"Got him!"
Tejima Shinichi stood on a high branch, looking down at the riverbank. Through his sensory perception, he instantly realized the wood spikes bursting from Kakuzu's body had destroyed at least two or three of his hearts.
His battle plan was clear. He had to strike immediately and take down the fake immortality of the Akatsuki member. Shinichi raised both hands and formed hand seals.
"Wood Release: Tree Binding Eternal Burial!"
The riverbank shook once more. Beneath Kakuzu's feet, the spikes piercing his body rapidly expanded.
Their surfaces cracked, and countless sprouts shot out. In an instant, they grew into thick branches that wrapped around his entire body.
"Ugh...!"
Still stuck in the wood, Kakuzu glared upward. He forced his hands together to form seals.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
Chakra surged as his whole body hardened. But a second later, Kakuzu's face twitched. The branches binding him kept swelling, swallowing him like a giant tree. His hardened torso groaned under the immense pressure.
"What...?!"
Kakuzu's eyes went wide. He couldn't believe his Earth Spear, which made him practically immune to physical damage, was actually being crushed by the Wood Release.
"Hidan!" Kakuzu's throat tightened as he croaked out the words. "The one attacking us is... Tejima Shinichi! Help me!"
"Tejima Shinichi?! That Konoha brat who killed Kisame?!" Surprise flashed across Hidan's face. Then he sprang into action. "Hold on, Kakuzu!"
With a wild roar, his arm muscles bulged as he swung his three-bladed scythe. He slashed horizontally at the wooden spike piercing his own stomach.
Crack!
The spike snapped. Hidan hit the ground. Ignoring the huge wound in his stomach, he lunged forward. He charged toward his partner, swinging his scythe to cut through the expanding roots.
But Kakuzu's vision was already filled with writhing wood.
'Is this the end?!' The thought flashed through Kakuzu's mind.
Then, in the next second...
"Kamui!"
The space around Kakuzu violently distorted. A vortex ripped open out of thin air. The crushing branches, along with Kakuzu himself, were rapidly sucked toward its center.
"This is...?!" Kakuzu's eyes widened.
His vision blurred. In his final glimpse before the distortion swallowed him, he saw Hidan's shocked face and the distant figure of Fu thrashing inside her dark red chakra cloak.
Whoosh!
The vortex spiraled shut. Kakuzu vanished.
Hidan dug his heels into the dirt and stopped his charge. He stared blankly at the crater where Kakuzu had just been. Nothing remained but broken wood.
"Kakuzu...?" Hidan blinked. "Dead...?"
High up on the tree branch, Shinichi narrowed his eyes at the empty space.
"Kamui," he whispered. "It seems... you're nearby."
Ignoring the dazed Hidan below, Shinichi shifted his gaze to the other side of the riverbank, where the corrosive red chakra still raged. Obito Uchiha's intervention meant this was no longer a simple hunt. It was a competition.
His main goal had to change.
Buzz!
Shinichi vanished from the branch. A split second later, he reappeared in the middle of the riverbank, standing right in front of the wildly thrashing jinchuriki.
Six dense chakra tails slammed into the ground, sending gravel flying like shrapnel. At the center of the vortex, Fu's eyes were blank and wild. She had completely lost consciousness to the beast.
Shinichi extended his right hand, palm facing down.
"Kakuan Entering Society with Bliss-Bringing Hands!"
A pitch-black kanji for 'sit' manifested on his palm. Stepping smoothly into her space Shinichi slammed his hand directly onto Fu's forehead. His bare skin touched the corrosive chakra cloak.
Sizzle!
The suppression seal burned itself onto her skin. Time seemed to stop. Fu's eyes instantly cleared, and her flailing tails dissolved into the air. The chakra cloak faded away, and her body slumped forward limply.
Shinichi caught her before she hit the ground and threw her over his shoulder. The whole process...from his sudden approach to the precise sealing technique, was devastatingly fast.
Just as Shinichi secured Fu, the space beside him rippled. A figure stepped out from the center of a swirling vortex. He wore a black cloak and an orange spiral mask.
Obito stood on the riverbank, his single right eye locked onto Shinichi and the unconscious jinchūriki.
"Nice to meet you," Obito said, his voice deepened through the mask to mimic Madara. "Tejima Shinichi."
Shinichi gave him a cold, disdainful look. Before he could answer, a furious roar broke the tension.
"Hey!"
Hidan rushed over, dragging his scythe through the dirt. The self-inflicted wound on his stomach was still bleeding heavily. His eyes bulged, darting between Shinichi, Obito, and the empty crater where his partner had been. The muscles in his jaw twitched.
"What the hell is going on?! Where's Kakuzu?! And who are you?!" Hidan pointed his scythe at Obito before whipping it toward Shinichi...
"And you, Konoha brat! Put down that sacrifice! That's for me to offer to Lord Jashin!"
Obito completely ignored the immortal. His gaze remained fixed on Shinichi.
"Leave the Seven-Tails jinchūriki," Obito said slowly. "Then, you may leave."
The corner of Shinichi's mouth twitched. "Just you?" His voice dropped to a cold whisper. "A rat in the gutter dares to threaten me?"
Just then, a pitcher-plant-like appendage silently broke through the soil. Using the Mayfly Technique, Black and White Zetsu emerged from the earth.
"Hidan," Zetsu said, his dual voices echoing heavily as he looked at the furious cultist.
"Kakuzu is still alive and safe for now. Also, your mission has changed. Leave this place immediately. That's the Leader's order."
Hidan's anger only grew.
"Are you kidding me?!" he roared, glaring at Zetsu. "Where the hell is Kakuzu?! What mission?!"
"I've only killed one Taki ninja so far! That's not nearly enough sacrifices! And..." He jabbed a finger at Obito. "...Who is this masked guy?! "
"This is the Leader's direct order. All your questions will be answered later," Zetsu replied flatly.
Hidan glared venomously at Zetsu, then at the silent masked man, and finally at Shinichi carrying Fuu. He spat on the ground.
"Tsk! Every single one of you acting so mysterious! What a pain!" He shouldered his scythe and finally turned away, muttering darkly under his breath, "Just wait. Next time I'll offer all of you to Lord Jashin..."
Hidan retreated, his figure quickly disappearing into the dense forest on the far side of the riverbank.
The riverbank fell into a tense, heavy silence.
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