Caught Off Guard

"Go down, I'll have someone investigate this matter."

The loss of the Third Mizukage's body is neither a major nor a minor matter. The key point is not the body itself. In the two years since, even though the mystery has not been fully solved, most of what could be obtained has been acquired. The remaining few items are not particularly significant.

The real focus is on the person who stole the corpse.

They infiltrated the heavily guarded Ninjutsu research department, protected by numerous Anbu members, and steal the body of the Third Mizukage without being detected.

This is what intrigued Orochimaru.

Looking at all the top ninjas in the entire Shinobi World, he didn't think anyone could do such a thing.

"But that's the corpse of the Third Mizukage..."

The man was somewhat unwilling. Such a bland "we'll send someone to investigate" made him feel that the most precious material of the Ninjutsu Research Department was about to be lost.

"Knock knock."

His right index finger tapped rhythmically on the desk, and a murderous aura seemed to emanate from his golden, vertical pupils.

"·····"

The man in the white coat shut his mouth tightly, quickly backed to the door, and stormed out.

Having gotten rid of the troublesome fellow, Orochimaru pondered for a moment, then said, "Someone come here."

An Anbu appeared like a ghost, kneeling before the table and bowing to receive orders.

"Go and investigate, find out what's going on."

"Yes."

The Anbu responded and then vanished like a ghost.

The fact that they stole the Third Mizukage's body so quietly... there must be some clues to be found. If no clues are found... that in itself is the biggest clue.

Orochimaru thought to himself, the names of the top ninjas in the Shinobi World flashing through his mind, wondering who could possibly have done such a thing.

The Land of Grass, on the northwestern border.

The hills have vanished, the earth is shattered, the scorched soil emits heat, and the smell of burning permeates the air.

The thunder shook the sea of clouds and the earth, growing louder and louder, overlapping and pushing to an unknown height, a roar that seemed to threaten to collapse the very heavens.

However, at that very moment...

A burst of extremely bright, yet exceptionally gentle white light erupted, piercing through the sea of clouds and shooting into the earth.

"You old bastard!!"

A roar exploded in the air, and a figure the size of a bean plummeted from the sky.

Crimson blood droplets were blown into the sky by the reverse airflow as the figure plummeted at high speed. Katsuki's body was like a tattered scarecrow. Half of his body was pulverized from his right shoulder to his waist, turning into the smallest particles in the brilliance of Dust Release.

Through the smooth, flat wound, one could even see the snow-white spine and the violently beating heart in the left chest.

Breathing became extremely difficult, like a fish out of water.

After all, his right lung was almost completely gone, and a large part of his liver was missing. Only someone with such injuries would have died long ago.

While the physical pain tormented Katsuki, what concerned him more was the big-nosed little old man hovering in the clouds. One more blow would be enough to finish him off.

His battered body left him with almost no strength; even the slightest movement of his left hand caused his entire body to convulse, and blood gushed from the huge wound on his right side.

His face instantly turned pale.

However, a smile appeared on his face, even though he had been careless and had been tricked by that old fox, Ōnoki.

He had thought that by observing how much Ōnoki Chakra consumed, he could determine the range and power of the Dust Release attack. However, the old man had been holding back from the beginning, unleashing a sudden attack with a much larger range than before.

Even driving the Thunderclap Chariot, they couldn't escape unscathed.

Half of his body was cut off; even his body, tempered to be as tough as steel, couldn't withstand the destructive power of Dust Release.

"I was careless!" Katsuki sighed inwardly. After using the stalling technique, she saw Ōnoki's Chakra gradually drying up, and her vigilance unconsciously relaxed, resulting in her current miserable state.

This was absolutely the most disheveled and vulnerable moment he had experienced in over a decade.

Fortunately, Ōnoki's Chakra was truly depleted. He had just risked further injury to his self-healing body and used Mind's Eye of the Kagura to scout out Ōnoki, who was still hovering in the sky.

That treacherous old man was indeed all bark and no bite; he only had a little Chakra left and was now just a figurehead.

No need to worry about Ōnoki stabbing her again, Katsuki felt a little relieved. Her body began to heal, the bleeding gradually stopped, and tender new granulation tissue emerged from the smooth wound, even the damaged areas...

His body plummeted rapidly, getting closer and closer to the ground, and his expression suddenly turned grim again.

From the northwest, two terrifying Chakra were rapidly approaching. Even without using Mind's Eye of the Kagura, one could sense the violent and fierce Chakra fluctuations, one of which had a vague sense of familiarity.

--He's the Jinchuriki the Four-Tails!!

With a quick thought, the relevant memories came to mind.

His face grew increasingly bitter, like a bitter gourd. He couldn't muster any strength at all. Not to mention fighting Jinchuriki, even if one or two Chunin came, he could probably be beheaded.

Furthermore, how to land safely is also a problem. His body is like a piece of porcelain riddled with cracks, unable to withstand even the slightest violent touch.

Is this the end for us?

His mood was extremely bad at the moment. Ever since he developed the mystery of the body and soul in the Hito Hito no Mi and mastered Ninjutsu such as the Thunderclap Chariot that can be controlled by giving it a soul, he has been invincible. First, he killed the One-Tail Jinchuriki on the battlefield of the Land of Rain, then he caused a great disturbance in the Sunagakure by himself, and then he took the life of the Third Mizukage in the Land of Water.

His series of brilliant victories filled him with pride, and he was confident that he had no rivals except for those of the level of Six Paths Madara.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken the initiative to intercept the Stone Ninja army single-handedly.

"Whoosh--"

A sudden gust of cold wind swept up, and snowflakes the size of a baby's palm drifted past in front of me.

The temperature suddenly dropped, the howling wind intensified, and the air was filled with snowflakes, creating a vast expanse of white.

"You... what brings you here?"

A hoarse voice escaped from his mouth, and as he spoke, one could see his growing lungs trembling. The sight of this would likely scare the timid to death.

Yuki Yoizuki was anything but timid. Stepping onto the shoulders of the giant wooden figure, she Hand Seals and cast a spell, summoning wind and snow to slow Katsuki's descent.

Then an ice track was created, allowing Katsuki to land precisely on it, slide down the track, and lie on the wooden figure's shoulder.

"Can't you be a little gentler? This ice is freezing!"

Regardless of how broken her body was, Katsuki couldn't help but complain.

"Nawaki, it's your turn now."

Yuki Yoizuki ignored Katsuki, who was standing on top of the wooden Nawaki.

"Learn."

Nawaki whistled.

A Wood Clone emerged from the wooden figure's shoulder, picked up Katsuki, and jumped backward. (To be continued)