"Surprised?"

"In the past, there were also ninjas who treated me as an ordinary puppeteer, but now they are all buried deep underground!"

Although Kakuzu's entire face was covered by a black mask, Yu could completely sense his surprised expression underneath the mask at this moment. A trace of a Devil's unique arrogance appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Dragon Fang!!

In Kakuzu's abruptly contracting pupils, the roaring voice of a dragon echoed throughout the collapsed underground space of the exchange center.

Yu, who collided with Kakuzu's two fists, suddenly grabbed Kakuzu's wrist, and his body spun in mid-air with Kakuzu's arm as the axis. Similarly, his right foot covered in black Armament Haki fiercely unleashed a gust of wind like the fang of a dragon.

Bang!!

A dull and extremely heavy collision sounded. Kakuzu, who unexpectedly used his right hand to block, felt a sharp pain in his wrist. The surface of his skin, hardened by advanced Earth Release Ninjutsu, cracked like porcelain. He was sent flying and slammed violently into the nearby wall, causing endless dust to fall.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

"Injured me huh? It seems I've underestimated you, little brat..."

Kakuzu, who had flown sideways and fallen to the ground, let out a somewhat embarrassed cough. He looked down at the Earth Release fragments continuously falling off his body. The astonishment beneath his mask was impossible to conceal.

Kakuzu, who had been active since the early days of the establishment of the Five Great Ninja Villages in the ninja world, was actually older than even the most senior Third Tsuchikage, Onoki.

In Kakuzu's long and distant memories, he had never experienced such a humiliating defeat by a ninja as young as this one.

"Space Transfer!!"

However, before Kakuzu could even stand up from the ground, he suddenly felt a blur before his eyes. The terrifying figure of Tyrant had instantly appeared in front of him.

"Flight Slap!!"

Immediately afterward, a gigantic bear paw, infused with energy, appeared before his pupils and expanded infinitely. With terrifying force, it slapped him into a beam of light, instantly piercing through all the walls and obstacles before everyone's eyes.

Amidst the incredulous gazes of everyone present, Kakuzu was actually slammed from the underground space to the surface by Tyrant's Flight Slap!

"No wonder he's one of the Immortal Duo of the Akatsuki..."

"His masterful Earth Release Hardening technique has thoroughly protected his body."

A series of furious attacks instantly sent Kakuzu flying. Sensing Kakuzu's body with Observation Haki, Yu noticed that thanks to the powerful Earth Release Ninjutsu protection, Kakuzu hadn't sustained significant injuries. Yu's amber eyes flashed, and his figure disappeared instantly from the spot.

"Sh-should we... go after them?"

Witnessing the sudden eruption of a Kage-level ninja battle between Yu and Kakuzu, the surviving ninjas and ronin in the collapsed exchange center looked at each other in disbelief.

"What's the point! Those two monsters are not even in the same league as us! Let's get out of here!!"

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

As soon as the wandering ninja finished speaking, he was cursed by another swordsman beside him. Taking advantage of the chaos, the group of ninjas and ronin quickly dispersed.

"Damn it... we've just provoked Scarlet Yu, a terrifying individual."

"We can't stay here... We need to leave and inform the BOSS immediately."

Watching the chaos as ninjas and ronin scattered in all directions, Doma, responsible for the collapsed underground exchange center, held his severed wrist with one hand. His disheveled figure stumbled and disappeared into the ruins.

"You damn brat!!"

"I'll kill you and rip your heart out!!"

Outside the collapsed underground exchange center, unlike the dark and foul-smelling underground space, the broad streets above ground were bathed in the evening sunlight.

After being fiercely blasted from underground to the surface by Tyrant's palm, Kakuzu stood up again. His body was frighteningly sunken, and his deep red and green eyes were filled with an aura of anger, like ghostly flames.

"Ah, you want my heart? That's something you won't be able to do..."

