The distance between Haruto Saito and Tsunade was no more than two meters!
A heaven-sent opportunity lay before Haruto. If he killed Tsunade right now, he would not just be the top assassin of Amegakure but the number one assassin in the entire ninja world! No one in history had ever silently assassinated a ninja of Tsunade's caliber.
Moreover, Tsunade was even easier to ambush than Jiraiya had been.
Jiraiya, stationed outside on a tree, was keeping watch. He had a strong sense of awareness and a keen perception of danger.
But Tsunade? She was asleep! And not just that, she was sleeping in an uncomfortable position. That meant she was in a deep sleep—if she were in a lighter sleep, discomfort would have made her shift positions.
A ninja's vigilance was at its lowest when in deep sleep!
Haruto truly believed he had a chance to kill Tsunade immediately!
Yet, after a moment of temptation, he abandoned the idea.
Because no matter what, there was always a chance he could fail. If Tsunade sensed danger, she could wake up instantly. And as for the Black Samurai... Haruto had already seen his face. He hadn't expected the current Black Samurai to be such a young brat.
Something about him looked familiar, but for the moment, Haruto couldn't recall who he was.
That didn't matter!
What mattered was that the Black Samurai would be an easy kill! A kid like that lacked combat experience and had no significant survival instincts honed by real battlefield experience. Even if he did wake up, Haruto was confident he could still kill him!
After all, the most impressive feat of this generation's Black Samurai was killing Hidden Yin, an elite sensory Jonin, at the White Stone Mine Camp—but even that was only possible thanks to his Black Shadow Flicker technique. So, in Haruto's estimation, if this Black Samurai took off his armor, his real strength would be on the level of an average Jonin.
Killing him would be easy!
More importantly, eliminating him first would remove any future threats! Then, Haruto wouldn't have to worry about the Black Samurai escaping, and he could focus entirely on his battle with Tsunade and Jiraiya, which he was confident he could win.
After weighing his options, Haruto finally made his decision.
Moving slowly, he reached into his clothing and drew a kunai.
Silently, he stepped forward and, at an agonizingly slow pace, extended his arm, aiming the kunai straight at the Black Samurai. He wanted to make no noise at all, to ensure Tsunade didn't wake up, so that he would still have a chance to ambush her afterward.
He didn't form any hand seals or use any ninjutsu—those would create chakra fluctuations. A simple blade was the safest method; executed perfectly, it wouldn't produce even the slightest detectable movement or sound.
The pitch-black kunai edged closer to the center of the Black Samurai's forehead.
Half a meter left...
Haruto suddenly thrust his arm forward!
At that very instant, the Black Samurai's eyes snapped open! His hands shot up, and in a flash, two swirling orbs of energy formed—Twin Rasengan! Both spheres slammed toward Haruto!
At the same moment, Tsunade's eyes also flew open. A terrifying surge of chakra erupted from her body as her right fist, like a hammer, came crashing down toward Haruto with explosive force!
And at that exact second—
A dark flash flickered behind Haruto. The Black Samurai appeared out of thin air, bringing down his mighty blade, Heavy Mountain Cleaver, in a furious strike!
A three-pronged attack, all at once!
The four figures were too close together!
Though it sounded complex, everything happened in the blink of an eye!
"It's a trap!" Haruto's pupils shrank violently. Realizing the truth in an instant changed nothing. His extended right hand trembled, and a flurry of seals appeared across his palm, instantly forming a circular energy barrier in front of him. His body twisted sideways, and a dark glow flickered around him.
Haruto narrowly dodged the attack from behind by shifting his body to the side.
The Twin Rasengan coming from the front? He blocked them with his black energy barrier.
But Tsunade's monstrous punch? He couldn't evade it!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The mixed impact of multiple attacks caused a massive explosion! A devastating shockwave swept through the cave, pulverizing countless stalactites into dust.
Haruto was sent flying like a cannonball, blood spraying from his mouth mid-air!
The Black Samurai who had used Twin Rasengan dissipated into white smoke—just a shadow clone! The real Black Samurai was actually the one who appeared later with the sword! He had used his Black Shadow Flicker technique earlier to silently relocate himself, hiding behind another large stalactite nearby.
Tsunade crossed her arms in front of her to block the blast and was blown backward, flipping through the air before landing on a rock and steadying herself. Her golden hair whipped wildly in the raging currents of air.
The Black Samurai reappeared atop a stalactite in the center of the cave, balancing on its sharp tip with a single foot.
WHOOSH!
WHOOSH!
Jiraiya, moving at high speed, dashed into the cave, appearing in a blur before halting abruptly. "What the hell happened?!" he demanded. But as soon as he asked, he noticed the expressions of Tsunade and the Black Samurai—both were staring toward the northwest corner of the cave. That stone wall had been heavily impacted, now covered in cracks, with a pile of rubble beneath it.
Haruto was buried underneath!
The rumbling sound gradually faded, and silence returned.
"Is he dead?" the Black Samurai asked cautiously.
"No!" Tsunade replied, her gaze sharp and alert. "That black glow was a defensive technique, some kind of secret jutsu. If it hadn't activated in time, my punch would've shattered him!"
Just before her fist struck, Haruto's body had been enveloped in that black glow. Tsunade could feel that it had an immense buffering effect, reducing the actual impact on Haruto's body to less than one-tenth of her full power.
A time-sensitive secret jutsu!
A defense of that level had to be forbidden—there had to be a terrible cost to using it!
Even so, while the technique had saved Haruto from immediate death, Tsunade's monstrous strength was enough to crush mountains. Even at one-tenth force, it was enough to leave Haruto on the brink of death!
Tsunade could still sense his life force, which meant he wasn't dead.
"Who was it?! Who the hell was that?!" Jiraiya demanded, feeling a wave of humiliation. He had been the one keeping watch outside, yet he had been completely useless. If it weren't for the battle breaking out inside, he wouldn't even have known that someone had infiltrated the cave.
"We don't know yet," Tsunade replied. "But judging by his reaction, this guy is extremely strong. He is absolutely on par with us!"
"And," she added, "his powerful secret technique strongly suggests he's from Amegakure."
BOOM!
The pile of rubble in the northwest corner suddenly exploded outward, sending shards of stone flying. A battered and bloodied figure emerged, flipping mid-air before landing on one knee. With a choking gasp, he spat a mouthful of fresh blood onto the ground.
Seeing the state Haruto was in, the Black Samurai immediately spoke up:
"Lord Jiraiya, Lady Tsunade, let's make a deal—can I be the one to kill him?"