Kōki hadn't expected his words to cause so much trouble for Uchiha Fugaku. He was currently conserving his energy, preparing to follow the clues Orochimaru had given him the next day to find the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist who had entered the Land of Fire.
However, before leaving, he informed Orochimaru about Rin's condition. Orochimaru said he understood and then told Minato to come back and deal with the matter together.
After dealing with this matter, he went to rest.
The following day, Kōki left the Konoha camp and ran towards the Land of Fire.
Here, we must mention the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist's incredible mobility.
His latest intelligence indicated that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had changed locations countless times in just one night, sometimes in the east, sometimes in the west, with absolutely no discernible pattern.
The only good thing is that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist have consistently followed the path of Konoha's support for the Land of Bears.
They probably knew that their main task was to relieve the pressure on the Kirigakure. This gave Kōki a search area; as long as he searched within that area, he would eventually run into them.
While Kōki was still searching, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist were shifting their positions while boasting about their achievements.
" Raiga, how many Konoha Ninja did you just kill?" A man with a large sword slung over his back and red mesh lip paint, looking extremely fierce, asked the gloomy-faced man beside him. His tone carried a hint of mockery, as if implying something.
"Huh? Juzo Biwa, what do you mean by that? Are you trying to say I'm inferior to you?"
Raiga felt a surge of displeasure upon hearing the tone of Juzo Biwa's voice. He could detect the obvious disdain in Juzo Biwa's words.
"And I don't recall our relationship reaching the point where we call each other by our first names. If you don't want to test the power of my Lightning Swords, you'd better call me by my name properly."
"Hahaha, I didn't mean anything by it. Raiga, I just wanted to say that your Lightning Swords isn't as good as my Kubikiribōchō, and the number of people you've killed proves that perfectly."
Despite the threat from Raiga Kurosuki, Juzo Biwa remained completely unfazed.
In his view, his Kubikiribōchō was better than the Lightning Swords, and moreover, he was confident that his strength was above that of Raiga Kurosuki, so even if they really fought, he would not lose.
This attitude directly angered the gloomy-tempered Raiga Kurosuki, who drew two Lightning Swords: Kiba— the Fangs—from his back. A series of crackling sounds suddenly rang out, and dazzling blue lightning bolts coiled around the silver blades of the Lightning Swords like lightning serpents.
When Juzo Biwa saw Raiga Kurosuki take his stance, he also Kubikiribōchō Juzo Biwa, about half the size of a door panel, from his back and held it horizontally in front of his chest with one hand.
The atmosphere between the two instantly became tense.
This situation immediately attracted the attention of the other Ninja Blade owners. However, they did not stop them; instead, their eyes revealed interest. They scattered, leaving the two of them a wide enough battlefield.
This cold behavior seems to show no camaraderie whatsoever, but this is the relationship between comrades in the Kirigakure Ninja.
Since the Fourth Mizukage took office, Kirigakure has pursued a strategy of cultivating elite ninjas. Every Kirigakure who wants to graduate and become a qualified ninja must undergo extremely brutal battles.
Only those who stand out among their peers during graduation exams receive training from Kirigakure. For example, they might be assigned to a skilled Jonin and form a ninja team with equally excellent ninjas. However, this doesn't mean that Kirigakure can rest easy after graduation.
In their subsequent missions, they will further learn the qualities necessary to be Kirigakure Ninja: abandoning personal emotions and prioritizing the mission above all else.
For example, when Genin is in danger during a mission, the Jonin of Kirigakure will not come to their aid like Jonin other ninja villages. Instead, they will continue to prioritize the objective. Some even more ruthless Kirigakure of Jonin will use their subordinates as bait to lure the enemy, while they wait on the sidelines for the right moment.
However, it is undeniable that ninjas who survived and grew up successfully under such circumstances were stronger than ninjas from other villages and were true elites.
Therefore, the ninjas trained under this policy of disregarding the lives of their comrades and always prioritizing the mission made Kirigakure famous throughout the Shinobi World. They made the entire Shinobi World know that Kirigakure ninjas represented the elite.
