From the moment Seimei launched his ambush to now, mere moments had passed, yet three out of the four Iwagakure ninja were dead.
Currently, the only one left alive on the field was Rōshi.
Seeing miserable state of the other three, he stopped hesitating. Instantly transforming into a human lava tank, he powered through the residual lightning Seimei had gathered and burst out of the Lightning Prison's hundred-meter range.
Seeing this, Seimei murmured, "Running? Do you think you can get away?"
As he spoke, he dispelled the 'Lightning Style: Lightning Prison'.
Then, launching himself from behind the massive boulder, he used the 'Body Flicker Technique', becoming a blur as he pursued his target at extreme speed.
The distance between them rapidly closed. When Seimei judged the timing was right, he immediately raised his hands, formed seals, and unleashed another ninjutsu—'Water Style: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave'!
In an instant, a massive volume of water spewed from his mouth, surging forward like a river falling from the sky.
Seimei himself was lifted higher and higher by the surging wave.
A moment later, the originally arid, barren desert beneath his feet had transformed into a vast lake, covering an area of one to two kilometers.
Not far away, Rōshi, who had just been fleeing, couldn't help but stop as he witnessed this landscape-altering sight.
Based on this display alone, he knew that simply trying to run wouldn't get him out of the grasp of the person behind him.
'I need to adopt a more proactive strategy,' Rōshi thought.
However...
Looking at the lake beneath his feet, he felt a sense of unease.
He knew that this land, and indeed the entire Land of Earth, wasn't well-suited for Water Style ninjutsu.
The same technique used here would be at least half as powerful compared to using it in a more suitable environment.
Creating such a large body of water must have consumed an unimaginable amount of chakra.
Even though he could draw upon the Four-Tails' chakra to some extent, giving him far greater chakra reserves than the average person, seeing Seimei's technique still made him inwardly apprehensive.
After all, just to limit the effectiveness of his Lava Release, his opponent had expended so much chakra. He couldn't imagine what other techniques might be waiting for him once the fight truly began. This forced him to be cautious.
Indeed, Rōshi's assessment was correct. Seimei had expended a massive amount of chakra to create this water body precisely to hinder Rōshi's Lava Release.
It couldn't be helped; the opponent was entirely encased in thick lava armor, making surprise attacks difficult and genjutsu ineffective. He could only resort to this brute-force approach.
However, this alone wasn't enough. He needed to speed things up and further deplete his opponent's chakra.
From Black Snake's memories, he knew that as soon as the four ANBU discovered someone was searching for Rōshi, they had already sent this information back to Iwagakure.
It was likely that reinforcements from the village were already on their way.
Therefore, he had to end this fight swiftly.
With this thought, Seimei wasted no more time. He immediately raised his hands, formed seals, and unleashed 'Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu'!
Instantly, a gigantic water dragon emerged from the lake, lunging towards Rōshi with overwhelming power.
Seeing this, Rōshi didn't waste words. He immediately leaped up and swung his fist at the water dragon.
That's right, he didn't use any flashy ninjutsu, just his right hand, coated in lava, to clash directly with the water dragon Seimei had formed.
Boom!~
The two collided.
The massive water dragon was shattered by Rōshi's single blow, dissolving into countless water droplets. Before they could even fall back, the intense heat from Rōshi's lava armor vaporized them into vast clouds of steam.
In fact, it wasn't just the water dragon; the very surface of the lake Seimei had created was constantly being evaporated by the lava surrounding Rōshi.
This forced Seimei to continuously pour large amounts of chakra into the water just to maintain its size.
However, Seimei was perfectly fine with this.
Simply put, this consumption was mutual.
Water Style naturally countered Fire Style.
Although Rōshi's armor was Lava Release, not Fire Style, Lava Release itself is formed by combining Fire and Earth Styles. Therefore, it was naturally weakened to some extent by Water Style.
Thus, to evaporate the lake water, the opponent had to expend an equal amount of chakra, perhaps even more.
So, Seimei wasn't afraid of the chakra drain at all.
In fact, this was part of his plan.
He wanted to exhaust Rōshi's chakra, forcing him to rely on the Tailed Beast's power.
This would give him a chance to breach the lava armor's defense and use genjutsu to control him. Even if he couldn't control Rōshi directly, he might be able to control the Four-Tails if it manifested sufficiently.
And as long as he could control either Rōshi or the Four-Tails, even for an instant, he could activate his 'Ame-no-Mi' ability, get close, and then use 'Shinra Banshō Hōjin' to seal him completely.
At that point, whatever techniques Rōshi might have, he wouldn't be able to use them.
Of course, these were just plans. The actual execution needed to be flexible based on the situation.
Like right now...
Seeing the water dragon shattered by Rōshi's punch, Seimei immediately raised his hands, formed seals, and used the 'Shadow Clone Jutsu'.
Poof!~
With a puff of chakra smoke, two figures appeared on the field.
Without needing orders from Seimei, the two shadow clones instantly picked directions and dashed towards Rōshi's left and right flanks.
Seimei himself, after casting the Shadow Clone Jutsu, once again raised his hands, formed seals, and, as quickly as possible, unleashed another ninjutsu—'Water Style: Water Trumpet'!
Instantly, a thin, high-pressure jet of water shot from his mouth. As he turned his head, the jet rapidly sliced towards the charging Rōshi.
A strong sense of danger washed over Rōshi. Not daring to be careless, he immediately dodged, avoiding the cutting water jet.
But this also cost him the chance to close in on Seimei.
Almost as soon as he dodged the water jet and regained his footing, another water dragon soared into the air, attacking him from the side with immense power.
It was unmistakably another 'Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu'!
Sensing the danger, Rōshi glanced to his right.
He saw the Seimei shadow clone that had just finished forming seals and was now controlling the water dragon's attack.
Although many ninja knew the 'Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu', making it seem commonplace in the ninja world, it was still a B-rank ninjutsu, and its power could not be underestimated.
Therefore, Rōshi didn't dare to tank it head-on.
Just like before, he mobilized the chakra within him, making the lava on his fist burn even hotter. Then, pushing off the water's surface, he leaped up and once again swung his fist at the water dragon.
Thump!~
The relatively small fist collided with the huge head of the water dragon, producing a dull thud.
And the result?
No different from before!
Faintly, Seimei thought he heard a mournful cry.
The next moment, the head of the water dragon formed by the shadow clone's 'Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu' exploded violently, turning into scattered spray that fell back into the lake.