Chapter 33: Chapter 33
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The full moon hung high in the sky.
Its gentle light added a touch of brightness to the deep night.
Arriving outside Tanzaku Town, Gensou, standing in the darkness, glanced behind him. Several shadowy figures, blending seamlessly with the night, were silently approaching him.
"Konoha's ANBU... no, the colors of their masks are more varied and eerie, more like Root."
Gensou clearly remembered Root and its infamous leader, Shimura Danzo.
"Have I been discovered? Because of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
Gensou didn't think Root had pinpointed his location.
Otherwise, if they truly set a trap for him, there would be more than just these few people.
The more likely reason was because of Naruto, the critically important Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
These Root ninja were probably ordered to monitor Naruto's every move. Gensou's recent surveillance of the izakaya might have coincidentally been noticed by these scattered operatives.
"Whether it's your luck or misfortune."
Gensou stopped, allowing the Root ninja to surround him.
One, two, three, four... Eight Root ninja in total.
This configuration suggested two squads, rotating shifts to monitor the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
At this moment.
Compared to the bustling inside of Tanzaku Town, the area just outside the wall was eerily silent.
Even with eight additional people.
The Root ninja remained silent throughout. The leader, upon recognizing Gensou, quickly confirmed the target and, without hesitation, made a few tactical gestures. The two Root squads moved in orderly fashion.
Clang~ Clang~ Clang~ The sound of drawn blades broke the silence.
The eight Root ninja, in battle formation, coldly and relentlessly attacked Gensou amidst the whistling wind.
Of course, the first to arrive were the overwhelming kunai and shuriken.
"Boring."
Gensou muttered indifferently, reaching out to catch a swiftly flying kunai with ease.
Clang, clang, clang, clang... The sound of metal clashing rapidly echoed.
The kunai in Gensou's hand became a dense web, slicing through the incoming kunai and shuriken from all directions.
Until a sharp sonic boom sounded.
Using the Body Flicker Technique, a Root ninja wielding a long sword ferociously slashed at Gensou's neck.
Gensou calmly stepped back, the blade narrowly missing him.
Before the Root ninja could react,
Gensou's kunai, infused with wind chakra, shot out.
The Root ninja, through years of rigorous training, reflexively dodged, narrowly avoiding the kunai.
However, when Gensou closed in, he was a beat too slow.
Crack.
The ninja's wrist shattered instantly, causing him to grunt in pain.
Gensou forcibly seized his sword, kicked him away, then turned, raised his arm, and slashed.
Everything happened so quickly.
To the others, their comrade seemed to be kicked away in the blink of an eye.
Another Root ninja, who had flashed behind Gensou and was ready to attack, suddenly saw a cold silver light speeding toward him.
"Ugh."
The ninja instinctively clutched his bleeding neck and fell lifelessly.
"First one."
Gensou raised the blood-dripping sword, calmly announcing.
The remaining Root ninja, unfazed, charged again without even glancing at their fallen comrade.
The clashing of blades continued to echo.
Despite the inhumanly harsh training, making them far superior to ordinary ninja, the Root ninja were still no match for Gensou, even in his restricted state.
Soon, under his swift and decisive blade, two more Root ninja fell.
As he raised his sword to pierce another silent, charging Root ninja,
Clang.
The blade tip hit something hard and couldn't penetrate.
"Earth Release: Hardening Jutsu?"
Noticing the brown, rock-like surface of his opponent, Gensou withdrew his sword, stepping back, then...
Rip!
Blinding lightning enveloped his blade.
In the opponent's widened pupils, Gensou's lightning-wrapped blade struck again.
Like cutting through tofu.
This time, the blade pierced through the hardening jutsu without resistance, impaling the Root ninja.
Hot blood sprayed from the ninja's mouth, splattering inside his mask.
Despite feeling his life slipping away, he remained eerily silent, not retreating but advancing, holding Gensou's hands tightly to prevent him from pulling away.
Simultaneously, an Aburame clan Root ninja, seeing this, extended both hands. Innumerable self-destructing bugs, bred quickly during the brief moment, swarmed from his sleeves, forming a large black cloud aimed at Gensou.
In an instant, the insect army descended. Gensou, temporarily restrained, frowned slightly, his gaze shifting as a cold metallic sheen covered his body.
It was the Steel Release: Kekkei Genkai.
Boom, boom, boom~~~ The insect army from the Aburame clan decisively self-destructed.
Amidst the deafening explosions, a small mushroom cloud rose.
As the smoke cleared, the remaining Root ninja, prepared with sealing scrolls to imprison Gensou, paused, their breathing finally fluctuating as they looked towards the blast zone.
In the large crater, the hardened ninja was blown to bits, nowhere to be seen.
At the explosion's epicenter.
Gensou, unscathed, calmly walked out.
Crack~ Crack~ As he moved, the steel covering his body shattered.
Recalling his numerous battles with the Kage, his Steel Release had never broken.
Yet now, a single blow from the Aburame clan's secret technique had caused such damage.
Gensou shook his head.
The difference was too great.
Even with limited power, he could still deal with the remaining ones.
Gensou glanced at the four remaining Root ninja, a broken sword from the earlier battle falling into his hand.
In the next moment, lightning chakra once again enveloped the blade.
Looking at the remaining Root ninja, Gensou calmly said,
"Will you take your own lives, or shall I do it myself?"
There was no response.
Everything proceeded in silence.
Until the end.
Gensou noticed a barely visible long shadow beneath him.
As it faded, he slashed with his sword.
The last remaining Root ninja from the Nara clan fell lifelessly.
With that, both Root squads were annihilated.
(End of Chapter)