Yuji felt an intense excitement rising from the depths of his heart because this battle was filled with unprecedented challenge.
To him, this was a test imposed by the world itself, a trial to determine whether he was truly qualified to exist here. The madness he displayed was not meaningless hysteria, but a manifestation of his survival instinct.
Under the influence of adrenaline flooding his body, he forced himself to face the immense pressure of the battle and even began to embrace the dangerous pleasure that accompanied the struggle between life and death.
No matter what happened, he could not fall here. He had far too many reasons to survive, and his plans were far from complete. Deep within his mind, he even had a vague premonition that if he managed to survive this ordeal, his soul would undergo a transformation.
He had indeed been struck down by a single decisive blow, and although he had not died instantly, his body had been steadily moving toward death.
As long as he had not yet become a corpse, he still possessed the opportunity to reverse his fate.
His positive experience points had already been completely exhausted, but the negative experience points he had accumulated remained unused. In the final moments before losing consciousness, Yuji used the system to exchange for a second ability, different from the one he had obtained from Belphegor.
This time, the cost was a full 1,200 experience points, which represented his entire accumulation from a month of fighting and killing enemies along the Amegakure border. After assimilation by the system into the chakra framework of this world, this ability was fundamentally different from ordinary ninjutsu, because it was a Kekkei Genkai.
It was an ability related to blood.
Not a power designed to heal, but one meant for killing.
This ability was the Blood Manipulation.
It allowed him to manipulate blood freely, controlling it as both weapon and medium. Compared to Blade Manipulation, which cost only 200 points, the Blood Manipulation requires six times as much. Although the system's pricing made combat abilities less efficient compared to medical ones, for Yuji, this ability represented his entire fortune.
After becoming a Kekkei Genkai, the Blood Manipulation could be activated without hand seals. While lying on the ground, Yuji had immediately used it to control the blood inside and outside his body, maintaining circulation at the minimum level necessary to preserve life.
At the same time, he used medical ninjutsu to treat his injuries and stabilize his condition. The Blood Manipulation Technique could even convert chakra into new blood, allowing him to replenish losses as long as his chakra remained sufficient.
Although his version did not carry lethal poison like Choso's blood, Yuji considered its current capabilities more than sufficient.
At that moment, Otani moved again with the same terrifying speed as before. In an instant, he crossed the distance of nearly thirty meters and appeared directly in front of Yuji.
The chakra-infused kunai in his hand carried deadly force as he thrust it straight toward Yuji's face. Judging from Yuji's expression, he still could not track Otani's movement.
However, the moment Otani stepped close, he sensed something was wrong.
A powerful dragging force suddenly restrained his legs.
He looked down and saw that the blood flowing from Yuji's wounds had taken shape, forming two massive hands that tightly gripped his ankles. The blood behaved like a living substance, its binding strength far exceeding his expectations.
At that moment, a flying blade shot toward him. Otani immediately reacted and used his chakra-infused kunai to deflect it with precision.
Although Yuji's thread-controlled weapons posed a threat, they were still within Otani's ability to defend against.
What truly shocked him was the blood.
It was spreading upward along his legs.
Otani's expression changed instantly. He released a burst of chakra to enhance his physical strength, forcibly breaking free from the blood's restraint before leaping backward to create distance.
"What kind of technique is this?" he thought.
"There were no hand seals, and it is different from his previous ninjutsu. Is this some form of Kekkei Genkai?"
He had never seen such an ability before.
As Otani continued observing, Yuji calmly raised his hand. Several drops of blood floated upward from his palm, emitting an ominous luster. Without warning, the droplets shot forward at astonishing speed, leaving red streaks across the air.
Otani's expression immediately changed. Even before impact, he could sense the destructive force contained within those projectiles. He dodged the first two with difficulty, but the third still grazed his forehead, slicing through the skin just below his headband.
Blood immediately flowed downward, running into his eye.
"It seems that, like other Kekkei Genkai, even though I've obtained this power, I still need to continue developing and refining it. Right now, this is only the initial stage, and its level is still quite low."
At that moment, he finally understood why the system had not priced it even higher.
This ability's true strength did not lie in its current state, but in its future potential. How far it could evolve, and how much destructive power it could ultimately unleash, would depend entirely on his own mastery.
Just then, two dark figures descended rapidly from above and landed beside the Konoha Jonin, trapping him between them.
They were Sasori's puppets.
Father and Mother.
Both puppets raised their arms simultaneously, revealing sharp longswords hidden within their sleeves, and slashed toward Otani from opposite directions.
As Otani blocked their attacks, his gaze shifted instinctively toward Yuji in the distance. He saw blood droplets slowly rising from Yuji's hand once again.
"No matter what kind of power this is," Otani thought, "it will be difficult for me to close the distance again anytime soon. That boy is standing in a pool of blood, and as long as I step into that area, that blood will interfere with my movements. It's almost like a defensive ninjutsu."
He continued analyzing calmly.
"Although it looks frightening, judging from the way he fights and from how I broke free earlier, it's not impossible to deal with."
"The real problem is his long-range attacks. Their speed, power, and accuracy make it impossible for me to easily target the red-haired Puppeteer."
"Even if I force my way forward, I probably won't be able to kill either of them quickly."
"They're deliberately stalling for time."
"This is troublesome."
While continuing to exchange blows with the puppets, Otani glanced subconsciously toward the direction from which he and his team had come.
"Why haven't Shikaku and the others arrived yet?"
At that moment, a violent explosion suddenly erupted in the distance.
Boom!
Sharp wind blades tore through the air, scattering everywhere.
Arai's Wind Release.
Immediately afterward, a muffled groan of pain echoed across the battlefield.
Otani's expression changed.
Ryosuke had been injured.
Even among Jonin, there were differences in strength. Arai was not an ordinary Jonin, but an Elite Jonin and a personal guard of the Kazekage. In a one-on-one battle, Ryosuke could not hold out against him for long.
Otani instantly understood the situation.
Arai would finish the fight quickly and come here next.
He could not afford to continue fighting to the death.
He needed to retreat and regroup with Ryosuke and escape.
With this decision made, Otani tightened his grip on his chakra-infused kunai and suddenly used a special taijutsu technique.
As his arm swung, three impact points appeared on Father's puppet body. The sturdy puppet shell cracked instantly, covered in spiderweb-like fractures as it was blasted backward by the force.
Using this opening, Otani leaped away and began moving toward Arai's position, intending to assist his companion and escape.
However, before he could take more than a few steps, a figure descended from above.
It was Arai.
Arai's fist struck down with tremendous force.
Otani had no time to react.
The punch landed directly on his body, sending him staggering backward as blood sprayed from his mouth.
"This man…" Otani thought in shock. "He didn't finish Ryosuke… he came here first to protect those two brats!"
At that exact moment, he heard it.
The familiar sound of something piercing through the air.
It was blood.
Swoosh!
Before he could react, the blood droplet pierced through his temple like a bullet.
Otani's body froze.
The strength left his limbs instantly.
As he collapsed toward the ground, his fading vision caught sight of Yuji standing in the distance.
It was Yuji who had delivered the finishing blow.
As a ninja, he had long accepted the possibility of dying on the battlefield.
But now, after witnessing the terrifying talent of these two boys with his own eyes, he could not help but feel uneasy for Konoha's future.
Especially that boy. The one who could control blood.
He was far too dangerous.