Chapter 113
2-in-1-chapter
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Mei Terumī observed for several seconds, dodging another wave of splash damage from the ongoing battle. She realized the shuriken wrapped in Wind Release chakra were merely the aftermath of the fight between Uchiha Chihaya and Ringo Ameyuri. When Ringo swung the twin blades Hiramekarei, they carried with them violent lightning, tearing apart the surrounding grass and earth.
She understood it was nearly impossible for her to intervene in the duel between the two.
So she decided to leave it alone.
Though Ringo Ameyuri seemed at a disadvantage against Uchiha Chihaya's Wind Release, relying on her precise dual‑blade kenjutsu and the enhancements of Lightning Release chakra to her body, she showed no signs of losing quickly.
Since Ringo could still hold on, Mei chose not to waste time helping her. To be honest, if she intervened, she doubted she would gain Ringo's gratitude—she might even earn the scorn of the genius girl.
Refocusing on the larger battle, Mei questioned her subordinates:
"What are our casualties?"
"Any sign of Konoha shinobi on other parts of the island?"
"Still no contact with the Mizukage?"
Her pale‑faced subordinates answered her one after another.
"Pass the order: have the surviving Chūnin and Genin retreat to the island's southern side for refuge."
One grim report after another made Mei realize there was no turning the tide. She decisively issued her commands. At not yet twenty‑one years of age, she was the deputy commander of the Mist forces, holding authority second only to the Fourth Mizukage. In the Fourth's absence, her orders were beyond dispute.
"Tell all Jōnin still engaged: don't seek kills. Above all, prioritize survival."
"Pull three squads to escort the wounded in retreat."
Command after command spread through the ranks. The previously chaotic Mist shinobi, fighting on their own, finally began to resemble a real force.
Her followers respect for the beautiful kunoichi deepened. Many silently resolved to support Mei Terumī as the next Mizukage. Compared to the still‑absent Third, Mei already displayed the true presence of a Mizukage.
With both Lava Release and Boil Release as her Kekkei Genkai, Mei had the backing of the few bloodline clans remaining in Kirigakure. She had also once trained under Master Genji. It was no secret to anyone with clear eyes that Genji was grooming her as the future Mizukage.
She herself was well aware of this.
So she worked tirelessly toward that goal. Compared to Hōzuki Mangetsu and Momochi Zabuza, both vying for the position but knowing only battle and slaughter, Mei, already learning to command the field, stood a tier above them.
In truth, Genji had long been considering abolishing Kirigakure's old tradition that only the strongest could become Mizukage. Aside from the First, every Mizukage—Second, Third, Fourth—had been the strongest of their time.
But strength alone had not brought Kirigakure prosperity. Instead, repeated internal and external wars had left the village bleeding, weaker with every generation.
The once‑glorious village that had housed the most Kekkei Genkai clans now retained only Lava Release and Boil Release.
The famed Yuki clan, wielders of Ice Release, had been cast out of Kirigakure more than a decade ago.
The Kaguya clan, notorious for their bloodlust, had recently been annihilated; their Dead Bone Pulse (Shikotsumyaku) now extinct.
Many other secret‑arts families had perished in civil strife. Now, even two of the seven blades painstakingly gathered by the First Mizukage had been lost. Though the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were a relatively new formation, the blades themselves had long been treasured symbols of Kirigakure.
Having witnessed both the rise and decline of Kirigakure, Genji, the close friend of the First Mizukage, could not bear to let the village fall into ruin. He refused to see his friend's life's work—and his own decades of effort—reduced to nothing. He had been striving all these years to reform the village.
Mei Terumī was one of his staunchest supporters, as well as one of the heirs he had pinned his hopes on. If she had been born male, perhaps she would already have shed the qualifier "one of."
Just as Mei was directing the orderly retreat, another upheaval from behind shook the battlefield.
The colossal ellipsoid water prison formed by the Water Colliding Wave drew every gaze. Even Uchiha Chihaya and Ringo Ameyuri, locked in fierce combat, broke apart at the sound.
Uchiha Shisui, who had been pressing the Mist prodigies hard, ceased his pursuit. He leapt onto the highest treetop nearby, eyes fixed on the massive water prison.
"Mizukage?"
Mei too was stunned.
From her vantage near the flooded encampment, she managed to glimpse the side of the enormous prison closest to her. Inside was Yagura Karatachi. "Who is he fighting? Such a grand technique… is it that 'Flame Demon'?"
"No… not the Flame Demon. Inside the prison are… two Mizukage chakra signatures!?"
Her sensory‑type subordinate widened his eyes in shock, blurting out what he had perceived.
Mei froze. "Shadow Clone…?" She cut herself off. That was foolish. Inside such a prison, no clone could withstand the crushing torrents and pressure.
Which meant—
If the sensor wasn't lying, then there were truly two Fourth Mizukage within the prison?
What kind of joke was that?
After two seconds of silence, Mei barked her next order:
"Go. Find Hōzuki Mangetsu, and Momochi Zabuza, and Hoshigaki Kisame. Get them here as fast as possible. Something is wrong."
Staring at the massive water prison, a gnawing unease and restlessness welled in Mei Terumī's chest.
.................
......
.
"Damn it!"
Inside the water prison,
White Zetsu, disguised as Yagura Karatachi, attempted to activate the Mayfly Technique but failed. Every drop of water in the prison carried Yagura's chakra—or rather, each drop had been transformed from Yagura's chakra—severing White Zetsu's connection to the earth and vegetation.
Suspended in this strange environment, cut off from both sky and ground, White Zetsu realized that escaping without alerting anyone was no longer possible.
Yagura was quickly approaching.
Underwater, the Fourth Mizukage moved with remarkable speed, swimming like a fish.
