"No matter how hard you try, it won't change your helplessness. Give up. After all, I have no intention of taking his life; I just want to take a little something."
Orochimaru walked forward step by step.
Masahiko's hand holding the blade was trembling.
Of course.
Most of it was acting, but he was indeed somewhat surprised—
Only by facing Orochimaru directly could one understand that kind of oppressive feeling.
The other party's killing intent and aura were indeed very terrifying.
Just the pressure of him walking toward you made it difficult to even think of resisting; those with slightly weak wills would find it impossible to withstand.
Masahiko took a deep breath and drew his blade.
"I won't let you pass!"
"Masahiko-kun, you are very talented. I really don't want to kill you."
Orochimaru licked his lips. "What a pity..."
"I think killing me won't be that simple for you."
Masahiko seemed to remain calm, unaffected by Orochimaru's aura.
Orochimaru sneered and was about to speak when a burst of Chakra aura erupted, quickly heading this way.
He looked into the distance and chuckled, "Your reinforcements have arrived."
Kakashi arrived quickly, landing in front of Masahiko with a Body Flicker, and said softly: "Masahiko, go support Asuma and the others... I'll handle things here!"
His expression was solemn.
"Alright."
Masahiko did not decline. "I'll settle things over there as quickly as possible."
"Mm."
Kakashi stared at Orochimaru, his expression full of resolve.
Naruto huddled beside Kurenai Yuhi.
The next moment, Masahiko disappeared from the spot... on the outskirts.
Kazuma and Asuma stood facing each other.
"Kazuma, I didn't expect you to have changed so much. You'll do anything for your plans!"
Asuma looked pained.
Kazuma remained silent.
The Twelve Guardian Shinobi... they were once comrades-in-arms who fought side by side, and only later did ideological differences gradually emerge.
He looked into the distance and sighed softly: "The two 'Kings' are in opposition; this is inevitable. As Ninja, we can only choose one. I chose the Daimyo, and you chose the Hokage."
Kazuma paused for a second and smiled: "You are the son of the Hokage, so it's only right you chose him."
"This has nothing to do with me being the Hokage's son, Kazuma. I identify with the current system because the Ninja World needs peace. Four powerful Hidden Villages are watching us from all sides..."
Asuma still tried to persuade him through conversation, "Once internal strife occurs within us or Konoha, it will likely trigger a new Ninja World War."
"Asuma, what is there to say to him? Give Kitako back her life!"
Seito was brimming with killing intent.
Kazuma frowned and said, "What happened to Kitako has nothing to do with us."
"Do you dare say that Orochimaru wasn't hired by you?"
Nango questioned.
Kazuma was silent for a moment before saying, "Orochimaru... indeed has nothing to do with us."
"We both know what's going on."
Asuma gripped his Trench Knives as his Chakra erupted. "Since we can't be honest, there's nothing left to say."
Kazuma's face turned cold as he said, "Change is accompanied by sacrifice; it has been so since ancient times... Our ideologies differ, so there really is nothing left to say."
He took out his weapon, donning his four-bladed claws.
Before either of them had fully decided to start the battle, Seito and the others could wait no longer. They all condensed their Chakra, and in an instant, thunder roared.
The four of them were trained in the Ninjutsu 'Limelight'.
If Kitako were still here, they could have used this Ninjutsu to directly restrict the enemy.
However.
Kitako was already dead.
They couldn't perform Limelight, so they could only rely on their mutual rapport and abilities to synchronize their Chakra and connect with each other.
Seito quickly formed hand seals.
Immediately, a large amount of lightning poured out, spitting forward.
Lightning Release: False Darkness!
Asuma took a deep breath and was about to say something when a slight look of astonishment suddenly appeared on his face, and his gaze swept toward his companions—
In the distance, a figure appeared faintly, charging out from the shadows at the same moment the lightning erupted.
This made him hesitate slightly.
Kazuma, however, did not hesitate. The hand wearing the claw swung forward violently, and a wind blade shot out fiercely.
Wind Release: Beast Wave Palm!
The massive Chakra and the elemental advantage instantly sliced through the False Darkness, revealing a gap in the middle and preventing it from unleashing its full power.
