Infighting

A strange smile appeared on Kanna's face. "We're teaming up?"

Amayuri glanced at Kanna but said nothing.

"I agree with Kanna," Fuyuki Sanzenryo said with a nod.

He was a handsome boy with a heroic air about him. Unlike Zabuza's coldness, he seemed gentle and easygoing. Judging by his appearance alone, Kanna thought he would be easy to get along with.

"My opinion?" Kanna laughed. "Don't get me wrong. I didn't offer an opinion; I was just asking a question. Zabuza, what do you think?"

"No need to team up!" Zabuza said coldly. His right hand reached behind his back and gripped the hilt of his sword. "I'm enough on my own, just like at that graduation ceremony."

At the sight of Zabuza's movement, Kanna tensed as well, his face breaking into a mocking grin.

"I feel the same way, so I'm off!" Amayuri seemed to have no intention of getting involved. She nodded to Kanna, formed Hand Seals, and vanished in a flash.

"Body Flicker Technique?" Kanna narrowed his eyes.

Clang! Zabuza drew his long sword and ran his hand along its blade. "You need sixty points to pass, and each numbered tag is worth ten, so..."

Zabuza's gaze shifted between Kanna and Fuyuki Sanzenryo before settling on Fuyuki.

"You'll do!" Zabuza pointed his raised sword at Fuyuki and said coolly, "Hand over your numbered tag!"

And just like that, the pursuers' alliance fell apart.

The three proud experts, Kanna included, all believed they had enough strength to sweep through the whole exam on their own and had no need for anyone else's help. As a result, their group was already at odds before the exam had even begun.

As the saying went, it was best to mind your own business. Kanna was happy to stay out of it. He leaned against a nearby tree and settled in to watch.

Fuyuki's expression darkened. Zabuza's arrogant disregard for everyone else had angered him.

"Zabuza, you're underestimating me." Fuyuki drew a Kunai and held it in front of his chest. "If you want ten points from me, you'll have to take them by force!"

As soon as Fuyuki finished speaking, Zabuza stepped forward and swung his sword at him.

"Just what I was hoping for!"

The sword swept through the air with a roar. Fuyuki's expression turned serious. He raised his Kunai to block the blade, then leaped backward and hurled the Kunai with his other hand.

Zabuza merely lifted his hand slightly and flicked his sword, knocking the Kunai away before charging after Fuyuki.

Just then, a puddle behind Fuyuki suddenly surged upward and took the shape of a sword-wielding figure. It looked exactly like Zabuza. It was a Water Clone Technique.

Fuyuki hadn't even landed when the corner of his eye caught sight of another Zabuza behind him, swinging down with his sword. He was caught between them.

"When did he—?" Fuyuki cried in surprise. He twisted and dropped, landing on the ground, then crouched sharply and brought his palms together, clamping them around the blade!

Smack! Fuyuki caught the Water Clone's sword between his joined palms. His arm muscles bulged as he shifted his hands and shouted, snapping the blade in two. The clone burst apart into a pool of water.

After all, it was only a Water Clone, with a tenth of the original's strength. A weapon made of water could never match the hardness of real steel.

A whoosh sounded behind him as something cut through the air. Fuyuki stayed calm in the face of danger, formed Hand Seals with his palms together, and sent the pool of water swirling in midair. It quickly transformed into a mirror-smooth plane, which he raised behind himself.

With a muffled thud, Zabuza's sword struck down, its front half sinking into the water's surface.

Kanna, watching from the side, stared in surprise. Fuyuki's technique was strange. It had actually "swallowed" Zabuza's slash, as if someone had reached through a mirror.

The situation had become a stalemate.

"You may be strong, but I'm no pushover!" Fuyuki turned and met Zabuza's gaze. "A friend taught me this Water Release: Mirror Boundary Technique. You won't beat me."

Zabuza furrowed his brow and tried to pull his sword free, but a powerful force dragged it into the water mirror. With no other choice, he let go and watched helplessly as it disappeared inside.

The next moment, Fuyuki pointed with his right hand and formed another water mirror. The reflection of a long sword appeared on its surface.

"My friend can fully reproduce anyone reflected in his water mirror. I can't do that, but I can copy an enemy's weapon. That means ordinary physical attacks are useless against me." Fuyuki reached into the mirror and "pulled" out the long sword, twirling it in his hand. "And I can do this!"

Fuyuki casually planted the sword in the ground and formed Hand Seals again.

A damp sensation, just like when Musen Kama had used a Ninjutsu to copy Kanna's test paper during the written exam, washed over him. Kanna's expression turned serious. He understood that Fuyuki was using the same or a similar technique: controlling countless invisible droplets of water to fill the area and provide an unobstructed view in every direction.

