The wooden spikes of the Cutting Technique shot toward Fu from all directions, as if trying to turn her into a pincushion.
But this time, with Chomei's Tailed Beast Chakra supporting her, Fu's power immediately increased significantly.
Two insect-like wings sprouted from her back, carrying her body as she moved rapidly.
As the only Tailed Beast capable of flight, Chomei could also grant this ability to its Jinchuriki.
The insect wings flapped quickly.
Fu's small figure dodged and weaved through the countless wooden spikes… not a single one managed to hit her.
Seeing this, Black Zetsu simply 'drained' the White Zetsu's clone on this side, pouring out all its Chakra in one go.
Instantly, the volume and density of the wooden spikes nearly doubled.
Caught off guard by this sudden attack, Fu was somewhat unprepared, and many parts of her body were grazed by the wooden spikes.
Seeing the wooden spikes increasing relentlessly, Fu knew she couldn't continue this stalemate.
"Secret Technique: Insect Cocoon."
Chakra surged out rapidly, forming a huge 'cocoon' that enveloped Fu.
The wooden spikes stuck into the giant cocoon could only absorb a portion of the Chakra… piercing through it would take some time.
"Heh, run out of ideas?"
Seeing this, Zetsu used the absorbed Chakra to create even more wooden spikes.
The giant cocoon soon shattered under this ever-increasing absorption, exposing the Jinchuriki sitting slumped inside.
"Got you!"
Several wooden spikes quickly pierced the Jinchuriki's limbs, completely cutting off any chance of escape.
But before Zetsu could smile, the gradually cracking skin of the Seven-Tails' Jinchuriki shattered his illusion.
Crack, crack.
A crisp sound reached Zetsu's ears.
The next moment, the 'Fu' left behind shattered like an insect's shed exoskeleton, revealing a large hole leading underground.
"Tricked..."
Zetsu watched the other escape through the tunnel but wasn't too upset.
Because he knew that as long as the other didn't abandon Takigakure, she would inevitably walk into the trap herself.
...
The reality wasn't far from Zetsu's guess.
Fu, who had used the 'cicada molting tactic' to escape, didn't choose to flee but returned to the surface of Takigakure.
Originally, she thought she would be dealing with the Missing-Nin Suien.
But when she surfaced, she saw the chimera fused with Hiruko feasting heartily, its target being the previously arrogant Suien.
Shibuki, meanwhile, was seriously injured, protected by the other villagers.
After the chimera swallowed Suien in a few bites, the Chakra on Hiruko's body instantly swelled.
That was the Hero Water remaining in Suien's body taking effect.
"Hmm… This feeling is truly indescribable."
Feeling the massively increased Chakra, Hiruko's gaze toward the gourd in his hand also grew heated.
'If a third-rate guy who drank the Hero Water could bring such a significant boost, it seemed this so-called [Hero Water] wasn't overly exaggerated.'
Originally, as a biology expert, Hiruko looked down upon legendary items like the Hero Water.
But that couldn't withstand the thrill brought by the tangible increase in Chakra.
"I take back my evaluation… this thing is really quite good."
Saying this, Hiruko didn't hesitate either, pulling out the stopper and taking a big gulp of the Hero Water.
Instantly, his already massive Chakra doubled again.
A Chakra aura far exceeding everyone's imagination rose from his body, and even the chimera fused with him underwent changes.
Not only did its size increase, but the number of wings and tails also doubled.
The lion's great mouth grinned wide, dripping saliva continuously.
'With this kind of power, do I still need to use Akatsuki to capture Kekkei Genkai Users?'
The swelling power instantly diluted Hiruko's already scant willingness to cooperate.
"Hmm? There's still a little bug?"
Due to the increase in Chakra, his sensory range had also grown to some extent.
Hiruko immediately turned his gaze toward Fu, who had just emerged from a corner.
Seeing the Tailed Beast Cloak on her, a smile appeared on Hiruko's bandaged face.
"Although I don't need to listen to those people, using you as an appetizer before the main course isn't bad either..."
As Hiruko's malicious voice sounded, several snake heads on the chimera's back rapidly extended, biting toward the partially transformed Fu.