However.
In that instant, a cry of alarm suddenly came from behind: "Feili, watch out!"
Kazuma immediately turned his head.
A glimpse from the corner of his eye—
He saw someone approaching his five companions from behind at an unimaginable speed.
Feili was naturally not unprepared.
He formed hand seals and pressed them to the ground. In an instant, the ground rose, turning into an earth wall.
But in the next second, what shocked everyone was—
The Earth Style: Mud Wall was instantly split by a vertical crack.
Looking through the crack, the opponent was enveloped in lightning, and the lightning gathered in his palm like a blade.
This looked like a Nintaijutsu from the Hidden Cloud Village... Lightning Release: Lariat!
Feili didn't dare be careless and immediately dove into the earth, but in an instant, a Shadow Clone had already sprinted in front of him.
Boom!
A hand chop.
Lightning erupted, and the ground cracked open!
Feili maintained an expression of shock, seemingly unable to understand why someone from the Hidden Cloud Village would come all the way to the Land of Fire's capital to kill people.
The exploding lightning left everyone stunned.
Including Seito and the others.
Kazuma immediately felt something was wrong and shouted, "Wait! Who are you?"
However.
The other person just glanced into the distance, then chuckled softly, and his figure disappeared from the spot.
The one who mastered such powerful Lightning Release abilities... was actually just a Shadow Clone!
Everyone found it hard to believe.
However.
What was even more shocking was—
In the next second, not far away, an astonishing, terrifying Chakra aura filled with evil erupted. The fearsome fluctuations could be clearly felt even from here.
"That's!"
A look of horror appeared on Jiraiya's face as he said, "That kind of Chakra that appeared at the Fire Temple before..."
"It's the Nine-Tailed!"
Asuma's face was grim as he glared at Kazuma, "Damn it! How dare you target the Tailed Beast!"
"This is the Nine-Tailed's Chakra?"
Jiraiya was extremely surprised.
Kazuma frowned, realizing there was no way to explain it clearly now.
And.
He had to resolve this quickly!
Orochimaru... he didn't have time to think about him.
Because Asuma and Jiraiya had already attacked simultaneously.
Former companions and comrades-in-arms had finally reached the point of turning their weapons against each other.
In the midst of the chaotic battle, Kitako's black rods were thrown by Touma, splitting into three and landing around a person. In the blink of an eye, a barrier constructed of lightning formed to trap the enemy.
Seito acted with perfect rapport, lightning gathering in his palm.
"Pay for Kitako's life!"
Clang!
After a crisp sound, one of the black rods was knocked away, and the lightning binding barrier formed by the three rods instantly collapsed.
But at the same time.
"Asuma-senpai, Orochimaru is attacking Naruto. We need to finish things here quickly!"
A shout came from behind, "Get out of the way!"
Masahiko arrived quickly.
Kazuma was just fending off Asuma and retreating to form hand seals for a technique, but then... a fireball gushed and rolled from not far away.
The fireball contained a large amount of chaotic Chakra, and that eerie aura made Kazuma instinctively feel that something was wrong.
Asuma instinctively used a Shadow Clone to entangle him, forcing Kazuma to be unable to retreat, while his main body followed Masahiko's warning and backed away with Jiraiya to support their companions.
Kazuma's reaction was already fast, but being entangled by Asuma, he couldn't run far in an instant and could only slightly avoid the range of the flames.
The next second—
Boom!
The Chakra inside the flames seemed to lose its restraint, expanding and exploding chaotically, and the color of the flames on the outside also changed rapidly.
Not good!
The colors on the surface of Kazuma's body shifted rapidly.
Earth Release: Hardening Technique!
After increasing his defense, he braced himself to take a hit from Asuma's Shadow Clone and directly swung a wind blade with his backhand to kill the clone.
But at the same time, the flames expanded and exploded violently.
Firelight flew in all directions, and a heatwave erupted, sweeping through the surroundings and swallowing everything.
Seeing this, Asuma swallowed hard in nervousness.
If it hadn't been for Masahiko's warning and them running so fast, he and Jiraiya probably would have been caught in it too.
Was this guy... trying to kill them as well?