However, such a policy also has a huge hidden danger: the sense of identity with Kirigakure that ninjas trained under this policy will gradually dissipate as they grow up.
Because they all emerged from mountains of corpses and seas of blood, every Kirigakure Ninja grew up had an extremely vicious personality. They showed no respect for anything, only fear of strength.
The Mizukage can command them only because of Mizukage immense power.
At the same time, due to the lack of bonds, the defection rate of Kirigakure ninjas is also quite high, ranking first among the Five Great Nations.
Therefore, in such a ninja village atmosphere, even the renowned Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist are not close to each other.
So, as soon as they saw that Juzo Biwa and Raiga Kurosuki were about to make their move, the other members of the Ninja Blade all stepped aside to watch the show.
Unfortunately, the show they were looking forward to didn't happen, because before Juzo Biwa could fight Raiga Kurosuki, he was stopped by Suikazan Fuguki, a man with long orange hair and carrying a large, bandaged Samehada.
"Alright, we're all elite ninjas from Kirigakure, how can we fight during a mission? If you really want to fight, wait until after the war. Then you can fight however you want, no one will stop you. Right now, the mission comes first. If anyone is unwilling to cooperate, don't blame me for reporting to the Mizukage when I get back to the village."
After saying this, Suikazan Fuguki glanced at the two who were about to attack. His threatening tone was palpable.
Upon hearing Suikazan Fuguki speak, Raiga Kurosuki and Juzo Biwa glared at each other, then simultaneously snorted and stopped what they were doing.
However, their withdrawal did not mean they were afraid of Suikazan Fuguki. Rather, it was because Suikazan Fuguki had been personally appointed by the Fourth Mizukage as the commander of the operation during this mission.
As long as they still acknowledge themselves as Kirigakure Ninja and have no intention of defecting, they must obey Suikazan Fuguki's command.
Without the appointment of the Fourth Mizukage, even if Suikazan Fuguki argued endlessly, he couldn't stop the duel between Juzo Biwa and Raiga Kurosuki. In fact, he might even be attacked by the two of them for interfering in their fight.
Of course, without the appointment by the Fourth Mizukage, even if Juzo Biwa and Raiga Kurosuki fought fiercely, Suikazan Fuguki would have just stood by and watched like the other members of the Ninja Blade, without saying a word to stop them.
This is the "close" relationship among the Kirigakure Ninja.
The other Ninja Blade standing nearby looked disappointed after the show was over, and couldn't help but click their tongues in dismay, saying, "We're tired of killing those trash ninjas from Konoha Tenten. It's such a shame we finally had a good show to watch, but it got stopped."
" Kushimaru is right, it's a real pity. I'm really curious, which is more powerful, the Lightning Swords or the Kubikiribōchō?"
"..."
After the turmoil within the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist subsided, the group of seven continued their search for Konoha's reinforcements.
But unbeknownst to them, a deadly figure was lurking behind them, hunting them down. They were still searching for their next prey.
Not long after, they encountered another innocent Konoha Ninja squad.
Their eyes gleamed, and they swarmed forward, giving the Konoha squad's ninjas no chance to beg for mercy.
"Ah!!!"
After a few screams, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist easily dispatched the Konoha ninja squad. Gently wiping their blood-stained Ninja Blade, Jinin Akebino gave Suikazan Fuguki a cruel smile and asked, his voice dripping with malice, " Fuguki, are there any more Konoha ninja squads around? With so few Konoha Ninja, we have to share them all. It's not enough to really enjoy ourselves. We didn't even get to show off the destructive power of our Blunt Sword Kabutowari. It's really not satisfying."
For Jinin Akebino, the battle just now wasn't even a warm-up. Of the four Konoha Ninja, he only managed to take down one; the rest were divided up by the others. That small amount didn't excite him at all; instead, he felt a sense of emptiness.
"Don't worry, there are plenty of Konoha Ninja. As long as we continue our search, we'll definitely satisfy your bloodlust." Suikazan Fuguki smiled faintly upon hearing Jinin Akebino's words.
