The waves surged beneath their feet.
Kushimaru Kuriarare loved this feeling.
Striding over the waves, enjoying the sea breeze, he could swing his long blade as he pleased.
Another day of hunting.
Beside him were the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
This time, they had only one target: a newly risen Konoha prodigy, or so they'd heard—a ten-year-old brat.
Ten years old!
Was a mere ten-year-old brat really worth sending all seven of them after him, even bringing a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki along!?
"Hmph. What a fuss over nothing," Kushimaru Kuriarare sneered inwardly.
He glanced at the silent young man behind him—the Six-Tails Jinchuriki.
He'd heard the guy's name was Huainao. It was quite a nice name, but the man himself looked vacant and gaunt, like a living corpse. Strange white patches marked his exposed skin, like some kind of ringworm, making him look even gloomier and more ominous.
A few minutes earlier, this very man had suddenly "told" them that their target had entered the ambush zone.
Damn it. If he weren't a Jinchuriki, why would they listen to such a creepy guy?
"We're almost there." At the front of the group, Juzo Biwa spoke in his usual hoarse, low voice. "I've covered the target area with the Mist Technique."
Hmph. Using the Mist Technique, too?
Was there any need to be so cautious?
Wouldn't it be better to charge straight in and give them no warning?
It was only a ten-year-old kid, after all. If all eight of them charged in together, how could they fail to kill one child?
"Got it—" Kushimaru Kuriarare waved impatiently, his face full of disgust.
[Kid, kid, kid, kid—yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah—]
"Splash!"
His foot stumbled. The chakra sustaining his stride over the waves instantly collapsed, and he plunged straight into the icy sea.