Drifting by AlphaDelta1001

Part 14 - The Executioner

As agile as he was, he had been unable to dodge any of the attacks that came at him or defend against them successfully. Whenever he tried to move, the blast of wind changed course and hit him the instant afterwards. When he tried to guard with his weapon, the invisible attack would swerve around it and smash him in the chest, limb or head. Not only did each shot come a split second after every punch the kid threw, despite there being thirty meters of distance between them, they were also tracking him.

"What the hell are these attacks?" the Akatsuki member growled. He was absolutely baffled.

OOO

Meanwhile...

Orochimaru's outpost...

Jumping back, Kakuzu lifted his left arm and blocked a slash from the side as Kimimaro came spiraling at him like a top on the air. Effortlessly matching his momentum with his strength, the Akatsuki member ignored the sparks that flew past him as the boy's steel hard bone blade grazed his diamond hard skin, before shoving him off and kicking out at him.

Reacting instinctively, Kimimaro back-flipped away effortlessly, avoiding the blow that would have otherwise sent him barreling down the corridor and bouncing off of walls. Sliding to a stop and assuming a wide stance, the teen glared back up at his opponent, after which he then sprinted forward once more. Jumping off of the surrounding surfaces of the tunnel in his approach, Kimimaro came flying at Kakuzu upside down, who backed away slowly and effortlessly began blocking his hits with his arms when he spun towards him.

Grunting, the masked man punched out at Kimimaro when he flew at him with a kick, a loud shockwave ringing out and cracking the rocks around them when their attacks collided in mid-air. After which Kakuzu threw the boy off and sent him away, pursuing him to intercept before he could make landfall. Just moments away from having his opponent touch ground, the Akatsuki member lunged at the retreating Kimimaro with a punch, only to have the boy spin sideways to avoid and hike off his forward leg. He then kicked off his chest and face, flipping away as the older and much larger opponent chased him, throwing punches with his blackened fists mixed in with kicks.

Managing to corner Kimimaro against the wall, Kakuzu chopped across at him with his arm, only to see the boy duck under and leap away. The attacker's arm shattered the stone and filled the entire hall in dust. The cloud separated the pair from one another, with the Kaguya putting as much distance between him and his powerful opponent.

When the cloud settled, it revealed a still impassive Kakuzu glaring across at an equally impassive Kimimaro, who was still assumed in a low fighting stance with his bone dagger held firmly in hand. So far, their battle had taken them out of the main lab, where they spent a good portion of their fight demolishing everything in sight, and had now taken them into the main hallways. The labyrinth of a hideout now served as their battleground, with both opponents trying to one up the other in their taijutsu battle.

Unfortunately, things weren't going exactly how either one had planned.

Kakuzu grunted indignantly, "Nice taijutsu. Probably the best I've seen in a while." He held up his left hand and flexed it, testing out the muscles before smirking at his foe. "It's such a shame you're working for a snake like Orochimaru. You would have made a great bounty one day. Such a waste."

Kimimaro stared blankly at the man. "I don't need praise from a man like you."

"No. Of course you don't. After all, you're going to die here today," Kakuzu exclaimed with a smirk. "Not even your steel hard bones will be able to break through my defenses. I had you trumped the moment you decided to engage me."

Furrowing his brow, the white haired boy leaned forward for a run.

However, just before he could lift off, he suddenly felt a tug on his leg and tripped over onto his knee. Eyes widening, Kimimaro looked back to see what had happened. When he locked onto his ankle, he blinked in surprise when he saw a hand protruding out of the ground with clusters of grey, moving threads attached to it, with a bundle of it throbbing rhythmically, like there was a heart attached to it.