"But now, only you, Teacher, are the ninja who uses Fire Style," Shikamaru said nervously, looking at Asuma.
"It is indeed tricky. The coastal forces are all Lightning Style ninjas," Asuma said, lighting a cigarette impatiently.
"Fire Style: Head-Hunting Fire!"
Suddenly, flames like seawater surged towards the Kinkaku and Ginkaku brothers. The flames spread out in a wide area upon hitting the ground, encircling the two brothers.
Everyone turned to see Kakuzu, formerly of the Akatsuki, standing on a rock with Hidan.
"How... isn't the Akatsuki the enemy?" Choji exclaimed in shock.
"We have left the Akatsuki. The Five Kage hired us," Kakuzu explained to everyone, then jumped down from the rock. "I must say, the Five Kage are willing to spend money. For the sake of money, I can do anything I don't want to do."
"And him, is he also for money?" Shikamaru asked, pointing at Hidan.
Hidan snorted, "I don't care about money. Back then, when I only had my head left, it was this guy who took me out of the Akatsuki and helped me find my original body. Don't think I'm a monster now, I know how to be grateful!"
Asuma's eyes lit up with joy, "Now with me, we have two ninjas who can use Fire Style. Combined with the attacks of Lightning Style ninjas, we should be able to defeat them!"
The Kinkaku and Ginkaku brothers were surrounded by flames, standing in the middle of the fire circle, sweating profusely.
"Damn it, these people have found our weakness! What should we do now!"
"Where is your gourd, your Seven-Star Sword?" Kinkaku asked anxiously.
"We can't use them in this situation! Let's extinguish the fire first!" Ginkaku leaped up, intending to bypass the fire circle from above.
How could Kakuzu let him escape? "Lightning Style: False Darkness!" Jibaku Bunshin slowly appeared, and the Lightning Style mask monster fired sharp spears of lightning towards Ginkaku in the sky. The lightning, sweeping from near to far, made it difficult for Ginkaku to dodge. With the high-speed assault, Ginkaku screamed and fell from the sky.
"Ginkaku!" Kinkaku roared with anger, looking at the falling Ginkaku. Ginkaku's entire body was enveloped in lightning, emitting thick black smoke.
"Unforgivable!" Instantly, Kinkaku's body radiated Nine-Tails chakra. Everyone's faces paled. "Partial Tailed Beast Transformation?"
"Everyone, retreat!" Asuma shouted. The power erupting from Kinkaku's body blew away the surrounding flames. He roared and charged towards Kakuzu. Hidan spun his scythe and immediately jumped in front of Kakuzu, "Your ferocious appearance is perfect for joining my church!"
"Get lost! Your strength is not enough to deal with him!" Kakuzu shouted at Hidan with a cold expression.
"We'll see!" Hidan brandished his scythe and charged at the Tailed Beast transformed Kinkaku. Kinkaku was incredibly fast, swiping Hidan's scythe away with a claw and then piercing his body.
"Blood..." Kinkaku whispered eerily. Kakuzu quickly formed hand seals. "Compound Ninjutsu: Flames and Wind Barrage/Curse of the God: Firestorm!" The Jibaku Bunshin Fire Style mask monster and the Jibaku Bunshin Wind Style mask monster combined rapidly, creating an immense firestorm with Fire and Wind Style. This firestorm instantly engulfed Kinkaku and Ginkaku. Ginkaku, still recovering from the lightning strike, was completely consumed by the firestorm. Kinkaku was also badly injured. The vast firestorm burned along the coast, and his figure quickly disappeared from Kakuzu's sight.
"Is it over?" Shikamaru asked in disbelief, watching the scene before him. Suddenly, a scorched arm violently emerged from the firestorm.
"Hahahahaha..." "I almost got burned to death..." Kinkaku slowly crawled out of the firestorm. In everyone's eyes, he had almost no intact skin. His entire body looked terrifying after being scorched by the flames.
Kakuzu smiled slightly, "Even if you came out, what good is it?" "Jibaku Bunshin: Final Shot!" Kakuzu rapidly fused the Wind, Fire, and Lightning masks onto his right arm. Immense power began to build. Kinkaku panicked, staggering back two steps, and then began to look for a way to escape. Kakuzu's lips curled upwards, the power in his arm fully charged, "Go back to hell!" A terrifying chakra cannon erupted, its immense power piercing Kinkaku's body.
"Ah!!!" "No!!!" A blinding light enveloped the coastline. Kinkaku's body turned into a pile of ashes in an instant within the light.
"Job done." Kakuzu retracted his masks, then helped up Hidan and turned to leave. "We still have to rush to other places to provide support. Even one like him is so troublesome." "Perhaps I should negotiate a better price with the Five Kage." "Otherwise, it's really not worth it."
Shikamaru, Asuma, and the others were dumbfounded. Meanwhile, Neji was still fighting Hiashi. The two were evenly matched, but Neji's chakra was dwindling. Especially after Hiashi smelled blood, he became even more frenzied. Neji was gradually struggling to cope. Suddenly, he remembered seeing Su Mu perform Bagua at the Eight Treasures Palace.
"The Book of Changes has Tai Chi, giving birth to the Two Principles; the Two Principles give birth to the Four Symbols; the Four Symbols give birth to the Eight Trigrams." "To overcome hardness with softness, that is to use four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds!" "I think I understand..."
Neji struck out with a palm, and both Hiashi and the other drew back. Neji took a deep breath, then slowly lowered his hands forward, and took the first step, imitating Su Mu.
"This is..." Hiashi was stunned. In his Byakugan, he could clearly see the changes in Neji's chakra. The chakra was rapidly shifting positions along the acupoints! Everyone now saw a green Tai Chi diagram slowly appearing beneath Neji's feet.
"Father, please guide me again!" Hiashi frowned and immediately charged at Neji. Neji calmly struck forward with his right hand, using a subtle force. Hiashi dodged to the side and struck out with his left hand. Neji didn't even look, his right hand easily deflected the attack, and then pulled back. Hiashi was instantly bewildered. He found that his arm was being pulled towards Neji uncontrollably, and it followed Neji's movements in a fluid manner.
"Why does Neji's attack look so soft?" "It doesn't seem to have any power!" Choji took out a bag of chips and munched on them. Cold sweat trickled down Shikamaru's forehead. "No, although his attack looks soft, it excels in its subtle force." "Haven't you noticed that Uncle Hiashi's rhythm is completely controlled by Neji?"