One Move, Instant Kill

As Sasori of the Red Sand and Ringo Ameyuri made their moves, the others naturally did not remain idle. Nearly everyone was ready to strike.

"Secret Red Technique—Performance of a Hundred Puppets!" Seeing everyone rush forward, Sasori of the Red Sand, having already talked big, immediately unleashed his ultimate technique. He intended to take on this group of Kirigakure’s young elites all by himself.

"What is this? Puppet Technique? Why do they look just like real people?" Mangetsu Hozuki muttered, utterly unconcerned by the puppets’ attacks. Hiramekarei swept through his hands. With a series of sharp slashes, he cut down several of them. Blood even spilled out, though their bodies contained not only blood and muscle, but mechanical parts and white skeletal frames as well.

"Is this… a puppet made using Shikotsumyaku? But how can he control so many?"

Ao cried out, his Byakugan wide. Among them, he was the weakest, but the Byakugan’s observational power was no joke. He easily saw the Chakra threads Sasori of the Red Sand used to control the puppets, meaning he could interfere with Sasori of the Red Sand’s puppet manipulation.

"Hmph, who cares? Wipe them all out."

Ringo Yurui shouted as electricity flickered all over her body, and her figure vanished in a flash. Experts in Lightning Release were rarely slow. Relying on her extreme speed, she charged into the mass of puppets.

Sasori of the Red Sand was not afraid of this sort of melee-focused ninja at all—his puppets carried all kinds of deadly poisons. Even the slightest scratch would be fatal.

The one he found truly difficult to deal with was Mangetsu Hozuki. With his Hydrification ability, he did not fear poison. Aside from Lightning Release and Fire Release, there were few ways to restrain him.

What was more, Hiramekarei ranked among the very best of the ninja swords. It was especially powerful in group battles, where it could accumulate Chakra and unleash spheres of Chakra light.

However, while Sasori of the Red Sand focused his attention on Mangetsu Hozuki, he overlooked Mei Terumī, who seemed harmless at first glance.

After all, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were renowned far and wide, and the Hozuki Clan held great authority in Kirigakure. As for this unfamiliar Mei Terumī, where had this wild girl come from?

"Boil Release—Skillful Mist Technique!"

Then, a breath of acidic mist from Mei Terumī rendered over half of his Performance of a Hundred Puppets useless.

"Damn it, bastard!" Sasori of the Red Sand’s eyes turned red. This was the greater part of his collection from the past ten years! Enraged, Sasori of the Red Sand stopped wasting words and prepared to summon the Human Puppet of the Third Kazekage to slaughter them all.

Yota, standing to the side, rolled his eyes and reached out to stop Sasori of the Red Sand. "Let me handle it."

Though Sasori of the Red Sand’s puppets had been strengthened considerably, it was ultimately only an increase in quantity. Sasori of the Red Sand’s own control ability remained the same, so his overall combat power had not increased much. Even if he truly risked his life, he would probably only be able to take down a few ninja like Zabuza before having to flee with his tail between his legs—and he might not even get away.

Sasori of the Red Sand snorted coldly. He knew that even if he brought out the Third Kazekage puppet, he probably stood little chance of winning. This group was too strong. Even the living Third Kazekage might not have been their match.

"And who are you? Here to die?" Ringo Ameyuri asked fiercely, grinding her teeth.

Yota smiled. Come to think of it, Ringo Ameyuri and Mangetsu Hozuki had both died young from serious illnesses. Most likely, they had learned something they should not have and were assassinated by the Mizukage.

For ninja, aside from bloodline diseases, other illnesses were hardly considered incurable. Medical Ninjutsu was no joke.

Yota was rather pleased to see these two—the Hozuki Clan’s bloodline, valuable materials like the Lightning Blade and Hiramekarei, and Ao’s Byakugan were all things he wanted.

Together with Mei Terumī’s two bloodlines and the Executioner’s Blade, those could count as extras.

So Yota answered with a grin, "My name is Yota. You probably haven’t heard much about me. I also have another nickname: Black Shadow Ninja."

The moment those words left his mouth, Mangetsu Hozuki, Mei Terumī, and the others’ pupils constricted.

Then, as Yota’s voice fell, he struck at the same time.

"Universal Pull—Original Darkness Termination!"

Terrifying suction erupted wildly. For a moment, every Mist Ninja’s expression changed as they struggled to anchor their bodies.

However, this was a combination of the Rinnegan and the Dark-Dark Fruit’s abilities. Not only was the pulling force greatly amplified, but it could also draw out the Chakra within their bodies from afar. After resisting for only a moment, they felt as though their Chakra had been drained dry.

Ao was the first to give out. His strength had already ranked near the bottom among them, and he had transplanted a Byakugan. Though it was not as burdensome as the Sharingan, it still had a major effect on his Chakra.

As his Chakra dwindled further and further, Ao finally could not hold on. His entire body flew into Yota’s hand and was instantly sucked into the Dark Space.

"Ao! Damn it!" Mei Terumī shouted. Though Ao was not yet her right-hand man as he would be ten years later in the original story, they still had a good relationship.

But that was all Mei Terumī could manage. They were now struggling just to protect themselves. As the suction in Yota’s hand increased, the people from Kirigakure were pulled toward him one after another.

Even if they tried to launch attacks while being dragged in, those attacks would be swallowed by the black hole and could not hit Yota’s true body at all. In only a few minutes, Kirigakure’s finest squad had been entirely absorbed into the Dark Space.

"All right, that takes care of everyone." Yota smiled and clapped his hands.

Watching Yota effortlessly wipe out all his opponents with a single move, then comparing it to his own battle just now, Sasori of the Red Sand felt as though he were nothing more than a lackey.

"So this is the power of Dark Release? I underestimated it… It’s truly terrifying. Compared to that, what are my works of art?"

For no apparent reason, Sasori of the Red Sand lost all enthusiasm. Even the Third Kazekage figurine no longer seemed appealing.

"No, there is still a chance. Yota is ultimately only an ordinary person, and ordinary people cannot escape birth, aging, sickness, and death. I cannot turn him into a Human Puppet now, but he will grow old eventually!"

Not that Sasori of the Red Sand had somehow developed the fighting spirit to compete with Yota in longevity. Even if Yota knew, he would not care. Already a sage, Yota could live three or five hundred years as easily as anything. Sasori of the Red Sand might not even outlive him.

In any case, he never expected the Snake and Scorpion duo to be completely without ambition and obediently serve as his subordinates. As long as he kept the biggest fist, the two of them would naturally have to obey his orders.

Yota was now preparing to inspect his gains from this encounter.

The Dark Space pulsed, and the group of Mist Ninja was immediately spat back out. By now, however, all the Chakra in their bodies had been absorbed cleanly, leaving them with no ability to resist.