Although they were said to be heading to Kumogakure as envoys, such a major matter naturally required some advance preparations.
Therefore, the three members of Kisame Squad chose to first collect their advanced ninjutsu.
For his A-rank ninjutsu, Kisame chose [Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave], a technique that violently spewed a tidal wave from his mouth, instantly forming a massive ellipsoid Water Prison to trap the enemy.
Supported by his enormous chakra reserves, he could even create a three-dimensional lake on land. It was essentially an enhanced combination of [Exploding Water Colliding Wave] and [Water Prison Technique].
As for his other A-rank ninjutsu exchange privilege, Kisame chose [Water Dragon Biting Explosion], an enhanced version of Water Dragon Bullet, to bolster his ability to break through defenses.
With that, he had officially evolved into a super artillery turret!
Araki, meanwhile, had his eye on a secret Water Release technique: [Rain Cutter].
It was a ninjutsu that suited his fighting style exceptionally well.
The principle of [Rain Cutter Technique] was to use one's chakra to create rainfall, with every raindrop containing a large amount of chakra.
Doesn't that sound a lot like Pain's [Rain Tiger at Will Technique]?
However, they were only similar in terms of shape transformation; their nature transformations were completely different.
[Rain Cutter Technique] employed a rare advanced nature transformation of Water Release chakra—Dissolution.
Simply put, it used one's own chakra to "dissolve away" the opponent's chakra. This technique could revert an enemy's projected ninjutsu back into its most basic chakra form, and as everyone knew, pure chakra could not remain separated from the body for long.
In other words, within the range covered by [Rain Cutter Technique], no one could use projected ninjutsu!
Wasn't this practically the legendary [Anti-Magic Field]?
Ninjas who could not project their chakra could only rely on taijutsu to fight!
What about genjutsu?
Most genjutsu also required injecting one's chakra into the opponent's body; the process simply was not as visible or tangible as ninjutsu.
Of course, a ninjutsu that could practically be called a bug naturally had its limitations.
To dissolve an enemy's ninjutsu, one had to expend an equal or even greater amount of chakra.
The exact amount depended on the ninjutsu used by the enemy.
If it only involved chakra shape transformation, such as the Rasengan, then even if it was hailed as the pinnacle of shape transformation, the expenditure was only one-to-one.
But if nature transformation was added, the chakra consumption would be greater.
If the ninjutsu relied on the terrain, such as Earth Style: Earth Wall or Water Formation Wall, then [Rain Cutter Technique] would have no effect at all.
It could only dissolve chakra; it was powerless against natural matter.
So it was best not to use it on a crowded battlefield. Otherwise, even if every enemy only launched one Great Fireball, he might be drained dry in an instant.
The reason Secret Technique: Rain-Cutting was so compatible with Araki was because he had another bold idea.
Although [Anti-Magic Field] was powerful, the risk of being drained dry made it less practical in group battles.
But what if he could bind those raindrops capable of neutralizing ninjutsu onto his sword blade?
If I can dodge your ninjutsu, I'll dodge it. If I can't, I'll cut it apart with one swing. Wouldn't that be awesome?
What did it mean to break ten thousand techniques with one sword? (Leans back smugly.)
He had not realized it until he looked, but [Rain Cutter] was surprisingly high-ranked. It was an A-rank ninjutsu. If this mission had not been raised to S-rank, Araki truly would not have been qualified to learn it.
But on second thought, that was perfectly normal. After all, it was a secret technique involving a rare chakra nature transformation, so it was never bound by the usual ranking standards for ordinary ninjutsu. A higher difficulty and rank were only natural.
No matter what, Araki felt that it was well worth it!
He opened the learning scroll.
"The core of Rain Cutter Technique lies in the rare Water Release chakra nature transformation—[Dissolution]. Only by mastering this can one learn Rain Cutter Technique; otherwise, it can only be called Rainfall Technique.
"The training steps for this nature transformation are as follows."
Following the scroll's description, Araki added another important item to his training plan.
