"What? Give me the antidote."
"Rasa, what kind of relationship do we have? We're enemies. Would you just hand the antidote over to your opponent for free?"
"What exactly do you want?"
"Kneel. Kneel, and I might consider it."
Inuzuka Ryoha looked at Rasa and Karura with a teasing expression.
Rasa loosened his grip on Karura.
As if sensing what Rasa was about to do, Karura kept shaking her head.
"Husband, don't."
"Karura, I won't let you die."
Rasa gently laid Karura down.
I don't know if this will save you.
I don't know if the enemy will keep his promise.
But I can only gamble once.
Even if the price of losing… is my life.
Rasa stood up and quietly looked at Inuzuka Ryoha. His knees slowly began to bend.
Tears streamed down Karura's face.
Whoosh!
A claw strike cut through the air, interrupting Rasa's movement.
"Bastard, what are you doing?!"
"This is boring—really boring. Weren't you supposed to say something tough and then come at me? What's this supposed to be? This is no fun at all."
Inuzuka Ryoha shook his head as he spoke, though there was a trace of approval in his eyes.
Not bad. Worth me giving you my spotlight—nice performance.
A real man.
Inuzuka Ryoha jumped back onto Eimaru's head.
"Poison hidden in fingernails? That kind of thing is trash. I wouldn't stoop that low. Even though we're both from the Hidden Leaf Village, I like to think my moral standards are pretty high. I'm not like those other people. Rasa, your wife only has a superficial wound."
"Bastard! Then why did you act like that just now?!"
Rasa was furious.
You might've been having fun, but do you have any idea what I felt?! I almost knelt to you!
Do you know what it means for a man to kneel?!
"What did I do? I just said a few words. Using words to attack your enemy and disrupt their mindset on the battlefield—that's normal, isn't it? You were trash-talking earlier too, weren't you?"
Damn it. Someone like you dares talk about morals?
All you Hidden Leaf Village people are cut from the same cloth.
Black-hearted to the core.
Seeing Rasa still looking unconvinced, Inuzuka Ryoha felt speechless.
I didn't even take the chance to attack you just now—that's already going easy on you.
We're enemies!
We're enemies!
At least be aware of that, will you?
Don't act like I've wronged you.
Besides, I didn't even do anything.
In a ninja war, nobody ever said verbal attacks or deception were forbidden.
"I'm done wasting time with you. Rasa, you know better than we do how your teacher died. Now that he's gone, the Sand Village isn't much of a threat to us anymore. But I've got somewhere to be—I need to help out the Hidden Stone Village. So I'll say this once: move."
"No."
"Alright. I hope you survive."
After leaving behind that "kind" blessing, Inuzuka Ryoha said:
"Rinko, time for the big move."
"Got it."
Inuzuka Rinko responded.
Pakura stood ready, fully on guard.
"I won't let you pass."
"Fox spirit, you can't stop me."
Veins bulged on Pakura's forehead.
Giving people random nicknames like that—heaven will punish you for it.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bomb!"
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Wind Style: Vacuum Wave!"
"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
"Lightning Style: Lightning Bullet!"
"Five Release Great Combo Technique!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi: This is bad—my trump card just got used first by five dogs.
Pakura's pupils shrank.
What the hell is this?
I didn't know you could do something like this!
Forget stopping them—I need to survive first!
Pakura quickly retreated, using Body Flicker over a dozen times in succession just to evade the large-scale bombardment.
Once Pakura reached safety, Inuzuka Rinko and the ninja dogs regrouped with Inuzuka Ryoha.
"Shukaku, I don't get it. As a tailed beast, why do you barely use something like a Tailed Beast Bomb?"
"Bastard! Are you telling me how to fight?!"
Shukaku was furious. If he could just fire off Tailed Beast Bombs whenever he wanted, why would he bother developing Wind Style, Sand Style, and sealing techniques?
Damn it.
This brat has no sense at all.
"Well, if you won't use it, I will. The ratio of yin and yang chakra is 2:8, right?"
"Impossible. How could you—"
Shukaku's face was filled with shock.
Can a human body really use a Tailed Beast Bomb?
"Of course I'm lying."
"You brat…"
"I told you not to trust your enemy's words so easily."
"Inuzuka Style: Combined Ninjutsu — Eight-Headed Wolf!"
Under the influence of sage chakra, Inuzuka Ryoha, Inuzuka Rinko, and six ninja dogs transformed into an enormous eight-headed white wolf, several times larger than Shukaku.
The Sand Village shinobi stared at the godlike beast before them in disbelief.
"How is this possible? How can such a jutsu exist in the ninja world?"
"Is this really something humans can do?"
"Air Sand Defensive Wall!"
Karura desperately squeezed out every bit of chakra in her body, forming a sand wall that barely reached the wolf's lower jaw.
"Magnet Release: Gold Sand Barrier!"
Rasa quickly reacted, reinforcing the sand wall with golden sand.
Beside them, Pakura could only watch anxiously.
If I had known, I would've learned some defensive jutsu too…
Perhaps because of the transformation, Inuzuka Ryoha's voice became deep and echoing.
"I hope you survive. And next time, don't block my path."
All eight wolf heads opened their mouths as white sage chakra gathered inside, slowly firing out.
Eight small beams merged into one massive beam, blasting toward the Sand Village shinobi and effortlessly piercing through Rasa and Karura's defenses.
The three from the Sand Village looked at the overwhelming white light before them and smiled bitterly.
So earlier… Inuzuka Ryoha had just been playing with them.
The Sand Village could never defeat the Hidden Leaf Village—couldn't even stop them.
Just as despair set in, Shukaku's massive form appeared before them.
"Shukaku… you?"
Rasa was confused. Why would Shukaku do this?
"It's me, Rasa."
"Bunpuku-sama."
"Go. I'll hold them off for a moment."
"You…"
"And after this, let Shukaku go. The Sand Village has wronged him."
Rasa did not respond.
He didn't have the authority to make that decision. Shukaku was a strategic asset of the Sand Village—he had no right to decide.
"See? I told you. They'd never agree. You humans are all selfish."
Deep within their shared consciousness, Shukaku spoke to Bunpuku.
"I'm sorry, Shukaku. I dragged you into this."
"It doesn't matter. I couldn't have blocked that attack anyway. That level of natural energy… I have no idea how that damn Inuzuka pulled it off."
"That's right. Every village has its talents. I must protect the Sand Village's talent as well."
"Old monk."
"Shukaku."
"I'll watch your final performance properly. You've endured your whole life… and now you've finally reached your limit?"
"It's not that I couldn't endure anymore. It's that I've finally reached the moment when I can act. To die for the Sand Village—for its future—my life has been worthwhile."
Bunpuku pressed his palms together.
The characters on his hands finally merged into a single word: love.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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