Naruto: I, Uchiha, Just Want to Die

Chapter 46: Water Release: Water Fang Blade! Believe in Miracles!

With just a single statement, Kakuzu did not relax his vigilance at all.

Watching as three shurikens rushed directly towards his weak spots, he wasn't quite sure what was happening but assumed Uchiha Ci had simply gotten lucky.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he slammed his long legs against the cliff face, sending several stones flying with a powerful whip kick.

The stones tore through the night wind, smashing downwards.

With two clanging sounds, two shurikens were knocked aside, and Kakuzu dodged the third one with a swift movement.

By this time, Uchiha Ci was already up close.

Twisting his foot slightly, the kunai in his hand spun in a flash of light as he stabbed directly toward Kakuzu's chest, aiming at his heart.

Kakuzu immediately shifted his stance, turning his body to the side before swinging his elbow with violent force, aiming to slam Uchiha Ci's face.

The movement was so fast that Uchiha Ci couldn't even see it clearly, only feeling a chill run down his neck as alarms rang in his mind.

[Talent: Battle Instinct (Beginner, S) activated.]

Instinctively, his body ducked down, avoiding the brutal elbow strike.

This action left Kakuzu momentarily surprised.

Even though he wasn't particularly skilled in taijutsu, his seventy-plus years of combat experience and the enhanced physical attributes from Earth Grudge Fear made his movements far beyond what a one-tomoe Sharingan could track.

Seizing the brief opening, Uchiha Ci immediately slashed his kunai at Kakuzu's left ankle while simultaneously launching a sidekick from the Cloud-Style Cross technique, aiming to strike Kakuzu's good leg.

Kakuzu's eyes narrowed.

The stitches on his left foot loosened, releasing seven or eight Earth Grudge Fear threads that wrapped around Uchiha Ci's kunai. Then, with a scorpion-like tail movement, his right leg swung upwards, kicking fiercely towards Uchiha Ci's face.

Once again, Uchiha Ci's body reacted on instinct, raising his arms to block the incoming kick.

At the same time, he gripped the kunai tightly, trying to cut the thin Earth Grudge Fear threads wrapped around it.

Despite his efforts, he was kicked into the air.

Swish!

The threads were severed at the same time.

"It's over!"

Kakuzu coldly declared as he reached out with a violent push of his palm, grabbing Uchiha Ci by the face and slamming him into the cliffside.

Boom!

The force was so great that rocks shattered, and blood splattered everywhere.

Uchiha Ci's head was spinning, and with the last bit of consciousness, he tightly gripped the kunai, placing it back into his pouch.

Kakuzu grabbed Uchiha Ci, who lay limp against the cliff, his eyes cold as he sneered, "Looks like this is all you've got."

"Who gave you the courage to challenge me alone?"

As he finished speaking, Kakuzu's eyes turned cold again. Holding Uchiha Ci, he delivered a straight punch to the stomach, followed by grabbing his head and smashing it with a knee strike to the face. He then followed up with a spinning kick, slamming his shoulder into the ground, a scorpion tail-like kick to the chest, a spinning elbow to the face, a sweep kick to the face, and a powerful back-kick to the back of the head, ending with a direct stomp to the face.

Each move was ruthless and brutal, using full force against Uchiha Ci!

The final kick sent Uchiha Ci flying like a rag doll, crashing hard into the corner of the barrier, his head covered in blood, and his face no longer resembling anything human.

"Phew..." Kakuzu exhaled.

After that series of attacks, even an iron ball would have been flattened, let alone a human head.

However...

Kakuzu glanced towards the corner, noticing Uchiha Ci lying there motionless. His brow furrowed slightly.

"The barrier hasn't opened yet, so he's still alive?"

Outside the barrier.

Through the translucent boundary, Terumi Mei and Hidan could only watch as Uchiha Ci charged in recklessly, throwing his life away.

In less than a minute, he was sent flying back after receiving Kakuzu's merciless combo.

It was pitiful.

In just under a minute, the once-handsome young man was now reduced to something more akin to a pile of smashed tofu.

Terumi Mei:

Hidan: ...

Both of them fell silent simultaneously.

