"All of you, retreat behind the sages' barrier," Tsuchibokori no Biwa said, calmly. "If any attacks make it past, try to mitigate any infrastructure damage, if you can. If you can't, get the hell out of there. Endo-san, take the coordinate defenses. Shi, shi, Oni. I'm going to lead the battle as far away as I can. This one clearly doesn't care about collateral."
"My range isn't that high," Endo-san murmurs without moving her lips. "But I could accompany you. Call out patterns."
But Biwa was already shaking his head.
"Don't bother. Your skills are of better use here," he said, clinically. Biwa didn't know a damn thing about this man, which was alarming in and of itself. The only thing he could say with reasonable certainty was that the missing nin didn't pursue his bounty out of sheer overconfidence.
This would be a battle unlike any he'd been a part of since the war. The kind of clash that spectators didn't survive to sing tales of. Not even other jonin.
"Sensei," a small voice calls from behind him
"Not now, Imai," he bites out. "Do your job."
He tore off towards the monolithic figure, who already seemed mid technique. From behind, he barely hears the whispered—
"Good luck."
Then the world distorts as he enters a Shunshin. The heat of a powerful Katon blast sears his flak jacket as he flickers past the enemy's perch, but he doesn't stop until he gets to flatter land.
The moment he does, he whirls around, whipping up a hand with two distinct scrolls clutched tight. His opponent stops short, the glowing core of a fire technique emanating from the "mouth" of a masked growth jutting from his shoulder. That hadn't been there a couple seconds ago.
"The heads of Yamasaki Toyokazu and Murakami Masanori," he announced. "The other ones got away. To the victor go the spoils."
Biwa wanted to make it very clear that there was no reason to go back to the village. Just in case he failed.
Not that he would.
"Naturally," said the missing nin. Now that he was far closer, Biwa was able to make out more details. On his forehead was a slashed Yumegakure band, which was mildly alarming because the Hidden Dream Village didn't produce Shinobi of this caliber.
Then there was that bulging, writhing, grayish growth on his shoulder, supporting a mask similar to those worn by Kiri's hunter corps. However, this one had red embellishments and hinges for an actual mouth.
"I don't recognize you," he said, taking the direct approach. This ninja did say he hated wasting time, after all. "New to the business?"
He got a scoff in return.
"Older than you would believe, boy," he answered, eyes fixed on Biwa's. It had been a fifty fifty shot, but Biwa didn't believe in coincidence. This ninja could tell the difference between his source and branch bodies.
And he didn't seem to care at all that Biwa's fission clone had circled until it was directly behind him.
"I suppose you're well out of the public eye, if you've settled here," Biwa noted.
"It's much more efficient to let my prey come to me, than spending months tracking it down."
The hunter's territory was directly beyond Sōgen's main entrance from the east. Any deserters from the great five nations would walk directly into his jaws.
"You wouldn't be able to stay here if you kill me," Biwa warned. "If I die, the Tsuchikage will bear the full force of Iwagakure onto this country."
"Your bounty is plenty high enough to set me for a while, yet," the missing nin retorted. "It makes no difference to me how hot this country gets. No matter how much your father mourns you, the other, squabbling great nations will force his attention back East eventually. I'll be able to return soon enough."
Before he could offer any rebuttal, the ninja spun through hand seals, landing on Tori. Biwa's own Futon rose to defend, but just as the ninja reared back to fire his jutsu, he caught a tensing in the eyes of his branch clone.
It was a feint. The attack didn't come from his mouth like this one typically would—it wasn't even directed at the primary Biwa. It shot straight out of the missing nin's back. One, two, three wind sickles, slicing through the air with enough force to cleanly bisect a healthy tree, all aimed at his branch clone.
Which was a problem. Because that part of Biwa could only use—to any significant effect—Katon ninjutsu. That may be strong against Futon, but the resulting explosion would do nearly as much harm as the sickles themselves.
However, the fission clone possessed all of the physical abilities and intellect of an S-rank shinobi. He ducked under the first sickle aimed to decapitate him and jumped, turning his body sideways and rolling between the second and third blades.
The main Biwa had already sprung into action. His own sequence of hand signs was completed before the first wind blade fired, and a massive rock spear shot out of the ground. His opponent sidestepped, dancing between from more spears that branched out of the first.
Another masked growth stretched under his arm. Strange, threadlike tendrils curled upward around the yellow-accented porcelain as blue electricity sparked near its mouth. With no additional warning, a chain of lightning wrapped around Biwa's jutsu construct, burrowing through the Doton chakra and blowing shards of stone in every direction.
