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"Dust Release?"
Kushina was startled when she heard the name of the jutsu being used against her.
She knew that Dust Release was the pride of the current Tsuchikage, a technique that surpassed even the Kekkei Genkai, known as Kekkei Tōta.
Even though Kushina wasn't the best student, she had read enough to know about the powerful techniques used by Iwagakure's Tsuchikage.
But the technique this girl was using…
"It's definitely not Dust Release!"
Kushina suddenly sprang forward, using Soru to close the distance between them in an instant, aiming a punch straight at the girl's face.
It was her monstrous strength at work.
With a loud bang, the girl dissolved into particles of dust, disappearing before Kushina's eyes, but her voice still echoed around.
"Though I can't compare to the Third Tsuchikage, my Dust Release isn't weak, you know."
The dust swirled around, with each tiny particle sharpened by chakra, becoming as sharp as blades.
However, the power was lacking.
It was like using a nail clipper to try and cut someone—annoying and painful, but not deadly.
Three golden chains emerged from Kushina's back, wrapping around her to block the dust particles.
"It's no use. These fine dust particles aren't something you can easily block."
The girl's voice was filled with confidence as it echoed through the swirling dust.
Kushina didn't immediately search for the girl. Instead, her eyes focused on the small stream nearby.
She used Soru to quickly dash toward the stream.
The girl quickly realized Kushina's intention.
"Don't think you'll succeed."
"Dust Release: Dust Formation Technique!"
The dust gathered to form a replica of the girl, though entirely black, with her body made of countless tiny dust particles.
The dust replica tried to intercept Kushina.
"Get out of my way!"
Kushina shattered the dust replica with a single punch. With her monstrous strength, she wasn't going to be stopped so easily, especially by such a weak clone.
Breaking through the barrier, Kushina dove into the stream.
The dust followed closely behind her, but the thin layer of water on the surface prevented the dust particles from penetrating it.
The girl reformed from the dust on the bank, glaring at the water with frustration.
Though she called it Dust Release, her technique was actually just a variant of Earth Release, a secret technique that all ninja villages possessed in some form.
Her Dust Release wasn't particularly powerful; it was mainly useful for reconnaissance.
And as for dust, its biggest weakness was water.
"Don't think hiding in there will save you."
The girl threw shuriken at Kushina.
But Kushina's chains flew out, deflecting the shuriken and then continuing to wrap around the girl.
The girl was caught off guard, and the chains squeezed, causing her body to disintegrate into dust once more.
"What a troublesome jutsu,"
Kushina muttered as she crouched under the shallow water, the wounds on her body rapidly healing thanks to the Nine-Tails' chakra.
But this was just a stalemate. If the girl's allies arrived, things would get much worse.
"My comrades and teacher are chasing after your comrades right now."
The girl tried to taunt Kushina, using her comrades as leverage.
"That blonde boy is facing my comrade, the one known as the Mad Beast, Yamasaru. He loves to torment his opponents. By now, he's probably already started torturing your comrade."
The girl attempted to provoke Kushina, but her words only served to calm her.
Minato was strong; Kushina wasn't worried!
Seeing that her words had no effect, the girl switched her target.
"And that other one with the Uchiha symbol—my teacher is very interested in collecting a pair of Uchiha eyes."
Underwater, Kushina's expression changed. Though she often clashed with Jin, he was still her comrade.
"An enemy jonin went after Jin? I have to end this quickly."
Kushina quickly formed a hand seal.
"Kagura's Mind Eye! Activate!"
In the next moment, Kushina shot out of the water.
"Finally coming out, are you!"
The girl was overjoyed, commanding the dust to envelop Kushina.
But Kushina charged forward, allowing the dust to cut into her as she rushed toward her target.
"Tracking jutsu!"
The girl, who had been hiding behind a tree, realized the danger and quickly turned to flee. From the beginning, she had been hiding her true location.
As she fled, she continued to command the dust to cut into Kushina, trying to inflict as much damage as possible.
"Damn it, what's with this kid? How does she have so much blood?!"
Her fighting style relied on making her enemies bleed to death.
But this young girl was like a walking blood tank—she'd lost so much blood, yet she was still perfectly fine.
"There you are!"
Kushina leaped high into the air, spotting the girl instantly.
She descended rapidly, her chains flying out to wrap around the girl, binding her tightly.
"Die a hundred times over!!"
Kushina's punch landed squarely on the girl's head, the force of it caving in her skull. The girl's eyes rolled back as her body crumpled to the ground, motionless.
Kushina finally caught her breath.
The battle was over.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side…
"Looks like I've hit the jackpot."
Jin stood on a rock, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword as he faced the man who had appeared before him.
Nakatou hung upside down from a tree, silently watching Jin.
From the moment Jin had been targeted, there was no escaping this fight.
"How about you pretend you didn't see me and let me go?"
After all, Jin wasn't particularly interested in the conflicts between the five great villages.
If Minato hadn't noticed something was wrong, Jin might not have even bothered to warn them.
"Sorry, but I have my duties."
As Nakatou responded, a kunai appeared silently behind Jin.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing rang out.
Jin had already drawn his sword at some point, blocking Nakatou's kunai.
