Chapter 473: Things Aren’t What They Used to Be

Chapter 473: Chapter 473: Things Aren’t What They Used to Be

Boom...

Just as the Box of Ultimate Bliss plummeted from the sky, the fusion summon in the air also let out a mournful cry before crashing down, smashing half of a large building to rubble.

Hiruko frowned and shifted his gaze toward Kagami, who stood silently atop the Box of Ultimate Bliss.

Although Kagami had just gone through a fierce battle with Satori, there wasn’t the slightest trace of disarray about him. Not even a speck of dust could be seen on the Kamigami’s standard black cloak with gold trim.

Hiruko’s gaze settled on the mask covering Kagami’s face, the pattern of a raging gale emblazoned across it. He sneered. "You didn’t run? You people from the Kamigami really are inexplicably confident!"

Kagami said nothing, his gaze ice-cold.

In the original timeline, Hiruko had failed to properly complete the Kekkei Genkai Fusion Ritual, barely managing to fuse four Kekkei Genkai, yet even then, he had been powerful enough to completely overwhelm Kakashi’s Team Seven.

Even someone like Kakashi, a candidate for Hokage, couldn’t last more than a few exchanges against him.

In the end, if Hiruko hadn’t stubbornly insisted on using Dark Release to absorb Naruto’s Wind Style: Rasenshuriken, and then failed to dodge in time afterward due to his lack of experience, there was no way he would have lost.

Even back then, he had already been a genuine Kage-level powerhouse.

But in this timeline, Hiruko had received the support of the Akatsuki and successfully completed the Kekkei Genkai Fusion Ritual. Setting aside the hidden dangers posed by the Chimera Bud, he could practically be said to have perfectly fused five Kekkei Genkai, including the Sharingan.

His strength was on an entirely different level from his counterpart in the original timeline.

In terms of his body’s raw capabilities alone, Hiruko now possessed a genuine super-Kage-level configuration.

His only weakness was one common among researchers—a lack of combat experience.

But with one brutal battle after another, Hiruko was rapidly making up for that weakness. In particular, during his last grueling battle against the Fourth Raikage, he had even managed to suppress the Fourth Raikage, the strongest taijutsu fighter among the Five Kage!

Having gone through a similar process himself, Kagami understood this better than anyone.

As Hiruko accumulated more combat experience and became increasingly proficient in using his various Kekkei Genkai, his battle instincts and tactical judgment had already reached the point where he could fully bring out the monstrous capabilities of his body.

In other words, Hiruko was no longer the man he used to be.

Anyone who still judged him by the standards of the past would end up just like Tsunade and Jiraiya, who were currently lying wounded on the ground.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Amid a series of rushing sounds, figure after figure arrived on the battlefield.

They were Konoha’s reinforcements.

Among them were ANBU directly under the Hokage as well as ordinary Konoha shinobi. Quite a few were familiar faces to Kagami, including Kakashi, who was leading the Special Tactics Squad, and Kagami’s own ANBU Team Seven.

This was different from when Satori had first attacked the village.

Through Jiraiya’s earlier probing, the Third Hokage had learned about Satori’s unique abilities and understood that superior numbers were useless against a monster like it. Because of that, he hadn’t dispatched too many reinforcements to the battlefield.

But the situation now was completely different.

The Konoha shinobi stationed throughout the various sectors of the village had all sprung into action, launching a full-scale counterattack against the Akatsuki members who had invaded the village!

Glancing at the Konoha shinobi rushing in as reinforcements, Kagami frowned slightly.

The enemy before them was Hiruko.

And not just Hiruko, but a Hiruko who could skillfully wield the Sharingan.

Ordinary shinobi were essentially meaningless against an opponent like him. At the very least, it would take an elite jonin-level fighter to pose any genuine threat to him.

"Lady Tsunade!"

"Lord Jiraiya!"

Upon discovering Tsunade and Jiraiya lying wounded on the ground, an uproar immediately broke out among the Konoha shinobi who had arrived as reinforcements.