A wind barrier deflected the lethal spray, but a flint-like click from a suddenly appearing red mask forced Biwa to abort the jutsu before it could fuel his opponent's Katon. His Branch clone dove in the path of the jutsu, using his own nature manipulation to guide the conflagration away.
When the light of the blaze died down enough for Biwa to see anything through, four bulky shadows hovered over the missing nin, each bearing a different mask.
"And here I thought I had the numbers advantage," Biwa said, face impassive.
"You survived long enough to realize that," his enemy responded. "Take solace. Not many can boast the same."
Tendrils stretched between the fire and wind masks, weaving together and joining the two figures into one. The same thing happened between the water and lightning. Biwa couldn't be relieved at the theoretical disappearance of two opponents, because the pairs of joined mouths opened, elements amalgamating in the darkness beyond their jaws.
Yeah, Biwa got the fuck out of there. Both of his bodies slipped underground in a fraction of a second, swimming deep into the Earth to make space and give him some time to think. But a split second after he heard his opponents' attacks go off, the ground around him trembled.
That was the only warning he got. Luckily, it was all he needed. Biwa launched his real body towards his Branch, quickly saturating the dirt and stone around him with his own Doton chakra just in time. That slight tremble grew more intense, multiplying in force by an absurd factor.
Biwa's real body protected the Branch as best it could, stifling the localized quake with pure nature transformation and force of will. Almost anyone else would have found their skeleton crushed to splinters, but it did nothing but rattle the two Biwas.
Until his Branch let out half a curse, cut off abruptly as a scarred, stitched hand grabbed him by the ankle. He was pulled right through the earth itself, and Biwa scrambled after, conjuring obstacle after obstacle to close the gap.
They broke through the surface at almost the same time, and Biwa's real body launched upward in a blistering kick that forced the awaiting Water/Lightning monster's "head" upward, angling its attack into the sky. In the same continuous motion, he threw a chakra-flow kunai, pinning the hand grabbing his clone to the ground.
And it was just a hand. Those same black tendrils trailed behind the disembodied half-forearm, connecting to the missing nin. Biwa supposed that he could add body modifications to the list of whatever the fuck he was dealing with.
Biwa's Branch threw up signs to free himself, shooting a thin blade of plasma across the tendrils, entirely separating the limb from the rest of its body. The missing nin didn't even flinch.
"Better destroy that," he said, almost nonchalantly, as blood lethargically dripped from his stump. Considering the severity of the wound, he should be losing much, much more.
"I can reattach my limbs at will."
Yeah, Biwa assumed that already. That's why his clone had already begun the task. He didn't take his eyes off his opponent for a second, as he felt heat on his back.
"No, that's not enough to force regrowth," the demon ninja chided. "You'll have to try a lot harder. Your dust release should do the trick."
Clearly, it wouldn't be a big loss even if it happened. His opponent wouldn't be encouraging it if that wasn't the case, nor would he sacrifice it in the first place without a fuss.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" He stalled, trying to seal the carbonized limb away. That could usually be done with any severed limb, since it lost all Yin chakra quickly after detachment. That was the determinate of whether or not the subjugation principle applied.
This arm didn't behave that way. Even though it had been severed, it retained all of its complete chakra, as if it were its very own organism. All the more proof that this…monster he now faced had shed all trace of humanity.
"I bet if this thing was destroyed beyond its ability to repair itself, it would begin to regenerate back on your body," he claimed, hoping to lead his opponent from the realization that he couldn't use his Kekei Tota at all in his current state. Although, it wasn't an entirely baseless assumption either. He's faced several opponents with the ability to mend themselves before, and that was how it sometimes worked. Fucking Hōzuki.
"Perhaps. But it makes little difference. Clearly, I can use jutsu just fine without hand seals."
Was it clear? Biwa didn't agree. From what he could tell, those masks only seemed capable of nature transformation. They couldn't use real techniques; they could simply direct streams or bursts of their elements with little to no finesse.
Dangerous, to be sure. Biwa had never seen anyone wield such powerful attacks with pure nature transformation alone. But it was still limiting, even with his enemy's formidable coverage.
All five elements. With pure nature transformation for all of them; that could only mean five affinities. Biwa had only ever heard of one person who could boast the same (and not be lying).
But whatever this force of nature turned out to be, he was no Lord Mu. How did he know?
Well, Biwa was still alive.
The water half of the missing nin's second monster belched Suiton chakra, amalgamating a flood despite the restrictive environment. Biwa fired his own jutsu a millisecond later.
