“Akira!” With tears streaming down her face, Kushina threw herself into Akira’s arms and clung to him tightly.
“I thought you were dead!” “You scared me to death!” As she spoke, she broke down into uncontrollable sobs.
No one knew just how desperate she had felt a moment ago.
It wasn’t just because all hope of survival had vanished.
More importantly…
The person she loved had seemingly died right before her eyes.
The pain had been like a knife carving through her heart, leaving her barely able to breathe.
“It’s alright.” Akira gently rubbed her head.
“I’m here now.” “I’ll deal with these bastards very soon.” “So don’t worry.” “…Mm.” Still clinging to him, Kushina nodded obediently.
“Stay here.” “I’m going to finish them.” After handing Kushina over to a nearby String Clone, the warmth in Akira’s eyes disappeared.
His expression turned ice-cold.
With a Body Flicker, he appeared atop a tree branch, looking down at the two Hidden Cloud ninja as though they were already dead.
“Brat.” Aoki’s face darkened.
“I really don’t like the way you’re looking at me.” “You don’t actually think you can kill all of us, do you?” “Once I’ve killed you…” “I’ll take that little girl anyway.” “Oh?” Akira looked at him with disdain.
“Do you really think you’re capable of that?” His fingers twitched.
Another Parasite String shot out silently.
Arashi suddenly shuddered.
Terror filled his eyes.
Just as he was about to speak, several transparent strings pierced through his lips.
Without drawing a drop of blood, they forcibly sealed his mouth shut.
The strings then destroyed his vocal cords, leaving him completely unable to make a sound.
Meanwhile, Akira continued distracting Aoki.
“There’s something I’ve been curious about.” “Why go to all this trouble just to kidnap one little girl?” “Could it be…” “Your Hidden Cloud Village plans to start another war?” “Heh.” Aoki sneered.
“So what if we do?” There was no way he would reveal their true objective.
“Instead…” “I’ve heard that Konoha’s geniuses usually die young.” “You exposed yourself so easily.” “Aren’t you afraid of dying before your time?” In a way…
He wasn’t wrong.
The First Hokage.
The Second Hokage.
Nawaki.
Dan Kato.
Too many prodigies had died young.
After all…
No one wanted another Senju Hashirama to appear.
“I don’t think dead men spread information.” Akira’s fingers moved once more, quietly manipulating Arashi as he slowly approached Aoki.
“Big words.” Aoki’s eyes sharpened.
Just as he was about to activate his Lightning Armor— A kunai suddenly stabbed him from the side.
“What?!” He turned around in disbelief.
Only then did he notice how miserable Arashi looked.
His body was trembling violently.
It looked as though he might collapse unconscious at any second.
“What did you do to him?!” Aoki roared in fury.
Fortunately, the kunai hadn’t inflicted a fatal wound.
At the last instant, he had activated his Lightning Armor.
The blade had only penetrated halfway before being stopped.
“I’ve been watching you this entire time!” “What exactly did you do?!” “You guess.” Akira grinned mischievously.
“Why don’t you guess whether I can control you too?” At that moment…
Akira’s smile looked like that of a devil in Aoki’s eyes.
Then…
He watched helplessly as Arashi was sliced cleanly in half right before him.
“What a pity.” Akira sighed as though it were nothing worth mentioning.
“I thought that would’ve been enough to kill you.” “I didn’t expect Hidden Cloud ninja to have bodies this tough.” “Damn you!” Consumed by rage, Aoki shot forward.
He was going to teach this little bastard a lesson.
“…Sigh.” Akira merely shook his head.
“Why bother?” He effortlessly dodged Aoki’s attack before stepping onto an invisible string suspended high in the air.
Looking down at Aoki, pity filled his eyes.
“Do all the ninja of the Land of Lightning know nothing except charging headfirst?” At that moment…
Akira finally understood how Minato had managed to fight so many Hidden Cloud ninja by himself.
His speed was simply too overwhelming.
They couldn’t catch him.
And on top of that…
Minato’s attacks were devastating.
Anyone who took a direct hit would be crippled, if not killed outright.
“You damn little rat!” Aoki glared furiously at Akira in the air.
Even so…
He hadn’t completely lost his composure.
While on the ground, he could still alter his trajectory.
But if he leaped into the air…
He would lose all footing and become a perfect target.
“Taunts won’t work on me.” Akira remained completely unfazed.
“Compared to me…” “You should be the one feeling anxious.” “After all…” “Konoha’s pursuit squad is right behind me.” “They’ll be here very soon.” At this point, Akira no longer cared about exposing his strength.
Ever since Uzumaki Mito had chosen to stand behind him…
He finally had the confidence to stand tall.
At least while she was still alive…
He would be safe within Konoha.
As for after her death…
By then…
His own strength would have reached an entirely different level.
Opening his status panel for a quick glance, a smile appeared in Akira’s eyes.
Once he killed this guy…
He would have ten thousand System Points.
Save up another ten thousand…
And he could finally perform an Ultimate Draw.
Just thinking about the lottery made him sigh.
The previous draws had been ridiculously unfair.
Only a handful of the rewards had been useful.
Everything else…
Dog food.
Instant noodles.
It was absolutely absurd.
Aoki fell silent after hearing Akira’s words.
Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced toward the direction of Konoha.
He knew…
If this dragged on any longer, Konoha’s reinforcements would eventually catch up.
At that point…
He would almost certainly die.
His gaze sharpened.
One final attempt.
If it doesn’t work…
I’ll retreat immediately.
The moment he made his decision, the lightning surrounding his body flared even brighter.
Then he vanished.
He was searching for an opening.
Using high-speed movement to confuse his opponent before delivering a single fatal strike.
“Heh.” Akira’s eyes were full of mockery.
He knew exactly what Aoki was trying to do.
And…
That was precisely what he had been waiting for.
His fingers moved once more.
Wind-attribute chakra quietly flowed through the invisible strings he had already woven throughout the battlefield.
The next instant— Whoosh!
Aoki appeared directly above Akira.
His hand, wrapped in crackling lightning, slashed downward.
“Lightning Blade!” Crack!
Slash!
Lightning flashed.
Blood sprayed through the air.
“Kyaa!” High above, Kushina cried out in despair.
“Akira!!” That crushing feeling of helplessness…
Again…
Damn it…
Damn it!!