"What? So the shopkeeper wasn't dead at all; it was his brother who died?"
"No wonder he looked so much like the guy who got killed..."
"I was scared to death just now, thinking I saw a ghost."
After hearing Natsuhiko's explanation, the remaining thugs and spectators around started to chatter, looking as though they suddenly understood everything.
It seemed they actually believed Natsuhiko's far-fetched explanation.
Well, for these ordinary people, that was probably the best explanation for such a bizarre situation.
It was definitely more reasonable than Natsuhiko suddenly coming back to life.
However, the few ninjas present certainly did not believe Natsuhiko's words.
After all, ninjas could perform all sorts of extraordinary feats using chakra, defying the laws of physics in countless ways.
Compared to Natsuhiko's far-fetched explanation, they were more inclined to believe that he had used some kind of ninjutsu.
For example... just a moment ago, Kakashi almost tricked Kakuzu with a projection technique...
At this moment, the person most conveniently situated to investigate Natsuhiko's mysterious trick was Tsunade, who was still sitting on the ground.
—After all, the corpse of the "Natsuhiko" from before was still lying in her arms...
If Natsuhiko wasn't dead, then what on earth had she been holding onto for so long?
Realizing this, Tsunade instinctively threw the thing in her arms to the ground...
It seemed that her hemophobia, which had rendered her motionless earlier, had eased up quite a bit due to Natsuhiko's sudden return to life.
Though the blood on the ground still made her body tremble slightly, curiosity drove her to reach out and touch the face of the "Natsuhiko" in her arms.
Like everyone else, Tsunade assumed this was likely another use of the projection technique.
She had recently seen many uses of this technique while watching Natsuhiko guide Kakashi in his training, so she felt that this time would be no exception.
Maybe Natsuhiko had simply overlaid his projection onto someone else, creating this solid "substitute."
However, to Tsunade's surprise, when she touched the face of the "Natsuhiko," which appeared very pale due to death, she couldn't find a single flaw!
But the projection technique was only supposed to create an illusion. It shouldn't have been capable of such realism, right?
Now Tsunade was completely bewildered.
If it wasn't a projection technique, then could Natsuhiko really have an identical twin?
…
Kakuzu, on the other hand, wasn't particularly curious about the secret behind Natsuhiko's resurrection.
After all, in his long life, he had witnessed far too many bizarre ninjutsu. If he investigated each one, even if he lived ten times as long, he wouldn't have enough time.
But now he realized that this young man, Natsuhiko, was even more troublesome than he had imagined.
"It seems I underestimated you."
Having already used his black tendrils to roughly stitch up the wound on his chest, Kakuzu spoke in a reflective tone.
"The Hidden Leaf truly is a cradle for geniuses. There's no need to mention the son of the White Fang, Kakashi, over there, but I can't believe I've never heard of someone like you, who possesses so many remarkable skills."
His tone then turned exceptionally cold: "It's just a pity that no matter how you managed it, if I kill you enough times, eventually I'll succeed in killing you for good..."
Kakuzu, are you applying your own experiences to others?
Natsuhiko silently mocked him, while his heart grew heavier.
Though Kakuzu's tone was calm, Natsuhiko could sense the intense killing intent directed at him.
How much hatred did this guy have for him?
And just as he said—
When a person is killed, they die.
Unlike Kakuzu, who had a literal immortality, Natsuhiko's illusionist tricks could only work with prior preparation.
If he sustained a fatal injury now, he would indeed die for real.
And the most troublesome part was that his opponent was none other than Kakuzu!?
At this thought, Natsuhiko couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
If his life were a game, then the difficulty setting would certainly be unreasonable.
He had only just become capable of fighting against Jonin-level opponents, so shouldn't he be taking on elite Jonin next?
How did he suddenly find himself up against a Kage-level powerhouse!?
And not just any ordinary Kage-level opponent.
Kakuzu's high-level skills and battle experience from his long ninja career, his incredibly durable body that hadn't weakened with age, and his five-heart immortality, requiring him to be killed five times to truly die...
These three aspects combined made Kakuzu a killing machine without weaknesses, completely different from someone like Gaara, who had clear strengths and weaknesses. He didn't fear any enemy.
In the original story, if not for Naruto's protagonist plot armor plus a newly acquired finishing move, Kakuzu probably wouldn't have been taken down so easily.
And what about Natsuhiko's side?
Other than him, there was only Kakashi, still a rookie, and Tsunade, who had been on standby the entire time!
It's worth noting that even during the Second Shinobi World War, Tsunade was merely at the level of an elite Jonin, far from being a match for Kakuzu.
Not to mention that this version of her hadn't seriously trained for years, hadn't mastered the Yin Seal, and was suffering from hemophobia—she was an epically weakened version!
