Both Sasuke and Hinata possessed exceptional visual prowess.
Sasuke's Sharingan and Hinata's Byakugan gave them extraordinary perception and battlefield awareness.
Kakuzu, however, lacked such keen sensory abilities.
From the very beginning of the battle, he found himself at a disadvantage.
---
"Hyuga Art: Heavenly Light Palm!"
Using the Byakugan to read every movement on the battlefield, Hinata silently slipped behind Kakuzu.
Then she unleashed the Heavenly Light Palm.
The technique perfectly fused hardness and softness, yin and yang, exploding with terrifying force.
Had the attack connected directly, it would have completely torn Kakuzu's body apart.
The strike could shatter defenses, destroy internal organs, disrupt chakra flow, inflict devastating internal and external injuries, and leave its victim completely incapable of fighting back.
Yet...
Kakuzu had survived nearly a century through countless life-and-death battles.
Although his perception wasn't extraordinary, his combat instincts were.
The instant Hinata attacked, an overwhelming sense of danger surged through him.
Without hesitation, he activated the Earth Grudge Fear technique.
Black threads erupted from his body, dragging him backward and allowing him to narrowly escape the fatal strike.
But escaping Hinata...
Didn't mean escaping Sasuke.
---
"Chidori Sharp Spear!"
Buzz—!
A brilliant lance of lightning pierced through the sea mist like a bolt from heaven.
With flawless precision, it drove straight into Kakuzu's heart.
The attack struck without mercy.
---
Chapter 176: Kakuzu Falls! The Three-Tails Returns! Kurama's Loyalty! Please Support with Monthly Votes!
Flames and dense sea mist surrounded Sasuke and Hinata.
Rather than hindering them, the battlefield had become their greatest advantage.
Hinata attacked from behind.
Sasuke struck from the front.
Their perfectly coordinated assault completely caught Kakuzu off guard.
Although Kakuzu relied on nearly one hundred years of combat experience to evade Hinata's killing blow...
He couldn't avoid Sasuke's Chidori Sharp Spear.
The lightning pierced directly through his heart.
A fatal strike.
Blood sprayed from Kakuzu's mouth as the shattered heart crumbled inside his body.
"Damn you..."
"You little brat!"
"How dare you—"
Sasuke looked at him coldly.
"Be quiet."
"You're nothing but a pathetic old relic barking before your death."
His indifferent tone only enraged Kakuzu further.
"You think you've won?!"
Suddenly...
Kakuzu's body jerked backward.
The Chidori Sharp Spear was forcibly pulled free from his chest.
Sasuke frowned.
"So..."
"You still have two hearts left?"
Before he could finish speaking...
His instincts screamed in warning.
From beneath the sea...
Hidden by the thick mist...
A black thread shot upward like a venomous tentacle.
Before Sasuke could react, it wrapped tightly around his legs.
He was violently dragged beneath the water.
"Ah!"
"Sasuke!"
Seeing Kakuzu launch such a sneaky counterattack amidst the chaos, Hinata's heart immediately tightened.
"So he used Sasuke's Chidori Sharp Spear to determine his exact location..."
"As expected of someone with nearly a century of combat experience..."
While analyzing the situation...
Hinata had already made her decision.
She didn't rush to rescue Sasuke.
Instead...
She attacked Kakuzu directly.
That was the smartest choice.
---
"Take this!"
"Hyuga Art: Heavenly Light Palm!"
The seemingly gentle palm strike erupted with overwhelming force once again.
Kakuzu's expression changed dramatically.
He immediately dodged to the side.
Hinata's strike slammed into the sea instead.
BOOM!!
The ocean exploded.
Towering waves shot into the sky.
The immense force blasted away the seawater itself, leaving behind a massive crater in the sea's surface.
Cold sweat immediately covered Kakuzu's forehead.
"What terrifying power..."
"So this is the monstrous strength inherited from Lady Tsunade..."
"One of the Legendary Sannin..."
As he retreated, Kakuzu violently yanked on the black threads of Earth Grudge Fear.
The hidden threads dragged Sasuke back out of the sea.
Otherwise...
He would have been forced to sever those threads himself.
The moment Sasuke burst from the water, his anger erupted.
He immediately activated Chidori, slicing apart the black threads of Earth Grudge Fear in a single strike.
Without slowing down, lightning crackled around his body as he charged straight at Kakuzu once again.
Kakuzu roared furiously.
Countless black thread-like tentacles exploded outward, surging toward both Sasuke and Hinata simultaneously.
But unfortunately for him...
Both of his opponents perfectly countered Earth Grudge Fear.
Sasuke's Chidori possessed the ultimate piercing power of Lightning Release.
Hinata's Gentle Fist precisely severed chakra pathways and chakra constructs alike.
One wielded lightning.
The other transformed chakra into razor-sharp hand blades.
