At this moment, time seemed to slow down, as if this moment signified the first collision.
With an unwavering and resolute will, the crystalline, jade-like blade slowly pierced into Minato's skin, passing through the surface and continuing deeper…
"If this is the path I must take..."
His eyes, growing darker, as if falling into eternal darkness, suddenly widened, and a resolute emotion surged from within.
Squelch…
The sound of flesh being pierced by a sharp weapon echoed.
Minato wanted to turn around at this moment, to see who it was, but he didn't have the chance...
From the brief moment when he sensed danger to the pain in his skin, he reacted with extraordinary speed, using the Flying Thunder God Technique, crossing through space, and vanishing from the spot.
In a tent within the Konoha outpost in the Land of Fire, Shikaku looked at the kunai with the seal on the ground, his still slightly youthful face filled with a grave expression.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in the tent without warning, causing Shikaku to twitch his brows.
Minato, clutching his chest, knelt on one knee, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. Blood slowly seeped through his fingers as he pressed his chest.
Seeing Minato's condition, Shikaku's expression changed, and he called out towards the outside of the tent. A medical ninja, who had been on standby, quickly pulled aside the curtain and rushed in.
"Hurry, treat Minato," Shikaku's brows furrowed deeply.
The medical ninja quickly began to treat Minato.
Minato's forehead was already covered in cold sweat. He slowly lowered his arm, allowing the medical ninja to treat his wound, then nodded slightly towards Shikaku, indicating that the mission was complete.
Shikaku let out a light breath and nodded back at Minato, but his tightly furrowed brows didn't relax. A question lingered in his mind…
With Minato's abilities, who among the Iwa-nin stationed at the rear could possibly injure him?
As Minato's figure vanished, Ye Zi, still in the stance of thrusting his blade forward, flew a short distance before coming to a halt.
White Zetsu slowly emerged from the ground and looked at Ye Zi, asking, "Did you succeed?"
Ye Zi raised his blade and looked at the blood-stained tip. The blood covered only about five centimeters of the blade, and factoring in the length extended by the force of the strike, it likely didn't reach the heart. In other words, this ambush had failed.
"It failed." He frowned slightly, feeling a bit disappointed.
"Such a troublesome guy. With that kind of ability, I really don't know how to defeat him," White Zetsu shrugged, expressing his regret.
Ye Zi said nothing, shaking the blade to fling off the blood, then looked at the destroyed stone bridge.
The middle section of the stone bridge had been blown apart, exposing thick steel reinforcement bars. The river wasn't deep, and parts of the shattered stone bridge still protruded above the water's surface. The rocks and rubble, broken into smaller pieces by the explosion, blocked part of the river. About a dozen Iwa-nin corpses, killed by Minato, were half-buried in the riverbed by the debris.
Kannabi Bridge had been destroyed in this manner.
The explosion caused by the paper bombs was not small, and nearby Iwa-nin were rushing towards the location.
Hearing the explosion, the approaching Iwa-nin were filled with a sense of foreboding. When they arrived at the scene, they were shocked.
"The bridge… has been destroyed!"
Seeing the ruined bridge and the bodies of over a dozen comrades, the Iwa-nin present all looked grim. Immediately, their gazes locked onto Ye Zi and White Zetsu, and in an instant, anger surged from the Iwa-nin.
"It seems we've been misunderstood," White Zetsu chuckled before slowly sinking into the ground and decisively fleeing.
Seeing White Zetsu run away, Ye Zi, whose face was covered by a mask, immediately scowled.
"That guy..."
Feeling speechless at White Zetsu's actions, Ye Zi turned to look at the dozens of furious Iwa-nin on the other side of the bridge and chose not to leave.
"Perfect, I'll use them to test the power of my Wood Release…"
While training in Wood Release underground, he could only practice on artificial targets, which didn't provide any real combat experience. So, the dozens of Iwa-nin who arrived just in time would be perfect for him to test the power of his Wood Release in actual battle.
"I've been wanting to try this technique for a while now."
As his deep murmur faded, lightning threads began to appear across his body, crackling with an electric hum.
Ye Zi leaped into the air like a cannonball, crossing the span of the destroyed Kannabi Bridge, landing amidst the Iwa-nin. He thrust both hands forward, and sharp wooden spikes sprouted from his palms, stabbing into two unsuspecting Iwa-nin.
Splurt!
Thick branches as wide as a wrist burst from the bodies of the two Iwa-nin, tearing through flesh and clothing, emerging soaked in blood like creatures born from the carnage.
The two Iwa-nin screamed in agony before collapsing, dead.
The surrounding Iwa-nin were shocked by the scene and instinctively backed away.
Yezi twisted his foot, then lunged forward, closing the distance to a slower retreating Iwa-nin. Grabbing his head with one hand, Ye Zi's wooden spike extended into the man's mouth.
Perhaps due to the horrifying deaths of his comrades, the Iwa-nin screamed in terror as his head was gripped, but the scream was cut short as three sharp branches pierced through the back of his skull.
Whoosh!
At that moment, several kunai flew through the air.
Ye Zi used the corpse as a shield to block the kunai, then flung the body at the Iwa-nin who had thrown the weapons, knocking them away.
It was only now that the Iwa-nin began to attack. One Iwa-nin wielding a sword rushed at Ye Zi with a swift strike.
Ye Zi sidestepped the blow, planting his right foot forward and thrusting the wooden spike from his left hand into the swordsman's chest.
The Iwa-nin's mouth opened in a silent scream as he fell to the ground, dead.
"What is that thing?" one Iwa-nin asked in horror.
"The enemy has strong taijutsu. Spread out, and attack with ninjutsu!" someone calmly suggested, stepping back and beginning to form hand seals for a Earth Release technique. The other Iwa-nin followed suit.
But as the Iwa-nin was midway through his third seal, Ye Zi transformed into a bolt of lightning, appearing right in front of him.
"Wha…"
The Iwa-nin's eyes widened in shock and terror.
Through the wooden mask's eyeholes, a cold gleam shone as Ye Zi's hand wrapped around the Iwa-nin's neck, silencing him after his first syllable.
Splurt!
Nourished by blood, branches erupted from the body, tearing through flesh.
"It has decent killing power, but it's still not as effective as using a blade... this might be better for ranged attacks"
He muttered to himself, forming a long wooden spike with his Wood Release and gripping it in his hand. Suddenly, he leaped into the air, just as hands emerged from the ground where he had been standing, grabbing at nothing but air.
Ye Zi twisted his wrist and, as he landed, thrust the wooden spike into the ground. The hands trembled as several bloodstained wooden spikes burst from the ground around them.
Afterward, Ye Zi leaped back to avoid a barrage of stone spikes. He formed six wooden branches with his hands and shot them towards the Iwa-nin, impaling them. In an instant, the branches burst out of the Iwa-nin's bodies like antennae.
In no time, Ye Zi overwhelmed and killed all the Iwa-nin present with his superior strength.
"When did you gain such power?"
At that moment, a familiar, slightly weak voice echoed in his mind.
It was Shokui...
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Currently on Chapter 234 - Ye Zi's Arrival and the Trapped Snake