"Flower Style: Illusion Clone Replacement Jutsu!"
With a flash of petals, Kadoya vanished, replacing himself with a shadow clone that drew every eye and ounce of hostility toward itself.
The clone moved fluidly among the scattered bodies, shinobi sprawled across the rain-soaked ground, their limbs twitching uselessly, still paralyzed from the earlier lightning jutsu.
For those already unconscious or feigning death, the clone ensured there was no doubt, each received a swift, clean slash across the throat.
Those still alive, though paralyzed, were not granted mercy. A wave of intense heat followed.
Blazing jets of flame erupted, igniting their bodies where they lay, courtesy of the Mera Mera no Mi, whose power consumed no chakra, only stamina. A price easily managed by a clone, especially with a few deep, stabilizing breaths.
As the clone carried out its brutal sweep, drawing the last remnants of resistance and fury toward itself, the real Kadoya lingered in the shadows.
His eyes scanned the terrain sharply.
Some of these were trained shinobi. Trickery was second nature to them. He wouldn't be surprised if someone slipped through the paralysis... or had simply played along.
He wasn't about to let anyone catch him off guard.
Kadoya and his decoy clone pushed forward, weaving through the battlefield until they spotted Nawaki sitting on the muddy ground, clutching his bleeding arm.
"You're injured?" Kadoya asked, frowning.
Nawaki gave a shaky smile. "It's nothing. Just a scratch."
It was more than that, and they both knew it, but Kadoya didn't press the issue. He turned away and bit down on a chakra thread pulled taut between his teeth. With a flash of hand signs, some real, most for show, he declared:
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
Flames burst along the network of thin strings he'd launched earlier, igniting the battlefield in a sweeping blaze. Screams erupted as the inferno consumed paralyzed and struggling enemies alike. Water-style jutsu surged in retaliation, but the sudden heat had already done its damage.
Although he had promised to let his teammates carry their weight, Nawaki's sluggish hands and blood loss made him a liability, and Kadoya wasn't about to let this idiot die on his watch.
While his clone charged into the chaos, Kadoya remained alert, eyes sharp for any ambushes.
"You good to keep going?" he asked without turning.
"I… I can fight," Nawaki replied, pushing himself up, face pale but determined.
Kadoya sighed internally. His knowledge of Healing Jutsu was basic, just enough to close fresh wounds, and using Force Hamon Breathing on someone like Nawaki was risky. It worked better on Minato… someone with grit, not someone who'd pass out from pain.
"Then stick close."
He conjured a large Water Shuriken, its edges razor-sharp and spinning with deadly force, then hurled it at an enemy trying to retreat. The fleeing figure was sliced down mid-step.
They moved on, soon spotting Saiguu under heavy pressure, fending off four enemy shinobi. Their movements were sharp and practiced, clearly not amateurs.
"You lay down cover fire. I'll get her," Kadoya ordered and darted forward.
One of the attackers swung a kunai at Saiguu's side, only for it to be sliced in half by the sudden appearance of Kadoya's Water Shuriken, now tethered to a barely visible string. The weapon curved unnaturally mid-air, guided by Kadoya's subtle control.
"Fall back!" he shouted.
Saiguu didn't hesitate. She disengaged, dodging between two confused enemies. Kadoya's attack had disrupted their formation just long enough for her to escape the worst of it.
"Who the hell are you-?!" one of the shinobi began.
He never finished.
A hail of kunai rained from above, each one glowing with red explosive tags.
"Boom!"
A massive explosion ripped through the field, shaking the ground. Fire and smoke billowed high into the sky.
Before the shockwave could hit, Kadoya grabbed Saiguu and pulled her close, their bodies bursting into a flock of white doves, a simple dodge that left nothing but feathers behind.
They reappeared safely a short distance away.
When the smoke cleared, only two of the four enemies remained, one of them clutching the stump of his missing arm, blood spurting wildly. The third had escaped just in time.
Then:
"Water Style: Great Cannonball Jutsu!"
Kadoya's instincts screamed. He grabbed Saiguu again and used Blink, teleporting out of the blast radius just in time. Even so, a wall of high-pressure water caught his trailing leg, soaking him completely.
He gritted his teeth. His body hissed with residual steam, his fingers now too wet to ignite into flame.
