"Boom boom boom~"
Amidst continuous explosions, Taketsuki, infuriated by embarrassment, once again charged at Minato. In fact, when Minato first broke free and withdrew, Taketsuki had already chosen to escape.
Although there was still a Konoha ANBU watching from afar, Taketsuki, not foolish enough to continue staring at Minato, for some reason felt he was faster than Minato. However, no matter which direction he fled, he would be blocked by Minato's Explosive Tag tactics.
Taketsuki didn't know if the Konoha ANBU had prepared many clones in advance or if his recent speed disadvantage was just an illusion, but he felt trapped nonetheless.
The Explosive Tags couldn't harm his exoskeleton, but the shocks from the explosions reverberated through his body, intensified by the subtle movements at the ends of his exoskeleton.
After six or seven consecutive waves of explosions, Taketsuki felt that his exoskeleton no longer responded as easily, as if there were issues with the joints. Despite this, he couldn't afford to think too much and changed direction to continue his sprint.
Tatsuma, who was watching, also speculated on Minato's tactic—it seemed to be a strategy of teasing the porcupine.
Taketsuki, wrapped in bone spurs all over his body, was essentially a humanoid porcupine. Each spiky protrusion falling off would significantly affect him.
Although his bone spurs could regenerate through Chakra and his bloodline's innate talent, Taketsuki's Chakra was limited, and so was his body's endurance.
As long as Taketsuki's bone spurs were pulled out one by one, even if his Chakra could sustain continuous growth, the pain from each regeneration and the blood drawn by removing the spurs would rapidly weaken his body.
However, these bone spurs were not easy to pull out. Minato's approach was clever, similar to plucking feathers from a bird. It was quite strenuous to pull them out dry, but if scalded with boiling water, they would come out much easier.
This wave after wave of Explosive Tags was like boiling water.
"Another Explosive Tag?!"
Watching the activated papers beneath his feet, Taketsuki gritted his teeth. Amidst the explosions, as he planned to use the firelight to escape, Taketsuki suddenly staggered.
"Lightning Release! Electromagnetic Murder!"
The lightning serpent darting across the ground made Taketsuki freeze. At that moment, countless golden hairs, like a torrent unleashed, rushed towards him.
"Ninja Art! Wild Lion's Mane Jutsu!"
The hair entangled every piece of Taketsuki's exoskeleton, twisting in the opposite direction of the joints.
"Ah!!!"
Intense pain caused Taketsuki to struggle. The entanglement of hair was firm, and as he struggled harder, the exoskeleton was twisted more severely.
"Deng deng deng~"
One by one, the bone spurs were twisted off. The connections of the exoskeleton, constantly shaken by the explosive shockwaves, became extremely unstable. In just a moment, half of the bone spurs had fallen off, leaving Taketsuki's face contorted beyond recognition.
Without bladed bone spurs, there was no way to deal with this hair. However, Taketsuki was a seasoned Jonin with combat experience.
After quickly regaining focus, he decisively swung his right arm. In an instant, all the bone spurs on his right arm fell off, granting him freedom of movement in his right hand.
He condensed Chakra on his palm, and the palm blade acted like a real weapon, swiftly cutting through the hair entangling him. However, the hair entangling the bone spurs on his back could not be cut. Instead, he opted to forcefully stomp on the ground.
Stepping forward with a lunge, he forcibly pulled the hair off his back, dislodging the bone spurs.
"Got you."
Underneath his mask in the forest, Minato's expression relaxed. With a wave of his Kunai, he cut off all the hair entangling him. Simultaneously, his figure disappeared from the spot.
Beside Taketsuki, Minato's figure reappeared once more. Faced with Minato's unstoppable approach, Taketsuki grew extremely agitated. He turned and swung his hand, slashing towards Minato with his palm blade.
"Bang~"
Another burst of smoke erupted. The target of Taketsuki's palm strike was only a Clone of Minato. Almost simultaneously, Minato's real body appeared beside Taketsuki.
With his left hand holding Rasengan and his right hand lightly touching Taketsuki's side, Minato applied a subtle seal.
"Bang!"
Using the Flying Thunder God technique, Minato's real body demonstrated even greater speed and agility. Faced with Minato's close-quarter use of Flying Thunder God after encountering it twice with his clones, Taketsuki subconsciously underestimated Minato's speed.
Minato's Rasengan seized the moment, blasting onto Taketsuki's back, already riddled with circular wounds.
The back, already bloody, became even more mangled upon Rasengan's impact, causing Taketsuki intense pain. His Chakra surged once more, activating the power within his bloodline.
One by one, bone spurs emerged from the existing wounds on his back.
Resembling a humanoid thorned dragon, if Minato persisted in attacking, these emerging bone spurs would pierce through his torso without hesitation.
Moreover, in such a short time and distance, few ninjas could react in time. Even if they could react, what means would they have to escape?
Of course, this was true for the vast majority of ninjas.
