The Fire Country Daimyo only needed to participate in one step of this Welcoming God of Fortune ceremony, so after completing his step, the Fire Country Daimyo left with some court officials.
Ling could sense the Fire Country Daimyo's impatience when he prayed for favorable weather, clearly he didn't believe in this so-called blessing at all.
Of course, this wasn't to praise the Fire Country Daimyo as an anti-god fighter, but rather that he simply lacked patience; facing the expectations of the people, he didn't even want to pretend.
"You have chosen the path of death." Looking at the two groups ambushed in an alleyway in the back mountain, Ling decided to stand by and watch, to see if the so-called Daimyo truly had divine destiny protecting him.
Watching the crowd disperse, Kakuzu, the old man, heard that the ceremony was over and the Fire Country Daimyo and his entourage were descending from the back mountain, which was also part of the festival, so he quickly moved to the back mountain.
Ling naturally followed behind Kakuzu, not expecting to see such a good show on a trip to the capital.
The small path in the back mountain was more secluded and more suitable for ambush. Watching the Fire Country Daimyo and his entourage walk out of the torii gate, the old man Kakuzu began to stir again.
This time, he sent out the Earth Release mask, which carefully stepped over the shimenawa and arrived below the target official's palanquin.
Just as he was manipulating Earth Release Chakra, preparing to use an earth spike to kill this target, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
Underground, nothing could be seen, only sensed by Chakra, yet there was nothing, but Kakuzu still didn't let his guard down.
Unfortunately, the fate of his mask was already sealed; a large snake opened its mouth and bit Kakuzu's Earth Release mask from behind.
With interlocking fangs, the Earth Release mask shattered instantly, and Kakuzu finally understood through the last sensation that he had been attacked by some massive creature from underground.
Kakuzu now understood that the previous shattering of the Wind Release mask was perhaps due to this massive creature, a monster that lived and moved freely in the earth.
"It must be some kind of Summoning Beast! Damn it, it destroyed two of my masks. I'll deal with you after I kill the target!"
Kakuzu thought that the massive creature could only travel through the earth, so he decided to act personally, kill the target, get the head, and then immediately retreat.
Kakuzu's speed was incredibly fast; a Body Flicker Technique crossed a hundred meters in an instant, but his movements also caught the attention of the guarding Ninja and Samurai General.
Several guarding Ninja immediately began to form hand signs; most of them were Chunin, with only two barely having Jonin strength.
Their hand sign speed was naturally a bit slow, but those Samurai General were not afraid of death; they drew their naginata and rushed forward with shouts.
Although these Samurai General could not use Chakra, their bodies, trained year-round, and their combat skills honed through deadly battles were also extraordinary.
Even when facing Chunin, once they got close, they could gain the upper hand with their taijutsu, though their stamina was a bit lacking.
Kakuzu naturally didn't care about these Samurai General seeking death; several fireballs shot out from his mouth, instantly blowing them away, sending them sprawling.
They also didn't expect Kakuzu to use Ninjutsu so quickly; in an instant, most of the Samurai General were blown to death, and some were burned and concussed.
Some Samurai General who still had combat capability immediately fell to the ground and feigned death; if they could win, they were the most loyal subordinates, but if they couldn't, preserving their lives was naturally more important.
The initial battle was unfavorable, and some servants carrying palanquins trembled with fear, unable to steady the palanquins, and some court officials lost their composure, being covered by their subordinates and preparing to flee.
Even the Fire Country Daimyo was protected by the few remaining guarding Ninja, holding a fan to cover his face, but a closer inspection would reveal that the fan was trembling.
Kakuzu sneered, naturally understanding the thoughts of these Samurai General, but he didn't care; as long as they didn't block him, he disdained to act.
At this moment, the guarding Ninja's Ninjutsu was ready; it was a combination of Wind Release and Fire Release Ninjutsu. Several of them combined to use it, with wind nourishing fire, covering a large area of the forest.
Since ancient times, large-scale Fire Release Ninjutsu often produced smoke without causing harm, but Kakuzu, an old cunning fox who could burrow, directly dodged the most violent explosions and scorching.
Those guarding Ninja saw the enemy had turned to ashes and were about to withdraw and collect their rewards, but the next second, countless eerie black threads spread out from around them.
The threads pierced their skin, directly entering their bodies and spreading towards their hearts; even though they were extremely terrified, it was useless.
And Kakuzu, who was manipulating Earth Grudge Fear, preparing to seize two hearts, again felt a chill down his spine; he just remembered there was still something underground.
He immediately prepared to leap out of the ground by relying on the pull of Earth Grudge Fear, and closely following him, Ling's Shikigami Great Snake also burst out of the ground with its maw wide open.
Kakuzu's expression was extremely ugly; among those in the Ninja World who had such a great snake as a Summoning Beast, he only thought of Orochimaru. Although he considered himself a senior and didn't necessarily think he would lose, it wouldn't be an easy victory either.
The great snake's massive body burst out of the ground and coiled, its head like a train engine, its body over two hundred meters long, more slender and beautiful than the snakes of Ryūchi Cave.
Kakuzu's expression was grim; he retreated dozens of meters by stepping on tree branches, staring intently at the great snake whose scales were crystal clear like white jade.
If Kakuzu was like this, those Samurai General and guarding Ninja were even worse; the Samurai General no longer cared about honor, using all fours to flee rapidly while feigning death.
And those court officials and the Daimyo, protected by their subordinates, were also trembling, their legs shaking; such a great snake could wipe out their entire force with just a couple of bites.
"Orochimaru! It's you, right! It must be you! This old man only wanted to kill an official, there's no need for us to fight to the death!"
Kakuzu was fully alert to the surroundings; he knew Orochimaru, who was like a venomous snake, and he couldn't sense anyone's presence at all.
This made his expression even uglier, as if the tree branches under his feet would turn into venomous snakes and attack him, and the faint feeling of being watched made him realize that Orochimaru was nearby.
Seeing that Orochimaru didn't appear, still confronting him with the great snake, Kakuzu felt humiliated; he, Kakuzu, was someone who had fought the First Hokage and survived.
Now this Konoha junior dared to treat him with such contempt, so even Kakuzu, who loved money the most, decided to fight Orochimaru.
The Earth Grudge Fear that Kakuzu had inserted into the guarding Ninja's bodies began to contract, pulling out several fully transformed heart masks.
The next second, several incredibly sharp wind blades cut through, slicing these newly collected masks and even the Earth Grudge Fear itself, at an unbelievably fast speed.
"Orochimaru! You deserve to die!" Kakuzu felt very insecure; now he only had three lives left, which made him consider whether to retreat.
The next second, the great snake suddenly lunged, its fangs in its mouth densely packed like sawteeth; these were python teeth, but they were all venomous fangs.
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