In the next instant, Nakatou vanished from where he was hanging.
Both of them immediately began forming hand seals.
"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"
"Doton: Iwa Tetsuho no Jutsu!"
Jin unleashed a Great Fireball, while Nakatou fired a rapidly expanding rock projectile.
Boom!
The two attacks collided, creating a powerful shockwave that forced them apart.
The next moment, they clashed again, their taijutsu evenly matched, though Nakatou's larger build gave him an advantage.
Jin raised his hand, a small blue light forming at his fingertip.
Rei Gun!
The blue beam shot out faster than Nakatou could react, punching a hole through his shoulder.
Nakatou grunted, using a kunai to force Jin back before retreating quickly.
"They told me I wasn't a match for a jonin, but I didn't believe them."
Jin was about to press the attack when he felt something grab his ankle.
"When did that happen!?"
He looked down to see a hand gripping his leg.
Clearly, the jonin who had retreated to nurse his wound had somehow managed to get underground and grab Jin.
"Doton: Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu!"
Jin was instantly pulled into the ground. As he was being dragged under, he quickly formed hand seals.
"Rokku Senzei!"
Nakatou's chakra was rapidly entering Jin's body, but Nakatou's expression changed, and he was forced to let go.
Jin managed to break free, jumping to another rock.
But then he heard a faint noise. Looking down, he saw an explosive tag stuck to the bottom of his shoe.
"Tekkai!"
Boom!
The explosion rang out, but Jin used Soru to appear further away, though now his pants were reduced to shorts, his shoes were gone, and his legs were scorched black.
Nakatou's jutsu followed one after another, leaving Jin no time to react.
Jin looked toward where Nakatou had been, but all he saw was a hole in the ground, with no sign of his enemy.
Jin quickly formed a hand seal.
"Kage Bunshin…!"
"Doton: Retsudo Tensho!"
Before he could finish, the ground beneath him cracked open, pulling him down.
He quickly tried to escape by stepping on the rising chunks of earth.
Jin scanned the area and soon spotted Nakatou in the distance.
But the attacks didn't stop, giving Jin no time to respond.
Nakatou slammed his fist into the ground, triggering another jutsu.
"Doton: Doro Suna!"
The cracked earth turned into countless grains of sand.
Just as Jin was about to escape the range of the jutsu, the sand surged up like a wave, swallowing him whole.
Buried in the sand, Jin gritted his teeth, curling up to minimize the damage from the shifting sand.
He was completely caught in Nakatou's rhythm. This guy was nothing like the ninja Jin had fought before.
Their fighting styles were similar, but the results were worlds apart.
Jin was overwhelmed by the relentless attacks, unable to regain the upper hand.
One wrong step led to another, and now he was trapped.
"Doton: Arijigoku!"
The sand turned back into earth, becoming incredibly soft as it began to rotate clockwise, churning everything within.
Jin was now buried in the earth, the soft soil churning around him like a deadly vortex. He knew that if this continued, his entire body would be crushed by the force of the rotating earth.
He could hear the creaking of his bones, the pressure increasing with every passing second.
Nakatou had planned his moves perfectly, trapping Jin in a relentless series of jutsu, each one pushing him further into a corner.
As Jin struggled to think of a way out, his mind raced through the various jutsu he knew, searching for something that could help him escape. But most of the techniques either required too much time to execute or were completely useless in this situation.
"How could I…"
"Die here!!"
Jin's frustration reached its peak. He refused to accept that this could be the end for him.
"Open Gate! Kai!"
Opening just one of the Eight Gates wouldn't be enough to give him the power boost he needed. And using the Rokku Senzei in combination with the Eight Gates required more chakra than he currently had.
But Jin wasn't about to give up.
"I won't die in a place like this!!"
"Rei Gun! Self-Detonation!"
A blue light suddenly flared up from within the earth, gradually expanding outward.
The Rei Gun wasn't composed of chakra alone; it was a fusion of seven elemental properties—earth, water, wind, fire, lightning, yin, and yang—simultaneously released and crudely combined. This made it inherently unstable.
When fired as a beam, it functioned as a highly destructive projectile. But if left to gather and swell in place…
It became a ticking time bomb.
Boom!
The ground was violently torn apart by the explosion.
Jin, covered in blood and with his skin seared from the blast, leaped out of the ground. The surface of his body was riddled with burns, and even using Tekkai hadn't been enough to fully shield him.
He clutched his face with one hand, peering through the gaps between his fingers at Nakatou with his crimson Sharingan eyes.
Nakatou had been caught off guard by the sudden explosion. He watched Jin's emergence from the blast with a mix of surprise and respect.
For Jin to have survived and escaped the trap was no small feat.
But this wasn't over.
Jin's body was battered, but his resolve burned hotter than ever. He wouldn't let Nakatou get the upper hand again.
"I underestimated you," Nakatou admitted, his voice tinged with admiration. "But this isn't the end."
Jin's eyes narrowed. He knew he couldn't afford to make any more mistakes. This battle was far from over, and he needed to find a way to turn the tide in his favor.
Taking a deep breath, Jin tightened his grip on his sword.
"Let's finish this," he muttered, readying himself for the next round of their deadly encounter.
(End of Chapter)