The moment Minato saw bone spurs protruding from the wounds on Taketsuki's back, he halted control over Rasengan. With Rasengan unguided, the Chakra flow within it became completely chaotic.
"Boom~"
The explosion of Rasengan almost coincided with the emergence of bone spurs from Taketsuki's back, piercing through Minato's afterimage amidst the chaotic Chakra flow and sudden spurs.
Returning to a large tree, Minato couldn't help but take two deep breaths. This battle had become a bit reckless; his choice of attack wasn't optimal, and Taketsuki still retained a significant amount of stamina and Chakra.
He should have been more patient, waited to deplete another round of exoskeleton, and then attacked Taketsuki. That would have been a more sensible choice.
However, seeing the moment when Taketsuki's back was completely exposed, he couldn't resist taking action. After all, that opening was just too perfect. But if he tried again, Taketsuki might not cooperate in the same way.
Taking deep breaths to calm his turbulent thoughts, Minato also used the cover to assess Taketsuki's condition.
Although at the last moment Taketsuki's back had grown many bone spurs again to defend against the damage from Rasengan, Taketsuki's injuries were still severe.
The exoskeleton, which Explosive Tags couldn't damage, had several broken by the chaotic Chakra surge from the uncontrolled Rasengan. Two of them had even snapped under the skin.
With Taketsuki's unique Shikotsumyaku, which couldn't eject bone spurs independently, these broken parts were likely to become infection-prone areas. If not properly treated within a short time, it could endanger Taketsuki's life.
At the same time, the area where Taketsuki initially made contact with Rasengan, now blurred with flesh and blood, was unable to stop bleeding. This severe condition significantly impaired Taketsuki's shoulders and arms' mobility.
The intense pain and massive blood loss weakened Taketsuki. He gasped heavily, gritting his teeth to suppress any cries of pain, but beads of cold sweat already covered his forehead.
He tried hard to maintain the appearance of being in good condition, but his body's instinctual reactions betrayed him.
Observing these conditions, Minato let out a slight sigh of relief. His recent attack choice had been very risky, nearly resulting in severe injury or even retaliation. However, the results were still quite effective.
In this state, if Taketsuki didn't receive timely treatment, his life would be at risk.
However, the ongoing battle here had already lasted a considerable amount of time. Continuous bombardment with Explosive Tags might attract attention. Such widespread destruction...
Though Minato hadn't seen it directly, he could sense Vulture watching him with resentful eyes.
Next, it was time to seek an opportunity for a fatal blow.
However, seeing Taketsuki already preparing to defend against attacks from his right side, Minato frowned. Indeed, Flying Thunder God was a mystical technique, and he shouldn't have recklessly used it so many times.
Taketsuki might not yet understand that this was Flying Thunder God or grasp the meaning of Space-Time Body Flicker Jutsu. However, his actual experience had taught this experienced Jonin how to anticipate Minato's attacks.
Tatsuma also observed Taketsuki's condition. He knew Taketsuki now only had the strength and determination for one final counterattack. If he could succeed in this counterattack, perhaps he would find the motivation to endure further.
But if Taketsuki suffered another injury, there was no doubt that he would be unable to withstand it both physically and mentally. Facing this situation, Tatsuma suddenly appeared beside Minato and whispered softly, "Need any help?"
Tatsuma's sudden appearance startled Minato, who had been lost in thought. Looking at Taketsuki, he felt some reluctance—reluctance at not being able to finish the fight neatly and powerfully. However, considering the mission, he nodded in agreement.
If the goal was simply to kill Taketsuki, Minato could eventually win by wearing him down. However, aiming to swiftly defeat a highly vigilant Taketsuki was indeed challenging.
Minato had already achieved his goal of honing his skills, even better than expected, because Taketsuki proved stronger than anticipated. Minato had chosen riskier attack options, and these unexpected developments allowed him to reflect and gain valuable experience.
In his current state, it was difficult for Minato to find a decisive move to finish off the enemy in one strike. Although his Chakra was no longer as scarce as it had been in childhood, Minato had expended a considerable amount in recent actions.
Continuous use of Flying Thunder God, two Shadow Clones, three Ninjutsu techniques, and constant Body Flicker Jutsu combined with Chakra stimulation for cell activation had nearly depleted his reserves.
Unless he resorted to taking Military Rations Pills to replenish himself, the remaining Chakra would still be sufficient to use techniques capable of harming Taketsuki.
Seeing Minato's agreement, Tatsuma wasted no time. He leaped out from cover, facing Taketsuki's wary gaze, and declared, "Truly worthy of a Kekkei Genkai ninja. You've survived consecutive attacks, but your life ends here."
Tatsuma could swear that he wasn't aiming to "Kill Steal", but he couldn't help but seize Minato's hard-earned victory.
Minato was his good brother, so surely he wouldn't mind, right?
----
Check out my Patreon for more advanced chapters up to 50 at patreon.com/HellGolt