Shigushan Mountain, a sloping woodland below the summit.
Clashing blades, murderous intent soaring to the heavens.
At Suikazan Fuguki's command, more than fifty Mist Shinobi charged fearlessly at Hyuga Ritsu and Uchiha Shisui.
Uchiha Shisui's Body Flicker Technique was truly masterful. He was so fast that he could almost match the Yellow Flash, who had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique. After slashing two Mist Shinobi across the throat with his short sword, he dodged the blades stabbing toward him and appeared behind Hyuga Ritsu in the blink of an eye.
His scarlet eyes darted about. Wherever his gaze passed, the Mist Shinobi looked away; none dared meet his eyes.
With a joking air, he complained, "Ritsu-senpai, there are kind of a lot of them!"
"Does Body Flicker Shisui get scared, too?"
Hyuga Ritsu asked with a smile. At the same time, he struck with Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, sending a Mist Shinobi flying backward, coughing blood. Two white bones protruded from his shoulders, knocking back the blades attacking him from either side.
"I'm not scared, but this is exhausting! Forget fifty people—even killing fifty pigs would take some effort!"
Uchiha Shisui caught an unlucky fool who hadn't looked away in time. The moment their eyes met, he cast a genjutsu, plunging the man's consciousness into the abyss. The Mist Shinobi had just leaped into the air when his body went limp and he hit the ground with a slap.
One Mist Shinobi grabbed his comrade and retreated at top speed, trying to dispel the genjutsu. But the usual method of disrupting chakra flow was useless against Sharingan Genjutsu.
"Then take it easy and keep an eye on that prodigy from the Hozuki Clan. Don't let him ruin things. Water Transformation Technique is a real pain for me. In exchange, I'll take care of the rest of these Mist Shinobi!"
"Eh? Is that okay?"
"What, are you worried I can't handle them?"
"Since you say so, Ritsu-senpai, I'll do as you ask."
Uchiha Shisui was still a little worried, but since Hyuga Ritsu had asked, he thought it over and didn't refuse. After all, Ritsu-senpai was not the man he used to be.
If this had been the Ritsu-senpai he knew before, he probably wouldn't have been able to hold his own against so many Mist Shinobi. But now Ritsu-senpai had gained the Kekkei Genkai, Shikotsumyaku, and Shisui couldn't quite tell just how much stronger he had become.
So,
he might as well follow Ritsu-senpai's instructions and keep an eye on Hozuki Mangetsu, an enemy with an almost perfect matchup against him.
When he'd heard Hyuga Ritsu's suggestion, he'd nearly burst out laughing.
That was because the Hozuki Clan's Water Transformation Technique was truly the most troublesome thing imaginable for Hyuga Clan shinobi. The Hozuki Clan was a powerful family in Kirigakure, and they had passed down the secret art of Water Transformation Technique. Its central principle was to turn the body into water, granting complete immunity to physical attacks.
That made them the worst possible enemy for the Hyuga Clan. The Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist was purely physical, and their pressure-point strikes were equally meaningless against Hozuki who could turn their bodies into water.
What was even more infuriating was that Ritsu-senpai's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai also relied entirely on physical attacks. It offered no way to counter the Hozuki Clan's Water Transformation Technique.
"Shisui, thanks for the effort."
Hyuga Ritsu thanked him.
He'd originally planned to have Uchiha Shisui charge into the fray while he played support and chipped in where he could. But then he'd run into Hozuki Mangetsu, a detestable opponent who seemed to have been sent specifically to counter him.
The deliberate malice of it stirred his killing intent. After confirming there were no other Mist Shinobi hiding in ambush within a ten-kilometer radius, he changed his mind. He decided to put in a good deal of effort and vent his anger on these damned Mist Shinobi. He could also use this high-intensity battle to find out where his limits lay.
Hyuga Ritsu and Uchiha Shisui hadn't gone out of their way to keep their conversation quiet. They were still fighting the many Mist Shinobi as they spoke, moving closer and farther apart, so they could only communicate by raising their voices.
Then,
their conversation sounded especially arrogant to the Mist Shinobi!
Hozuki Mangetsu was in a pretty good mood. The enemy's dislike and wariness of him meant they acknowledged him as a threat, which he considered a compliment!
He rolled his beautiful, amethyst-colored eyes and glanced sideways at Suikazan Fuguki, teasing, "Fuguki, what do we do? They said they're going to take care of everyone except me!"
"Hmph! Do you really think having two Kekkei Genkai makes you invincible?"
Suikazan Fuguki snorted in displeasure. He was also annoyed by the brat Mangetsu's attempt to goad him, and snapped, "Quit trying to provoke me, Mangetsu. Worry about yourself first! Body Flicker Shisui isn't easy to deal with!"
As he spoke, he took the bandage-wrapped Great Sword: Samehada from his back. His muscles tensed slightly as he prepared for battle.
Uchiha Shisui had burst out of a ring of more than forty Mist Shinobi using his Body Flicker Technique, moving like a specter. Though it looked like he was heading for Hozuki Mangetsu, Suikazan Fuguki had seen plenty of feints like that!
"Sharingan? Ugh, they're the worst!"
Hozuki Mangetsu grimaced and cursed.
Just as Hyuga Ritsu was hard-pressed by the Hozuki Clan's Water Transformation Technique, Mangetsu was just as troubled by the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan. In fact, few people in the Shinobi World could face the Sharingan without fear.
Sharingan genjutsu was truly terrifying. His Water Transformation Technique could defend against physical attacks, but there was no way it could deal with genjutsu.
"Fuguki, how about we switch? I'll go kill Hyuga Ritsu, and you take your men to surround Uchiha Shisui!"
"Enough talk! Uchiha Shisui is already here!"
Suikazan Fuguki roared, rejecting Hozuki Mangetsu's suggestion to switch opponents. He was just as troubled by the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan. Fighting Uchiha left him tied up in knots; it was absolutely miserable. He'd let the brat Mangetsu suffer through it first.
Once he finished off Hyuga Ritsu, he'd come over and help surround Uchiha Shisui. Of course, he knew he was getting ahead of himself. Once they killed Hyuga Ritsu, Uchiha Shisui would probably retreat immediately. With Body Flicker Shisui's speed, there was no guarantee they could catch him.
"Fuguki, you bastard!"
Hozuki Mangetsu cursed furiously.
He'd originally come on the Mizukage's orders to investigate what Suikazan Fuguki was up to. But after all the back and forth, he'd somehow ended up as Fuguki's accomplice, facing a terrifying enemy like Uchiha Shisui.
It was incredibly frustrating!
What was even more frustrating—enough to make him want to cough up blood—was that he had no choice but to steel himself and fight Uchiha Shisui. If he walked away now, Suikazan Fuguki might survive, but the rest of the Mist Shinobi would surely die here for nothing.
"Hiramekarei: Release!"
Hozuki Mangetsu wielded the twin blades, which formed the shape of a flounder when joined together, and parried Uchiha Shisui's razor-sharp blade, wreathed in lightning.
"Damn it, Lightning Release again!"
The prodigy, beloved by all Seven Ninja Swords of the Mist, looked at the blade crackling with electricity and couldn't help cursing again. The thing the Hozuki Clan's Water Transformation Technique was worst against was Lightning Release Technique.
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