Chapter 31: The Price of a Mistake (Fourth Update, Silver Alliance Bonus)
Hozuki Zangetsu was absolutely a ruthless man. Back when he attempted to assassinate Terumi Mei, if her Boil Release hadn't perfectly countered his Steam Implosion, she would have died long ago.
The child clone's body rapidly expanded, quickly becoming a five-meter-tall fat man. It was unclear how Hozuki Zangetsu had skipped the step of accumulating heat.
"Mist Concealment..."
*Zii~*
A crisp sound of wire being pulled came. A cyan metal wire was pulled up from the muddy water. Seeing this metal wire, Hozuki Zangetsu instinctively felt something was wrong.
Hozuki Zangetsu's premonition was correct. Just as he was about to liquefy, a metal wire had already wrapped around his leg, and blood sprayed out.
The Realm Severing Thread severed Hozuki Zangetsu's leg. Water mixed with blood splattered. Hozuki Zangetsu successfully liquefied, avoiding having his calf severed, but a stream of blue energy took the opportunity to invade his body. It was Cyan Steel Shadow Energy.
Hozuki Zangetsu immediately sensed a foreign energy invading his body. However, the threat from this energy wasn't great. It was attempting to erode his chakra, but it wouldn't reduce his chakra reserves in a short time.
Sensing this, Hozuki Zangetsu tried to use his chakra to expel the energy from his body. Unfortunately, although this energy 'didn't have strong destructive power,' it was extremely stubborn. It eroded his chakra at a slow pace, causing a dull ache inside him.
After understanding the characteristics of this foreign energy, Hozuki Zangetsu breathed a sigh of relief. Although it was a troublesome energy that could gradually reduce his chakra reserves, it posed no immediate threat.
Was that really the case? Of course not. Su Xiao was suppressing the eruption of the Cyan Steel Shadow Energy, and from a long distance at that. To suppress the energy to the maximum extent, he couldn't even move right now. He was waiting, waiting for an opportunity.
Hozuki Zangetsu glanced at the child clone form of Steam Implosion. The Steam Implosion could explode at any moment. He then looked at Su Xiao, who was encased in a 'crystal ball.' Two steam explosions couldn't kill Su Xiao, but if several explosions occurred in succession, the high temperature inside the crystal ball would be enough to kill him.
"Mist Concealment Technique."
Hozuki Zangetsu formed hand seals. Just as he was about to detonate the Steam Implosion, his heartbeat suddenly skipped a beat, as if some crisis was imminent.
"..."
After about a second of silence, Hozuki Zangetsu no longer hesitated. He had learned from the Kazekage that Su Xiao's close-combat ability was enough to kill the Raikage. This made him realize one thing: if Su Xiao got close without him having any defensive measures, he would die for sure. He couldn't give the opponent even a moment to breathe. Once Su Xiao got close, his death was basically a foregone conclusion.
Using Steam Implosion three times in a row meant Hozuki Zangetsu would be eroded by high heat three times while in a watery state. Although he would burrow into the mud when liquefying, he would still be eroded by the high temperature.
The high temperature put a strain on his body. It wasn't just a matter of injury; it would shorten his lifespan. Hozuki Zangetsu, who looked about 40 years old, was actually only 29. Although his Steam Implosion was powerful, he didn't dare use it recklessly.
"Explode!"
Hozuki Zangetsu made up his mind. If he couldn't kill Su Xiao now, then he himself would surely die.
The five-meter-tall child clone rapidly expanded. The surrounding Mist Concealment Technique made the clone appear hazy.
*Boom!* Steam explosion!
The moment the Steam Implosion exploded, Hozuki Zangetsu immediately liquefied. But at that moment, a numbing sensation spread throughout his body.
The Cyan Steel Shadow Energy, which Su Xiao had been suppressing for several seconds, erupted. It instantly eroded a large amount of chakra within Hozuki Zangetsu's body. The eruption of up to 328 points of True Damage, along with the sudden, intense pain, nearly caused Hozuki Zangetsu to lose consciousness.
