Chapter 357: 357 – Kakuzu vs Kitazawa!!

Monday arrived—the beginning of a new week.

Since the Genius Class had theory lessons today, Kitazawa didn’t need to be at the academy.

Normally, he would use this time to train Wood Release.

But this Monday was different.

Today was the day he had promised Konan he would spar with Kakuzu—using Wood Release.

Kitazawa had never met Kakuzu, but he knew him extremely well.

His greatest secret was Earth Grudge Fear, Takigakure’s forbidden technique.

It allowed him to produce black tendrils capable of stealing and embedding hearts.

Including his own, he could house up to five hearts.

Each stolen heart granted him a chakra nature and allowed the use of that element’s ninjutsu.

Kakuzu carried five: Earth, Water, Fire, Lightning, and Wind—making him a complete Five-Elements shinobi.

If a heart was destroyed, that nature vanished.

Even more outrageous—he could replace hearts and inherit the remaining lifespan of the person they were taken from.

In other words, Kakuzu was theoretically immortal.

As long as he had hearts.

If all five were destroyed, he would die—just as he eventually did in the original timeline, defeated by Kakashi, Naruto, and Shikamaru.

Kitazawa had already acquired three of Kakuzu’s signature techniques through system rewards, including the compound Flame-Wind combo attack.

However, Kakuzu’s true ultimate technique was the three-element composite jutsu:Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot.

Kitazawa expected to see it today.

“It’s already half past eight, Kitazawa,” Konan reminded him gently.

Kitazawa opened his eyes. His vision was blocked—not by darkness, but by fabric.

He was lying with his head resting on Konan’s lap.

“I see. Let’s go,” he said, sitting up.

Konan followed him out of the ANBU base.

The Valley of the End lay north of Konoha—about twenty to thirty minutes away for an average shinobi.

No matter how fierce today’s battle, the village wouldn’t be affected.

When they reached the edge of the Forest of Death, Kitazawa stopped.

He looked at Konan, cleared his throat, and said:

“Time’s short. Fly me there.”

Without waiting, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her.

Konan stiffened slightly at first, breath catching.

But she quickly relaxed, saying nothing, merely spreading her paper wings.

They rose into the air.

Kitazawa felt her warmth through her clothes, her faint fragrance brushing past him as they flew.

Below them, two colossal statues emerged—the legendary figures of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara standing on either side of the waterfall.

This valley did not exist before their battle.

It had been carved open by Hashirama’s Sage Art: True Several Thousand Hands.

A reminder of how terrifying that final clash had been.

Before reaching the valley floor, Konan slowed and began descending.

She released him, lips parting as though she wanted to speak—but she hesitated.

Normally, she would have landed directly in the valley.

But being seen arriving in such close proximity with Kitazawa… by Kakuzu, no less…

If Kakuzu reported to Nagato, things would get complicated.

Kitazawa studied her for a moment and understood.

For Konan to worry meant only one thing—her feelings for him had already softened.

“Let’s go,” he said simply, sparing her the awkwardness.

She let out a small breath of relief and followed.

Kakuzu was already there—standing beneath Hashirama’s statue, waiting quietly.

Hearing footsteps, he turned.

He wore the Akatsuki’s black cloak patterned with red clouds, and a black mask that hid his face except for his eyes.

“Kakuzu, this is Kitazawa,” Konan said.

“Pleasure,” Kakuzu replied shortly. “Shall we begin?”

“Over there,” Kitazawa said, smiling. “If we damage the statues, I’ll be the one fixing them.”

Kakuzu gave no response—simply moved to the open field.

Kitazawa followed.

“Please,” he said.

Kakuzu nodded and removed his robe, revealing a sleeveless garment beneath.

His shoulders and arms were stitched with black seams.

Kitazawa couldn’t help thinking he resembled Frankenstein from his previous life.

But stripping before a fight…?

Good thing this wasn’t a real Akatsuki deathmatch—otherwise, him removing clothing would practically guarantee his death, given the organization’s notorious “strip-and-die” curse.

Kakuzu clapped his hands.

His torso split open, and countless black tendrils erupted outward.

They writhed, forming four masked entities—each one with a different colored mouth:

Fire

Wind

Water

Lightning

His original heart was Earth.

Kakuzu stared at Kitazawa, finally showing seriousness.

Very few ninja remained calm after witnessing Earth Grudge Fear.

Those who did were always exceptionally strong.

“Lightning Release: False Darkness!”

Without preamble, Kakuzu attacked.

The Lightning mask lifted its jaw, unleashing a bolt of lightning that rapidly expanded into a long, curved spear.

It shot across the battlefield instantly—fast enough to pierce boulders clean through.

Kitazawa reacted immediately.

“Wood Release: Locking Wall!”

