Konoha Retreat (I)

Just then, Hozuki Mangetsu, who should have been cut in half, appeared before Kakashi again without a scratch. Kakashi was so surprised that he failed to notice another Hozuki Mangetsu sneaking up behind him.

"Kakashi, you can't let your guard down on the battlefield."

At the critical moment, a flash of golden light streaked past. Kakashi heard his teacher's voice, and both Hozuki Mangetsus, one in front and one behind, were sent flying by Namikaze Minato's powerful blows.

"That wasn't a Water Clone Technique? What a rare ability."

After knocking away the body Hozuki Mangetsu had split off by turning himself into water, Namikaze Minato noticed that neither Hozuki Mangetsu disappeared after being struck. He was somewhat surprised.

With Namikaze Minato's reappearance, nearly every ninja in the valley turned their eyes toward him. Most had assumed that his teleportation ability relied on specially made Flying Thunder God Kunai, but now it seemed the technique might not require them after all.

Meanwhile, the huge mass of lava Terumi Mei had spat out quickly hardened into limestone, and then a layer of frost covered it. The frozen limestone suddenly burst apart, and Uesugi Shinji slowly emerged, unharmed.

Terumi Mei knew that Uesugi Shinji could survive her Lava Release Ninjutsu by relying on Ice Release, which was why she had used such a large-scale technique. Unfortunately, even working together, the two of them hadn't managed to so much as scratch Namikaze Minato.

"Does his ninjutsu really have no weaknesses?" Terumi Mei asked, sounding frustrated.

Uesugi Shinji replied calmly, "His teleportation technique doesn't rely on those specially made Kunai. It relies on the Space Sealing Technique marks on them. As long as those marks exist somewhere in the world, he can reach that place instantly."

His voice lowered as he continued, "Unless he chooses to get hurt, he might really have no weaknesses!"

If the history of the Shinobi World had unfolded as it originally should have, Namikaze Minato would have died in battle not long after the Third Shinobi World War, during the Night of the Nine-Tails. But as Uesugi Shinji had said, Minato hadn't been unable to save himself. He had simply chosen to sacrifice himself for the village and for his son, Naruto.

Namikaze Minato, Uesugi Shinji, and Terumi Mei made no move to attack again. The two sides simply faced each other in a cold standoff.

Namikaze Minato glanced over the battlefield. Konoha had already lost nearly half its forces, while Kirigakure had suffered relatively few casualties. Without him holding the battlefield in check, Konoha was at a complete disadvantage.

Not far behind him, the remaining half of the Konoha Ninja who had stayed outside the valley had also rushed over to reinforce them. Unfortunately, Terumi Mei had prepared for this as well. Suikazan Fuguki, who had been lying in wait nearby, led a Kirigakure unit and intercepted the Konoha reinforcements.

There was no doubt that Konoha had been thoroughly defeated in this battle. There was no point in continuing the standoff.

"Everyone, retreat at once! I'll cover you!"

At Namikaze Minato's command, his hands began rapidly forming Hand Seals, as if he were preparing a ninjutsu. The Konoha Ninja who heard him didn't linger to fight. They immediately gathered together and broke toward the entrance of the valley through which they had come.

Although Kirigakure had managed to surround the Konoha Ninja, its numerical advantage wasn't great enough to stop them from concentrating their forces and breaking through in a single direction.

But with Konoha in retreat, this was the perfect chance to strike them while they were down. The Kirigakure Ninja immediately began hunting their opponents, doing everything they could to press their advantage.

"Kisame!"

Uesugi Shinji called out loudly, and Kisame immediately came to his side. The two had worked together for a long time, and even without Uesugi Shinji saying anything more, Kisame understood what he meant.

Kisame rapidly formed Hand Seals, and an immense amount of chakra erupted from him. Air churned around his body as sand and stones flew, and the commotion drew everyone's attention.

The Hyuga Branch Family ninja on Konoha's side who possessed the Byakugan looked terrified. His voice even faltered as he spoke. "A Jinchuriki? No, that can't be right. How could a human possibly have so much chakra?!"

A savage grin spread across Kisame's face. His ninjutsu was ready.

"Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"

His tooth-filled mouth opened as wide as it could, and a torrent of water blasted from his throat like a high-pressure water cannon. In the blink of an eye, it caught up with many of the retreating Konoha Ninja and swept them into the waves.

The Exploding Water Colliding Wave could be considered an enhanced version of the Great Waterfall Technique. Both were large-scale Water Release Ninjutsu that consumed enormous amounts of chakra, powerful enough to alter the terrain of an area in a short time.

The Exploding Water Colliding Wave, however, had far greater force. Any ninja struck by it was hit with the force of a crashing wave, and those without strong enough bodies might be knocked unconscious on the spot.

Even if they managed to stay conscious, once caught in such a violent torrent, they would find it extremely difficult to escape in a short time!

When Kisame unleashed this technique, most of the Konoha Ninja were horrified. Many of the Kirigakure Ninja were also stunned into silence, unable to believe that the shark-faced man had so much chakra.

After all, at the start of the battle, Kisame had already used a massive Great Waterfall Technique. Most of the Kirigakure Ninja had thought he must have spent a large portion of his chakra.

But seeing the Exploding Water Colliding Wave, which was even larger than the previous technique, they realized Kisame had far more chakra than they could have imagined!

"He's practically a human Tailed Beast!"

Someone shouted the words first, and before long, the name Kisame Hoshigaki, the Tail-less Tailed Beast, would spread throughout the Shinobi World.

While Kisame maintained the Exploding Water Colliding Wave, Uesugi Shinji beside him also began forming Hand Seals. A fierce chill rose from his body and flowed straight into the water beneath his feet.

By then, Namikaze Minato had finished his ninjutsu. He dropped to one knee and pressed both hands to the ground, and a huge summoning array appeared beneath him.

"Summoning Technique!"

At that same moment, Uesugi Shinji finished forming his Hand Seals!

"Ice Release: Ice River!"