Chapter 132 (Patreon)

“Hundredfold Gravity—Collapse!”

In an instant, the wrathful guardian statue shattered.

The entire Fire Temple began to tremble as an overwhelming gravitational force descended from above.

The main hall collapsed first.

The monks were crushed beneath the immense pressure before they could even scream. None of them survived.

Chiriku suffered the same fate, his body crushed beneath the hundredfold gravity.

The foundations of the Fire Temple sank several meters into the ground. Smoke and dust billowed into the sky as every building collapsed, reducing the entire temple to ruins.

The Fire Temple had ceased to exist.

Standing behind Yujiro, Kakuzu and Hidan broke out in a cold sweat after witnessing the terrifying attack for the second time.

What would happen if that kind of power were directed at them?

As the dust gradually settled, all that remained before them was a vast expanse of rubble.

Hidan swallowed hard before staring at Yujiro in disbelief.

“You’re terrifyingly strong, aren’t you?”

He forced an uneasy smile.

“I’m Hidan. What’s your name?”

“Yujiro.”

Yujiro turned around with a faint smile.

“Yujiro…”

Hidan nodded slowly. For some reason, the name sounded incredibly familiar.

He was certain he had heard it only a few days ago.

“Hey, Kakuzu. Didn’t our leader mention that name two days ago? Someone from Konoha…”

Halfway through his sentence, Hidan’s expression suddenly froze.

“Yujiro?!”

His entire body began to tremble.

“Are you… Yujiro, the One-Sword Shura?!”

Yujiro merely smiled.

For a moment, the atmosphere became strangely tense.

Hidan and Kakuzu had come to the Land of Fire to gather information about Konoha.

Their primary target was none other than Yujiro, the man regarded as Konoha’s true leader.

Yet now, the very person they were supposed to investigate was standing directly in front of them.

Neither Hidan nor Kakuzu dared to make a careless move.

This was Yujiro.

The technique he had just used was more than enough to leave them completely shaken.

With a simple gesture, he had erased the enormous Fire Temple from existence.

That kind of power was far beyond anything the two of them could hope to confront.

Worse still, they both knew that gravity was only one of Yujiro’s abilities.

His true weapon was a sword.

If he drew it, the two of them might be killed before they could even react.

It would not matter how many hearts Kakuzu possessed or how difficult Hidan was to kill. Against Yujiro, neither of them was confident they could survive.

“Yujiro, you are indeed powerful.”

Kakuzu suppressed the fear rising within him and spoke in his usual cold voice.

“Seeing you reminds me of another powerful shinobi from Konoha whom I once fought.”

He paused before declaring solemnly,

“The First Hokage—Hashirama Senju.”

There was no better option now than to convince Yujiro that they were not opponents he could deal with casually.

Yujiro stared at Kakuzu in surprise.

Even in a situation like this, Kakuzu still had the nerve to bring up his supposed battle with Hashirama.

He truly was something else.

Mistaking Yujiro’s surprise for hesitation, Kakuzu continued with renewed confidence.

“When I fought the First Hokage, I came close to killing him.”

“You know who Hashirama Senju was, don’t you? He was the man capable of fighting Uchiha Madara as an equal—and even defeating him.”

Kakuzu lowered his gaze and released a regretful sigh.

“Unfortunately, he did not die by my hand. Even now, I consider that a great disappointment.”

Yujiro looked at Kakuzu’s sorrowful expression and nodded thoughtfully.

Kakuzu was telling such an outrageous story with a perfectly straight face that Yujiro almost wanted to believe him.

“There’s no need to be disappointed, Kakuzu.”

Yujiro’s expression became unusually serious.

“You may still have a chance to meet Hashirama someday.”

“When that happens, you can tell him the entire story yourself.”

“Ahem!”

Kakuzu immediately began coughing.

Meet Hashirama?

He would rather avoid that opportunity entirely.

“Kakuzu, why are you suddenly coughing?”

Hidan looked at his partner with genuine curiosity.

“Why have you never told me about this before?”

“I know a little about the First Hokage. He was incredibly powerful, especially with his Wood Release.”

Hidan’s eyes lit up with interest.

“Tell me, Kakuzu. How did you fight him?”

“You nearly killed the First Hokage? That must have been an incredible battle!”

Kakuzu felt as though his lungs might burst from anger.

Could Hidan truly not understand their situation?

He was trying to intimidate Yujiro. If this failed, both of them might die here.

“I’m curious as well, Kakuzu.”

Yujiro chuckled.

“I would also like to hear about your legendary battle with the First Hokage.”

“Ahem… Since you both insist, I suppose I can tell you a little about it.”

Left with no other choice, Kakuzu forced himself to continue.

What followed was an extraordinarily dramatic account of his alleged battle against Hashirama Senju.

According to Kakuzu’s version of events, the battle had shaken the heavens and split the earth. He had exchanged countless techniques with Hashirama, survived the First Hokage’s Wood Release, and nearly claimed victory several times.

By the end of the story, Kakuzu had portrayed his younger self as someone nearly equal to Uchiha Madara.

“Still, the First Hokage was undoubtedly a formidable opponent.”

Kakuzu sighed heavily, appearing lost in memories of a fierce battle that had never actually happened.

“After fighting him, even my own strength declined considerably.”

“Kakuzu, I never knew you were that powerful!”

Hidan had completely believed him.

Yujiro clicked his tongue.

Kakuzu had told the story so convincingly that it almost sounded real.

“But Kakuzu, why is your story different from the record I saw?”

Kakuzu stiffened.

“What?”

His eyes narrowed nervously.

“You saw a record? Where?”

He had invented nearly every detail of that battle on the spot.

Had Yujiro already seen through him?

“I’m from Konoha.”

Yujiro chuckled.

“Konoha has preserved many mission records involving the First Hokage.”

Kakuzu’s face rapidly turned red.

“Cough! Cough!”

“If I remember correctly, one of those records mentioned a jōnin from Takigakure who was ordered to assassinate the First Hokage.”

Yujiro touched his chin thoughtfully.

“However, the difference in strength was so overwhelming that the jōnin remained eight hundred miles away, threw a single shuriken at Hashirama, and immediately fled.”

Yujiro looked directly at Kakuzu.

“Tell me, Kakuzu. Who do you think that Takigakure jōnin was?”

Kakuzu’s face turned completely black.

It was over.

Yujiro had exposed everything.

Hidan studied Kakuzu’s face before tilting his head in confusion.

“Why does that jōnin sound exactly like you?”

Kakuzu nearly choked.

At that moment, he realized Hidan was far more dangerous as an ally than most enemies were.

“Hidan, stop talking and run!”

Kakuzu roared before kicking off the ground with all his strength.

There was no longer any point in pretending.

They had to escape.

Even Kakuzu knew better than to challenge Yujiro directly.

He abandoned Chiriku’s corpse without the slightest hesitation, despite the enormous bounty placed on the monk’s head.

Kakuzu loved money, but he could still distinguish between wealth and survival.

Lost money could always be earned again.

Once his life was gone, however, nothing could bring it back.

Even Hidan finally realized that Kakuzu’s earlier story had been nothing more than a desperate bluff. Neither of them stood a chance against Yujiro.

“Kakuzu! You could have warned me sooner!”

Hidan shouted angrily.

He had believed Kakuzu had some kind of plan.

With no other option, Hidan hurried after him, and the two Akatsuki members fled from the ruins of the Fire Temple.

Yujiro watched them run before leisurely taking a step in their direction.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

“Who said you two were allowed to leave?”

At the same moment, his Shock Force Field burst outward.