48 Chapter 48 : Two More Down

"Crap." Kenji muttered to himself. Between the layers of smoke and dust, he felt the presence of countless puppets. The army. Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets. It wasn't the individual puppets that scared Kenji. Just the sheer number of pieces Sasori could play was bad enough. Kenji often listened in on other Akatsuki during his stay with them. From what he knew about the puppet technique, Sasori was on a whole other level. No time lag between the ordering of puppets, not to mention he was controlling 100 of them.

Before Kenji could even move, screams filled the air. Team one knew what to do. They all placed hands on Kenji's shoulders as he whisked them away. Kenji had to admit, working with this team was enjoyable. Along with Kakashi, these jonin were something else.

Kenji placed markers along all the captains, so it wasn't hard to deploy himself into the action. When Team one came out of nowhere, a member of team three was punctured between the chest, sent flying past them. Kenji didn't flinch. He chose not to feel empathy anymore, even for his own comrades. He couldn't afford to in his messed up mind.

"Captain, what should we do?!?!"

Kenji felt his way around. Nine including him were still standing. What could they do in this situation......wait! Kenji felt the sensation on his head. Rain. He smirked. The timing couldn't have been better.

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A flash. If one looked upon this battlefield from the sky, only a yellow blur could be seen. Streaking back and forth. Cutting down man after man...after man. No one could catch him. This blur continued to ravage its enemies until the sun cowered below the trees. Yagura, for some reason, just watched. That streak kept its eyes on the Mizukage in confusion.

As crickets sang under the stars, that blur stopped. In the middle of the warzone, a man stood. His once white robe was painted red. His blonde hair was a mud color. His skin tried its best to peak through the red, it was unsuccessful. The only remaining color that didn't change, was the eyes. Those glossy blue diamonds. That color was still in there. But deeper, peering deeper into those oceans, its revealed that that blue color didn't change, but the way they danced in the blur's head did. Kenji would understand this look. The look of killing thousands at once. That blur was experienced in that field, but it never got easier. As that yellow blur turned red, many soldiers lost their will despite being forced to fight. Out of chakra and out of breath, three thousand men laid at the feet of that blur's feet. The blood of those souls dirtied him. The remaining troops stood in fright. Legs trembled. Mouths left open. Everyone could hear the souls of the surrounding victims leaving their bodies. Not a patch of green grass remained. It looked like a red river. Screams of agony, those just waiting to perish, unable to achieve anymore in this world littered the ground next to dead comrades. This....THIS WAS HELL ON EARTH! All eyes were on that man in the middle of it all. His back turned, blood dripping from head to toe. Minato Namikaze, the yellow flash. Right now, from his enemies perspective, he was Minato Namikaze, The devil.

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"Everyone hold them off. I need to prepare!" Kenji yelled at his force.

They looked uneasy, but they put their faith in him anyway. This kid had to have something up his sleeve.

The rain picked up.

Kenji focused his mind. His chakra. This needed his undivided attention. Precision was a must. He didn't want to kill his entire team. Kenji couldn't see the clouds in the sky, so Guy stayed by his side, protecting him and watching the space above.

"Kenji! What am I looking for?" Guy raced his eyes across the sky, blocking puppets left and right.

"It'll look like a funnel in the clouds after they gather." Kenji knelt down going through signs.

Two more ninja went down. One by one. Sasori paid no attention to the sky, he couldn't figure out what Kenji was going for.

This was Kenji's first attempt at this jutsu in a fight. He and Sasuke discussed it years ago and Kenji had finally gotten somewhere with it. He assumed Sasuke had mastered it by now as well. It was 'their' jutsu. The one that symbolized their friendship. It was special.

"Kenji! Now!" Guy yelled.

"Everyone move!" Kenji flexed his arms into the jutsu. The exhaustion of the chakra drain was substantial.

He muttered, "Kirin."

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Tsunade could hear the screams. She swore the scent of blood couldn't escape her nostrils. An important operation to take back their people was underway, but she couldn't even worry about it. Because on the other side of the woods, the Hokage was fighting a war by himself. She couldn't even tend to her patients. She let that matter to Shizune. Tsunade sat in thought along a tree. She thought this was far enough.

"Shizune, I think we're good here." Tsunade didn't move her head.

"Are you going?" She asked.

"Yes."

Shizune thought for a moment. She gazed at both sides of herself. "Which one are you going to?"

Tsunade answered with frustration. "I haven't decided yet."

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Every ninja here was exhausted. Minato was reduced to one knee. His vision was hazy. He had never pushed himself this far. He realized he was elevated a little bit. But there was never a hill where he stood. When he lowered his head, he finally realized what he was doing. The leader of the Hidden leaf was standing on a hill of dead bodies ten feet high.

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"Sasori, you finally showed yourself!" Kenji yelled over the whirling of the storm.

Kenji didn't waste time. The Hidden mist jutsu was overtaking the area now. His domain. His happiness.

Sasori panicked. He knew what was about to happen. He never showed it, but even he feared the inevitable defeat in the fog. He glanced around, trying to concentrate, but he didn't see Kenji. He did feel something though. When he turned, a barrage of Kunai and bombs were already in his face. Wait! This was the distraction. Sasori flipped his head to the back. He saw those white eyes. But not the ones he thought. A regular byakugan raced across his vision. That surprise was all Kenji's distant cousin needed. A gentle fist punched the slave seal right out of Sasori's head. THIS was all Kenji needed. Time for another new one.

Kenji raced at the other side of Sasori. In his idle gaze from the loss of the seal, this was a breeze. Sasori's eyes were just in time to catch the other gaze at his side. He could only use one word. Fear. That was all he felt. Something about the swirl in the white glow. Kenji placed his hand on Sasori's chest. He loved the possibilities of the thunder god, so Kenji elaborated on it. Fifty markers rushed across Sasori's body. Kenji's sword popped from its sheath. Sasori didn't see a thing, nor had the time to react. The next instant, Kenji teleported the tip of his blade to each of the markers.

Death by a thousand cuts is what he called it. Instantly, a thousand deep cuts across the body would commence. The Flying Thunder God wasn't limited to just the body. Kenji took advantage of that. The chakra drain was enormous though. Sasori took both of his finishers at the moment to die. Kenji respected the puppet master for that. When the fog flew away, Kenji's allies didn't know what to think. Sasori was a pile of dust on the ground.

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