Aokawa seized a brief opening as Killer Bee changed his stance, and Wind Release Chakra flickered atop his Spirit Blade.
"Vacuum Blade!"
A condensed wind blade detached from the tip of the Spirit Blade, flying straight toward Killer Bee's face with a sharp whistling sound.
This forced Killer Bee to pull back a blade to parry, creating a precious opening.
"Go!" Aokawa shouted without looking back, his Spirit Blade blurring into afterimages in front of him.
"Wind Release: Phantom Sword Dance!"
Countless crescent-shaped blades were carved out before him, stacking together before tearing forward alongside two even larger blades.
Clang, clang, clang!
Killer Bee was instantly thrown into a frantic state, looking quite disheveled.
His seven Ninja Blades swung in an airtight defense, hastily blocking the sudden swarm of blades as he was forced further back.
Kakashi reacted the fastest. Seizing the opportunity, he grabbed the dazed Uchiha Inabi and shouted to the others, "Retreat! Move!"
Uchiha Inabi and Hinata Iruha also sprang into action, hoisting Hyuga Ryosuke—who had just received emergency treatment—and other wounded onto their backs, sprinting for their lives toward the dense forest behind them.
Each of them knew in their hearts that staying behind would only make them a burden.
Watching the Konoha group flee, Killer Bee ceased his playful antics. For the first time, a hint of coldness entered his unique rapping tone.
"Yo! You want to leave? Have you asked this lord? You fool! You bastard!"
Before his voice faded, the repelled Killer Bee charged forward again, the Orange-red Chakra Cloak around him boiling even more violently.
His contorted body suddenly spun at high speed, like a whirling top.
Using the powerful centrifugal force, the six Ninja Blades tucked into his body—aside from the one in his right hand—flew out!
Shink, shink, shink, shink, shink, shink!
Six lethal flashes transformed into silver lines, whistling through the air as they streaked from six completely different, tricky angles, aiming straight for the backs of the retreating Konoha group!
Running at the rear to cover their retreat, Kakashi barely managed to track the trajectory of the spinning blades.
He wanted to turn and block, but his body couldn't keep up with his reactions.
"It's over!" Despair clouded everyone's hearts.
In this critical moment.
A dazzling white zigzag suddenly flashed within Kakashi's field of vision!
The white light moved at an uncatchable speed, tracing a beautiful angular path through the air as it appeared precisely in the path of those six flashes.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!
Six crisp metallic clangs rang out, so fast they almost merged into a single sound!
The six lethal flying blades were all knocked down mid-air, losing all momentum and landing uselessly in the ground behind them, vibrating slightly.
What happened?
Everyone's minds went blank.
Meanwhile, Killer Bee himself had used the moment of the throw to turn his body into a red afterimage, lunging right in front of Kakashi.
His last remaining Ninja Blade, carrying the violent power of Tailed Beast Chakra, cleaved downward!
This strike was unavoidable!
However, just as the blade was about to touch Kakashi's headband...
That white zigzag that had just knocked down the six flying blades appeared out of thin air once again between Kakashi and Killer Bee!
Clang—!
A heavy, deafening boom!
Aokawa's figure coalesced. With his back to Kakashi, he gripped his Spirit Blade with both hands, using every ounce of his strength to steadily block Killer Bee's earth-shattering blow.
The ground beneath his feet couldn't withstand the immense force, and spiderweb-like cracks instantly spread out.
Kakashi's pupils constricted to their limit; his brain had stopped thinking because of the scene before him.
In an instant, using the Body Flicker Technique to knock down six high-speed Ninja Blades in six different locations, and then teleporting again to his front to block a lethal attack?
Was this something a human could do? This wasn't just the Body Flicker Technique anymore; this was... teleportation, right?!
"Your opponent is me!" Aokawa looked calmly at Killer Bee, growling in a raspy voice.
This low growl was like a heavy hammer, jolting the stunned Konoha Ninjas awake.
They didn't dare hesitate for another second, nor did they have time to think about that incredible scene. The instinct for survival overrode everything else as they used their last bit of strength to dash frantically into the deep forest.
Killer Bee looked at the youth before him. The gaze behind his sunglasses shifted from playful to genuinely intrigued for the first time.
He grinned.
"Yo, finally things are getting interesting. You... are much more fun than that woman Yugito, oh yeah!"
After speaking, Killer Bee's body suddenly dropped low, sliding along the ground in an eerie posture.
His sliding path swept precisely past the six Ninja Blades stuck in the ground.
With a flick of his toe, a long blade popped up, which he caught firmly behind his knee.
With a twist of his body and power from his core, another blade was tucked under his armpit.
The entire process was seamless, filled with a strange sense of rhythm. Even as he recovered his weapons, every movement of his body carried aggression, constantly squeezing Aokawa's space to evade.
In the blink of an eye, all six Ninja Blades were back in place.
Killer Bee resumed his contorted yet lethal Seven-Swords Style stance once again.
This time, the aura radiating from him was like that of a completely different person.
Without his companions weighing him down, the last shred of concern in Aokawa's eyes vanished, leaving only pure fighting spirit.
Almost the moment Killer Bee reset his stance, both of them moved.
Clang! Clang! Clang-clang-clang!
The sound of clashing blades was more than twice as dense as before.
Killer Bee's seven blades were like extensions of his body, attacking simultaneously from incredible angles like armpits, neck, and knees, forming a blade storm with no blind spots.
Even with the combat foresight from Sword Mastery, Aokawa felt unprecedented pressure.
Within the Byakugan's field of vision, the trajectory of every blade was clearly visible, but his body's reaction speed was struggling to keep up with his brain's analysis.
With every block, immense force transmitted through the Spirit Blade into his arms, causing the Chakra Threads under his skin—used to set his broken bones—to let out overburdened groans as they snapped one by one.
Intense pain constantly assaulted his nerves, but he could only fight while dividing his focus to channel more Chakra Threads to re-wrap and reinforce his bones.
While the Byakugan remained fixed on Killer Bee's movements, he also silently calculated the distance Kakashi and the others had covered.
Clang!
In another hard clash, Aokawa used the massive recoil to drift backward.
Simultaneously, a flash of Chakra light appeared beneath his feet.
Hirenkyaku!
His figure vanished instantly, reappearing a moment later on a treetop dozens of meters away, putting significant distance between him and Killer Bee.
Killer Bee stopped his pursuit and looked at the white-clad youth in the distance, speaking with great interest, "Yo! What's wrong? Can't handle close combat, so you want to run? You fool! You bastard!"
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