Chapter 169: Instant Kill

Seeing Kai so confident, Tsunade still couldn’t help but remind him,

"Mōryō is a demonic entity that came to this world from another realm. It’s incredibly powerful, so be careful."

Kai nodded.

He knew that this so-called "other realm" wasn’t truly another universe. It was simply a being that had originated from another planet within the Naruto universe.

Tsunade offered no further warnings.

She had complete faith in Kai’s strength.

Meanwhile, Konoha’s shinobi departed for strategic outposts across the Land of Fire.

Mōryō’s Immortal Army had already begun attacking military fortresses throughout the Five Great Nations.

If Mōryō wasn’t stopped, the Immortal Army would eventually wipe out all five nations.

Had it not been for the Priestess Miroku’s sacrifice years ago, Mōryō would have already succeeded.

That was also why the Land of Demons had never been drawn into the Great Ninja Wars.

The Priestess resided there, and only her power could seal Mōryō.

After speaking with Tsunade, Kai vanished from the Hokage’s Office.

The next instant, he appeared within the borders of the Land of Demons.

At that very moment, inside the Priestess’s palace...

Assassins sent by Yomi were attacking the Priestess.

Fortunately, they had been intercepted by the shinobi assigned to protect Shion from the Hidden Sand, Hidden Cloud, and Hidden Stone.

The Hidden Sand had dispatched Temari, Gaara’s older sister, along with three Chūnin.

The Hidden Stone had sent Kurotsuchi and three Chūnin.

The Hidden Cloud had assigned Samui and her squad.

After receiving an enormous infusion of chakra, Yomi’s four subordinates had become almost berserk.

Their chakra reserves skyrocketed.

Within moments, each of them had reached the level of an Elite Jōnin.

Originally...

All four had possessed only Chūnin-level strength.

This was one of Yomi’s unique abilities.

He stored chakra inside special living vessels, allowing his followers to absorb it whenever necessary.

After gaining that chakra, all four experienced an explosive increase in power.

Even their ninjutsu became dramatically stronger.

Three of them engaged Temari, Kurotsuchi, and Samui.

The fourth quickly slaughtered all six Chūnin from the Hidden Sand and Hidden Stone.

That was the overwhelming difference between an Elite Jōnin and ordinary Chūnin.

Especially since the six escorts were genuine Chūnin—not exceptional prodigies.

The result was no different from the Land of Waves mission years ago, when Kakashi had effortlessly eliminated two Chūnin.

Against an Elite Jōnin...

Ordinary Chūnin stood virtually no chance.

Although Temari, Kurotsuchi, and Samui were all Jōnin, they were still being pushed back by their empowered opponents.

Defeat seemed only a matter of time.

Meanwhile, after killing the six Chūnin, the fourth assassin charged straight toward Shion.

"Hahaha! Die!"

Seeing the Priestess in danger, Temari tried to break free.

"My Lady Priestess!"

But her opponent refused to let her go.

The same was true for Kurotsuchi and Samui.

They desperately wanted to rescue Shion, yet their enemies kept them pinned down.

The assassin swung several chains toward Shion.

A kunai was attached to the end of each one.

The palace floor was littered with the corpses of the Land of Demons’ soldiers.

Against shinobi, ordinary soldiers had been completely helpless.

Watching the chains hurtle toward her...

Shion slowly closed her eyes.

She quietly accepted her fate.

"So... this is how my painful life ends."

Because of her gift of prophecy, she had always known when those close to her would die.

It was an extraordinary ability.

But it had also brought her endless suffering.

She could foresee the future...

Yet she couldn’t change it.

Crackle!

Suddenly—

A streak of golden lightning flashed before her.

The chains disintegrated into ashes the instant they touched it.

The death she had expected never came.

Shion slowly opened her eyes.

A shinobi wearing a black cloak stood before her.

She couldn’t see his face.

More importantly...

She couldn’t see his future.

It was the first time such a thing had ever happened.

Normally, whenever someone appeared before her, she could immediately glimpse their future.

Yet after this man arrived...

Her prophetic ability produced nothing at all.

For the first time in her life...

Her power had failed.

"Who... is he?"

"Why can’t I see his future?"

The moment Temari recognized the newcomer, she let out a sigh of relief.

"So Konoha sent you..."

The newcomer was, of course...

Kagefumi Kai.

The instant she saw him, every trace of tension left Temari.

She knew exactly how powerful he was.

Samui and Kurotsuchi, however, only recognized the Konoha forehead protector he wore.

Realizing he was Konoha’s reinforcement, they immediately shouted,

"Konoha shinobi!"

"Protect the Priestess!"

"Whatever happens, don’t let her be killed!"

Neither of them knew Kai personally.

They simply assumed he was another capable Jōnin, roughly on par with themselves.

The assassin who had been charging toward Shion immediately redirected his attack toward Kai.

Shion’s eyes never left him.

The man whose future she couldn’t see fascinated her.

Looking at the approaching enemy, Kai thought for a moment.

Since he was acting as a shinobi...

He might as well fight like one.

Crackle!

In an instant, Kai transformed into a streak of golden lightning.

Before anyone could react, he appeared directly in front of the charging assassin.

"Chidori."

Slash!

Golden lightning erupted from Kai’s right hand.

An instant later...

His hand pierced straight through the assassin’s chest.

The golden lightning instantly cauterized the wound.

The assassin’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Even after his chakra had increased so dramatically...

Even after his strength had risen to an entirely new level...

He hadn’t even seen Kai move.

His chest had already been pierced.

Expressionless, Kai withdrew his hand.

Not a single drop of blood stained it.

As soon as his hand left the assassin’s body...

The man collapsed heavily onto the ground.

Kai didn’t even spare him another glance.

Instead, he shifted his gaze toward the other three assassins still fighting Temari’s group.

They, too, had witnessed what had just happened.

All three froze in shock.

"The boss..."

"The boss was actually killed by this guy?!"

"How is that possible?!"

"How can he be this strong?!"

The man Kai had just killed had been the strongest among them.

Yet he had been slain in a single instant.

The terrifying display left all three horrified.

No one understood their leader’s strength better than they did.

Before receiving Yomi’s chakra enhancement, only their leader had possessed Jōnin-level strength.

The other three had merely been Chūnin.

Yet now...

The strongest among them had been killed instantly by this mysterious shinobi.

"What kind of monster is he?"

"He... he killed the boss..."

After killing their leader, Kai calmly turned toward the remaining three assassins.

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