"Tentacles?"
Jie Uchiha looked at the massive appendage that had suddenly swept in front of him, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Did the Eight-Tails come out to save the day?" he remarked casually.
A fraction of a second later, and Killer B would have died under Jie's probing attack. But at that critical moment, a giant tentacle thrust out from behind the jinchuriki, successfully blocking Jie's blade. Taking advantage of the opening, Killer B hastily retreated, rapidly widening the distance between himself and the Uchiha.
Once he steadied his footing, Killer B's pupils shrank. He surveyed the immediate aftermath: a severed segment of the tentacle and numerous halved trees bearing perfectly smooth cuts, left behind exactly where he had just stood.
'Is this guy really that strong?'
'B, whatever you do, do not underestimate the kid in front of you. I can feel an incredibly terrifying power contained within those eyes,' Gyuki, the Eight-Tails, warned with such gravity that a drop of cold sweat trailed down Killer B's forehead. 'If you don't use your real skills, you might actually die here today.'
"Retreat, all of you! Fall back to the camp!", Killer B ordered the ambushing Kumogakure ninja without looking back. "This guy is too strong. I'll stay behind and cover your escape."
"Yes, sir!"
Seeing even the great Killer B treating the enemy with such extreme caution, the Kumogakure ninja didn't dare utter a single word of complaint. They turned and sprinted toward their camp, terrified to even glance over their shoulders.
"Young Clan Head, should we pursue?" asked an accompanying Uchiha ninja.
"There's no need. They're just lackeys," Jie replied casually, waving a hand. "Besides, the big fish is still right here."
"Understood, Young Clan Head," the Uchiha ninja replied without hesitation.
Jie shifted his stance, his gaze locking onto his opponent. "Killer B, I've heard your Seven Swords Style is quite peculiar. Let me experience it for myself today."
'He even knows about my Seven Swords Style? It seems he has thoroughly gathered intelligence on me,' Killer B thought, frowning slightly as a sense of foreboding rose in his chest. 'Meanwhile, I know absolutely nothing about him. This is troublesome.'
"Stop talking big! There's no way a kid like you could be a match for the great Lord B!" Refusing to lose momentum, Killer B put up a tough front.
Faced with such a formidable enemy, he had completely abandoned his usual rapping cadence. Yet, despite his boastful words, his body responded with utter seriousness as he expertly positioned all seven of his blades.
"Witness the power of my Acrobat!" Killer B declared, his words slightly muffled by the blade clenched in his mouth.
"Is that so?" Jie scoffed, a cold smirk crossing his face. "Then show me what you've got."
In an instant, his figure vanished from his spot.
"Hatake Kenjutsu: Wind Chaser!"
Seeing the brilliant white glow emanating from Jie's blade, Killer B's pupils contracted. From that radiant edge, he felt a lethal threat.
"Acrobat!" Not daring to be careless, Killer B pushed off the tips of his toes. His entire body launched into a bizarre, spinning dance, rotating like a top.
'Directly above. Bottom left. Back right!' Jie's Sharingan was already active, his scarlet eyes tracking and perfectly predicting every erratic shift in Killer B's movements.
'The Seven Swords Style is indeed bizarre. Even when you block one blade, there are at least three others positioned to strike simultaneously. If you fail to notice even a single sword, you'll be swallowed by a relentless barrage of attacks.' After observing the technique for a moment, a flicker of genuine appreciation flashed through Jie's eyes.
'What's more, this swordplay can't be fully replicated, even with the Sharingan's copying ability,' Jie silently analyzed. 'Some of these movements are physically impossible for a normal person. It's likely that Gyuki altered Killer B's physiology, allowing him to execute such inhuman contortions.'
Simultaneously, the longer they fought, the deeper Killer B's astonishment grew. 'This guy's blade is getting faster and faster! If it weren't for your warnings, Eight, I wouldn't have been able to react to several of those strikes.'
'When did the Uchiha clan produce such a monster? Why didn't our village's intelligence networks pick up on him at all?' Killer B thought anxiously. 'This is bad. If this continues, his speed will outpace my reflexes entirely.'
Realizing this, Killer B clashed forcefully against Jie's blade, using the recoil to launch himself backward. He tossed all seven of his swords into the air. Snatching one as it fell, he immediately channeled Lightning Release chakra down his arm and into the short sword.
"Lightning Release: High-Frequency Lightning Blades!"
Lightning arcs danced wildly across the blade, accompanied by a high-frequency hum that reached Jie's ears. Empowered by the Lightning chakra, Killer B's speed surged instantly, catching even the Uchiha slightly off guard for a fraction of a second.
"Break!" Killer B roared, slashing his vibrating short sword directly at the blade in Jie's hand.
In his mind, someone as young as Jie possessing such masterful kenjutsu must dedicate all his time to swordsmanship. Therefore, the core of his combat strength lay in that weapon. As long as he shattered the sword, the Uchiha boy would no longer be a threat. Furthermore, given his youth and formidable power, Killer B was certain Jie held a high status within Konoha. Capturing him alive would provide Kumogakure with a crucial bargaining chip to pressure the Hidden Leaf.
However, what Killer B didn't expect was that his usually unstoppable blade failed to slice through Jie's weapon. In fact, it didn't even leave a noticeable nick.
"Impossible!" Killer B gasped in disbelief.
The two separated as quickly as they clashed. After widening the gap between them, Jie examined the miniscule scuff on his ninjato, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. 'As expected of a sword that cost two hundred million ryo. The quality is simply outstanding.'
'Still, Killer B's so-called High-Frequency Lightning Release technique is quite a decent skill. Infusing Lightning Release chakra into the blade drastically enhances its durability and sharpness. By applying shape transformation to create high-frequency vibrations, it gains cutting power that far surpasses even Wind Release.'
'It's the perfect technique for close-quarters combat to shatter an opponent's weapon.' Furthermore, perhaps because Jie had already fully mastered both the shape and nature transformations of Lightning Release chakra, he inexplicably felt that learning this move wouldn't be difficult at all.
Seeing that Killer B had no immediate intention of attacking again, Jie simply began to simulate the jutsu's mechanics in his mind.
'There's something wrong with that sword!' Killer B thought, his brow tightly furrowed.
Recalling the exceptionally dense white glow enveloping Jie's blade during their clash, a terrifying hypothesis surfaced in his mind. 'Don't tell me I've run into an absolute spendthrift!'
'Forging an entire sword exclusively out of chakra-conductive metal... The terrifying cost of that is something not even the Hokage's son would dare to waste money on!' Thinking of this, a bitter smile crept onto Killer B's face.
This time, he hadn't been outmatched in strength, but in sheer wealth. Looking down at his own short sword, which merely had a fraction of chakra-conductive metal mixed into the alloy, Killer B suddenly felt his weapon was practically a piece of trash in comparison.
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