Everyone was fighting tooth and nail to protect the Jinchūriki (Tailed Beast Host).
Yet this guy Naruto had run out on his own—if he ran into Pain and got captured, wouldn't everyone's effort go up in smoke?
Naruto looked a bit sheepish, but what he said sounded noble enough. "How could I hide indoors and just watch everyone fight without doing anything? I want to help too!"
Tenten didn't bother arguing with him and instead looked at the two opponents.
"You're Haku, right? And the one next to you is…?"
Naruto started to introduce them, but Tenten's glare shut him up.
Haku spoke politely. "This is Zabuza-san…"
A pull of suction yanked Haku straight into the gourd. The sudden turn made Naruto and Zabuza's faces change, and they shouted in unison, "Haku!"
An instant later, Zabuza was also swallowed by the crimson gourd.
Naruto stumbled back several steps, eyes locked on Tenten's loadout. "T-Tenten… what kind of treasure is that?"
"Just the Rikudō Ningu (Six Paths Tools)," she said offhandedly, then added, "So behave, or I'll suck you into the gourd, seal you for three hundred years, and let you out later."
S-sealed for three hundred years?!
Naruto shook his head frantically and kept his mouth shut. Tenten suddenly seemed terrifying.
Still, she knew sending him home right now wasn't realistic. "Go help the ANBU with the Oto-nin Goninshū (Sound Five). Be careful—those guys aren't simple. I'll go help Gaara!"
With that, she flickered with Shunshin (Body Flicker) to Gaara's side—only to blink when she saw Kakuzu and Sasori.
She remembered Sasori had been taken away by Chiyo-baa, and Kakuzu's corpse had gone to Intel for study. How had Kabuto gotten body tissue to use Edo Tensei (Impure World Reincarnation)?
Sasori noticed her puzzlement and, for once, answered first. "We have someone who's good at stealing. Tissue samples are nothing; even the rings you people hid were stolen long ago."
He meant Black Zetsu: that thing could slip through the earth without a sound, pull tricks anywhere, and was impossible to guard against.
Tenten realized it. So that's why Intel had gone quiet about the rings—because they'd already been stolen.
Whatever. It didn't matter anymore.
The Akatsuki intel was already public.
By now, Kakuzu had split off four heart-mask monsters and was firing off combined jutsu with them—ferocious power. Gaara alone was having trouble holding them back.
Tenten recalled what Natsuki had said: one swing of the Bashōsen (Banana Palm Fan) could blow apart Kakuzu's heart-mask monsters. She immediately Kuchiyose (Summoned) the fan, swung up a storm—and popped a lightning-nature mask beast in a single blast.
Kakuzu's face changed—he recognized it. "Rikudō Ningu! How is that in your hands?!"
"Heh." Tenten kept fanning. Two more mask beasts shattered like paper.
Gaara was floored. "So that's the Six Paths Tools. No wonder they're so powerful—one swing, one mask. Terrifying! They say these tools were left by the Rikudō Sennin (Sage of Six Paths) and ordinary people can't use them. No wonder you're so strong, Tenten—you're basically a legend!"
Tenten was very satisfied with that line. Becoming a legendary kunoichi was exactly her goal!
Kakuzu actually chuckled. "I remember now—you're the one who posted those jobs at the Exchange! Collecting the Smithing Ninja Village Four-piece Set, the Kiba (Fang) thunder blades, and even the contract scroll for the High Mountain Giant Eagles, right?!"
Tenten's expression flickered. "How do you know that?"
"Of course I know. I took those contracts. I even wanted your 'Six Paths Tools' job, but I found no leads and had to give up. Shame about the ten billion ryō."
Yes—Tenten had raised the bounty on the Six Paths Tools from one hundred million to ten billion ryō, causing a storm on the black market. For a man who worshiped money like Kakuzu, it was irresistible; he'd searched a while, but with no intel and time wasting away, he dropped it.
And now he could only think of how much he'd lost.
Tenten couldn't help but laugh. So all her tools and summons had been sourced by Kakuzu. How convenient!
The others were speechless; no one knew what to say.
For the first time, Sasori truly understood "speechless." "Kakuzu… you realize you were working for the enemy?"
Kakuzu protested, "She paid too well. I was making money for the organization. Simple, high-paying jobs—why wouldn't I take them?"
Too late to say anything now.
"Thanks, Kakuzu." Tenten finished with ten quick swings, blowing apart the last of the mask beasts.
Then she flicked out the Kōkinjō (Golden Canopy Rope) to force out Kakuzu's kotodama (word-spirit), sliced it with the Shichiseiken (Seven Star Sword), and sealed it with the Benihisago (Crimson Gourd)—a smooth, long-practiced routine.
Kakuzu's word was "money." And into the gourd he went.
Kisame finally cracked. "H-hey, hey! Isn't this a bit much?! Even the Six Paths Tools?!"
The remaining Edo Tensei bodies turned to Tenten's smile and involuntarily shivered. This double-bun girl was terrifying.
—A little earlier—
On the main battlefield, Natsuki was alone against Tendō (Deva Path), Jigokudō (Hell Path), and Chikushōdō (Animal Path).
He clapped his hands. "Mokuton: Senju Kannon (Wood Release: Thousand-Armed Kannon)!"
A heartbeat later, branches burst from the ground and rapidly formed a ten-meter-tall Kannon statue, ringed with a forest of hands, each forming different Buddha mudrā, like a bodhisattva descending to punish evildoers.
He clapped again. "Doton: Ishi Gōremu (Earth Release: Stone Golem)!"
Crack—crack—crack!
A ten-meter stone giant rose from the earth and glared down at the three Pains.
Faces hardened on the Paths; nearby shinobi stared wide-eyed. Natsuki's control was just too slick.
Truth was, he could have made the giant much bigger—but there was no need. One step too large and he'd flatten Konoha. What a waste that would be.
Ten meters was perfect: it marked the main battlefield for allies, exerted absolute pressure on Pain, and cleanly handled any mega-summon Chikushōdō might bring out.
Sure enough, a moment later Animal Path performed Kuchiyose (Summoning)—a colossal centipede lunged in.
The Stone Golem slapped it down, grinding the giant insect across the ground; it couldn't move at all.
Then the Senju Kannon went to work.
A deluge of fists and palms hammered the three Pains. For a time they could only dodge. Even Tendō had nothing but evasion—if he used Shinra Tensei (Almighty Push) to blow away one wave, another sea of strikes immediately followed. Wasting a big move with cast time only opened windows for Natsuki to exploit.
(End of Chapter)
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