After a long while, Killer Bee walked down the road looking utterly dejected, muttering under his breath:
"Strict brother!"
"Kokonoaru, Bakayarō!"
Failing to buy a swimsuit had left him in a foul mood. Behind him, Motoi looked completely exasperated. He stepped forward and smacked Bee on the head.
"Bee! Pull yourself together! Hurry up and finish the mission!"
"Aaah! Yeah, yeah, I got it! Let's move out!"
After all the setbacks, Bee had no energy left to fool around. He could only focus on finishing the mission as quickly as possible. The squad finally picked up the pace.
By the time they reached the coast, Kazuyama Gekkō had already flown around several times. After all, there was nothing along the shoreline—better to soak in a hot spring and enjoy some good food.
Notably, three hours before Killer Bee and the others arrived at the coast, the war in Amegakure had already ended.
The shadow clone Kazuyama Gekkō left behind reported the situation to him, and to witness the fall of the Demi-God, he had rushed to Amegakure himself.
At this point, Hanzō was covered in wounds, his right arm completely gone. Massive blood loss had drained all color from his face.
"Hehehe... A bunch of brats, actually forcing this old man into such a state..."
"Well then, even if I die, I'll drag you all down with me."
In front of him stood Yahiko, Konan, Yugito, Terumi Mei, and Mifune. Each of them was breathing hard, their bodies covered in wounds that made the brutality of the battle unmistakable. Yugito's injuries were the worst—a gaping slash across her abdomen, ghastly to look at.
But she herself seemed unconcerned, and when Kazuyama Gekkō saw it, he simply remarked, "It's nothing. Absolutely nothing."
A Jinchūriki's body heals external wounds in minutes—what was there to worry about?
"Is that so?"
"You want to detonate that poison sac inside you?"
"You wish, Lord Demi-God?"
Just as Hanzō prepared to take everyone down with him, a mocking voice reached their ears, along with the sound of cracking.
Startled, Hanzō realized his hands and torso were immobilized, encased in a strange substance. He quickly recognized what it was... crystal. Through the crystal, he instantly knew who had come.
Grinding his teeth, Hanzō spat out the name: "Kazuyama Gekkō..."
As his voice fell, Kazuyama Gekkō released his Transparent Escape Technique. Arms crossed, he appeared before them with a mocking smile.
"Well now, Lord Demi-God. Long time no see. You're not looking too well."
"Unlike me—I'm doing better than ever."
Hanzō of the Salamander glared at the man he hated to the bone, his fury boiling over. Yet his current state left him powerless. His injuries aside, he was completely bound by the crystal.
"This attack from Takigakure and the Land of Iron... was it your scheme?"
As the so-called Demi-God of the Ninja World, he understood the moment Gekkō appeared—this bastard had orchestrated everything. Otherwise, why would he show up in Amegakure at the very moment of Hanzō's defeat?
Another person on the battlefield was equally stunned by Gekkō's arrival—the Land of Iron's General Mifune. He had heard Kazuyama Gekkō's name many times, his reputation formidable: the Twin Stars of Konoha, the Ghost of the Battlefield.
But what did Hanzō mean by "the instigator"? Could this man really be working with Takigakure just to bring Hanzō down?
"Hehehe, as expected of you, Lord Demi-God Hanzō. You're right, but not entirely."
"This war wasn't my doing. It was the will of the very people you oppressed."
"If you had treated your village better, would they have turned on you?"
"In the end, this is where the people's hearts lie."
Hanzō glared at him viciously, clearly dismissing his words.
"Heh... history belongs to the victor. I lost, you won. That's all there is to it."
"Brat, not killing you back then was my greatest mistake. If I had another chance, I'd cut you down without hesitation!"
He should never have said that. The moment the words left his mouth, Gekkō's temper flared.
Back then, the instant he landed from the Flying Thunder God, that bastard had gone straight for his kidneys. If not for his quick reflexes, how would the rest of his life have turned out? Furious—utterly furious!
"Hmph! Old man, don't act like you could kill me. Even if you colluded with Danzō, what would that change?"
"You think that bastard Danzō is living comfortably now? Hah! Sooner or later, I'll settle things with him too."
"Trying to stab me in the back? He's dancing on landmines—begging for death!"
A spray of spit landed right across Hanzō's face.
After finishing with Hanzō, Kazuyama Gekkō turned toward the true hero of this battle—General Mifune of the Land of Iron.
"General Mifune, today's outcome is thanks to you."
"The might of your iaijutsu slash—truly terrifying."
"From this day on, you stand as the unrivaled master of iaijutsu. Congratulations."
Mifune looked at the smiling young man before him, strangely certain he had seen him somewhere before, though the memory refused to surface.
Kazuyama Gekkō: Of course you have! I'm the one who sold you that sake!
"Heh... The Ghost of the Leaf, Kazuyama Gekkō. Who would've thought Takigakure would be connected to you, a Leaf shinobi?"
"Such is the way of the world."
Faced with Mifune's probing, Gekkō had no intention of answering. Some truths were better left unsaid. Seeing this, Mifune dropped the matter, quietly sheathing his blade. With Gekkō present, there would be no more desperate battles.
"Hanzō, when you drove Yahiko and the others out, you should have known they would return one day."
"When you agreed to Ōnoki's request, joined the war, and plunged that blade into me, you should have realized I would never forgive you."
"And now—look. They've returned, and dragged you down from your lofty seat."
"As for me, I'm here to send you on your way."
"You're a senior. I'll grant you a shred of dignity. Don't even think of ending yourself."
Kazuyama Gekkō looked once more at Hanzō, the man who had forged his title as Demi-God of the Ninja World through sheer strength.
Every era brings forth new talent; the waves of the Yangtze forever push forward. What did it matter if he was a Demi-God? The new generation needed room to rise.
"Heh... heh..."
"Young..."
Crack!
Before Hanzō could finish his words, his body crystallized completely into a statue.
Hanzō: I... You won't even let me finish my last words?
Kazuyama Gekkō: Don't want to hear them!