Doton: Chidōkaku no Jutsu (Earth Style: Mobile Core Technique)!
He created a safe platform to weather the jutsu from, already in the middle of another technique by the time the ground began to shift underfoot. The predictable Raiton manipulation was stymied by his Futon: Ōarashi no Jutsu (Wind Style: Grand Tempest Technique), before it could destabilize his earth jutsu and send him plunging into the now-electrified water.
Alright. Enough is enough.
The Raiton mask might seem like the problem, along with the Katon for their sheer destructive capability. But from Biwa's considerable experience, he could easily tell that the Suiton mask was the real issue. Only that elemental nature couldn't be countered by one of his two bodies.
With no way of immediately devising a better solution, Biwa threw the missing nin's disembodied arm into a prison of rock for the time being and sent a phalanx of Doton: Doryūsō no Jutsu (Earth Style: Earth Flow Spears Technique) at the Water/Lightning mask. The branch clone threw himself at the main body, engaging it in taijutsu while keeping the missing nin firmly between himself and the other two elemental masks.
The dual mask dealt with his jutsu, but Biwa's Futon: Tōmeina Hako no Jutsu (Wind Style: Transparent Box Technique) neutralized any blowback from the Raiton while shielding him from debris. The two halves covered each others' weaknesses well, and that was proven once again as a heavy water bullet punched right through the wind curtain. There was no elemental counter Biwa could use to escape this stalemate, as it was clear that the two masks could fire attacks much faster than he could alone. So he pulled out another skill.
Doton: Iwa no Yoroi no Jutsu (Earth Style: Rock Armor Technique)!
Biwa braced himself, meeting the projectile shoulder first and cutting through it with his body. Before his opponent could capitalize, he brought a single knife-hand up in a vertical slash that should have no hope in reaching the monstrosity.
Ninpo: Hien no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Flying Swallow Technique)!
Chakra flowed from his jagged stone fingertips, his jagged rock armor aiding in his pure shape manipulation and granting him razor sharpness. A barely-visible flying blade erupted forth, and Biwa hissed in annoyance. His target moved at the very last second, and his slash missed the blue mask he had been aiming to hit square on.
Instead, it hit right between the two masks, cleaving them apart. He expected they could join back together seamlessly at once, and his brow furrowed as the two separated beings floundered for a moment, just long enough for Biwa to throw a kunai into the mask with enough force to punch through an inch of steel. A standard exploding tag would have done less damage.
The dark mass with the blue mask seemed to melt, its threads drooping to the ground only to be scooped up and reassimilated by the lightning mask. It seemed to have enough intelligence to know that, alone, it would stand no match against Biwa's powerful Wind Style, and flung itself towards the main body, who was currently engaged in taijutsu with Biwa's branch clone.
"Biwa, behind!" he called to himself, as the Branch clone found himself in the same position he had been forcing on the missing nin for the last five minutes. Right in between two bodies, only this time, both were enemies. There was no worse position to be in.
The Branch clone had no choice but to leap high into the air, backflipping over the sparking maw of the zig-zagging lightning mask. It aborted its attack but continued its mad dash towards the missing nin's body.
The second mask pair, who the Branch clone had successfully kited while engaging the missing nin in taijutsu, was now freed up to act with impunity. It dove to the side, flanking the branch clone as its creepy mouths shuddered open, elements amalgamating within. In the air, the branch clone couldn't dodge, but Biwa refused to lose it out here, even though the important bits were disentangled in this split state. He dove forward, inserting his real body between the dual mask and his branch clone.
It was a poor move, even with his rock armor in place. The Scorch Release facsimile would still do significant damage, but his mastery of the technique made the armor itself mostly invisible, so long as the light didn't reflect off of it. The mask didn't know it was in place, which was important. With its porcelain features, it couldn't show dissatisfaction when it realized it had no choice but to abort its technique. If it connected with Biwa's real body, there would be no head to recover, and this entire battle would have been for nothing.
This did prompt the dual mask to split back into both forms, and since the act was voluntary and controlled, they didn't seem to suffer like the water and lightning mask did.
They weren't the only masks on the move. As the lightning one reached the missing nin, he whirled around, meeting it with his back. Biwa couldn't see the full picture, as the yellow mask's body blocked his line of sight, but the thread-like mass dove into the missing nin. How it all fit, Biwa had no idea, but it didn't stay for long. It erupted forth after only a moment.
That was far less interesting to Biwa than the sight of his enemy's body twitching violently, as if he were in the throes of a seizure. It would have been the perfect opportunity to attack if not for the three masks crowding around him protectively.
