"Heh, it seems Ōnoki is quite confident in his son's strength?" Shinji chuckled at Kitsuchi's words.
"No, I'm prepared to die in this battle." Kitsuchi spoke these words calmly, his expression solemn.
Shinji's gaze turned cold, this guy had come with a resolve to die.
"Neji, go find Yushu and the others."
If his opponent was Kitsuchi, he couldn't keep Neji with him. Being with him was more dangerous than fighting others on the battlefield.
"Yes."
Neji first glanced at Kitsuchi, then retreated, leaving.
Neji, leaving, clenched his fists tightly.
'I must become stronger, much stronger, so I won't be a burden anymore.' At this moment, he had only this thought.
Seeing Neji leave, Shinji finally breathed a slight sigh of relief. He looked at Kitsuchi, who hadn't made a move since just now.
"May I ask, why did Ōnoki start this war?"
Shinji's words made Kitsuchi frown slightly, then he seemed to let it go.
"Do you think it's necessary to talk about that now?"
Boom—
Earth Release: Rock Fist!
Kitsuchi stomped the ground, his right hand instantly transforming into a hard rock fist, smashing towards Shinji. The ground immediately cracked and spread like a spiderweb.
Shinji, however, had already leaped back to dodge the moment Kitsuchi's punch fell. The spot where he had stood was pulverized.
"Don't think you can escape."
Kitsuchi clapped his hands on the ground, activating Earth Release: Rock Collapse.
The rock layers within a hundred meters in front of him instantly began to crack and collapse as if an earthquake had struck, and the spot where Shinji landed broke off. He was left dangling in the air.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Shinji threw out two kunai tied with steel wire, embedding them into the rock layers blasted away by Kitsuchi, his figure constantly weaving between the falling rocks.
After another boost, he charged towards Kitsuchi with a single burst of momentum.
A blue Chakra instantly condensed in his hand.
Lightning Release: Chidori!
It was aimed directly at Kitsuchi's nape.
Clang—
Black rock armor instantly covered him, and the Chidori in Shinji's hand was shattered.
Kitsuchi backhanded, seizing Shinji's wrist, and shouted, "Got you!"
The Rock Fist on his right hand once again brought immense pressure as it smashed towards Shinji.
Bang!
Smoke exploded.
Kitsuchi's Rock Fist missed its target, and behind him, Shinji's figure soared into the air.
Yang Release: Peerless Strength!
Earth Release: Adamantine Body!
Kitsuchi naturally wouldn't underestimate Shinji in front of him, using Adamantine Body to clad himself in an armor like granite.
Boom—!
A violent surge of air instantly erupted with the two of them as the center, shattering the ground beneath Kitsuchi's feet.
With that punch, even Kitsuchi, who was already clad in Adamantine Body armor, couldn't help but retreat several steps. His eyes were filled with disbelief as he looked at the slender figure in front of him.
This guy's strength was even more excessive than Akatsuchi's. This should be the famous secret technique of Tsunade, one of the former Sannin.
Although his father had always said that Konoha was blessed by heaven, after facing Shinji this time, Kitsuchi had to admit it. Shinji in front of him was more unbelievable than any genius he had ever seen.
"Although my old man is always stubborn, but whether I say it or not, he's right, you must die!"
Kitsuchi's face was devoid of any expression. If he had thought Ōnoki's decision to start the war was ridiculous before this, now, he also felt that Shinji had to be eliminated.
A ninja's strength almost always had the potential for a surge before their early twenties, but this young man in front of him, according to intel, was probably less than nineteen years old.
"What? You want to kill me?" Shinji rubbed his wrist, then stepped forward, closing the distance.
"Then tell Ōnoki to come. Perhaps with the two of you working together, you might still have a chance."
Hearing this, Kitsuchi immediately flew into a rage, stomping his feet and shouting, "Earth Release: Super Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
Shinji instantly felt his entire body sink, as if a giant boulder was pressing down on him.
This guy's Earth Release was indeed abnormal. The Added-Weight Rock Technique from a distance could actually affect him now.
However—
That was all it could do.
Instantly, Shinji's entire body was covered in Yang Release Chakra Armor, and the gravity applied to him suddenly vanished.
The next moment, he charged forward rapidly.
Chidori: Double Pierce!
The Chidori in both palms instantly tore through the air, their speed so great that Kitsuchi couldn't even see them clearly.
"So what if it's fast!"
Kitsuchi formed a hand seal with one hand, then lifted it sharply.
Earth Release: Moving Earth Core!
The ground beneath Shinji's feet collapsed with a roar, and just as the Chidori in his hands reached Kitsuchi's front, his entire body fell into a hundred-meter crevice.
Looking up, Shinji only saw the rock walls on both sides closing like giant palms.
Earth Release: Mountain Graveyard!
Tens of thousands of tons of rock layers instantly obscured the sky above Shinji's head.
No wonder he was called the one who controlled the earth. His Earth Release techniques were seamlessly connected and used with incredible fluidity.
Shinji had no intention of being captured. It was just tens of thousands of tons of rock layers. Chakra instantly condensed in his feet.
Heavenly Foot of Pain!
Boom—
Kitsuchi, who was just clapping his hands together, felt the clamping rock layers pause for a moment, then crack open from the middle.
Rumble—!
The entire mountain exploded, and giant rocks rolled in all directions.
Shinji charged out, stepping on the shattered rocks, his right fist raised high.
"Hah—!"
Kitsuchi roared, his entire body once again covered in granite-like armor.
"Do you really think this move can stop me a second time?!"
Shinji's right fist was instantly covered in black-gray Yang Release Chakra Armor.
Yang Release: Monstrous Strength Fourth Gear!
Boom—!
Crack!
First, a faint cracking sound exploded, and then the Adamantine Body armor covering Kitsuchi's body shattered like fragments.
An invisible shockwave exploded in front of Kitsuchi's chest.
Kitsuchi looked down at the fist resting on his chest. Although there was no terrifying destructive power visible, this punch instantly caused his internal organs to explode.
"Although you are an enemy, I should at least leave you a complete corpse." Shinji withdrew his fist, speaking indifferently.
"You are very strong—"
Kitsuchi didn't finish his sentence before he knelt on the ground, blood flowing from inside his rock armor, slowly seeping into the ground.
Shinji glanced at Kitsuchi, then turned and headed in the direction Neji had gone.
His left hand constantly rubbed his right wrist. Monstrous Strength Fourth Gear was no longer the kind of superficial destructive power it had been before. Instead, it was a technique that exploded internally through Eternal Fist. It was a technique he had made using Eternal Fist and Monstrous Strength.
Amidst the swirling sand, Iwa ninjas who arrived quickly landed beside Kitsuchi, and just as one was about to reach out to touch him—
"Don't touch him!"
A Jonin nearby shouted, then bent down in front of Kitsuchi, asking with a slightly panicked tone, "Kitsuchi-sama?"