Chapter 169 : Orochimaru’s Curse Seal
Samui looked at Riku, her voice tinged with worry. "Are you okay?"
She now understood that if she wanted to defeat Akita, she couldn’t do it without Riku’s help. She wasn’t familiar with the terrain here, and she lacked the Water Style ninjutsu necessary to counter Akita’s techniques.
Her only choice was to rely on Riku to block Akita’s jutsu—otherwise, they were sure to lose.
Riku met her gaze and replied calmly, "I’m fine. Be careful—his strength isn’t weak."
Samui nodded. "You block his jutsu. I’ll go in for the finishing blow."
Samui wasn’t proficient in ninjutsu—her specialty lay in kenjutsu—so Riku had to be the one to defend against Akita’s attacks.
In most circumstances, Samui’s strength surpassed Akita’s. But on this island, Akita was heavily empowered. His Water Style techniques were enhanced by the local terrain, and he had an intimate familiarity with the battlefield. As a result, Samui had taken a beating during their earlier clash.
After a brief exchange of strategy, they both turned toward Akita.
Akita eyed Riku warily. Riku’s ninjutsu was refined and precise. If they were competing purely in terms of Water Style, Akita wouldn’t stand a chance.
Samui, on the other hand, lacked versatility in ninjutsu. Her swordsmanship was excellent, but as long as Akita didn’t give her a chance to close the distance, she could be ignored.
Right now, Riku was clearly the bigger threat.
After a brief internal analysis, Akita shifted his full attention to Riku.
"You forced my hand," he growled.
Akita gritted his teeth and began forming hand seals.
"Curse Mark: Release!"
Suddenly, three tomoe-like markings flared into existence on his back.
From there, countless black runes spread rapidly across his body.
His form began to change—twisting, mutating into something monstrous.
Activating the Curse Mark would shorten his lifespan, but he had no choice. It would grant him a massive chakra boost for ten minutes—ten minutes in which he didn’t have to worry about chakra depletion at all.
The trade-off was steep: severe cellular death throughout his body.
Akita only used this technique in critical situations.
Now transformed, his monstrous new form radiated overwhelming strength and chakra. His muscles bulged unnaturally. His eyes gleamed with wild energy.
Crack—crack—crack.
His clenched fists creaked as bones shifted beneath the skin. This was only the second time Akita had used the Curse Mark’s full power.
Feeling the surge of chakra coursing through him, Akita let out a twisted chuckle. "Amazing... If only I could stay in this state forever. Lord Orochimaru truly is a genius among shinobi."
Samui immediately sensed the change in his chakra. The pressure radiating from Akita was intense, suffocating.
But Riku remained calm.
He looked over at Samui. "Be extra careful now. He’s activated the Curse Mark. His chakra is now being absorbed from external sources—he won’t run out anytime soon. Every aspect of his physical ability will be drastically enhanced."
"If he lands even one solid hit, your body won’t be able to take it."
Though Samui didn’t fully understand the mechanics, she could read the signs clearly enough.
"What is it with you Konoha types and all these twisted experiments?" she muttered.
Riku chuckled softly. "Orochimaru isn’t one of us anymore."
Akita, annoyed at being ignored, clenched his fists even tighter. His confidence was soaring.
"That little brat humiliated me earlier. Now it’s your turn to die."
Boom!
In a blur, Akita launched himself forward and appeared directly in front of Riku, slamming a punch toward his chest.
Samui instinctively leapt back several steps.
"Ahhh!"
A massive shockwave erupted around them, tearing up the ground within a dozen meters. Boulders shattered, debris flew everywhere. Samui stared at the destruction in disbelief.
"That kind of power... I’ve only ever seen it from the Fourth Raikage."
She couldn’t help but wonder, Is he dead?
That speed—she hadn’t even seen Akita move before the attack landed. And that kind of raw power—just as Riku had warned—was enough to crush anyone.
But just as that thought crossed her mind, Riku reappeared at her side, calm and unscathed.
He smiled faintly. "I analyzed his speed and power. Right now, they’re comparable to Kage-level."
Samui stared in disbelief. How had he survived that?
Riku noticed her expression and grinned. "What? Didn’t think I’d make it? I’m actually pretty fast, you know."
"Otherwise, how would I be a special Jōnin at my age?"
Before Samui could respond, Riku’s eyes sharpened. In the next instant, he scooped her up and jumped more than ten meters away just as another explosion rocked the ground.
Boom!
Samui hadn’t even registered what was happening—she only knew Riku had grabbed her and relocated them.
He frowned slightly. "This is troublesome. His speed and strength are far beyond what you can handle."
"I was hoping you’d be the one to finish him."
Riku had indeed wanted Samui to deal the finishing blow.
But it was clear now—Akita, in his current state, was out of her league.
Cradled in Riku’s arms, Samui’s brow furrowed in irritation. But Riku didn’t look at her—his eyes remained locked on Akita.
"We can’t use large-scale ninjutsu. If we do, we’ll alert the Three-Tails. That would make things even more complicated."
He seemed to be talking more to himself than to her.
"Put me down," Samui said from his arms.
Riku glanced down and shook his head. "No. You can’t keep up with this fight anymore. I’m taking you to regroup with Hinata and the others."
Samui didn’t argue. She knew he was right. The enemy’s strength had skyrocketed to Kage-level, and this battlefield severely limited her abilities.
She couldn’t win here.
Just as Riku finished speaking, another deafening explosion rocked the terrain.
The ground where he had just stood moments ago was obliterated—craters torn into the earth, rocks flung violently in every direction. The soil itself had cracked and splintered under the pressure.
By then, Riku had already arrived beside Hinata and the others.
Karui and Omoi had seen the fight unfold. Their earlier impression of Riku as just another Jōnin was gone.
After witnessing his speed and precision, they now looked at him with awe.
His movements weren’t something achievable with ordinary Body Flicker Technique.
The Body Flicker Technique was a basic D-rank ninjutsu—widely used, but rarely refined.
But strong shinobi often developed personalized variations.
For instance, Kirigakure’s shinobi might develop a Water Body Flicker. Kumogakure had perfected Lightning Release Chakra Mode to enhance their speed.
These were all evolutions of the base technique.
Even the Flying Thunder God Technique—one of the most powerful in history—was essentially a space-time-based Body Flicker.
And what they’d just witnessed from Riku... it was something far beyond standard.
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