"That person you're talking about isn't me."

"That's right—it's you! Do you know how long we've waited for you? Almost half a year!" Hidan admitted casually.

Now that the kid had shown up in their sights, there was no way he could escape. That confidence came from the strength of both Hidan and Kakuzu.

"Hidan, shut up. You talk too much," Kakuzu snapped coldly.

"Tsk." Hidan clicked his tongue indifferently, but his eyes stayed on Kaito.

"What? You think you two can take me?" Kaito smirked as he picked up the noodles just delivered and ate them without a care, completely ignoring the two hunters glaring at him.

No, not hunters—wild animals.

"You're pretty arrogant. Not planning to run?" Kakuzu narrowed his eyes, the green glow in them intensifying.

"Have you ever seen a tiger worry about the stares of a couple of jackals?" Kaito replied flatly.

"You've got a death wish!" Hidan snapped. He raised his massive three-bladed scythe and lunged straight at Kaito's face.

The weapon sliced through the air with a sharp whistle, its deadly edge gleaming.

Kakuzu stayed still, watching with mild interest.

Kaito didn't flinch. His muscles tensed like steel. He extended two fingers and calmly clamped the tip of Hidan's scythe mid-swing.

With a mocking grin, he said, "That's it? When did Akatsuki start accepting trash?"

"You bastard!" Hidan growled and pulled hard, trying to yank his weapon free—but no matter how hard he tried, Kaito's fingers held it like a steel trap.

His expression twisted in frustration and disbelief.

"Need help?" Kaito smirked and let go.

Because of the force he'd used, Hidan stumbled backward several steps, barely managing to stay upright.

"You little—!" Hidan's face turned red with fury. He gripped his scythe, ready to strike again—but Kaito vanished with a flicker.

A calm voice echoed through the air.

[It's not convenient here. I'll wait for you in the forest ahead.]

Hidan and Kakuzu exchanged glances and darted toward the woods without hesitation.

. . .

In the forest, high atop a tree branch, Kaito reviewed what he remembered about the so-called immortal duo from the original timeline.

Hidan was easy. As long as you didn't let him draw blood for his ritual, he was basically useless.

Thanks to his elemental affinity, Kaito had a natural advantage over Hidan. And now, with his current power level, defeating him would be no challenge at all.

As for Kakuzu? Other than his five hearts, he was manageable. This was going to be a one-sided fight.

What truly puzzled Kaito was the bounty. Who put a hundred million ryō on his head?

That kind of money narrowed it down. The smaller villages couldn't afford it. Among the Five Great Nations, Sunagakure was unlikely, which left three possible suspects.

While he was deep in thought, two figures entered his vision—Hidan and Kakuzu.

Hidan raised his scythe and shouted, "Kakuzu! Don't interfere. I'll handle this myself!"

He charged at Kaito with confidence.

"Idiot," Kaito muttered.

In an instant, Kaito vanished from the treetop and appeared behind Hidan.

He whipped his leg forward and slammed a powerful kick into Hidan's back.

Crack! Cough!

The force made Hidan cough blood, and a sharp crack echoed through the woods as bones gave way.

He flew through the forest like a broken arrow, smashing through tree after tree before crashing to the ground in a heap.

The power gap between them was enormous. Without his ritual technique, Hidan wouldn't even qualify to join Akatsuki.

Kaito appeared in front of him again, his expression cold.

Hidan was a mess, blood dripping from his mouth, pain etched into every part of his face. His back was clearly broken—he could hardly move.

Kaito grabbed him by the throat with one hand and lifted him. With the other, he summoned lightning.

A sword of white thunder crackled to life in Kaito's palm.

This was no ordinary lightning. After mastering Sage Mode and gaining a Sage Body, Kaito's lightning abilities had evolved—his usual red lightning had become pure white.

The voltage had also increased, from 300 million volts to 500 million volts.

He wasn't even going all out. This was his casual output.

To put it in perspective, the human body's safe limit was around 36 volts. Kaito was confident that very few could survive a direct hit from his white lightning.

And Hidan was not one of them.

Kakuzu remained still in the distance. As far as he was concerned, Hidan was immortal—whatever damage he took could be fixed later.

Besides, Hidan didn't ask for help. So why bother?

The sword in Kaito's hand glowed like a beam of pure energy. Lightning arced violently from its edge.

Hidan started to look nervous.

Before he could cry out, Kaito hurled him into the air.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

With blinding speed, Kaito slashed the air, sending streaks of white lightning crashing into Hidan's airborne body.

Strike after strike tore into him, frying his flesh and filling the air with the scent of charred meat.

Seconds later, Kaito stood calmly, sword in hand, as Hidan's scorched body dropped to the ground.

---

Well, no bonus Chapters for you.

Have fun with 2 chapters (⁠ب⁠_⁠ب⁠)