The newcomer was, of course, Kakashi.
He had just broken through the enemy's defenses and reached the center of the battlefield, where he saw Natsuhiko, covered in blood, collapsed in Tsunade's arms…
In that instant, his mind went completely blank.
When he snapped out of it, he realized he had already launched an attack on the blood-soaked man before him!
Although Kakashi was sprinting towards the enemy without any injuries, his clothes were torn and dirty, clearly showing that even though the enemies were ordinary adults, dealing with so many of them at once had taken a toll on him.
Even so, Kakashi rushed at Kakuzu without hesitation.
Although he hadn't known Natsuhiko for long, Kakashi had already grown to deeply respect him.
After all, Natsuhiko was the only one who generously shared precious knowledge with him and the other students, and he was the only one willing to bring along a burden like him to find Lady Tsunade…
More importantly, during their journey to find Lady Tsunade, Kakashi and Natsuhiko had shared meals and slept under the same roof, rekindling in Kakashi a long-lost warmth of family life.
So, when Kakashi realized that Natsuhiko had been killed, his heart filled with rage.
Memories of time spent with Natsuhiko only fueled the fire of his anger, making it burn even brighter!
Even though Kakashi knew the gap in strength between himself and his opponent, and despite his teacher's earlier warning to stay on the sidelines and not interfere in their fight, he charged forward without hesitation!
At that moment, the ninja code he had memorized so well was thrown out the window. All he could think about was avenging his teacher.
In the blink of an eye, Kakashi closed in on Kakuzu.
His young face was cold and stern, his right hand gripping a short sword, while his left formed a hand seal in front of his chest.
Then, he suddenly dropped his stance and, with a burst of speed, appeared in front of Kakuzu, thrusting his short sword forward like a sharp white fang, aiming directly at Kakuzu's chest.
Perhaps driven by his rage, Kakashi's attack was far beyond his usual level.
But unfortunately, the gap in power between him and Kakuzu was simply too great.
Even at 120% of his ability, Kakashi couldn't pose a real threat to Kakuzu.
Indeed, from Kakuzu's perspective, Kakashi's attack was commendable, but his age was too much of a disadvantage. His speed and strength were still too lacking to fully utilize the precision of his technique.
With a calm expression, Kakuzu extended his left hand, seemingly about to easily grab Kakashi's wrist!
However, at that moment, something unexpected happened!
Kakuzu's grasp came up empty!
It wasn't that Kakashi dodged; it was as though his wrist—and his entire body—had no physical substance.
A clone? No…
For a split second, Kakuzu was reminded of the holograms from arcade games—very lifelike, but without physical form.
Just then, Kakuzu felt a slight tremor beneath his feet…
The next moment, Kakashi's figure emerged from the ground behind him, his short sword gleaming with cold light as it shot towards Kakuzu's back!
*Ding!*
A crisp metallic sound rang out.
A fragment of the sword blade ricocheted away, slicing Kakashi's cheek as it flew past him.
Kakashi's once furious eyes widened in shock.
He couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
Why hadn't his White Fang short sword pierced Kakuzu's back?
Not only that, but the sword itself had broken from the impact!
This wasn't just any short sword; it was the Chakra Blade once used by the renowned White Fang of Konoha!
Before he could process it, a large hand reached for him…
Kakashi was suddenly grabbed by the neck and lifted high into the air.
"I know you. The son of White Fang, Hatake Kakashi."
Kakuzu, looking at Kakashi's flushed face as he struggled violently, spoke in an almost admiring tone.
"I didn't expect someone so young to nearly wound me. You truly are White Fang's son."
As he spoke, Kakuzu cast a fleeting glance at Tsunade, clearly still holding a grudge against her for her lackluster performance.
Tsunade, unaware of the negative judgment she had received, felt a flicker of hope as she saw Kakashi captured.
What am I still doing here?
Natsuhiko is already dead; I can't let another village genius fall here too!
Tsunade kept trying to persuade herself to take action, to get her body moving.
Although she had completely rid herself of the earlier poison, her hemophobia was an even greater obstacle than the poison, paralyzing her.
It was clear that this phobia couldn't simply be overcome through willpower, or else she wouldn't have been tormented by it for more than twenty years in the original story.
Though she desperately wanted to snap out of it, her body remained immobilized.
Damn it!
Am I going to watch someone else die in front of me again, helpless?
Tsunade was consumed with self-loathing, hating how she had used gambling to escape from everything over the past few years.
If not for her, Natsuhiko and Kakashi wouldn't be in such danger!
Even though their target seemed to be the arcade, the fact that they had hired such a powerful bounty hunter, one at least as strong as an elite jounin, clearly indicated that they were really after her!
And yet here she was, unscathed, while Natsuhiko and Kakashi had paid such a heavy price!
Meanwhile, Kakuzu, still gripping Kakashi's neck, kept a close watch on Tsunade.
After seeing her struggle briefly but fail to move, Kakuzu sighed inwardly once again.
It seems the granddaughter of the First Hokage is nothing but a pretty face…
But this Hatake Kakashi is promising.
In another ten years—no, perhaps just a few years—I might see this boy's name on a bounty list.
And the heart of White Fang's son would make a fine addition to my collection.
So… it's not time to kill him just yet…
Kakuzu looked at Kakashi with an expression one might reserve for a ripe crop, ready for harvest, waiting for the boy's struggles to cease before tossing him aside, with no intention of ending his life.
However, in that moment, Kakuzu's decades of combat experience kicked in, warning him of a looming danger.
From behind!
Earth Spear… not enough time!
Kakuzu instantly tilted his body to the left!
The next moment, a white arm suddenly appeared from behind, piercing through his right chest!
The scene was eerily reminiscent of what had just transpired moments ago!
But this time, the roles were reversed—Kakuzu, the attacker before, was now the victim.
Even with his self-proclaimed immortality, Kakuzu couldn't shrug off such a blow, and his grip on Kakashi weakened significantly.
Kakashi, not missing the opportunity, kicked off Kakuzu's arm with both feet, flipping backward through the air before landing steadily on the ground.
Looking up, Kakashi's eyes widened in shock as he shouted:
"Natsuhiko-sensei!!!"
Because standing before him was the very man he thought had died—his teacher Natsuhiko, emerging from the ground behind Kakuzu.
From his right hand extended a long arm composed of intertwined shadow clones, the very thing that had pierced Kakuzu's chest!
*Boom, boom, boom, boom…*
With a series of soft explosions, Natsuhiko's long arm vanished.
Even though he had just ripped someone's heart out, Natsuhiko's hands were clean, as he had used a shadow clone for the job.
Still, Natsuhiko gave a symbolic shake of his hand before smiling wryly and saying:
"When it comes to ripping out hearts, Kakuzu, you're still the expert."
At that moment, black tendrils began to emerge from the hole in Kakuzu's chest, rapidly healing the wound before their eyes.
Kakuzu, now on guard, warily eyed Natsuhiko.
What is going on?
Why is this man, who was supposed to be dead, standing here alive in front of me?
He glanced at the corpse in Tsunade's arms—it still looked exactly like Natsuhiko, with no sign of change.
Even Tsunade seemed utterly confused, with no indication that this was a ruse.
"How did you do it?"
"It's actually quite simple."
Natsuhiko smiled faintly, uncharacteristically explaining his secret to his enemy.
"The one who died over there is actually my twin brother, Amou Fuyuki…"
At this point, Natsuhiko sensed a shift in his emotions and quickly put on a sorrowful expression, saying:
"Fuyuki, you died so tragically…"
(End of chapter)