Naruto: Kurotsuchi Mayuri

"Blade of Wind!"

Baki appeared above the puppet One-Tail in a flash. In his hand, violent wind was compressed to its limit, and he slashed it downward at the puppet's head.

The condensed wind, under Baki's control, formed a crescent-shaped blade of invisible air in mid-air.

The puppet One-Tail reacted swiftly, raising its arm like a shield to block. But the wind blade sliced straight through, cutting the arm clean in half.

ROAR!

Purple energy flowed down like blood. Shukaku roared with its mouth wide open. 

The massive sound wave, carried by a violent gust of wind, blasted Baki back through the air just as he was about to launch another attack.

Using the wind's force, Baki managed to land, sliding back across the ground until he stopped beside Kagetsu. He couldn't help but cough twice, blood trickling from the corner of his lips.

Taking that sound blast at such close range nearly left Baki paralyzed on the spot—or worse, unconscious.

But after regaining his footing, Baki immediately looked toward Shukaku, checking the result of his attack.

"What... how is this possible?"

Baki's eyes widened in shock. He saw the puppet version of Shukaku healing rapidly under the influence of the Ryūmyaku vein's power.

Or rather—it was material regeneration.

"Ordinary attacks are useless against it. As long as the Ryūmyaku vein remains intact, and it stays merged with that power, it's basically immortal.

To kill it, we'd have to destroy the Ryūmyaku vein first. But if we destroy the Ryūmyaku vein…"

Kagetsu didn't finish the sentence, but Baki already understood the consequence. 

The Ryūmyaku vein was an endless source of chakra. Destroying it would bring unimaginable disaster to the ninja world and the land itself.

"As expected of you! You saw the connection between this puppet and the Ryūmyaku vein in an instant. That's right—here, I am invincible!

On my own turf, your only fate… is to become part of my collection!"

The sharp, manic voice of Mukade shouted from Shukaku's mouth. His voice was higher now, filled with a smug excitement.

He was clearly thrilled that his creation was giving Kagetsu such a hard time.

"Hey… is there anything we should do?"

Yamato also arrived beside Kagetsu. 

The situation looked like it had reached its worst point. If they couldn't work together to defeat Mukade, not only would their mission fail, but they might also lose their lives in this world.

As the leader of Team 7, Yamato was determined to send Naruto and Sakura back no matter what.

"My Wood Release might have some effect on the Ryūmyaku vein's power?"

Yamato wanted to try if the Ryūmyaku vein's power could be influenced by Wood Release, just like the chakra of the Tailed Beasts. If it worked, they might still have a chance to win.

"You can give it a try."

Kagetsu didn't stop Yamato's suggestion. Although the situation seemed dire, it was still within his abilities to handle.

Since that was the case, and since Yamato had suggested it, Kagetsu wanted to gather more data, such as whether Wood Release could suppress or affect the Ryūmyaku vein's power.

"Help me hold it down!" Yamato said while making hand seals.

However, he didn't put all his hopes on Kagetsu and Baki. He was the first to use Wood Release ninjutsu, sealing the puppet One-Tail inside a cage made of wooden pillars.

Kagetsu and Baki also joined in, using restraint ninjutsu.

Black shadows and flowing sand poured into the wooden cage, forcing the puppet One-Tail to resist with all its might.

The sand continuously swallowed the puppet One-Tail's form, while the black shadows acted like ropes, binding its limbs along with the Wood Release.

"Hokage Style Elder Jutsu: Tenth Edict On Enlightenment!"

Yamato quickly approached the puppet One-Tail, and as he got close, he opened his right hand, revealing a symbol on his palm. 

Then, in a flash, he pressed his palm against the One-Tail's body and quickly jumped back.

A purple chakra line was pulled from the puppet One-Tail.

"It's useless! Your struggles are meaningless!"

The puppet One-Tail grabbed the chakra line between itself and Yamato. 

The technique was supposed to make the Tailed Beast fall asleep, silencing its power, and allowing the Jinchuriki to regain consciousness.

However, in this situation, it was clear that Yamato's technique didn't work as expected. At least, the Ryūmyaku vein's power didn't subside at all, nor did it even show any sign of easing.

Similarly, the Wood Release binding doesn't have as much of an effect on the Puppet One-Tail as it does on the Tailed Beasts.

This left Kagetsu somewhat disappointed. Perhaps he shouldn't have expected much from Yamato's Wood Release techniques after all.

Fire Style: Super Ryūmyaku vein Fireball Jutsu!

Any ninjutsu enhanced by the power of the Ryūmyaku vein will increase in strength to a whole new level. 

It's similar to ninjutsu infused with natural energy—both the quality and destructive power are extremely dangerous.

For example, Yamato had almost used up a quarter of his chakra just to barely block the Ryūmyaku vein Fireball Jutsu earlier.

Among Jonin, his chakra reserves are also among the top ranks.

Now, seeing the even larger and more dangerous super purple fireball that occupied his entire field of vision, he felt a sense of helplessness.

Two thick stone walls, from top to bottom, acted like closing gates, blocking the giant fireball on the other side.

But in an instant, the heavy stone walls were eroded and blasted apart, creating a large gap. The Puppet One-Tail was already preparing its next wave of attack.

For something with endless energy like it, such powerful ninjutsu can be used continuously without pause, until this space can no longer handle it.

If it wasn't for the faint clarity of thought, knowing not to completely destroy this underground space, the Puppet One-Tail's techniques could be even stronger.

However, in the next moment, the Puppet One-Tail's gaze lowered, and it saw Kagetsu, emerging from the shadows, driving a blade disproportionately large for his size into its body.

Mukadee had the Puppet One-Tail raise its paw high, preparing to strike down at Kagetsu. But at that moment, it realized that its control over the Puppet One-Tail had suddenly been severed.

No, it should be said that the connection between the Puppet One-Tail and the Ryūmyaku vein beneath it had been cut off by some force, even blocked!

The energy nodes on the Puppet One-Tail's body dimmed one by one, and even its stitched-together form seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

"What did you do? How could you possibly sever my connection with the Ryūmyaku vein! Only the royal family of Roran can possess such power!"

Inside the puppet One-Tail, Mukade couldn't accept what was happening. 

He frantically tried to call upon the power of the Roran queen, attempting to restore the Ryūmyaku vein's power into the puppet's body, but there was always an insurmountable barrier between them.

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