Because of Akashō's earlier joint battle with the Third Raikage in the Land of Lightning, the name Kokushibo had already spread through the Hidden Stone Village to an almost mythical, godlike level.
The reason wasn't just his swordsmanship and immortal body. More importantly, his ability to rapidly recover stamina by devouring humans had been interpreted by the villagers as some kind of daily necessity—or even a hobby.
As the story spread further and wider, the information about Kokushibo had become increasingly distorted. It could no longer even be called intelligence—rumors, or even outright fabrications, would be more accurate.
Things like being three meters tall, having three heads and six arms, a mouth full of fangs, and eating dozens of humans every meal… in short, "ridiculous" wasn't nearly enough to describe it.
And now, seeing a man who matched Kokushibo's two most defining traits with their own eyes, how could these Hidden Stone ninja not panic?
Off to the side, Kakashi and Rin were also stunned. Kakashi had already prepared himself to die if necessary to protect Rin, but never expected that at this critical moment, someone would suddenly appear.
And judging by the situation, it seemed to be Kokushibo—the one apparently connected to Akashō.
From behind, Akashō stood with both hands resting on the hilt of his blade, using it as support, his posture upright and imposing.
He didn't need to say anything or do anything. Just standing there was enough to make over a hundred Hidden Stone ninja retreat in fear.
This was the Moon Sword Demon—Kokushibo.
A single man holding the line against ten thousand.
Akashō slightly turned his head and glanced at Kakashi and Rin, feeling a bit puzzled. Where the hell did that guy Obito run off to?
Huh? Why does Kakashi have an extra scar over his eye? Playing at being one-eyed?
Narrowing his eyes, Akashō noticed something familiar in that scarred eye.
It looked like… the Sharingan?
Isn't that the bloodline limit of the Uchiha clan? How does Kakashi have it?
A sudden guess formed in Akashō's mind. Could it be that Obito awakened the Sharingan in a moment of danger, and then Kakashi, overcome by greed, teamed up with Rin to screw him over and steal it?
Yeah, that guess felt oddly reasonable—pretty likely, even. Didn't expect it from him. That kid Kakashi… quite ruthless, huh.
Meanwhile, noticing that Akashō seemed to be staring at him, Kakashi couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he quickly spoke:
"Kokushibo-senpai, we're Akashō's friends, not your enemies!"
Akashō raised an eyebrow. Oh? Playing the emotional card with him?
Just as he was about to tease him a bit, a wave of intense fatigue suddenly surged through his body. At the same time, a fragment of memory appeared.
It was the shadow clone—Bertholdt Hoover. What happened? Why was it dispelled so quickly? Don't tell me it got destroyed?
Frowning slightly, Akashō quickly absorbed the memories transmitted when the shadow clone dispersed.
As for the fatigue that came with it, his Demon Body rapidly restored him. However…
Akashō touched his stomach. Recovering from this kind of fatigue seemed to require a lot of stamina. He was starting to feel hungry.
Although he had long known that dispelling a shadow clone would return its memories, pain, and fatigue, this level was clearly beyond his expectations.
That shouldn't be the case… When he secretly tested it earlier at the Hidden Leaf Village camp on the Lightning-Fire battlefield, it wasn't this intense…
Akashō pulled up Bertholdt Hoover's template interface again, and a satisfied look appeared in his eyes as he saw the reputation value below.
Using shadow clones to transform into template characters could indeed earn reputation points—this had now been confirmed. With that established, the detailed progression of his plan would depend on how effective this attempt turned out to be.
However, in just the brief half-minute that Akashō was distracted, the Hidden Stone ninja on the opposite side began to shift their attitude again.
"Hey… is that guy really Kokushibo?"
"Not sure… he doesn't quite match the rumors…"
"Has anyone here actually seen Kokushibo in person?"
"No."
"Could this be a fake, just trying to scare us off?"
"Possible."
"Then why don't you go test him?"
"…Why don't you go?"
"Damn it, a bunch of cowards. I'll do it!"
A hot-headed Hidden Stone ninja, looking furious, cut off their whispers. Holding a kunai horizontally, he charged straight at the distracted Akashō.
"Hm?"
Akashō snapped back to his senses. Seeing a Hidden Stone ninja rushing at him, he let out a cold laugh.
"Heh… still daring to attack? Looks like I haven't been ruthless enough."
With that, he casually slashed out a pale pink blade of wind, instantly splitting the charging ninja in half.
"Damn it—it's the real deal! Retreat!!!"
The Hidden Stone ninja, who had been staring intently at Akashō, didn't hesitate for even a second after seeing that blade. They immediately turned and fled for their lives.
Before Akashō could decide whether to pursue them, another, even stronger wave of fatigue and memories flooded into his body.
"Damn it!"
As the fatigue from the shadow clone Neferpitou was restored by his Demon Body, Akashō's hunger surged to an extreme level.
He unconsciously looked toward Kakashi and Rin in the distance, saliva rapidly pooling in his mouth.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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