True Water King

Feeling his limbs weaken, he mustered his last bit of chakra with sheer willpower, and then his vision went completely dark.

As his body fell into the water, a strange black fish leaped out of his mouth, then disappeared at an astonishing speed as it swung left and right.

"Wow, what incredible vitality! These weirdos are quite suited to be ninjas." Shuichi admired the opponent's tenacity, noting that he sent a message to his teammates before dying, and didn't lose consciousness even with his heart pierced.

Upon seeing the Noyaki instantly killed, Hozuki Longyue, who had been wearing a confident smile, froze instantly.

This Konoha expert is too calm. He took down the Noyaki, who had a high chance of escaping, first. His next target will definitely be him. "Damn it, why did it have to be Lightning Release? Judging from its strength, it's at least A-rank or higher."

Hozuki Longyue immediately chickened out and retreated to the side and rear without saying a word, moving away from Shuichi while also moving towards the river. Once in the water, he could easily escape.

Did I give you permission to leave?

Shuichi calmly chased after them across the water, seemingly unconcerned that the absent Mist Jonin might escape, but rather intending to eliminate the Hozuki Clan ninja directly.

As he approached the riverbank, Hozuki Longyue caught a glimpse of a terrifyingly fast figure closing in. If he tried to jump into the water, the figure could intercept him in mid-air.

Therefore, he assumed a jumping stance, but just as he was about to move, he turned his head and spat out a bullet-like liquid from his mouth—his strongest trump card, "Water Release: Water Bullet!"

Unfortunately, in the Shuichi he turned his head, Hideaki saw it clearly. In his Flash vision, he even saw the other's mouth bulge out. Just as the attack was about to be launched, he rolled to the side in time, easily dodging the Water Bullet.

"It's easier to release chakra through the mouth than through the palm, and he also needs to rely on internal pressure to complete this move, so he doesn't seem to be a top genius."

Releasing Water Bullet from between your fingers is obviously more difficult and faster than spitting it out of your mouth; just thinking about it this way tells you how skilled your opponent is.

Seeing Shuichi rapidly approaching, Hozuki Longyue, with nowhere to hide, also showed a frenzied expression. His two arms instantly grew thicker and he swung them at the enemy, but his movements were slightly stiff and he missed again.

Lightning Release: Chidori Stream!

Just as he crouched down to dodge the opponent's two punches, a large amount of lightning erupted from Shuichi's body. The Hozuki Clan's Water Transformation Secret Technique was immune to physical attacks, but the paralyzing effect of Lightning Release was its fatal weakness.

"Ugh..."

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle..." When Hozuki Longyue's body could no longer fully liquefy, Shuichi drew his short sword and stabbed him several times, covering all his vital parts to ensure he had no chance of survival.

After dealing with the man, Shuichi carried the corpse back to the previous battle site, leaving Aburame Shihei to watch over the two Mist Jonin while he chased after the Ink Bird.

The enemy's third Jonin had been operating underwater, received a dying message from his teammate and began to dive towards the sea.

However, he didn't know that Akiha was watching him from the riverbank. When she used her Byakugan to track him, she raised the Ink Bird. Shuichi quickly followed the direction and caught the fish that had fallen into the net.

"They chose to swim towards the sea, as it's closer, but there's only one outlet to the sea." They had thoroughly researched the terrain before taking action.

The opponent could also choose to flee into the Land of Whirlpools, where there are multiple tributaries to choose from. However, no matter how much they struggle, they cannot escape the Byakugan's lock-on; the only difference is whether they die sooner or later.

Seeing that the Ink Bird's direction remained unchanged, Shuichi ran straight ahead to the estuary to wait, and the other party's hope would soon turn into despair.

The Mist Jonin travels underwater and the Noyaki have slightly different appearances, but they generally give a similar impression.

He knew something was wrong after smelling the strong stench of blood. When he saw his companion's little black fish swimming by, he immediately turned and ran, planning to escape to the open sea first and then return to the village to report.

"We're almost there. It seems I'm safe. I wonder what kind of enemies Noyaki and the others encountered."

When he reached the estuary, he breathed a sigh of relief. Even if these Konoha Ninja were strong, it would be difficult for them to pursue the enemy underwater; the underwater world was their home.

Just as the fish was about to return to the sea, it didn't notice a boy overhead with a cruel expression. "The water's not even 20 meters deep. You think you can slip under my butt? I'll blast you out!"

"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"

After forming Shuichi Hand Seals, Shuichi slammed his hands onto the water's surface, unleashing a surge of chakra to manipulate the water below. The Mist Jonin felt a dramatic change in the water pressure beside him, and was then propelled upwards by a force. "How is this possible? How did they discover me?"

"Splash..."

The upward flow of water pushed out another blue-skinned monster, floating in the air for the first time uncontrollably soaring this high.

Shuichi clasped his hands together in a special pose, then once again used the water imbued with his chakra to compress it instantly before releasing it, unleashing "Water Release: Water Wave!"

A terrifying jet of water shot into the sky beside him, blasting a large hole through the Mist Ninja's body. He was already lifeless when he fell to the ground. "So you like Water Release? Then I'll make you die beneath my waters!"

When Hyuga Akiha, Shuichi was already carrying the body ashore. "With these guys, Yūya's Squad must have been wiped out. Let's go back!"

This is the cruelty of the Shinobi World. If you are not strong enough, you can easily lose your life in a mission, just like when Yūya and others encountered Mist Jonin, and the Mist Jonin unexpectedly encountered him.

Shuichi was very grateful that he had already begun to develop, at least his escape skills were at their peak, "This is inseparable from my hard work in training..."

Inside the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, in the high-level Meeting Room, the atmosphere was somewhat heavy. On the left were several high-ranking officials wearing tall hats, and on the right were the high-ranking officials of Sunagakure.

The Daimyo of the Land of Wind, sitting in the main seat and wearing a fan-shaped hat, had his eyes narrowed to slits. He was obese and bloated. There was nowhere to play in this harsh country, so he could only stay in the Daimyo's Mansion, eating and drinking.

"Daimyo lord, this is an excellent opportunity." Rasa said solemnly, "The Land of Fire is currently besieged by the other three great nations, and the manpower remaining in the Land of Rivers is not a concern. With sufficient funding, the village can completely conquer the Land of Rivers."

The Daimyo of the Land of Wind seemed a little hesitant. He wasn't a fool; the current situation in the Shinobi World was relatively clear.

Although the Sunagakure ninjas are becoming increasingly ineffective, surely a quarter of Konoha could easily defeat them if the entire village were to unite, right?

"This..." Thinking of the immense benefits that would come from conquering the entire Land of Rivers, he began to feel a little tempted. "Alright, if we fail again this time, you'll bear the consequences!"

"I won't let you down."

After the meeting, Tosha, who was following behind Rasa, looked somewhat conflicted. "Lord Kazekage, I understand the strong desire for revenge within the village, but is this really the only way?"

Rasa was rather helpless. Last year, Sunagakure was defeated by Konoha, and the Medical Unit was ambushed and massacred. In addition, the Land of Fire on the other side seemed to be in a bad situation, which made people restless within the village.

Revenge, the desire for redemption, and the immense profits have fueled a growing number of ninjas' ambition to strike again, even making it difficult for the Kazekage to suppress the clamor from below. "This is a foregone conclusion; there's no other way now. Prepare with all your might!"

"... yes!"