"You won't escape!"
Though words couldn't be spoken underwater, the murderous intent burning in Yagura's violet eyes conveyed his meaning clearly. After being manipulated by that damned Uchiha for so long, the fury and hatred in his heart were immeasurable—he wished nothing more than to cut him into a thousand pieces.
But he couldn't.
Even if he could find the hiding place of the Uchiha renegade, Yagura had no confidence he could defeat him. To fall under control again… he'd rather die. Fortunately, this imposter causing chaos in the Mist army wasn't that one‑eyed Uchiha.
That gave Yagura confidence to fight. If luck favored him and he could capture the enemy alive, he might even extract some valuable information.
Water Style: Water Fang Bullet
Entertaining the thought of capture didn't stop Yagura from attacking without hesitation. In this unique environment, the B‑rank Water Style he released now possessed power rivaling an A‑rank Great Waterfall Technique, perhaps even superior in piercing strength.
After striking, Yagura fixed his eyes on the imposter. He wanted to see what abilities this pretender could reveal—
A deafening crash erupted.
Before Yagura's disbelieving gaze, a towering wooden giant raised its hand and crushed the Water Fang Bullet. Effortlessly, it burst through the water prison's confines. Under the cloudless sky, an unexpected rainstorm fell, covering the entire island.
Yagura hovered above, staring at the colossal wooden construct. A wave of helplessness rose in his heart. What kind of monster was this? That one‑eyed Uchiha was already outrageously strong, and now there was someone wielding the supposedly lost Wood Release?
How was he supposed to fight this?
If he could draw upon the Three‑Tails' power, perhaps he could stand a chance.
But the size difference was overwhelming. None of his techniques, not even those specifically devised to combat tailed beasts, could guarantee effectiveness against such a massive wooden warrior.
"Good thing I'm not alone this time," the Fourth Mizukage murmured.
The next instant, a deep crimson glow lit up the sky.
Susanoo, clad in Tengu armor, swung the Susanoo Sword, severing the wooden giant's neck. Its head soared skyward, the mirror‑smooth cut silently proclaiming the blade's terrifying sharpness.
This was a strike Rēn had long prepared, a strike planned against the unprepared.
If it hadn't succeeded, that would have been the true surprise.
And White Zetsu had been too careless. Focused only on breaking free of Yagura's water prison, he had no intention of a serious fight. The wooden giant's durability was limited, but though he sensed Uchiha Rēn nearby, he had never expected Susanoo to appear at the very first moment.
Truth be told, this style of combat was absurd.
Even Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama, back in their legendary battles, had always warmed up first with taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu before escalating—Madara cloaking Kurama in Susanoo, Hashirama summoning his wooden giants and dragons, reshaping the very earth.
Who opened with their strongest moves right away?
Caught completely off guard, White Zetsu missed his chance to escape again, flung skyward alongside the wooden giant's head.
Then—
Susanoo vanished. Mounted on his jet‑black hawk, Rēn soared into the clouds in pursuit of White Zetsu.
Wood Style: Cutting Technique
Surrender was not White Zetsu's choice. Sharp wooden spikes sprouted from his arms. Without even throwing, his arms became cannons and the spikes became projectiles, unleashing a dense barrage at the rapidly approaching Uchiha Rēn.
"Pointless."
Standing atop the black hawk, Rēn unslung the Gunbai from his back. With a forceful sweep, a violent gale roared forth, scattering the storm of wooden projectiles.
The Gunbai, carved from a branch of the Divine Tree, was both hard and resilient. It could absorb chakra, converting it into wind nature, turning enemy ninjutsu into storms and returning them. This was the Uchiha Rebound, a technique only possible through the Gunbai.
By the same principle,
When Rēn actively poured chakra into the Uchiha Fan, it could stir up a vast storm. The Uchiha Fan did not care about the source of the chakra; its ability was to absorb chakra and convert it into wind release.
Seeing that the Cutting Technique had failed, White Zetsu switched methods. But whether it was Wood Style, Wind Style, Lightning Style, Water Style, Fire Style, or even Earth Style, in just over ten seconds he had exhausted every type of attack he could manage, yet none were able to bring down Uchiha Rēn. At most, they slightly slowed his approach.
This couldn't go on.
The inertia from being hurled into the sky had already dissipated, but returning to the ground would still take some time. That meant he still couldn't use the Mayfly Technique to escape. It was a hopeless situation.
Realizing this, white Zetsu's behavior became strange. On the face identical to Yagura Karatachi's, a look of fear appeared. Yet his right hand unwaveringly drew a massive number of explosive tags from his tool pouch. Strangely, he did not throw them at Rēn.
Instead, he affixed the explosive tags directly to his own body.
No matter how convincingly their emotions might mimic humanity, or even seem more human than humans, they could not change their essence. They were no human. They were another kind of humanoid lifeform. In their minds, the orders of their superior outweighed everything, even death.
That superior was Black Zetsu.
It seemed as though Uchiha Obito could command the White Zetsu at will, but in reality, that was only under Black Zetsu's directive, within certain conditions.
To prevent White Zetsu from falling into enemy hands, Black Zetsu had given all White Zetsu a command: when trapped with no chance of escape, they must find a way to self-destruct, never allowing even a single cell to be left for the enemy.
Since the day they had been implanted with Hashirama Senju's cells under Uchiha Madara's direction, the value of the White Zetsu had skyrocketed. They could mend severed limbs, nurture and restore the stamina consumed by Mangekyō Sharingan. Especially after Uchiha Obito had suffered a loss at Uchiha Rēn's hands, Black Zetsu had emphasized this order to all White Zetsu.
The White Zetsu disguised as Yagura Karatachi had, of course, received that order.
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