"Konoha brat, your tricks are indeed surprising… but this is as far as you go."
Ao held a slightly curved shinobi blade in his hand, his gaze sweeping across the two Hyūga clansmen who now stood before him like cornered beasts.
With their Byakugan suppressed, they could no longer unleash the full potential of Gentle Fist. Many of its most devastating techniques required the Byakugan's insight to reach maximum effect.
There was no need for further words.
Leaves rustled in the forest canopy. As one leaf drifted down through the misty air, Ao's figure moved.
In the same instant, Kiyohara surged forward to meet him.
Their blades collided just as the leaf touched steel, the impact sending it spinning away in the shockwave.
Clang!
A sharp, ear-piercing shriek of metal exploded, sending sparks scattering in all directions!
Ao's strength was immense. The impact made Kiyohara's wrist go numb, but relying on his superior body coordination and skill at dissipating force, he forced himself to withstand the blow.
Their blades slid apart, and Kiyohara took the chance to slice at Ao's wrist.
Ao dodged quickly.
Ding! Ding! Clang! Clang!
Their silhouettes darted through the thick mist, crossing and clashing at blinding speeds, sword light flickering everywhere.
Kiyohara channeled Lightning Release chakra into his blade, causing every strike to crackle with electricity.
Ao, relying on his superior strength and the combat predictions born from years of experience, always managed to block or evade at the critical moment—then retaliate, forcing Kiyohara back on the defensive.
For a time, the two fought evenly, sword meeting sword without pause.
But Kiyohara knew very well that a prolonged battle would only disadvantage him.
Ao had far more chakra and stamina, and he still hadn't used any real Water Release techniques.
Sure enough, in the moment when their blades clashed yet again and their bodies shifted past one another, Ao's left hand twitched—
He began forming hand seals with one hand.
"Water Release: Water Shrapnel!"
Pupupupupu!!
Countless high-pressure water bullets erupted from Ao's side like a torrential storm, covering a massive area.
"Let me handle this."
At this critical moment, the youth Kiyohara within could no longer restrain himself.
He wanted nothing more than to fight this revenge match himself and settle old scores.
"Alright."
Kiyohara relinquished part of his bodily control. His right arm was taken over by youth Kiyohara, while his left arm remained under his own consciousness, maintaining clarity and preparing for dual-process control.
This sword carried twenty years of skill.
Kiyohara truly did not believe that the still-young Ao could withstand it!
And the two Hyūga hadn't even made a move yet.
At this point, Kiyohara felt the situation was already in his hands.
Under Ao's astonished gaze, Kiyohara swung his blade, slicing apart all incoming water bullets with precise timing.
At the same time, his left hand awkwardly gathered chakra and—slowly, stiffly—began forming seals.
One-handed seals.
In their previous exchanges, Kiyohara shouldn't have possessed this level of control.
And yet he was doing what Ao himself could do—splitting his concentration, using sword techniques with one hand while forming ninjutsu with the other.
Ao's suspicion deepened, and he raised Kiyohara's threat level once more.
His progress was simply too fast.
Ao actually had three objectives:
First, Cultivate the genius Terumi Mei.
Second, Seize a Byakugan.
And lastly… kill enemy village geniuses before they could grow.
The rise of Namikaze Minato had taught all shinobi nations a painful lesson:
better to kill prematurely than risk another savior emerging from Konoha.
Otherwise, whenever Konoha was on the brink of collapse, some miracle genius would always rise to turn the tide.
"Die!"
Ao decided to stop holding back.
He would finish this quickly before anything unexpected happened.
His movements accelerated. He unleashed another Water Release—this time forming a massive, spear-like water gun several meters long.
Meanwhile, Kiyohara, despite moving at a painfully slow four or five times reduced speed, finally completed his seals.
The purpose of hand seals was simply to guide chakra—but though Kiyohara had never specifically trained in one-handed seals, when it came to Wind Release, he had inherited the Missing-nin Kiyohara's techniques.
At the final moment, Kiyohara puffed his cheeks.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
He drew in a deep breath, then expelled a powerful blast of wind-infused chakra from his chest.
Boom!!
The wind didn't completely destroy the gigantic water spear, but it scattered it enough to force it off its path. It dissolved into a massive downpour that drenched the entire battlefield.
For a moment, the battle between Kiyohara and Ao became impossible to follow with the naked eye.
The surrounding shinobis instinctively backed away.
"Damn it… did this brat start training swordsmanship from inside his mother's womb?"
Ao frowned.
This is supposed to be a Chūnin?
Why did it feel like the kid had practiced longer than he had?
As the fight continued, Ao's expression grew darker.
Kiyohara was predicting his attacks every time almost as if he had fought Ao many times before.
Had this brat studied his combat records?
Slash!
A thin line of blood ran down Ao's cheek.
In just a brief moment, Kiyohara's blade had grazed his face, leaving behind a bleeding cut.
"Can't lose focus."
Ao steadied himself and signaled the other Mist-nin to cover him.
"Opportunity!"
Kakashi's eyes sharpened. Ao was fully engaged with Kiyohara, perhaps even forced to reveal his true strength.
Now was the perfect chance to locate and eliminate the Red Eye user—the one disrupting the Byakugan.
He didn't hesitate. He whispered to Genma and Kurenai by his side:
"Cover me. I'm going to find the one interfering with the Byakugan."
Without another word, he vanished into the mist, slipping away from the chaotic battlefield and moving toward the area where they had previously detected faint barrier-like fluctuations.
...
At the same time, in the Mountain's Graveyard.
The massive head of the Gedo Statue cast a deep shadow over the cavern.
Madara sat silently on a giant wooden chair, eyes closed, yet he continued to receive information from the White Zetsu network.
As long as enough White Zetsu existed, his unseen information web would only grow wider.
"Oh?"
Madara suddenly opened his eyes.
He had been observing the battle lines between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water, preparing to set the stage for his next steps.
But then he noticed the fight between Kiyohara and the Mist shinobi Ao.
"This brat's progress isn't bad. Even during the Warring States era, he wouldn't be considered weak."
Madara kept tabs on everyone who had interacted with Obito.
After all, they were necessary components in breaking Obito's spirit.
Kakashi, Rin, Kiyohara—all those connected to Obito, Madara monitored them to ensure they didn't die prematurely and ruin the emotional pressure he needed for Obito's transformation.
"It's just a pity he isn't an Uchiha."
Madara shook his head again, muttering the same lament.
Even if Kiyohara were a genius, as long as he wasn't an Uchiha, Madara wouldn't care too deeply.
Only the Uchiha could awaken the power of the Sage of Six Paths.
Madara shifted his gaze to the deeper part of the cave.
Obito was training—squats, push-ups—movement after movement.
And beneath his bandages, his other half-pale, Zetsu-grown arm was exposed.
"But… is this because of Kiyohara?"
Madara murmured, watching Obito train with uncharacteristic diligence.
"Because that brat named Kiyohara showed unexpected brilliance beside Nohara Rin… because Obito felt threatened, felt he might be replaced… feared losing her… and thus unlocked astonishing potential?"
"As expected… the source of Uchiha power is… the heart."
A faint smile curled across Madara's lips.
Excellent.
Kiyohara was proving quite useful.
The latest updates showed that Obito had been training constantly during his rehabilitation—far faster than Madara had anticipated.
With this, his plan could advance sooner than expected.
"It's time to set the stage for the Three-Tails…"
Madara tapped the armrest of his massive wooden chair.
The stage had been built.
All that remained was for each actor to step onto it in turn.
(End of Chapter)