Fierce Battle!

They assigned the tasks, then split into groups of four to stand watch.

The night passed without incident. Early the next morning, they replenished their strength and water, then buried their Forehead Protectors underground. Shita Genichi and the other three crossed the border into the Land of Rivers and hurried toward the Daimyo Palace at top speed.

They didn't act immediately. Instead, they used the Transformation Technique to disguise themselves as ordinary people, entered the Daimyo Palace, and settled into an inn.

They rested at the inn all day. After nightfall, Hatake Sakumo and Yamanaka En left to gather information.

At ten that night, Hatake Sakumo and Yamanaka En returned to the inn with bad news.

The daimyo's guards had increased in number, and they were suspected to be Sand Shinobi.

And there was no ruling out the possibility that some Sand Shinobi had gone undetected.

Even so, Hatake Sakumo didn't order them to abandon the mission.

Midnight.

After putting on their masks, Hatake Sakumo gave the order to begin.

The team split in two.

Yamanaka En went to prepare their escape route and provide support, while Shita Genichi and Uchiha Namiichi followed Hatake Sakumo as he stole into the daimyo's palace under cover of darkness.

Then the three of them split up again.

Shita Genichi and Uchiha Namiichi went off on their own, while Hatake Sakumo headed straight for the daimyo's sleeping quarters.

They had carried out a mission here before, so they knew the terrain like the backs of their hands.

Shita Genichi soon reached the edge of a lake.

He formed Hand Seals and created a Water Clone. Then his real body hid among the artificial rocks by the lake and ate a Military Ration Pill to recover his strength.

The Water Clone leaped silently onto the lake's surface.

The night was still.

Shita Genichi hadn't waited two minutes before a rumble sounded in his ears.

He looked up. Flames flared into the sky, lighting up the darkness and shattering the night's silence.

Shouts rang out one after another.

On the lake, Shita Genichi drew a deep breath, then formed the "In" seal with both hands. He pulled his hands back and brought them together in front of his chest.

The lake, still moments before, began to ripple in fine concentric rings. Then his body started sinking into the water until only half his head remained above the surface.

Clang, clang, clang!

The clash of metal rang out, along with the sharp whistle of objects cutting through the air.

Under the moonlight, Shita Genichi saw several figures moving toward him.

It was Uchiha Namiichi. Two enemies had him surrounded, and he was falling back as he fought.

More pursuers were behind them, hurling shuriken from time to time.

Shita Genichi figured that he wouldn't be able to withstand such an attack himself.

But Uchiha Namiichi had the Sharingan, which gave him a tremendous advantage in the dark.

What's more, the Sharingan had incredible perception, and Uchiha Namiichi was skilled in Taijutsu and swordsmanship.

So even while surrounded and pursued, Uchiha Namiichi managed to lead the enemy safely to the edge of the lake.

Uchiha Namiichi leaped into the air, sheathed his blade, and formed Hand Seals. Opening his mouth, he spat a huge fireball at the enemy.

But the attack failed to hurt them. A gust of wind scattered it outright.

In reality, the move had been meant to cover Shita Genichi.

As the fireball swept out, Shita Genichi was already rising from the lake, bringing a large volume of water up with him.

Water Release: Water Colliding Wave!

The fireball had barely been blown apart when a torrent of water roared onto the shore.

"An ambush!"

The two enemies surrounding Uchiha Namiichi were startled. They both used the Body Flicker Technique to leap into the air.

The torrent surged beneath them, but the three men behind them, who had rushed over and thrown shuriken at Uchiha Namiichi in midair, couldn't get out of its way. They cried out as the current swept them off their feet.

On the lake, Shita Genichi formed Hand Seals again.

Front—Snake!

Water surged up and spun rapidly around him.

A shuriken fitted with an Explosive Tag, thrown by one of the men pursuing Uchiha Namiichi, was blocked by the Water Formation Wall.