Of course, Biwa chose to try his luck anyway. Against Raiton, Katon and Futon, Suiton seemed like the best bet to make it through. Biwa didn't have very many water jutsu to his name, nor did he have an affinity to boost the power of any jutsu through nature transformation. Still, no one reached his rank without a complete repertoire for moments like these, and he had another way to double its power. Both of his bodies spun through the required seals.
Suiton: Gekiryū no Yari no Jutsu (Water Style: Raging River Spear Technique)!
Two pools of water amalgamated at each of his sides in an instant, at no small cost to his chakra reserves. Continuous tendrils jetted forward, snaking through the air and striking towards the main body. But then the yellow mask opened its mouth.
Instead of electricity, ropes of mud blasted forth, intercepting and disabling Biwa's technique. That was the only chance he got, because the missing nin straightened, seemingly recovered.
Neither attacked for a moment. They glared silently amid the craters, the thick coat of sludge, the lingering electrical current in the air. Each coming to their own conclusions about what they just witnessed.
The missing nin was the first to break the silence.
"That is a very sophisticated clone technique," he said, his voice gravelly.
"You would know, wouldn't you?" Biwa retorted.
That earned a short, humorless chuckle. The missing nin would know, better than possible anyone alive other than the Tsuchikage himself. Their two kinjutsu had a dismaying amount in common. And so, both of them were wary.
Biwa had never faced anyone who could actually identify how his ace technique worked, and he'd wager his considerable bank account that this missing nin could say the same. Now, he wasn't just an enemy. He was a significant security threat to Iwagakure no Sato.
"You said earlier that you wanted my head and my heart," Biwa said. It hadn't made sense at the time, but now he understood.
"Those aren't the only parts of me you want, are they?"
He understood almost perfectly. Those masks, their ability to use pure nature transformation…those highly conspicuous abilities had almost nothing to do with his kinjutsu. It was merely a clever application of those damn threads. Biwa couldn't figure out the specifics, but he gathered that their main, incredibly simple function, was that they allowed for the seamless assimilation of foreign biological matter without fear of rejection.
"And you can't use the Dust Release in that state," the missing nin countered, and Biwa had to force himself not to grit his teeth. There was no hope in hiding that fact, because the missing nin understood the mechanics of his own kinjutsu just as well.
The stump on his forearm contorted, bulging into a mess of threads. They wrapped around each other, twisting into a mockery of a hand and proving Biwa right in the process. The missing nin's loss of a limb meant absolutely nothing.
His masks can use powerful nature transformation, but for actual jutsu with shape manipulation he needs hand seals, Biwa thought, watching his opponent with narrowed eyes. He didn't need to see a single sign—it would be a Raiton technique.
Naturally, he was ready with his own counter—Futon: Kaze Kaminoikari no Jutsu (Wind Style: Fūjin's Wrath Technique). And they both froze, neither wanting to release a technique just for the other to cancel it out. Their eyes locked, unmoving as war erupted around them. Biwa's Branch clone fended off Katon, Futon and Doton, and his opponent realized just why Biwa had prioritized destroying the Suiton mask.
Though they had more elemental coverage, Biwa's single branch clone had more combat potential than all three of the missing nin's remaining masks. He had autonomy, and a body with a fully developed chakra network. He could use real jutsu with shape manipulation, which made his defensive ability far more flexible, even though he wielded an element far more suited to offense.
The pain in Biwa's hands was becoming hard to ignore. The sensation itself wasn't the problem; it's what it signified. If he didn't release the technique soon, he'd lose control and blow his hands off. It was a problem that he doubted his inhuman opponent would similarly face, so he chose to act when the next opening presented itself.
As soon as his opponent's Katon mask fired, he let loose his Futon: Shiroi Hashira no Jutsu (Wind Style: White Pillar Technique), creating a twister that his branch clone steadily fed with Katon of his own. Not enough to spiral out of control, but enough to ignite the tornado and protect its shape from foreign Katon chakra. Sure enough, as the Katon mask poured on the flames, the calamity merely wobbled. In seconds, there was no more wind chakra to gorge on; it had already been transformed into a pure Katon technique.
One built out of Biwa's chakra. His branch clone maintained the jutsu—which, due to the circumstances of its formation, was a lot less intensive than it looked—arms spread wide to the heavens, and now it was the main body's turn to strike.
Doton: Doryūsō no Jutsu (Earth Style: Earth Flow Spears Technique)!
Massive pikes, far more numerous than before, rose out of the ground to stab at the opposing group. The enemy finally released his own Raiton jutsu, and Biwa almost smirked.