Fuyuki didn't attack Zabuza. Instead, he calmly explained, "Eighty-Four Thousand Water Insect Technique. That friend taught me this Ninjutsu, too. I truly believe in that lord's ideals, so I follow his philosophy and taught the technique to Musen Kama as well. Zabuza, I've heard plenty about you. You're a master swordsman and a master of Water Style. There's even been talk lately that you're training in the Anbu's Silent Killing Technique. But none of that is enough to defeat me."

"Heh, I guess I misjudged him. He really is an expert," Kanna thought with a wry smile.

Buddhism spoke of eighty-four thousand water insects: the Buddha could supposedly see that many tiny creatures in a cup of water. A Ninjutsu daring enough to take its name from that idea must grant incredible eyesight at its highest level. With water present, it could practically see through anything.

Even in the hottest desert in the world, there was water vapor. And this was Kirigakure, no less. This technique was one of Kirigakure's main methods for keeping watch on the surrounding area.

But that wasn't what had caught Kanna's attention. It was the friend Fuyuki had mentioned—the "lord."

As someone who had read the original story, Kanna clearly remembered that Yagura, who would one day become the Fourth Mizukage of Kirigakure, knew a Water Release: Water Mirror technique. It was said to create a perfect copy of anyone reflected in it, with the same strength as the original. That claim was probably exaggerated, and the technique surely had some hidden weaknesses. But just think about it: how similar were Water Release: Water Mirror and Water Release: Mirror Boundary Technique? They were clearly two related techniques from the same school!

"If, if Yagura really was the one who taught Fuyuki Sanzenryo those Ninjutsu... Tsk, tsk, tsk. No wonder he'd become Mizukage. That kind of boldness, that kind of breadth of spirit—I have to hand it to him!"

The Third Mizukage had taught Kanna how to refine chakra. The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had taught his guards the Flying Thunder God Technique. The Third Raikage had passed down the Black Lightning technique, and the Third Kazekage had passed down the Iron Sand technique. Dust Release had been passed down through generations in Iwagakure. And now, even before becoming Mizukage, Yagura was already teaching others his signature Ninjutsu.

Honestly, these people had a vision and ambition beyond anything an ordinary person could imagine. Take Kanna, for instance. He didn't mind teaching ordinary Ninjutsu, but he'd never teach anyone the formula for S-rank techniques like Flying Thunder God Technique or Shinra Tensei. Even knowing that most people wouldn't be able to decipher them, he still wouldn't be willing to share them.

And the people mentioned above had all passed down their own signature techniques, their trademark Ninjutsu, their personal skills. Kanna truly admired them.

Thinking of this, Kanna called out, "Hey, Fuyuki! What's your friend's name?"

At that, Fuyuki grew solemn and replied, "That lord's name is Yagura."

"Yagura. Just as I thought." Kanna chuckled and said no more.

At that moment, after remaining silent for a while, Zabuza finally spoke.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. You're worthy of being my opponent." Zabuza's expression was impassive. He formed the final Hand Seal with one hand and raised a finger with the other.

"I've heard of your Yagura, too. A prodigy from Kirigakure who became a jōnin in charge of a team at the age of twelve..."

The air grew even damper, and everyone's vision blurred.

"He graduated with straight A's, came first in every test, and completed every mission without fail. He even completed S-rank missions without a scratch..."

A thick mist rolled in, shrouding the world in white. Zabuza and Fuyuki gradually disappeared into the fog.

"Since Yagura taught you and you believe in his ideals, you're his subordinate. So just how much of his power have you inherited?"

Zabuza's voice drifted through the white mist, its shifting echoes making it especially eerie.

The signature Ninjutsu of Kirigakure's special assassination squad: the Hidden Mist Technique! The Silent Killing Technique!

The moment Kanna saw Zabuza use the Hidden Mist Technique, he decided to leave. He'd studied the Silent Killing Technique too, but he'd devoted more effort to the Spirit Cultivation Method than to the art of killing. This environment put him at a disadvantage.

He hadn't forgotten how Zabuza had killed his classmates back then. If the chance came, Kanna was sure Zabuza would cut him down, too!

Closing his eyes, Kanna sent out his chakra and sensed the area around him as he headed toward the edge of the mist.

Just then, he heard Fuyuki shout.

"I'm not his subordinate!"

"Hm?" Kanna was a little confused. He didn't understand what Fuyuki meant.

"I'm not his subordinate!"

Deep in the mist, Fuyuki roared at the top of his lungs.

"Lord Yagura said we're friends! Companions who share the same ideals and are heading in the same direction! You have no idea what Lord Yagura has done for us. Go to hell!"