Roshi stood in the distance with his arms crossed, letting the two ninjas in front of him speak.
"Have you finished chatting?" Roshi said with a look of disdain.
Only the weak liked to huddle together; true powerhouses did not form groups.
Roshi had a tailed beast within him. He was isolated and ostracized in the village. Therefore, he believed himself to be a natural loner.
A loner was always in opposition to the entire world. He was a maverick, and the only thing he could rely on was power.
Yes, the power of the tailed beast!
Others had not witnessed the mighty power of the tailed beast, but he knew it well. He was supremely confident in his own strength.
In his opinion, if he went all out, even the Third Tsuchikage might not be his opponent. But just now, he was actually treated as prey.
Hunting tailed beasts?
What a joke. Tailed beasts were not anyone's pets.
People were always arrogant; it seemed they needed to be reminded of their fear of tailed beasts!
As for the order to support the main battlefield, Roshi had long forgotten it.
It wouldn't be too late to assist after dealing with the ninjas in front of him. Having been confined to the village for many years, his chakra had long been starved. He longed for battle—a true, exhilarating fight.
Sakumo Hatake stepped forward, with Uchiha Tatsumi flanking him. The two formed a mutual defense.
For a time, the air grew thick with tension.
The torrential rain had not ceased since earlier; the sky remained uniformly gray, as if someone had draped a heavy shroud over the Rain Country.
The ripples spreading continuously on the water's surface were like incessant murmurs. The sound of rain hitting the leaves resembled a clumsy wooden harp performance, the rhythm wavering between right and wrong.
Roshi laughed. "It seems you've made your decision. Well, two against one—I won't call you despicable... This makes the game just right. After all, I am a Jinchuriki!"
Swish!
Roshi's chakra flared violently, his momentum surging. At the same time, Sakumo Hatake's aura climbed steadily.
If Roshi gave off an intense, burning heat, then Sakumo exuded the cold chill of deep winter.
The clash of fire and ice sent a shiver down Uchiha Tatsumi's spine.
In the next moment, with a soft sound, the White Fang short sword behind Sakumo Hatake suddenly unsheathed. This blade, which had already tasted the blood of countless enemies, gleamed brilliantly.
White chakra poured out, forming a straight, deadly line under Sakumo's absolute control.
Just how fast was a true taijutsu powerhouse? Today, Konoha's White Fang demonstrated it to Uchiha Tatsumi.
Sakumo Hatake became a streak of white lightning. If not for Uchiha Tatsumi's Sharingan, he might not have been able to track White Fang's movements at all.
Uchiha Tatsumi prided himself on his speed. With his clan's Body Flicker Technique and Lightning Release enhancements, he was exceptionally fast.
But compared to White Fang, he was not even half as quick. The sheer speed alone was enough to earn Tatsumi's absolute respect.
Along with that speed came a sword intent so sharp that it sent a chill of impending death down Tatsumi's spine.
In an instant, Roshi produced a kunai, ready to meet the oncoming attack head-on.
Bang!
Blue arcs of electricity crackled around the short sword as it slashed downward.
The moment the two weapons met, there was no sound of metal clashing—Roshi's kunai was sliced clean in half by White Fang's short sword, followed by a flash of lightning.
"Lava Release: Scorching Stream Rock Technique!"
As the deadly blade advanced without slowing, Roshi spewed a lava ball from his mouth to block Sakumo Hatake's path.
Sakumo swung his short sword, and the sound of thunder echoed as lightning entwined the blade. The sword sliced through the lava ball as easily as cutting fruit. But in the next instant, the lava ball suddenly exploded.
Sakumo Hatake was forced to retreat to avoid the blast.
Roshi laughed wildly. Like a goldfish spitting bubbles, he spewed a massive amount of lava, unleashing his jutsu without restraint.
Despite his reckless attacks, Roshi's expression remained indifferent. This was routine for him—not quite a trivial feat, but certainly no challenge.
Sakumo Hatake glanced sideways. What an immense chakra reserve.
He sighed. Though he had a fair amount of chakra himself, compared to Roshi's extravagant expenditure, it felt like an ordinary household facing a reckless spendthrift.
No—perhaps not even that. More like a pauper facing a tycoon.
But Sakumo Hatake paid no mind to the ninjutsu. If it didn't hit him, it was meaningless.
Dodging the lava with a few nimble jumps, he continued his charge.
"In such a hurry to die, Konoha ninja?" Roshi grinned manically. With a wave of his hand, a sweeping wall of lava surged toward Sakumo.
Faced with the seemingly overwhelming attack, Sakumo Hatake remained unfazed. Just before the lava could consume him, he swung his short sword multiple times, dispersing it effortlessly.
Roshi snorted and began forming complex hand seals.
Snap!
A crisp snapping sound echoed.
Roshi's movements halted abruptly, his expression freezing mid-seal. Uchiha Tatsumi's genjutsu had invaded his mind.
As the snap of fingers fell, a flash of white light streaked through the dark, silent forest. With no further obstacles, Sakumo Hatake was upon Roshi.
What could one do in a single second?
For Uchiha Tatsumi, not much. But for a speed-type ninja like Sakumo Hatake, a second was an eternity.
The air itself seemed to bristle with killing intent, fangs of death poised to tear Roshi apart.
Just as the short sword was about to strike him, a deep red light erupted from Roshi's body, accompanied by a violent roar. It was a roar suppressed for decades, shaking the surroundings as if the earth itself trembled.
When Roshi opened his eyes, they glowed ominously red. The short sword was mere inches from him, leaving him no room to dodge.
Yet he didn't evade. Instead, he thrust his arm forward, directly intercepting the blade.
Boom!
A thunderous impact exploded outward. The white light from the short sword flared intensely, meeting the deep crimson glow that engulfed Roshi's body.
Before Sakumo's eyes, Roshi's arm was encased in a layer of red chakra. His Lightning Release-infused short sword had only managed to cut through that outer layer before halting.
Aside from the Yotsuki Clan's unique taijutsu in Kumogakure, this was the first time Sakumo had seen someone defend against his strike with sheer physical fortitude.
"Yes... This is the feeling! The blood of a beast boiling!"
Roshi's blood-red fist shot out like a cannon, striking Sakumo directly and sending him flying.
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