Satisfying their bloodlust is easy. They're currently within the Land of Fire, where Konoha Ninja are countless. As long as they keep killing, they'll eventually satisfy their urge to slaughter.
"That's true, there are just too many trash ninjas in Konoha to kill them all."
Just as Jinin Akebino was feeling sentimental, he suddenly heard an unknown noise coming from the woods nearby.
This instantly turned the previously cheerful atmosphere among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist into one of grim tension.
Immediately afterwards, Kushimaru Kuriarare swung his arm, and the Long Sword: Nuibari, shot into the dense forest like an arrow released from a bow, at a speed that was difficult for ordinary people to react to.
Before the Nuibari could even hit their target, three short figures leaped out of the dense forest. Without looking back, they fled in the opposite direction from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
But given the strength of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, how could they simply watch their prey escape?
In the blink of an eye, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, who had been behind the three short figures, appeared in front of them.
This startled the three of them.
Looking at the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist in their various postures—some sitting cross-legged, some standing with their arms crossed, and some crouching—cold sweat beaded on their foreheads, and their eyes were filled with fear.
"We're doomed. We're going to die against the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist." At that moment, a child with Senbon needle in his mouth among the three short figures whispered out of fear.
What he thought was a soft whisper was clearly heard by the enemy.
"I never imagined that the reputation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist would even reach the brats of Konoha. How exciting!"
Juzo Biwa looked honored, but his words were filled with bloodshed.
Then they saw him lift the Kubikiribōchō with one hand, hold it upright, and tense his muscles, looking ready to strike. The others around him were also eager to try, their eyes filled with murderous intent.
Just as the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were about to make their move, their keen senses alerted them to someone rapidly approaching them.
So they all looked up and looked behind the three Konoha kids.
A figure radiating green light rushed towards them, then leaped to the front of the three little devils.
"Reinforcements? Just one person's reinforcement, what's the point? It's just sending them to their deaths."
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist found the approaching Konoha Ninja amusing. They'd never seen a ninja willing to come and die instead of running away from them.
But suddenly, a dangerous aura appeared, and Juzo Biwa felt as if some monster was staring at them, making the hairs on his body stand on end.
However, don't misunderstand, the dangerous aura he sensed had nothing to do with the four people from Konoha not far away, but came from a third party outside of them.
"Hey, Fuguki, something's not right. I feel like I'm being watched by something. Have you found anything?" The arrogant smile on Juzo Biwa's face vanished instantly, replaced by a serious expression as he observed his surroundings.
As for why he asked Suikazan Fuguki, it was because Samehada on Fuguki's hand was a living creature that was extremely sensitive to dangerous auras and could issue warnings.
Upon hearing this, the Suikazan Fuguki immediately touched Samehada.
Upon touching it, he noticed that Samehada's body was trembling slightly, emanating a strong sense of fear, which instantly made his expression serious.
He knew that Samehada's behavior undoubtedly indicated the seriousness of the situation.
He looked around nervously. " Samehada told me that something dangerous is coming."
Upon hearing this, the other Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist immediately looked around cautiously.
Soon, they all sensed an inexplicable sense of danger surrounding them, as if a terrifying monster was lurking around them, waiting for them to make a mistake so it could devour them completely.
The strange behavior of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist left the four people—one adult and three children—not far away completely bewildered. They had no idea what was happening or what the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were wary of.
"Dad, what do we do now?" Might Guy looked at the strange situation before him and asked his father, who was glowing green, in a tense tone. He had originally planned to question his father, Genin, about why he had come here, but now he only knew whether there was any chance to leave.
Just as Might Duy was about to answer his son's question, the ground suddenly trembled violently, creating a tremendous earthquake.
Immediately afterwards, countless trees burst forth from the ground, surging menacingly towards the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Then he heard a strange, somewhat childish voice suddenly ring out behind him.
"Damn the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist, I've finally found you!"
"..."