“It seems my tactics were quite successful, Lord Yayoi.” Kakuzu looked at the destructive power he had caused with satisfaction; even the Seven-Tails had its defenses broken by him.
Afterward, he silently shielded Yayoi.
Things like the Tailed Beast Ball are just too terrifying.
Let’s leave this to Lord Yayoi to handle.
“It is indeed effective.” Yayoi was equally satisfied with the result; the Seven-Tails, having lost its reason and being in a poor state, was much easier to deal with.
“Die, human!” The Seven-Tails finished condensing the Chakra ball in its mouth—the Tailed Beast Ball—and tilted its head back slightly, assuming a posture ready to fire.
Yayoi tilted his head slightly and twitched his fingers.
Irori’s figure flashed in front of Yayoi, her blue kimono skirt fluttering to reveal a segment of snow-white, jade-like calf, her hands pressed together, her purple eyes glowing.
Ice Release: Ice Banquet Corridor!
Crack, crack.
The sound of cold air freezing echoed.
A pale, cold wind swept across the land; the earth, air, trees, rivers, and sky were all instantly frozen into ice blocks as huge as mountains.
The Seven-Tails and the Tailed Beast Ball were both trapped within the frozen ice.
The violent aura of the Tailed Beast Ball did not dissipate; it vaguely reached a critical point.
Then, with a deafening roar, the Tailed Beast Ball exploded at zero distance in front of the Seven-Tails.
The mountain-sized ice blocks shattered and scattered, flying toward the distant forest, knocking down rows of trees and creating countless giant craters.
The Seven-Tails’ aura was slightly withered and decadent, but there were no obvious injuries on its body.
Yayoi also panted slightly; controlling a Puppet to release such a powerful Ninjutsu in one go, even for him, felt a bit strenuous.
Although the Seven-Tails’ strength among the Tailed Beasts ranked third, just behind the Nine-Tailed and the Eight-Tails, it was ultimately not in its prime.
Recalling the battle a few months ago where Uchiha Madara crushed the Seven-Tails, Yayoi knew he still had a long way to go in the future.
Because it was not in its prime, a Move like the Tailed Beast Ball could not be released continuously for the Seven-Tails for the time being.
Yayoi saw this point; he quickly twitched his fingers, controlling Irori to dash toward the Seven-Tails.
The Seven-Tails was wary; it could see that the human controlling the Puppet before it was definitely not an ordinary Ninja.
Although he was far inferior to that Uchiha “red-eye disease” who had almost beaten it to death a few months ago, he was definitely no slouch.
Therefore, it vibrated the six cicada wings on its body, intending to fly into the sky and seize air superiority.
“Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!” The Seven-Tails felt its feet go soft; before it could react, its body sank into the muddy swamp.
After releasing the Ninjutsu, Kakuzu didn’t even think; he retreated directly, leaving water trails under his feet, and used the Water Body Flicker Technique to escape the Seven-Tails’ attack range.
Kakuzu’s Earth Release was not enough to restrain the Seven-Tails, but it could delay it for a moment.
Irori’s figure flashed to the top of the Seven-Tails.
Like a fairy, Irori rotated her body, her blue kimono skirt circling and fluttering, astonishing cold air gathered on her soles, releasing a silver-white light as she lashed out toward the Seven-Tails.
Ice Release: One-Blade Ice Burial!
Boom!
A blade-shaped ice block crashed down from the sky, hacking heavily onto the Seven-Tails’ hard shell.
The Seven-Tails howled in pain; it felt as if bile was being vomited from its stomach, its brain dizzy, and it grimaced in pain.
Beneath Irori’s black wooden clogs, paper-thin ice flakes appeared in the air, which she used as stepping points to dash flexibly through the air.
At every landing point, paper-thin yet tough ice flakes would appear in the air, allowing her to step on them.
Yayoi also began to Move, following Irori and changing positions.
The Seven-Tails roared in anger, opened its giant mouth, and fired a small black ball containing a destructive aura directly at Yayoi’s position.
This was a Tailed Beast Bomb.
It could be considered an infinitely weakened version of the Tailed Beast Ball; its drawback was that its power was far inferior to the Tailed Beast Ball, but its advantage was that it could be fired instantly without needing to charge.
“Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!” Yayoi formed hand seals with his free right hand, responding calmly.
Rows of thick, tall earth walls rose from the ground.
Under the premise of him supplying a large amount of Chakra, the many earth walls created this time far exceeded normal scale in hardness and size.
Boom!
The bombardment of the Tailed Beast Bomb was directly blocked by the earth wall, gravel and smoke scattered, revealing the unscathed Yayoi behind it.
Yayoi was not surprised at all; although the strength his main body could exert was not as good as the Irori Puppet, he was no slouch.
He couldn’t block a Tailed Beast Ball, but blocking a Tailed Beast Bomb, which only had the power of an Advanced Fire Release, was no problem.
Besides, let alone Ninjutsu, he was also deeply proficient in Taijutsu.
It was just that if he rushed up to compete with a Tailed Beast in Taijutsu, he would definitely be beaten to death.
