As Shigeo Aburame spoke, Kakuzu and Hidan's expressions instantly changed.
The difference was that Kakuzu showed wariness, while Hidan's face was filled with anger.
However, before either of them could respond, Fu interjected from the side.
"Hey, mister, were you once a ninja from the Hidden Waterfall Village?"
She pointed at Kakuzu as she spoke.
"Oh, I get it now! You're Kakuzu, the guy who failed to assassinate the Hokage, stole the hearts of the higher-ups using Earth Grudge Fear, and fled the village, right?"
Hearing this, the two guards standing in front of her were visibly shocked.
"Kakuzu?"
"How old must he be then?"
In contrast to their shock, Fu's expression was one of delight.
"I've always wanted to meet Kakuzu-senpai and become friends with you!"
"..."
At her words, everyone present wore helpless expressions.
Does she have no sense of the situation?
Even Hidan, whose anger had flared from Shigeo's earlier comment, couldn't help but glance at Kakuzu.
"Hey, Kakuzu, is this chick an idiot?"
"I'm not sure. I left the village a long time ago," Kakuzu replied earnestly.
Before he could finish speaking, Fu walked right up to him and extended her hand.
"Let's start by being tea-drinking buddies, okay? Please?"
Kakuzu, however, did not shake her hand. Instead, he spoke in a tone laced with murderous intent.
"I'm not here to make friends today."
Hearing this, Fu's previously enthusiastic demeanor turned icy.
"Well, that's a shame!"
With that, she leaped into the air.
As she jumped, a pair of wings sprouted from her waist, carrying her into the sky.
"Secret Technique: Scale Powder Cloak!"
She opened her mouth and exhaled a cloud of glittering dust, blanketing Kakuzu, Hidan, and Shigeo below.
The scale powder obstructed vision, and if inhaled, it would paralyze the body, rendering the target immobile.
However, against these three, such an attack was ineffective.
Both Kakuzu and Shigeo used Body Flicker Techniques to escape the powder's range, while Hidan stood motionless, unfazed.
As a worshipper of the Jashin religion, Hidan possessed an immortal body. Even if his organs were destroyed, their functionality would remain.
Not to mention scale powder—lightning strikes or blazing fires wouldn't inflict lasting harm on him. In fact, they might only excite him further.
"Hahaha! I'll offer you to Lord Jashin!"
Hidan laughed maniacally as he pulled out the Bloody Triple-Bladed Scythe strapped to his back and swung it fiercely at Fu, who was hovering in midair.
*Whoosh!*
The scythe streaked through the air, hurtling toward Fu's neck with incredible speed.
Noticing this, Fu flapped her wings, propelling herself higher in an instant.
She thought she'd evaded Hidan's attack, but to her surprise, Hidan let go of the scythe entirely!
"Ha!"
With a shout, Hidan yanked the rope attached to the scythe, redirecting it toward Fu in the air.
*Slash!*
Although Fu dodged as best she could, the scythe still grazed her, tearing her clothes and leaving a shallow wound on the outside of her thigh.
Hidan didn't pursue further. He retracted the scythe, licked the blood off its blade with his tongue, and grinned.
Seeing this, Shigeo narrowed his eyes slightly.
"It's over."
He knew Hidan's abilities well. Beyond immortality, Hidan had a curse technique.
Once he obtained an opponent's blood, he could harm or kill them through a ritual of self-mutilation.
For those unaware of his methods, having their blood taken typically marked the end of the fight.
"The ritual begins!"
Just as Shigeo anticipated, after acquiring Fu's blood, Hidan used it to draw a circular symbol with a triangle inside on the ground.
His expression grew increasingly manic.
"Ahahahaha!"
Laughing wildly, he took out a sharp black spear and stabbed it into his abdomen.
*Squelch!*
As the blade pierced his flesh, Fu let out a cry of agony and plummeted from the sky.
"Fu!"
The two guards from the Hidden Waterfall Village cried out in alarm and rushed toward her.
Before they could reach her, Kakuzu blocked their path. Without hesitation, he punched through their hearts with both fists.
To Kakuzu, who had lived for over a century, emotions were long lost, replaced only by greed for money.
After killing the guards, he turned to Shigeo.
"Shigeo, do you really think you can win in a two-on-one fight?"
"Let's find out."
Shigeo smiled as he removed his gloves and threw a punch at Kakuzu.
*Boom!*
Kakuzu caught his fist with a hand, his expression darkening.
"Do you think pure taijutsu can defeat me? Have you grown this arrogant after leaving the village, Shigeo?"
He reached out with his other hand and grabbed Shigeo's throat.
"A shadow clone?"
Kakuzu frowned, scanning the area for Shigeo's real body.
But no matter how he looked, he found nothing.
The "clone" he held suddenly spoke.
"No need to search, you fool. For someone like you, I don't need shadow clones. Look at your hands."
"Huh?"
Kakuzu looked down at his hands, only to find them turning dark purple.
"What?!"
Alarmed, he released Shigeo and retreated, severing his arms using Earth Grudge Fear.
But Shigeo only chuckled.
"Too late. While you were searching for me, my venomous insects infiltrated your body. No matter how many hearts you have, it's over for you, Kakuzu."
Kakuzu collapsed with a thud, his face entirely purple, and died without even a final word.
"Kakuzu!"
Enraged, Hidan turned his attention to Shigeo and hurled his scythe at him.
*Whoosh!*
As the scythe tore through the air, Shigeo evaded while releasing a miniature Tailed Beast Bomb from his mouth.
*Boom!*
The bomb exploded at Hidan's position, leaving a large crater.
Hidan lay at the edge of the crater, visibly shaken.
"What a terrifying attack. If I hadn't dodged in time, I'd be in pieces."
Still, he shouted at Shigeo.
"Hey! Aren't you here to save that girl? If you hit me like that, she'd die too!"
"Heh. Well, I didn't hit her, did I?"
Shigeo adjusted his sunglasses with a smirk.
"Besides, don't get me wrong. I never said I was here to save her. She's just like you—a prey to hunt!"
"..."
*(End of Chapter)*