A pale, slender hand gripped the hilt of the Kusanagi Sword, the razor-sharp blade singing out with a high, clear ring.
Lifting the sword with a smile, the figure said,
"That's not like you at all."
"For the good of the village, I'll do whatever it takes," Orochimaru replied, also smiling.
"That's exactly why I said it doesn't sound like you," Kiyosuke said.
"The Orochimaru-sensei I know isn't the kind of person who would sacrifice everything for the sake of the village—especially not his very first disciple. You've always cared more about the pursuit of truth than any village interest. You won't kill me. And you definitely won't give up on Mei—not when her body holds such valuable research potential."
Orochimaru had no interest in the so-called Will of Fire. To him, truth held far more allure than Konoha's ideals.
Until he fully understood Kiyosuke's unique constitution, he wouldn't make a move. Though… there was still the possibility that Orochimaru would just knock him out cold and dissect him on the spot.
As for Mei Terumi—well, her odds didn't look so good.
"You're not wrong. Let's say I didn't see anything here," Orochimaru said coolly. "Kiyosuke-kun, I need some samples from the Three-Tails. Until I have them, I'll protect your 'friend.'"
He didn't want to risk himself, so he sent Kiyosuke instead.
With elementalization and Sage Mode, grabbing a piece from Isobu wouldn't be too difficult.
"Orochimaru-sensei, you're seriously using me as manual labor here," Kiyosuke said with a wry smile.
"You're free to decline," Orochimaru replied, his gaze drifting to Mei.
"Alright, alright, I'll go. Just don't do anything shady. And I'm borrowing this."
He hefted the Kusanagi Sword and charged straight into the battlefield, where the Three-Tails was locked in a fierce fight with Yagura and Kisame.
Kiyosuke brought the blade down hard on Isobu's shell—clang!—carving a deep crack into it.
As expected of the blade that could even wound Enma's adamantine form—it actually damaged Isobu's armor, if only slightly.
But it didn't pierce flesh.
"Isn't that Asakawa from Konoha?" Kisame asked, hefting Samehada.
"It is. What's he doing here?" Yagura frowned, clearly confused.
This was, after all, Kirigakure's internal matter.
"You two are too weak—I couldn't stand watching anymore. Besides, I'm curious how strong I am now. Fire Fist!"
A blazing punch slammed down on Isobu's head.
Even the Three-Tails couldn't shrug it off—the searing heat and immense impact forced a reaction out of it. Amplified by Sage chakra, Kiyosuke's Fire Fist now rivaled Ace's.
ROOOOAR!!
With a howl of pain, Isobu swept its tail with gale-force power straight at Kiyosuke.
He responded instantly, one arm flaring into a giant flame-hand that grabbed the tail.
With his other hand, he drove the Kusanagi Sword into the shell, pouring chakra into it.
The sword instantly extended, infused with chakra. Kiyosuke braced one foot on the hilt, driving it deeper, forcing the blade to grow through Isobu's body until it burst out the other side.
ROAR!!!
The pain of being pierced through made Isobu thrash violently, its chakra surging so wildly that it almost flung Kiyosuke from its back.
"Dealing with tailed beasts is seriously no joke… What kind of monster was Hashirama Senju in his prime?"
He'd captured the Nine-Tails like a kitten and still complained about how dangerous it was—who was really the terrifying one?
More searing pain erupted from its tail, and Isobu roared again. Two more tails lashed out together, finally managing to knock Kiyosuke—sword and all—backward. A single furious eye stared down at him.
This little insect actually hurt me?
"DIE, HUMAN!!!"
One massive foot came crashing down, casting a dark shadow over Kiyosuke's head. He immediately conjured two giant flame-hands behind him to catch it.
"Damn! This feels terrible! It's heavy as hell!"
Even with Sage chakra enhancing his strength, holding off Isobu's foot was a serious strain.
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation!"
Sage chakra surged into the ground. Dozens of earthen spikes erupted upward, slamming into Isobu's underside and lifting the beast into the air.
Kiyosuke's two flame-hands spread open. Between them, a massive sun-like fireball formed—blazing hot, radiant, and impossible to look at.
The hands hurled the "sun" down.
It crashed into Isobu's body.
"And now… the second stage!"
He curled one hand into a grip—and triggered the blast.
BOOOOOOM—!!!
The explosion thundered across the battlefield, wild and violent, with waves of scorching heat sweeping outward. Leaves and trees withered instantly. The sudden evaporation of water in the area drenched everyone in thick humidity, their clothes sticking uncomfortably to their bodies.
"What terrifying… power!" Yagura and Kisame emerged from underground, stunned by the scorched wasteland surrounding them.
"No ordinary person could pull this off. Can a teenage jōnin really unleash something like this?"
"Who knows… What about the Three-Tails?"
"Over there." Yagura pointed.
Isobu lay on the ground, its body blackened and charred—its condition uncertain.
"What about the Mizukage?"
Right… where was the Mizukage?
That explosion had been massive. The Third Mizukage, still exposed on Isobu's back, might've been caught in it...
Kiyosuke's body reformed. He picked up the now-blackened and scalding-hot Kusanagi Sword from the ground and walked toward Isobu.
"Wait, what are you doing?" Yagura ran after him.
"None of your business," Kiyosuke replied as he jumped up and slashed off a barbed spike from Isobu's face. Then he summoned a giant snake, which swallowed it whole.
He turned to Yagura and Kisame.
"That's it. The rest is up to you. No idea if that thing's dead or not."
"Why did you help us?"
"What do you mean, why? No particular reason. I just wanted to show you what I can do—to remind you what it costs to make an enemy of Konoha."
"You're threatening us?"
"If that's how you interpret it, then yeah—it's a threat."
Kiyosuke looked Yagura straight in the eye and said evenly,
"You gained nothing by fighting Konoha. I slipped into Kirigakure without anyone noticing, and you couldn't stop me. I still have enough chakra left to launch that same attack three more times. If you think Kirigakure can handle that kind of destruction, then by all means—keep fighting."
"Asakawa-san really doesn't hold back," Kisame said, standing beside Yagura, Samehada resting on his shoulder.
"Yagura-sama, what's your call?"
Yagura fell silent for a moment, staring at Kiyosuke.
"…Impressive. Very impressive, Asakawa Kiyosuke. With you on their side, Konoha won't lose this war."
A human weapon with power rivaling a tailed beast—Konoha could win with him alone.
But Yagura was no fool. He understood the situation.
Kirigakure had already lost.
...
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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