Chapter 36: Instant Kill!

This was a puppeteer who controlled two puppets simultaneously—one lunging from the side, the other guarding the puppeteer, constantly firing dark weapons glowing with a deep blue light.

Behind Fujinaka Genma, Ebisu and Guy both charged toward the side puppet.

Fujinaka Genma held a short Raikō blade in one hand and a kunai in the other; continuous clinking sounds rang out as the weapons were dodged, deflected, or severed.

He did not detour—he charged straight ahead.

Yet the puppeteer kept repositioning, preventing him from closing in.

But the situation did not stall.

Suddenly, Fujinaka Genma threw his kunai like a white lightning bolt slicing through darkness.

Ding!

Bang!

Two sounds followed in quick succession.

The first was Fujinaka Genma’s kunai severing the iron chain launched by the puppet.

The second was the kunai, infused with high-frequency Raikō, piercing straight through the puppet, then grazing the puppeteer’s shoulder, leaving behind the scent of burnt flesh.

In the instant after throwing the kunai, Fujinaka Genma swiftly formed seals with his left hand alone.

Multiple Senbon Shadow Clone Technique!

The senbon between his lips, wrapped in high-frequency Raikō, glowed like a shimmer of white light as they shot out in a torrent, then instantly split into hundreds of shadow clones under the technique’s power—dense and countless, resembling a burst of white laser beams.

Puff… puff… puff…

A series of puncture sounds rang out; each senbon pierced the puppet, turning it into a sieve.

The puppeteer behind, still wounded by the Raikō-infused kunai and unable to dodge or use a substitution technique due to the senbon’s speed and overwhelming range, was completely pierced through by the dense hail of senbon, leaving countless tiny, charred needle holes across his body.

With the puppeteer dead, Ebisu and Guy, who had been struggling against the puppet’s endless hidden techniques, were instantly relieved.

“Watch out—I’m coming to help!”

Fujinaka Genma scanned the battlefield and immediately turned to attack another Sand ninja.

This Sand ninja had already killed a Leaf ninja—one of Asuma and Kurenai’s teammates.

Now, five genin had joined forces, yet one was dead and two were lightly wounded.

Asuma and the others were barely holding on!

The gap between jōnin and genin was starkly evident at this moment.

But Fujinaka Genma had eliminated his opponent too quickly—the Sand jōnin, seeing him charge forward, only then realized his comrade had already been killed.

An elite puppeteer… taken down by three kids?

The Sand jōnin was stunned, then immediately realized:

This kid was no ordinary opponent.

Abandoning Asuma and the others, the Sand jōnin raised his blade and charged straight at Fujinaka Genma.

Both moved at incredible speed; when still several meters apart, they activated the Body Flicker Technique simultaneously.

White lightning crackled around Fujinaka Genma’s body, gathering in his left hand—the sound of Chidori howled through the forest.

Clang!

The two figures crossed paths in midair.

Fujinaka Genma landed on a tree branch; on the other side, the Sand jōnin knelt on one knee.

He stared in disbelief at his broken blade, then a thin red line appeared on his neck—his head rolled off his shoulders.

Fujinaka Genma’s blade had severed his sword, and while the Sand jōnin focused entirely on the Raikō technique in Fujinaka Genma’s left hand, a second blade had cleanly cut his throat.

Correct.

Fujinaka Genma’s Chidori in his left hand was merely a feint.

The Sand jōnin, sensing grave danger upon seeing the technique, had been hyper-cautious during combat.

He hadn’t expected…

Nearby, Asuma, Kurenai, and the others stared wide-eyed.

They looked from the decapitated Sand ninja to Fujinaka Genma on the branch, his body still crackling with white lightning, resembling Lei Shen.

“One move…”

Asuma swallowed hard.

“This guy’s getting more insane!”

Shichirō Aoba muttered under his breath, equally stunned.

Over the past two years, Fujinaka Genma’s reputation had grown immensely due to his reckless mission completions, causing his original genius reputation to be overlooked.

Aside from those who knew him well, few understood his true strength.

Shichirō Aoba’s impression of Fujinaka Genma still dated back two years.

As for Kurenai and the injured Mizuki and others, they were utterly stunned.

They had personally tested the Sand ninja’s strength—now he’d been obliterated in one move.

Ebisu and Guy showed no surprise—they were already used to it.

But Fujinaka Genma had no time to care about others’ shock—the battle wasn’t over.

Two more Sand ninja remained.

Yet they had noticed what happened here; stunned and panicked, they were now being suppressed by two Leaf jōnin.

So—

The sound of Chidori roared again; in the moon-dappled darkness of the forest, white flashes flickered.

“Fall back—I’ll cover—”

The shout cut off abruptly as a headless corpse dropped to the ground.

Boom!

The last Sand ninja unleashed a large-scale Wind Release technique, trying to create an opening to retreat.

Two earthen walls rose from the ground, blocking the storm.

As the Sand ninja prepared to flee, his feet tightened.

Earth Release—Headhunter Technique!

Boom!

The Sand ninja was dragged into the earth, leaving only his head exposed.

This was a technique performed by Asuma’s team leader, Sarutobi the Root’ya, using an Earth Release clone.

The other team leader, Sugi I Taku’ma, appeared instantly and slashed the Sand ninja’s throat with a wet sound.

But the next moment—

The Sand ninja dissolved into a pile of sand.

“Sand Clone!”

Sarutobi the Root’ya’s expression changed.

He hadn’t expected this guy to escape so fast.

Clearly, the Sand ninja had anticipated their subterranean ambush once the Earth Wall obscured his vision.

“Ah!”

Suddenly, a scream rang out.

Sarutobi the Root’ya and Sugi I Taku’ma looked up sharply into the forest’s depths, seeing only a flash of white lightning vanish.

“Incredible speed!”

Both were startled.

And both simultaneously thought of one person.

The White Fang of Konoha!

This fighting style was too similar!

Boom!

Fujinaka Genma appeared, tossing the Sand ninja’s corpse onto the ground with one hand.

Sarutobi the Root’ya and Sugi I Taku’ma both winced.

The strength was astonishing!

At this moment, the medical ninja arrived; Hyūga Mio, seeing Fujinaka Genma return safely, wore a proud and relieved expression, then bowed her head to treat the wounded.

Yet just as the atmosphere relaxed—

Fujinaka Genma, Sarutobi the Root’ya, and Sugi I Taku’ma all tensed, staring into the forest’s depths, where shadowy figures were rapidly approaching.

“Friendly!”

Sarutobi the Root’ya suddenly exhaled, smiling.

Then one figure landed before Fujinaka Genma’s group, followed by three more behind.

Fujinaka Genma saw the leader and his heart gave a sharp jolt.

Orochimaru!

His piercing gaze swept over them, sending a chill down their spines.

“Lord Orochimaru!”

Sarutobi the Root’ya led the salute; Fujinaka Genma followed suit.

Orochimaru had already seen the four corpses; internally surprised, he showed no expression: “So Itachi’ve already dealt with them!”

Sarutobi the Root’ya smiled bitterly: “Thanks to Genma—he took them all down himself!”

"Senior Yanye is too kind!"

Fujinaka Genma quickly waved his hand and said humbly, "Without the cooperation of the two seniors, how could I have taken care of them alone?"

Whoosh.

Orochimaru and the three ninja behind him all turned their gazes toward Fujinaka Genma, their expressions filled with surprise.