Thick wooden pillars burst from the ground on both sides of Kitazawa.

They curved inward, forming a protective arch.

A moment later, the lightning spear smashed into the wooden barrier—and tore through it effortlessly.

But the lightning spear pierced no deeper than ten centimeters before stopping dead.

Kakuzu’s eyes narrowed. He immediately unleashed a second technique.

Fire Release: Intelligent Hardwork!

The Fire Mask opened its maw and spat out a blazing fireball that struck the ground and erupted into an expanding inferno.

In an instant, a sea of flames surged outward, swallowing the wooden wall—and Kitazawa—whole.

Boom!

The Wood Locking Wall ignited, then exploded violently.

Scorching heat rolled across the valley, shaking the air.

Wood Release: Violent Tree Spikes!

Within the flames, several thick vines shot upward.

They twisted together, rapidly forming a towering tree.

The raging fire crashed against its trunk and branches, entering a deadlock.

Kitazawa stood atop the giant tree, calm and steady as he gazed down at Kakuzu.

Wind Release: Pressure Damage!

Kakuzu’s hands blurred into seals.

The Wind mask spat a condensed sphere of compressed air.

The moment it struck the ground—

BOOM!

A violent storm exploded outward.

But it wasn’t just Wind Release.

The sea of flames from previous jutsu still raged.

The wind fed the fire, causing the inferno to flash-expand like a living tidal wave.

The temperature skyrocketed.

The giant tree beneath Kitazawa sizzled, cracked—then crumbled to ash.

With the tree gone, nothing stood between Kitazawa and the encroaching wall of fire.

He stood alone—like a small boat about to be swallowed by a blazing ocean.

Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!

Kitazawa remained unfazed.

The earth rumbled.

Countless vines burst forth, rapidly growing into towering trees.

Branches intertwined, weaving into an impenetrable forest.

The raging flames halted immediately, unable to advance.

Fire theoretically countered Wood—but that was only theory.

Wood Release was alive.

Kakuzu’s expression darkened.

In seconds, his overwhelming sea of flames had been swallowed whole by a living forest.

He had heard of Deep Forest Emergence…

But he had never seen it.

Back then, Hashirama had beaten him half to death before he even had the chance.

No time for nostalgia now—because the forest moved.

Branches and vines surged toward him like a green tsunami, an ocean of trees ready to devour him whole.

Wind Release: Pressure Damage!

Kakuzu retreated, unleashing another storm.

A tornado-like blast erupted, tearing leaves and snapping vines.

But he felt no relief.

Because the forest healed instantly—branches regrowing, vines knitting back together in the blink of an eye.

Kakuzu immediately understood.

Kitazawa wasn’t just creating a forest—He controlled it.

As long as Kitazawa’s chakra held, this forest was immortal.

The only solution—

Target Kitazawa. Not the forest.

But the moment he stepped inside, he would be surrounded by a living cage of wood.

Still, if he stayed outside, it would become a battle of attrition.

And he doubted he could outlast Kitazawa.

Kakuzu made his decision.

All three elemental masks—Wind, Fire, Lightning—attached themselves to his right arm.

Kakuzu thrust his arm forward.

Branches and vines writhed toward him like a monstrous green tide.

Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot!

All three masks opened their mouths at once.

A massive beam of condensed chakra roared to life.

It tore through the forest with terrifying speed—everything in its path, leaves, vines, even giant trees, was obliterated.

Behind the blast, Kakuzu sprinted forward, following the destruction into the forest’s heart.

There—Kitazawa stood.

Earth Release: Earth Spear!

Kakuzu clapped his hands.

His skin hardened, turning pitch-black and dense like steel.

Despite its name, Earth Spear wasn’t a weapon—it was pure defense.

Kakuzu lunged.

Black tendrils writhed around his body, transforming him into a monstrous sea urchin.

Reaching Kitazawa, the tentacles split into eight massive threads, each as thick as an arm, shooting toward Kitazawa from every direction.

A flawless kill box.

Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence.

Kitazawa lifted his right arm.

His skin rippled, sprouting eight wooden rods.

They shot forward, curved midair, and clashed with Kakuzu’s eight black tendrils, locking together like wrestlers grappling.

Kakuzu’s gaze sharpened.

He dug his heels into the earth and pulled.

But an overwhelming force ripped through him—He was dragged forward against his will, gouging trenches in the ground.

Realizing he couldn’t overpower Kitazawa, Kakuzu made a split-second decision.

He severed his right hand.

The stump erupted in a spray of black tendrils that shot toward Kitazawa like a hail of arrows.

Kitazawa didn’t move.

The surrounding branches and vines curled in front of him, shielding him effortlessly.

Lightning Release: False Darkness!

Kakuzu retracted his tendrils.

