Naruto: The Hidden Shadow Style

"Got him!"

As soon as his shadow connected with Kakuzu's shadow, Nagisa Nara immediately used the Nara clan's exclusive Shadow Binding Jutsu to restrain this strange enemy. However, considering the enemy's chakra strength, he also knew that his restraint probably wouldn't last long, hence the slightly urgent reminder.

This was the moment—hesitate and you'd lose your chance forever. Sometimes caution was necessary, but now called for bold action. Upon receiving such a prompt, Renjiro instantly rushed toward Kakuzu... Who wouldn't seize the chance to kick someone while they were down?

But then, in one swift moment of courageous advancement, he suddenly slammed flat on the ground, giving everyone a perfect demonstration of what it meant to face-plant spectacularly.

Renjiro turned his head around in complete shock, and there he saw the person who had swiftly kicked his legs out from under him and stopped his attack—none other than Haseo.

"Don't move recklessly. Don't push too far ahead," Haseo explained, directly meeting that puzzled gaze.

Renjiro gave a slight nod, then furrowed his brows again. Why was it okay for Haseo to charge recklessly into enemy ranks, yet when he did the same as a teammate, he was stopped?

Well, the answer wasn't hard to figure out. Thanks to his high-speed taijutsu techniques, Haseo could guarantee both offensive and defensive flexibility, never putting himself in a tight spot. For others, though, the situation wasn't quite the same... Rushing in headlong wasn't wrong—it just wasn't needed right now.

Moreover, Haseo thought they needed to watch out not just for enemy attacks, but also for the Anbu's wide-scale jutsu. After one round of battle, the enemy's power had already been assessed. One thing was certain: Kakuzu was definitely a ninja who posed a threat to the Hokage.

In such a scenario, the Anbu would stop at nothing to eliminate this enemy on the spot.

Under such determination, if Haseo and others accidentally got caught up in an Anbu attack, would those Anbu stop? Very likely, no.

If sacrificing Haseo and his team's lives could ensure the enemy's elimination and secure the Hokage's safety, for the Anbu, it wouldn't even be a choice worth hesitating over—in such a case, Haseo would absolutely feel his death was unfair, yet others would simply believe it was a justified sacrifice; he'd die having supposedly fulfilled his purpose.

Indeed, every year, countless ninja died for that so-called noble cause—so many that they could circle Konoha if laid end to end.

Given the Anbu's "mission above all else" style of operation, they wouldn't mind killing their own comrades. In some ways, they were even accustomed to eliminating fellow ninja.

On the contrary, even if Haseo happened to take down an Anbu ninja while killing Kakuzu, nobody would really have grounds to punish him for it.

Nagisa Nara's Shadow Binding Jutsu was never truly fatal against Kakuzu, who mastered the Secret Art Earth Grudge Fear. After all, the latter had a malleable body with no fixed form.

Suddenly, the four masks behind him peeled off his body as if they had minds of their own. Each mask trailed long, black tendrils, floating like dark jellyfish drifting through clear water. In an instant, those masked forms twisted their bodies and shot straight toward Haseo.

Meanwhile, Kakuzu's main body erupted with a violent chakra surge. He brutally broke free of Nagisa Nara's Shadow Binding Jutsu. Soon after his special clones charged forward, Kakuzu himself joined the assault.

After activating Earth Grudge Fear, Kakuzu shed his human form entirely. This forbidden appearance — a monstrous mass of writhing tendrils — clearly granted him a major speed boost, as he could shift his shape mid-motion, streamlining his movements.

Then, just as the five figures — one large, four small — accelerated to their peak, they suddenly slammed headfirst into a wall.

A massive five-sided cube dropped from the sky, trapping Kakuzu inside. Moments later, a sharp ignition sound echoed out as fierce flames engulfed everything within — including Kakuzu — in a blazing inferno.

[Fire Release: Suyaki no Jutsu!]

So here's the question: can Kakuzu actually survive fire?

Right now, that hardly matters anymore. The intense heat and lack of oxygen are conditions no ordinary ninja could possibly endure. Although Kakuzu is an extremely long-lived shinobi, he's certainly not immortal.

Witnessing this, Haseo gave Renjiro a pat on the shoulder, ignoring the man's look of horror. Putting on a casual tone, he said, "See? If I hadn't held you back earlier, you'd definitely be burning up with them right now."

By now, all the Konoha ninja had already gathered around the giant cubic furnace. Haseo glanced around and realized Kakuzu's subordinates had already been dealt with… proving once again that wild rogue ninja were simply no match for Konoha's elite jonin. Honestly, judging by how fast they went down, Kakuzu's crew couldn't have been top-tier rogue ninja to begin with.

Even if Kakuzu somehow survived the flames, escaping this encirclement of twelve Konoha shinobi was practically impossible.

The fire still had a while left to burn when, out of nowhere, Haseo overheard a nearby Uchiha ninja already delivering his post-battle commentary. The Uchiha remarked to a Hyuga, "You guys aren't bad, but never forget — Sharingan is the strongest."

Haseo was completely stunned. Did you really have to say that at a moment like this? What about your EQ? And declaring Sharingan as the strongest — did you even check with my Demonic King's True Eye first?

From what Haseo vaguely remembered, someone from the Hyuga had made a similar remark after the Uchiha massacre too — but at least back then, it was whispered quietly in secret, not shouted loud for everyone to hear.

Whether Sharingan or Byakugan is truly superior may vary from person to person. One thing's for sure, though — the Byakugan has abilities that even the Sharingan — or any other dojutsu — simply can't match. The reverse, however, isn't necessarily true.

That Hyūga ninja, faced with such words, simply glanced at the Uchiha and, unexpectedly, didn't bother to respond at all… Well, considering the Hyūga's reputation, it could even be seen as him rolling his eyes at the Uchiha ninja.

With the Senju fading into history, the Uchiha and Hyūga had risen as Konoha's two most prominent ninja clans. Both were bloodline descendants of the Ōtsutsuki and famed for their eye techniques, thus inevitably competing against each other… While both clans were rather reserved, the Hyūga tended to be more socially skilled, which earned them greater trust and leniency from the village.

After all, even during the distant Warring Era, the Hyūga had been allies of the Senju, never opposing them either before or after Konoha's formation.

"This feels a bit off…" At this moment, another Hyūga ninja, who had been observing the interior of [Susuya no Jutsu] with his Byakugan, suddenly spoke up.

The enemy had suddenly vanished from his sight.

"Cancel the technique!" He immediately said with some anxiety.

The Anbu exchanged glances, then decided to trust the Hyūga's call and released the Susuya no Jutsu.

A wave of heat surged outward, and then the flames died down, revealing a blackened crater in the middle of the ground—where no one stood. Could it be that such a devastating Fire Release had burned nothing but thin air?

At nearly the same moment, every Konoha ninja—including Haseo—immediately turned and rushed back toward the Hokage's position.

Meanwhile, one of the Anbu shot a red signal flare into the air.

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