His Branch clone knew just what to do. Throwing his arms forward as if he were hoisting a boulder overhead, the smoke-clogged fire tornado advanced. Biwa couldn't even tell what his opponents' Raiton technique was supposed to do; it halted, sputtering angrily in the face of his clone's conflagration.
Futon chakra was not needed. When superheated, air became a poor conductor, and though that had no bearing on elemental chakra, it would force the technique to expend more of the Raiton powering the technique to maintain amalgamation. Since it was a jutsu, this time, his opponent couldn't just pour on more chakra. He'd have to spin the signs and cast it again, and he was a little too preoccupied to do that.
Crunch.
Biwa relished the sound of the Doton mask breaking under his spears. He was quite sick of its yellow face, though he would have preferred that the red one took its place for tactical reasons. But his opponent knew that just as well, and protected that mask with his own, chakra-enhanced body, crushing every spear that entered its vicinity to gravel.
The Branch clone finally lost control of his natural disaster. It was bound to happen—that it lasted as long as it did was a testament to his outrageous control. The tornado died anticlimactically, tossing embers in every direction as the tongues of flame exhausted.
When his vision cleared, Biwa could see his opponent reabsorb his remaining two masks, judging that their mobility advantage no longer offset their vulnerability.
In this state, Biwa had to be wary of the missing nin's shell game. The element connected to his chakra network could be shifted at a moment's notice; Biwa would have to be wary of lightning, wind and fire Jutsu. Just not at the same time.
"I don't remember the last time I've lost a heart, much less two," the missing nin said, glaring daggers at Biwa, who tried to hide how deep each of his heaving breaths were. They had each been tossing around jutsu costly enough to drain dry entire companies of jonin for almost half an hour. But while Biwa had the organs to feel his exertion, his opponent did not.
No, his reserves weren't bottomless—Biwa hoped, at least—but the lack of fatigue would keep him sharp. That was an advantage that couldn't be underestimated.
"You sacrificed your Doton affinity," Biwa observed. He couldn't really see that as too great a victory, seeing as how his opponent had all but allowed it to happen. He probably could have saved it along with the Katon mask, if his opponent wanted to gamble the latter's otherwise perfect chance of survival.
"I'll get a better one soon enough," the monstrous ninja uttered, and Biwa's lips pulled back into a snarl.
"If you're so confident, you might as well give me your name," he said, and the thing before him stiffened. "You have me at a disadvantage, on that front."
There was a beat of silence as the wind changed direction, carrying acrid smoke across the plains. It was a good thing this place was already so barren; nothing would grow here for years regardless. Giant crevices, fallen stone spears and craters had changed the landscape irrevocably. It would take an entire team of Doton specialists a great deal of effort to remove the scar they would leave on the land.
"Very well, Tsuchibokori no Biwa," he allowed. "My name is Muzan. Take it to your grave."
All three bodies threw themselves forward as one. The fight changed—shock and awe fell to the wayside, because clearly the unstoppable force had met an immovable object on that front, and they both needed to be more conscious of chakra usage.
However, Biwa soon learned why his Branch had such a hard time landing a blow on Muzan earlier. It was difficult to hit someone who didn't truly have bones, or even muscle. His skin was nothing but an empty sack, filled with those damned threads. It was almost nauseating, watching them contort, bending limbs at unnatural angles and sometimes piercing through to strike at Biwa directly. Any damage to the membrane was quickly stitched back up.
When Biwa launched an earth-shattering front kick, tendrils erupted from a slit in Muzan's remaining wrist, ensnaring his sandaled foot. Before he could blast them off with pure chakra, Muzan pulled with all his might, ripping Biwa off balance and threatening to throw him far away. But the Prince of Iwa had his own advantages. Because his Branch clone was made with his own chakra, they could Kawarimi (Substitute) with one another, arresting his momentum in an instant. Now, the Branch clone was in front of him, barely out of striking distance, and Biwa's real body was behind.
Muzan created a barrier of threads from his arm stump to ward off the Branch clone, turning his neck a full one-hundred-eighty degrees to launch a blistering mule kick that Biwa sidestepped. The missing nin's skin bulged as its internals shifted underneath to better respond to Biwa's assault, and each experimental jab was deflected or contorted around.
The masks also shifted position, disappearing into the thread mass underneath and pushing through where they were most needed like a baby's crown in childbirth. The teal wind mask appeared at the end of Muzan's stump, only now it was apparently lightning, and the Branch clone disappeared under a blinding flash of electricity.
