Chapter 322 - Cap 300: Am I cursed?

"If you think it will be that easy, then you are so wrong" - said Kakuzu with neutrality as his body began to become blurred, only to disappear from the scene, just to open his eyes like plates when he saw a new Kimimaro appear in front of him.

"Do you really think I just invoked one clone?" - Kimimaro asked neutrally as he accelerated at full speed.

". . ." - Kakuzu only gritted his teeth as he felt his heart being pierced by sharp bone swords - "Ugh... if I was a normal human, that would have killed me..."

Kimimaro quickly retreated because he felt the change in pressure of the place, only to see how countless attacks had come to his former position - "Tch, you slippery bastard..."

"Tessenka no Mai: Hana no Arashi..." - Kimimaro muttered as he squinted, only to disappear from the scene.

"Think... there must be a clue that indicates when he is going to attack..." - thought Kakuzu while he narrowed his eyes because he knew that attacking everything around him would be counterproductive, more so with the massive consumption of Chakra for using so many techniques.

"Fuyu (Winter)" - Kimimaro's voice was heard as two Kimimaro's appeared behind the red mask and gave him a quick "X" cut.

"Raiton: Raiga!" - roared Kakuzu in fury as he felt his connection with his second heart be lost, only to smile as he watched his electric attack hit his opponent, but the smile disappeared along with the two targets - "Clones?!"

"Tessenka no Mai: Hana no Arashi - Oshiru (Autumn)" - Kimimaro attacked with great speed and precision to the celestial mask. Three clones pierced the extremities and thorax of the biped monster with a beak while the last one appeared from above and pierced the 'skull' of its victim - "This is the third... there are two left..."

"!" - Kakuzu could only open his eyes in surprise when he saw how easily Orochimaru's former subordinate was putting him on the spot.

"You may be immortal thanks to Edo Tensei..." - said Kimimaro as he appeared in front of Kakuzu from a safe distance - "But at the same time you are the perfect target to test my techniques Tessenka no Mai: Hana no Arashi - Haru (Spring)..."

Kimimaro quickly disappeared, only to reappear along with 7 clones who ran to where his target was.

"I'm not going to be a f.u.c.k.i.n.g static target!" - roared Kakuzu fiercely as he had his remaining masks bombard the clones with Jutsus Raiton and Futon - "Raiton: Raiga! Futon: Atsugai!"

But his expression changed to one full of terror when he noticed that it was not 7 clones that his opponent had invoked, but 21 - "Shit!"

"Too late..." - Kimimaro murmured as his original body appeared behind Kakuzu and a flower-shaped mark appeared on his c.h.e.s.t and masks - "Sakura no Arashi (Cherry Blossom Storm)"

Kimimaro's clones became illusory shadows as they accelerated to the limit of what was humanly possible.

Kakuzu could see only small blurry spots, only to open his eyes in terror as he heard his masks slowly begin to crack.

"How?!" - exclaimed Kakuzu as he roared in pain.

Kimimaro did not explain his technique to him because honestly it was counterproductive, although it was easy to understand. He would first mark his target and then his clones would speed up as much as they could so that they could hit as many strikes as possible in 1 second, the current number being 50 strikes.

Kimimaro carefully watched his opponent who was now on the ground completely immobile.

"B-Bastard!" - roared Kakuzu in fury because he had lost the full mobility of his body due to the fact that he now had no heart, although he could assure you that his true heart was slowly regenerating - "I'm going to kill you and rip out your heart when I recover!"

"I'm sorry... but there won't be a chance for that to happen" - answered Kimimaro while looking neutrally at his opponent - "I was just trying out my new techniques on you, and now I'm only missing my latest technique... one that I sincerely believe you will find pleasurable... Tessenka no Mai: Kisei Hana (Parasite Flower)"

"!" - Kakuzu opened his eyes in surprise as he felt the hand of the Kaguya clansman, only to notice how countless bones appeared all over his body, tearing him apart internally with every passing second - "What was that?"

