Uchiha White Dove vs. Killer B!

Puff! Puff! Puff!

One white pigeon after another was blasted into mist by kunai and senbon.

When a Summoning Technique creature faced danger, it could release the summoning and return. These Ninja Pigeons had merely been unsummoned; they hadn't died.

Of course, if an attack came unexpectedly or was too fast for the summoning to be released, a summoned creature could still be killed.

"Damn it!"

White Dove furrowed his brow.

The enemy's actions made one thing clear: his intelligence had been leaked.

It seemed Danzo had gone all out. He hadn't just revealed the target of White Dove's mission to the Cloud Ninja; he'd leaked White Dove's intel too. That was why they'd prepared for his Flying White Pigeon Technique.

Yes, before setting out, White Dove had known Danzo would reveal the mission target. He'd planned to use that to "fish."

Who could have guessed that Danzo would leak not only the mission target but White Dove's own intelligence as well? That was going too far.

Still, he wasn't angry. Having a "useless teammate" like that in the Hokage Faction was a good thing.

What left him speechless was that Danzo had revealed the target, but not that it was Orochimaru.

Without the support of his Summoning Technique, some of White Dove's tactics would be affected.

For example, he couldn't use the "Second Step Avici" of "Mumyo Sandan-tsuki."

But it didn't matter. White Dove had Killer B in the bag.

"Mumyo Sandan-tsuki. Step Supersonic!"

White Dove gave a low shout, and his whole body vanished in a streak of blue light.

Only after he was gone—

Bang!

The sonic boom rang out.

Step Supersonic meant moving faster than the speed of sound.

At such terrifying speeds, he needed both his Sharingan and Lightning Cloak to control his movements freely. Otherwise, like Kakashi's Chidori, he could easily miss without the Sharingan.

Swish!

With a crisp slicing sound, Killer B was cut in half.

But White Dove wasn't pleased. He frowned and sighed.

"As expected of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki!"

At the very moment his voice rang out, the Killer B he'd just cut in half had already turned into a tentacle.

White Dove had spotted the flaw not because he'd seen through the trick, but because the feel of the strike had been wrong. The Samui Squad's reaction had also been far too calm.

Just as he heightened his guard, he sensed something amiss beneath his feet and immediately leapt high into the air.

Boom!

The ground shattered. Octopus tentacles as thick as train cars burst into the sky, followed by a colossal beast surging up from underground.

The Eight-Tails!

Killer B had entered his Tailed Beast Transformation, handing control of his body directly to the Eight-Tails, Gyuki.

Tentacles lashed toward White Dove in midair.

Swish!

White Dove swung his Ninja Blade and severed one tentacle, but more and more surged toward him.

Karui, who was helping to surround him, broke into a delighted grin.

"We got him!"

The tentacles were covered in ink. If it wrapped around him, it would be like being sealed away.

"N-no... it can't be that simple!"

Samui, standing a short distance to the side, disagreed.

A natural strategist, she'd considered the enemy's intel and his earlier performance. She couldn't shake the feeling that it wouldn't be this simple.

Even if their teacher was a Perfect Jinchuriki, he couldn't take down an Uchiha at Kage Level so easily.

The intel Kumogakure had received said that their target was only approaching Kage Level. They'd planned their ambush based on that assessment. They hadn't expected him to be a Kage Level powerhouse, so they'd changed their plan and used their backup strategy.

Killer B would face the enemy head-on, while their squad handled interception and stalling.

"Impossible! Teacher B's tentacles have already got him. Unless he can fly, how could he—"

Karui hadn't finished her retort when a figure shot out from the tentacles at high speed, as if running through the air.

"..."

Even Omoi, usually so laid-back, stared in shock. He didn't even notice that the lollipop had fallen from his mouth.

"What kind of technique is that?"

Only Samui stayed calm, trying to figure out what kind of technique it was.

There weren't many techniques in the Shinobi World that allowed flight. The best-known users were the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki and the Kazekage. (Not many people knew about Deidara.) No one else could fly.

Yet now another airborne ninja stood before them.

White Dove raced through the air, dodged the tentacles, then charged straight down at the colossal Eight-Tails, with its ox head and octopus body.

"Moonwalk!"

He stepped through the air with Moonwalk, ready to decide the battle with a single move.

Beneath his contact lenses, the four-bladed Mangekyo began to turn.