"Fool," Biwa spat, twirling a kunai by the ring before catching its handle.
Doton: Hien no Jutsu (Earth Style: Flying Swallow Technique)
Earlier, he used this technique with pure shape manipulation. Now, nature transformation was added, pouring Doton chakra through the length of the metal. In one smooth motion, Biwa stabbed Muzan in the "thigh," urging his chakra to burst. If Muzan had normal, holistic chakra, it would merely sting for a while. Instead, there was no trace of Raiton in his signature to overcome Biwa's marauding Doton, and veins of stone began to race through his body.
With a snarl, the lightning mask spat out another current, and electricity arced over Muzan's body like a shimmering veil. His upper leg shattered, sending him plummeting to the ground, and Biwa was quick to capitalize. But before the Katon jutsu could leave his Branch's lips, Muzan retaliated, shooting a web of tendrils in every direction.
Dodging was all they could do under the pursuit of countless threads. Through the flurry of striking gray, the masks began to rise, lifting out of Muzan, but not separating as they once had. His skin began to sag, crumpling to the dirt like cast aside laundry, and a true horror emerged from within.
"So this is what you actually look like," Biwa panted, hands poised to form seals. "I wonder why you bother with the human form at all. Is it to escape attention? Or do you have more sentimental reasons?"
Muzan didn't answer. Instead, his threads began to vibrate, fluttering at intense speeds despite the relative lack of wind. It was Biwa's only clue of what was to come.
The threads shot forward twice as fast, piercing through rising stone defenses as if they weren't even there. Biwa danced away, wide-eyed as lacerations opened across his trailing legs, shredding the ends of his pants and the inner layer of wire mesh. If not for his Iwa no Yoroi, the flesh underneath wouldn't have been left in the same state as the cloth; slashed to ribbons. Even still, blood began to well up in the furrows left behind.
Futon chakra flowed through each thread.
Sure, why not? Clearly they were a perfect substitute for a human's chakra network, and they were already sharp enough on their own. They were also far too close. Any Katon counter powerful enough to accomplish anything significant would literally blow up in their faces.
So it was actually somewhat of a good thing that Biwa's main body had lost its Katon affinity.
Katon: Ryūka no Jutsu (Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique) he used for the first time in over a decade. The comparatively pitiful C-rank technique raced along the Futon coated threads, erasing their sharpness long enough for his Branch clone to grab a thick clump and yank.
Muzan's central mass—remaining mask included—flew through the air, right into a crushing punch from the branch clone. It's sent flying back, but—
Weren't there still two masks?
A screamed curse was wrenched from Biwa's lips as blinding agony surged through his side as the teal mask ripped into him with porcelain fangs. But the pain from the wound itself was nothing compared to that of the Raiton chakra, which was what allowed its false teeth to cut through both Rock Armor and flesh so easily. There were so many damned threads darting around, he hadn't noticed this one pop up from underground.
He wasn't biologically capable of fighting through the currents. His muscles spasmed, locking as pure electricity raced through them. The main body had been bait, and he'd taken it without a second thought.
Now he'd pay the final price. Threads wove together, creating thicker, spiky ropes that shot towards him from so many directions. He threw himself away, landing fully on his back to avoid the first blow, which passed less than a foot over his nose. But another was hurtling down from above, aimed right for his center of mass. He wouldn't be able to roll out of the way in time.
Before a prayer to Kami could pass through his brain, Biwa was sent flying. He stuffed down the howl that threatened to leave his lips; he was propelled so forcefully that the chunk of flesh the mask had bitten down on was ripped out altogether. That agony was only exacerbated when the force of his flight slammed him into the side of a striking thread, altering his path as he rag-dolled through the air, smashing into the ground and tumbling gracelessly across the dirt.
He tore to his feet, just in time to see his Branch clone's arm cleaved off. It would be useless for the rest of the fight, so he would have to make sure its sacrifice wasn't in vain.
Biwa threw a shuriken with all his might, hoping Muzan was just as lost as he was about his own survival. It contained no chakra; if the missing nin's mundane senses—however the fuck they worked in this form—couldn't figure out where he was soon enough, it would be undetectable.
His weapon arced beautifully, slashing right through the red mask and what lay behind it. The Katon transformation between its jaws exploded, throwing Muzan off his feet and clear into the side of the plateau Biwa had created with his Mobile Core with a crunch.
If he were a lesser man, he might have let out a sob of relief. Instead, he savagely gritted his teeth as all of Muzan's tendrils recoiled at the sudden loss, granting his Branch clone room to withdraw.
