chapter 108 part 3
There was no helping it; the plasticity of Impure World Reincarnation was simply too strong. And he wouldn't die himself. As long as he broke free from the caster's control and didn't go crazy enough to tamper with his own soul, he could do whatever he wanted with it.
As time passed, most of the zombies had already turned to ash, and Tsukasa Kaede's resurrection ritual gradually entered its final stage.
At first glance, Tsukasa Kaede was actually infinitely close to being a living human, with only the last few corner areas not yet completely covered by life force.
"Hmm?"
Tsukasa Kaede had a faint premonition. Even without relying on zombies as eyes, relying solely on his main body, his sensory ability had greatly improved.
Hidden Sand Village ninja were approaching in this direction.
"People from Sunagakure... They still haven't given up. Their perseverance is quite good. They actually managed to find me."
Tsukasa Kaede closed his eyes to perceive, then immediately opened them, a ripple of emotion appearing. "This feeling... even that guy has made a move."
The other party had clearly discovered Tsukasa Kaede, was accelerating their approach, and had released a flare into the air to transmit intel to other ninja.
"I've found you, Tsukasa Kaede-dono. This is our first meeting. Considering you are currently engaged in a special operation, perhaps it will be our last."
An old monk holding prayer beads, his face filled with bitterness, seemed to wish he hadn't actually found Tsukasa Kaede. "A ninja like you, why insist on carrying out operations in a place like the Land of Wind? Although I don't know why you chose Sasori of the Red Sand, even if you wanted to train him to be a second Hidan, you could have just taken him and left. Why did you remain in the Land of Wind?"
Bunpuku was born during the reign of the Second Kazekage. He became the One-Tails Jinchuriki right after he was born. Over the years, apart from war, he had mostly been kept in captivity to prevent the One-Tails from going berserk.
Bunpuku believed that there was no difference between humans and Tailed Beasts, and that they could understand each other's hearts.
In the original timeline, when he was close to death, the One-Tails praised Bunpuku for his "pure quality, much like the Sage of Kaedex Paths."
Of course, currently, Bunpuku had not yet achieved true understanding with the One-Tails, but compared to other jinchuriki, their relationship had indeed greatly softened.
"A One-Tails Jinchuriki. The Hidden Sand Village is really willing to sacrifice. If you were to lose control here, the Hidden Sand Village would probably be heartbroken," Tsukasa Kaede said calmly, without turning his head.
Bunpuku clasped his hands together. "As far as I know, you don't have the ability to fight a Tailed Beast. The power of Corpse Release is well-suited for battlefields, unless you bring your disciple."
"No need to probe. To deal with you, I don't need to use Hidan," Tsukasa Kaede said.
Bunpuku scrutinized Tsukasa Kaede. From his physical form alone, there was nothing particularly special, not like the strange appearance Chiyo had described.
But Chiyo couldn't be lying. This meant Tsukasa Kaede had accomplished something crucial during this time.
"So that's how it is. You are enveloped in such potent life force. Are you resurrecting using the Living Corpse Reincarnation Jutsu? It seems it's not yet complete."
Bunpuku glanced at the ground, his expression growing even more sorrowful.
A thick layer of dust had already accumulated, covering the yellow sand. Heaven knows how many zombies were consumed here!
Even the zombies currently continuously performing jutsu still numbered several hundred. So at the very beginning, how many zombies were gathered here was completely unimaginable!
Such an astonishing number, if unleashed to invade the numerous towns in the Land of Wind, the destruction caused would be incalculable.
But Tsukasa Kaede didn't do that. Instead, he used this massive corpse horde to perform the Living Corpse Reincarnation Jutsu to resurrect himself!
"It seems your ritual is entering its final stage. Then my act of stalling for reinforcements is meaningless. I must attack you now... Forgive my intrusion."
A layer of red chakra suddenly surged from Bunpuku's body. This chakra immediately coalesced into a claw, which snatched directly at Tsukasa Kaede's back.
No matter how overconfident Bunpuku was, he wouldn't easily rush into close-quarters combat. Fully utilizing the power of the Tailed Beast to launch a long-range attack was undoubtedly the best option.
"Ya ha ha ha ha ha, Baldo, watch this carefully! I can kill him in an instant!"
"Be careful. His disciple once killed the Four-Tails. No one can guarantee whether he has mastered the same jutsu."
"Hmph, it was clearly done by killing the jinchuriki! Who told that monkey to be careless and not protect its vessel? It deserved to die, it'll serve it right and give it a chance to calm down." The One-Tails snorted coldly.
The same mistake it wouldn't make again. It was rare to encounter a submissive vessel. Who knew what a new vessel would be like if it were replaced?
Just as the red claw was about to seize Tsukasa Kaede, drag him out of the corpse horde, and interrupt the ritual.
*Swoosh!* Suddenly, a hand reached out, blocking the red claw.
"This is?"
"What kind of jutsu is this?"
Both the One-Tails and Bunpuku were startled.
Because what blocked their attack was not the anticipated zombies. Tsukasa Kaede also hadn't used space-time ninjutsu to change his position. Instead, he stood rooted to the spot, blocking it with his own body.
From beginning to end, he had his back to Bunpuku. Naturally, the hand that blocked the red claw had also forcibly pierced through Tsukasa Kaede's broad robe from his back and emerged.
But from such a location, how could an arm suddenly appear?
"Three arms? No, it doesn't seem that simple. This must be the real reason he consumed so many zombies."
Bunpuku lifted his eyelids, staring directly at Tsukasa Kaede's back.
As his robe fell away, Tsukasa Kaede's back came into Bunpuku and the One-Tails' view.
They saw with their own eyes an arm growing from Tsukasa Kaede's back, perfectly natural. This alone would have been one thing; although adding an organ was somewhat abnormal, it was still barely understandable.
What was truly terrifying was that on Tsukasa Kaede's back, there was also a face slowly protruding!
Like the sound of cloth being stretched, a faint creaking sound was heard. This face had its eyes tightly closed, swaying slightly left and right, slowly exerting itself to protrude as much as possible, gradually becoming more three-dimensional.
Under Bunpuku's dumbfounded gaze.
After this face protruded, it slowly opened its eyes. They were incredibly cold eyes, filled with a bloody red hue, and three tomoe slowly rotated.
"You are very fortunate to witness a glimpse of my entirely new body," Tsukasa Kaede said without turning his head.
(end of chapter)