Chapter 163: Rasa's Choice, Ebizō's Death!
At this moment, near the edge of the barrier in the desert—
"It's so quiet."
"Namikaze Minato didn't catch up? And that Uchiha brat too?"
Looking at the silent, desolate desert where only howling sand and wind could be heard, Ebizō's heart sank slightly.
But quickly, he dismissed these thoughts and looked up, squinting at the cracked, pale crimson barrier.
After being bombarded by the aftershocks of Tsukasa's Fire Release Chakra Mode, the barrier was now teetering on the brink of collapse, no longer as sturdy as before. This filled Ebizō with hope.
"Almost there, almost there!"
"This barrier can no longer stop me!"
"All my desperate fighting hasn't been in vain!"
Ebizō strode forward, looking toward the outside of the barrier where Sunagakure reinforcements were rushing toward him from both directions.
The Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure—Rasa—who had come to save him!
He had initially thought this young man, obsessed with political maneuvering, lacked the awareness and ability to support Sunagakure's future. He had always opposed Rasa becoming Kazekage.
Now, it seemed he had been too harsh on the young man.
Look at him—as Kazekage, wasn't Rasa quite reliable after all?
But why was he here?
"Never mind, it doesn't matter now."
Ebizō shook his head, flames erupting from his puppet armor, his gaze fixed on the distance with anticipation.
"Almost there, almost there!"
"As long as I reach there!"
"In the future, as long as we people of Sunagakure are united and work together, as long as we don't give up, the road will continue forward!"
However—
At that moment, a screeching sound like brakes suddenly rang in his ears.
Ebizō was startled, looked up, and discovered the sound was coming from outside the barrier.
At that moment, the Fourth Kazekage Rasa, who was rushing in this direction, also saw Ebizō trapped inside the barrier, all alone.
But the moment Rasa saw Ebizō, he slammed on the brakes, abruptly stopping, his face filled with shock!
What the hell?
How could that old geezer Ebizō be here?
Why was this stubborn old man on the route he had secretly planned for his safe arrival at the front lines?!
And judging by his battered appearance, he looked like he'd been beaten half to death!
Rasa's heart skipped a beat. He immediately realized this was a crucial decision point for him!
This position, this opportunity—with his Magnet Release: Gold Dust ability, he could instantly gather gold dust within half a kilometer to shatter the barrier and rescue Ebizō.
But during this time, he had already sacrificed too much, shouldered too much burden, to become Kazekage!
And his will could never truly be implemented in the village!
Ebizō and Chiyo—those two old fossils—along with a group of high-ranking officials, controlled Sunagakure's military and political systems, making him Kazekage in name only. He'd even had to risk his life to secure this empty position.
Was this what he wanted?
Now—
Saving Ebizō might change the old man's opinion of him, gain his support, and solidify his position as Kazekage.
Or rather—
Rasa's eyes suddenly turned cold, his expressionless face frozen as he stood motionless, watching Ebizō rush toward him with a desperate look.
In the moonlight, only a somber and dark aura remained on his half-shadowed face.
And in the next instant—
A yellow flash erupted from behind Ebizō!
A young man wearing a Konoha jōnin vest appeared behind Ebizō as if by magic, gripping a kunai and thrusting it fiercely toward his throat!
A clear, angry shout followed:
"Ebizō!"
"Bearing the last wishes of my comrades and the mission of my village, I cannot lose!"
"This is the Combination Technique: Flash Dance Final Farewell Slash!"
Ebizō suddenly raised his head, his face contorted with rage, his furious roar almost exploding across the entire desert!
"How is this possible?!"
"How could I possibly die like this?!"
At this moment, inside the barrier—
Ebizō roared as he spun around, staring at Minato leaping toward him at suffocating speed. He felt ice flood his veins.
Such speed was simply beyond human capability!
Facing Tsukasa's speed had already given Ebizō a massive headache. He'd even used all his lion puppets and thrown out most of his ninja tools just to force back his opponent with overwhelming firepower!
Now he could no longer use the same techniques on the same scale, and even if he could, he might not be able to stop Namikaze Minato, who was even faster than Tsukasa.
So in that case, he could only—
"Since a human cannot capture your speed!"
"Then—"
"I will transcend humanity!"
Ebizō's eyes widened, bloodshot and bulging, making his blood-soaked face resemble a demon!
He suddenly raised his hand, his fingers plunging into his chest, channeling chakra threads into his own body!
"Self-Puppet Technique: Human Body Manipulation!"
This was the ultimate advancement in puppet mastery—allowing one to control oneself like a puppet, gaining power beyond human limits!
In an instant, Ebizō's stiff movements transformed into incredibly fluid motion.
He pressed his hand to the ground, unleashing Wind Release: Great Breakthrough to propel himself into the air, evading Minato's seemingly inevitable assassination attempt. After several awkward rolls, he crashed to the ground.
A pair of puppet eyes flew out from the mecha behind him, bursting into his eye sockets and rupturing his eyeballs. Two streams of bloody tears slid down his wrinkled face. Then the puppet eyes rolled up and down, locking onto Minato before him.
"I see it clearly now! I can see your movements completely!"
"Namikaze Minato!"
