As Second Tsuchikage 34

Chapter 34: Kakuzu

“So it’s finally my time to enter the stage, me, Kakuzu of Takigakure!”

From the shadows, a masked man stood gripping a long, gleaming blade, his gaze fixed on Hashirama Senju and the four Second-generation Kage clashing in the distance. This man was Kakuzu. His village had dispatched him on a mission that bordered on suicidal, assassinate Hashirama Senju, the God of Shinobi.

When the mission was first delivered, Kakuzu was stunned speechless. But he was a shinobi who lived by loyalty to his village, no matter the cost. He didn’t hesitate. He sat down, drafted a will, and walked out of the village prepared to die in the name of duty.

However, once he stepped beyond the village borders, Kakuzu discovered something completely unexpected. The highest-tier elite shinobi from all five great nations had already gathered within the Land of Waterfalls and were currently engaged in battle.

Far from being discouraged, Kakuzu was quietly ecstatic. If he timed it just right, he might be able to swoop in, deliver the finishing blow, and steal the glory. So he chose to hide and wait for Hashirama to tire himself out. Only then would he make his move.

“Time to carve my name into history,” he whispered, lowering his stance and beginning to build up chakra.

While the four Kage Successors were locked in a desperate struggle, Kakuzu suddenly surged out from hiding. His figure, clad in black, darted forward in a blur of repeated Body Flicker Techniques, blade raised high as he made a straight charge at Hashirama Senju.

Both Hashirama and the Second Kage were momentarily caught off guard.

“What the, who the hell is that? Whose man is this?”

“Is he one of your ANBU?”

“Maybe some hidden elite jōnin from your ranks?”

Gengetsu Hozuki, the Second Raikage, and Shamon exchanged puzzled looks, trying to guess where this wild newcomer had come from.

Up above, Mū’s eyes narrowed as recognition dawned. “Kakuzu… so he really is trying to assassinate Hashirama?”

He had once glimpsed from memories that Takigakure had produced a ninja named Kakuzu who would eventually try to take down Hashirama Senju. At the time, he had dismissed it as nonsense. Takigakure sending a lone jōnin to kill the strongest shinobi alive? Impossible. And yet, here the man was, charging in like a madman.

Takigakure’s leadership… were they even sane?

“Hashirama Senju! Hear this well! The one who came to slay you is named Kakuzu! Now die!”

With a loud roar, Kakuzu lunged forward and thrust his blade directly at Hashirama’s forehead.

“What kind of nonsense is this?” Hashirama muttered, his eyes widening. Reacting on instinct, he slammed his fist forward.

Boom!

A huge burst of chakra detonated outward, sending Kakuzu flying through the air like a ragdoll.

The four Second Kage stared blankly in silence. Hashirama also stood speechless.

“Oi oi oi!!! Are you trying to make things even worse than they already are?! Bakayarō! It’s already hell down here!”

Gengetsu couldn’t take it anymore and immediately began shouting in frustration.

“This idiot… even we aren’t confident we can beat Hashirama, and he thinks he can handle him alone?”

The Second Raikage shook his head, both irritated and bewildered.

“Kakuzu… now there’s someone worth remembering. I won’t forget a face like that.”

“This guy must’ve downed an entire lake of rebel water before showing up,” Mū muttered.

They were Kage-level shinobi, seasoned and powerful, yet not one of them dared claim they could defeat Hashirama on their own. And then this lone jōnin just dropped out of nowhere, swinging a sword like he had a chance?

Fine. Fine. You’re braver than all four of us put together.

“…”

Hashirama said nothing. His face darkened, the corner of his mouth twitching ever so slightly.

Seriously? Hashirama had assumed this was some coordinated tactic from the four Second Kage. But it turned out to be nothing more than a regular jōnin? Was this guy seriously trying to be funny?

As Kakuzu lay embedded headfirst in the ground, his body twitched as he struggled to pull himself free. Pain twisted across his face, just that one punch had nearly jumbled all his internal organs. Clearly, he hadn’t consumed enough Rebellion Juice. Once he got back to the village, he’d need to guzzle it nonstop just to live down the humiliation.

“Urgh… cough, cough… This is bad. Kids, run!!”

Without the slightest hesitation, Kakuzu activated a Body Replacement Technique and bolted. He vanished from the field in a heartbeat. And yet, all things considered, Kakuzu still came out ahead. He didn’t get the kill, but he gained something else: reputation.

