Even if I open the Eight Gates, overpowering him in taijutsu will be difficult. To gain the upper hand, I need to play to my own strengths…
In the forest, as Qianyu pondered, Kakuzu moved. Time was money, and he was a man who hated to waste it.
"Wind Style: Pressure Damage!"
"Fire Style: Intelligent Hard Work!"
The Wind and Fire masks on Kakuzu's shoulders opened their mouths wide, spewing forth a super-compressed sphere of high-pressure wind and a searing fireball, shooting straight for Qianyu.
"Combination Jutsu: Fiery Wind Wave!"
Kakuzu opened with his strongest kill-shot. Propelled by the whirlwind-like gale, the fireball erupted into a raging sea of flames the moment it touched the ground, surging toward Qianyu.
"A combo jutsu? I can do that too!"
Qianyu growled, facing the incoming inferno without a trace of fear. On his hands, chakra of different natures swirled simultaneously.
He was going to unleash two different elemental jutsu at once, relying on his perfect chakra control!
"Wind Style: Rasengan!"
"Water Style: Breaking Wave!"
In one hand, Qianyu held a spinning sphere of wind (infused with Wind nature). In the other, a vortex of churning water. He hurled both forward, straight into the wall of fire.
"Hurricane Vortex Jutsu!"
The two techniques met mid-air. A waterspout, rivaling the firestorm in scale, erupted from the ground and crashed headlong into the sea of flames.
WHOOSH! BOOM! HISS!
Vortexes of crimson and azure tore at each other like wild beasts. Scorching heat clashed with biting cold. The spectacle was terrifying. Finally, bereft of sustaining chakra, both forces dissipated into nothingness, leaving behind a thick blanket of white mist.
"Jiongu: Final Shot!"
Before Qianyu could even catch his breath, Kakuzu's cold voice cut through the mist.
The next instant, a beam of concentrated Wind, Fire, and Lightning chakra, humming with a faint, annihilating aura, shot through the fog toward Qianyu.
How is his shot so fast?!
Qianyu's heart lurched.
His own chakra was still settling. How could Kakuzu launch another jutsu—one this potent and condensed—so quickly?!
He must have started channeling this the moment he unleashed Fiery Wind Wave! He calculated the timing!
The realization hit Qianyu instantly. Compared to this old monster's experience, he was still far too green!
"Ninja Art: Needle Jizo!"
The chakra beam was upon him in a flash. No time to dodge. He twisted sideways—too late—as his hair extended and hardened, shielding his vitals.
THUMP!
Against such a terrifying strike, Qianyu was predictably blasted away. He forced himself to stabilize mid-air with paper wings, blood and chakra roiling inside him. He spat out a mouthful of blood flecked with meat.
"Cough… Damn, that packed a punch! Hahaha!"
Despite the heavy injury, despite looking like hell, Qianyu grinned. His eyes blazed brighter than ever.
"Did that last hit scramble your brains?"
The mist cleared. Kakuzu's tall frame emerged, eyeing the miraculously-still-alive Qianyu with a flicker of surprise. His voice was flat.
"No. I just figured out how to beat you."
Qianyu shook his head confidently, dispersing his paper wings and landing. He raised a hand and undid the Eight Trigrams Seal on his body.
His taijutsu couldn't match Kakuzu's. His elemental ninjutsu might not win either. But there was one thing, one single thing, where he had Kakuzu completely outclassed.
"Next, witness the true power of Qianyu! Know this—they call me the Tailless Tailed Beast! Hahahaha!"
An immense torrent of chakra gushed forth from within him. Feeling that surge of absolute power, Qianyu laughed wildly.
"Oh?"
Kakuzu's brow furrowed. This was… unexpected.
Qianyu's presence skyrocketed. His chakra volume, after releasing the seal, exploded—multiplying several times over, reaching a level that even gave Kakuzu a moment's pause.
"…Tailless Tailed Beast? That's just the Eight-Tails' chakra, isn't it?"
After a long silence, Kakuzu suddenly spoke, his tone eerily calm.
Qianyu: "…You're no fun at all. Secret Healing Injury Destruction!"
Zzzzt—
Flooded with massive chakra, Qianyu pushed the technique to a level akin to the Yin Seal. His wounds closed up, healing almost completely in the blink of an eye.
"So this is your plan?" Kakuzu said tonelessly. "More chakra changes nothing. You're still no match."
"Nope, nope." Qianyu shook his head, his tone infuriatingly smug. "Not just 'more chakra.' My chakra is a lot. A whole lot."
