Ringo Ameyuri

Why had the enemy sent two people to deal with Kamizuki? Because he was the protagonist?

NO! No! It was because the enemy wanted to take out those Byakugan eyes first. They had originally planned to use the thick fog to launch a surprise attack, but they hadn't expected their opponents to have a Byakugan user among them. That made an ambush in the fog pointless.

These unidentified enemies actually knew a little about the Hyuga Clan. They knew that the best way to deal with its members was to attack from a distance, but the ship's limited space made that impossible.

So they split into two groups to attack Kamizuki, hoping to get rid of those troublesome Byakugan eyes as quickly as possible. That would give them a much better chance of success.

The two enemies dashed forward, stopping not far in front of Kamizuki. As soon as they steadied themselves, they launched a rapid, powerful barrage of Taijutsu attacks from both sides.

With the Byakugan's keen perception, Kamizuki managed to fend off the two enemies' swift and forceful Taijutsu attacks one by one.

The most troublesome things about fighting members of the Hyuga Clan were their hawk-like perception and their annoying "absolute defense," which was as tough as a tortoise shell. In close combat, you also had to watch out for their Gentle Fist, which could disrupt the flow of chakra.

So even though the enemy had two fighters, Kamizuki gradually gained the upper hand. After those two exchanges, he realized that both enemies were only at the peak of Chunin level.

Kamizuki didn't have to work very hard to use Gentle Fist to seal the chakra pathways of both enemies.

After finishing off the two enemies, Kamizuki looked across the battlefield. Kato Taichi and Sakura Mangetsu were both struggling against their opponents.

Kato Taichi and Sakura Mangetsu had only just reached mid-Chunin level. On top of that, Sakura Mangetsu was a little seasick, so she was having a very hard time facing the enemy in front of her.

Just as Sakura Mangetsu was about to lose her footing, Kamizuki used the Body Flicker Technique to appear behind the enemy fighting her.

The enemy was just about to defeat the little girl in front of him and didn't notice Kamizuki suddenly appearing behind him.

By the time he realized, heh... it was already too late. Kamizuki unleashed "Eight Trigrams: Twenty-Four Palms," sealing all twenty-four of the enemy's chakra pathways. The enemy instantly lost control of his body and collapsed onto the deck.

While Kamizuki was helping Mangetsu defeat her opponent, Taichi also killed his own opponent.

Looking at the enemies, Kamizuki thought, So it really is a formula. The enemies who appear in a story for the first time are always just cannon fodder.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Kamizuki suddenly shuddered. He felt like he'd forgotten something. Then he remembered that the enemies he'd detected with his Byakugan at the start hadn't been limited to the four hiding beneath the ship. There was still one who hadn't made a move!

And based on what Kamizuki had sensed with his Byakugan earlier, that person's chakra was far greater than the four cannon fodder's. Kamizuki estimated that the person might not be at Kage Level, but was at least at the peak of Jonin level.

These thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. Kamizuki looked toward the spot where the mysterious person had been standing, but there wasn't a soul in sight.

As Kamizuki searched for the mysterious person, a loud explosion suddenly came from the direction of the Feudal Lord of the Land of Waves' cabin.

Kamizuki knew something was wrong. The mysterious figure must have gone to attack the feudal lord. He glanced at Taichi and Mangetsu, who were sitting on the ground, exhausted.

He shook his head slightly and said to the two of them, "Take care of these enemies first. I'll go check on the feudal lord."

Taichi and Mangetsu felt a little awkward. Compared to Kamizuki, they really did seem like dead weight.

Taichi scratched his head and called after Kamizuki as he started to leave. "Yeah! Okay. We'll clean things up here, then come over."

Kamizuki hurried to the cabin where the Feudal Lord of the Land of Waves was staying. From time to time, thick streaks of lightning, as wide as wires, shot out through the doorway.

Using his Byakugan, Kamizuki looked through the cabin walls. The furniture and everything else inside had been completely wrecked. Four or five bodies lay on the floor, still carrying traces of chakra. They must have died only moments ago!

There were also two living people inside, still hurting each other... (No, not hurting each other. Fighting fiercely—though that doesn't sound quite right either... anyway, you get the idea.)

A fat figure was hiding beneath the bed, trembling with fear.

Seeing that figure trembling beneath the bed, Kamizuki relaxed. Just from the man's shamelessly cowardly appearance, he knew that someone with a build like that had to be the Feudal Lord of the Land of Waves they were supposed to protect.

Kamizuki wasn't worried about the feudal lord's safety, of course. He was only concerned about whether their mission had failed. Luckily, the feudal lord hadn't kicked the bucket yet, so their mission was still on.

With that in mind, Kamizuki looked at the two figures fighting. Judging by their builds, the taller one should be their leader, Genma Shiranui.

The other one was only about 1.4 to 1.5 meters tall, and her build looked very much like the mysterious person Kamizuki had seen earlier. He was ninety-five percent certain she was the person he'd been looking for.

Just as Kamizuki was about to go in and help, a figure was suddenly kicked out of the cabin.

The figure slammed into the railing and only stopped there. Kamizuki finally got a good look at him. It was Genma Shiranui.

Kamizuki dashed over to Genma, about to ask how badly he was hurt.

The mysterious person also pursued him out of the cabin. Kamizuki sensed an attack coming from inside and reacted at once, meeting it with his Kunai.

Just as Kamizuki's Kunai was about to clash with the mysterious person's twin blades, lightning crackled along their edges.

At the sight of that lightning, Kamizuki quickly pulled back his Kunai and dodged to Genma's side.

Only after retreating beside Genma did Kamizuki look up at the mysterious person. To his surprise, she was a woman.

She had long, reddish-brown hair done up in an unusual style. Her eyes had no white in them like those of a living person: they were pitch-black, with dull gray irises. She wore a Kirigakure Forehead Protector and held two lightning-wreathed blades.

Seeing the woman's appearance, the words "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist" came to mind.

After studying her more carefully, Kamizuki realized that she was one of Kirigakure's "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," the wielder of the Lightning Blade, Kiba. Uh... he couldn't remember her exact name at the moment.

What puzzled Kamizuki was that the wielder of the Lightning Blade, Kiba, was supposed to have died of an illness long ago. Why was she here? Could it be... could it be that someone had brought her back with "Impure World Reincarnation"?

Now, let me, the author, briefly introduce Kirigakure's "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist" to everyone!

The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, formally known as the "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," were a title that could be passed down, not an actual organization. Each of the seven wielded a Ninja Blade suited to them.

The woman now standing before Kamizuki, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, was named Ringo Ameyuri. Her Ninja Blade was called "Lightning Blade: Kiba." It was also known as "Raiga Kurosuki."

In the original story, Ringo Ameyuri was known among the Mist Ninja as "a genius of Lightning Release." Unfortunately, not long after obtaining the Lightning Blade, Kiba, she contracted a serious illness and died young.

Back to the story. Kamizuki was still astonished to see one of the legendary "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist." He remembered that in the original Naruto story, Ringo Ameyuri had been brought back by Yakushi Kabuto with Impure World Reincarnation during the Fourth Great Ninja War. As soon as she appeared, she fought against a large number of the Allied Shinobi Forces and defeated many of them single-handedly. In the end, Omoi had taken her down with a sneak attack.

Thinking of this, Kamizuki felt a little excited. Ringo Ameyuri was the first truly powerful enemy he'd ever faced. She had been able to take on a huge number of the Allied Shinobi Forces by herself, and she was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. It went without saying how formidable she was.