Hidan was hurled toward Shindai by Shikamaru's Shadow Imitation Jutsu.
Hidan glared as though he wanted to tear Shindai apart, while Shindai clenched his jaw tightly.
Honestly speaking, if it came down to a one-on-one duel with an Akatsuki member who would pose the least pressure…? Without a doubt, it would be Hidan!
Puppet Technique is Hidan's natural counterspell!
Shindai soared into the air, gaining altitude, instantly leaving Hidan without any means of counterattack.
Then Shindai maneuvered Kannazuki to take on Hidan.
Hidan's Blood Scythe struck Kannazuki with absolutely no effect—after all, it was a puppet that couldn't bleed.
What's more, Hidan was the kind of fighter who never defended himself and charged recklessly into battle. Against Kannazuki, he was completely outmatched.
"Damn it! Get down here!"
An enraged Hidan hurled his Blood Scythe at Shindai.
Shindai used Magnet Release to pull the weapon directly into his hand.
Looking down at Hidan from above, Shindai said, "Hey, you know what? You're really weak. I shouldn't have even bothered making that puppet to counter you—it was completely unnecessary."
Glaring at Shindai, Hidan growled, "What did you say?!"
As he formed hand seals, Shindai sneered, "Exactly what I said. Thinking you're invincible just because you can't die? What a joke. Watch me finish you off in one strike!"
Kannazuki appeared behind Hidan.
[Kannazuki: Iron Sand World Method]
Countless iron sand spikes erupted from Kannazuki's body, piercing through and pinning Hidan in place.
[Magnet Release: Spiral Layer Burial]
A massive amount of iron sand attached itself to Hidan's body, forming a colossal spiral spear that trapped him within its coils.
A muffled roar came from inside, "Damn you! You will suffer the most terrible punishment from Lord Jashin!"
Shindai scoffed disdainfully, "Sorry, but I'm an atheist. Lord Jashin? Please—that's nothing but trash. And your so-called Immortal Body isn't absolute either, right? Without nutrition, you'll rot and stink until you become nothing but bones. Well then, goodbye."
*Seal!*
Shindai barked the command. The giant iron sand spiral spear spun rapidly underground before finally coming to a stop deep within the bedrock layer.
The seal ensured that the spiral spear would remain locked in place forever.
Shindai clapped his hands together. "Done. Time to wrap it up and watch the show~"
He shifted his gaze to where Shikamaru was locked in battle.
Kakuzu wasn't faring much better either—of his original five elemental masks, only two remained intact; the rest had been destroyed.
There was no helping it—this time, their opponents' abilities were far beyond normal standards. With Shikamaru's leadership, they effortlessly took down two of Kakuzu's masks.
Kakuzu's defeat was only a matter of time.
Kakuzu himself knew that if he kept fighting here, he'd be done for—he was already getting ready to run away.
Now, the natures remaining on Kakuzu were Fire Release and Wind Release, along with his Earth Release true form.
[Combination Fire Technique! Inferno of the Demon Mask!]
Kakuzu's Fire Release mask unleashed Fire Release: Goka Messhitsu, while his Wind Release mask released Wind Release: Pressure Damage, creating an enormous expanse of flames sweeping toward Shikamaru and the others.
[Wind Release: Tornado Hurricane!]
Temari swung her three-star fan, generating a massive whirlwind to block the firestorm.
At the same time, Zabuza used Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique to weaken the flames' intensity.
Kakuzu had already begun preparing to escape.
However, Kakuzu's face suddenly twisted in alarm. He looked down in shock to find both his legs seized by numerous shadowy tendrils.
Beside Kakuzu, Shikamaru smirked, "It's over!"
[Earth Release: Earth Fist!]
Kitsuchi transformed his right hand into a hardened rock fist, increasing its density and weight, then landed a powerful blow shattering the Fire Release mask.
[Storm Release: Azure Eagle Blade!]
After forming the hand seals, Darui clasped both hands together, unleashing multiple high-voltage beams that pierced straight through the Wind Release mask.
Itachi appeared before Kakuzu. Enraged, Kakuzu controlled his tendrils to attack Itachi. As the tendrils pierced through Itachi, he instantly transformed into several crows.
A searing pain tore through Kakuzu's back as Itachi ghosted into view behind him, a kunai in his hand piercing straight through Kakuzu's heart.
With his final heart destroyed, Kakuzu's eyes widened in shock before gradually clouding over. Eventually, he collapsed to the ground dead.
Shikamaru exhaled deeply, "Finally done. Now we just need to bring his corpse back and let our analysis team extract intelligence from his brain."
The Akatsuki organization had lost yet another two members.
Nagato frowned deeply upon hearing the news. The fewer members they had, the longer it would take to seal the Tailed Beasts.
Currently, besides his Paths, only Konan, Kisame, Setsuna Uchiha, and Zetsu remained from the Akatsuki.
The good news was that only two jinchuriki remained before all seven Tailed Beasts would be sealed inside the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
When Shindai's group returned to Konoha, the analysis unit immediately began extracting intelligence from Kakuzu's brain.
However, practically all intelligence obtained was already known to them. Fortunately, they did discover one useful piece—information revealing Kisame's location.
Kisame was currently within the Land of Lightning.
Minato Namikaze swiftly transmitted this message to Raikage A, who personally led forces to capture Kisame.
Kisame's head was cleaved clean off by Raikage A's Lightning Cutter: Horizontal Slash.
Shortly after, Raikage A dispatched personnel to analyze Kisame's brain in an attempt to extract intelligence reports. However, they received information that seemed almost unbelievable.
It was intelligence regarding Akatsuki's true purpose for gathering all nine Tailed Beasts.
Raikage A immediately used long-range communication techniques to establish contact with the other four Kage-level leaders.
Once the connection was established, Raikage A spoke up: "From Kisame's brain, we've obtained certain intelligence reports. Back when Kisame was still within Kiri, he made contact with the masked man from Akatsuki. That masked individual... claimed himself to be Madara Uchiha."
"What?"
Onoki, Mei Terumi, and Baki were all extremely shocked.
Minato Namikaze's expression turned grave. Back then, this masked man had attacked Kushina Uzumaki and used the Nine-Tails to destroy Konoha—he had long suspected that this masked figure might be Madara Uchiha.
But since Madara Uchiha had been dead for a very long time, Minato believed the man couldn't actually be him.
Raikage A continued speaking: "This mysterious figure, claiming to be Madara, mentioned to Kisame during his recruitment a plan known as the 'Moon Eye' plan. Within Konoha's Uchiha clan lies a stone monolith that has been passed down through generations. It contains secrets left behind by the Sage of Six Paths. Its content must be interpreted sequentially—first with the Sharingan, then the Mangekyo Sharingan, and finally the Rinnegan—to be fully understood."
Onoki couldn't help but interrupt: "This is getting more and more incredible—it even involves the Sage of Six Paths now. Hokage, does such a stone monolith truly exist within the Uchiha clan?"
Minato responded gravely, "Yes, that stone monolith does exist."
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