246-250

*Chapter 246: Rescuing Sakura, Thrashing Yakushi Kabuto*

“Kazama’s definitely not gonna let you off! Just wait, you’re done for!”

Seeing no way to escape, Sakura furiously cursed at Yakushi Kabuto.

“Haha, you little brat! You really think Kazama’s some kind of god? Forget whether he can even find this hidden hideout. Even if he does, it’d take him half a month to break through my barriers. By the time he gets here, I’ll be long gone. Kill me? In your dreams!”

Smack!

Before Kabuto could finish his taunt, he was sent flying dozens of meters by a sudden blow.

“Kazama!”

“Kazama-kun!”

The sight of Kazama’s sudden appearance created a stark contrast: Kabuto was pale with terror, while Sakura was overjoyed.

“No way! This is absolutely impossible!”

Kabuto couldn’t believe his eyes—Kazama had actually found his secret hideout.

“This place is thousands of miles from the Shinobi Allied Forces’ battlefield! How could you get here so fast? And I set up multiple layers of barriers around this place—how did you break through them instantly? How the hell did you do it? This is impossible!”

Kazama ignored Kabuto’s frantic, lung-bursting roars.

Instead, he turned to Sakura.

“Sakura, get out of here for now. Once I deal with Kabuto, I’ll take you back to Konoha.”

“Haha, keep dreaming!”

Before Sakura could respond, Kabuto sneered at Kazama again.

“I don’t know how you got in, you little punk, but getting out won’t be so easy!”

With that, Kabuto quickly formed hand seals, layering several more barriers around the area.

Kazama found the move almost laughable.

In front of someone with space-time ninjutsu like him, no amount of barriers meant a thing.

Without hesitation, Kazama activated Kamui, pulling Sakura into his alternate dimension for safety.

“Space-time ninjutsu! No wonder you broke through my barriers!”

Seeing Kazama whisk Sakura away and realizing he’d been outplayed yet again, Kabuto was livid with embarrassment.

But the next moment, he suddenly let out a cold laugh.

“Still smirking when you’re about to die?”

“Punk, don’t get cocky too soon. You really think I’m the same Yakushi Kabuto as before?”

With a furious shout, Kabuto unleashed a massive surge of chakra from within.

His human body began to morph, transforming into a serpentine form.

“I’ve now mastered senjutsu—something even Orochimaru-sama couldn’t achieve!”

As he spoke, Kabuto pulled his hood down, covering his eyes.

“Trying to block my Betsutenjin with that? How sneaky,” Kazama said with a cold smirk, completely unfazed.

Truth was, Kazama had no intention of using Betsutenjin on Kabuto.

That would’ve been too easy on him. The best way to deal with Kabuto was to crush him—beat him until he was begging for mercy.

“Senjutsu, huh? Nice. I’ve never absorbed senjutsu before. Bring it on!”

“What? You think you can absorb senjutsu? That’s hilarious! Today, I’ll show you the true power of senjutsu!”

“Senpō: Hakugeki no Jutsu!”

As Kabuto unleashed the technique, the air in the area began to violently churn, creating intense friction.

The vibrations resonated with the bones in Kazama’s body.

Even with his absolute defense, Kazama felt a gut-wrenching, excruciating pain.

“So this is senjutsu? Not bad!”

Hearing Kazama’s remark, Kabuto’s smugness reached its peak.

*Chapter 247: Absorbing Senjutsu*

“How’s that, you little punk? Now you’ve seen the power of my senjutsu! Let me tell you, even Pain’s Six Paths with their Rinnegan couldn’t absorb my senjutsu. And you think your measly Mangekyō Sharingan can handle it? Keep dreaming!”

Seeing Kazama’s body trembling from the pain, Yakushi Kabuto burst into maniacal laughter.

“You’re not wrong. The Rinnegan can’t absorb senjutsu,” Kazama replied coolly. “But I’m not using the Rinnegan to absorb it. And my eyes? They’re not your average Rinnegan either.”

With a single gesture, Kazama tapped into the system within his body, completely absorbing the senjutsu into himself.