Standing before them was the attacker, a scar-faced shinobi, one of the ambushers from earlier, clearly more skilled than the rest.
Behind him, two more figures emerged from the smoke, both radiating dangerous chakra. All three glared at the young team with a feral edge.
Now it was three against three.
Both sides had injured members. But these were grown men, potentially Jonin-level, and Kadoya's team was still technically Genin.
To make matters worse, Kadoya's fire abilities were crippled by the water. His soaked body couldn't shift into flame; his soaked fingers gave off only weak trails of smoke.
Still… it was better to discover this now, in a controlled environment, than in a life-or-death clash against a stronger enemy.
He filed the knowledge away.
Even with elemental intangibility, there were still vulnerabilities, especially to other elements.
He wasn't invincible. Not yet.
"Saiguu, Nawaki. I'll handle Scarface. You two take the other two," Kadoya ordered, a water blade forming in his left hand, glinting under the moonlight.
"Ninja Art: Clock Up!"
In a blur, Kadoya vanished. Scarface barely had time to react, eyes wide with panic, as the teen reappeared inches from his face. The water blade sliced through the air with lethal precision. He twisted away at the last second, the edge grazing his cheek.
Had he moved a moment later, his head would've hit the ground before he even realized he was dead.
"Clock Over." Kadoya deactivated his technique immediately, aware that his stamina was running low. He couldn't afford to burn out, not yet.
Scarface landed a few meters away, hand trembling as he touched the fresh cut on his face. Rage and fear flickered in his eyes. A kid just nearly killed him.
He looked toward his teammates, hoping for backup, but found only chaos.
Saiguu, her Byakugan blazing, danced between the two remaining enemies with precise, brutal strikes. Nawaki provided cover fire, launching kunai and weaving Wind Style jutsu that kept the men pinned down.
They wanted to run. It was written all over their faces. But turning your back in battle was suicide, and they knew it.
Scarface clenched his jaw and moved through hand seals.
"Water Style: Great Cannonball Jutsu!"
He spat out a massive surge of water, barreling toward Kadoya like a liquid boulder.
Kadoya didn't flinch. He clapped his hands together, forming a huge Water Shuriken, then channeled Hamon into it. The blade whirled through the air and met the cannonball head-on, cutting straight through the wave, stunning the attacker.
Scarface staggered back, eyes widening, but Kadoya wasn't done.
His fingers blurred through a fresh series of hand signs.
"Water Style: Water Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The single spinning blade suddenly multiplied, five, ten, twenty, until more than fifty giant Water Shuriken hovered in the air.
The man's eyes widened in horror. He tried to flee, but it was too late. The storm of spinning blades tore through him, shredding his body in a torrent of water. He didn't even have time to scream.
Blood sprayed across the ground. Scarface was reduced to chunks.
The two remaining enemies faltered. Their composure cracked.
Saiguu saw her opening. She slipped inside one man's guard and with a flick of her wrist, a hidden kunai slid from her sleeve. Her hand brushed past his neck, and his throat opened, blood pouring out before he even realized what happened.
The one-armed man panicked.
He turned and ran.
He made it five steps.
A kunai with an explosive tag landed in front of him.
Boom!
The blast hurled him into the air. A second kunai impaled his spine, and a sweeping water blade sliced through his legs mid-flight.
He hit the ground screaming, dragging himself through the mud. His eyes rolled upward, just in time to see the cold, unblinking gaze of the Hyuga girl towering over him.
No words were spoken.
She drove her kunai into his chest, ending it cleanly.
The field went still.
Kadoya exhaled slowly, looking up at the sky. The stars twinkled quietly, indifferent to the carnage below.
"Oi, Orochimaru-sensei," he called out, tone dry. "How much longer are you planning to keep peeking?"
...
Orochimaru, dressed in his standard ninja uniform, said nothing, only offering his usual cryptic smile as he led the group forward.
They moved in silence, boots crunching against the scorched earth as they passed through the ruins of Windmill Village. Black smoke rose into the air, thick and acrid, while small fires still flickered among the debris.
Kadoya glanced around at the wreckage. Some of the destruction? Yeah… that was on him.
But those massive craters scattered everywhere?
Don't look at him.
That was definitely Nawaki's doing.
