Konoha, Just Like Kizaru

Drobby's face twisted in anger, clearly feeling humiliated by Simu's words. What he didn't realize was that Simu was speaking the truth. He had faced far more enemies than just four, much more.

"Arrogance!" Drobby growled.

The four golems, with their ribs shattered, rushed forward. 

Their arms, now armed with blades, spread wide, attempting to trap Simu.

"Taste my death's embrace!"

Simu pushed his eyes and smirked. 

"That's terrible, but it's a shame, I don't like men." He glanced at the puppets and added, 

"And I definitely don't like any of the four of them."

With a flick of his finger, a dazzling laser shot out from his fingertip, precisely hitting the four incoming puppets.

"Boom!" 

The explosion rocked the area. Flames erupted violently, engulfing the puppets completely.

Just as Simu was about to rush forward and finish off Drobby, his Observation Haki allowed him to sense something. He saw a scene unfolding in the ruins of the mansion.

"You nearly died, Minato," Simu said, appearing suddenly beside him. 

He gently placed his hand on Minato's soulder.

"I didn't expect you to use that backup technique so quickly," Simu added with a playful smile.

Minato, looking at Simu who was unharmed, gave a wry smile in return. 

"It seems you're still full of energy. The guy over there will be left to you." 

He pointed weakly toward Ebizō, who emerged from the ruins, and Haruta Hanzo.

At that moment, Simu had no idea about Haruta Hanzo's true identity.

Of course, even if Simu knew, he probably wouldn't care.

"Ebizō," Simu said, scratching his cheek with his finger, his voice full of curiosity. 

"I didn't expect someone to recognize me so quickly. Has the name of Konoha's Kizaru spread throughout the entire ninja world?"

Instead of getting angry, Ebizō replied calmly, 

"Konoha's Kizaru, the Golden Flash, the only bloodline user eliminated in the entire ninja world, the Light Release user... and the champion of the ninja world's first joint Jōnin exam. With all those names, it's enough for an old man like me to remember you."

Having spent years mastering Sunagakure, Ebizō had a keen interest in young talents from around the world.

Ebizō's eyes sharpened as he continued, "You were the one who defeated Pakura, if I remember correctly."

Simu scratched his head, unsure. "Oh, right, I think there was a woman named Pakura I defeated back then. Sorry, there have been so many battles, it's hard to remember all the details."

Minato, standing nearby, couldn't help but roll his eyes at Simu's casual attitude. He couldn't resist reminding him, "You really don't hold back, do you?"

Minato warned, "This man is one of Sunagakure's top advisors. He's been a legendary ninja since the First Ninja War. He's very powerful, so don't underestimate him."

Simu, reminded by Minato, tried to recall the name, and his mind connected the person in front of him with an older image.

"Ebizō?" Simu said, unsure.

Ebizō smiled faintly. "I didn't expect young people like you to know my name. I'm relieved."

He slowly raised his hand. "Are you ready, young one?"

With a drop of his palm, four puppets appeared in front of him, radiating an intimidating aura.

Their heads slowly turned and then shot towards Simu from different directions!

"That's so scary, a powerhouse who's been active since the First Ninja World War."

The first puppet arm quickly extended, opening like an umbrella. 

The iron frame spun rapidly, resembling a chainsaw, and slashed at Simu.

"A chainsaw? That's scary," Simu said, quickly reacting. He pointed his toes, glanced back, and leaped away.

As the chainsaw passed through, the second puppet lunged forward. 

Its mouth opened wide, and just when Simu thought it would spit out kunai, an orange fire dragon shot out, roaring and lunging at him.

"Have you really transformed the puppet this much? That's quite impressive," 

Simu remarked, observing the puppet. 

Though it retains some abilities from the human puppet's past life, it's still not on the level of the puppets made by that guy, Sasori

He reflected on the difference. Sasori's human puppets could fully replicate the abilities of their original human forms, including Bloodline Techniques.

Simu's expression remained calm as the fiery light illuminated his face. 

With a swift motion, he pulled one hand from his pocket and formed a lightsaber in the air. Channeling Armament Haki into it, he slashed at the attacking fire dragon.

The powerful Armament Haki sliced through the fire dragon's head, splitting it in two. 

The two halves flew apart, crashing to the ground as they disintegrated into flames.

"Huh? An ambush?" Simu raised his sword and shifted to the left.

Puppet No. 3 emerged from the scattered flames, its metal tail striking at Simu's lightsaber. 

The fire dragon had been a feint; the real attack was coming now. If not for Simu's sharp Observation Haki, he might have fallen into the trap.

With a swift move, Simu parried the razor-sharp metal tail, maintaining his defense.

Another puppet appeared.

High in the sky, the puppet spread its arms, revealing a pair of wings. 

Then, its abdomen opened, and dozens of kunai rained down. 

Each kunai was equipped with a flaming detonating talisman.

"Tsk..." Simu couldn't help but admire the creativity of the puppet master.

What surprised him even more was that the kunai exploded the moment they neared the ground, leaving no time to react. 

The force of the explosions created massive craters on the ground.

Even so, Ebizō wasn't taking any chances.

Puppet No. 3 in the sky flapped its wings forcefully, creating a strong wind that quickly cleared the smoke, allowing it to assess Simu's condition.

Puppet No. 1 slightly opened its mouth, ready to attack at any moment.

As expected, the moment Simu appeared, a fierce fire dragon shot out from its mouth, heading straight toward him.

"Almost there," Simu said, slashing the fire dragon in half with his lightsaber.

Just then, a figure appeared in front of Puppet No. 1.

A burst of light erupted from Simu's calf as he kicked the puppet's abdomen with incredible speed.

Ebizō seemed to have anticipated this, as Puppet No. 1 opened its arms, attempting to grab Simu as soon as it was attacked. 