"This guy's so fast!"

Jiekong was startled. He had thrown the shuriken to stop Shita Genichi from forming Hand Seals, but his opponent had been too quick. Jiekong immediately charged into the lake and attacked him.

He had to stop him from using Water Release. The terrain here was far too favorable.

At that moment, someone screamed.

On the other side, Shita Genichi's real body, hidden among the rocks, also formed Hand Seals: Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!

The target was the other ninja who had earlier surrounded Uchiha Namiichi. His vision was sealed completely, plunging him into absolute darkness.

Uchiha Namiichi easily finished him off with a single slash.

Jiekong turned and saw his fallen comrade. He immediately leaped backward instead of continuing his charge.

But by then, the Water Clone had finished forming its Hand Seals.

Water—Snake—Tiger!

Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!

The water dragon roared forward. Jiekong leaped aside to dodge, only to run straight into Uchiha Namiichi, who was coming to attack him.

Clang!

Their Ninja Blades clashed. Then, with a thud, Uchiha Namiichi kicked Jiekong flying.

The water dragon swept up from the ground right then, clamped its jaws around Jiekong, and plunged back down.

Crash!

The water dragon burst apart, and Jiekong fell.

Shita Genichi's eyelid twitched. He then saw two figures clashing in midair, sparks flying.

The next moment, Uchiha Namiichi grunted and flew backward, landing on the lake.

"Cough, cough. Careful, he's a Jonin!"

Shita Genichi nodded, then saw two more men appear on each side.

It was now six against two, and one of them was a Jonin.

What a dangerous mission!

"There are only two of them here. They must be bait. Captain, leave this to us!"

A Sand Shinobi on the left called out.

Shito stared at the two men on the lake and said, "We'll deal with them first."

"We don't need to worry too much about the daimyo."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shito charged toward the lake.

Shita Genichi formed Hand Seals at lightning speed.

Water—Clasped Hands!

This time, he squeezed his chakra to the limit. The water throughout the lake surged upward and began to spin.

"What?"

Shito was startled and quickly retreated. "Watch out for this guy!"

Jiekong, who had recovered some of his strength behind him, hurriedly warned them, "His Water Release is extremely powerful, and his Hand Seals are fast!"

He had barely finished speaking when a rumble sounded. The surging water rushed left, right, and forward, attacking all six enemies at once.

"Scatter!"

Shito shouted.

The figures leaped backward in every direction.

Shita Genichi's real body, hidden on the artificial rocks, finished forming its Hand Seals.

In an instant, two Sand Shinobi leaping toward the rocks lost their sight completely.

Draw-Sword Strike!

Shita Genichi leaped into the air. The two men, their vision gone, each fell to a single slash from him.

The roaring torrent drowned out the entire exchange.

The surging water reached its limit, then rolled back toward the lake.

The two Sand Shinobi on the right charged straight at Shita Genichi on the lake, and two Puppets lunged forward ahead of them.

They were both puppet masters.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A barrage of hidden weapons whistled through the air.

Uchiha Namiichi charged forward, not stopping to check on Shita Genichi behind him.

Shita Genichi's real body had already landed on the water behind the artificial rocks. He formed Hand Seals.

Water—Snake—Tiger!

Shito saw this and understood at once. He hurriedly shouted, "Watch out! That one's a clone!"

Thud!

The Water Clone was struck by the hidden weapons and disintegrated into a stream of water.

The next moment, Shita Genichi's real body completed its technique.

Water surged upward and gathered into a dragon. It plunged down, tearing the two attacking Puppets to pieces.

The water dragon kept charging and knocked one of the Sand Shinobi flying.

The other Sand Shinobi leaped aside, but as soon as he landed, someone drove a blade through his chest.

It was Uchiha Namiichi!

On the other side, Uchiha Namiichi, who had been kicked away by Shito, burst into a cloud of smoke with a poof.

It was a Shadow Clone!