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Hidan ran wildly, cursing himself inwardly for being so foolish. How could he have used his "Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood" so carelessly?
Now look at the situation. Facing a powerful enemy, he had to rely on Kakuzu to buy time.
But was buying half an hour really that easy?
Against anyone else, he might have relied on his immortality to stall. But Asachi Midorima was someone even Kakuzu couldn't "forget."
That indicated Midorima's strength was considerable.
Relying solely on immortality would be insufficient to kill him. He needed to free up time to complete the "ritual" for Lord Jashin.
The blast from earlier also knocked Hidan over. He tumbled forward about five or six meters before scrambling to his feet, ready to run again. Suddenly, something tripped him, sending him rolling several more times. His multi-sectioned scythe flew from his grasp.
By the time he retrieved his scythe and stood up, Midorima was already standing before him.
"You're Midorima, right?" Hidan forced a smile.
"Ah that's right. You shouldn't have seen me before," Midorima said.
"Haha... I have Kakuzu to thank for that. You know what? Every day, he drones on and on about your name in my ear... Saying you're the best material he's ever seen. That extracting your heart would be the greatest blessing from heaven. Don't get me wrong, he was praising you. Even I got a little jealous." Hidan stared at Midorima, ready to attack at any moment.
"Is that so? I'm truly 'honored.' By the way, do you know why you became Kakuzu's partner?"
"How would I know?"
"I killed Kakuzu's previous partner. That's how you got the opportunity," Midorima grinned.
"I'm not that idiot. You can't kill me."
"I know, you can't be killed. Oh, have you heard of that punishment? For immortals, you can throw them into a cage with carnivorous animals. That way, the animals keep eating your body, and since you don't die... I wonder what that scene would be like. After you turn into... well, waste, would you still be conscious? Or, as they eat your flesh, could you regenerate new flesh? But wouldn't that create a 'perpetual motion machine'?"
Midorima rubbed his chin, seriously concocting this scenario.
"You Lunatic...How can you be so disgusting?" Hidan looked revolted.
Turning into waste? What did he take him for?
He wasn't that kind of person.
"Alright, that was just a casual thought. But I do have a real question—what would happen if you were hit by 'Amaterasu'? You have an immortal body, and Amaterasu doesn't extinguish until its target is completely burned. If you were hit by Amaterasu, would you burn to death? Or would you coexist with the flames? Or would Amaterasu eventually go out?"
This was something Midorima was genuinely curious about. Unfortunately, he couldn't use Amaterasu, so he couldn't run the "experiment."
"Why does someone as vicious as you exist in this world?" Hidan sneered, his face full of disdain.
"I'm just talking. Unlike you, who acts without saying much." Midorima rubbed his neck. "Alright, I'm ready to collect your corpse."
"You can't kill me!" Hidan swung his scythe, charging at Midorima.
Midorima continuously dodged backward, always maintaining a certain distance, neither launching an attack nor allowing himself to enter Hidan's striking range.
Knowing he couldn't perform the ritual for Lord Jashin, Hidan focused all his energy on Midorima.
Though unable to use "Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood" significantly weakened him, he still possessed immortality. This allowed him to attack without concern for defense, aiming solely to kill Midorima.
However, things didn't progress as smoothly as he imagined. No matter how hard he tried, Midorima always kept at a certain distance.
Unlike Makoto, Midorima had a natural advantage in chakra reserves. Moreover, Midorima only relied on speed, not large-scale Ice Release. Therefore, his chakra consumption was negligible.
After more than ten consecutive failed assaults, Hidan realized conventional methods wouldn't work. He devised another plan.
The moment Midorima leaned back, trying to increase distance, Hidan suddenly sprinted in the opposite direction.
When Midorima tried to maintain distance, his center of gravity would also shift backward. Seizing this opportunity to run the other way, if Midorima wanted to pursue, he'd have to adjust his balance. Hidan could use that time to quickly widen the gap.
If Midorima didn't give chase, Hidan could hide somewhere secluded, buying time to perform his "Curse Technique."
Conversely, if Midorima did chase, even better! Hidan was frustrated about not being able to close the distance—once Midorima got close, he'd turn and strike.
Hidan envisioned both scenarios in his mind, simultaneously stealing a glance over his shoulder to locate Midorima.
Suddenly, an immense force slammed into his back.
He had no time to react. His body pitched forward as if the force wanted to pierce right through him. Moreover, this power transmitted through his body into the earth, blasting a crater with a two-meter radius. He lay at the crater's center.
Countless vines then sprouted from the ground, binding his wrists and arms to the earth.
"How did you catch up?" Hidan strained to look back at Midorima.
He couldn't believe Midorima could be that fast.
"The reason, of course, is because of the jutsu Kakuzu used earlier," Midorima smiled.
"What do you mean?" Hidan was puzzled.
"That massive airflow blew away a lot of the fog. Simply put, as long as I have line of sight, you can't escape." Midorima stood up from Hidan's back, forming hand seals. The earth trembled, and in an instant, a bottomless pit appeared beside Hidan.
"What are you trying to do?" Hidan exclaimed in shock.
"What else can I do? Since I can't kill you, I'll just make you a dungeon. Don't worry, I won't send you any food. If you can survive "that", I'll have to say Kishimoto isn't very reliable."
Hidan didn't know who "Kishimoto" was—no one had told him—but he understood clearly: if truly buried alive, even if he didn't starve, he'd die of boredom.
"Get away from me!" Hidan concentrated all his chakra into his hands and legs, bursting the restraining vines. Then he fled for his life, sprinting wildly into the distance.
He had to escape... Midorima was too terrifying!!
Suddenly, the trees in the forest began growing wildly, quickly blocking Hidan's path.
He was just forming seals to destroy the trees when a branch from behind wrapped around his waist, pulling him back forcefully.
No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't break the branch. He was dragged back to Midorima's side.
"You..." Hidan looked up at Midorima, noticing his eyes seemed different, faintly outlined with a subtle hue.
"Go down, Hidan." Midorima said softly.
Hidan's fingers dug deep into the soil, but the trees dragged him straight into the pit.