Sharp fangs emerged from its arms, each glowing with a green light, likely coated with deadly poison.

However, Simu didn't hesitate. He kicked with full force, shattering the puppet into pieces with the impact.

Despite its destruction, the puppet completed its mission just moments before breaking apart.

The puppet fell at Simu's feet, its sharp teeth still visible on the arms. 

The golem's bite force exceeded Simu's expectations, and even his Armament Haki couldn't fully defend against it. 

Though the wound was small, the deadly venom had already entered his body.

Simu frowned in response, but quickly reacted. 

He dodged and appeared in front of Puppet No. 2. With one powerful step, the puppet shattered into countless pieces.

A look of understanding crossed Simu's face.

Ebizō had planned the strategy carefully. He started with a ranged Fire Style attack from Puppet No. 1, while Puppet No. 2 hid in the flames to get closer. This made the enemy believe that No. 1 was the long-range attacker and No. 2 was meant for close combat.

The idea was to wait for the enemy to engage No. 1 up close, then use the powerful bite of No. 1 to ensure the enemy's defeat, even if they had defensive ninjutsu.

Seeing Simu's expression, Ebizō smiled faintly. "It seems you've figured it out, but it's a bit late," he said, narrowing his eyes.

"This toxin was created by my sister, and no one in the entire ninja world can cure it," Ebizō said coldly. 

"Unless Tsunade from Konoha were here, you might have a chance."

Hearing this, Simu coughed, covering his mouth in pain.

"Simu!" Lindy cried out, her heart aching as she saw his distress. 

She wanted to rush to his side but paused when she heard Katsuyu's message.

"Mr. Kizaru is fine."

Only then did Lindy feel relieved.

Harukami Aso and his daughter, Harukami Haruka, wanted to help, but they were both severely injured and unable to do so.

Seeing this, Ebizō quickly commanded Puppet No. 3 to dive down. A drill emerged from its head, spinning rapidly as the puppet gained speed. 

The intense airflow formed a small tornado that slammed into Simu.

Simu slowly lowered his hand from his mouth and looked up. The impact of the puppet crashing to the ground was immense.

The field erupted as the drill's tremendous force tore through it.

Amid the smoke, Simu suddenly appeared in front of Ebizō. The older man's eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

"Impossible, you're poisoned..." Ebizō muttered.

Simu smiled faintly. "You mean this?" 

He flicked his palm, sending the emerald-green venom flying. With a swift motion, his long sword flashed and cut through the air.

Though Ebizō was a skilled puppet ninja, his taijutsu was far from weak.

As soon as Simu appeared, he quickly retreated.

The No. 4 puppet, stationed nearby, played a crucial role. It swelled up, standing between Simu and Ebizō like a thick wooden barrel.

Without hesitation, Simu struck the barrel with his sword. The sharp lightsaber sliced through it effortlessly.

Simu then pushed off the ground, using his Moonwalk technique. 

His body accelerated, moving faster for the second time.

In an instant, Simu passed through the floating sawdust and reached Ebizō. The shimmering golden light reflected off Ebizō's aging face.

Under the golden glow, Ebizō suddenly smiled strangely.

Simu felt uneasy for a moment. Using Observation Haki, he scanned the floating puppet fragments, and his heart skipped a beat.

He understood.

Ebizō formed a one-handed seal.

Simu noticed that all the puppet fragments contained dense sealing runes. 

As soon as Ebizō completed the seal, these mantras rapidly extended, connecting to form a massive seal formation.

"The Seal of Three Trigram!"

Simu was surrounded by three distorted words: Heaven, Earth, and Man.

This time, it wasn't just Lindy who was worried. 

Even Minato, who had always trusted Simu, felt a moment of panic, but he quickly regained his composure.

Since the Flying Thunder God mark Simu left behind wasn't pointing in this direction, it meant that the seal formation was already in place.

The puppet fragments quickly reassembled, reforming the original appearance of the wooden barrel. 

However, this time, the outside of the barrel was covered with dense chains of spells, with a cold seal at the top.

This was where Ebizō kept his secret third hand. The No. 4 puppet, which appeared to be a simple guard puppet, actually contained the three-talent seal formation. 

If anyone broke it, the seal would be quickly triggered, sealing whatever or whoever was inside.

"Impossible, Mr. Simu would never..." 

Hyuga Lindy stared at the barrel in disbelief.

With great effort, she stood up, her entire body focused on gathering chakra into her fists, prepared to fight to the death. 

Even if it meant sacrificing her life, she was determined to break the barrel.

"Now, it's my turn," Tenmoku Hazo said as he stepped forward, holding a ninja knife in his hand.

Since the situation was under control, Ebizō did not intervene.

At heart, he knew it was just a child's nature, and sometimes, they needed to be shown the way.

Haruta Hanzo formed a hand seal.

"Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere!"

A massive cyclone shot out from his mouth, speeding toward Lindy like a cannonball.

"Hey, have you forgotten I'm still here?" Simu appeared suddenly in front of Lindy , raising his palm to block the cyclone.

Simu squeezed his hand tightly, and the cyclone scattered into countless air currents. 

Only the hem of his clothes fluttered in the wind.

He glanced at Lindy and said, "Stupid. There's no way I would lose like this."

"How could that be..." Ebizō muttered, staring at the barrel in his hand.

Sensing the heavy Chakra inside, he realized that this couldn't possibly be a clone.

Simu pushed his glasses up. "Chakra doesn't matter."

The Shadow Clone inside the barrel exploded, scattering into countless fragments of Chakra.

Simu had infused all his Chakra into the clone, hiding his true presence from Ebizō. 

After all, who would expect that he's someone who doesn't need Chakra?

.

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TO BE CONTINUED

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