Naruto: The Scientific Ninja

Chapter 39: Poisoned Buttocks

Swish, swish, swish…

Tekudō seized the opening and threw a large number of kunai and shuriken, blocking Sasuke's escape route. His tactic was effective, forcing Sasuke to face Ryo's Garōga head-on.

But just as the spiraling attack was about to hit, there was a loud crack. A section of a nearby tree trunk exploded into sawdust. At the critical moment, Sasuke had used a Substitution Technique, easily avoiding the attack.

Just then, Tekudō, wearing special gloves, pulled his hands back through the air. Strands of steel wire, thin as hair, materialized, forming a net that blocked off the entire area. They had been hidden in the kunai and shuriken he had thrown earlier.

"Chōmi, now!"

Chōmi had already begun forming hand seals. "Lightning Release: Hidden Current!"

A faint blue light spread across the steel wires, encompassing the entire area. Though only a D-rank technique, it was enough to temporarily paralyze a target. Once he was paralyzed, Ryo's beast-human combination would undoubtedly secure the victory.

At the same time, Tekudō pulled the wires taut, rapidly compressing the space, attempting to trap Sasuke in a single, decisive move.

Unfortunately for them, the result was not what they had hoped.

Under the perception of his ultrasonic radar, Sasuke had already foreseen their entire arrangement. He moved as if strolling through a garden, easily escaping the closing net.

"A good tactic," he said, shaking his head with a mocking smile, "but unfortunately, you chose the wrong opponent." He was, however, silently impressed. With such a strategy, even a special jōnin might have been defeated.

"Alright, kids," he said, his tone shifting. "I'm getting serious now."

He quickly formed the hand seals. "Water Style: Hidden Mist Technique."

In an instant, fine water droplets condensed in the air, forming a grayish-white fog. It rolled out like a cloud crushed by an invisible giant's hand, instantly engulfing the light and shadows within a sixty-meter radius.

"Defensive formation! Watch out for sneak attacks!" Tekudō shouted, and the three of them immediately formed a back-to-back triangle.

"The silent killing is about to begin," Sasuke's sinister voice echoed from all around them, seeming to whisper directly into their ears. "Eight vital points: throat, spine, lungs, liver, carotid artery, subclavian artery, kidneys, and heart. Now, which one do you want me to attack first?"

They threw kunai wildly, but hit nothing.

"Throat!" the voice whispered.

The three of them felt a breeze brush past them.

"Huh? This is fish blood!" Ryo was the first to react, touching his neck. His hand came away stained with red. Fish-blood marks had also appeared on the necks of Tekudō and Chōmi. Even Akimaru had not been spared. If they had been enemies, they would all be dead.

"When did that happen?" Tekudō and Chōmi hadn't even noticed.

They tried to move out of the mist, but no matter how fast they ran, the white fog constantly enveloped them. Giving up, they reformed their defensive triangle, their senses on high alert.

"I don't believe, Captain, that you can still—" Tekudō began to shout, but the nightmarish voice whispered in his ear again: "Heart."

He felt his chest and found another sticky smear of fish blood.

"Captain, stop fighting, stop fighting! You're bullying me!" Tekudō cried out, finally admitting defeat. He knew they had been completely outmatched.

"Who was being so arrogant a moment ago?" Sasuke's figure gradually materialized out of the mist, not far from them. He had used his Mist Body Flicker to approach and kill them silently and instantly. The fog finally dissipated, and they discovered that all eight of their vital points had been quietly marked with fish blood. They had been utterly and miserably defeated.

"Tekudō, your butt," Chōmi pointed out, her eyes full of concern.

He twisted around and found a shuriken stuck in his left buttock.

"Ah, Captain, you're murdering your own capable general! And you used poison! Water Bat No. 6!" he wailed, pulling out the shuriken and recognizing the familiar green glint and smell. No wonder he hadn't felt the sting; the area was already paralyzed.

"Relax, kid. You won't die," Sasuke said, watching as Tekudō took the antidote. "You should get hit by No. 6 a few more times. It'll help you produce more antibodies, so you don't accidentally hurt yourself in the future."

"Then why don't you do it your—"

"Hm?" Sasuke shot him a threatening glare, and Tekudō immediately shut up and quickly tended to his wound.