Ding! Successfully absorbed Senpō: Hakugeki no Jutsu. Congratulations, Host, you’ve obtained Senpō: Tengeki no Jutsu! This technique is an enhanced version of Hakugeki no Jutsu. Except for the caster, all forms of enemies will be obliterated into nothingness by its vibrations!

“You! You!”

Kabuto was dumbfounded, his jaw dropping as he watched Kazama actually absorb his senjutsu.

“I, Kazama, am a man of my word. I said I’d absorb your senjutsu, and that’s exactly what I did. But wait, there’s more—I’ve got a little gift for you. Senpō: Tengeki no Jutsu!”

As Kazama unleashed the technique, a vibrational force far stronger than Hakugeki no Jutsu ripped through the air, instantly reducing the entire cave to rubble.

“Hmph! What kind of trash is this Tengeki no Jutsu? Never even heard of it!”

Kabuto scoffed, preparing to liquefy his body to resist the vibrational force.

But he hadn’t anticipated that Kazama’s Tengeki no Jutsu was so powerful that even his liquefied form couldn’t withstand it.

At that moment, Kabuto’s sage body began to visibly disintegrate at a rapid pace.

And this was only because Kabuto’s mastery of senjutsu allowed him to resist it slightly.

If it had been anyone else, they’d have been reduced to nothing in an instant.

“How is this possible?! My body’s already liquefied—why can’t I avoid the power of these vibrations?!”

Staring at his fading form, Kabuto was drenched in sweat, utterly powerless to fight back.

Just when he thought his end was certain, the vibrations from Kazama’s Tengeki no Jutsu suddenly stopped.

Kazama had deliberately spared his life.

He knew Kabuto still had other senjutsu techniques up his sleeve, and Kazama wanted to absorb as many of them as he could.

After all, the power of senjutsu was just too incredible.

“Punk, looks like your skills are lacking! If you’d held on a bit longer, you might’ve actually killed me!”

Unaware that Kazama had spared him on purpose, Kabuto assumed Kazama simply wasn’t strong enough to finish him off. He started mocking him again.

Kazama, seeing Kabuto’s baffling confidence, couldn’t help but chuckle.

“You’re right, I couldn’t kill you. But it looks like you can’t kill me either. And honestly, that senjutsu of yours was pretty weak. Got anything else? If you do, hurry up and show me!”

“You bastard! Still looking down on me when you’re about to die? If I don’t kill you today, I’m not human!”

Unaware he was falling for Kazama’s provocation, Kabuto unleashed another senjutsu technique.

“Senpō: Muki Tensei!”

The surrounding rubble instantly transformed into sharp spikes, hurtling toward Kazama.

Chapter 248: Controlling Yakushi Kabuto

The stone blocks seemed to have gained sentience, capable of both attacking and defending.

Seeing Kazama continuously retreating, Yakushi Kabuto regained his confidence, convinced he could finally kill Kazama this time.

“You little punk, my Muki Tensei (Inorganic Reanimation) can grant life to lifeless objects and control them! Each one moves as fast as lightning. You might dodge for a while, but you can’t escape forever. Even if I can’t kill you, I’ll wear you down, you bastard!”

“I won’t deny that this senjutsu is pretty impressive, but I’ve got news for you—you’ve failed again!”

Kazama, who had been dodging the attacks, suddenly turned to face them head-on.

Ding! Successfully absorbed Senpō: Muki Tensei (Sage Art: Inorganic Reanimation). Congratulations, host, for obtaining Senpō: Mu Chū Shō Yū (Sage Art: Creation from Nothing)! This allows you to transform nothingness into tangible objects and control them to attack enemies!

“Senpō: Mu Chū Shō Yū!*”

As Kazama unleashed this technique, rocks began to form in places where none had existed before. Not only did they block Kabuto’s incoming attacks, but they also launched a counterattack toward Kabuto, who was hiding in the shadows.

“You’ve got some skills, punk! But no matter how strong you are, you’ll never catch me!”

“Skills? I’ve got more than just a couple—I’ve got three!”

With that, Kazama activated Seirei no Honō (Flame of Life), enveloping all the inorganic objects animated by Muki Tensei.

