Kisame: Kill Jiraiya? Me?

The carriage moved forward slowly.

A trace of caution appeared on Jiraiya's face.

Reaching the edge, he quickly formed hand seals and stomped his foot.

In an instant, the soil near the puddle by the bridge began to turn into a quagmire.

Following that—

"Hiss!"

A sound rang out.

A figure lunged from the puddle, blade in hand, only to be struck with horror upon seeing who stood before him.

The next moment, his figure dissolved into a splash of water.

Jiraiya gave chase immediately, his hair transforming into ropes that swiftly bound the opponent.

However.

The opponent's body instantly turned into a stream of water.

Hydrification Technique?

Jiraiya frowned slightly and immediately spat out a stream of special Toad Oil, spraying it toward the water.

But.

By the time he prepared his next jutsu, the opponent had already covered a significant distance.

On the other side.

Three figures charged toward the carriage.

From their position, they could not clearly see Jiraiya's face; instead of fleeing, they pressed their attack toward the carriage.

Kunai and shuriken flew through the air, interspersed with Explosive Tags.

Furthermore, several attacks were directed toward Kakashi.

The offensive was truly formidable!

"Kyohiko."

Jiraiya called out.

"Yes!"

Before he could be reminded, Kyohiko had already used Body Flicker to reach the carriage.

The next moment, a wall of water rose from six or seven meters away, the swirling current capturing every incoming shuriken and kunai.

Water Style: Water Wall.

Boom!

With a series of roars, the wall constructed of water collapsed.

So fast!

The three Hidden Mist ninja were startled.

However.

They did not retreat; one charged at Kyohiko, while the other two, wielding blades and chains, lunged toward Kakashi.

But.

Just as they turned, they saw a little girl guarding Kakashi and the Iron-Arm Toad, her hands moving rapidly through seals before she suddenly vanished from sight.

Moments later, the two realized they were bound by trees, unable to move.

"It's a genjutsu!"

Kisame Hoshigaki glanced over, seeing his two companions frozen in place, and immediately realized the girl had used a genjutsu to trap them.

He had just moved to help when a gust of wind sounded behind him.

His body tensed and he began to form seals, but before he could finish, the sound of the wind grew louder.

So fast!

It was too late!

Kisame turned his head, but Kyohiko was already upon him.

He immediately crossed his arms to block the incoming fist, but—

A surge of force erupted from the punch.

How is this possible?

Kisame Hoshigaki's small eyes widened in shock; before he could react, he was sent flying by the punch, slamming straight into a tree.

Bang!

A massive boom startled a flock of water birds into flight.

At the same time, the "Kyohiko" maintaining a defensive stance over there dissolved into bubbles.

The Shadow Clone had been dispelled.

Kyohiko had originally intended to pursue Kisame Hoshigaki, but a glance out of the corner of his eye revealed that Kurenai Yuhi had trapped the two men with a technique, yet she did not risk approaching them herself, choosing instead to guard the slightly chaotic carriage.

"Don't panic! Surround the carriage and protect Mr. Matsuyama!"

She shouted loudly.

Behind her, the samurai of the Matsuyama Clan held their blades, shielding Ichiro Matsuyama's carriage in the center.

Against ninjas, the utility of samurai was limited, but it was better than nothing.

Seeing this, Ichiro Matsuyama's heart rate slowed slightly, though his eyes burned with anger.

This bunch was most likely sent by Gato!

He had suspected that Gato might not be a legitimate businessman, but he hadn't expected the man to be so barbaric, hiring killers to intercept him directly on his route.

What a gangster's way of doing things!

It was fortunate that his nephew had recommended Jiraiya's squad to him.

With Lord Jiraiya himself on the job, his safety should be guaranteed.

Ichiro Matsuyama huddled inside the carriage, peering through a gap to the outside, just in time to see Kyohiko send a man flying over a dozen paces with a single punch.

Even a child is this strong?

So strong!

This guy's strength is completely mismatched with his appearance!

