Might Guy murmured in a daze, "Is this the power of a Uchiha Clan genius? He only looks a few years older than us..."
Before the sea of flames, Suikazan Fuguki roared, "Water Style: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
Hiss, hiss, hiss~
When water met fire, endless clouds of scalding steam billowed out, blanketing several hundred meters around them in an instant.
The steam appeared quickly and vanished just as fast. Under Uchiha Akira's sustained Wind Style assault, the clouds of vapor were blown straight into the sky, forming a vast bank of clouds.
"Hiramekarei: Release!"
With a loud shout, a massive blue blade of light tore through the pale, howling wind, as if it would split the forest in two.
The blade of light was fast, but Uchiha Akira was faster.
Blinding arcs of electricity flashed, and Uchiha Akira vanished, reappearing a hundred meters away in an instant.
A tremendous boom rang out as the enormous blue blade of light flashed past and stretched to the edge of sight. The entire ancient forest seemed to have been split in two.
Blacksmith Raiga's grim voice came from the smoke. "Thunder Burial: Thunder Banquet!"
The next moment, countless forked bolts of lightning shot out of the billowing dust, striking at Uchiha Akira as he darted about.
The Sharingan in Uchiha Akira's eyes spun. Electricity flared over his body, and blinding blue arcs crackled in his hands as well.
With a sweep of his hands, his Lightning Release Chakra bolts met Blacksmith Raiga's Lightning Style and canceled it out.
The next moment, a great sword wrapped in rope burst from the smoke, whistling down from above.
It was one half of Jinin Akebino's Kabutowari.
Clang~
A crisp ring echoed in every direction. Uchiha Akira had no choice but to draw the Ninja Blade on his back and block the strike.
Jinin Akebino had chosen his moment perfectly. Uchiha Akira's previous attack had just ended, and he had yet to gather strength for his next one. That was when Jinin Akebino struck.
The next moment, Jinin Akebino grinned savagely as he swung the hammer half of Kabutowari, smashing it into the back of the great sword.
Clink~
A sharp ring rang out, and the gleaming Ninja Blade Uchiha Akira had used to block the great sword snapped in two.
With a squelch, the great sword, driven by the hammer, cleaved straight into one side of Uchiha Akira's body, splitting it open.
But the next instant, Jinin Akebino's savage grin froze. The Uchiha Akira whose body had been cleaved apart crackled and transformed into a mass of blinding lightning, enveloping Jinin Akebino.
It was Uchiha Akira's Lightning Clone!
Squish~
As a blade pierced flesh, Uchiha Akira burst out of the ground. Holding a kunai wrapped in invisible Wind Style Chakra, he drove it through Jinin Akebino's chin and into his head.
Then Uchiha Akira gave it a slight twist. Blood and brain matter burst from the wound along with the sharp kunai.
Thud~
Jinin Akebino hit the ground with a dull thump.
In the distance, Might Guy, Genma Shiranui, and Ebisu were already dumbfounded.
"Incredible! No wonder Sunagakure says you have to run if you meet a Uchiha Clan ninja one-on-one on the battlefield!" The Senbon Genma Shiranui had been holding in his mouth had fallen to the ground as he stared blankly at the battlefield.
They had barely clashed, and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had already lost two.
If Kushimaru Kuriarare's defeat at the start had been due to carelessness, then Jinin Akebino had simply lacked the strength and been crushed.
The fact that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had earned their reputation meant that none of the seven were ordinary.
That only made Uchiha Akira's strength all the more astonishing.
Ebisu's sunglasses had slipped to one side. He murmured, "Incredible! Are all members of the Uchiha Clan monsters like this?"
Might Guy clenched his fists, his expression utterly resolute. "One day, I'll become just as strong, and protect everyone."
At that moment, Uchiha Akira moved on the battlefield. In the blink of an eye, he completed his Hand Seals.
"Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
In an instant, four lifelike flame dragons, each over ten meters long, charged toward Blacksmith Raiga, claws bared and fangs flashing.
The remaining Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had already spread out. Perhaps out of pride, they hadn't attacked Uchiha Akira right away.
But now that they had seen Jinin Akebino fall to a single strike from Uchiha Akira, they finally set their pride aside and closed in from every direction.
Suikazan Fuguki and Biwa Juzo attacked at the same time.
"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Biwa Juzo opened his mouth and spat out a massive ball of water. When it hit the ground, it became a surging river that rushed toward the flame dragons with their claws bared and fangs flashing.
"Water Style: Water Formation Pillar!"
As the wielder of the Great Blade Samehada, Suikazan Fuguki had far more Chakra than an ordinary person. He opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent like a river bursting its banks.
Hiss, hiss, hiss~
As steam billowed everywhere, the forest became a vast lake.
Water Style already had an advantage over Fire Style, and their opponents were two masters of Water Style.
His Fire Style was extinguished at once.
Standing atop the churning lake, Uchiha Akira's crimson Sharingan spun. He gave them no chance to launch a sneak attack.
"Lightning Style: Lightning Fang!"
Blacksmith Raiga's attack arrived just then. He had chosen to attack head-on.
Blinding blue lightning erupted from Lightning Blade Kiba. He spread his twin blades, and two dragon-like bolts of lightning tore through the air.
At that moment, a flash of green light flickered through the forest.
A figure too fast for the naked eye to follow charged into the battlefield.
The green light flashed, and Blacksmith Raiga's Lightning Style was struck apart, scattering into sparks of blue electricity.
Might Guy and the other two felt a fierce wind howl around them. Their vision blurred, and then they saw a familiar figure standing on the battlefield.
It was Might Duy, who had opened the Sixth Gate, the Gate of View, of the Eight Inner Gates.
Might Duy was enveloped in green light. Powerful currents of air streamed from his body in every direction, stirring wave after wave across the lake beneath his feet.
"Dad!" Might Guy's eyes widened in shock as he watched Might Duy standing in front of Uchiha Akira, frozen in a punching stance.
"Sorry for the wait, young Uchiha!" Might Duy looked back at Uchiha Akira, grinned to reveal his gleaming front teeth, and gave him a thumbs-up.
"Young man, leave this to me. You've worked hard. As Guy's father, I want to thank you."
As he spoke, Might Duy turned to face the five remaining members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, his expression grave.
"The Eight Inner Gates—and you've already opened the Sixth Gate, the Gate of View? Are you planning to use the Eighth Gate?" Uchiha Akira's crimson Sharingan spun as he immediately discerned Might Duy's condition.
The Sharingan could see Chakra, so he could clearly make out its flow through Might Duy's body.
Might Duy's voice came then. "I can't help it. As a Genin who's been at the bottom for a thousand years, this is the only move I have. Now's the time for me to burn with the fire of youth."
"I think if we work together, you won't need to open the Eighth Gate. That way, your youth can continue a little longer," Uchiha Akira replied.
From the way things stood, Might Duy only needed to open the Seventh Gate. None of the remaining Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were the kind of superhuman threat Kisame Hoshigaki would become later.
"Young Uchiha, they're no ordinary opponents. With only the Gate of Wonder, I won't be able to overpower them. I could probably only take on two," Might Duy said gravely.
"That's enough!"
While they talked, the remaining Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist closed in around them. Might Duy's display just now had made them wary of underestimating him.
Green streaks and blue bolts of electricity crisscrossed the battlefield. Even with five of them surrounding their opponents, they couldn't gain the upper hand.
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