*Boom!*
Another explosion sounded. Hozuki Zangetsu was directly blasted into the air.
"I've been... set up..."
Hozuki Zangetsu only had time to liquefy his head and neck. Scorching steam enveloped him. His skin was instantly burned to a purplish-black, and the muscles beneath rapidly necrotized. This wasn't a scald; it was a burn.
During the fight with Hozuki Zangetsu, Su Xiao hadn't just been passively taking a beating. When he first got close to Hozuki Zangetsu and was blasted away by the bubbles around him, he took the opportunity to drop a very small alchemy bomb near his opponent. It was a spider-shaped alchemy bomb. The moment Su Xiao was sent flying, the spider alchemy bomb had already burrowed into the mud near Hozuki Zangetsu, waiting for its chance.
During the first Steam Implosion explosion, Su Xiao had shot out the Realm Severing Thread. While defending against the explosion, he hid underground. From that angle, he pulled the Realm Severing Thread, successfully embedding it in the mud and hiding it.
Was the key to fighting Hozuki Zangetsu to counter Steam Implosion? Don't be ridiculous. This was a technique Hozuki Zangetsu had spent who knows how many years developing. Unless he himself revealed a clue, it would be very difficult to counter. Hozuki Zangetsu would have considered various scenarios while perfecting Steam Implosion. Su Xiao had only been fighting Hozuki Zangetsu for about five minutes.
Using five minutes to counter a technique someone had developed for ten years wasn't genius; it was cheating.
So, from the very beginning, Su Xiao didn't think about countering Steam Implosion. Instead, he focused his target on Hozuki Zangetsu himself. Once Hozuki Zangetsu died, Steam Implosion would collapse on its own.
Steam at a full 800 degrees Celsius spread through the forest. This temperature couldn't be maintained for long.
After a few seconds, the temperature of the steam dropped to around 100 degrees Celsius. Under normal circumstances, Hozuki Zangetsu would cast a technique to gather this steam, preparing for the next explosion.
But Hozuki Zangetsu didn't do that. The steam drifted into the sky, and he never cast a technique to gather it.
As the steam gradually thinned, a 'crystal ball' appeared on the ground. From a distance, it really did look like a crystal ball, but up close, it was revealed to be two layers of energy shields enveloping a layer of counter shield.
The energy shields dissipated, and the counter shield expanded outward, a wave of hot air rising from within it.
Su Xiao, his clothes soaked with sweat, stood up. On his cheeks and neck, traces of burns were faintly visible, but the area was very small.
A cold wind blew, clearing Su Xiao's heat-dazed mind a little.
"Damn it."
Su Xiao exhaled a mouthful of hot air. He had come to kill Terumi Mei, but her guard was actually stronger than the Mizukage herself.
The steam rose high into the sky, like a pillar of white mist shooting upward.
The alternation of hot and cold caused hail to fall from the sky.
Su Xiao walked towards Hozuki Zangetsu, taking out a bottle of No. 1 Potion. He drank half of it and poured the remaining half onto his fingers, applying it to the burns on his face and neck.
"As expected of... my... cellmate."
A weak voice came from within the hazy steam.
"When did you... see through Steam Implosion... and come up with a counter-strategy so quickly? That's not something you can do with just on-the-spot improvisation."
Hozuki Zangetsu's voice was intermittent. Without looking, it was clear he didn't have long to live. To endure Steam Implosion without any defense... If Hozuki Zangetsu didn't die, would Su Xiao have been so battered by Steam Implosion?
"It's just a difference in information."
Su Xiao walked up, decisively slit his throat, and picked up a treasure chest on the ground. He needed to quickly go support Bubu Wang and Amu.
Just then, a message came from Bubu Wang. The content was simple.
"Master, hurry! Terumi Mei is trying to escape after seeing that steam pillar!"
Upon receiving this news, Su Xiao rushed at full speed towards the battlefield where Bubu Wang and Amu were. That woman, Terumi Mei, was still as cunning as ever, just like when she had tried to use Su Xiao before.