Kisame Hoshigaki spat out a mouthful of blood, struggling to crawl up from the water.

At first glance, he had assumed Kyohiko was a ninja specializing in Water Style, and in that regard, he had been confident he wouldn't fear any Konoha ninja.

The result.

He never imagined that the opponent's ninjutsu was secondary, and that his terrifying speed and Strength of a Hundred were his true trump cards.

Just one punch...

Kisame Hoshigaki coughed up blood repeatedly, lying on the ground unable to move.

What terrifying power!

He couldn't catch his breath for a long while, and could only look toward the distance.

The situation was lost!

Although those two had recovered from the genjutsu, the moment they did, Kyohiko closed the distance and knocked one of them unconscious with a punch.

The other one wanted to run.

Unfortunately.

He wasn't facing Kyohiko, but an even more terrifying White Hair ninja.

That is...

Jiraiya??!

In an instant, Kisame Hoshigaki's mind went blank.

How could he be leading the team himself?

Then, the words of Suikazan Fuguki from when they set out surfaced in his mind.

"There's a merchant coming from the Land of Fire; the four of you go and take them out. That is your mission this time."

Take them out?

Me?

He was so terrified that he lost all ability to think.

No wonder Hozuki Mangetsu didn't attack after being discovered, but instead fled immediately.

Who would dare to engage?

The opponent is one of the Sannin!

Even if Suikazan Fuguki came himself, he would have to tuck his tail and run.

Kisame Hoshigaki immediately submerged into the water, intending to escape, but just as he dove, a strange movement came from beneath the earth.

What is that sound?

Following closely, he saw a rolling torrent of mud surging through the river water.

Earth Style: Earth Flow River.

Jiraiya held his hands in a seal, the rolling mud surging forward and instantly engulfing him.

In the chaos, Kisame had no way to utilize Earth Style ninjutsu. By the time he was swept a great distance away and struggled to rise, that boy was already closing in for the kill again.

Kisame rolled across the ground, attempting to evade Kyohiko's onslaught.

However.

Kyohiko's hands moved rapidly through seals, finally holding the posture of a single seal.

What jutsu was this?

Water Dragon Bullet?

The Second Hokage of Konoha supposedly possessed a simplified version of the Water Dragon Bullet technique.

Kisame analyzed the opponent's hand seals, predicting the next move.

But.

The next moment, Kyohiko's figure transformed into a wooden log that fell to the ground, while his true form emerged from the water.

Behind where he had just been, a deluge of White Hair came flying in.

There was no jutsu!

The hand seals from a moment ago were merely a diversion.

Kisame felt a surge of regret and tried to flee with all his might, but it was already far too late.

The white hair ensnared him.

Whoosh!

The hair retracted, pulling Kisame directly in front of Jiraiya, leaving him with no hope of escape.

Jiraiya crouched down.

"Ninja of Kirigakure, why did you attack us?"

"..."

Kisame remained silent.

As a ninja, he could not reveal his mission; otherwise, he would face horrific punishment upon returning to the village.

At this moment, he felt only deep, profound regret.

The moment Hozuki Mangetsu had fled, he should have decisively run away as well, rather than continuing to coordinate the attack with those two idiots.

But.

Who could have guessed that a mission like this would lead to an encounter with Jiraiya?

Kisame couldn't help but glance at Kyohiko.

This guy's speed and strength were astonishing, yet he looked so young—he appeared to be two or three years younger than Kisame himself.

A genius of Konoha?

He looked silently at his two teammates.

One was unconscious, the other was being treated by that girl, and their companion was being carried on the back of a toad.

Thinking of his own situation, a wave of sorrow welled up from the depths of his heart.

The style of Konoha ninja was completely different from that of Kirigakure.

Even one of the Sannin would lead a team, and injured comrades would be properly settled and protected.

Such a thing simply did not exist in his village.

In fact.

If the opponents hadn't been so overwhelmingly powerful, in that situation, he would have even attempted to kill his own teammates to silence them before finding a way to escape.