"Right, just to be safe, let's finish it off with one more strike."
Natsuhiko suddenly said this, pulling out a kunai wrapped with explosive tags from his ninja pouch...
The severed arm seemed to sense Natsuhiko's intent. As if realizing there was no time to delay, it abruptly shot toward Natsuhiko's back!
Perhaps the arm's hasty movements caused a disturbance, which Natsuhiko noticed at the last moment. He quickly turned and struck with a palm!
Bubble Air Palm!
This palm seemed slightly different from the previous ones. Rather than functionality, it appeared to focus more on sheer power!
Even though it was an instinctive strike, the air palm landed squarely on the airborne arm, breaking its bones and tendons!
The black mass of tendrils connected to the arm also suffered from the impact. After crashing to the ground, it twitched weakly, appearing near death.
It seemed that without the control of its main body, these tendrils of the Earth Grudge Fear technique were not as formidable as imagined.
Natsuhiko also recalled that for this kind of detached limb attack, a heart must accompany it to make it functional.
Could it be that he accidentally destroyed another of Kakuzu's hearts?
However, Natsuhiko had no time to ponder this. At the moment the arm fell to the ground, a chilling killing intent surged from behind him!
The supposedly incapacitated Kakuzu suddenly appeared behind Natsuhiko. His severely injured body was bristling with black tendrils, making him look especially menacing!
Clearly, the arm earlier was just a distraction; the real killing move was Kakuzu himself!
For Kakuzu to sacrifice an arm, and possibly even a heart, as bait made it evident that he had resolved to kill.
This was because, throughout the fight, Natsuhiko had displayed many unprecedented techniques, causing Kakuzu to feel a deep sense of fear.
In his long life, Kakuzu had come to accept that he wasn't a super-genius.
After all, he was nearly twice the age of most village leaders yet couldn't claim absolute superiority in strength.
Many genius ninjas had matched him in combat before they even turned twenty.
Kakuzu could accept this fact because he was confident that, even if he couldn't defeat them, they couldn't do anything to him either.
In his long life, these so-called geniuses had merely passed by as fleeting figures…
But among them, Natsuhiko Amou stood out as truly bizarre.
His endless array of tricks left Kakuzu constantly guessing what unpredictable move would come next.
Kakuzu could foresee that, given time, Natsuhiko would undoubtedly discover a way to kill him.
And that day likely wasn't far away!
Realizing this, Kakuzu briefly entertained the thought of accepting Natsuhiko's earlier suggestion to negotiate.
After all, they didn't have significant conflicts. Perhaps sitting down to talk wasn't a bad idea.
But Kakuzu quickly dismissed the notion.
Besides his pride as a senior ninja, there was also his reluctance to abandon Tsunade—a veritable cash cow who could endlessly produce golden opportunities.
For someone who valued money above all else, giving up such a profitable avenue was harder than dying!
Thus, only one option remained...
To go all out, like a lion hunting a rabbit, eliminating Natsuhiko Yusheng before he could adapt and grow!
Kakuzu's decision led to the current scene.
He intentionally deactivated Earth Spear to sustain injuries, sacrificing an arm and a heart to maximize the success of his ambush.
Though he had lost two hearts, Kakuzu, now in full Earth Grudge Fear mode, was several times stronger than before!
In an instant, he appeared behind Natsuhiko. Black tendrils shot out from all over his body, aiming at Natsuhiko's unguarded back!
It had been a long time since Kakuzu had lost two hearts in succession...
"Since you destroyed two of my hearts, Natsuhiko Amou, I'll take yours!"
As this thought crossed Kakuzu's mind, his remaining right hand lunged toward Natsuhiko's back.
But at that moment, Kakuzu noticed something strange.
There was a hand hiding sneakily in the collar of Natsuhiko's outfit?
What's more, this hand had a large, eerie eye on it...
This is...
Before Kakuzu could process the implications, his full-on attack with tendrils and right hand was abruptly blocked by something mysterious!
A faint smile appeared on Natsuhiko's lips.
Having a thorough understanding of Kakuzu's abilities, Natsuhiko could never be fooled by such a ploy.
It seemed that, in his long life, Kakuzu hadn't learned an essential lesson.
The more someone plays with schemes, the more likely they are to falter in unforeseen ways!
Had Kakuzu attacked head-on like Hidan, relying on his immortality, Natsuhiko would have had a harder time.
But Kakuzu, though free of the bad habits of immortals, had still strayed down the wrong path.
Despite his near-immortality, he behaved like a miserly merchant, habitually trying to solve problems at minimal cost.
Yet, as his attempts continued to fail, the chips he could place on the table diminished.
Though he was now stronger than before, having lost two hearts, an arm, and a significant amount of chakra, Kakuzu was far from his peak form.
Reality, after all, wasn't a fighting game—where energy increases as the fight progresses.
At this moment, the gap between their initial levels—Kage-level and Jonin—narrowed to the bare minimum!
And this was the moment Natsuhiko had been waiting for!
"Gentle Fist Art: True Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"
With a soft chant, Natsuhiko clasped his hands together...
Two hands, four hands, eight hands...
No, in an instant, countless arms erupted from behind him, surging toward Kakuzu's tendrils and right hand!
In the blink of an eye, Natsuhiko's pale arms clashed countless times with Kakuzu's black tendrils!
It was as if the two had staked everything on this exchange, madly driving their chakra to fuel the relentless assault of arms and tendrils.
Countless pale arms vanished into smoke, immediately replaced by new ones.
Numerous black tendrils were severed and dissipated, only to have more surge forward.
The sight made Natsuhiko involuntarily add a mental "Ora Ora Ora" sound effect...
Yet Natsuhiko wasn't in an easy position. Despite calculating every detail, the gap between a seasoned Kage-level ninja and a typical Jonin was even greater than he had imagined.
While Kakuzu was severely depleted, Natsuhiko, after using the Washing Machine Technique, was also low on chakra.
Although his True Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms relied on shadow clone arms and consumed little chakra, his limited reserves still posed a problem.
Judging by the current situation, he might not outlast Kakuzu's immortality. The best outcome would be a draw!
But someone like Natsuhiko always had a backup plan.
From the moment their clash began, Natsuhiko had already noticed someone approaching on his minimap...
Boom!
Out of nowhere, a punch struck Kakuzu from the side, sending him flying. He crashed through multiple trees before rolling dozens of times on the ground, eventually coming to a halt!
The once-confident Kakuzu was left utterly bewildered, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
Looking up, he saw a familiar figure...
"Tsunade-sama, you're a bit late, aren't you..."
Panting heavily, Natsuhiko retracted his arms and turned to face Tsunade, who was casually adjusting her glasses and exuding an air of elegance.
He couldn't help but admit—Tsunade looked surprisingly charming with glasses.
(End of Chapter)