Kazama’s Seirei no Honō didn’t just grant life to lifeless objects—it could also endow them with intelligence comparable to humans. This made finding Kabuto a breeze.

With the combination of Seirei no Honō and Senpō: Mu Chū Shō Yū, the rocks under Kazama’s control grew even more powerful, each possessing strength rivaling that of a Jōnin.

In just a few moments, they located Kabuto’s hiding spot and dragged him before Kazama.

“Tch… this…”

The once sharp-tongued Kabuto was now stammering, overwhelmed by fear.

“I’ve mastered the power of nature and blended my chakra into the environment! How could you still find me?!”

“Because my Seirei no Honō doesn’t just give life to inorganic objects—it grants them human-like perception. Tracking down your hiding technique was child’s play!”

“Why?! Why, when I’ve mastered so many forbidden jutsu and senjutsu, can I still not kill you?!”

Kabuto was now utterly consumed by despair.

“Because evil can never triumph over justice. People like you, who manipulate the dead, forcing them to fight against their former comrades, teachers, and students, destroying the bonds they held dear—you’ll never succeed. The best fate for someone like you is to die without a trace!”

“Spare me your righteous nonsense, Kazama! Sure, I can’t kill you, but that doesn’t mean I’ve lost. You don’t know yet, do you? My final trump card, Uchiha Madara, has already beaten the Five Kage to a pulp. If the Kage fall, do you think your so-called Five Great Nations will survive?”

As he spoke, Kabuto gouged out his own eyes.

“Now that I’m blind, your Betsutenshin is useless! Even if you kill me, Edo Tensei won’t be undone, haha!”

Kabuto erupted into maniacal laughter once more.

“Controlling you doesn’t require just Betsutenshin!”

“What?!”

At Kazama’s words, Kabuto, mid-laugh, froze in place, his expression turning blank.

*Chapter 249: Battling Uchiha Madara*

Kazama had already infused a wisp of Jōren Yōka (Purging Lotus Demon Flame) into Yakushi Kabuto’s body.

“Those burned by Jōren Yōka become fire slaves, completely under my control. Even though you’ve lost your free will, I’ll say it anyway—you lost!”

Looking at the dazed Kabuto, Kazama ordered him to dispel Edo Tensei.

Then, he reduced Kabuto to nothingness.

“Hope you can be a better person in your next life.”

With those words, Kazama immediately rushed back to the Shinobi Allied Forces’ battlefield.

While Edo Tensei had been undone, Uchiha Madara was an exception.

“Kazama is truly the savior of the entire shinobi world!”

Seeing the Edo Tensei souls return to the afterlife, Tsunade couldn’t help but exclaim.

She’d already heard from the Fourth Raikage that Kazama had gone to confront Yakushi Kabuto, the caster of Edo Tensei.

Now that the technique was undone, it was clear Kazama had defeated him.

At that moment, Tsunade and the other Five Kage turned their attention to Uchiha Madara, whose form was slowly fading in the sky.

In their earlier battle, the five of them had been completely overwhelmed by Madara.

Now, seeing Edo Tensei undone and Madara about to vanish, the Five Kage let out a collective sigh of relief.

“Madara! Your strength is undeniable. Even the five of us together were no match for you. But the Shinobi Allied Forces have someone even stronger than you, so your defeat is certain!”

“Hmph!”

Hearing Tsunade’s words, Uchiha Madara let out a cold sneer.

“All you did was defeat the caster of Edo Tensei, and you’re already this proud? You Five Kage are truly frogs in a well!”

As he spoke, Madara began forming hand seals.

“Let me make this clear—no one in this world can stand against me. Edo Tensei release!”

With the completion of his seals, Madara’s fading body fully restored itself.

“Edo Tensei has only one flaw: if the reanimated know the technique’s seals, they can break free completely. Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!”

Madara unleashed a massive fire technique, aiming it at the Five Kage and the Shinobi Allied Forces behind them.

“Suiton!”

Terumī Mei hurriedly tried to counter with a water technique.

But after her earlier battle with Madara, her chakra was nearly depleted, and her Suiton failed.

“Damn it!”

