Hua Ling's Confession at the Edge of Death
The laughter that shattered the tension came from above.
Everyone instinctively looked up.
A masked man sat casually upon a thick tree branch, one leg hanging loosely, shoulders trembling with unrestrained amusement.
It was Uchiha Obito.
Because of the broader design of the Eye of the Moon Plan, Obito had long intended to draw Hoshigaki Kisame fully into his orbit. Kisame's loyalty to Kirigakure was already fractured; all he needed was the final push.
So Obito had followed the Mist squad silently through Kamui's distortion.
He had not expected to witness Kakashi's theatrical "Meteor Volcano."
That alone had been worth the trip.
"Hahaha…"
Obito steadied himself, resting his elbow against the trunk.
"Please. Continue. Don't mind me."
No one dared ignore him.
For Kirigakure's shinobi, a stranger who appeared without chakra disturbance in the middle of a high-level pursuit was not "insignificant."
He was dangerous.
Ao narrowed his Byakugan-enhanced gaze.
"I can't fully read him… his chakra is unstable. Be cautious."
Kisame's eyes sharpened.
"Ao, keep your eye on the masked one. I'll finish Kakashi quickly."
There would be no mistakes today.
The Water Prison Battlefield
"Time is short."
Kisame inhaled deeply, chakra swelling within him like a rising tide.
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
He expelled an overwhelming torrent from his mouth.
Water flooded the forest floor, swallowing trees, stone, and earth within seconds. The battlefield transformed into a vast artificial lake.
Kakashi immediately recognized the scale.
"This… rivals the terrain of the Hidden Mist itself."
In pure chakra volume, Kisame surpassed him.
Karin her red hair plastered by spray focused on sensing fluctuations, teeth clenched.
"His chakra is monstrous!"
Kisame tore the bandages from Samehada.
"Let's not hold back."
The blade fused with his body, scales spreading across his skin as he assumed his shark-like merged form. In this state, he could breathe underwater, sense chakra through the currents, and absorb it through contact.
The lake rippled.
A dark silhouette streaked beneath the surface.
"Below!" Karin warned.
Too late.
The water exploded upward as Kisame lunged.
Kakashi grabbed Karin and leapt aside, barely evading clawed fingers that tore through the space they had occupied.
"Water Release: Five Feeding Sharks!"
Kisame slammed his palm into the water.
Five massive shark-shaped constructs surged forward, fangs formed from compressed chakra.
Kakashi's Sharingan spun, tracking their trajectories.
Lightning Release here would risk harming Karin. Fire Release was suppressed by the overwhelming water attribute. Earth Release would dissolve instantly beneath the artificial sea.
Left with no optimal counter, he drew a short blade and met the sharks directly, dispersing them with precise strikes enhanced by chakra flow control.
One wave. Then another.
Kisame did not tire.
Five more sharks tore through the water.
Kakashi's breathing grew heavier.
His earlier injuries reopened beneath the strain.
The Killing Blow
Kisame's grin widened.
"It's over."
"Water Release: Shark Bullet Technique!"
A colossal shark-shaped water projectile condensed before him, far denser than the previous constructs. Its true danger was not raw force but absorption. Any chakra-infused strike against it would be devoured and added to its mass.
Kakashi, unaware of the absorption property, raised his blade again.
He swung.
The moment steel met water
The technique swelled violently.
His chakra was being drained.
His eye widened.
"…No!"
"Careful!" Karin shouted.
She moved before conscious thought could restrain her.
With surprising strength, she shoved Kakashi aside.
The Shark Bullet detonated.
Water burst outward like thousands of piercing blades.
Scarlet spread across the surface of the lake.
Karin's body convulsed as the compressed water pierced her.
Kakashi caught her as she fell.
"Karin…!"
Blood seeped into the artificial sea, dissolving into rippling red.
Kakashi pressed his palm to her wounds, channeling chakra desperately in crude medical application.
"Stay with me!"
But the damage was catastrophic. The water constructs had penetrated deeply; internal injuries spread beyond what basic medical ninjutsu could repair.
Karin's breath trembled.
"Ka…kashi…"
"Why would you do that?" His voice cracked. "You'll die!"
Her lips curved faintly despite the pain.
"Because… I care about you."
There was no manipulation in her tone. No system command. No illusion.
Just truth.
Above them, Obito watched silently.
Kakashi's hand trembled.
"I… I am not someone who should be loved," he said hoarsely. "Everyone close to me"
"Kakashi…"
Her fingers tightened weakly around his sleeve.
"Have you… ever… felt anything for me?"
The lake around them seemed unnaturally quiet.
Even Kisame paused.
Kakashi swallowed.
"…Yes."
The word came barely above a whisper.
Her eyes brightened faintly at that.
"I'm… happy."
Blood bubbled at her lips as she coughed.
"Don't talk," he urged helplessly.
Her body was growing cold.
"Kakashi… be careful…"
Her gaze shifted upward toward the masked observer.
"…The man in the mask…"
Her hand fell.
Silence.
The artificial lake rippled softly.
Kakashi remained frozen, her weight cradled in his arms.
Across the water, Kisame exhaled.
"So the masked one is involved."
Above, Obito's single visible eye narrowed, unreadable behind the spiral mask.
The battlefield had changed.
Not because of power.
But because of loss.