Do Your Fingertips Contain the Stars and Sea?

"Don't let your guard down. This brat isn't ordinary either, but he's still just a brat. Finish him off!"

"Got you, brat. Repent in hell for stepping forward to play the hero! Explosion Blade Ninja Art: Heavy Death."

Munashi Jinpachi emerged from the dense fog, swinging Exploding Blade Shibuki in a waist-level slash that made the three of them cry out in alarm.

"Watch out!"

"Too late?"

"Was it still too much after all?"

The blade swept through, yet the expected explosion never came. The Explosive Tags on the blade passed through empty space as if cutting through nothing, unable to stir even the slightest ripple.

"A clone?"

"No, a Phantom Clone. What exactly is going on?"

Munashi Jinpachi was secretly alarmed. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen, who had been guarding against their surroundings with every fiber of their being, now uncharacteristically stood back-to-back, warily watching all directions. Figures in Black Cloaks, wearing Three-Eyed Demon Fox Masks, had surrounded them.

"Is it false or real? Like flowers blooming in a mirror, like a waning moon reflected in water—how could you know whether it is real or false without experiencing it for yourself?"

Ninja blades, ninjutsu, Water Release, kunai...

Every form of attack the Seven Ninja Swordsmen could imagine was unleashed against the dozen or so Phantom Clones, but no matter how hard they tried, none of their attacks had any effect.

"Damn it, what is this brat? Genjutsu? Even if it is Genjutsu, it's far too realistic. This strange feeling..."

"It's over."

Raiga Kurosuki's pupils constricted. A cold sensation lightly brushed across his throat, and his entire body collapsed into a pool of blood, unable to move.

His pupils trembled. What entered his vision were the companions who had once fought at his side, now lying scattered across the ground, their fates unknown.

Flying Raijin Slash.

Rain poured down in torrents, the icy water carrying away the lingering warmth from his body. The final thing he saw was merely a bead of blood dripping from the edge of a kunai.

"So... so amazing. What kind of ninjutsu was that?"

Might Guy stared at the Seven Ninja Swordsmen lying on the ground, their fates unknown. For a moment, he even forgot about Might Duy's injuries.

"So that is the power to suppress a battlefield? Body Flicker Gengetsu, a Body Flicker Genjutsu that makes it impossible to distinguish illusion from reality."

Clenching his teeth, Shiranui Genma recalled what he had witnessed that day.

No wonder this guy could complete an S-rank support mission alone. Is that really something a human can use?

"Huayue-san, were the words you told me that day really just comfort? Is the gap between us really only that small?"

"Of course. The gap between us is only this small, isn't it?"

Huayue raised his right hand again. Ebisu looked at the gap between his thumb and forefinger and instinctively asked, "Do your fingertips contain the stars and sea?"

"If thinking that makes you feel better, you can understand it that way. Enough idle talk. We're going back to Konoha now. Let's go."

Not long after they left, several Kirigakure ninja hurried over. When they saw the Seven Ninja Swordsmen lying on the ground, their fates unknown, their limbs went cold with fright.

"What happened? Lord Juzo Biwa, Lord Suikazan Fuguki, even the other Seven Ninja Swordsmen..."

Cough, cough, cough!

A burst of violent coughing rang out as Suikazan Fuguki struggled to climb up from the ground. Blood streamed from his wounds, too gruesome to look at.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! Damn Body Flicker Gengetsu! That damned brat actually stole my Samehada! That brat... I'll definitely kill him!"

"Shut up! You barking bastard. If you really had the ability to kill him, you wouldn't be lying here screaming, cough, cough, cough..."

The body farthest away spoke weakly, blood still continuously flowing out. Seeing this, the two Kirigakure ninja hurriedly administered emergency treatment. After stopping their bleeding, they asked in low voices.

"Was the enemy Body Flicker Gengetsu?"

"That terrifying brat. That Body Flicker resembling Genjutsu—ordinary attacks were completely useless against it. If the kunai that cut my throat hadn't been blocked by my teeth for a moment, there probably wouldn't be any Seven Ninja Swordsmen left in this world."

Juzo Biwa opened his mouth. His sharp shark-like teeth had broken off cleanly, carving savage wounds throughout his mouth. It was precisely because of the horrifying amount of bleeding that he had barely managed to deceive the enemy.

"Tch, you're still alive, Juzo Biwa. That brat seemed to underestimate how much injury I can endure. That Body Flicker Technique was definitely a trick to fool the eye. How could there be something in this world that lets attacks pass through its body...?"

Suikazan Fuguki's expression darkened. Their ninja blades had been taken, and only two of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen remained. Without blades and without people, what kind of Seven Ninja Swordsmen were they?

"You're already lucky to be alive. Before that brat left, I saw the Fire Fan crest on his back. He really is a genius brat from the Uchiha Clan."

"I never want to run into him again. With that level of Body Flicker Technique, if there's no way to counter it, being killed is inevitable. It's only a matter of time..."

The two exchanged glances and fell silent. Only then did the Kirigakure ninja who had come to deliver the message remember his real purpose and hurriedly said, "Lord Juzo Biwa, Lord Suikazan Fuguki, Lord Ao has successfully obtained the Hyuga Clan's Kekkei Genkai and is now returning to Kirigakure..."

"You want us to cover him? In our current condition, whether we can retreat safely is still unknown. Though the outcome of this war counts as a failure, it wasn't entirely without gains, was it?"

The two barely managed to get to their feet and vanished into the dense forest. The bodies on the ground were also collected by several ninja as they retreated from the border of the Land of Fire at full speed.

Some time later, at Konoha Hospital in Konoha, Land of Fire.

Outside the operating room, Might Guy was visibly anxious, while Ebisu and Shiranui Genma remained silent as they waited for the result of the surgery.

"Trust in the medical team. Duy didn't use the final move of that forbidden technique. Although some of the Gate of Death's chakra burned through him, I sealed it in time. He won't die, it's just that..."

The warning light outside the operating room went out. Nonō emerged, removed her mask, and nodded gently.

"The surgery was successful. The patient is no longer in danger, but his chakra pathways and body have suffered an enormous burden. It is very likely that he will never be able to become a ninja again."

"Is... is that so? Thank you, thank you so much. Dad survived. That's great."

Might Guy finally let out a sigh of relief and dropped onto the floor. Just as he was about to thank Uchiha Huayue, he realized that Huayue had already vanished from the corridor.

In a corner of Konoha Hospital, Huayue raised an eyebrow and smiled as he looked over the Anbu ninja before him.

"Is there something you need?"

"Uchiha Huayue, Lord Hokage requests your presence. I should congratulate you in advance. Even during wartime, there has never been anything on this level..."

Realizing he had misspoken, the Anbu wearing an ox mask at the front fell silent and merely made a gesture of invitation.

"Congratulate me?"