Purple Cat set up code markers near the reef and returned to Yōkō's side.
Seeing Fox staring blankly at the sea, she asked, "What's wrong, Captain?"
"Nothing, just remembering some things from the past," Yōkō said:
"Before you joined the ANBU, I started out as a regular ANBU ninja under Captain Antelope."
"Back then, our squad patrolled the coastlines of the Land of Whirlpools and the Land of Waves."
"Every mission felt like it could be the death of us, and in fact, it did claim lives."
"Horned Ox died. Purple Cat, the previous ANBU who wore your mask died. Captain Antelope died."
"My squadron leader, Brown Bear, also died."
"My later captain, Black Gorilla, lost both his arms and retired due to his injuries."
"Now that I'm a jōnin, my feelings are different. Back then, even seeing the ocean was frightening. Hearing a bird call within the sound of the waves could make me jump out from behind a resting reef."
Purple Cat said, "Every ANBU ninja goes through that. When I first joined the ANBU, even performing surveillance missions within the village felt full of danger."
"Before, when I used to go shopping or visit parks in Konoha, I never felt the village was dangerous."
"But the Senju clan's district actually gave people a feeling of being fraught with peril."
"Yeah, everything's different now."
A few hours later, Flower Deer's squad was the first to return.
Flower Deer came to Yōkō's side and said:
"Squadron Leader, we extracted intelligence from a prisoner. Kirigakure's strategy in this war is irregular harassment tactics."
"Kiri-nin squads, platoons, and battalions harass us with different strengths and frequencies, looking for isolated Konoha squads or platoons along the coastline to surround and kill."
"The Seven Ninja Swords act as an independent force, a key element of the harassment warfare."
"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen sometimes operate together, sometimes in pairs. Low-level Kiri-nin don't know their movements."
No pattern, that's troublesome.
Yōkō said, "I understand. Continue your reconnaissance."
After Flower Deer's squad left, Yōkō took Purple Cat and left the spot, patrolling along the coastline.
Somewhere on the eastern coast of the Land of Whirlpools.
Special Jōnin Hayama was resting with his squad under a wind-sheltered reef.
His subordinate, Tekuno, seeing the other two squad members setting traps in the distance, moved closer to Hayama and asked quietly, "Captain, isn't something off?"
Hayama put down his canteen and immediately looked towards the sea, but found nothing unusual.
"Not the Kiri-nin. I mean, something's off about the 1,000 reinforcements drafted this time," Tekuno said:
"Our squad is part of that thousand new reinforcements for the front lines."
"Captain, during the war in the Land of Rivers, Lord White Fang rewarded you with a jutsu and recommended you for promotion to Special Jōnin."
"On the way to the Land of Whirlpools, I noticed that all the Special Jōnin recommended by Lord White Fang were sent to the front lines here."
"During the Land of Rivers war, Lord White Fang recommended 11 Special Jōnin in total. All 11 are here."
"For example, Special Jōnin Shima, whom you're familiar with. I saw that after he arrived at the front, he immediately received a mission and was assigned a coastal defense sector, just like us."
"But Lord White Fang himself didn't come. Is there something wrong with this situation?"
Hayama said, "Don't overthink. Focus on the mission first."
That's what he said, but he took a large gulp of water to calm his unease.
After the Land of Rivers war, Commander Nara Rokaku recommended several jōnin. The jōnin recommended by the two deputy commanders, Lord White Fang and Princess Tsunade, were all vetoed by the Jōnin Council.
Nara Rokaku said their abilities weren't sufficient to become jōnin yet and they needed more growth.
Hayama and the others, being appreciated and recommended for Special Jōnin by Lord White Fang, naturally became his followers.
Lord White Fang himself applied to come to the Land of Whirlpools, but the higher-ups didn't agree.
If these 11 Special Jōnin all died, wouldn't Lord White Fang's faction suffer a significant loss of strength?
A strange whistling sound cut through the air!
Hayama threw away his canteen and immediately drew his long sword.
"Careful! Enemy attack!"
A glint of cold light pierced through the white foam of the waves, shooting rapidly towards the shore.
Hayama saw one of his subordinates get pierced through the abdomen.
"Longsword: Nuibari! It's one of the Seven Ninja Swords!"
Hayama held the hilt of his ninja sword between his palms, formed a single hand seal, and then swung the long sword.
Wind Release: Vacuum Sword!
This was the jutsu Lord White Fang had rewarded him with, and he had quickly mastered it.
An air blade shot out with the swing of the sword, flying towards the wire behind the Longsword: Nuibari.
If he could just cut the wire, the Longsword: Nuibari would have to stay on the shore.
"Hiramekarei: Release!"
At that moment, a blade of condensed chakra, shaped like a flounder, plowed through the hard reef. With a powerful shockwave, it positioned itself between the Longsword: Nuibari and the Vacuum Sword's air blade.
Hayama's heart sank. Another one of the Seven Swords? Twin Swords: Hiramekarei?
