Faced with the enemy's Flame Bullet Jutsu, Nanaki Hyuga remained completely calm.
After all, the jutsu was far too slow.
With a flicker of movement, Nanaki vanished and reappeared at the Sand Ninja's flank, effortlessly evading the fire projectile.
One strike. Two strikes…
Thirty-two strikes. Sixty-four strikes.
His palms surged forward in flawless succession. The Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms connected seamlessly, each blow sealing a chakra point until the Sand shinobi was blasted off his feet and sent hurtling backwards.
Boom.
The Sand shinobi slammed violently into a tree before crumpling to the ground, tumbling to a stop—unconscious.
As Nanaki finished off his opponent, Jun Inuzuka also broke through his adversary's defense. The Earth Release: Earth Wall Jutsu, under the sheer force of his full-powered Fang Over Fang, was blasted wide open.
Rumble...
The enemy Sand shinobi was sent flying, barely clinging to life. But with those grievous wounds and no one around to treat them, survival was no longer an option.
With Nanaki and Jun claiming victory, only Shikatsu Aburame remained locked in a desperate struggle.
His Insect Secret Technique couldn't even get close to his opponent under the onslaught of Wind Release techniques. The powerful Great Breakthrough Jutsu had even blown Shikatsu himself off his feet.
Wind Release: Wind Cutter Jutsu.
Seeing Shikatsu tossed into the air by the Great Breakthrough, the Sand shinobi gave him no chance to recover, launching a chain of Wind Cutter Blades for a killing blow.
From across the battlefield, Nanaki noticed Shikatsu's peril just as the deadly blades were unleashed. He shouted, desperate:
"Shikatsu, look out!"
Without hesitation, Nanaki turned and charged toward the enemy, hands forming a combat stance as he closed the distance.
But it was already too late.
A razor-sharp wind blade slashed clean through Shikatsu's chest, splitting him in two.
Just as Jun Inuzuka landed from his own battle, he saw Shikatsu's body torn apart before his eyes, and let out a howl of anguish:
"Shikatsu!!"
Nanaki, too, was overcome with grief, assuming that their teammate had been killed by the Sand shinobi. Already within striking distance, his eyes burned with fury. Channeling 120% of his strength, he launched a ferocious palm strike.
But this Sand shinobi was not the same as the one who used Fire Release earlier. This one was much faster, effortlessly evading Nanaki's rapid assault.
Neither Nanaki nor the Sand shinobi noticed what had fallen to the ground, what looked like Shikatsu's corpse, begin to shift.
It disintegrated into two swarms of black insects.
Secret Technique: Insect Clone Jutsu.
"What?!"
Jun's eyes widened in disbelief. Shikatsu wasn't dead! Relief flooded him as he quickly scanned for their teammate's whereabouts.
Then, a sharp bark from Benimaru drew his attention.
"Woof!"
Following the sound, Jun spotted Shikatsu hidden behind a tree, already preparing another insect jutsu.
Meanwhile, the Sand shinobi fighting Nanaki had just exploited an opening. With a flick of his kunai, he slashed across Nanaki's face, leaving a long, bloody wound.
Then, a powerful kick sent Nanaki flying.
Boom.
Just as the Sand shinobi was about to follow up with a killing strike, Jun intervened.
Fang Over Fang.
In an instant, Jun spun like a drill, hurling himself toward the Sand Ninja.
The enemy was forced to disengage, pushing off hard with both legs to leap backward—
—but the moment he landed on a tree branch, a faint impact struck his back.
"Secret Technique: Parasitic Destruction Insects."
Shikatsu's calm voice reached his ears, just as a horrifying realization dawned.
"AHHH—!"
A swarm of insects burst from within his body, devouring him from the inside out.
His screams lasted only a second. Soon, the Sand shinobi's body was riddled with gaping holes, reduced to a shriveled husk, and collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
Together, Shikatsu, Jun, and Nanaki had taken down the three subordinates of Ishigami.
But on Veigar's end of the battlefield, he made a startling discovery: the enemy he had blasted away wasn't Ishigami's real body, it was a Shadow Clone.
As a jōnin, Ishigami had immense battle experience, he had even fought in the Second Shinobi World War.
His survival instincts were sharp. It would be unthinkable for him to face a frontal attack from someone like Veigar without first using a clone.
"Where is he?"
Realizing he'd only destroyed a clone, Veigar began scanning the surroundings. To lure the real Ishigami out, he canceled his Rasengan: Revolving Heaven, letting down his Absolute Defense.
Nanaki, just getting back on his feet, saw Ishigami's clone dissipate into smoke.
Then, catching Veigar's moment of vulnerability, he activated his Byakugan and located the real Ishigami immediately.
"Captain! Above you, in the tree canopy!"
Veigar snapped his head up, just in time to see Ishigami diving straight down, a Vacuum Blade in hand, aiming right for his skull.
This was Ishigami's killing blow.
If it landed, Veigar would need divine resurrection to survive.
But that was the thing—Veigar had canceled Rasengan: Revolving Heaven on purpose.
This ambush?
Was exactly what he was waiting for.
Rasengan: Revolving Heaven.
Calm and unflinching, Veigar looked up. To Ishigami, it seemed like the boy was paralyzed by fear.
"Die!!" Ishigami roared.
But in the very next moment, his expression froze.
Veigar's body was suddenly surrounded by a swirling Rasengan barrier once more.
"No—!"
Too late. The trap was sprung. Ishigami had no time to evade, he had already committed to the dive.
And now, there was no turning back.
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