Chapter 45: Charging Toward Death, The Justice of a Brave Soul!
Thanks to chakra, ninja can fight in all kinds of extreme terrain.
At this moment, Tsukasa stood on a nearly ninety-degree vertical cliff face, his Sharingan filled with grim determination.
Before him stretched the dim night sky, with Kakuzu in Earth Grudge Fear Mode diving toward him like an arrow!
Behind him was the abyss—where falling would mean certain death.
There was no retreat. Only battle!
The wind from the valley floor whipped through Tsukasa's hair. His eyes remained calm as he formed hand seals, faint red chakra gathering on his palms!
Immediately, his five fingers descended and slammed against the cliff face!
A massive circular formation rapidly expanded, and a pale red barrier locked onto Kakuzu and suddenly activated!
The technique surpassing Kumogakure's legendary barrier jutsu—
The Absolute Encirclement Formation!
The domain now unfolded!
In mid-air, Kakuzu's eyes suddenly sharpened, subconsciously sensing something was wrong.
This kid before him was clearly weak as a newborn, yet instead of fleeing, he dared to counterattack?
He even deployed a barrier to trap them together?
This baffled Kakuzu.
What was this brat planning to do against someone with decades of experience?
A feint? A trap?
Kakuzu—known for his calculating nature, analytical thinking, and high combat intelligence that had allowed him to survive from the Warring States period to the present—instantly conjured countless tactical possibilities, trying to analyze what this kid was planning.
His eight tentacles suddenly drove into the cliff face, halting his charge, but it was too late.
A pale red barrier enveloped both him and Tsukasa!
When the light settled, Kakuzu stared blankly at the barrier that contained only himself and Tsukasa.
His mind raced, but he still couldn't figure out what this kid was thinking.
Is this brat insane? He's sealed away all his teammates, and what does he—a single-tomoe Sharingan Uchiha—think he can accomplish against me?
Nearby, after hearing Tsukasa's spirited declaration, Mei Terumi's eyes regained their composure.
A spark of fighting spirit even flickered in her pupils.
For Mei Terumi, who had aspired to become Mizukage since childhood—driven by ambition and eager to lead her village to glory—her previous panicked performance had truly been disgraceful.
Now, with the battle beginning, she would unleash the true power of a Kirigakure genius!
With Tsukasa's barrier deployed, her other Kekkei Genkai—Boil Release—would also prove useful!
Even if their opponent was Kakuzu, the S-rank missing-nin and elite bounty hunter, she wouldn't—
Wait.
Mei Terumi suddenly froze.
Did Tsukasa's barrier malfunction?
"Hey, hey, hey! Tsukasa, I'm not inside yet!"
Mei Terumi frantically pounded on the barrier, exclaiming:
"Open it up! Let me in!"
"What are you doing?!"
Mei Terumi's forehead immediately broke out in cold sweat. She stared in disbelief at Tsukasa, who stood only a step away yet seemed separated by an infinite distance.
She could almost see a halo forming above the young man's head as he smiled at her, waved, and began ascending to the Pure Land.
The pale red barrier had risen completely between them.
Mei Terumi's pupils contracted sharply as she shouted urgently:
"Are you insane?! You're going to fight this monster alone?!"
As the barrier sealed, placing him and Kakuzu in the same confined space, breathing the same air, Tsukasa smiled.
He turned to look at Mei Terumi, his eyes like stars in the night sky, filled with unspoken meaning.
"Sorry, Tsukimiya Mei."
"This is my only option."
Tsukasa paused, glanced at both people behind the barrier, smiled, and explained:
"Our opponent is an S-rank missing-nin with Kage-level power."
"This is an enemy we have absolutely no chance of defeating even if we give everything we have. So this is the only strategy I could think of."
"I lured him to suitable terrain, then deployed a barrier to delay him."
"Tsukimiya Mei, take Hidan and leave immediately!"
"Whatever you need to do after that, I don't care."
"But—"
"Right now, this is MY battlefield!"