Together, they carved through the countless black threads with ruthless efficiency.
Before long...
Kakuzu's third heart was destroyed.
Only two remained.
The remaining hearts corresponded to his Wind Release and Fire Release masks.
---
"Combination Ninjutsu: Demonic Mask Grand Flame!"
Once again, Kakuzu unleashed his devastating combination technique.
Wind and fire fused together.
An enormous inferno surged toward his enemies.
Without hesitation, Hinata slammed her palm into the sea.
Instantly...
Massive waves rose before her.
A towering wall of water blocked the incoming flames and hurricane winds.
At the same time...
Sasuke finally revealed the results of his recent training.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
A single shadow clone appeared beside him.
The original and clone formed hand seals simultaneously.
One activated Lightning Release.
The other activated Fire Release.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Current!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Combination Ninjutsu: Chidori Flame Current!"
This was Sasuke's own original technique.
Using Chidori Current as its foundation...
Combined with the powerful Fire Release technique he had learned from Jiraiya...
He created a unique Combination Ninjutsu.
Lightning and fire merged perfectly.
The resulting torrent of thunder and flames surged toward Kakuzu like an unstoppable natural disaster.
Kakuzu's face turned pale.
He hurriedly condensed countless black threads into a massive shield before himself.
But it wasn't enough.
The violent explosion engulfed him.
Even his true body suffered from the terrifying aftershocks.
His entire body was blasted high into the air.
Hinata couldn't help exclaiming,
"What incredible power!"
Sasuke landed back on the ocean's surface, breathing heavily.
Maintaining the Second State of the Cursed Seal of Heaven, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, a Shadow Clone, and his newly created Combination Ninjutsu had pushed his chakra reserves to their limit.
Even so...
The results were worth it.
Kakuzu had been severely wounded.
Only two hearts remained.
His Earth Grudge Fear body was riddled with injuries.
He looked utterly miserable.
---
"I never imagined..."
"Two little brats could force me this far."
Kakuzu's eyes suddenly shifted toward several Hidden Mist shinobi watching from a distance.
Those shinobi weren't powerful.
Their only duty was to operate the boat and assist Naruto's team in searching for the Three-Tails.
They understood they would only become a burden if they joined the battle.
So they remained hidden far away.
Hinata immediately noticed Kakuzu's subtle glance.
Her sharp mind instantly understood his intention.
"Sasuke!"
"Be careful!"
"He's trying to steal new hearts to extend his life!"
"Everyone!"
"Run!"
The Hidden Mist shinobi didn't understand why...
But they obeyed immediately.
They scattered in every direction, escaping beyond the range of Earth Grudge Fear.
Seeing his plan exposed, Kakuzu became even more furious.
"You damned little brats!"
"I'll rip out both your hearts..."
"And restore my Earth Grudge Fear!"
Sasuke sneered.
"Stop talking about things you'll never accomplish."
"It only makes you look more pathetic."
It had to be said...
Sasuke possessed an extraordinary talent for provoking his enemies.
Kakuzu was instantly enraged.
Burning the last of his chakra...
He released every remaining black thread within his body.
The countless threads wrapped around him until he resembled a monstrous creature made entirely of black mist.
---
"Octopus Fist!"
His wrist suddenly split open.
Countless black threads burst forward, forming a gigantic fist aimed directly at Sasuke.
"Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
Without hesitation, Sasuke activated one of the secret techniques Jiraiya had taught him.
Under the Second State of the Cursed Seal, his black-and-gray hair rapidly lengthened.
The enormous mane wrapped around Kakuzu's Octopus Fist.
The black threads and living hair intertwined violently.
"You arrogant little brat!"
Kakuzu roared as he pulled with all his strength.
Sasuke's chakra was nearly exhausted.
The strain of maintaining the Sharingan had pushed him to his limit.
His weakened body couldn't resist Kakuzu's overwhelming strength.
He was violently dragged forward.
"Damn it..."
He tried to activate Chidori once again.
But...
He didn't have enough chakra left.
"Die!"
The black threads of Earth Grudge Fear shot straight toward Sasuke's heart.
"Sasuke!"
Hinata desperately rushed forward.
But most of her techniques were close-range attacks.
She simply couldn't reach him in time.
Just as the black threads were about to pierce Sasuke's chest—
A sharp whistling sound echoed across the battlefield.
"Wind Release: Exploding Shuriken!"
An invisible attack, moving faster than the naked eye could follow, tore through the air.
It instantly pierced Kakuzu's body...
Straight through the heart.
It was—
Naruto.
After severely injuring Tobi, Naruto had noticed him glance toward Sasuke and Hinata.
Following Tobi's gaze, Naruto immediately saw Sasuke's desperate situation.
Without the slightest hesitation...
He threw his Exploding Shuriken.
Launched from hundreds of meters away...
The attack struck Kakuzu's heart with perfect accuracy.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)