company called the Leaf Bank... Now, many branches have opened in the Leaf Village, and recently many have opened in the Land of Fire. You must have heard of it, right?"
Kakuzu, sweating, confirmed, "Leaf Bank... so that's it... No wonder he's so rich and confident! He's not just rich; he can even print money!"
"You yourself said that partners eventually betray, and only money can be trusted. So, am I, who gives you money, a savior? An employer? Or a partner?"
"Live, or die? Make a wise choice now. Become my employee, and I'll have a reason to save you," Shigure said calmly.
Kakuzu was silent for a moment, then looked up and said, "You'll kill me if the mission isn't completed?"
Shigure shook his head and encouraged, "You just need to do your best. I know your abilities..."
"Before that, I have a good way to save you." After Shigure said this, he directly threw a shuriken into the forest.
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