Haruki stood in the sky, watching the fight between Tsunade and Kakuzu.
In terms of battle experience, there are few in the entire ninja world who can match Kakuzu.
This is the advantage of living a long life.
Though Tsunade has Wood Release, she isn't her grandfather, who had vast amounts of chakra and the Sage Body, so her power is probably only half as potent.
Facing Kakuzu, she appears to be struggling.
For an ordinary ninja, mastering two chakra natures is already considered genius.
But Kakuzu possesses five chakra natures.
Most impressively, he is proficient in each one and has developed combination techniques.
Just now, using the Wind and Fire masks, he unleashed the Composite Ninjutsu: Flame Wind Chaos, which was extremely powerful.
If Haruki hadn't promptly used a barrier to cover it, the people of Konoha would have seen the sky-high flames.
He landed, positioning himself between the two.
"What do you mean? Are you going back on your word?"
Kakuzu panted. Although he had been holding the upper hand with his experience, Tsunade wasn't overly beaten down and hadn't even used the Yin Seal.
In fact, he faintly sensed that Tsunade's proficiency with Wood Release was growing.
He was being used as a grindstone.
"I keep my word."
Haruki shook his head, saying, "But at this rate, it would take three days and three nights to determine the winner. Ultimately, in a battle of chakra, you wouldn't be the match."
"How can you be so sure without finishing the fight?"
Kakuzu was unwilling to accept this.
The greatest psychological shadow and unfulfilled desire of his life was to defeat Hashirama Senju.
But Hashirama was already dead, and he couldn't go to the other world to find him.
Tsunade, as his granddaughter, hadn't had Wood Release before, so he wasn't interested.
Now that she had it, defeating her would be some consolation.
But after fighting for so long without winning, he was getting angry.
"Step aside."
Kakuzu's face darkened. Tsunade was the second Wood Release user he had encountered, and he couldn't miss such an opportunity.
Haruki clicked his tongue softly, then smiled.
What do you do when a child doesn't listen? Just give them a good spanking.
He looked at Kakuzu and clapped his hands.
A massive surge of energy shot into the sky.
Haruki's eyes immediately displayed black eye shadow.
With the combination of natural energy and chakra, the space around him cleared instantly, all the dust and air retreating outward in fear.
A seed in the earth sprouted.
In the middle of summer, Kakuzu felt a chill run through his body.
For a moment, Haruki overlapped with Hashirama in his mind.
His face turned pale, frozen in place.
He remembered the terror of being dominated by Wood Release.
A gigantic wooden dragon rose from the ground.
Haruki extended his hand, then clenched it.
The wooden dragon tightly bound Kakuzu.
"Damn it! Who are you really?!"
Kakuzu sensed the approach of death, and even his usually calm demeanor was lost.
Black tendrils sprouted all over his body, and the four masks tried to gather chakra, only to find, in horror, that all the chakra was being suppressed by the wooden dragon.
Haruki stood with his hands behind his back, the wooden dragon coiled obediently at his feet. He said softly, "You should already know the answer to that."
"..."
Kakuzu wanted to curse. Truly, in all these years, this was the second time he felt so frustrated.
Were the people at the Black Market blind or out of their minds to put a bounty on someone comparable to Hashirama Senju?
No, wait, it was his own greed.
"I'll stop. Ask what you want, and I'll tell you everything."
Kakuzu gave up resisting, dejected.
Compared to Tsunade, Haruki's Wood Release was beyond normal.
Even with nine lives, he couldn't escape such Wood Release.
His chakra was draining quickly, and it wouldn't be long before he was completely drained.
Haruki smiled.
He valued Kakuzu for his experience.
Surviving an encounter with the First Hokage and living on for ninety years until meeting Naruto Uzumaki, Kakuzu had amassed vast experience.
Haruki gained great strength due to the system, but he actually lacked experience.
It's like Kaguya Otsutsuki and Madara Uchiha in the original series.
Both were nearly invincible, but Kaguya lacked experience.
Madara clearly posed a greater threat to the protagonists.
It's just a pity that he was ultimately backstabbed by Black Zetsu, becoming the ultimate tool.
Haruki snapped his fingers, releasing the Wood Dragon.
Hashirama had used this technique to restrain the Nine-Tails, so there was no way Kakuzu could break free.
Kakuzu silently stretched his body.
The Wood Dragon's intense constriction had been extremely uncomfortable.
And the loss of chakra had left him weak.
"Let's talk somewhere else."
Haruki glanced around. Not a single spot was untouched.
After repairing the area with Wood Release, he returned home.
The atmosphere along the way was silent.
Kakuzu couldn't believe he'd been defeated by Wood Release again, leaving him speechless.
Tsunade, on the other hand, was greatly shaken.
Haruki's earlier Wood Release far surpassed their usual sparring. She vaguely felt that it wasn't inferior to her grandfather's.
She found it unbelievable.
To her, her grandfather was the God of Shinobi, unmatched by any ninja.
But Haruki seemed to be gradually taking her grandfather's place.
However, she quickly thought it through.
There was no use dwelling on it.
One was her grandfather, the other her husband. Shouldn't she feel proud?
Besides, Haruki's strength made her feel an unprecedented sense of security.
What woman doesn't like a strong and capable man?
Haruki poured Kakuzu a cup of tea.
Kakuzu took it but cautiously didn't drink.
"Speak. Confess and be lenient, resist and be punished."
Haruki poured another cup for Tsunade, who rewarded him with a sweet smile, lightening the room's gloomy atmosphere.
"A few days ago, your bounty on the Black Market skyrocketed to ninety million ryo."
Kakuzu pondered for a moment before speaking.
"...?"
Haruki finally understood why Kakuzu had come.
As a renowned bounty hunter, the temptation of ninety million ryo was irresistible to Kakuzu.
But such a sum could only be offered by the Five Great Nations or the Five Great Villages.
His first thought was Danzo Shimura.
Not that he wanted to blame him.
But indeed, Danzo was the most suspicious.
After all, he had recently been ousted by Haruki.
"Ninety million ryo is a price the Fire Nation's Black Market hasn't seen in over a decade. The last time was for Hashirama Senju."
Kakuzu sighed, feeling his life was cursed, always getting tripped up by the Senju family.
"The higher the amount, the more troublesome the targeted ninja. However, you're a medical ninja, so the disparity made me suspicious. I persuaded five rogue ninjas to help me test the waters, but with Tsunade by your side, I decided to take action myself... You know the rest."
Haruki nodded slightly.
It matched his expectations.
"Anything else?"
"One more thing."
Kakuzu hesitated for a second, then said, "The person who placed the bounty contacted me, asking to be informed of your combat details after killing you."
"Interesting."
Haruki mused, then said, "I think I know who it is."
It's him, indeed, our Shadow of the Pot, Danzo Shimura.