So, even though Natsuhiko had made rapid progress recently, facing such teammates made him feel incapable of carrying the fight alone!
After assessing the power on both sides, Natsuhiko concluded that it definitely wasn't the right time to take on Kakuzu.
He would settle accounts with him after mastering the Strength of a Hundred Technique.
The only fortunate thing was that Kakuzu, unlike other crazies in the Akatsuki, was a rare sane individual.
Emmm... at least more sane than the others...
So, perhaps there was still a chance to persuade him to back off...
Having made up his mind, Natsuhiko gave a friendly smile and said: "Mr. Kakuzu, there's really no irreconcilable conflict between us."
"Although you did kill me once, I also gave you a hole in your chest."
"We could consider ourselves familiar with each other's hearts—why don't we have some tea, share a snack, and sit down to discuss whether we can reach a mutually acceptable conclusion?"
As he spoke, Natsuhiko even snapped his fingers, conjuring a table beside him, complete with steaming tea and delicious-looking pastries.
His unexpected response and the sudden appearance of the table almost made the experienced Kakuzu lose his composure.
What does 'familiar with each other's hearts' even mean? That's called being enemies!
Are young people nowadays really this broad-minded?
Feeling that he shouldn't fall into Natsuhiko's pace, Kakuzu responded coldly:
"Your proposal is indeed interesting, but unfortunately, I also have my dignity as a bounty hunter."
"So if we're going to talk, it will have to wait until I've completed my mission."
At these words, a few black lines appeared on Natsuhiko's forehead.
He hadn't expected Kakuzu to have such a dark sense of humor.
From what he could tell, Kakuzu's so-called "mission" was to kill him.
Once he completed that mission, Natsuhiko would be dead—what would be the point of talking then?
Clearly, although his earlier sneak attack had succeeded in giving Kakuzu a tough blow...
But for Kakuzu, who possessed an immortal body, this wasn't much at all, so he ultimately didn't take himself seriously.
Compared to negotiation, he probably thought directly dealing with himself would be more cost-effective...
Natsuhiko let out a light sigh.
Sure enough, Kakuzu, the businessman, needed to realize that killing him would come at an extremely heavy price, and that it wasn't worth it at all before he would genuinely start considering the possibility of backing down.
In simple terms, it meant they had to fight first.
Is this what they call seeking peace through struggle and preserving peace?
Natsuhiko bitterly smiled in his heart, realizing that this saying holds true no matter which world it is in.
However, getting a shadow-level powerhouse like Kakuzu to back down would probably not be so simple.
Perhaps he would need to use that technique that was still under development to make it possible...
Then it seemed he had to make some arrangements in advance.
After quickly devising a plan in his mind, Natsuhiko helplessly shrugged his shoulders and said:
"Since you, Mr. Kakuzu, have said so, I have no choice but to accompany you."
"—But before that, please allow me to clear the area first…"
After saying that, he lightly snapped his fingers.
Immediately, various gasps and cries for help suddenly echoed from the nearby arcade.
However, those sounds quickly ceased, and the arcade returned to silence.
Were those the guys from earlier?
Kakuzu's wariness towards Natsuhiko rose again, and he cautiously moved a few steps away from the arcade.
As expected, the arcade was set up with traps! He had to remember not to stay too close to there.
Then he saw Natsuhiko wave his hand, and a thick fog suddenly appeared around them, isolating the surrounding audience from them.
"We're about to use all our strength, so it's not convenient for them to watch," Natsuhiko explained, and although Kakuzu didn't think he would be forced to use his full power, he didn't stop Natsuhiko's actions.
After all, secrecy was a ninja's instinct, and as an old-school ninja, he didn't like being watched either.
However, he also noticed that White Fang's son had taken the opportunity to leave with Tsunade, probably heading toward the arcade.
This made him feel somewhat uneasy.
There was no need to mention Kakashi, but was Tsunade really that incapable, unable to fight even after learning that Natsuhiko was not dead?
Did he overlook something?
Kakuzu felt like he had caught some inspiration, as if he was close to unraveling the secret behind Tsunade.
Seeing Kakuzu's thoughtful expression, Natsuhiko became worried that he had seen through Tsunade's secret, which might affect his plans, so he quickly initiated an attack to divert Kakuzu's attention.
He shouted loudly:
"Now we can fight to our heart's content!"
"Take this, Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!"
With that, he clapped his hands in front of his chest, took a deep breath, and then suddenly exhaled!
Whoosh!
A large, vaguely visible air cannon shot out in response, whistling towards Kakuzu with a strong sound of wind cutting through the air.
Seeing this, Kakuzu temporarily set aside his doubts about Tsunade and let out a cold chuckle.
"Hmph, if this is your trump card, then I can only say you're bound to lose."
(End of Chapter)