The Final Battle (4)

Imai Kenta had indeed held back from the very beginning. Whether it was before or after teaming up with Uchiha Kei, he had always appeared to be the weakest and most harmless one.

But he also knew that Uchiha Kei and the others could see through his reservations. After all, "Chunin" was just a rank. Surviving on the battlefield for eight years without holding anything back was simply impossible.

However, Imai Kenta believed they absolutely didn't know the specifics of the abilities he had been holding back. And now, with no one to support him, he naturally couldn't keep up the pretense if he wanted to survive.

If he continued to pretend, Uchiha Kei might not even bother to collect his corpse. Given that guy's style, he would probably just use a Fire Style jutsu on his corpse and happily leave.

"Interesting, imp," the Iwa Ninja sneered, charging forward once more.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!" Imai Kenta's aura suddenly became much steadier. As he dodged the Iwa Ninja's attack, he quickly formed hand seals. The next moment, a water dragon surged from the water beneath the bridge, shooting towards the sky!

Imai Kenta knew Ninjutsu!

If Uchiha Kei saw this, he would surely be surprised, especially since he used it so skillfully, it didn't look like something he had only recently learned!

It was clear that this guy's elemental jutsu had been learned and practiced for a long time. This completely contradicted Uchiha Kei's impression of Imai Kenta—a Commoner Ninja who had no opportunity to learn Ninjutsu.

The water dragon's head sped towards the Iwa Ninja, but the Iwa Ninja was not to be trifled with.

Without any flashy moves or Ninjutsu, he simply slightly altered his grip on the Kunai and fiercely thrust it towards the water dragon's head.

The sharp Kunai, combined with terrifying power, was enough to split Imai Kenta's water dragon in two with a single thrust!

And his assault didn't stop there. He continued his charge towards Imai Kenta's position.

Imai Kenta remained very calm. Although the Iwa Ninja's aura was terrifying, it didn't scare him.

Imai Kenta rapidly formed hand seals. The charging Iwa Ninja's expression suddenly changed. He, who had been charging forward, suddenly leaped into the air.

And on the ground, a row of Earth Spears had inexplicably jutted out. These Earth Spears were exceptionally sharp. If the Iwa Ninja hadn't leaped up, he would have been impaled like a skewer.

Taking advantage of the Iwa Ninja being airborne, Imai Kenta drew his Ninja Sword again. His speed was lightning-fast, and in an instant, the Iwa Ninja was sliced in half at the waist!

Imai Kenta's expression remained unchanged. He looked as if he had done something incredibly trivial, but the next second, his body turned into a cloud of smoke.

Within the smoke, a faintly visible figure was hazy, but this figure seemed frozen, stuck in place and unmoving.

"Drip, drip."

Drops of blood fell to the ground. The smoke dispersed at this moment. The Iwa Ninja looked incredulously at the blade in his chest, feeling his strength slowly draining away with the continuous blood loss.

"Shadow Clone?" the Iwa Ninja murmured weakly. "When? You could see me?"

"When I released 'Rock Pillar Spear'."

A cold voice sounded from behind the Iwa Ninja. It was Imai Kenta. "I can't see you; I'm not from the Uchiha Clan. But I can sense you. Did you think your first sneak attack being countered was just luck? I have to say, you acted well just now, but I'm sorry, I can sense your Chakra!"

The smoke completely dissipated, revealing Imai Kenta standing behind the Iwa Ninja, his Ninja Sword piercing directly into the Iwa Ninja's back.

The Ninja Sword pierced from behind and out of his chest, blood continuously flowing down the blade. This strike was both fast and fierce!

Soon, Imai Kenta fiercely pulled out the Ninja Sword, and the Iwa Ninja fell to the ground. The scarlet blood stained the bridge pier, and Imai Kenta sat on the ground.

"I'm so tired. I never expected my luck to be so good that I'd encounter a ninja using Camouflage. Uchiha Kei must be furious."

Imai Kenta thought to himself with a bit of amusement. If Uchiha Kei were to deal with this guy, he could probably just put on an act and trick him to death.

Let alone Uchiha Kei, even Hyuga Aya could probably handle this easily. The advantage of a Dojutsu clan was significant.

Taking a deep breath, Imai Kenta calmed his emotions. Although the previous battle wasn't very time-consuming, it still made Imai Kenta feel fatigued, a mental fatigue.

However, Imai Kenta quickly stood up. He knew his mission had to continue. While his mission was much easier than Namikaze Minato's and Uchiha Kei's, it was also the most crucial!

After quickly setting up the Explosive Tags, Imai Kenta prepared to climb up. He was currently under the bridge, and he was unclear about the situation above. However, he knew that a fierce battle was likely still raging on.

During his fight with that Iwa Ninja, he had already felt huge vibrations and explosions. One could imagine that this battle was not easy.

"I hope Namikaze Minato is alright. Without him, how would I get back?"

It wasn't just Imai Kenta hoping Namikaze Minato was okay; Uchiha Kei also hoped Namikaze Minato was okay.

However, compared to Imai Kenta's worry, Uchiha Kei had no other thoughts. He knew how strong Namikaze Minato was.

There were very few ninjas who could perform like a descending god in the Fourth Shinobi World War, and he was one of them.

Although he was severely beaten by Uchiha Madara and Obito, those two Uchihas at that time had likely reached a much higher level, right?

However, if Namikaze Minato hadn't died so early, his talent would likely have made his strength in the future no weaker than Naruto's, right?

At this moment, Namikaze Minato indeed felt no pressure. Although the Five-Tails had completely broken free, Namikaze Minato was still handling the absolute speed suppression relatively easily.

Especially since Namikaze Minato, with his hands untied, didn't hold back his Chakra. Using Rasengan as a base, he unleashed various moves with strange and confusing names, but which he himself felt were good.

The Five-Tails, in front of him, was beaten to the point of having no chance to retaliate. Anyway, this wasn't the Land of Fire, nor was it close to Konohagakure.

The Five-Tails wasn't one of their Konohagakure's Tailed Beasts, so he didn't need to seal it. Without any pressure, he naturally wouldn't hold back. The Five-Tails was already struggling to breathe under his attacks. If nothing unexpected happened, this battle would soon be over.

"I just don't know how things are elsewhere," Namikaze Minato thought silently. "I just felt battle fluctuations from under the bridge. It seems there were indeed enemies hidden below. And how is Kei-kun now? Fighting four Iwa Ninja alone must not be easy. It seems I need to act faster."

Thinking of this, Namikaze Minato's hand once again formed a Rasengan, and this time, the Rasengan was much larger and its aura even more terrifying than before.

Namikaze Minato died sealing the Nine-Tails. The time was still one year before the novel's events, so his current strength should not be low.