The small speedboat's engine roared hoarsely, cutting a white wake across the pitch-black sea. Like a startled waterbird, it swerved toward the fog-shrouded waters to the northwest. Ling deliberately controlled its speed, keeping Kirigakure's pursuers from catching him while maintaining the frantic air of a desperate escape.
Cold, salty sea wind laden with moisture lashed his face, and visibility was abysmal. Behind him, several Kirigakure speedboats pursued relentlessly like sharks scenting blood. Shrill alarms and shouted warnings pierced the fog.
"Boat ahead, stop immediately! Otherwise, we will use force!"
Ling ignored them. Instead, as though terrified, he jerked the wheel, narrowly dodging a kunai fired as a warning, then drove even more desperately into the depths of the fog.
[Stay on this heading.] Tobirama's voice remained clear and calm amid the wind and waves. [I sense extremely turbulent natural energy ahead. There are powerful underwater currents and clusters of reefs. Use them.]
Ling understood at once. He extended his Senjutsu perception deep beneath the water, instantly "seeing" the complex, dangerous seabed ahead. He steered the speedboat past submerged reefs and along the edges of whirlpools, seemingly courting disaster at every turn. Each time, it looked as though boat and passenger would perish in the next second, yet he always escaped unscathed.
His maneuvers left the Kirigakure pursuers cursing furiously. Though familiar with these waters, they dared not race at full speed in such terrible weather and visibility. His utterly reckless driving only made them more hesitant.
"Damn it! Does that bastard have a death wish?!"
"Watch the reefs! Slow down!"
"No! We can't let him escape! Lord Mizukage gave us absolute orders!"
The commander of the pursuit appeared to be Aogiri, the female Anbu who used Boil Release. She stood at the bow, her expression grim beneath her mask. She