Otherwise, if he coordinated with Irori to launch a joint attack, he could end the battle faster.
Cold stars soon illuminated the sky again.
Countless cold ice spears rushed toward the earth like meteors once more.
The Seven-Tails fought back with all its might, howling at the sky, using its body to withstand the meteor impact caused by the cold ice spears.
Meanwhile, Irori opened her hands, and a pale, cold air formed a torrent, gushing toward the earth like a tsunami.
Ice Release: Maiden Snow Frost Kill!
Thick white frost quickly formed on the Seven-Tails’ body.
The cold current ran rampant, dyeing the forest in a deathly pallor.
The earth and trees were all, in an instant, as if stripped of their vitality.
The Seven-Tails’ aura grew increasingly withered, but its struggle became more intense; the cold air didn’t last long, and the thick frost began to make cracking sounds.
Yayoi’s expression was calm; he naturally knew that the Seven-Tails was not so easy to knock down.
But fortunately, Irori’s performance was best suited for capturing and restricting such large-volume creatures.
Cold ice blades and spears, consumed by Chakra, rushed toward the Seven-Tails like streaks of white meteors cutting through the sky.
Cold air, like a cold current, continued to reinforce the frost on the Seven-Tails.
Kakuzu also came up from time to time, using his Earth Release to cover the Seven-Tails, or using long-range Water Release to wear down the Seven-Tails’ strength.
By the way, he also threw out some shuriken and Kunai; the damage wasn’t high, but the insult was immense, continuously causing the Seven-Tails to overheat in rage and lose its reason.
Not until the Seven-Tails’ aura completely withered did Yayoi control Irori to stop the attack.
Looking at the Seven-Tails, which had turned into a giant ice sculpture, Yayoi recalled Irori, panted heavily, and sighed.
As expected of a Tailed Beast; even if it wasn’t in its prime, it wasn’t so easy to subdue.
Although there were no injuries on his body, and one could say he took down the Seven-Tails without a scratch, it was just too tiring.
Moreover, this was also because Irori countered the Seven-Tails’ flight ability, freezing its flight ability with Ice Release at the first opportunity; if the Seven-Tails had flown into the sky, he could only stare helplessly.
Although Irori also had air combat capabilities, she was ultimately not as flexible as the Seven-Tails.
The Seven-Tails’ strength among the Tailed Beasts was not considered strong, but its special mobility and air superiority allowed it to remain invincible in many situations.
Yayoi took out two military rations pills from his Ninja tool pouch and shoved them into his mouth.
Kakuzu also walked over with a look of fatigue; having assisted in suppressing the Seven-Tails just now, his Chakra had also been somewhat severely consumed.
“Next…” Just as Yayoi was about to walk toward the Seven-Tails, a black shadow suddenly flashed by, and a Ninja sword caught Yayoi’s eye.
Kakuzu’s expression changed.
“Earth Release: Earth Spear!” Kakuzu met it with a Body Flicker Technique; his blackened arm blocked the Ninja sword swung by the attacker.
Clang!
The Ninja sword slashed forcefully onto Kakuzu’s arm, sparking violently, not even breaking the skin.
The newcomer looked astonished, then backed away with a slightly changed expression.
Unfortunately, it was too late.
Irori’s figure flashed ghost-like to the side of the attacker, and her slender, jade-white fingers touched her lightly.
A layer of white frost immediately formed on the attacker’s body; from head to toe, only her head could Move.
Yayoi glanced at the attacker; she was a young girl, not very old, about twelve or thirteen, still retaining some childishness.
With long, straight black hair, snow-white skin, and a proper appearance, especially the pair of scarlet, two-tomoe eyes, she was very eye-catching.
“Sharingan…
Are you from the Uchiha Clan?” The opponent was wearing a black tight-fitting Ninja suit and draped in the layered armor unique to the Sengoku period, like a young female warrior.
Judging from her skilled fighting style, she was probably accustomed to and numb from slashing people.
This was also a common problem for Ninjas in the Sengoku period; even four or five-year-old children had to get used to slashing people, otherwise, they would be slashed to death by others.
Yayoi looked directly into the girl’s two-tomoe Sharingan, not fearing her Genjutsu.
His Chakra activity was far beyond that of ordinary Ninjas, which meant that the control of Genjutsu over him would be greatly weakened.
Even with the Sharingan, wanting to hypnotize him with Genjutsu, even at the three-tomoe level, would be very difficult to achieve.
The only thing he feared was the Mangekyo Sharingan that surpassed the three-tomoe.
The girl realized that after she used the Sharingan, the opponent was not confused by the Genjutsu, and she also realized that her Genjutsu could not control the opponent, so she couldn’t help but grit her teeth.
“Lord Yayoi, should I kill her?” Kakuzu walked over, killing intent visible in his sickly green eyes.
“You are thieves; the Seven-Tails was subdued by Lord Madara, it belongs to our Uchiha Clan!” The girl shouted aloud at this moment; although she was a prisoner, her pair of red Sharingan showed no fear of death.