Fortunately, after entering the partial Tailed Beast State, Fu's reaction speed and physical strength had increased significantly, not just her chakra.
Buzz-
The girl with insect wings turned into an afterimage, disappearing from her original spot.
The snake heads smashed into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
"Wing Slash!"
Her wings sliced through the air, Chakra converging into air blades that cut through the snake bodies.
Almost without any resistance, those snake heads were severed.
But before a smile could appear on Fu's face, more snake heads grew from the severed stumps.
One became two, two became four. Perhaps many-headed snakes all knew this trick.
"Useless, brat."
Hiruko scoffed disdainfully.
He had thought the Jinchuriki might be slightly troublesome, but it turned out she was just an ordinary little girl, as her appearance suggested.
The chimera's tails came from the summoned creature, [Twin-Headed Snake] he researched, its biggest feature being the ability to split infinitely under Chakra stimulation.
[Snake Spiral Thorn!]
The snake heads opened, and an even thinner snake head grew from within.
The thin snake heads spun rapidly, transforming into spiral projectiles shooting out.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Completely different from the effects when used by his subordinates, the Snake Spiral Thorn in Hiruko's hands could unleash impact force comparable to A-Rank Ninjutsu.
Coupled with the Hero Water's boost, its power was even more terrifying.
While dodging and weaving, Fu was accidentally hit by one of the snake heads.
"Ah!"
Even with the Tailed Beast Cloak's protection, Fu was heavily smashed to the ground, crying out in pain.
"Fu!"
Seeing Fu, whom he regarded as a younger sister, severely injured, Shibuki struggled to stand up despite the pain, but several other figures were faster than him.
They were the other Takigakure's Ninjas whom Shibuki had just untied.
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
Although they couldn't use high-level Ninjutsu, many small streams make a great river. The variety of Ninjutsu flying out genuinely hindered many of the snake head attacks.
Like Shibuki, they couldn't just watch Fu be killed.
"Boring. I originally wanted to use you as material, but it seems you're better off dead."
Looking at the small village's Ninjas daring to resist him, a certain twisted emotion quietly surged in Hiruko's heart.
Since childhood, he had lagged behind others due to his poor physique and talent.
Clearly a contemporary and classmate of the Sannin, he could only watch as the gap between them grew wider and wider.
He was unwilling.
It wasn't because he suffered discrimination or some misfortune.
It was purely driven by jealousy and resentment.
Unlike Orochimaru, who sought immortality to research all Ninjutsu and knowledge, Hiruko's pursuit was more crude and shallow.
He simply wanted to use power to prove he wasn't worse than those people.
Looking at the Ninja daring to resist him, Hiruko sneered, controlling the chimera to spread its wings.
'Weaklings should obediently kneel at my feet!'
Perhaps stung by certain bonds, Hiruko directly launched an attack at the crowd.
Countless feathers shot from the chimera's wings toward the Takigakure's villagers.
Those who could use Ninjutsu employed defensive techniques like Earth-Style Wall. Fu also endured the pain, slashing several air blades toward the sky, cutting the feathers mid-air.
But these were merely a drop in the bucket.
The number of feathers was simply too vast, saturating the area and covering everyone.
"Ah!"
"It hurts!"
Some villagers were cut by the feathers, crying out in pain.
But this wasn't the end of the attack.
As a strong sense of crisis hit, Fu saw the feathers suddenly begin to glow.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!
A continuous series of explosions sounded. Each feather seemed to have turned into an explosive tag. The Takigakure's Ninjas' ninjutsu quickly succumbed before these explosions.
Seeing the explosions about to harm the villagers, Fu was so anxious her eyes were nearly turning red. The floodgate for Tailed Beast's Chakra within her opened wider.
More wind blades shot against the feathers but still couldn't stop them.
"Storm Wall!"
A clear, beautiful voice echoed through the valley, followed by a massive airflow like a hurricane.
The hurricane effortlessly swept back the overwhelming feathers.
Some feathers detonated prematurely mid-air, but the explosive flames and shockwaves were all blocked by the substantial-looking wind wall.
Everyone's gaze turned upwards. A giant bird had appeared in Takigakure's sky at some point.
"It seems we're not too late."
The golden giant bird dove downwards, positioning itself right between Hiruko and the villagers.