Kushimaru Hozuki pushed the Hydrification Technique to its limits.
He was no longer running. He had become a stream flowing rapidly across the ground and through the shadows of the trees, fleeing without a second thought toward the coastal battlefield where Kirigakure's main forces were stationed.
A bone-deep chill of fear clung tightly to his soul.
Even at this distance, the oppressive presence of the figure behind him, who looked like a god of thunder, still left him gasping for breath.
Uchiha Ling! At that moment, the name was no different from a demon in his mind.
The Kubikiribōchō had snapped, Kiba had been reduced to charcoal, Nuibari had shattered, Kabutowari had been twisted out of shape, and Shibuki had fallen silent... The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, who had shaken the Shinobi World and terrified countless ninja, had been dismantled and crushed like children's toys before that man.
This wasn't a battle at all. It was a complete rout!
He didn't dare stop for even an instant, or even look back. There was only one thought in his mind: find the Mizukage! Only by rallying Kirigakure's army and having the Mizukage personally step in would they have any chance of facing that monster!
Behind him, Uchiha Ling didn't hurry to catch up. Still in his "Thunder God Descent" state, with blue-white lightning crackling around him, he followed leisurely behind Kushimaru Hozuki as if out for a stroll.
The extraordinary eyesight granted by his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan let him easily track the trail of water fleeing in panic.
He was waiting for a big enough fish to take the bait. Kushimaru Hozuki was no more than bait he had cast out.
The coastal battlefield.
The battle cries, the roar of colliding ninjutsu, the sharp clang of weapons, and the