Chakra materialization? This was one of the top-tier abilities in the shinobi world, the signature ability of the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei!
Hōzuki Rinzuki, holding the twin swords, glanced disdainfully at Kuriarare Kushimaru, who had just climbed out of the seawater.
"I don't want to repeat myself a third time. The Longsword: Nuibari should aim for the enemy's head, throat, or heart directly, not become a tool for you to torture and kill."
Kuriarare Kushimaru pulled the wire, retrieving the Longsword: Nuibari.
The Konoha ninja's abdomen was pierced through twice, but he didn't die immediately; the two penetrating wounds were intentionally placed in the lower abdomen.
"Heh heh," Kuriarare Kushimaru said:
"Elder Genji has already bestowed the Longsword: Nuibari upon me. I am Kirigakure's first master of the Longsword: Nuibari. How this sword is used from now on is my own business."
"Hōzuki Rinzuki, don't think you can order me around just because the Second Mizukage, Hōzuki Gengetsu, forged the Seven Ninja Swords."
"The era of your Hōzuki clan is over."
"Kirigakure's first master of the Longsword: Nuibari?" Hōzuki Rinzuki said angrily:
"There have been at least three masters of the Longsword: Nuibari within the Hōzuki clan. What do they count as?"
"What do they count as? They dirtied my sword!"
Hayama listened to the two Kiri-nin arguing internally, but felt even more tense.
They were powerful, arguing right in front of the enemy, not putting the Konoha squad in their eyes at all.
Angered by Kuriarare Kushimaru, Hōzuki Rinzuki vented his fury on the Konoha squad.
The Twin Swords: Hiramekarei could burst chakra into a gaseous chakra sphere.
The reefs by the sea were fragile under the chakra blade of the Hiramekarei.
Hayama immediately ordered: "Retreat!"
Two of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were not opponents his small squad could handle.
Tekuno helped up the companion with the pierced abdomen, while Hayama covered the rear.
Kuriarare Kushimaru said, "See? I wounded him instead of killing him. Didn't that slow them down?"
"Shut up!" Hōzuki Rinzuki said. "Kill that Konoha squad leader. That guy's Wind Release jutsu is somewhat interesting. If he grows, he'll at least become a jōnin."
Kuriarare Kushimaru acted as if he didn't hear, bypassing the Konoha squad leader and heading straight for the injured Konoha squad members in the back.
Hōzuki Rinzuki's eyes were full of contempt.
Stringing enemies up with wires, feeling the tremors and shudders transmitted back through them, was Kuriarare Kushimaru's favorite thing to do.
Every enemy in his hands was tortured and played with to death.
Kuriarare Kushimaru had nearly caused missions to fail several times due to his desire to torture enemies.
Hōzuki Rinzuki had no choice but to take action himself.
He raised the twin swords and swung another chakra blade at Hayama.
Hayama glanced at his injured comrades behind him and had no choice but to block this attack head-on.
He formed a hand seal and poured all his chakra into the long sword.
Vacuum Sword!
Over a dozen wind blades, accompanied by a gale, flew towards the Hiramekarei's chakra blade.
However, the strength of the wind blades was inferior to the chakra blade. The Vacuum Sword wasn't suited for breaking through strong defenses either; it was a sword technique leaning towards high-frequency attacks and flexibility.
The Hiramekarei's chakra blade, withstanding over a dozen Vacuum Swords, still broke through them.
Hayama's face was illuminated by the approaching light.
At that moment, a figure Body Flickered in front of him.
After a burst of dazzling light, Hayama saw the person's back.
His hands were stretched forward, palms open, actually blocking the Hiramekarei's chakra blade with his bare hands?
Black smoke rose from his palms, but the skin was only slightly blackened.
Hayama saw the person in front turn his head, revealing a fox mask.
"Hayama, I'll handle this. You deal with Kuriarare Kushimaru," Yōkō said:
"I am Konoha ANBU Jōnin, Fox. I'm giving you a mission: seize the Longsword: Nuibari."
"Yes!"
Hayama quickly turned and charged towards Kuriarare Kushimaru.
It was actually Copper Fox!
Hayama had just withdrawn from the Land of Rivers front and had heard the name Copper Fox many times.
That rising star of the ANBU had performed exceptionally well in several missions.
Part of the Hokage's prestige came from the many ANBU ninjas who fought desperately for Konoha at all costs.
Copper Fox had killed the daughter-in-law of Sunagakure's Elder Chiyo; his strength had been proven on the battlefield.
Hayama looked at Kuriarare Kushimaru; this guy should be easier to deal with than Hōzuki Rinzuki.
He had to complete Fox Jōnin's order and seize the Longsword: Nuibari.
Yōkō retracted his hands, blowing on his scorching palms through the narrow slit in the fox mask's mouth.
The Absolute Defense: Copper Light on his palms hadn't been broken, but his hands were burning hot from the chakra blade's attack.