Ebizō immediately revealed a sinister smile.
"Having used the Human Puppet Technique on myself, I am already doomed!"
"You win!"
"Konoha wins!"
"But you wretched brats—I will make you pay the price for Sunagakure's future!"
Minato didn't speak, but calmly observed Ebizō.
Suddenly, he flicked his right hand, throwing out four Flying Thunder God kunai, then transformed into a yellow flash, launching a terrifying assault on Ebizō!
He couldn't be certain if Ebizō was bluffing, so he had to at least secure Ebizō's head before he would stop.
"Flying Thunder God Slash? I've seen it before. As long as your kunai can't reach me, how can you defeat me?"
Ebizō sneered, spitting out a scroll from his mechanical body, pressing it down, forming hand seals, and blowing it backward!
"Sealed Scroll: Hellfire Formation!"
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter!"
"Combination Ninjutsu: Hellfire Wind Formation!"
Intense flames erupted, instantly forming a sea of fire so dense no human could stand within it.
Four wind blades shot out like flaming arrows, deflecting the four Flying Thunder God kunai and turning Minato's foothold into a pool of flame.
Minato frowned slightly, dodging the flames with a quick backstep. He then instantly teleported, weaving through gaps in the flames to the side, throwing a kunai from Ebizō's blind spot before flying forward, aiming a kunai at the back of Ebizō's neck!
Ebizō was startled. "So fast?"
Fortunately, he was no longer in human form. He immediately lowered his head, and the puppet mecha on his back opened, spraying a barrage of poison needles at Minato.
The next moment, Minato returned to his original position, his brow furrowed.
He currently lacked the ability to quickly crush enemy defenses and deliver a decisive blow. Continuing like this would only result in a prolonged stalemate with him constantly launching assassination attempts—
Though he would eventually win through attrition.
However, he was currently behind Sunagakure's lines, and he had keenly noticed the Fourth Kazekage Rasa approaching from outside the barrier, but inexplicably stopping.
Time was running out.
"Should I summon Gamabunta for help? Or forcefully break through using a sealing technique?"
Minato frowned, his hands already forming seals before the thought fully formed.
He needed to at least mark his opponent with the Flying Thunder God seal, giving himself countless opportunities to strike.
However—
At that moment, a figure suddenly brushed past Minato, leaping into the sea of fire!
It was Tsukasa!
He sprinted forward, raising both hands to reveal eight sharp, cold blades, and hurled them!
Eight kunai shot out, colliding with each other mid-air, changing direction, and suddenly hurtling toward Ebizō!
Ebizō's puppet eyes followed the kunai's movements closely, recording every angle of deflection, then continuously fired wind blades to knock them aside.
Once, twice, three times, four times...
When the kunai collisions reached the fourth exchange, Ebizō's eyes began to lag slightly.
However, the next wave of kunai rain arrived!
Eight, sixteen, twenty-four... countless kunai flew toward him, constantly refracting mid-air!
Hidden among them were two Flying Thunder God kunai!
In an instant, Ebizō's scalp tingled. He continuously unleashed Wind Release: Wind Cutter to slice them apart!
Seeing this, Tsukasa immediately smiled, turned his head, and said to Minato, who was staring at him in astonishment:
"Ready? Here we go!"
Without time to ponder why Tsukasa—who had been half-dead and on the verge of death moments ago—was suddenly full of energy, Minato immediately sensed Tsukasa's intention from his movements, and his eyes lit up!
"You want to—"
Both reacted with astonishing speed, displaying unusual coordination at that moment!
In an instant, a yellow flash shot out, instantly overtaking Tsukasa!
At the same time, Tsukasa suddenly pounded his chest, igniting his chakra, transforming into Fire Release: Chakra Mode. He drew his Kusanagi sword, unleashing a six-foot blade of flame!
He charged forward, plunging into the sea of fire, his eyes fixed menacingly on Ebizō!
He raised his blade and slashed down fiercely, forcing Ebizō to raise his left arm to parry with his massive sword!
However, midway through the strike—
The six-foot flame blade changed from a slash to a thrust, the blazing crimson flames instantly erupting forth!
At the same time, Minato had already grasped his Flying Thunder God kunai, flashing behind Ebizō and slashing horizontally!
Ebizō's eyes blazed with fury. In that perilous moment, he forcefully dodged the incoming fire blade, which only grazed his ear.
Then, wielding his four-bladed chakra rotor, he sliced Tsukasa in two at the waist!
The puppet behind him suddenly unleashed a torrent of poisoned kunai, forcing Minato to abandon his attack and immediately retreat!
But then Ebizō noticed a smile on the face of the Uchiha brat before him.
The next moment—
The second Flying Thunder God kunai, after its final deflection, fell from above!
Minato instantly reappeared behind Ebizō, catching the Flying Thunder God kunai with effortless grace. Before Ebizō's horrified gaze, he spun downward!
A single blade swung down!
Blood splattered!
At the same time, Minato and Tsukasa's voices rang out simultaneously:
"This is the Flash Dance Final Farewell—Second Form!"
"This is the Flash Dance Immortal Triple Slash—Second Form!"
End of Chapter 163
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