Struck by a slash, Saibote realized he had once again acted foolishly and immediately forced himself to calm down.
When Shinji swung the second blow, Saibote decisively gave up on reclaiming the snake sword for the moment and retreated gracefully into a sandified state.
At this moment, Shinji's best option would have been to pursue him and launch a relentless series of attacks, forcing Saibote to keep sandifying and leaving him no time for anything else.
As long as the fight dragged on, there was no way Saibote could maintain sandification indefinitely.
When that moment came, the odds of victory would greatly increase.
However, even though Saibote had lost the snake sword and the countless sand blades he hadn't fired all vanished, the quicksand beneath Hidan continued to consume relentlessly.
If no one intervened, it might really be time to erect a tombstone for him there.
"Heu idiot! Throw me the Triple-Bladed Scythe!"
Shinji shouted.
"Say 'idiot' one more time, I swear I'll cut you down!"
Though Hidan cursed verbally, he still threw the Triple-Bladed Scythe back toward Shinji.
The speed and force were such that it was easy to suspect he wanted to kill Shinji outright!
Clang! Shinji silently blocked it with the Executioner's Blade and then gripped it firmly.
"Haah!"
"Come at me, then!"
Shinji's blood surged as he yanked with all his might and swung it around.
Because a sturdy rope connected the circular handle of the Triple-Bladed Scythe to Hidan's waist, the next moment Hidan felt a tremendous force from his waist, yanking him out of the quicksand and hurling him in a certain direction, nearly snapping his waist.
At the same time, Saibote, having put distance between them again, ignored the wound on his back and returned to a solid state.
He crossed his hands and swung them forward—two torrents of sand shot out instantly, aiming precisely at the descending snake sword.
Clearly, this weapon was extremely important to him!
But Shinji's reaction was equally fast. While choosing to rescue Hidan, he had already prepared a countermeasure.
The trajectory Hidan was hurled along intersected perfectly with the sand streams.
"Haah! Once I finish with that bastard, you're next, damn it!"
In midair and with no option to dodge, Hidan practically slammed into the sand stream. The swirling yellow sand obscured vision, leaving Shinji unsure whether Hidan had successfully dodged.
But he wasn't about to wait idly. The moment he threw Hidan, he had already planned his next move.
"Red Blood Manipulation · Hundred Pierce Through Blood!"
He compressed his blood to the limit, forming a bullet-like projectile and shooting it forward.
He chose this technique because its initial velocity could reach supersonic speeds—perfect for catching the opponent off guard.
Saibote noticed Shinji's action, but the attack was too fast. As expected, he couldn't avoid it and instinctively used sandification.
Yet an unexpected scene occurred.
Even in a sandified state, Saibote let out a muffled groan after being hit.
That blood bullet, formed from Shinji's own blood, had actually injured him?!
Was it because he hadn't had time, or…?
Shinji, wanting confirmation, didn't hesitate. He struck the same pose again, pressing his palms together at chest level, fingers aimed at Saibote.
"Red Blood Manipulation · Supernova!"
As an extension of Hundred Pierce Through Blood, Supernova's attack had a wider and denser coverage!
The next moment, a barrage of blood bullets shot forth.
Although each individual bullet traveled slightly slower, the sheer density and coverage of the attack made it nearly impossible to dodge.
Then something even stranger happened.
Knowing he couldn't dodge, Saibote surprisingly abandoned his "invincible" sandification and instead formed a sand wall in front of himself.
However, in the rush, the wall's density and size were insufficient.
Many blood bullets pierced the wall, striking his body directly.
Yet, even willing to take the damage, Saibote refused to sandify to avoid the attacks.
This was downright bizarre!
Shinji fixed his gaze on the opponent.
His mind flashed back to the first attack he had suffered—when every blood blade he had released was completely absorbed by Saibote.
At that moment, he had been certain that Saibote's ability was specifically able to counter Red Blood Manipulation.
And this had been one of the reasons he had feigned death to observe secretly.
Even the sudden use of Hundred Pierce Through Blood earlier wasn't meant to harm Saibote, but to force him to sandify and abandon the fight over the snake sword with Hidan.
But now… things seemed different.
What could be the reason?
Shinji suddenly realized a possibility!
If his guess was correct, after losing the snake sword, Saibote's fatal weakness was finally exposed.
So, as he rushed toward the enemy, he shouted:
"Idiot, got the thing? If you're not dead, make some noise!"
"Haah! You dare call me an idiot again? Believe it or not, I'll throw this junk back at that bastard and let him finish you off?!"
Not far away, Hidan emerged from the yellow sand, grimy and battered, holding the golden snake sword in his hands.
"Nice job!"
"Of course! When has your lord Hidan ever dropped the ball?"
"You can hide with that now. Without the snake sword, the next stage is my time to shine!"
Shinji didn't care whether his words sounded cheesy or embarrassing.
Mainly, he had suffered enough at the hands of this opponent. With his vindictive, don't-let-things-go-overnight personality, he was naturally ready to take revenge!
Surprisingly, Hidan actually obeyed and withdrew, which left Shinji rather astonished.
He had expected he'd have to argue a bit more to get him to comply.
Seems like having a high bond value has its advantages. He would eventually shape that idiot Hidan into his image.
Saibote suddenly realized that the situation was beginning to slip out of his control.
He was now caught in a dilemma.
If he merely wanted to escape, he was confident he could easily leave—Shinji couldn't stop him.
But if he left like that… what about his snake sword?
It was born with him, a manifestation of part of his own power.
If he couldn't reclaim it, his strength would undoubtedly plummet.
More importantly, without the snake sword, his fatal weakness would soon be exposed.
"Return my weapon, and I can let you go."
Shinji laughed.
"Can't you see your situation clearly?"
"It's no longer a question of whether you let us leave—it's that I'm not going to let you escape!"
Before finishing his words, Shinji stomped hard on the ground and burst forward.
With the aid of Scarlet Scale Surge· Load, his speed was nearly impossible to track with the naked eye.
In the blink of an eye, he reached Saibote, swinging the Executioner's Blade down mercilessly!
Saibote immediately sandified and retreated.
Shinji didn't hesitate, crushing the blood bag in his hands, forming streams of blood blades slicing forward.
Then he saw the opponent instantly solidify, using sand to defend.
"Just as I thought. I've found your fatal weakness, little sand monster."
Shinji grinned, revealing his perfectly aligned white teeth.