Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: ?
Chapter Title: The Ibuki Clan's Fatal Weakness
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The Ibuki Clan's unique Kekkei Genkai allows them to transform their bodies into smoke.
It's somewhat like the Hozuki Clan's Hydrification Technique, granting near immunity to physical damage.
However, the Ibuki Clan's Kekkei Genkai has a fatal flaw: they cannot freely control their bodies once mistified. The moment they're caught in the wind, they dissipate completely and die.
As a result, the entire clan can only survive in the windless underground world, enduring a dark, sunless existence plagued by scarce resources.
Back then, after Orochimaru saved their clan, he implanted curse marks to allow them barely enough control over their mistification ability, extending the clan's lifespan in the process.
But in exchange, Orochimaru took away the Ibuki Clan's children, promising that through experimenting on them, he would unravel the clan's secrets completely and enable them to live under the sun.
In the end, though, all those children perished in Orochimaru's live experiments.
"Who the hell are you?!"
As the clan leader, Gota stepped forward. His burly frame shielded his clansmen as he glared furiously at the intruder.
The voice from beneath Yamato's mask was low and grave.
"He's the mysterious ninja who's recently been making waves across the shinobi world! Code name 'Asura'—his strength is unfathomable!"
"No matter how strong you are, I won't let you slander Lord Orochimaru!"
Gota bellowed, transforming into a cloud of smoke and charging ahead.
The other Ibuki clansmen followed suit, one after another turning into smoke. In an instant, the entire underground space was shrouded in a thick mist.
"Jeweled Celestial Maiden."
Menma called softly.
A "woman" drifted out from the dim tunnel, positioning herself protectively in front of Menma. She whipped the ribbons in her hands like a raging tornado, whipping up a fierce gale that tore through the underground chamber and slammed into the Ibuki Clan's smoke forms.
The blast scattered most of the smoke at once, sending the terrified Ibuki clansmen reeling backward in panic.
"You damn bastard!"
Gota's smoke form lunged toward the mysterious "female ninja," attempting to deploy the Smoke Inhalation Technique.
This was the Ibuki Clan's secret technique: transforming into smoke and infiltrating the enemy's body through their mouth or nose to scorch their internal organs with choking fumes.
Any ninja unfamiliar with the Ibuki Clan's traits would likely fall to this move.
Even when Kakashi had tracked them here, Gota had subdued him with the Smoke Inhalation Technique. If Yamato hadn't shown up to save him, Kakashi would've been crippled at best—or dead at worst.
But after circling the Jeweled Celestial Maiden, Gota was stunned to find no entry point into her body.
The opponent had no mouth or nostrils to slip into at all!
"How is that possible?!"
Gota, locked in smoke form, was utterly shocked.
Without their greatest secret weapon—and lacking any systematic ninja training—Gota and the Ibuki Clan's combat prowess was pitifully weak.
"Wind Release..."
Menma's hands poised as if to form seals.
The moment he heard "Wind Release," Gota jolted in alarm and immediately drifted backward, putting distance between them.
But by the time he rejoined his clansmen, he realized the mysterious foe hadn't unleashed any Wind Release ninjutsu at all—his hands were simply frozen in position.
Tricked by the feint, Gota dropped his smoke form. His pupils trembled.
This guy seemed to know their clan inside and out!
"Wood Release: Silent Binding Technique!"
Yamato struck as well. As his hands completed their seals, a diamond-shaped stake erupted from the ground, extending endlessly toward the airborne Jeweled Celestial Maiden amid the raging winds.
Whoosh—
Whoosh—whoosh—
Yet several wind blades sliced out from behind Menma, shredding the serpentine wood into chunks.
Yamato sensed the chakra fueling his Wood Release: Silent Binding Technique being drained away. Shocked, he turned toward yet another mysterious masked figure drifting out from behind the masked man—this one wielding a scythe!
Can it absorb chakra?!
Yamato sensed trouble. Wood Release's defining trait was its ability to latch on and siphon enemy chakra for growth—that's what let it counter tailed beasts, renowned for their vast chakra reserves!
But now, a mysterious ninja capable of the same absorption had appeared!