How Much Longer Can He Hold On?

Karatachi Yagura smiled, his short, pale green hair unmoving in the sea breeze.

"Naoki..." Uchiha Zongxin's voice rang out. "What... what do we do?"

Naoki didn't answer.

He looked back.

Uchiha Setsuna wore a grave expression, his right hand already resting on the hilt of his sword.

Shi panted heavily, a look of resolve flashing in his eyes.

Uchiha Zongye forced himself to stand straight, gripping a Kunai.

Though Uchiha Zongxin and Itachi were young, neither showed any sign of backing down.

Hyuga Hiroshi stood beside him, his eyes hidden behind his goggles fixed intently on Karatachi Yagura in the distance.

"We can't escape," Naoki said calmly.

It was the truth.

With nearly a hundred Kirigakure Ninja and Karatachi Yagura himself leading them, in their current condition, they had little chance of fighting, let alone breaking through.

"Then we'll fight." Uchiha Setsuna's voice was hoarse but calm, as if he were talking about the weather.

Hyuga Takashi, standing nearby, looked deeply troubled.

He hadn't expected that hunting down Ao would bring Karatachi Yagura out in person.

"Ah Xiao..." Hyuga Hiroshi instinctively moved closer to his clan elder.

Hyuga Takashi glanced at him and nodded, then looked briefly at the damaged goggles on Hyuga Hiroshi's face before turning his gaze to Ao, who had joined the group of Kirigakure Ninja.

"Damn it. We were so close to succeeding, and then Karatachi Yagura shows up out of nowhere!" he cursed inwardly.

"What do we do?" He turned back to Naoki, who stood not far away, rubbing his chest.

"Actually..." Karatachi Yagura suddenly spoke. "As long as you tell me who killed Meido and Hozuki, I can let most of you go."

Lifted by the waves, Karatachi Yagura came closer to Naoki and the others.

"I don't know who Hozuki and Meido are, but I did personally kill a Kirigakure Ninja dressed in black..." Naoki pretended to recall something. "Oh, right. I was also involved in the death of that Kirigakure Ninja wearing black heavy armor."

"Looks like you're quite confident."

Karatachi Yagura looked Naoki up and down.

"Then you'll be the first to go today!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Karatachi Yagura raised his hand and sent a vast barrage of water arrows hurtling toward them.

Naoki was ready. He formed Hand Seals swiftly, then spewed a massive amount of Fire Release chakra from his mouth.

"Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"

A sea of flames appeared before Naoki and surged toward Karatachi Yagura.

Water Release countered Fire Release, but when Fire Release was powerful enough, the water would quickly evaporate.

The water arrows vanished with a sizzling sound as soon as they entered the inferno.

Seizing the opportunity, Naoki turned and shouted to Uchiha Setsuna.

"Senior, remember what I said before? Now's our chance. Go!"

"Have you already made up your mind to die?" Uchiha Setsuna muttered to himself. "You're a clever boy. Why do something so foolish..."

Itachi drew his short sword and called out, "Senior, we'll die together! We're not running!"

Uchiha Setsuna looked at the child, who was not yet seven, then at Naoki's resolute back. Suddenly, he smiled.

"Good! Good! If the Uchiha Clan had more juniors like you, what could stop it from rising again?"

As soon as he finished speaking, blue-white lightning burst from Uchiha Setsuna's body.

Blinding sparks of lightning erupted from him and engulfed his entire body. His graying hair whipped wildly in the surging chakra, and his Three-Tomoe Sharingan gleamed an eerie red in the electric light.

"Senior!" Naoki turned in shock.

"Kid." Uchiha Setsuna didn't look at him, his eyes fixed on Karatachi Yagura. "Thirty years of imprisonment couldn't kill me. Today, I'll show the Kirigakure brat what a true Uchiha can do!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished from the spot.

In the next instant, he appeared in front of Karatachi Yagura, his lightning-wreathed fist crashing down.

Karatachi Yagura's pupils contracted. He raised his Hook Staff to block.

Boom!

Lightning exploded. The shockwave sent the waves beneath them surging outward, forming a massive ring of water.

Karatachi Yagura staggered back several steps, surprise flashing in his pale purple eyes.

"Such power..."

Uchiha Setsuna gave him no time to catch his breath. His second punch was already coming.

Karatachi Yagura snorted and swung his Hook Staff, meeting Uchiha Setsuna in battle.

Lightning and water intertwined. Every clash raised towering waves, and the people on the beach could barely keep their footing.

"What are you standing around for?" Uchiha Setsuna's voice came from the middle of the fight. "Get them out of here!"

Naoki gritted his teeth and looked at his companions.

"Move!"

"But Senior..." Uchiha Zongxin hesitated.

"Move!" Naoki grabbed him by the collar. "Don't let Senior Setsuna die for nothing!"

They turned and charged north.

"Trying to run?"

The Kirigakure Ninja swarmed forward, and the two sides quickly became entangled in battle.

Uchiha Setsuna's lightning flashed in the distance, but as time passed, it grew weaker and dimmer.

Now nearing sixty, he was beginning to decline from his peak. On top of that, he'd been fleeing with Naoki for days, leaving him unable to recover his stamina, chakra, or mental state.

Now, facing a powerhouse of Karatachi Yagura's caliber, Uchiha Setsuna would have only one fate—defeat—if he couldn't end the fight quickly.

Karatachi Yagura, fighting Uchiha Setsuna, also realized that the old man's condition was steadily worsening.

He forced his opponent to reveal an opening, then freed one hand and swiftly formed Hand Seals.

"Water Release: Water Mirror Technique!"

The water beneath Karatachi Yagura rose and quickly solidified into a huge mirror.

Uchiha Setsuna's reflection appeared on its surface, with the same graying hair, the same Three-Tomoe Sharingan, and the same blue-white lightning coiling around him.

"What?!"

Uchiha Setsuna's pupils contracted.

The next instant, the "Uchiha Setsuna" in the mirror burst through its surface, charging in with lightning identical to the original's and throwing a punch.

Boom!

The two streams of lightning collided, forcing Uchiha Setsuna back. His arm went numb.

"This technique..." He gritted his teeth. "It copied my abilities?"

Karatachi Yagura stood behind the water mirror, mockery flashing in his pale purple eyes.

"My technique can copy an opponent's ninjutsu and Taijutsu, creating a clone with exactly the same abilities.

Old man, can you beat yourself?"

Uchiha Setsuna didn't answer. He flashed forward and charged again.

Lightning clashed with lightning, fists and feet met in a flurry.

Two "Uchiha Setsunas" fought across the sea, every collision raising towering waves.

But Uchiha Setsuna soon noticed something was wrong. His chakra was rapidly running out, while the clone seemed tireless.

"Figured it out?" Karatachi Yagura's voice rang out from afar. "The clone's chakra comes from me. In your current state, how much longer can you hold on?"