Chapter 309: Evenly Matched

Kaede locked onto Fu’s wrist.

Using the momentum of their descent, he twisted his waist and slammed Fu toward the ground.

Fu adjusted his posture in midair and landed firmly on both feet.

Kaede followed immediately.

Less than five meters separated them.

Their eyes met.

No hand seals.

No probing exchange.

No unnecessary words.

The roars of Tailed Beasts and shouts of the allied forces seemed to disappear behind an invisible wall.

The next instant, both moved.

Their speed exceeded what ordinary shinobi could follow with the naked eye.

Only two blurred afterimages could be seen repeatedly colliding.

Fists and knees crashed together.

The dull impacts of taijutsu became a continuous rhythm across the clearing, every collision releasing a visible ring of air.

A black rod slid soundlessly from Fu’s sleeve.

His wrist flicked.

The rod stabbed toward Kaede’s throat from a vicious angle.

Kaede tilted his head aside.

It passed close enough to stir the air against his neck.

Kaede immediately countered with a knife-hand aimed directly at Fu’s throat.

Fu turned aside as well.

They remained locked at close range.

The longer they fought, the stronger Kaede’s doubts became.

He changed between more than a dozen taijutsu patterns.

From Konoha’s direct, powerful style to vicious killing movements he had developed on the battlefield.

Fu dealt with every one of them.

It didn’t feel like simple reflexes.

It felt like prediction.

The enemy knew Kaede’s habits when applying force.

He knew the blind spots of Kaede’s attacks.

He even seemed familiar with Kaede’s breathing rhythm.

’Those movements...’

Unease formed in Kaede’s mind.

He launched a high sweeping kick.

Fu raised an arm and blocked.

The recoil forced both of them to slide half a step backward.

Fu immediately threw another black rod.

While Kaede evaded it, Fu closed in and drove a vicious knee toward Kaede’s ribs.

Kaede dropped his left arm and blocked the strike head-on.

A deep ache ran through his forearm.

Then a thought flashed through his mind.

This combination was far too familiar.

A probing first attack.

A thrown weapon to restrict movement.

Then the real killing blow after closing distance.

"When attacking from the front, use your tools."

"The projectile is only a feint. The real attack comes after you close in."

While Kaede was remembering, Fu suddenly stopped attacking.

He leaped backward more than ten meters and deliberately opened the distance.

Kaede was about to chase and force out the man’s identity when a violent rush of air came from above.

Something like a meteor was falling.

A golden figure descended from the sky and crashed into the exact place Fu had been standing.

The ground collapsed violently.

Broken stones shot outward like bullets.

Kaede raised an arm to block the debris.

As the smoke slowly cleared, Tsunade straightened.

Her pale-gold hair moved in the night wind.

Kaede stared at her in surprise.

"Why did you come to the front line?"

Tsunade brushed dust from her clothing as though it were nothing.

"The wounded in the rear are handled. I’m more useful here than standing around there."

She turned and gave Kaede a dissatisfied glance.

"When you were fighting seven Tailed Beasts by yourself, why didn’t you stop and ask me what I thought?"

Kaede had no answer.

He understood that she was worried about him, even if Tsunade expressed concern in her usual forceful way.

Fu didn’t continue attacking.

His gaze had frozen on Tsunade’s face.

His entire body seemed paralyzed.

Tsunade noticed the unusual attention and turned toward the masked enemy.

Fu immediately looked away and focused on Kaede again.

"Is this the mastermind?" Tsunade asked.

Kaede shook his head.

"No. The real one still hasn’t shown himself."

"Doesn’t matter whether he is or not."

Tsunade raised one brow and clenched her fist.

"We beat him down first."

The moment she finished, she launched forward.

Her speed was astonishing.

Kaede tried to stop her, but it was already too late.

"His taijutsu is strange. Be careful—"

Tsunade had already reached Fu.

Her monstrous-strength punch tore through the air toward him.

Even Kaede could clearly feel the pressure of the fist wind.

Fu didn’t try to block.

He raised his right hand.

Invisible repulsive force exploded around him.

Tsunade’s attack stalled for an instant in midair.

Kaede sighed and immediately followed.

He supported Tsunade briefly in the air and helped stabilize her.

The two began attacking Fu from front and rear.

...

Atop the high wooden wall behind the battlefield, Pakura had helped Mei reach the highest point.

Mei leaned against the battlement and searched the chaotic battlefield.

It didn’t take long for her to find the familiar figure.

Kaede.

He was fighting together with Tsunade.

Tsunade attacked head-on with broad, forceful movements.

Kaede covered the blind spots and waited for openings.

Their coordination was seamless.

Mei watched.

The energy she had been forcing herself to maintain slowly deflated like a punctured balloon.

She spoke quietly.

"If I hadn’t been injured... I should be the one standing beside him now."

Bitterness rose in her chest.

She had risked her life blocking the Tailed Beast Bomb because she wanted to prove herself.

Now she could only stand here and watch another woman fight beside him.

Pakura followed Mei’s gaze.

A long time passed before she spoke.

"Stop thinking nonsense."

"When he arrived in the western sector and saw you covered in blood..."

"For a moment, I thought he wanted to kill everyone in the world."

Mei froze.

She turned toward Pakura as though checking whether the statement was true.

Pakura met her eyes seriously.

"He’s normally so calm, but even his voice changed then."

After hearing that, light slowly returned to Mei’s dim eyes.

A faint smile appeared on her pale lips.

The disappointment and grievance in her chest vanished instantly.

At that moment, a deafening explosion came from below.

A huge column of fire rose into the sky.

The smiles on Mei and Pakura’s faces disappeared.

Both turned toward the area hidden by smoke.