From that day forward, whenever he met anyone new, he would confidently boast about having once fought shoulder-to-shoulder with the Four Kage, and even crossing blades with Hashirama Senju himself.

…

Meanwhile, in the Land of Fire, Tobirama Senju led members of the Senju and Uzumaki clans deep into the territory. The mission was simple but heavy with meaning. One of the Uzumaki jōnin approached him with concern.

“Tobirama-sama, since Hashirama-sama is already fighting, why aren’t you going to assist him?”

Tobirama let out a tired breath and shook his head. “Sigh… my big brother just doesn’t want to see me right now.”

He understood the situation perfectly. His brother had sent him away, not out of strategy, but out of frustration, for secretly working behind his back to kill Madara Uchiha. If someone assassinated your best friend, even if it was your own brother, who wouldn’t be furious?

Even a man as patient and gentle as Hashirama had his limits. Forgiveness didn’t mean forgetting. Back during the Warring States era, Tobirama had once attempted to take Madara’s life, and a single glance from Hashirama had been enough to stop him.

But things were different now. The village had already been founded, and with Madara having gone rogue, Tobirama had made his move. This time, he had chosen to side with Mu in taking Madara down. There was no going back.

“So what should we do now?” asked the Uzumaki representative.

“Get ready for war,” Tobirama answered flatly. “If big brother kills those four Kage successors, the other villages will almost certainly declare war on both Konoha and Uzushiogakure.”

He let out another quiet sigh. In his view, it was all but guaranteed that Hashirama would win. The more pressing matter now was what came after. They had to prepare for retaliation from the remaining four great villages.

“What about the Nine-Tails?”

“Leave it in Konoha for now,” Tobirama replied.

“..........”

Back on the battlefield, Kakuzu’s surprise intervention was nothing more than a passing event. It brought a brief flicker of comedy to a battlefield otherwise drenched in tension and fear.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Multiple Wood Clones of Hashirama launched a wave of coordinated attacks toward Gengetsu Hozuki, Shamon, and the Second Raikage. Simultaneously, the remaining four clones and Hashirama’s real body focused their attention on Mū, who still remained hidden within his Dustless Concealment Barrier.

“They actually sent this many just to lock me down…” Mū narrowed his eyes, clearly aware that Hashirama viewed his Dust Release as a significant threat.

“But… I left a Wood Clone on the Raikage. Maybe…”

He quietly began calculating. Ever since mastering Sage Mode, Mū’s Clones had gained the ability to use Dust Release as well. That alone meant his overall combat strength had increased by at least fifty percent. The odds weren’t great, but neither were they hopeless.

“Find a way to regroup. Don’t fight separately!” Gengetsu’s voice rang out across the battlefield as he gave the warning.

The other two nodded without hesitation, and the trio began battling their way toward each other in an attempt to regroup. But as they closed the distance between them, the Hashirama Wood Clones also began to shift formation, advancing swiftly to intercept. They moved with coordinated precision, their timing synchronized to cut off any chance of a successful link-up.

Just then, something shifted behind the Second Raikage. From the cover of the Dustless Confusion Barrier, Mū made his move.

“Particle Style: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!!”

With sudden ferocity, Mū burst forth from the haze, and in an instant, a giant cube of Dust Release materialized in the air, humming with lethal energy.

Hashirama’s pupils shrank. A sharp alarm rang in his mind.

What just happened?! Did I misjudge this entire situation?

He was sure he had kept Mū under constant sensory surveillance. How could he have missed this? Tobirama’s earlier analysis flashed through his thoughts: There are two of him.

He had taken that into account already. He wasn’t lacking in battle sense. What threw him off now was something much more specific: how had this second body used Dust Release?

From everything he had observed, Mū operated with two forms: the original and a clone. And from earlier exchanges, it had been clear that only the original body could wield Dust Release. The clone, by contrast, had never shown any ability to use it.

Hashirama had concluded that the Mū flying through the sky was the real one. All his attention had remained locked on that version, operating under the assumption that the grounded one was the harmless clone.

But now, the Mū on the ground had just activated a full Dust Release technique.

That could only mean one thing: the real Mū had been on the ground this entire time.

Then who had he been watching in the sky? Had he mistaken the clone for the original all along?

No… Hashirama’s memory was clear. The airborne Mū had definitely used Dust Release earlier too. So then how—?

A cold realization began to settle over him. At some point, without him noticing, Mū had switched places. He had pulled a perfect bait-and-switch, slipping right through Hashirama’s sensory net.