Kisei Hana, a technique that Kimimaro had developed during the last year of training. The goal was simple, implant one of his bones inside the target's body and grow it with the victim's chakra in order to cause massive internal damage.

"It was a success... although it consumed more chakra than I thought..." - mumbled Kimimaro as he frowned because he could still feel the connection to the bone - "Well, I guess that's it..."

Kimimaro quickly took out the scroll Jiraiya had given him and placed it on his opponent's forehead now that he had finally finished testing all his techniques, only to see it disappear leaving the sacrifice alone.

* * * [Itachi vs Hidan] * * *

"Normally I would put up with all your talk about your shitty god... but I have some things to do, and I don't have much time to waste..." - said Itachi with neutrality while his Doujutsu shone with malice.

"Those eyes..." - said Hidan in surprise when he saw the new pattern in his former colleague's eyes.

"This is not the ordinary Mangekyo Sharingan I had before," said Itachi as he looked at the Mad Monk coolly, "But it is the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, its ultimate evolution, one that can only occur when an Uchiha transplants his eyes with those of another Uchiha with whom he has a strong bond of blood and affection...".

The Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan not only cancelled the negative effect of the loss of sight, but also combined and enhanced all the techniques of the Sharingan of the two users.

"Anyway, it is time for me to stop talking" - said Itachi while shaking his head - "It is time for me to show you the new skill we acquired and practiced with my younger brother..."

Hidan quickly put himself on guard as he prepared for all that might come his way, only to open his eyes in surprise as the black flames of Amaterasu began to surround his body - "Enton: Akuma no Te (Blaze Release: Demonic Hand)"

The shape of the flames quickly changed, taking on the appearance of a huge black claw that trapped Hidan.

"Impossible!" - exclaimed Hidan because he could not believe how easily he had been captured.

"It's because you were in my Genjutsu from the very beginning," replied Itachi as his eyes were neutral. "The worst thing you did was to look Uchiha in the eye, but it's too late now..."

Itachi had created a simple Genjutsu, one that made Hidan see everything with a few seconds delay, although this advantage was more than enough for someone like Itachi who didn't miss the slightest opportunity.

"It was a p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e to see an old companion again... a pity that your stay in the world of the living was so short..." - said Itachi as he snapped his fingers - "Now... Yakedo(Burn)..."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" - Hidan's cry of pain echoed through the place as he was consumed by the flames of Amaterasu - "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Interesting... you keep your senses despite being someone revived by Edo Tensei..." - said Itachi with curiosity - "Is it because of Jashin's curse?"

Hidan's cries became louder and louder as he felt his body burn and regenerate at enormous speed, making his newly regenerated flesh more susceptible to pain - "Kill me! Kill meeeeeeeeeeee!

"You are already dead, Hidan" - replied Itachi neutrally as he watched his opponent's despair - "You are only back on the simple whim of Uchiha Obito..."

"Free me!" - roared Hidan in despair and pain - "End this suffering!!!!!"

". . ." - Itachi closed his eyes for a few seconds while he frowned because he was not one of those people who liked to see his opponents suffer, but gave them a quick death. He quickly appeared in front of Hidan and looked at him carefully, only to put the scroll on his forehead and see it disappear along with the corpse that had been used as a sacrifice because it was still in the flames of Amaterasu.

Itachi was silent for a few seconds before he felt his eyes burn a little after using his new technique, only to frown as he noticed the enormous amount of chakra that the Jutsu of his new Sharingan needed to be activated - "I guess I'll have to practice more in order to perfect my control over these techniques...

He may be a prodigy, but that didn't mean he had to skip the basics.

"I see you're done" - said Kisame only to watch in surprise as Kimimaro appeared - "I guess there's only Jiraiya left"

". . ." - Kimimaro just kept silent before nodding and watching the Sannin fight.

"Tch, now there are two Itachi," Kisame muttered as he sighed, "Am I cursed to have partners who have the communication level of an ice cube?"