Chapter 119: This is Divine Punishment
"These guys are really too cunning," Naruto said, clenching his teeth. "We must find a way to find them and avenge Jirōkuyō-sensei!"
"We will, we will definitely find them," Byakuya said firmly. "But for now, we must remain calm and patient. Only then can we find their weakness."
On the other hand, the squad led by Asuma rushed to the Temple of Fire. The Temple of Fire was in a mess, clearly having just undergone a major battle.
"What happened here?" Asuma asked with a grave expression.
"Not sure," the team members shook their heads. "But it looks like someone got here before us."
Asuma searched carefully within the Temple of Fire, trying to find some useful clues. Finally, in a hidden corner, he found a torn scrap of paper. There was a faint, strange scent remaining on the paper, which Asuma immediately recognized as the unique scent of an Akatsuki member.
"They've been here!" Asuma gripped the scrap of paper. "We must find them!"
Through further investigation, Asuma discovered that the members of the Akatsuki Organization had gone to the nearest Bounty Exchange Point after leaving the Temple of Fire. Thus, Asuma immediately led his team members there.
When they arrived at the Bounty Exchange Point, they saw Hidan standing there, looking at them with a smile.
"I've finally found you," Asuma said coldly.
"Oh? Are you here to die?" Hidan sneered. "Then come at me!"
Saying that, Hidan launched an attack on Asumas Squad. His speed was extremely fast, and his strength was surprisingly powerful. The members of Asumas Squad engaged in battle one after another, trying to stop Hidan's offensive.
However, Hidan seemed to possess an immortal body; no matter how much damage he took, he could recover quickly. The attacks from Asumas Squad were useless against him, instead making him even more arrogant.
"Is this the power of the Akatsuki Organization?" Asuma clenched his fists, his heart filled with anger and frustration. "We absolutely cannot lose to them!"
However, facing Hidan's powerful strength, Asumas Squad fell into a predicament. They had to find Hidan's weakness as soon as possible, or the consequences would be unimaginable.
"Let's use that, the one I dislike the most..." Just when everyone was at their wits' end, Asuma proposed a tactic that surprised Shikamaru and the others.
"What? Are we going to use that Climbing Silver tactic?" Shikamaru's eyes widened.
"Yeah..." Asuma nodded.
"Understood..." Despite his reluctance, Shikamaru still executed Asuma's order.
At that moment, Asuma unleashed Fire Release on Hidan. Surprisingly, after being attacked, Hidan's body remained completely unharmed. On the contrary, Asuma was burned by his own Fire Release!
"How can this be..." Asuma looked at his wound with a shocked expression.
"Heh heh, this is God's judgment!" Hidan sneered. "You will experience this endless pain along with me!"
However, just as Hidan was about to launch another attack, Shikamaru suddenly discovered Hidan's weakness.
"Asuma-sama! Get out of the way!" Shikamaru shouted.
With Shikamaru's warning, Asuma quickly dodged Hidan's attack. However, Hidan's attack did not stop, and his body was actually split in two by Asuma's attack!
"What! This... what's going on?" Asuma looked at Hidan, whose head and body were in different places, with an expression of disbelief.
Yet, shockingly, Hidan's body could still move!
"Hahaha, you can't kill me!" Hidan laughed wildly.
Just then, another member of the Akatsuki Organization, Kakuzu, appeared. He performed an even weirder Ninjutsu, plunging Asuma and the others into an even greater predicament.
"It seems things are getting more and more interesting," Kakuzu sneered. "I'll let you know the consequences of making an enemy of the Akatsuki!"
Asumas Squad gradually lost ground in the battle against Kakuzu and Hidan, and Asuma was also seriously injured.
"Retreat! Asuma-sama's condition is not good!" Shikamaru decisively gave the retreat order.
However, just as they were preparing to retreat, Hidan and Kakuzu suddenly stopped their attacks and revealed eerie smiles.
"Humph, consider yourselves lucky," Hidan sneered. "We have more important things to do."
Saying that, he and Kakuzu turned and left.
"Asuma-sama, hang in there!" The support team led by Ino and Choji arrived just in time.
Seeing Asuma's injuries, Ino immediately took out medical Ninja tools to treat him. However, Asuma's injuries were too severe, and the medical tools couldn't stop his bleeding at all.
---Requesting Flowers--- "No... I can't make it..." Asuma said with a bitter smile. "You must leave here quickly... inform Hokage-sama... the Akatsuki Organization's target might be the Land of Fire..."
"Asuma-sama!" Ino, Choji, and the others were in tears.
Asuma gave them one last smile and then slowly closed his eyes.
"Asuma-sama!!!" Ino, Choji, and the others cried out heart-wrenchingly.
However, Asuma could no longer hear them. He lay there quietly, leaving them forever.
Ino, Choji, and the others silently gathered Asuma's remains and left this place filled with sorrow. They knew they had to report this news to Hokage-sama as soon as possible so that Konoha Village could prepare for the threat of the Akatsuki Organization... Although this battle had ended, the pain and memories it left behind could never be erased. Asuma's sacrifice filled everyone with grief and anger, and they were determined to avenge Asuma and protect Konoha Village from the Akatsuki Organization.
While the Akatsuki were sealing the Two-Tails, the group that had returned to Konohagakure was reporting the mission's execution to Byakuya. Although the mission was not successful, they brought back important intelligence about the Akatsuki, as well as Asuma's final words.
"Hokage-sama, Asuma, he..." Ino's voice choked up, unable to continue. Byakuya nodded heavily, his gaze deep as he thought about how to deal with the threat of the Akatsuki while also arranging Asuma's funeral.
On the other hand, Naruto's training had also run into trouble. He was trying to master a new technique, but progress was not smooth. Naruto's heart was filled with impatience; he craved power and wanted to grow faster to protect the Village and his friends. However, training was not something that happened overnight, and he encountered an insurmountable bottleneck.
Asuma's funeral was held in Konohagakure, and the entire Village was immersed in deep sorrow. Asuma's sacrifice made many people feel pained and also strengthened everyone's determination to fight the Akatsuki. However, Shikamaru chose to be absent. He sat alone at the place where Asuma had sacrificed himself, reminiscing about the time spent with Asuma, his heart filled with unspeakable loss and pain.
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