The Absolute Defense: Copper Light was better at dealing with physical attacks. It struggled somewhat against methods like the chakra blade that combined energy and impact force.
Yōkō had personally seen Hatake Sakumo award Hayama the Vacuum Sword and knew Sakumo had recommended Hayama for Special Jōnin, which is why he saved him.
Hayama was one of Sakumo's followers. Based on the original manga, Hayama would grow to become a standard jōnin.
Hōzuki Rinzuki stared in shock at the suddenly appearing ANBU.
Since when could the attack of the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei be blocked with bare hands?
Hōzuki Rinzuki looked at the Konoha ANBU's hands, which still glowed with a reddish-copper color, and immediately recalled a piece of intelligence.
A rising star had appeared in the Konoha ANBU, given the title 'Copper Fox' by Sunagakure.
Copper Fox possessed an absolute defense secret technique; ordinary attacks simply couldn't break through it.
Yōkō Body Flickered towards Hōzuki Rinzuki. Getting the Longsword: Nuibari would be good, but if he could take the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei as well, Kirigakure would go even more crazy.
The Twin Swords: Hiramekarei were the second strongest of the Seven Swords, second only to the Great Sword: Samehada, capable of efficiently utilizing chakra with powerful offensive power.
Seeing Copper Fox approach, Hōzuki Rinzuki quickly retreated.
He absolutely could not engage in close combat with a taijutsu specialist who had an absolute defense; that would be suicide.
Hōzuki Rinzuki quickly retreated onto the sea surface and swung the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei again.
The chakra blade shot out. This time Hōzuki Rinzuki was serious, his aura stronger, the power greater, the chakra blade swiftly chopping towards Yōkō.
Yōkō hurriedly sidestepped to avoid it.
The residual force of the chakra blade was enough to seriously injure other ninja, but for Yōkō, it could only tear his clothes.
Forcing his way through the second chakra blade, Yōkō closed in on Hōzuki Rinzuki and punched towards his head.
However, Yōkō only struck a burst of water.
Hōzuki Rinzuki could also ignore physical attacks, dodging with the Hydrification Technique.
However, Yōkō had a follow-up.
"Self-Cursing Body Binding Seal!"
This technique could be used openly now.
After forming a hand seal, cursed seals crawled onto Hōzuki Rinzuki's body.
All his joints were locked.
The next moment, Hōzuki Rinzuki's entire body collapsed and fell into the seawater.
Yōkō suddenly understood why the Five Nature Transformations were powerful.
If he knew just one Lightning Release jutsu now, he wouldn't be at a loss against the Hōzuki clan's Hydrification Secret Technique.
A single finger emerged from the sea surface.
Water Release: Water Gun Technique!
An unsealed, instantly activated, extremely concealed water bullet shot out from the fingertip, striking Yōkō's throat.
Fortunately, Yōkō was cautious and had maintained the Copper Light; his throat wasn't pierced.
Water Gun Technique? This seal-less jutsu was interesting, suitable for sneak attacks, hard to defend against.
Yōkō had once thought about developing the Rasengan, but anything the Rasengan could do, a regular kunai could usually handle too.
Wind Attribute chakra was his third nature; further developing the Rasengan based on Wind Release was extremely difficult.
The Water Gun Technique was good; it compensated for his lack of seal-less jutsu.
Yōkō looked up at the moon in the sky. He hadn't died during this full moon cycle, and the next full moon wasn't far away.
It would be a waste if he didn't die soon.
Either the Hydrification Technique or the Water Gun Technique of the Hōzuki clan would be an improvement for him.
He took a step back and said:
"Shinobi of the Hōzuki clan, I acknowledge your ability. You are qualified to become one of my collections."
"Come, use your strongest ability and kill me."
Hōzuki Rinzuki's eyelid twitched, he was furious. "Your arrogant demeanor disgusts me. This is what I hate most about Konoha; that village always produces some detestable geniuses."
The two engaged in fierce combat once again.
The Hiramekarei, under Hōzuki Rinzuki's chakra, swelled to the size of the Great Sword: Samehada.
The chakra blades illuminated the sea surface, even the swimming fish below were clearly visible.
After repeated collisions, Yōkō tested Hōzuki Rinzuki's limits.
Hōzuki Rinzuki couldn't kill Yōkō, but Yōkō found it not easy to kill him either.
One had the Hydrification Technique, the other had the Absolute Defense: Copper Light.
It was about enough. He had collected enough intelligence on Hōzuki Rinzuki's attack patterns, abilities, etc.
At a certain moment, Yōkō quietly dispersed the Absolute Defense: Copper Light.
Hōzuki Rinzuki's Water Gun bullet pierced through Yōkō's temple.
Hōzuki Rinzuki was stunned. Such a formidable Konoha ANBU had carelessly died by his hand?
Was he really this strong?
[Detected that the host has died. The Mochizuki's Arc system is starting up...]
***
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(Chapter End)