However, accompanied by the mocking voice, a burst of blue electrical flashes appeared in the air. The white-haired, black-clothed youth had instantly appeared in front of Kakuzu.

"As a ninja, one of the greatest taboos is greed."

"Targeting me for greed is the biggest mistake you'll ever make in your life."

Walking leisurely with his hands in his pockets, Yu arrived in front of Kakuzu, eyeing the disheveled Kakuzu before him. Yu's tone was as indifferent as stating a simple fact.

Meanwhile, Tyrant and Michael, the two Devil Puppets draped in black cloaks, stood behind Yu like the most loyal guards, poised and ready.

"Hehe... Are you trying to teach me a lesson?"

Seeing how battered he looked after just one encounter with Yu, Kakuzu, now hearing Yu's somewhat domineering tone, gained a flash of resentment in his deep red and green eyes. "You should know that when I clashed with the First Hokage of Konoha, you little brat weren't even born yet!"

Tentacle Heavy Fist!!

With angry words spoken, Kakuzu's hand suddenly struck out, using advanced Earth Release Hardening to deliver a powerful punch toward Yu from a distance.

A sharp black shadow flashed through the air, and Kakuzu's wrist actually snapped open, revealing a long string of mysterious black tendrils. A sudden heavy fist attack, with power rivaling that of the legendary Three Sannin Tsunade's monstrous strength, had an extremely destructive force, capable of easily knocking down a wall.

"Is this the Secret Jutsu, Earth Grudge Fear, from the legendary Waterfall Village?"

Facing the sudden elongation of Kakuzu's heavy fist propelled by Earth Grudge Fear, Yu remained composed. A mysterious glow flickered in his amber eyes. "It looks quite disgusting indeed..."

However, upon hearing Kakuzu boast about having fought against Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage of Konoha, Yu couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.

It's worth noting that there are four ninjas in the Naruto universe who boast about having fought against legendary figures:

One is the Mist ninja Ao, who claims to have fought against Shisui (in reality, he was frightened off by Shisui's reputation and fled without fighting).

Another is the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, who claims to have fought against Madara Uchiha (but was completely overwhelmed by Madara's Dojutsu and presence, unable to fight back).

There's also Hanzo of the Salamander, who claims to have fought evenly against the Sannin (during their prime, Hanzo fought against a young Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade to a draw, and then rather grandiosely bestowed upon them the title of the Konoha Sannin).

The last one, before us, is Kakuzu, who claims to have fought against the First Hokage (he threw a kunai towards Senju Hashirama from miles away and got dealt with by Wood Release).

Five-Colored Threads!!

As Yu spoke, his hand formed into a claw, fiercely tearing forward. Five threads wrapped in Armament Haki cut through the air, directly intercepting Kakuzu's incoming heavy fist.

Earth Grudge Fear—once considered a treasure of the Waterfall Village, is a Secret Jutsu. By manipulating chakra within the body, it generates black blood vessel tendrils, suitable for long-range attacks in Ninjutsu, overwhelming opponents with versatile tactics.

Moreover, these black blood vessel tendrils can also seize the hearts of others, along with their chakra nature, drawing them into the body. Kakuzu can then employ all basic elemental Ninjutsu, becoming a being close to immortality.

Even if separated from the main body, Earth Grudge Fear's tendrils can move freely like inteligent organisms. Their length and shape can change at will to adapt to any situation, making Kakuzu nearly invincible once Earth Grudge Fear is activated.

Bang!!

The threads wrapped in Yu's Armament Haki collided with Kakuzu's Earth Release Hardening and the fist extended by Earth Grudge Fear, emitting a deafening collision sound in the air.

"So that's how it is..."

Seeing his Earth Grudge Fear punch, which had been grabbed and cut by the sharp threads released by Yu, Kakuzu's ghostly eyes flashed with a hint of peculiarity. "Manipulating threads in combat... Is that your Kekkei Genkai?"

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