Chapter 84: Kazahana Dotō
"Kakashi-sensei, moments ago Koyuki Kazahana hired us Konoha to kill Kazahana Dotō. She is now our client; Kazahana Dotō is our target."
Naruto drew the wooden sword from his ninja tool pouch.
"We can't let this chance slip by!"
Kakashi pushed aside the forehead protector covering his left eye, revealing the three-tomoe Sharingan.
He snapped out crisp orders, every task assigned.
"Sakura! Escort Koyuki Kazahana to safety immediately."
Sasuke, go with Sakura. Back her up, keep the rest of the film crew safe, and make sure no Snow Ninja can ambush them."
Finally, he locked his gaze on Kazahana Dotō across the way, formed a hand sign, and released the Earth-Style Wall he had used for defense.
"Leave this place to me and Naruto!"
"Hmph… you really don't take me seriously, do you, Kakashi?"
His voice echoed inside the tunnel.
"Only ten years ago you fled the Land of Snow like a whipped dog, tail tucked, not even daring to look back…"
His mockery was undisguised.
"What? A decade passes and you strut before me? Bring a handful of wet-behind-the-ears brats and think you can turn the world upside down?"
Beneath his mask, Kakashi's lip seemed to twitch.
That memory was humiliating—fleeing through the snow with the young princess while Snow elite and Dōtō's forces hunted them.
The mission succeeded, but it remained one of his most inglorious retreats.
Yet now his students stood behind him; he could not waver, could not show the slightest tremor.
"Because at the time…"
Kakashi's voice was steady, almost lazy.
"my mission was simply to get Princess Yukiyuki safely out of the Land of Snow.
Objective achieved; withdrawal was part of the plan."
He gave a light shrug.
A rare bit of bravado—he had to appear unruffled for the youngsters behind him.
"Heh-heh-heh… ha-ha-ha!"
Kazahana Dotō laughed, low and malicious, the sound amplified by his armor until it grated on the ears.
"A side quest? How casual, Kakashi! Then show me exactly how much stronger you've grown in ten years—besides your tongue!"
Before the echo faded, the taijitu emblem on his breastplate whirled faster than ever, emitting a deep, resonant thrum.
A powerful suction erupted, centered on him.
Whoosh—!
Outside the tunnel, the heavy drifts dislodged by the earlier impact were seized and compressed as if by an invisible giant hand.
Pure white snow, force-fed with Chakra and friction, turned pitch-black in an instant, condensing into a snarling energy dragon.
Driven by a wild Wind Release core, it carried countless shards of ice, radiating marrow-freezing cold and devastating impact.
Ice Release: Black Dragon Blizzard Kill!
Kazahana Dotō could not use Ice Release; what he called Ice Release was merely Wind Release amplified by his armor, stirring the Land of Snow's snow into a fake Ice Release technique.
Flames blossomed along Naruto's wooden sword; he slashed.
Vacuum Attack: Fierce Flame Rush!
A gold-red arc of fire swept from the blade.
Two torrents—opposite in nature yet equally destructive—collided head-on inside the cramped tunnel.
Sss—
No thunderous blast followed.
Instead, a hiss.
Like red-hot iron plunged into ice water.
The tip of the black ice dragon touched the flame and, denied even an explosion, melted and evaporated under the terrifying heat.
Ssssss—
The gold-red flame devoured the black ice like a ravenous beast.
The dragon's head crumbled and dissolved.
Black ice melted, exposing the wild but now-anchorless Wind Release turbulence, which the fiercer flame Chakra scattered and annihilated.
In a single breath!
The fearsome Ice Release: Black Dragon Blizzard Kill was melted, pierced, and shredded from head to tail by Naruto's single strike.
It dissolved into scalding, acrid steam that billowed everywhere.
Steam roiled; heat waves surged.
Naruto flicked his wooden sword, extinguishing the flames.
His eyes, blazing, bored into Kazahana Dotō above the rubble, as if to say:
That's all you've got.
"Hmph…"
Kazahana Dotō's tone carried annoyance.
"So… Kakashi, this time you've found yourself quite the… troublesome assistant!"
His gaze swept over Naruto again and again, reassessing, wary.
This blond kid—trouble!
Not only raw power, but that flame countered his fake Ice Release perfectly.
Alarms rang inside Kazahana Dotō.
Naruto's presence shattered his assumption that his Chakra armor let him steamroll anyone.
Yet Naruto did not press the advantage; he tilted his head toward Kakashi.
"Kakashi-sensei, this guy's so-called Ice Release isn't real Ice Release."
Naruto's voice cut through the hiss of steam.
"He's just whipping up snow with Wind Release and letting the armor make it look scary! It's still Wind at the core—ice is only window dressing."
Boom—!
The words detonated inside Kazahana Dotō's skull.
His eyes, behind the helmet, widened until the pupils shrank to pinpricks.
Impossible!
This principle was the core secret of the Chakra armor—crafted at staggering cost, merging Snow's top technology.
The Snow Ninja only wield Ice Release thanks to the Chakra armor and the Land of Snow's unique environment.
Otherwise, why didn't Roga Nadare chase Kakashi beyond the Land of Snow ten years ago?
Once outside Snow, their prized Ice Release fails and they can't beat Kakashi.
"So that's how it is."
The Snow Ninja's Ice Release is merely Wind Release amplified by the armor inside the Land of Snow—fake Ice Release.
Kakashi unsealed a scroll.
A greatsword appeared.
The Third Hokage had passed it to him—kubikiribōchō.
The Third Hokage had toyed with it for two days, then handed it to Kakashi.
It belonged to the Hidden Mist, but now it was Konoha's.
Unless the Hidden Mist offered something worthwhile, why give it back?
Hand it back to the Hidden Mist for free?
Where in the world is there such a good deal!
Kakashi's right hand gripped kubikiribōchō; his left eye's Sharingan locked on Kazahana Dotō.
If Ninjutsu couldn't break through the Chakra armor, then weapons would have to do.
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