Hanzō was a figure renowned in the shinobi world, consistently drawing the attention and research of various ninja villages. His personal information, growth experience, personality, ninjutsu, summoning beasts, and even analyses of his close friends were essential materials for every intelligence agency in the shinobi world.
Although Kei had not carefully studied those materials, he had meticulously examined Danzō's memories.
Root had already uncovered every last secret about Hanzō. His summoned creature, the salamander Ibuse, was not like the creatures of Mount Myōboku or Ryūchi Cave, which resided in distant lands. Instead, it lived in a toxic swamp on the outskirts of Ame. Due to its highly toxic nature, its species had great difficulty reproducing. Moreover, its abilities were highly lethal to ordinary ninjas, leading to it being targeted by multiple factions during the Second Great Ninja War.
As a result, only a handful of its kind remained.
Therefore, in theory, capturing Hanzō's summoned beast was not too difficult.
"Toxic swamp, summoning contract scroll…" At Kei's command, the two shadow clones beside him immediately understood.
One used the Transformation Jutsu to take the form of an Ame ninja and rushed toward the central tower. The other headed straight for the toxic swamp where the salamanders resided.
If the first clone could find the summoning contract scroll in the central tower, sealing the contract would allow the second to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to instantly capture the entire species.
But if the scroll wasn't found, then the second clone would have to work harder—individually using contract sealing techniques before forging a new contract with the creatures.
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"All of you, retreat!" As Hanzō arrived at the mist-covered area, he gave a loud command for his subordinates to fall back.
He ran his right-hand fingertips along the blade of the scythe strapped to his back. Forming hand seals, he immediately summoned Ibuse!
With hand seals completed, he channeled his powerful chakra through his connection with his summoned beast. Having fought together for years, Ibuse instantly understood Hanzō's intentions.
The deep purple venom stored in its poison sac was released in an instant. Under Hanzō's control, the thick mist rapidly filled the area, becoming a deadly toxin that could kill upon inhalation.
Kei's body quickly flickered through the water, swiftly dodging the engulfing toxic mist and appearing beside Hanzō in the blink of an eye.
Clang!
His blade clashed with Hanzō's scythe.
Sparks flew.
The weight attached to the end of Hanzō's scythe chain swung toward Kei's head.
Splash!
The weight struck, sending a spray of water into the air. Hanzō narrowed his eyes. With his extensive combat experience, he immediately deduced that this was not a mere water clone—it was the Hydrification Technique!
He swung his scythe horizontally.
As the hooked blade slashed toward his opponent, the weighted end of the chain came in for a second attack. At the same time, Ibuse instantly redirected its poisonous mist, enveloping Hanzō and his surroundings in deep purple toxins.
Kei used the Water Body Flicker again, but this time to quickly put distance between them.
He aimed his left fingertips at the incoming scythe and weight.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Though only the size of a walnut, the high-speed water bullets carried immense destructive power as they continuously struck the scythe and weight.
Forced into a defensive stance, Hanzō had no choice but to block the barrage, watching as his opponent retreated.
Kei withdrew several dozen meters, landing on a protruding steel structure of a nearby building. He glanced at his blade.
Its edge was already marked with traces of deep purple corrosion. Glancing at his right arm—discolored due to the poison—he shook it off, expelling the toxin from his body using the Hydrification Technique.
Then, using the raindrops from the Mist Rain, he quickly replenished his lost moisture.
Looking at Hanzō standing proudly atop Ibuse's head, he finally understood the helplessness that Tsunade and others must have felt during the Second Great Ninja War.
This old man wasn't just poisonous—his entire existence was lethal!
If he wanted to take Hanzō down without revealing his identity, he would have to use the inherited jutsu of the Second Mizukage.
Perhaps a small-scale Steaming Danger Tyranny explosion to shake up Ame?
Wait... Why did he suddenly feel the urge to massacre the entire village?
Feeling a subtle agitation and bloodthirst growing within him, his expression darkened. He forcefully expelled the unknown energy inside his body using his powerful yin chakra.
Sweeping his sensory abilities across a ten-kilometer radius, a flood of information surged into his mind.
[Seeker of Origins] provided him with exceptional insight, allowing him to quickly pinpoint the source of the anomaly.
Deep underground, within a three-kilometer radius centered around the Akatsuki base, three figures, their bodies parasitized and wrapped in White Zetsu, were frantically maintaining a peculiar formation: An outer ring with an inner equilateral triangle formed by straight lines.
Jashinists? Kei's heart sank.
Madara wouldn't have bothered with such crude tactics, but Black Zetsu had no such arrogance. He would do anything to revive his mother.
Observing the Ame ninjas who had arrived earlier... Most of them were breathing heavily. Some of the mentally weaker ones had bloodshot eyes, their emotions fluctuating wildly.
Kei cursed under his breath.
Piecing together the scattered clues, he instantly understood Black Zetsu's layered scheme and what it was truly aiming for. That bastard had orchestrated everything so that Akatsuki would draw Konoha's attention.
First, it was possible that he intended to use seals inscribed onto Akatsuki members' bodies to achieve some hidden objective.
Second, he wanted to drag Ame into the chaos once again!
No matter which faction of Konoha was baited, no matter where the real attack was set to take place, even if the attackers disguised themselves as ninjas from other villages, as long as an attack occurred, Black Zetsu could manipulate events to draw in more Ame ninja, and even force Hanzō himself into action.
Then, using Jashinism rituals, he would trigger a massacre!
As for the ninjas lured in by Akatsuki, did it matter if they weren't strong enough?
Black Zetsu never lacked expendable pawns.
The Land of Rain's strategic position was special. During the Second Great Ninja War, it had already served as a battlefield for the great nations.
If Hanzō died, even if the great nations didn't know who orchestrated it, the mere suspicion would be enough to make them see the Land of Rain as an ideal battleground once more.
War always favored the first to strike. Those who hesitated will be destroyed.
With Hanzō gone, Ame would become vulnerable.
Any ninja village that didn't want to be caught off guard would immediately enter wartime preparations. No further provocation would be needed.
The Third Great Ninja War would erupt in full force!
Even if Hanzō survived, watching Ame ninjas slaughtered before his eyes would provide irrefutable proof that foreign ninja had committed the act. As the leader of Ame, he would have no choice but to retaliate, or his village would be dragged into another cycle of war and destruction.
The only way out would be to launch an overwhelming counterattack! But once that counterattack happened, would the other villages, already eager for war after the conflict between Kumo and Kiri, stand by and watch?
The dominoes had already been set in motion. No matter what he chose, the Third Great Ninja War was inevitable.
And once the shinobi world fell into total chaos, the worse the war became, the easier it would be for Black Zetsu to collect the tailed beasts and revive his mother.
Capture them alive. Destroy the formation.
Using Mind Body Transmission Technique, Kei contacted his scattered shadow clones.
In this situation, whether he killed Hanzō or not, the outcome would likely align with Black Zetsu's expectations.
Since that was the case, he might as well just cut Hanzō down and claim his system rewards.
As for the ninja war?
Heh—It was bound to happen sooner or later!
Black Zetsu wanted to see the world in chaos? Let's see how he manipulates things then!
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100 Advance chapters!
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