Kaede Tsukasa felt a surge of excitement in his chest, a feeling he hadn't experienced in years. For a moment, it made him forget the ravaged state of his disease-worn body, filling him with a long-lost passion.
He scanned the battlefield. The Sand team that had ambushed them was now trapped in layers of encirclement, blocked by the frenzied Konoha shinobi. This brief delay had already allowed more Konoha ninja to converge.
Even Araki of the Sandstorm's condition was visibly deteriorating.
Everyone could be certain of one thing: this Sand Village elite squad would be wiped out here! It would be a rare feat, something to boast about for years to come.
At the same time, it was a severe blow to Sand Village's morale. One could only imagine what the rank of elite jonin meant and how great an honor it would be to participate in encircling and eliminating a squad led by one.
Araki of the Sandstorm tried to speak but found his throat burning in agony—a familiar sensation. Ah, the swelling pain from childhood fevers when his body hadn't fully developed.
But why did he feel this way? What method had Kaede Tsukasa used, when had it been applied, and why did the effect feel like this? Perhaps…
Araki unleashed his final strength, face twisted in effort, trying with all his might to strike Kaede Tsukasa. If he couldn't capture him, at least he could kill him!
At this moment, in the entire shinobi world, only Araki of the Sandstorm realized just how terrifying Kaede Tsukasa truly was. Only on the brink of death did he truly understand the nature of Tsukasa's technique!
"Dead Soul? Nonsense!"
Everyone had been deceived. Simply because he could manipulate corpses, they assumed it was the "Dead Souls Technique" from medical ninjutsu. That was far too presumptuous.
Kaede Tsukasa's medium for his technique—especially against a living target—was likely the flesh and blood of corpses, maybe even cells!
Yes, even now, Araki could only suspect the cellular level. Though aware of pathogens, he dared not truly consider them.
At present, the shinobi world's cutting-edge biotech only reached the cellular level. Deeper DNA-level research would come years later with Orochimaru, producing results like Yamato, who possessed Wood Release.
Araki's dying struggle spurred the other Sand ninja. Desperate, they attacked, hoping to kill as many Konoha ninja as possible before death.
Further out, Sand Village's main force had arrived, ready to engage the Konoha team—but there was no chance to save Araki now.
"It seems he realized it. Applying techniques to a living target is too slow, too easy to reveal troublesome information. But that's also because my body is weak; my chakra production is inefficient."
Kaede Tsukasa's mind raced as he observed Araki charging forward, bloodied yet unyielding.
The hysterical, near-death assault ignored all pain, focused solely on killing the middle-ranking ninja in front of him.
Tsukasa's face grew paler. His chakra was nearly depleted. He watched as the sandstorm tossed the many ninja in front of him aside, as Araki's twisted expression—tinged with the satisfaction of success—approached.
This was serious. To accelerate Araki's conversion, Tsukasa had risked overusing his chakra. Now, he would have to expend every last drop to perform the Void again, even if it meant death.
He had never been pushed this far before. Now he saw firsthand the terror of an elite jonin.
Kazamatsuri Takuno wanted to intervene, but everyone knew a regular medical ninja couldn't do much.
"Then I have no choice but to gamble with my life. I've done it many times before, always clawing back from the brink of death—but this time…"
Ninja dying from complete chakra exhaustion was not uncommon.
A classic example was when the Six Paths of Pain attacked Konoha. Kakashi used the last of his chakra to activate Kamui, successfully diverting the tracking missile from the Asura Path and allowing Choji Akimichi to escape.
After using the technique, Kakashi died, meeting Sakumo Hatake on the threshold between life and death, and they talked for quite some time.
False chakra exhaustion is an adjective—it describes the body reaching its limits, with no strength left.
True chakra exhaustion is different: it's the complete squeezing of every cell, forcing both body and spirit to overextend, generating new chakra by sheer will. Once that chakra is depleted, the body's functions collapse, and death follows immediately.
Just as Kaede Tsukasa formed the "Rat" hand seal, preparing to forcibly generate chakra to perform the Void,
an unexpected figure appeared before him, raising the side of his right hand: "Not yet. I won't let the comrades Tsunade and Sakumo care for die in front of me."
Kaede Tsukasa's eyelid twitched, utterly stunned: "You are—"
Spirit Transformation Technique!
A white light surged from Kato Dan. The ethereal spirit charged straight at Araki of the Sandstorm. The collision of real and phantom bodies caused the ethereal spirit to penetrate Araki's body. In his already feeble state, Araki could not resist the invading soul, and his mind collapsed instantly, killing him on the spot.
The Spirit Transformation Technique is an S-rank secret jutsu, higher even than the Heart Reversal Technique. It allows the user to move at high speed in soul form, possess targets, control their actions, engage in mental dialogue, or even collapse their mind to death.
It also grants long-range perception of other souls.
This technique was absurdly overpowered. Even during the Fourth Great Ninja War, it would have been terrifying, let alone appearing at the end of the Second Great Ninja War.
Araki of the Sandstorm became a soul killed by this technique. As an elite jonin, his death further cemented Kato Dan's formidable reputation.
Kazamatsuri Takuno's face lit up with deep admiration: "Lord Kato Dan! Could it be that Lady Tsunade arranged for you to join our squad?"
"Exactly. Your squad primarily supports the frontline. The enemy, trying to expand their gains before retreating, might make special moves. Also, this squad has a genius like Kaede Tsukasa, one who makes Sand Village uneasy."
The spirit returned to Kato Dan, whose smile radiated warmth.
His long hair flowed in the wind, tall and lean figure graceful, voice casual yet full of concern for his comrades. Killing an enemy like Araki of the Sandstorm was almost beneath his notice.