Chapter 681 : Backup Plan! (Patreon)

“Hehehe. What crazy bastards!” Fujin exclaimed aloud with blood trickling down his lips. He thought, ‘To think that Darui would resort to such tactics. I didn't expect that. What a grave miscalculation!’

Even though Fujin was in a disadvantageous position, he never expected to get injured. While it could be said that he was arrogant to think so, he had a very good reason for thinking so, which was his cloak. It was so densely covered with seals that even rank A jutsus wouldn't make it through unless he was continuously bombarded.

As long as he stayed quick on his feet, injuring him was extremely difficult. The only ones who could injure him were Darui and Yugito. Darui's Lightning wasn't very difficult to handle but Fujin knew that he couldn't take Yugito lightly. He was completely on guard against her. However, their tactics completely caught him off guard. Had her attack been any stronger, Fujin could have been forced to use the Flying Thunder God to dodge.

Of course, the Kumo ninjas weren't happy either. In spite of their resolve, backstabbing their own comrades didn't feel good. In fact, it was just the opposite as they felt contempt for their own actions and blamed themselves for being weak. What made it worse was the fact that this tactic couldn't finish Fujin off. They could still feel an intense chakra from him.

Needless to say, the ones who had it the worst were the ninjas from the group Fujin targeted. Four of them were still alive. Their faces had become pale in horror seeing their leaders kill their comrades. None of them ever anticipated it and were scared for their own lives.

Yugito began preparing a follow-up attack right after her attack landed on Fujin. She thought, ‘We underestimated his cloak. To think that it'd be so sturdy that it would protect him from my full-power attack! And now he is no longer surrounded by us. I have to get him with this attack.’

She fired a massive ball of fire towards Fujin. Fujin immediately sensed a massive amount of chakra at its center. The vajra-shaped hilt of the Blade of the Thunder Spirit appeared in his right hand as he wondered, ‘Hmm? A disguised Tailed Beast Bomb? No, the chakra is too little. It's more similar to Scorch Release somehow.’

Fujin immediately realized that dodging wouldn't be the best idea if the jutsu could spread like Scorch Release. He shot a Lightning Beam straight through the hilt at the incoming ball of fire. Due to being Lightning, Fujin's jutsu traveled much quicker and they collided right around the halfway point between him and Yugito.

Fujin's Lightning Beam easily ripped through the flames and hit the chakra concentrated at the center. As soon as the Lightning touched the inner core, both jutsus exploded! Fujin's eyes immediately widened while Yugito cursed, “Fuck!”

She immediately retreated and used her chakra to cover her allies. As for Fujin, he directly escaped underground. The reason for such drastic reactions was that an intense heat wave spread in all directions from the explosion. The heat was so intense that Fujin felt that he might lose a layer of his skin even despite the defenses of his cloak!

Every Kumo ninja in the area turned their heads and looked in the direction of the explosion. As soon as they did, they instinctively felt danger. Luckily, the ones who were close by could see Matatabi's form and immediately realized what was happening.

They quickly took defensive measures. Only a few failed to react in time and suffered intense burns as the heat wave reached them. Within a few seconds, a massive forest fire with a radius exceeding 3 kilometers started in the Land of Lightning!

Yugito asked, “Are all of you alright?”
Darui answered, “Thanks to you. What about that guy?”
C answered with a grim expression, “He moved underground to dodge the heat wave but has now escaped. I can sense him heading towards another group.”

The faces of ninjas from Darui's group became ashen. Despite sacrificing three of their capable ninjas, they had failed to take the enemy down. They knew that they couldn't create such an opening again.

One of the Kumo Jounins gathered courage and asked, “What was that, Darui-sama? Why did they kill our comrades?”

Darui didn't know how to answer. He only sighed and muttered, “I'm sorry.”
Jin sighed as well and said, “Don't blame him. That was the only way. If we hadn't shown heartlessness, he would have continued toying with us until all of you were dead. We could only decide to sacrifice a few to save the rest.”

