Battle Against Maruboshi Kosuke (4/10)

Chapter 38: Battle Against Maruboshi Kosuke (410)

In the arena, Retsuo and Maruboshi Kosuke each formed the "Opposing Seal," but neither was in a hurry to attack.

Compared to Retsuo, who appeared relaxed on the outside but was tense within as he focused on observing, Maruboshi Kosuke was utterly composed. He leisurely opened his Ninja Tool Pouch and pulled out four Shuriken, holding them between his fingers.

Retsuo also reached into his Ninja Tool Pouch and fished out several Kunai from the bottom. Using a special grip, he held them with their handles facing forward and his fingers clamped around their sharp blades.

"Battles between Genin have always begun with both sides throwing Ninja Tools at each other. But competing with the Uchiha Clan in Ninja Tool throwing is really unfair to an old man like me." Maruboshi Kosuke spoke as if he were chatting over afternoon tea. Then, with his increasingly aged voice, he leisurely called out, "Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

At the same time, the four ordinary Shuriken in his hand vanished. He smoothly pulled a huge Fuma Shuriken from the iron pot on his back and hurled it with all his strength.

His hands formed seals at lightning speed—

Ox—Dog—Dragon—Rat—Dog—Pig—Snake—Tiger!

By the time he finished forming the seals, he had only just finished saying "Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu." His flower-piercing, tree-circling hand speed formed a stark contrast with his leisurely voice.

Tenma stared without blinking, yet he still failed to see Grandpa Kosuke form the seals clearly. The moment Kosuke finished speaking, countless Shuriken filled the sky in the blink of an eye, forming a flat plane.

Shinji's heart leaped into her throat. She felt as though Retsuo had been scared senseless and had no idea how to respond.

Suddenly, Retsuo moved. He simply threw the four Kunai as though this were an ordinary battle.

But Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned. Only now did he notice that Retsuo's Kunai were specially made. Tiny holes had been drilled into their blades, with Explosive Tags tied to them. Despite having holes drilled into the blades, the Kunai remained sturdy. In Konoha, the only Ninja Tool workshop with such craftsmanship belonged to Grandma Cat.

Retsuo had been holding those Explosive Tags with a special grip earlier, so no one had seen them.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom—" Four explosions rang out almost simultaneously. The smoke and dust quickly dispersed, and all those Shuriken had somehow vanished...

Shisui leaned against the tree trunk and watched the battle with his Sharingan activated. He appeared calm on the surface, but was actually quite astonished.

This kid actually broke Third Grandpa's technique just like that?

Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu was an A-rank ninjutsu and one of the Third Hokage's signature techniques. Even Shisui would have to activate his Sharingan and desperately block if he encountered this technique.

Only after Retsuo broke the technique did he realize that it was not actually difficult to counter. The Shuriken created by the technique were inevitably affected by inertia and had to remain on a single plane.

As long as one chose the explosion points cleverly, it became a blasting effect that destroyed the entire plane from a single point.

The problem was, how had Retsuo chosen his explosion point so precisely? He had not activated his Sharingan! Even with the Sharingan activated, throwing the Kunai was easy, but making the Explosive Tags detonate simultaneously was extremely difficult.

Shisui could not help sinking into thought as he mentally put himself in Retsuo's place.

As Retsuo continued throwing Kunai, he observed Maruboshi Kosuke and discovered that the other man was not surprised in the slightest.

Kosuke merely waved the iron pot to block his Kunai while shifting around the battlefield. Suddenly, he threw down the iron pot and leisurely called out, "Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!"

The instant he heard the words "Water Release," Retsuo's hands immediately formed the Rat Seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

His Chakra was only sufficient to create one clone. The two figures split off and circled to the left and right.

Shisui was briefly bewildered. What the hell was Water Dragon Jutsu? There was an unspoken rule when ninjas used ninjutsu: by the time they finished calling out the technique's name, they had to have completed the hand seals. But this technique required forty-four seals...