The Lightning mask opened and fired a spear of lightning.

It blasted through the defensive vines—Only for the ground to tremble.

A single vine—thicker, denser, and visibly harder—shot upward like a spear of its own.

It intercepted the lightning head-on.

The lightning dissipated against it.

Kakuzu froze.

This vine wasn’t just strong—

It was evolving.

Kitazawa dispelled Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence.

The living forest collapsed instantly, and Kakuzu’s eight massive tendrils lost their anchor point. His balance faltered as he lurched forward—

And in the same instant, Kitazawa surged upward.

A vine burst from the ground, lifting him high into the air as it elongated at incredible speed.

Kakuzu’s pupils shrank.

A Wood Dragon, over fifty meters in length, materialized behind Kitazawa.

Its serpentine body twisted through the air, casting a massive shadow across the valley. The sheer pressure warped the space around them.

The dragon’s enormous tail swept toward Kakuzu like a falling mountain.

Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot!

Kakuzu reacted instantly.

Wind, Fire, and Lightning masks converged on his right arm and released a blinding torrent of chakra.

The cannon-like blast slammed into the Wood Dragon—

BOOM!

A devastating shockwave detonated outward, scattering leaves and igniting the air itself in a storm of energy.

Kakuzu skidded back, shielding his eyes from the blast.

But before he could fully assess the damage—

The forest answered.

Countless branches burst from every direction, whipping toward him to bind him.

Kakuzu’s reaction was sharp. He leapt upward—

Only for a colossal shadow to loom beneath him.

The Wood Dragon’s tail lashed around his waist.

“What—?!”

His expression twisted.

Black tendrils exploded from his body, stabbing toward the Wood Dragon in a frantic attempt to break free.

It was useless.

The Wood Dragon tightened its coils.

Then—

An overwhelming weakness hit Kakuzu like a thunderbolt.

His chakra—five hearts’ worth—was being devoured at a terrifying rate.

Kakuzu’s face drained of color.

If Kitazawa had opened with the Wood Dragon…

He wouldn’t have survived even a second.

His strongest attack, Final Shot, hadn’t even scratched it.

“I surrender!” he shouted without hesitation.

If he waited a moment longer, he’d be crushed—or drained into a corpse.

The Wood Dragon instantly loosened its grip.

Kakuzu dropped to the ground, barely landing on his feet. He gasped for breath—his body felt hollow. His chakra reserves were less than ten percent.

And he had five hearts.

He clenched his teeth.

Since being humiliated by Hashirama Senju decades ago, he had trained relentlessly. Earth Grudge Fear had turned him into a monster. He felt unmatched.

But in front of Wood Release…

He was still crushed like an insect.

Kitazawa had only used Wood Release.

Not Water Release.

Not Medical Ninjutsu.

Not his other fearsome techniques.

This wasn’t even Kitazawa fighting seriously.

Kakuzu lowered his head in grim silence.

Konan—who had watched everything unfold—barely reacted.

Her expression remained as calm and cool as ever, but inwardly, she had expected this outcome.

Against Mōryō’s chakra, even Kakuzu fell short.

Of course he would lose against Kitazawa.

[Current Mission: Challenge from Kakuzu—Defeat him with Wood Release.]

[Mission Reward: Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.]

[Mission complete. Reward issued.]

A new flood of information surged into Kitazawa’s mind.

The true Wind Release: Rasenshuriken—countless microscopic chakra blades that shredded the enemy at the cellular level. A forbidden technique precisely because of its devastating internal damage.

Kitazawa rubbed his chin.

He might survive using it, thanks to:

Yin Seal

Sign-less Healing

Senju Chakra Mode

Yang Release Chakra Mode

But surviving wasn’t the issue.

Why injure himself at all?

Deep Forest Emergence and Wood Dragon were more than enough for now.

Kakuzu approached, expression solemn.

“Thank you… for the spar,” he said stiffly. “If there is another chance, I hope we can spar again.”

“There will be,” Kitazawa replied calmly. “But next time, it won’t be a friendly spar. Not if you remain in the Akatsuki.”

Kakuzu stiffened.

Because Kitazawa was right.

The next time they met, they would likely stand on opposite sides of a war.

He said nothing more, pulled his cloak from the ground, and walked away.

Konan bit her lip gently.

Her suspicions were confirmed.

Kitazawa had accepted Kakuzu’s challenge solely because of her.

And now…

She owed him yet another favor.

“It’s time to head back, Konan.”

Kitazawa released the Wood Dragon and the forest, letting nature return to stillness.

Konan’s eyes softened for a moment; she couldn’t hide.

She stepped forward and embraced him of her own accord.

Her white paper wings unfurled behind her—graceful and quiet.

And with a single beat, the two lifted into the sky, flying back toward Konoha.

——————

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