The four Kumo ninjas were still fearful but felt that Jin's words were reasonable. Recalling how ruthlessly Fujin toyed with some of their comrades, they understood that their fate would have been the same if Darui's group hadn't done what they did.

Finally, that Jounin asked, “What now? Will you guys chase after him?”
Darui shook his head and said, “No. Implement the second plan.”

The two Elite Jounins nodded and immediately flickered backwards. Samui asked worriedly, “Are you sure that this plan would work? With his speed, he could easily kill over a hundred of our ninjas.”
Darui replied, “I wasn't too sure earlier. However, after this clash, I'm completely sure.”

Fujin moved towards the next group of Kumo ninjas. Inside his cloak, a green glow surrounded his body as he healed himself while on the move. However, he wasn't moving at his full speed. In fact, he was moving at less than half his normal speed. He turned around and wondered, ‘Why aren't they chasing me?’

Fujin expected the Kumo group to chase after him once again. After all, they had managed to injure him. He was even moving slowly to tempt them into another round of a complex spar. Contrary to his expectations, no one chased after him. It almost felt like they had given up.

Fujin thought, ‘Even though they sacrificed those 3 ninjas, I could see that neither of them liked doing it. So, I don't think they'd let me slaughter everyone else without any obstacles. What are they plotting now? Hmm?’

Fujin noticed two blue signals being fired in the sky. Every Kumo ninja saw it as well. They immediately began running towards the signals. Fujin immediately sensed this change and stopped.

He looked in that direction puzzled and wondered, ‘They are summoning everyone there? But why? If too many people are gathered together, Yugito will be restrained. Not to mention, I could easily kill over a hundred ninjas before they reach that place…’

Fujin couldn't understand Darui's thoughts. No matter how he analyzed it, he could only reach one conclusion. He thought, ‘Do they have a trap set for me there? Is this movement just to lure me there? However, what trap would work against me without the presence of the likes of Ay and Bee here?’

“What do you mean by you're completely sure?” Samui asked in confusion. Others looked at Darui curiously as well.
Darui answered, “It's the way he battled. I have a feeling that he has no interest in killing any of us.”

“WHAT???” Several Kumo ninjas exclaimed loudly in unison. Fujin had cut down Kumo ninjas like crops without a shred of mercy. He also toyed with several of them. Yet, Darui claimed something so absurd.

Darui explained, “The feeling I get from him is how the boss felt about the Fourth Hokage. He just wanted a good fight and compete with him in terms of speed. This guy too is fighting like he's sparring. Since he can't take on all of us at the same time, he resorted to such tactics to restrain us so that he can battle to his heart's content.”

The eyes of other Kumo ninjas widened. They still couldn't believe Darui's words. Yugito muttered, “Why would he seek out such a spar? Hell, didn't he claim that he had no interest in fighting us?”

C immediately recalled all the events up to that point. Shock appeared on his face as he exclaimed, “Do you mean to say that his words are true?”

Darui nodded and answered, “Yes, that's the only explanation. If he is indeed an ancient expert who somehow lived until now and hasn't recovered his real strength, then he is likely treating this battle as a spar to get back in shape. That is why he hasn't used his full speed to eliminate the weaker ones. Otherwise, our death toll would have been much higher.”

As everyone analyzed Darui's words, they felt like his words made more and more sense. Suddenly, C said, “You might be right. He hasn't killed any more of our comrades!”

Fujin became curious about what Kumo was planning. He didn't see much point in killing as much as he could as there wasn't much to gain. He decided, ‘I'll leave them alive for now. Perhaps they might be able to put up a fight the next time. Anyway, let me see what they are planning.’

Every Kumo ninja, including the injured ones, rushed towards the signal sent by the Elite Jounins. Within a couple of minutes, 381 Kumo ninjas gathered at that spot. The only ones who were slightly away were Darui, C, Yugito, Samui and Jin.

To Fujin's surprise, a barrier formed around the 381 Kumo ninjas. Fujin's left eye twitched at that sight as he wondered, ‘Are they tempting me to kill them all?’