"Impressive reaction speed," Konan remarked, surprisingly praising Hinata's response. In the next second, however, she threw an even larger number of exploding tags at her.
Hinata quickly pulled out more shuriken, intercepting them all. But after a few volleys, she was down to her last four.
"Kusuo-kun..." Hinata glanced at Hatake Kusuo.
He was currently locked in a standoff with Nagato. Although Nagato was restrained by Shion's sealing formation, he could still use his Rinnegan to cast ninjutsu.
"Still not going to agree?" Konan shouted, simultaneously hurling a thick stack of exploding tags toward all three of them.
Hinata spun around, shielding Shion with her own back turned to the explosions.
"Big Sister Hinata!" Shion cried out.
Just as Hinata thought she was about to die, a life-saving voice came from behind her. "Get out of the way, Little Hinata!"
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
All of the exploding tags were sliced apart by Kusuo's sword. "Made it just in time." He turned back to the still-shaken Hinata and patted her head dotingly, completely ignoring the fact that Nagato and Konan were still behind them.
"Hatake Kusuo," Konan said, frowning. "Did you not hear what I said?" As she spoke, she threw another large stack of tags in their direction.
This time, Konan moved with incredible speed. Even with Kusuo's immediate reaction, a few scattered tags slipped through.
BOOM...
After a few explosions, Konan stood protectively in front of Nagato.
"How is it going, Shion?" Kusuo asked.
Shion, covered in sweat, looked at him breathlessly. "Just a few more minutes, and the seal will be complete."
Hearing this, Kusuo finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Shinra Tensei..." Nagato lowered his head and unleashed a miniature Almighty Push at the ground. Shion's sealing formation was instantly blasted apart.
"The sealing jutsu was broken!" Shion immediately tried to reform the hand seals, but Nagato was already upon her. He raised his hand high and swung it down at her head.
Suddenly... BAM! Nagato's hand collided forcefully with a flying sword scabbard.
"Quick reflexes," Nagato commented before immediately turning his attack on Kusuo. Kusuo parried with his sword, and the two were once again locked in an intense battle. Gradually, Kusuo began to gain the upper hand.
"Nagato!" Konan shouted frantically from the side. "We should go now! Let's not waste any more time here!"
Hearing her words, Nagato finally stopped his assault. Although his body had recovered, his Rinnegan was only partially restored. Not only were his jutsu not strong enough, but he could also feel his chakra draining at an alarming rate.
"Hatake Kusuo, the matter between us is not over."
After saying this, Konan took Nagato and they vanished, their figures becoming ethereal before disappearing completely.
"Pfft." The moment they left, Shion coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Shion!" Kusuo rushed to her side, gently supporting her. "How are you feeling?"
Shion, her face pale, looked up and managed a weak smile. "Don't worry, I'm fine." She knew in her heart that if she hadn't been holding him back, Kusuo's strength would have been more than enough to cut Nagato down, leaving them no chance to escape.
"Here." "Shion, this is for you."
Hearing Hinata's voice, Shion looked up to see that Hinata had placed the Heart of Gelel in her hand. Before she could refuse, a warm current spread from her palm throughout her entire body. The backlash from her failed sealing jutsu began to gradually heal.
"This thing is incredible," Shion said, looking at the stone in her hand with astonishment.
"You two wait here for a bit. I need to take care of something," Kusuo said, gently patting both of their shoulders before pulling them into a hug.
"Kusuo-kun, you have to protect yourself," Hinata said with concern.
Kusuo smiled and pinched her cheek. "Don't worry, you little fool." The pinch was all it took to make Hinata's face turn bright red. She quickly looked down, her face as crimson as Nagato's hair.
"I'm off." With that, his figure vanished.
Kusuo's eyes were fixed on a corner outside the village. The powerful presence that had been there was now somewhat fainter. He appeared instantly beside Obito Uchiha.
"Where is the Eight-Tails?" Kusuo demanded, his eyes locked on Obito.
"It ran away," Obito replied sourly. That battle had been incredibly frustrating for him. If he had been fighting Killer B, he would never have suffered such a miserable defeat. He had never imagined that a rampaging Gyuki would possess such immense power.
"Did you send Nagato?" Kusuo asked, turning to look at Obito, whose expression was still grim.
"I don't know." Obito was already furious about the Eight-Tails, and seeing Kusuo only fueled his anger.
"Answer me." Kusuo drew his sword and placed the blade against Obito's neck.
Obito's eyes stared daggers at him. "Are you declaring war on me?" Just as he was about to activate his Kamui, Kusuo's sword sliced down.
"Argh!" Obito cried out in pain.
His left arm was severed by Kusuo, blood pouring from the wound. "You bastard." Although Obito could easily attach a new arm, the cut was still incredibly painful, not to mention deeply humiliating.
"I'll ask you one more time. Did you send Nagato?" Nagato had almost extracted Hinata's soul today. The memory of that scene ignited a furious fire within Kusuo.
"Nagato must die." Kusuo suddenly felt that Shion's prophecy was right. In his current state of mind, if he found Nagato, he would undoubtedly fight him to the death.
-------
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