"Water Style: Giant Shark Bomb!"
A massive shark made entirely of water erupted from the lake, lunging forward and sinking its teeth into Isobu's tail. With a powerful thrash, it forcefully redirected the Three-Tails' momentum.
Boom!
The enormous body of the Three-Tails slammed into the ground, causing a deafening crash.
"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
A colossal stone dragon surged from the earth and rammed straight into the Three-Tails' body.
"Roooar!"
The Three-Tails roared in fury once again. On its back, the figure of the Third Mizukage was slowly surfacing. Isobu was trying to expel him completely—severing their connection once and for all. It wanted to break free of the seal and the burden of being a jinchūriki, to be liberated entirely.
The shinobi of Kirigakure immediately noticed and increased the intensity of their attacks. If the Third Mizukage were expelled from Isobu, he'd have no chance of survival. His body was already on the brink of collapse. Losing the Three-Tails would mean certain death.
A jinchūriki dying after being separated from their tailed beast—this was a fact.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Water Style: Water Shockwave!"
"Water Style: Water Whip!"
A barrage of Water Style techniques surged forward. But the Three-Tails possessed the strongest defense among the tailed beasts—they couldn't even penetrate its defenses, let alone subdue it. Capturing it anytime soon was a pipe dream.
Its three massive tails swept through the battlefield, kicking up thick clouds of dust and sending waves of Kirigakure shinobi flying.
"They brought this on themselves," Orochimaru remarked with a smirk as he observed the chaos.
Kiyosuke sat nearby in Sage Mode, calmly sensing the chakra around him.
"They're almost all dead. Only a few are still hanging on."
"That's to be expected. The tailed beasts wield the most destructive power in this world." Orochimaru chuckled and added, "Only Hashirama Senju and Uchiha Madara could capture a tailed beast alone. No one else has that kind of strength."
Hashirama and Madara—both total monsters, absolute outliers.
Recalling Madara in his old age, Kiyosuke couldn't help but sigh. Time really is a ruthless blade.
And yet, despite being old enough to barely walk, that guy was still fighting. Still chasing his dream.
Proving once again that age means nothing when your will is strong enough.
...
Just then, Kiyosuke abruptly stood up. He glanced at Orochimaru, clenched his jaw, and rushed off.
Orochimaru's brow arched in mild surprise, but he followed.
...
A minute earlier—
Another of the Three-Tails' tails came crashing down. Genzuki pushed Mei Terumī out of the way and took the hit himself, bursting into a splash of water. Mei was blown away by the shockwave.
She managed to stabilize midair and glared at the Three-Tails below.
Gritting her teeth, she shouted, "Lava Style!"
It was her strongest attack—a wave of acidic slime splashed down onto the Three-Tails' shell. A loud hissss rang out as its armor began to corrode.
The sudden burning pain enraged Isobu. It immediately locked onto the source—Mei, who had just landed on the ground. Without hesitation, a massive tail came crashing down.
Staring up at the looming shadow of death, Mei smiled bitterly.
So… this is where my life ends...
Her body felt light. Strangely painless... Wait...
She opened her eyes—and saw Kiyosuke's face. His golden, serpentine pupils stared at her with concern.
"You okay?"
"I-I'm fine. What are you doing here?!"
"I couldn't just sit back and watch a friend die in front of me," he said, gently setting her down.
Mei clutched his shirt, her body still trembling. The close brush with death had left her legs numb.
Her soft, trembling frame pressed against him. Kiyosuke coughed awkwardly.
"You should retreat."
Given the situation, retreat was the smartest option. Mei's strength wasn't enough to help here. Yagura Karatachi and Kisame Hoshigaki were currently keeping the Three-Tails busy, buying time for the sealing squad.
"No! I'm not leaving!" Mei protested, biting her lip.
"You'll just get in the way. Like you just did."
"Well… yes, but you might actually be useful," Orochimaru chimed in, walking over with a grin.
Kiyosuke gave a sheepish cough. "Ah, Orochimaru-sensei, what brings you here?"
"I came to see why you suddenly ran off," he said, eyes narrowing.
"Not bad… a girl with two kekkei genkai." His gaze lingered on Mei, full of a certain predatory interest.
Kiyosuke could tell—Orochimaru was looking at her like she was a test subject.
Creeped out, Mei instinctively ducked behind Kiyosuke.
She knew who Orochimaru was—one of the Legendary Sannin. Cold, ruthless, and utterly merciless. She couldn't believe that this shameless, pervy goofball of a ninja, Kiyosuke, was actually his student. Honestly, he seemed more like Jiraiya's type.
"Ahem. Sensei, I am a Konoha shinobi. I'm not throwing my life away."
"Oh? Then why did you save the enemy?" Orochimaru asked, his smile fading into a cold sneer.
"That's something Jiraiya would do."
His eyes turned frosty, sending chills down their spines.
Kiyosuke smiled. "She saved my life once. I'm just repaying the favor. We're even now."
"Oh? A Kirigakure kunoichi saving a Konoha shinobi? That's new." Orochimaru's eyes glinted with curiosity.
"I've fought in many wars. Never seen that happen."
Indeed—across countless battles, never once had he seen something like that.
When shinobi from different villages meet, they usually fight to the death. Helping each other? Impossible.
Even if someone were saved by a foreign ninja, they'd likely attack them the moment they woke up.
That's just how the world of shinobi worked. Kill or be killed. No hesitation, even if the enemy is a child.
Mei spoke up, "There's nothing between us anymore. It's over—we're even."
She knew Orochimaru was getting suspicious. Kiyosuke had saved her more than once. She couldn't drag him into this again.
"Yes… which makes you the perfect test subject," Orochimaru said with a sinister grin.
He spat out a tiny white snake. The snake opened its jaws—and pulled out a glinting blade, sharp and cold.
Classic Orochimaru.
He swallowed the snake again, then tossed the Kusanagi blade to Kiyosuke.
"Kiyosuke-kun, kill her. Prove your loyalty to the village."
"Uh… Sensei, you know I'm loyal to Konoha."
"I don't believe you."
"Well… you should."
Orochimaru: "…"
Dammit! Now's not the time for jokes!
"If you want to return to the village, kill that girl right now. If you don't—I'll clean house."
Kiyosuke stared at the Kusanagi blade in silence.
Mei gave a bitter smile.
Looks like there's no escape after all.
...
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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