The vast shipbuilding grounds were filled with Uzumaki shinobi, each busy with their own tasks: some hammering nails into hull planks, some hauling timber, others guarding the three master shipwrights working at the center of the site…
Everyone was occupied, fulfilling their duty while also staying alert—ready to drop everything the moment a Hidden Mist ninja appeared and retaliated.
And in the forest surrounding the construction area, battle had already begun.
The closest to Squad One, Uzumaki Makoto, sensed a trap being triggered roughly a kilometer away. Suspecting trouble, he prepared to move in support—when a strange fog suddenly rose ahead.
Makoto froze on a tree branch, his eyes narrowing at the unnatural mist.
His tone was low, but brimming with anger:
"Hidden Mist shinobi… are you all seeking death?"
Within the swirling fog, two Mist chūnin smiled faintly, ignoring his warning. All they needed was for a teammate to break a gap in the Uzumaki defensive perimeter. Then the rest would slip through.
Six Hidden Mist chūnin had been observing this area for a long time, one of them a sensor. They identified the weakest point—Squad One's sector.
Had Kaito been the one patrolling instead of Nawaki and Might Duy, the enemy might have chosen a different direction to attack entirely.
"So you won't answer," Makoto growled. "It seems you really underestimate us Uzumaki."
He formed hand seals. Chakra coated the surface of his palms as he pulled out a sealing scroll and unfurled it.
The page was lined in red, densely written with complex sealing formulae forming a sun-shaped diagram. In the black ring at the center was a single, bold character—炎 (Flame).
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
Before the Mist shinobi could react, the scroll erupted—spewing a torrent of blazing fire. The heat tore through leaves and branches, scorching the air itself as the temperature spiked.
Just before the flames reached the heart of the white mist, two synchronized voices rang out:
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!" ×2
Without any natural water source, using only chakra and residual mist, they spat out a pair of thick water walls. The two barriers merged slightly, reinforcing one another as they shielded the pair.
Fire struck water.
Steam exploded outward.
Zzzt—shhh—!!
The newly formed steam was far hotter than the Mist shinobi's earlier jutsu. Droplets and scorching vapor pelted their faces.
At that moment, Makoto pulled out a second scroll—longer than his palm, its surface layered in gray and red.
He pointed it toward the spot where the two shinobi had just blocked his flames and quietly unraveled it.
Inside was a diagram similar to the previous one—but this time, the center character read 風 (Wind).
"Wind Release: Typhoon Eye!"
A small, pale-white chakra sphere shot from the scroll.
Makoto's earlier fire jutsu had already consumed nearly a third of the fog. From the direction of chakra fluctuation, he estimated the Mist shinobi were at the eleven-o'clock position.
So he guided the sphere there.
"This should be right."
"Detonate!"
This was his own creation—
A miniature, controllable wind vortex born through sealing arts.
Because it needed fine control, its range and destructive power were limited. At best, slightly stronger than an average C-rank Wind Release.
Still, it was deadly at close range.
Inside the fog, the two Mist shinobi—having just neutralized the flames—exhaled in relief.
Until the small, unassuming sphere drifted right up to them.
"Not good!"
"Move—!"
But before they could weave signs—
BOOM!!
A violent gale detonated point-blank, halting their movements entirely.
In the same breath, Makoto unfurled a third scroll—another Flame Bullet.
A dazzling wave of fire swallowed the wind vortex.
BOOM!! BOOM!! BOOM!!
"AAAHHH—!!" ×2
Through the steam, a spiraling fire plume lit the forest. Mist shinobi in the rear, seeing their comrades' silhouettes burning within the vortex, dismissed their Hiding-in-the-Mist Technique and immediately retreated.
They had planted additional traps around this sector—intended to stall Uzumaki reinforcements.
The white mist finally cleared.
A massive gap had been blasted open in the dense forest. Trees, leaves, even the grass were scorched and glowing with embers.
At the center of the blast zone lay two seemingly charcoal-black corpses.
"Done?" Makoto muttered.
He tucked the spent red-gray scroll back into his chest.
"But unfortunately… it's too fake."
"I'm a sensory shinobi. Playing dead is meaningless in front of me."
As he spoke, Makoto flicked two shuriken—spinning them straight toward the Mist chūnin who was waiting to ambush him as he approached.
"Don't underestimate the Mist!" the wounded chūnin roared.
"I'll be waiting for you in hell!"
Despite the agony of his burns, he forced chakra into the three explosive tags stuck to his clothing.
They ignited instantly.
The second shinobi—already unconscious—also had explosive tags on him. Those lit up as well.
BOOM!! BOOM!! BOOM!!
The thunderous explosion drew the attention of distant Uzumaki shinobi, but none left their posts. Without knowing the size of the enemy force, they held their ground.
Makoto and Squad One shared an adjacent sector—only he could assist.
The fiery blast raged through the forest. Standing at a safer distance, Makoto stared quietly.
"As expected of Mist shinobi… brutal to the end."
"They won't even leave a corpse behind to avoid leaking information."
When the smoke finally cleared, two large trees had chunks blown out of their trunks.
Glowing embers clung to the bark.
Between them, the Mist shinobi's remains had been obliterated—nothing left but two relatively intact legs.
#
Kaito pulled Nawaki behind him, his expression sharp as he stared down the Mist chūnin ahead.
The wind itself felt like it stopped.
The air grew dry.
Nawaki swallowed nervously.
"K-Kaito… Kaito-nii, did I just… almost die back there?!"
It was his first time facing an enemy who aimed directly to kill. His legs were shaking uncontrollably.
"No," Kaito replied calmly.
Nawaki sighed—only for Kaito to continue:
"Probably just half your face and an eye."
Because Nawaki did react in time—turning his head at the last second. Had he taken the hit straight on, he'd look like a Boruto-era protagonist by now.
Kaito imagined Nawaki tightening his crooked forehead protector, gripping a long blade, tattoos glowing:
"Even so, I am still a ninja!"
Kaito exhaled silently.
He shifted his gaze back to the Mist chūnin. Instead of drawing his blade, he pulled out a kunai.
"Nawaki."
"Orochimaru-sensei's request…
It's time to fulfill it."
"That Mist chūnin—
He's yours."
"Eh?!" Nawaki pointed at himself. His knees wobbled.
"K-Kaito-nii, I was wrong! I—I've never killed anyone before!"
"Just cripple him. Make him unable to fight," Kaito said flatly.
"He's only a chūnin. He already used a Water Clone. His chakra is nearly drained. All you have to do is fight like you normally do."
"Then you—"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Before Nawaki could finish, four shuriken ripped through the air.
Kaito tightened his grip on his kunai and deflected each projectile effortlessly.
He didn't even turn his head as he said:
"The other one…"
"…is mine."
"So."
"My back is in your hands, Nawaki-kun."
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