Just as Sasuke approached Samehada, a sudden change occurred. As if sensing that Naruto Uzumaki had left, the living ninja sword abruptly leaped up, bouncing twice like a real living creature.
Sasuke jumped in fright and quickly retreated.
Suddenly, a surge of chakra emerged from Samehada. The glow of Water Style wrapped around the blade, and a shark formed from condensed water appeared, enveloping the ninja sword and flying into the distance. Moments later, it vanished from Sasuke and the others' sight.
"What... what's going on?" Sasuke asked in confusion. It was the first time he had encountered something so bizarre, and he had no idea how to react.
Gaara and the other two exchanged glances, equally at a loss. Samehada was unusual even among Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swords, so how could people from other villages possibly understand what was happening?
Far away, Samehada, which had already fled some distance, suddenly opened the part resembling a mouth. Kisame's figure abruptly appeared within it, panting heavily as he slowly crawled out.
"That Nine-Tails brat is truly terrifying. If I hadn't realized something was wrong and immediately hidden inside Samehada to avoid most of the damage, there probably wouldn't even be ashes left of me now." As Kisame muttered, he coughed up another mouthful of blood.
"With injuries like these, I won't recover for years. I need to leave immediately. The capture of the Nine-Tails must be postponed. That kind of monster is better left to the boss himself. I'll never take another mission involving the Nine-Tails again."
Within Konoha, battles still raged everywhere. Orochimaru, together with the two Hokage brought forth through Impure World Reincarnation, was holding back Minato Namikaze's frenzied assault.
That was right—holding back.
Even with two reincarnated Hokage assisting him, Orochimaru was still being completely suppressed.
Within