After saying that, Tsukasa turned his head calmly.
Then he reached into his ninja tool pouch, pulled out a kunai, held it before his face, pointed the blade at Kakuzu with its cold glint, raised the corner of his mouth, and sneered defiantly:
"Kakuzu-san."
"Want to hurt them?"
"Then you'll have to step over my corpse first!"
"Tsk." Kakuzu frowned slightly, looking at Tsukasa with mild irritation.
The life-and-death scene before him, the selfless declaration—it invisibly pierced something deep within him.
Once upon a time, as an elite ninja of Takigakure, he had faced similar situations.
He too had faced life-or-death crises, desperate moments.
However, unlike now—when Tsukasa volunteered to sacrifice himself to cover his teammates' retreat—Kakuzu had been betrayed.
The team assigned to assassinate the God of Shinobi had fallen apart mid-mission. His teammates deserted and fled, leaving Kakuzu to shoulder complete responsibility and face the consequences alone.
When Kakuzu set out alone to assassinate that godlike being, he failed as expected. Returning devastated to his village, he received no comfort, no understanding from his companions, no praise, not even a hospital bed to heal his wounds.
What awaited him was the accusation of mission failure and severe punishment—cruel punishment for a ninja who had risked his life for the village.
"Ah, another tiresome display of naive idealism."
Kakuzu shook his head, looking across at Tsukasa. For the first time in a long while, he felt inclined to speak beyond what was necessary.
It was as if he could see his past self through the passage of time, and he addressed that younger version with a sober yet indifferent tone:
"Foolish brat."
"Look at reality! Not everything in this world will go as you wish."
"The longer you live, the more you realize that reality is filled with helplessness, pain, and emptiness."
"Teammates you've trusted through thick and thin can stab you in the back."
"Beliefs you've staked everything on can be shattered into nothing by a single technique."
"Superiors you've served loyally will only treat you as a disposable tool."
Kakuzu paused, a flicker of dark conviction in his eyes.
"But..."
"Money will never betray you."
Tsukasa took a deep breath and thought: Sir, you're absolutely right!
Bonds? Friendship? Those are just illusions.
I've done all this for one reason—for that five hundred million ryō bounty! For this very moment!
Tsukasa nodded in apparent agreement, then suddenly activated his Sharingan fully.
He brought his form to its absolute peak.
He would now offer everything he had gained through training and struggle, then instantly ignite this accumulation, transforming it into raw power!
He looked at Kakuzu and shouted with fierce resolve:
"Come on, you monster!"
"Right here, right now!"
"Give me the death I'm destined for!"
Crimson light flashed in Tsukasa's eyes as he lunged forward!
With a reverse grip, he unleashed three shuriken. One aimed for Kakuzu's chest, while the other two collided mid-flight, redirecting their trajectories in arcing paths toward the masks hidden beneath Kakuzu's black cloak.
With his knowledge of Kakuzu, he naturally knew about his "immortality."
Only by destroying the five hearts beneath his five masks could Kakuzu be truly killed!
However, facing Tsukasa—who ignored his warnings, showed no fear, and even dared to strike first—Kakuzu retracted his Earth Grudge Fear tentacles. His eyes remained impassive, coldness intensifying.
He slowly unbuttoned his black cloak and cast it aside.
A tall, muscular figure covered in stitched seams emerged into the night breeze.
He raised his hand slightly, clenched his fist, rolled his shoulders, and sneered—his face filled with contempt and disdain.
"Foolish brat, you think yourself so brave?"
"Then let me teach you—"
"What it means to face—"
"Reality!"
[Kakuzu shows complete disdain for your courage, as if wanting to beat some sense into you.]
[Courage is born from human wisdom and determination. Anyone who belittles courage will face justice!]
[S-Rank Long-Term Quest Triggered—]
[Make Kakuzu Understand That Courage Surpasses Greed!]
[Quest stages depend on his level of understanding: Recognition, Acknowledgment, and Transformation. Current progress: 0/3]
End of Chapter 45
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