Terumi Mei suddenly realized a crucial fact!
Onoki was clearly a Kage-level master. How could he possibly be held captive by ordinary White Zetsu? With his strength, killing those White Zetsu should have been effortless.
Her heart pounding, she slowly turned her head.
"Crack!"
Her neck was suddenly gripped tightly by Onoki.
"I didn't expect that guy to be so strong. If I hadn't disguised myself as the old man, I probably wouldn't have escaped at all!" Onoki spat furiously.
He was obviously referring to Ye Liang!
Mei was horrified.
She noticed Onoki's face skin gradually peeling off—it resembled some kind of disgusting skin disease, flaking off in chunks.
Even the flesh underneath was visible.
Finally...
A White Zetsu face was revealed!
Tch, what a waste of such a pretty face. Time to send you off first.
"Ahh! You're not the Tsuchikage... Then who exactly are you..." Mei rolled her eyes, barely able to speak clearly anymore.
Just then...
The previously pitch-black cave suddenly erupted with an ear-splitting explosion!
[Sage Art – Night Guy!]
"Boom!"
Along with this godlike roar, everyone's eardrums nearly shattered!
At the same time, the entire mountaintop where the White Zetsu resided was blown wide open!
A giant White Zetsu wearing an Expressionless Mask was sent flying violently backward—by size alone, it was easily dozens of stories tall!
Despite its immense weight, it was still sent flying into the sky.
Its grotesque face twisted in agony, it clawed desperately at the ground but still slid for several kilometers before finally stopping. The Lost Forest, where part of the Chunin Exams took place, had been completely obliterated by this colossal White Zetsu!
Mei and Onoki stared in terror!
At this moment, the giant White Zetsu shakily twitched its leg bone, seemingly beginning to recover. The giant White Zetsu opened its mouth and tried to stand up again, clearly in great pain.
Gruh gruh! Gruh gruh!
No one could understand what it was saying, its eyes rolling upward uncontrollably.
Finally, a mysterious small figure wrapped in red mist suddenly shot out from the back of its head.
Thud!
The massive White Zetsu instantly went limp!
Even Onoki stood frozen in shock.
What was going on here?!
Startled, he unwittingly loosened his grip. Seizing the chance, Mei replaced herself with a log using the Substitution Jutsu and narrowly escaped death. Seeing her flee, the two once again clashed with Earth Release techniques, both skidding backward dozens of meters.
Meanwhile, the black shadow previously hiding inside the cave now emerged suddenly from the earth behind Onoki.
"Onoki! Hurry and run! That thing is even more terrifying than our Master!" The dark figure appeared urgently urging Onoki to escape, its tone anxious.
"Run? Black Zetsu, are you speaking nonsense?! Didn't the Master already entrust you with the secret weapon? Why are you still hesitating at a time like this? What's wrong with your mind!"
"I freaking used it already! Are you blind or something!"
Black Zetsu shouted furiously at Onoki before instantly vanishing into the earth.
"You *used* it?!" Onoki staggered. He suddenly recalled the giant White Zetsu that had come out of the mountain earlier—if that was the Master's secret weapon, then what was that red mist figure?
He quickly turned his gaze toward it.
A small red figure, nearly vaporized, instantly flew toward them.
His facial features were somewhat blurry but vaguely recognizable.
It was Ye Liang!
Surprisingly, it was Ye Liang!
Onoki cried out. He hurriedly tried to escape, but Ye Liang had already drifted lightly in front of him.
"What the hell is this White Zetsu doing here?" he pointed at Onoki. Seeing no response, Ye Liang flicked his finger, shooting out a red Tailed Beast Ball.
And the White Zetsu... Instantly perished!
"Hiss!" Terumi Mei sucked in a breath through her teeth.
Although this Onoki was also fake, his strength was truly on the level of a Tsuchikage! After all, Terumi wasn't able to defeat him at all.
Yet such a terrifying existence had just been instantly wiped out by Ye Liang!
With a mere snap of his fingers, a Tsuchikage was eliminated.
Terumi swallowed hard.
At this moment, Ye Liang slowly reverted back to his normal state.
After defeating the White Zetsu with a Tailed Beast Ball, he had also used up every last bit of strength.
Ye Liang's vision darkened as he heavily collapsed into Terumi Mei's arms.
...
After a long time.
"Ye Liang!"
"Ye Liang, wake up!"
A gentle voice sounded in Ye Liang's ears.
He struggled to open his eyes, but everything around him was pitch black.
Darkness!
Nothing but darkness—except for a vast starry sky.
"Where am I? How did I end up here?" Ye Liang frowned deeply while thinking. "Right! I used [Night Guy] before!"
Suddenly, Ye Liang recalled what happened in the cave.
Earlier, just as Ye Liang was about to leave the cave, a strange mask suddenly appeared beside his feet.
Then, those White Zetsu corpse pieces that should have died were drawn toward the mask like they'd been pulled in, eventually forming a building-sized White Zetsu!
With no choice, Ye Liang was forced to use [Night Guy].
"So, does this mean I've entered the near-death realm?" Ye Liang suddenly understood.
[Night Guy], as the ultimate technique of the Eight Gates, originally required one's life force to use. Although Ye Liang learned it directly through the System, it didn't necessarily avoid the same side effects!
"Damn it! I don't wanna die!"
Ye Liang almost cried helplessly. If it weren't for that horrifying giant White Zetsu earlier, Ye Liang wouldn't have used this last resort.
At this moment, a cold voice appeared beside Ye Liang's ear:
"Do you desire power?"
No way! It's the Nine-Tails!
The moment Ye Liang turned his head, he was startled by the Nine-Tails' enormous face.
At this moment, the Nine-Tails was squatting behind him, yet simultaneously locked completely inside a gigantic iron cage.
So, am I in a near-death state?
Ye Liang faintly had this speculation.
Back in the original story, whenever the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki neared death, they'd be pulled into an inner world. Once they received the beast's chakra there, they could resurrect themselves.
"Alright then, give me some." Grinning ear to ear, Ye Liang eagerly reached out to the Nine-Tails—only to be completely ignored.
"You can have my help, but first you need to explain that glowing orb floating over your head."
"Golden orb? What orb?"
Ye Liang blinked in surprise.
Then he looked toward his own head. Indeed, hovering there was a round, glowing metallic sphere radiating golden light.
"Did I just grow a damn crystal ball on my head or something?"
Ye Liang stared at it, stunned and bewildered.
How was he supposed to understand what this strange thing was? After all, this was his very first time entering his inner world.
"If I said I don't know, would you believe me?"
"In that case, I'm afraid I can't help," Nine-Tails replied, waving its paw dismissively.
"What the hell!"
Ye Liang cursed in frustration.
Naruto got the Nine-Tails' power so easily, but he was struggling badly. Could it be... because I'm not the main character?
Ye Liang frowned deeply.
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