"That's my Shikon Jewel fragment! I'm going to become an immortal who lives forever!"
Seeing Uchiha Retsu about to take the Shikon fragment, Peach Man's eyes exploded with madness and malice. Enduring the intense pain, he raised the peachwood staff in his right hand. Power gathered within it as he tried to launch another attack.
"Wouldn't it be better to just die quietly?"
A cruel smile curled at Retsu's lips. He suddenly exerted force with his foot and stomped down hard on Peach Man's arm that was holding the staff.
Crack—!
The crisp sound of bones shattering was drowned out by the rumble of the collapsing ground.
"Aaaah—!"
A shrill scream tore through the air. Peach Man's body convulsed violently. His eyes bulged, bloodshot from the overwhelming pain.
Retsu slowly lifted his foot.
In the shattered ground below, Peach Man's entire right arm had been crushed into a bloody mess. Flesh and bone fragments were splattered everywhere. The peachwood staff, now covered in blood and碎骨, fell to the side with a clatter.
Ignoring his miserable wailing, Retsu bent down and directly pulled the Shikon Jewel fragment from his abdomen.
The moment it left his body, a faint light flashed. Peach Man's aura instantly weakened.
"He's no longer human. The deathly aura on him is far too strong," Kikyo said calmly as she walked over. She took the fragment Retsu handed her, frowning slightly.
"Yeah." Retsu nodded and glanced at the human-faced fruit tree nearby. "His aura comes from the same source as that tree. He's probably connected to it somehow."
"Still, he's tougher than I expected," Retsu added, looking at Peach Man, who was still screaming and struggling. "Even without the fragment, he's still conscious."
"Probably because he used to be an immortal," Kikyo said after observing him carefully. "I don't sense any demonic aura from him. The Shikon Jewel didn't enhance him that much."
"That makes sense," Retsu agreed.
Peach Man's aura was indeed strange. Beneath the thick deathly energy, it was mixed with the power of natural energy from the demon tree. It was neither demonic power nor spiritual power.
"Wood Style: Tree Binding Burial!"
Retsu rapidly formed hand seals.
In the next instant, thick wooden vines burst from the ground beneath Peach Man like countless venomous snakes, wrapping around his body tightly.
They quickly expanded and fused together. Within seconds, a towering tree rose from the earth, completely sealing Peach Man inside.
"W-What is this thing?!"
Only his head remained exposed. His body was firmly imprisoned within the trunk. No matter how hard he struggled, it was useless. His eyes were filled with terror.
"Stay here for now. I'll deal with you later," Retsu said flatly.
The tree formed by Wood Style would continuously absorb his energy, completely stripping him of resistance.
"You monster! Let me out! I'm the immortal of Peach Paradise! I can make you live forever!"
Unable to escape, Peach Man began to scream nonsense in desperation, his voice hoarse and ugly.
"Shut up."
Retsu frowned. Looking at his mouth full of fangs flapping nonstop, he had an idea.
A thin branch immediately grew from the tree and wrapped tightly around Peach Man's mouth, sealing it shut. He could only make muffled "mmph" sounds.
"Are you someone who escaped from the bonsai world?"
At that moment, a weak voice suddenly sounded.
Retsu turned toward the source.
While he had been dealing with Peach Man, Kikyo had already moved to the base of the human-faced fruit tree. She was now aiming her bow cautiously at a strange creature planted in a ceramic pot.
The voice had come from there.
Kikyo was also carefully observing it.
It was a dwarf peach tree planted in a jar. Only a few withered yellow leaves clung to its branches. Yet a massive peach blossom bloomed at its top.
At the center of the flower, where the pistil should be, was the head of an old man with white hair and beard. The sight was extremely grotesque.
Hearing the question, Kikyo did not answer. Instead, she tightened her grip on the bowstring and aimed directly at the head.
"Who are you? Are you his accomplice?" she asked coldly.
"With shame, I must say… I was once Peach Man's master," the head replied weakly.
"Peach Man? That thing full of deathly aura?" Kikyo was surprised, but she didn't lower her arrow. "You're his master?"
"Yes."
The old man sighed.
"I am his master. The immortal of Peach Paradise—Peach Immortal."
Hearing this, Kikyo's expression turned icy. She pointed her arrow straight at him.
"As an immortal, you raised such a monster and let so many innocent people die!"
"It wasn't me who turned him into that," Peach Immortal replied slowly. "It was the human-faced fruit tree."
"What do you mean? Explain clearly," Retsu said as he walked to Kikyo's side, staring sharply at the old man.
Kikyo lowered her bow slightly when he arrived, but remained on guard.
"That happened one month ago," Peach Immortal began, recalling the past.
"At that time, Peach Man found a Shikon Jewel fragment beneath the tree. He accidentally dropped it onto the tree itself.
After obtaining the fragment, the tree's power increased greatly. It spoke to Peach Man and tempted him into eating a human-faced fruit."
"After he ate it, his mind was controlled by the tree. He became its puppet.
Then, following its orders, he turned me into nourishment so it could grow fruits of immortality."
"And then?" Retsu urged impatiently when the old man paused.
"You said you became fertilizer. So why are you still alive?"
Seeing that neither of them relaxed their guard, a trace of gloom flashed in Peach Immortal's eyes before being concealed.
He continued,
"To truly gain immortality, that fruit alone isn't enough. It must be refined into medicine. And only I know that method."
"So that's how it is."
Retsu nodded, a faint, ambiguous smile appearing on his face as he stepped toward the jar.
Kikyo glanced at him but did not follow. She remained where she was, holding her bow, ready to strike at any moment.
"That's right. Thank you both for defeating Peach Man," Peach Immortal said, forcing a smile as Retsu drew closer.
But his eyes were tense.
The man before him looked gentle on the surface, yet his gaze was cold and emotionless. It made Peach Immortal feel an inexplicable sense of dread.
"On the other side of the cliff, there's a path down the mountain. You can leave from there."
"What about you?"
Retsu squatted in front of the jar and looked straight into his eyes. His voice was calm.
"Do you want me to save you?"
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