"Tch, getting angry now?" Natsuro smirked. "To be honest, if you hadn't provoked Konoha, I wouldn't have bothered with you. But I don't know what's wrong with your brain, you just had to mess with Konoha."
Natsuro could clearly feel Hiruko's rage, but he didn't care in the slightest and continued to mock him.
"Storm Release: Thunder Cloud Resonance!"
Hiruko had no desire to continue talking. He swiftly formed hand seals.
In an instant, countless black thunderclouds surrounded him, flickering with electricity.
The next moment, streaks of lightning surged toward Natsuro at extreme speed!
However, to Natsuro's senses, these attacks were painfully slow. He casually strolled around as if taking a leisurely walk, effortlessly dodging every bolt of lightning.
Seeing how easily Natsuro avoided his attacks, Hiruko's pupils shrank in shock.
After dodging the assault, Natsuro looked at the stunned Hiruko and spoke again.
"Actually, I've looked into your background and even heard Tsunade's opinion of you. Back then, even they didn't believe you'd go down this path."
"Hah! What does that matter? In the end, they still followed the Third Hokage's orders and tried to have me killed!"
Hearing Tsunade's name only deepened Hiruko's frustration. Seeing that Natsuro wasn't attacking, he unleashed even more chakra, causing his power to surge.
"Hmm? Interesting," Natsuro observed without making a move.
"Storm Release Secret Art: Storm Demon Dragon!!"
The black thunderclouds around Hiruko expanded, covering the entire sky. Although it was still daytime, darkness engulfed the land like the arrival of night.
"Hiruko, have you ever thought about this?" Natsuro asked. "Back then, you had no Kekkei Genkai, so how exactly did you escape from the hands of the Sannin? If it had been just one of them, maybe, but that was all three of them attacking together."
"Hmph! And what does that prove? It only proves their stupidity! They underestimated the Chimera Technique!"
Hiruko knew exactly what Natsuro was implying, that the Sannin had held back. But he refused to believe it.
He had been there. If not for the life force enhancements of the Chimera Technique, he would have died back then!
"Maybe," Natsuro said with a hint of regret. "Honestly, after learning about your past, I don't think your path was entirely wrong. Being a commoner with poor talent, seeking power through unconventional means makes sense."
"Hah! Too bad none of that matters now. Back then, the Hokage was the Third, not you!" Hiruko sneered, continuing to generate more storm clouds.
"Fair enough. But I'm curious—why did you choose Kakashi as your fifth Kekkei Genkai? You spent so much time planning for this."
"If I were you, I might've prioritized other Kekkei Genkai first. Or, if Kakashi was really that important, why not just ambush him during a mission instead of making such a big spectacle out of it?"
Hiruko fell silent.
Because Natsuro's words hit the core of the issue, why?
Because there was no time left.
The four shinobi he had stolen Kekkei Genkai from weren't easy to deal with. Just obtaining their corpses before they decayed had taken a long time.
As for Kakashi, who knew when he would next be sent on a mission?
So, Hiruko had no choice but to resort to this plan.
And why Kakashi?
Maybe because of the Sharingan's power.
Maybe because Kakashi was the turning point in his research on the Chimera Technique.
To Hiruko, Kakashi held a special significance.
Seeing Hiruko's silence, Natsuro knew he wouldn't get an answer.
Stretching lazily, Natsuro said, "Alright, enough chit-chat. You've got four Kekkei Genkai, right? Show me all of them now, otherwise, you won't get the chance."
As he spoke, he formed a hand seal.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Bullets!"
Several invisible wind chakra projectiles shot toward Hiruko like bullets.
"Hah! It's useless, ninjutsu means nothing to me!"
Hiruko stretched out his palm, revealing a curse seal-like hole in the center. The moment it made contact with the Vacuum Bullets, they disappeared, absorbed into his body as chakra.
"Dark Release?" Natsuro mused.
He could tell Storm Release was a combination of Lightning and Water, but Dark Release…
That was harder to figure out.
Was it like Shikotsumyaku, a bloodline-based Kekkei Genkai?
"Hmph! Take it back!"
After fully absorbing the Vacuum Bullets, Hiruko redirected the chakra into a massive projectile—Vacuum Great Sphere, and launched it at Natsuro.
"Interesting, but not good enough."
Natsuro dodged the attack and instantly appeared in front of Hiruko before he could form another seal.
Without giving him a chance to react, Natsuro punched him straight in the stomach.
BAM!
Hiruko's eyes bulged as he coughed up a mouthful of blood. His entire body was sent flying, smashing through several solid walls and stone pillars before finally coming to a stop.
Natsuro casually shook his hand and said, "Steel Release, huh? Looks like your defense still isn't up to par."
Hiruko coughed violently, staring at Natsuro with fear in his eyes.
Natsuro's punch wasn't just strong, it was absurdly strong.
Even real steel would've been shattered by that blow, let alone Steel Release!
And more importantly, Natsuro was too fast.
Hiruko hadn't even had time to react before he was already hit.
However, after seeing Natsuro relax again after the attack, Hiruko finally saw an opening.
Despite the pain, he quickly formed hand seals.
The next moment, Hiruko moved!
"Hmm?"
Natsuro raised an eyebrow as he swiftly sidestepped, narrowly avoiding Hiruko's punch.
Hiruko's speed had suddenly increased, he was now even faster than Natsuro!
Although Natsuro could still react in time, he was no longer dodging as effortlessly as before.
However, rather than feeling threatened, his eyes lit up with excitement, like a hunter who had just found his prey.
"This Kekkei Genkai… A combination of Wind and Lightning?"
Natsuro had already been aware of Hiruko's original speed, compared to his own, it was painfully slow.
But now, after activating this Kekkei Genkai, Hiruko had become incredibly fast…
And the most interesting part?
The elements required for this Kekkei Genkai, Wind and Lightning, were precisely the two chakra natures that Natsuro had mastered the most.
Now, he was truly interested.
As he continuously dodged Hiruko's rapid assaults, he also carefully analyzed the chakra radiating from his opponent.
"Hah! Who would've thought? The legendary Sixth Hokage, known for mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique, should be the fastest shinobi alive… And yet he's being outsped by Swift Release!"
Hiruko smirked as he noticed how much easier it had become to pressure Natsuro.
It felt as if he had finally found a way to deal with him.
"Swift Release, huh? Interesting."
Natsuro didn't bother arguing, he was too focused on experiencing firsthand the power of Swift Release.
If Hiruko, with his inferior physical abilities, could achieve such insane speed, then…
What would happen if Natsuro himself mastered it?
Natsuro's natural speed and physical prowess were far beyond Hiruko's. The mere thought of adding Swift Release to his arsenal filled him with unprecedented excitement.
Sure, he had the Flying Thunder God Technique, but did that mean Swift Release was useless?
Not at all.
One was a space-time teleportation technique. The other was pure speed.
More importantly, Swift Release enhanced all aspects of speed, including attack speed.
Natsuro still vividly remembered, opponents at the Six Paths level could react to the Flying Thunder God Technique's teleportation.
But what if he combined it with Swift Release?
Their reaction time would be cut even further.
Perhaps on its own, Swift Release wasn't that overwhelming…
But paired with the Flying Thunder God?
It could very well push an enemy's reaction limit beyond its breaking point, even for Six Paths-level opponents!
For normal battles, this didn't matter much.
But for Natsuro, this realization was a game-changer.
Natsuro looked at Hiruko with a grin.
He had decided, he'd play with him a little longer.
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Currently on Chapter 342 - Natsuro vs. The Third Raikage