Zabuza was not idle either. He directly exchanged for the A-rank [Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique] and the B-rank [Silent Killing Technique].
There was no need to say much about [Silent Killing Technique]. As the ninja who would one day use this technique to its fullest, Zabuza had an extremely high affinity with it.
It was like Namikaze Minato and [Flying Thunder God Technique], or Might Guy and [Eight Inner Gates].
Though the techniques suited to those two were S-rank, while Zabuza's destined technique was only B-rank, as the saying went, there were no trash ninjutsu—only trash ninjas.
Even the D-rank Three Body Technique had its own strengths.
Anyway, ahem, he could not keep bragging.
[Silent Killing Technique] was not a ninjutsu that was directly cast. Rather, it was a training method similar to [Eight Inner Gates].
Its purpose was to strengthen a ninja's auditory perception and concealment abilities, allowing them to move silently, strike silently, leave silently, and kill without a trace.
As for [Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique], Zabuza chose it to make up for his lack of long-range, wide-area attack methods.
While the three members of Kisame Squad were improving themselves, Karatachi Yagura also began seriously considering how to complete his mission.
Unlike the ease and confidence he displayed before Araki and the other two, Yagura knew full well that this mission would not be so easy to accomplish.
If the amphibious force was truly established, it would indeed threaten the Land of Lightning. But if its threat to the Land of Water was a ten, then its threat to the Land of Lightning was probably less than three.
Under such circumstances, persuading Kumogakure to join Kirigakure in opposing Konoha would still be difficult.
After all, they could simply wait for Kirigakure to take the lead. They were not the ones in the greatest hurry.
"How can I persuade Kumogakure to form an alliance with us?"
Karatachi Yagura strolled through the village as he pondered, and before he knew it, he had arrived near the Hozuki Clan's grounds.
As Kirigakure's foremost great clan, the Hozuki Clan Compound stood right in the center of the village, occupying a vast area. This also symbolized their current status.
"The Hozuki Clan has a long history, and Hozuki Sengetsu is an experienced ninja. I may as well ask for his opinion."
Having made up his mind, Yagura turned and headed toward the gates of the Hozuki Clan Compound.
Hozuki Clan Compound.
Hozuki Sengetsu, the current leader of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, was guiding the young clan head, Hozuki Mangetsu, in his training.
"Hiramekarei—"
With a sharp cry, the white-haired youth pushed off the ground and leaped into the air. A dense layer of blue chakra, visible to the naked eye, wrapped around the fish-shaped ninja sword in his hand.
"—Release!"
As the release command was spoken, a massive chakra sphere burst from the vents at Hiramekarei's tip and smashed viciously into the ground.
Rumble!
A thunderous explosion like the heavens collapsing and the earth splitting rang out. Even Karatachi Yagura could not help stopping in his tracks, raising a hand to shield his face from the fierce shockwave that spread outward.
When the smoke and dust finally dispersed, a massive crater dozens of meters across lay in the ground, silently proclaiming the power of that attack.
"Impressive. I never expected Mangetsu to be able to wield Hiramekarei at such a young age. He truly is Kirigakure's most famous genius!"
Karatachi Yagura's applause made the two turn their heads.
"Lord Yagura!"
Hozuki Mangetsu waved Hiramekarei in his hand, his face full of pride.
"Lord Yagura, you flatter him. You are Kirigakure's most famous genius ninja."
Compared to him, Hozuki Sengetsu was far more reserved and cautious.
Karatachi Yagura smiled faintly and did not deny the praise.
"Sengetsu, I came to see you today because of a mission. Before long, Lord Mizukage will send a delegation to Kumogakure with me as its representative. I hope you can serve as my deputy."
"An envoy mission to Kumogakure?" Hozuki Sengetsu looked somewhat puzzled. "May I know the purpose?"
"Of course!"
The first day of promotion went fairly well. Thank you all for your support!
And then... please continue supporting me, O(∩_∩)O Haha~
Before you continue