And then Kosuke suddenly leaped up! He had only formed three seals when a water dragon violently burst from the ground!

By then, the two Retsuos had already separated, and the water dragon could only viciously bite toward one of them.

Snake—Ram—Monkey—Pig—Horse—Tiger!

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

Tiger—Snake!

"Water Release: Water Wall!"

The two sides launched their second wave of ninjutsu almost simultaneously. Shisui's fingers twitched unconsciously. The Water Wall clearly required six seals!

The scorching Great Fireball collided with the Water Wall, sending a vast amount of steam into the air.

Amid the rising steam, Retsuo had already rushed forward. His opponent's advantage in ninjutsu was too great, and barely handling two exchanges had already been extremely difficult. Only by fighting with Taijutsu could he avoid the gap in ninjutsu, then find an opportunity!

Especially since Kosuke had covered his eyes as soon as he entered the battle, relying entirely on his hearing and experience. Even if Retsuo did not want to fight with Taijutsu, he had no choice.

For a while, the sound of "clang, clang, clang, clang" rang out without pause. The two fought with Kunai in hand, each filled with caution and probing.

Before long, Retsuo discovered that his short arms and legs were a huge disadvantage. He had never noticed it during his usual sparring matches with Tenma and Shinji, but despite Maruboshi Kosuke's aged limbs, the old man was as agile as a grasshopper. Every attack was intercepted from outside the distance where it could cause damage.

Retsuo calmly realized that he had few opportunities left. Although he had held his own for these few exchanges, engaging in a battle of attrition against an expert like Kosuke was undoubtedly courting death.

He could not keep probing. Taking advantage of a clash of strength, he flipped backward and leaped out of the circle. He reached his right arm behind his back and drew the newly acquired Ninja Blade, "Sōbō Tōga," then charged forward through the water.

Kosuke had learned his Water Release from the Sea Release ninja Tobirama Senju. After the Water Dragon Jutsu and Water Wall vanished, the training ground had become a vast swamp. The two had long since entered a state of fighting while walking on water.

Fortunately, Ukyo's relentless training had already taught Retsuo how to climb trees and walk on water. He charged forward at high speed, dragging the blade in his right hand across the water and carving out a trail.

Sōbō Tōga was shaped like a tachi, and the posture of dragging it along the ground was filled with a powerful beauty. However, Retsuo was actually pouring out Chakra like mad. This Ninja Blade could not only unleash the ultimate technique Turbulent Water Vortex Slash, it could also alter the direction of the water flow. This meant...

Maruboshi Kosuke also drew his Ninja Blade and stood ready. After several rounds of probing, he had a clear understanding of Uchiha Retsuo's strength. What remained was simply how to win.

It had to be said that the boy's responses to ninjutsu were extremely impressive, almost as if he could predict the future. Amazing! But it was also possible that the Uchiha Clan had already revealed his information to the boy. Who could say for certain? As Konoha's most senior ninja, Kosuke's information was impossible to conceal.

As for his Taijutsu, it was merely average, right? Moreover, he did not look as though he were concealing any strength. It was difficult to hide one's ability in close combat. If someone could hide their true strength, they had to possess an overwhelming advantage. The weak had no qualifications to hold back.

That was precisely the purpose of probing.

But he remained cautious, intending to win by the safest possible method.

Then, suddenly, Retsuo's speed surged! The increase caused an uproar, and even Kosuke, the person involved, immediately turned sideways and retreated with his blade raised!

As a ninja who had fought all his life and faced every kind of opponent, how rich was Kosuke's experience? The instant something seemed wrong, he retreated to widen the distance and began forming a ninjutsu.

"Water Style: Water Army Deployment Jutsu!"

Kosuke rapidly formed the seals, but just as he was preparing to release the Water Release ninjutsu, Uchiha Retsuo clasped both hands around his tachi, raised it above his head, and swung it forward.