Clearly, none of them had expected that two of the legendary Three Sannin of Konoha would be brought down by a member of the Akatsuki.

Soon, with the support of several Konoha shinobi, Tsunade and Jiraiya managed to get back on their feet.

Tsunade’s injuries should have been worse than Jiraiya’s, yet strangely enough, she was actually in better condition at the moment—as though she hadn’t been the one whose chest had been pierced straight through just moments ago.

Jiraiya, on the other hand, looked completely exhausted. Due to his excessive chakra consumption, he had already dropped out of Sage Mode, while the two Great Toad Sages beside him were also panting lightly.

Despite being presented with such a perfect opportunity to attack, Hiruko made no move to take advantage of it.

Instead, he watched everything unfold with great interest, seemingly enjoying himself immensely.

At that moment, Kurenai’s figure flashed as she landed beside the Box of Ultimate Bliss. Keeping a wary eye on Hiruko, who was dressed in the Akatsuki’s red-cloud cloak, she asked Kagami in an unusually familiar tone, "What’s the situation right now?"

"Since when were we this close?"

After grumbling inwardly, Kagami replied, "You came at just the right time. I’ll leave this box to you."

Kakashi also arrived beside the Box of Ultimate Bliss. After giving it a quick glance, he asked, "So this is Kusagakure’s Box of Ultimate Bliss?"

Kagami nodded lightly.

He had no interest whatsoever in the Box of Ultimate Bliss. The thing was nothing but an ominous object. Rather than allowing it to fall into the Akatsuki’s hands, he might as well simply toss it over to the village for safekeeping.

Seeing that the Kamigami had no intention of claiming the Box of Ultimate Bliss for themselves, Kakashi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He then waved to the companions behind him.

Several Konoha shinobi quickly approached the box and attempted to move it away.

Hiruko, who had remained motionless all this time, suddenly began walking toward the Box of Ultimate Bliss.

"Who gave you permission to take the Box of Ultimate Bliss away?"

Kurenai tightened her grip on her kunai and was about to step forward when Kagami stopped her.

"You’re no match for him."

Kurenai asked in confusion, "There are so many of us here. Are we really supposed to be afraid of just one man?"

Whoosh—

Before Kurenai had even finished speaking, Hiruko flashed directly in front of her, thrusting one hand toward her chest!

"What...!?"

Kurenai watched as Hiruko’s arm, blackened and reinforced by Steel Release, rapidly closed in on her.

The look of shock had only just begun to spread across her face when a terrible realization flashed through her mind.

Yet her body couldn’t react at all.

Bang!

Just as Hiruko’s hand was about to pierce through Kurenai’s chest, Kagami suddenly struck him from the side with a kick, sending him flying!

Hiruko quickly climbed back to his feet and glared furiously at Kagami.

"You’re courting death!"

That kick had been nothing to him.

With his body reinforced by Steel Release, ordinary physical attacks couldn’t injure him in the slightest.

But the kick still infuriated him immensely.

It felt as though Kagami had slapped him across the face in front of everyone.

Only then did Kagami turn toward Kurenai, who had just taken a trip to the gates of death and was now breathing rapidly.

"Stand down. I’m the only one here who can deal with him."

"...Mm."

Now fully aware of just how terrifying Hiruko was, Kurenai felt both embarrassed and irritated. She quietly acknowledged Kagami’s words before reluctantly retreating.

Standing nearby, Kakashi suddenly found himself feeling inexplicably awkward.

He couldn’t decide whether he should stay and help this Kamigami member fight Hiruko...

...or quietly retreat together with Kurenai.

However, Hiruko didn’t leave Kakashi stuck in that awkward dilemma for long.

With a vicious expression, he snarled, "Magnet Release is useless against me. Just watch how I tear your limbs off one by one!"

With that, Hiruko’s figure blurred into an afterimage as he lunged straight at Kagami...