Genjutsu!

That was the key to controlling a Tailed Beast with the Mangekyo.

Before acquiring the Mangekyo, even an Uchiha at Kage Level was in grave danger against a Tailed Beast. One mistake could mean the end.

But with the Mangekyo, controlling a Tailed Beast was incredibly easy.

Just like now.

White Dove stepped through the air, circled around the tentacles, and stopped before Gyuki's eyes. Behind him, more tentacles followed close on his heels, as if about to blot out the light.

But White Dove ignored them. Facing Gyuki's eyes at close range, he gave a low shout.

"Mangekyo. Radiance!"

It was another Mangekyo ability of Shisui's pair of eyes.

It wasn't Kotoamatsukami, just a technique that lasted for a short time.

A sharp pain suddenly flared in his eyes, and he felt blood trickling from their corners. But White Dove didn't let himself get distracted. He continued staring straight at Gyuki with his Mangekyo.

The moment Gyuki, who was in control of the body, sensed the overwhelming ocular power, he fell under the technique.

The tentacles that had been blanketing the sky froze just before they could touch White Dove, as if someone had hit pause.

It worked!

With a single Mangekyo technique, White Dove had taken down the Eight-Tails, Gyuki.

In human form, a Tailed Beast could warn its Jinchuriki. But in Tailed Beast Transformation, both the Tailed Beast and its Jinchuriki were affected. After all, they were essentially fused in that state. That was why he'd forced the transformation before using his Mangekyo Genjutsu.

"This drain..."

White Dove covered his bleeding eye and sighed.

His once-abundant ocular power had already diminished noticeably.

Without Hashirama Cells or a Sage Body, his ocular power couldn't be replenished.

Fortunately, he didn't have a habit of wasting ocular power. Otherwise, like Uchiha Sasuke, he might have gone blind less than a week after awakening the Mangekyo.

Now that he'd restrained Gyuki, White Dove naturally wasn't about to let this prize slip away.

Whether he used the Eight-Tails to boost his reputation or traded it for profit, it was an excellent choice.

But before he could go after Killer B, he suddenly sensed danger.

Swish!

He moved away from his position.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Kunai flew past.

Three figures stood between him and Gyuki's eyes.

"Uchiha White Dove, you're not taking Teacher B!"

Karui shouted. Samui, the calmest among them, quickly formed Hand Seals to dispel the Genjutsu on Gyuki.

"Release!"

She performed the technique to break the Genjutsu, but it had no effect.

A Mangekyo technique wasn't something you could just dispel. If it were easy to break, would so many people fear the Mangekyo Sharingan?

So unless White Dove released the technique himself or Gyuki broke free through sheer will, there was no need to worry about waking him—even if he was hacked to pieces.

It wasn't that White Dove didn't want to take advantage of the opening. The problem was that he wasn't in great shape either.

He'd fought Killer B without holding back. They'd both gone all out, and even their brief exchange had cost White Dove a great deal. Then he'd used a Mangekyo technique, nearly draining him dry.

Fortunately, he was an Uchiha. Otherwise, the cost of wielding the Mangekyo would have been far greater.

An Uchiha's bloodline let him use the Sharingan much more effectively and with less of a toll.

He was only fifteen, after all, and nowhere near his physical peak. Wielding the Mangekyo was like a child swinging a heavy hammer. Its power was immense, but dangerous to the wielder as well.

If he were a few years older, or had mastered Yang Release, his eyes surely wouldn't be bleeding.

"Just a few of you can't stop me. If you leave now, I'll let you go!"

White Dove glanced at them and stated this calmly and confidently.

Even though the enemy had one Jōnin and two Chunin, the gap between them and him was enormous.

The reason he was in a hurry was that the Genjutsu wouldn't last long. Killer B was a Perfect Jinchuriki, and after the Waterfall of Truth's purification, he could recover quickly. White Dove couldn't afford to waste time on the three of them.

"Protect the teacher!"

Karui drew her blade and stood in White Dove's way.

Samui and Omoi also prepared to work together.

None of them had expected things to turn out this way, but as subordinates and students, they couldn't abandon their teacher.

After composing himself, White Dove's eyes flashed coldly. He was just about to strike them down—

Pfft!

The sound of steel piercing flesh rang out beside Gyuki's nostrils.

A gleaming blade emerged from White Dove's chest.