Said clone seemed to realize exactly where Biwa somehow ended up. It raced to him, clutching its own stump which, like Muzan's, barely bled.
Now, only Muzan's Raiton and Futon affinities remained. Biwa had eliminated his Katon affinity, giving him free reign to use his own Futon to his heart's content. But, in doing so, he had lost his ability to do the same. With his Branch clone's dismemberment, he had lost the ability to cast particularly destructive Katon techniques of his own.
It was still anyone's fight. And they both knew it.
"Is my bounty really that enticing?" Biwa growled. "You know what they say about money. You can't take it with you, when you're gone."
Muzan pulled himself to his feet, threads trembling with rage or something else as he considered the question.
"You fully lack coverage for three elements, now," Biwa continued. "You have mostly disabled one of mine, so we're balanced on that front. We each have one elemental advantage over the other. But I can still use other ninjutsu, even if they aren't quite as powerful without the accompanying affinity. You can't."
He stood up straight, stepping back to create more space.
"I still think I can probably defeat you. I'd imagine you feel the same. But the chance of death is still there. And I refuse to risk it over something as stupid as money."
It burned his pride to do this, but his life wasn't his own to give away. He lived for Iwagakure, and his village couldn't afford to lose him now.
"You came for Yamasaki," Biwa stated. "If it will make you go away, I'll give him to you, along with Murakami."
As a force of habit, he'd already burned out Yamasaki's brain with Katon chakra just to be safe, while leaving the face undisturbed. If Muzan was truly about money over everything else, he would collect the bounty at an Iwa station, since Iwa had set the highest price on Yamasaki's head. However, if he chose to unload at a Konoha station, out of spite, convenience or some other reason, Biwa's actions would deprive those Yamanaka bastards the chance to pry Iwa's secrets out of his brain.
He had really, really wanted to bring Yamasaki's head home to Iwa. it was the principle, more than anything. But it was still a confirmed kill. If, in death, Yamasaki could save Iwa shinobi's lives—Biwa's most directly—it would be almost poetic.
Still pissed him off, though.
Muzan reached a decision.
"You're right. All I was expecting to get out of this was Yamasaki and some of his far less valuable underlings. I suppose I can be…content with their heads. I wish to examine them."
"Fine," Biwa accepted, hurling both scrolls his way none-too-gently.
Muzan unsealed the scrolls, handling them so delicately with his vicious threads. He found their contents to his liking.
"I believe I should be compensated further," he said, and Biwa tensed. "After all, Iwa will levy a manhunt against me after this. I rather enjoyed my anonymity. A powerful heart should suffice, to make up for the ones I lost here."
He stared past Biwa, directly at the Branch clone behind him.
"Not acceptable," Biwa said, dryly. "For many reasons. I don't think that one would work for you anyway."
That definitely wasn't to Muzan's liking, but he seemed to decide that there wasn't anything he could do about it.
"I suppose, as the aggressor, that will just be the price I have to pay," he muttered. The monster stalked over to his discarded skin, sinking through the rent openings to resume his masquerade as a human.
"You best hope we never cross paths again," he said, over his shoulder. "Next time, I will be prepared for you."
Then, he was gone in a puff of smoke. Not necessarily by choice, Biwa sank to the ground, gasping for breath and cradling his side. The remaining flesh there had melded with his jonin vest. Treating it would be incredibly painful, and he prayed Endo Ayumu was up to the task, with his one-armed clone as an assistant.
He looked back at his Branch, leaning forward to brace his forearms on his knees.
"Why am I alive?" he grumbled to the only being around to hear him.
The branch clone answered after a moment, even though he knew his main body had already reached the correct conclusion.
"The ordinary replacement wouldn't have been sufficient," he said. "It would have just left us both in prone positions. We needed to retain the swap's exit velocity."
And so, he had used his student's technique. They'd seen it so frequently, they were bound to pick it up. But still, after everything that happened over the past few days, the fact that he was only alive due to his Imai's influence…he didn't want to think about it any more.
"I need medical attention," he mumbled, molding his chakra with shaky hands. Another two clones, these ones sporting two arms, appeared, because Tsuchobokori no Biwa's definition of "low on chakra" wasn't the same as everyone else's. A couple Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clones) wouldn't tip him into the realm of exhaustion.
They would carry him most of the way, and he'd lean on his Branch for the rest. No Iwa shinobi would see him in such a state.