Seeing Mei unable to muster a defense, Tsunade and the others grew desperate.

Their own chakra reserves were almost gone.

Against an ordinary fire technique, they might’ve been able to dodge.

But Madara’s Gōka Mekkyaku was too vast, completely surrounding the Five Kage.

“Is this the end?”

Even ninja as powerful as the Five Kage couldn’t help but let out helpless sighs.

Just when they thought death was certain, a figure suddenly dashed into the heart of Madara’s Gōka Mekkyaku and absorbed the entire fire technique.

Ding! Successfully absorbed S-rank Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku. Congratulations, Host, you’ve obtained Ultra S-rank Katon: Gōka Messhitsu no Jutsu!

“To think there’s someone in the Shinobi Allied Forces who can absorb ninjutsu!”

Madara, seeing his Gōka Mekkyaku completely consumed, was visibly shocked.

“Kazama!”

Chapter 250: Thrashing Uchiha Madara

Seeing Kazama appear and save their lives, Tsunade and the others were filled with gratitude.

“Thank you, Kazama! If it weren’t for you, we might’ve been done for…”

Terumī Mei, Ōnoki, Gaara, and the others couldn’t stop thanking Kazama.

“No need to be so formal. As part of the Shinobi Alliance, it’s only natural we help each other and face the enemy together,” Kazama replied.

“Hmph! You think just because you absorbed my Katon, you can dance with me?”

Hearing the Five Kage thank Kazama, Uchiha Madara sneered coldly.

What he didn’t know was that this “trash” he spoke of was the one who thwarted Black Zetsu’s plans and subdued his former allies, Obito and Nagato.

“You think dodging my Gōka Mekkyaku (Great Fire Annihilation) means you’ll survive? Dream on! Katon: Ryūen Hōka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique)!”

Madara unleashed his signature Katon once more, this time targeting Kazama alone.

Initially, Madara hadn’t taken Kazama seriously. But realizing Kazama could absorb ninjutsu, he saw him as a troublesome opponent. To defeat the Five Kage and dominate the shinobi world, Madara knew he had to take Kazama out first.

“Kazama, be careful! Madara’s Katon is incredibly powerful!”

Seeing Madara aim for Kazama, Tsunade and the others were frantic with worry.

But Kazama remained completely calm.

“Perfect timing! Let’s test my new technique—Katon: Gōka Messhitsu!*”

As Kazama unleashed his technique, a massive fireball obliterated the four incoming fire dragons. Its momentum unbroken, it surged toward Madara.

“He’s using my secret Katon technique?!”

Seeing Kazama perform Gōka Messhitsu, Madara was visibly shocked.

He moved to dodge, but Kazama had already used Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique) to appear behind him.

“I’m not done yet! Katon: Gōka Messhitsu!*”

Two enormous fireballs, one from the front and one from behind, sealed off Madara’s escape routes. They merged into a sea of flames, completely engulfing him.

“Did we win?”

Seeing Madara swallowed by the fire, Tsunade and the Five Kage were overjoyed.

But their celebration was cut short as a blue skeleton emerged from the flames.

“Susanoo?”

Kazama wasn’t the least bit surprised by the sight of Madara’s blue skeletal Susanoo.

After all, his own Susanoo was far stronger than Madara’s.

“Not only can you use my techniques, but you even know about Susanoo? Kid, you’re starting to impress me. Too bad you still don’t have what it takes to dance with me! Perfect Susanoo!*”

A colossal blue giant materialized before everyone’s eyes.

The Shinobi Alliance, including Tsunade and the Five Kage, stood frozen in awe at the sight of Madara’s Perfect Susanoo.

What terrified them even more was the realization that Madara hadn’t used this technique earlier in their fight, yet he’d already overwhelmed them.

If he had unleashed Perfect Susanoo from the start, the Five Kage and the entire Shinobi Alliance would likely have been wiped out in an instant.

“Kid, this is the Uchiha clan’s forbidden technique. Once you see the Perfect Susanoo, death is inevitable. Now, I’ll send you and the Five Kage to the afterlife together!”

As Madara spoke, his Perfect Susanoo brandished three massive katana, swinging them down toward the group.