They were thinking the same thing: after all that fierce action, you couldn't even manage to leave a scratch on him, and you got sent flying back. What was the point?

However, just at that moment…

The seemingly defeated Uchiha Ci suddenly moved a finger, slowly gripping the barrier and the cliff as he climbed to his feet.

His swollen and bloodied head began to rapidly heal and recover.

In no time at all, not a single trace of his injuries remained.

This miraculous recovery was thanks to a technique Uchiha Ci had just learned from Shinno—

Forbidden Technique · Body Revival.

By consuming life force and stamina, this technique allows for rapid recovery from injuries. In the future, Orochimaru would even use this as a foundation to develop his miraculous Reanimation Technique.

Uchiha Ci stood tall once more, his body covered in blood, looking gruesome and terrifying. However, his energy and spirit had not diminished at all.

Not only did he feel no shame from being beaten down, but he was actually laughing heartily, gasping for breath as he grinned.

"Hahaha, I knew it!"

Saying this, Uchiha Ci pulled out the kunai from his tool pouch, untangling the Earth Grudge Fear threads wrapped around it and pulling them taut between his fingers.

"This flexibility is similar to ninja wire, and once it's disconnected from Kakuzu's body, he can't control it anymore."

"I can totally use this as a ninja tool!"

Terumi Mei and Hidan were dumbfounded. Watching Uchiha Ci's gleeful expression, they felt a bit of discomfort.

"Are you crazy? You charged in just to get beaten up, all to figure out something this ridiculous?" Terumi Mei snapped, glaring at Uchiha Ci with frustration.

She slammed her hand against the barrier, yelling, "Hurry up and open the barrier! Let me in!"

"If this keeps up, you're going to die!"

"Hm?" Uchiha Ci heard her voice and turned his head sharply, noticing Terumi Mei and Hidan still in place. He couldn't help but feel exasperated.

"Why are you two still here?"

"Didn't I tell you to run?"

Upon hearing this, not just Terumi Mei but even Hidan's face was filled with anger.

"Stop acting like a hero! If we leave, we go together!"

".…" Uchiha Ci, for once, fell silent, unsure of how to respond to that.

After a brief pause, he chose to ignore the comment, changing the subject as he solemnly said to them, "This is no trivial matter. This kind of information is crucial to me!"

Turning to Terumi Mei, he asked, "Since you're still here, can I ask you something about the hand signs for Water Fang Bullet?"

Terumi Mei frowned slightly.

Water Fang Bullet was a secret technique of the Terumi Clan. Even the Sixth Mizukage, Chojuro, had used it in his battle against Kinshiki Otsutsuki. It was a powerful technique, able to parry Kinshiki's Six Paths Tool, his fishing rod, and had high versatility with low chakra consumption.

She hesitated briefly, but after a moment, she responded.

"It's Hare-Ram-Snake. What are you planning to do?"

Uchiha Ci nodded. A one-tomoe Sharingan could see the chakra flow in the human body, but only vaguely. It wasn't enough to fully copy a technique.

However, knowing the hand signs, combined with his recorded observations of chakra flow, significantly increased his chances of replicating the jutsu.

He had already tested his chakra nature: Water and Fire, which met the requirements for casting the technique.

"You'll see soon enough," Uchiha Ci said without explaining further, turning around and forming hand signs with the kunai in his grasp.

Hare-Ram-Snake.

After just two attempts, he successfully formed a spinning Water Fang Blade, about two and a half feet long, around the weapon.

Just moments ago, Uchiha Ci had keenly observed this technique in Terumi Mei's hands. It had severed Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear tendrils.

And in the brief clash earlier, he had already confirmed—

Even with the Sharingan and his innate battle instinct, Uchiha Ci wasn't a match for Kakuzu's seventy years of combat experience in pure taijutsu.

If he continued fighting head-on, he would surely lose!

But,

In the world of shinobi,

Ninjutsu exists to create miracles!

With a wide range of ninjutsu, forbidden techniques, and an unmatched level of mastery in shuriken techniques, Uchiha Ci was confident.

He believed that a miracle would soon be born at his hands!

The first step?

Borrowing some ninja tools from Kakuzu!