"Bang!"
Kisame's blow struck Rock Lee squarely, sending him skidding back three steps and carving two deep furrows through the mud beneath his feet.
"Not enough."
Kisame's voice rang with unbridled arrogance.
Tenten's ninja tools followed close behind-kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags rained down from every direction.
Kisame did not even glance back.
He swept Samehada across his body, knocking every incoming weapon away.
"An attack like that isn't even enough to scratch an itch."
Guy closed in from the side, his Leaf Great Whirlwind kick whipping toward Kisame's neck with a howling rush of air.
Kisame finally moved.
He shifted half a step sideways, barely protecting his vital point. The wind from Guy's kick brushed his cheek and sheared off several strands of hair.
"Oh?"
A flicker of interest appeared on Kisame's sharklike face.
"The Blue Beast of Konoha. Your taijutsu's pretty good, but compared to your father, you've got a long way to go!!"
Kisame formed hand seals with one hand, moving almost too fast to see-
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
His mouth suddenly opened wide.
That was no metaphor.
It truly opened wide.
Vast quantities of chakra gushed from his mouth. The ninjutsu erupted on a terrifying scale, sweeping across the entire battlefield in moments like a flood bursting through a dam.
The ground sank.
Loose stones disappeared beneath the water.
Earth turned to sludge.
Within a few breaths, a vast lake had appeared out of nowhere on the battlefield. Rock Lee and Tenten's expressions changed as the flood swept them away.
"Oh no-"
Before Rock Lee could finish, Kisame had already plunged into the water.
The surface exploded!
A gigantic Water Release Shark surged out of the lake, its gaping maw lunging straight at Rock Lee and Tenten!
"Get out of the way!"