He hadn't expected such a "simple mission" to spiral so far out of control. But in the end… they'd survived.
And that was what mattered.
Orochimaru came to a stop in front of one of the few remaining houses untouched by the chaos. He stood silently at the threshold, his gaze drifting over the devastated village.
The sky above burned red, bathed in the glow of firelight and framed by the blackness of night. It was oddly beautiful… and deeply unsettling.
Nawaki stepped forward, forming a quick hand seal before puffing out his cheeks.
"Water Release: Water Disruption Wave!"
A torrent of water surged forth, washing over the area and dousing the remaining flames. Steam hissed into the air, replacing the smoke with a damp haze.
With a proud grin, Nawaki turned to the group. "Not bad, huh? My Water Release has the spirit of a Water God, doesn't it?"
Kadoya: "..."
He stared blankly at Nawaki for a long second.
The urge to blast the boy with Water Style: Flush Gate Trap bubbled to the surface.
Just because his water jutsu wasn't a flashy tidal wave didn't mean it lacked power.
Orochimaru remained silent for a moment. Then, in his hoarse voice, he said, "Your mission isn't over yet."
"…No way," Nawaki muttered. He looked around at the smoking ruins. "The place is already like this, and it's still not over?"
Orochimaru didn't respond. He simply sat down on the ground, legs crossed, as if the smoldering village around them didn't exist.
Then, without warning, he asked, "What do you think a ninja needs the least?"
The question hung awkwardly in the air.
There were too many things a ninja needed, ninjutsu, chakra control, battle instincts, experience. But what they didn't need? That was a riddle no one had prepared for.
Orochimaru pointed lazily at Nawaki, signaling him to answer first.
Nawaki scratched his head. "Uhh… being too excellent?"
Everyone: "…"
"…Because people who are too excellent," Nawaki added quickly, "are like fireflies in the dark, easy to spot. Everyone sees them, targets them. It's dangerous."
In a weird way, it almost made sense. Geniuses burned bright and often burned out faster.
But Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.
There were days he wondered if Nawaki had skipped straight from the Academy exam to fourth grade without telling anyone. And somehow still managed to be the loudest person in the room.
He resisted the impulse to silence the kid with an explosive tag. Barely.
Instead, he turned to Saiguu. "What about you?"
Saiguu took her time. Orochimaru had taught her years ago, and this felt more like a test than a casual question.
"…Emotion," he answered carefully. "Is it emotion?"
Orochimaru nodded slowly. "You're close. But your answer is too broad."
"Ninjas are human. Not machines. We feel things, we get angry, we grieve. That's natural. The important thing is whether those emotions affect your judgment."
Then he turned to Kadoya.
"You."
Kadoya thought for a few seconds. "If 'emotion' is too broad… then it must be a specific one."
He glanced down at the ground, lips tightening.
"…Compassion."
Orochimaru smiled coldly. "Correct."
"A ninja can hate. Can rage. Can even enjoy themselves during a mission. But the one thing they cannot afford to carry… is compassion."
He looked at all three of them now, his tone darkening.
"This compassion I speak of goes both ways. Compassion for the enemy… and compassion for yourself."
"You may not hesitate to kill someone in the middle of a fight. But what about after the fight's over? What if the mission demands you kill someone who's tied up? Someone begging for their life? What then?"
"What if the target is a civilian?" Orochimaru's voice rasped like dry leaves. "What if they cry, grab your leg, beg you to spare them? Can you do it?"
He let the silence stretch, his gaze sharp and unrelenting.
"The pity of the strong for the weak is natural," he continued. "But on the battlefield, that's the one thing a ninja must cast away. Because there's no time to adapt. No time for guilt. No time to think."
"If you die, it's over. And if you hesitate… you will die."
With that, he stood.
He pulled out two kunai and dropped them at their feet with a soft clink against the scorched ground.
"There are still a few bandits left. A couple of them and their families, tied up in that house."
He gestured to the untouched structure behind them.
"I've already done the hard part. They're alive. Waiting. Pick up the kunai, and finish the job."
"I'll be outside."
He turned his back to them and took a few steps before pausing.
"Oh, and don't worry. It's fine if you can't do it."
He looked over his shoulder, a ghost of a smirk on his lips.
"After all… it won't be me going to the battlefield."