"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Qianyu formed hand seals, puffed his cheeks, and forcefully spat a torrent of water at the ground.
WHOOSH—!
In moments, a wave three or four stories tall surged up, lifting Qianyu on its crest. The deluge raced outward in all directions, transforming the surrounding forest into a vast, churning sea in the blink of an eye.
"This brat…!"
Kakuzu leaped into the air just before the tidal wave could smash into him. Staring down at the landscape-altering scale of the technique, a look of genuine shock crossed his face for the first time.
The last time he'd seen a jutsu on this scale was when facing the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. One clap of his hands, and their battlefield had become a sprawling primordial forest.
This kid… had a faint echo of the First's bearing.
"You know you can't beat me, so you're trying to limit my elemental jutsu, forcing a battle of attrition…"
Kakuzu, the seasoned veteran, saw through Qianyu's plan instantly. But it was an open move. As long as he still wanted to hunt Qianyu, he had to play along.
In this watery expanse, his Fiery Wind Wave lost most of its destructive potential—effectively neutralizing one of his trump cards.
"Tch. You're no Hashirama Senju. Just a brat."
Kakuzu merely contemplated for a moment before a confident, icy smirk returned. True masters never complained about the environment.
RIP! RIP! RIP!
Kakuzu's arms split open once more. Thick, black tendrils surged from his body. The Wind and Fire masks detached, morphing into two tall, black monsters.
Immediately, the mask representing the Water attribute rose from his shoulder, taking its place beside the Lightning mask. They replaced the departed Wind and Fire ones.
"Switching to Water and Lightning to counter me in this environment? Using the mask monsters and his own body for close combat…"
Qianyu knew. Those five masks of different chakra natures were Kakuzu's five hearts. They represented his five lives.
Until all five masks were destroyed simultaneously, Kakuzu was effectively immortal.
"Still haven't given up on hunting me? Sorry, old man Kakuzu, but that's on you."
A faint smile played beneath Qianyu's mask.
Before obtaining the Crown Prince's ultimate move, aside from wearing Kakuzu down, he really had no way to seriously hurt him. But now…
Qianyu had been wondering how to get close to the overwhelmingly powerful Kakuzu to deliver a point-blank Wind Style: Rasengan Shuriken.
Talk about perfect timing. Craving takeout, and the delivery guy shows up at your door. Wanting to sleep, and a lovely lady… ahem.
Qianyu and Kakuzu locked eyes, neither missing the slightest twitch in the other's posture.
Though Kakuzu would never admit it aloud, in his mind, he had already elevated Qianyu to the level of a peer opponent.
SWOOSH!
Kakuzu didn't move. But the two mask monsters suddenly flanked Qianyu from behind. At the same moment, the two masks on his shoulders gaped open.
"Lightning Style: False Darkness!"
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
Before him: a terrifying lightning spear and a high-pressure water cannon screamed through the air. Behind him: two grotesque mask monsters closed in. Qianyu's feet left the water's surface. His fingers flew through hand seals.
"Water Style: Multiple Water Formation Walls!"
Layer upon layer of resilient water walls sprang up before Qianyu, blocking the lightning spear and water cannon—and Kakuzu's line of sight.
Why isn't he blocking his rear as well? …Bad move! Kakuzu's mind raced, realizing the trap.
SHWIIIP—CRACK!
The water walls shattered one by one under the assault, collapsing back into the sea. A sharp, shrieking sound—something tearing violently through the air—grew louder, clearer.
"Wind Style: Rasengan Shuriken!"
From within the dissipating mist, Qianyu held aloft a shuriken woven entirely from howling wind. He hurled it straight at the two black mask monsters, himself diving beneath the waves in the same motion.
BOOOOOOM!
A catastrophic storm erupted from the shuriken's center, instantly whipping the sea into a frenzy. Trees from the nearby shore snapped and were sucked into the vortex. Kakuzu's main body was forced to retreat.
And at the storm's heart, Wind-natured chakra shattered into countless, razor-thin needles. They spun outwards like a tempest of lethal rain, lashing into the two mask monsters.
SHWIP! SHWIP! SHWIP!
Under the relentless, high-frequency piercing of the ultra-fine wind needles, the two monsters convulsed violently. Their mouths gaped open uncontrollably, spraying clouds of bloody mist. They were clearly dying.
[Ding! Treatment successful. Congratulations, Host, for obtaining…]
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
Read up to (100+ ) advanced chapters on Patre\on
Visit us here: patreon.com/BingeInk
Happy reading, everyone!