When Darkness Turns to Light

A Shinobi's Skill Set

Recappy From the Last Chappy: The dust cleared to reveal men of interest: Hidan and Kakuzu.

Hidan, who held the scythe to his side in one hand and a retractable iron spear in the other, stood in a circle identical to the symbol around his neck. His skin was as black as ink with white lines closely resembling some skeleton-like war paint. He wore a broad grin.

"Kakuzu, don't interfere. Let me have some fun with these non-believers."

The other Akatsuki member did not express any emotion in particular; notwithstanding a mask hid the lower half of his face. "Do it quickly. Time is money."

He laughed. "By letting the jinchuuriki live, I broke one of the most sacred commandments. Jashin doesn't permit anything less than utter carnage-you boys will have to make up for that!"

Chapter Thirty-four: A Shinobi's Skill Set

Observation is likely one of the most vitals tools in a shinobi's skill set. Note the enemy's actions, words, movement, and personality, and analyze every one. If one understands what makes the opponent tick, particularly how they conduct themselves in battle, then counter measures can be adequately devised.

Shikamaru had a natural talent for this, cultivated further by playing strategic games like Shogi with his sensei, Asuma Sarutobi. He never lost a game. In battle, he did not lose a match so much as he would tactfully forfeit, knowing his limits. During part three of the Chuunin Exams, this very action graduated him to chuunin rank. Instead of tiring himself to the point where he could not move in order to win, he allowed himself the energy to function.

Although he had only witnessed a few moments of the Akatsuki pair's abilities, and even fewer flashes of their behavior, he had more than adequate the amount of time to decipher their incredible jutsu.

Hidan's apparent immortality would be the greatest hurdle. He could be stabbed through the heart and survive. No amount of blood loss was too great and few, if any, types of injuries would slow him down. Their only option was to incapacitate him somehow.

Another point of concern was his jutsu, something he called a "ritual." The use of terminology, such as "ritual," "blasphemy," and "non-believer" implied he was a devout man. The religion of "Jashin" was referenced often, and evidently dark; namely, for one of its commandments to demand utter carnage.

The circle on which he stood was identical to the pendant around his neck. Assuming he wore it because it was to his religion what the cross is to Christianity, the circle was vital to the ritual. He had to be within the circumference for it to commence. This was part one.

Part two was hard to fathom. When Shikamaru witnessed the ritual with Yuugito, he had noticed the discoloration of Hidan's skin had occurred after he ingested some of her blood. He deduced this was the purpose of his scythe: to gather blood. Else wise, the three-bladed design was largely impractical, and there were much simpler ways to kill someone.

Ingesting the blood created a connection between the victim and the user; subsequently, any injury Hidan sustained, so long as he stood in that circle, would harm the victim as well. The victim, however, did not have the advantage of immortality.

As for Kakuzu, Shikamaru had yet to see any of his skills. Should he join the battle, the odds of their defeat would increase exponentially.

However, he had not spent all this time strategizing for nothing.

"But before you begin . . . ," started Kakuzu; and then the next moment he disappeared from his partner's flank. Moving so quickly he had been practically invisible, his figure manifested behind Hikari. Scooping her up just after she finished healing Hane's wound, he said, "I will remove our intended target."