“…” The girl’s answer made Yayoi recall unpleasant things, and the corners of his mouth twitched.
Every time he heard that name, he would subconsciously recall his incompetent self that night, who was like a lackey.
“That Lord Madara you speak of wouldn’t look twice at a mere Seven-Tails.” Yayoi exhaled softly and had Irori release the girl’s restraints.
Judging from the girl’s answer, the Uchiha Clan should have known about the Seven-Tails; this girl was likely here on a mission from the Uchiha Clan.
This meant that the Uchiha Clan was keeping track of this girl’s whereabouts at all times; it would be very troublesome if she died here.
Especially now that the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan had concluded an alliance, it was better not to provoke them.
The girl frowned, seemingly not understanding the meaning of Yayoi’s words.
Yayoi didn’t feel the need to explain; presumably, after Uchiha Madara returned a few months ago, he had just mentioned the whereabouts of the Seven-Tails, which made the other Ninjas of the Uchiha Clan Move their minds.
But the fact was that Uchiha Madara didn’t care for the Seven-Tails; he beat it up and left directly.
The so-called Seven-Tails being the property of the Uchiha Clan was just the wishful thinking of the other Ninjas of the Uchiha Clan.
If Uchiha Madara had left any mark on the Seven-Tails earlier, he wouldn’t have dared to target the Seven-Tails, but would have gone to look for other Tailed Beasts instead.
No longer paying attention to this Uchiha girl, Yayoi came to the Seven-Tails and controlled Irori to remove the frost from the Seven-Tails’ body.
Cold air spilled out, making Kakuzu and the Uchiha girl who followed over couldn’t help but shiver, their teeth uncontrollably chattering a few times.
The Seven-Tails was on the verge of death, lying on the ground weakly and motionless.
“You can leave now, little Uchiha girl.” Yayoi swept his gaze toward the Uchiha girl, signaling her to leave.
There could be no outsiders present for what came next.
“This belongs to the Uchiha Clan, why shouldn’t I be allowed to be here!” The Uchiha girl’s Sharingan regressed into black and white eyes, and her tone was not polite at all.
Kakuzu raised his eyebrows, seemingly wanting to teach the opponent a lesson and let her know how to respect her elders.
Yayoi reached out to stop him, his gaze sweeping toward the girl.
“This is a critical moment for the alliance between the Senju Clan and your Uchiha Clan; as a Ninja of the Uchiha Clan, is it really okay for you not to go back?” “What did you say?
An alliance with the Senju Clan!?” The girl’s eyes widened, as if she had heard something unbelievable.
“So, you must have not been in touch with outside news for a while.
Half a month ago, the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan ceased hostilities and officially formed an alliance.” Yayoi glanced at the girl strangely; she seemed to be truly ignorant of this.
The girl’s face turned livid, revealing an angry look.
“Hey, even if you’re making it up, make it believable!
How could our Uchiha Clan sign an alliance with the Senju Clan?” Her parents, younger brother, older sister, older brother, and countless clansmen had all died at the hands of Senju Clan Ninjas.
If they allied with the Senju Clan, what about the deep blood feud she carried?
The grievances between the two clans could only end with the complete destruction of one of them!
“This is already common knowledge.” Not caring about the girl’s questioning, Yayoi replied calmly.
Seeing Yayoi’s certain tone, the girl couldn’t help but suppress her inner impulse and calm down.
Consequently, she immediately turned around, preparing to return to her clan to verify whether Yayoi’s news was true or not.
“Hey, little girl, what’s your name?” Yayoi’s voice came from behind.
The girl’s figure paused for a moment, and she ran away without looking back, but her voice still came from far away.
“Izayoi, Uchiha Izayoi.” Staring at the girl’s departing figure, Yayoi turned his gaze back and fell upon the Seven-Tails again.
“Lord Yayoi, are you very interested in this Uchiha brat?” Kakuzu was curious.
“To be able to open the Sharingan at this age, as long as there are no accidents, she will at least be a high-level member of the Uchiha Clan in the future; getting to know her in advance is definitely not wrong.” Yayoi answered this question.
Whether this relationship would be useful later, he didn’t know, but having one more friend meant one more way out.
Especially in the years to come, Konoha, established by the Senju and the Uchiha, would be the center of the entire Ninja World; if the Land of Night wanted to develop further in the future, it would inevitably have to make contact with Konoha.
This torrent caused by the progress of the era would not be diverted by any individual’s will.
Kakuzu nodded; this was indeed Yayoi’s style.
As long as it wasn’t an irreconcilable life-and-death feud, he would make as many friends as possible and keep enemies to a minimum.
He had been following Yayoi for nearly a dozen years, and he had witnessed with his own eyes how Yayoi had stepped by step gone from a bottom-tier mercenary to finally seizing the sovereignty of two countries and becoming the final victor.
Besides necessary force, uniting all external forces that could be united was also an indispensable help.
Otherwise, he would always just be a mercenary who couldn’t amount to anything.
“Now we can begin.” Yayoi twitched his fingers, and Irori, wearing a blue kimono, came further to Yayoi’s side, like a loyal servant.