Haruto Saito arrived just in time, reacting quickly. The moment he appeared, Hanzo was already charging at him. Without thinking, he unleashed his ultimate move!
A massive blade wave slashed forward ferociously!
Hanzo reacted swiftly, swinging his scythe.
"Sword Art: Flash!"
Hanzo's blade tore through the devastating blade wave created by the Heavy Cannon Slash, pushing forward to clash directly with Haruto. At that moment, the impact of the two blades colliding produced a sound akin to heavenly thunder crashing down!
The shockwave swept across a hundred meters!
Both Haruto and Hanzo were blasted backward!
Hanzo flew over a hundred meters, crashing through two large trees before flipping in the air and landing steadily!
Haruto, on the other hand, was also sent flying over a hundred meters, but he crashed into the ground before quickly flipping back up onto his feet!
It appeared to be an even match!
But in reality, Haruto was at a disadvantage!
Haruto had used his most powerful sword technique, the Heavy Cannon Slash, which specialized in sheer power, while Hanzo relied on a technique that prioritized speed!
Speed versus strength!
Yet, in the end, it turned into a contest of raw power!
The fact that Hanzo didn't cough up blood meant he hadn't lost!
"So you finally showed up, Scarlet Eye of the Leaf!" Hanzo grinned, twirling his scythe before slowly advancing. The enigmatic Thirteen flickered into position behind him like a shadow.
Haruto didn't respond to Hanzo. Instead, he kept his eyes locked on him and shouted to his surroundings, "What's going on?! Why did the fight start early?!"
"We were tracking them, but Thirteen noticed us..." Tsunade wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth as she explained.
Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Ryuno Hattori quickly gathered around Haruto while Hanzo continued his slow, menacing approach, with Thirteen right behind him.
"Tsk tsk tsk, I can't believe you had the guts to follow me after spotting me instead of running away. Did you really think you could kill me?" Hanzo sneered. "Where did you get such courage? Do you not understand what death means?!"
"What a cliché villainous line..." Haruto couldn't help but comment.
"Villain?" Hanzo tilted his head slightly. "History is written by the victors. The loser is the one who gets labeled as the villain."
"You're that confident?" Haruto asked. "If you're so sure of yourself, why are you sneaking into the Land of Whirlpools?"
"Confidence and caution are not mutually exclusive."
"Man, you sure talk a lot!"
"I'm giving you a chance to say your last words. You might not get another chance to speak after this."
"Oh, so we're doing a battle of words now? How about we skip the fight and just debate? Loser commits seppuku as an apology to the world?"
"Too bad. I gave you a chance, and you wasted it!" Hanzo declared as he prepared to strike.
Haruto suddenly raised his hand. "Wait, wait, wait! Hold on! Isn't it money you're after?!"
Hanzo paused mid-motion. What did he mean by that? Was he offering money?
Of course, Haruto was just buying time!
Kakuzu hadn't arrived yet, and fighting now would be a disadvantage!
"What? You're willing to pay me?" Hanzo fixed his gaze on Haruto. "If you give me thirty billion ryo, I'll let you and your friends live."
"Thirty billion ryo? Why don't you just go rob someone?"
"Isn't that exactly what I'm doing?"
"Uh..." Haruto was momentarily speechless. Hanzo was surprisingly good at verbal sparring!
"Alright, alright, let's change the terms!" Haruto quickly waved his hands. "How about this—you send one of your subordinates out, we send one of ours, and they fight one-on-one. If your guy wins, I'll give you thirty billion ryo."
"Do you really think that's possible?" Hanzo scoffed.
"Then—" Haruto started to say something else.
"You're stalling for time, aren't you?" Hanzo interrupted.
"Uh..."
"Hah!"
Hanzo let out a cold laugh and suddenly vanished into a blur, charging straight at Haruto, with Thirteen following closely behind!
They closed in swiftly, splitting off to Haruto's left and right when they were just twenty meters away. From his perspective, it looked as if Hanzo had suddenly duplicated himself!
They were coming in for the kill!
Haruto and his allies moved simultaneously!
A chaotic battle erupted!
Haruto faced Hanzo head-on! Tsunade provided support from the side, the two engaging in close combat against Hanzo! But Hanzo's blade movements were like a storm, dense and impenetrable. Moreover, he focused most of his attacks on Haruto, quickly pushing him into a dangerous position!
Even though Haruto hadn't lost when using his ultimate move, he couldn't use it repeatedly in battle!
In a direct sword fight, Hanzo's skill completely overwhelmed Haruto's!
If not for Tsunade's support, Haruto wouldn't even be able to hold his ground against Hanzo!
Meanwhile, Thirteen was an enormous problem as well, moving like Hanzo's shadow. Their coordination was near-perfect. If Ryuno Hattori hadn't fully recovered his strength and been able to restrain Thirteen, Haruto and Tsunade's teamwork would have collapsed quickly!
Not long after—
A figure rushed toward them at high speed!
Kakuzu had arrived!
As soon as Kakuzu laid eyes on Hanzo, his face darkened. Damn it! Haruto always dragged him into these life-threatening situations!
"Go! Attack!" Haruto yelled at Kakuzu!
Kakuzu quickly assessed the battle. It wasn't looking too bad, so he gritted his teeth and blurred into action, charging into the fight. As he approached, he formed hand seals midair!
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning shot down, targeting Hanzo directly!
But Hanzo's body trembled slightly before shifting three meters to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack, and immediately slashing at Orochimaru! Orochimaru dodged, forming hand seals… Tsunade stepped in between them… Haruto attacked from behind…
Kakuzu landed!
He joined the battle!
Suddenly, Haruto sheathed his sword and vanished!
He ran!
Kakuzu was supposed to be an ally, but with Haruto gone, Tsunade and the others were now in even greater danger! Kakuzu nearly cursed aloud—he had just arrived, and now Haruto was running away?! What a betrayal!
No, this was definitely a trap for him!
But Haruto wasn't actually fleeing!
He reappeared on a nearby hilltop, quickly retrieving a card from his item space. He took a deep breath, muttering a silent prayer, before biting down and crushing the card!
It was an S-Rank Boss Card! He had previously obtained three, using one against Ryuno Hattori, leaving him with two!
A glowing giant appeared behind him, drawing its bow and firing an arrow!
Haruto prayed in his heart!
The arrow shot forth!
A moment later, it struck Thirteen!
Success!
Haruto grinned! His plan was to turn Thirteen into an S-Rank Boss! Although Hanzo was stronger and a better target, he was too difficult to take down!
That's why he targeted Thirteen!
Because his goal was to eliminate Thirteen at all costs!
Once Thirteen was dead, he would drop a Puppet Card!
Haruto would revive Thirteen as his puppet!
And then, Thirteen would turn on Hanzo!
With this shift in power, Hanzo would soon meet his demise!