- - - { ワナビー } - - -
In another world, Tsuchibokori no Biwa would not have returned from Sōgen no Kuni alive. He would have successfully eliminated Yamasaki and his lackeys, only to be hunted down by the being currently known as Muzan. However, the outcome of that battle would have been decided long before Biwa would have otherwise been forced to rely on Imai Kasaiki's Tosshin no Jutsu (Rush Technique).
In that alternate timeline, Biwa would not have been saddled with a genin team at all. The academy instructors wouldn't have judged any of their batch to be a satisfactory fit for Biwa. Iwao was already spoken for; not knowing that instruction under the Tsuchikage's son was on the table, Ishida Yuudai would have insisted on a direct apprenticeship. Daigo would similarly apprentice under his own father, and the Tsuchikage wouldn't have been able to cobble an acceptable team to assign his son together until a mere week before his demise. They would never receive a single lesson from the S-rank ninja.
Since he was not burdened with a team, Biwa would have had no need to split into his fission clone, as the C-rank pretense for the mission was awarded to another team who he was not responsible for. In his original form, he was indeed capable of using the Dust Release. However, that advantage was far offset by Kakuzu's strength of numbers. Biwa could not fend off Kakuzu and his four independent masks with only one body.
And so, Tsuchibokori no Biwa was killed. His heart would live on in Jiongu no Kakuzu's chest, his powerful Doton affinity serving the future Akatsuki member well until it would be destroyed by Hatake Kakashi many years later.
In this world, that future was shattered. A powerful player survived to participate in the Third Shinobi War on the side of Iwagakure, who otherwise would not have been present. For the second time, Imai Kasaiki's mere existence alters the course of the Elemental Nations irrevocably. For better or worse.
- - - { ワナビー } - - -
AN: Welp. That happened.
This fight has been planned for a long, long time. It sets up so much world building that I have planned, both from a magic system and a lore perspective. I'm excited to hear all of your theories in the comments.
The outpouring of support I've received after the last upload block was incredible. Y'all had me all but kicking my feet and giggling like a maniac. Thanks for all of the well wishes too, it means a lot. I feel so grateful to have such an amazing, passionate reader base.
I thought this fight would be kinda easy to write, ngl. After all, S-rank ninja don't have all the limitations that normal people have to deal with. They have the skills and the chakra capacity to do whatever they want, and I thought that would remove a lot of the difficulty I would face. Turns out, I was very, very wrong. Honestly, I had a lot more difficulty than usual, because my goal for any Naruto fight sequence is to highlight the ninja aspect. The trickery, the ingenuity, the analysis and application of fundamentals. That becomes a lot more difficult to emphasise when each participant has the ability to just throw around natural disasters. Combine that with the bullet point list of all these things I need to weave in for world building…it was a little difficult. I think I did a decent job, though, but you'll have to be the judge of that.
I found it funny that none of y'all had faith in Biwa in the comments. At least two thirds of you were sure he was gonna lose. Which is fair; Kakuzu is definitely one of the strongest Akatsuki. I'd only really place Nagato, Konan and Itachi above him (not including Obito or Madara) in terms of sheer destructive capability. And that's in canon. In my fic, just about everyone is considerably more powerful than they're shown to be in the anime. Of course Kakuzu would be no different.
But c'mon, did you really think I would kill off Kasaiki's sensei? What narrative purpose would that serve at this point in time? He couldn't die, and I wouldn't do Kakuzu the injustice of flat out losing either. A draw was the only real option.
I will also take this moment to make an oath to you, since there were people speculating if Kasaiki would warn Biwa about Kakuzu's abilities, at the expense of her greatest secret. No native to this world will ever know that Kasaiki knows about the past and future of this world because she saw a TV show or read a comic book in a past life. In fact, if I'm reading a reincarnation fic, and the author makes the choice to disseminate that knowledge to anyone, I will immediately drop the story.
I'll try to articulate why. I think that narrative choice delegitimizes the lives of the characters in the story irrevocably. What kind of existential crisis would that bring to everyone? Also, in many cases it eliminates the urgency of life or death situations. It also changes the way that other characters view the main character in ways that are entirely unappealing to me. It also wouldn't be believable in the slightest that any ninja who learns that Kasaiki has foreknowledge wouldn't immediately try to capitalize on it, devastating the entire continent in the process. So I'm just not going to do it.
There will be times where Kasaiki will want to tell people about it. There may even be times where she reaches the decision to. Just know that, as the author, I will not allow it to actually happen. So, other people who feel the same way as me about this topic, you can rest easy.
There's so much else I want to talk about plot wise, but Ima just shut up in case I spoil anything. So, peace out! See you next week for a very fun chapter.