After all, his towering build and long white hair made him quite recognizable.
"Thank goodness, Jiraiya-sama is here."
Akimichi Dōtō exhaled heavily, visibly relieved.
"Don't let your guard down, Dōtō."
Inuzuka Gaku shook his head, standing alert with his ninken, both of them warily eyeing the Kumogakure shinobi.
Shimizu Uchiha walked up, overhearing their conversation.
Minato Namikaze was part of Team 6, with Akimichi Jirōmaru and Dekai as his original teammates.
During the war, many squads were reassigned—some got temporary teammates, others were permanently reshuffled.
Inuzuka Gaku and Akimichi Dōtō had been reassigned as Minato's temporary teammates, carrying out missions together during the war.
As for his original teammates, Jirōmaru and Dekai, they had been assigned to other squads.
"Another support unit from Konoha? You weaklings are no match for the great Killer Bee! I'll wipe you out without even trying!"
Killer Bee struck a strange pose and rapped out his declaration.
He wore a white headscarf, had dark brown skin, a large "Iron" (鉄) character marked on his right shoulder symbolizing the Iron Armor Seal, and two blue stripes painted horizontally across his left cheek.
Watching Killer Bee's antics, Shimizu couldn't help but marvel—so this is the power of melanin bonus. His rapping skills seemed almost innate.
His gaze shifted to the other Kumogakure shinobi standing beside Killer Bee.
There was Samui, whose figure rivaled Tsunade's, and the sultry and commanding Yugito Nii.
For Kumogakure to raise such stunning kunoichi… it was honestly impressive.
The men there, on the other hand, were another story—either rugged brutes or all black-skinned muscle. No clue how they managed to produce such eye-catching female shinobi.
"Hey, brat! What the hell are you staring at?"
Yugito snapped.
She had felt a blatantly inappropriate gaze roaming over her body, one that made no effort to hide its intent.
Even in combat, she had never encountered a man like this.
"You must be the Two-Tails' jinchūriki from Kumogakure. As expected, your temper's just as bad as the rumors say."
Shimizu shook his head.
"Hmph."
Yugito's light-brown braided hair began to unravel as her nails extended into claws nearly half a meter long.
Whenever she drew on more of the Tailed Beast's chakra, the band tying her hair would snap from the pressure.
She lunged at Shimizu, completely shattering the tense standoff between the two sides.
Minato reacted instantly, engaging her with the Flying Thunder God Technique and Rasengan. Each time he teleported away, a deep crater was left in his place.
That alone showed how fast Yugito's pursuit was—any slower ninja would've been caught and shredded on the spot.
"Lariat!"
Killer Bee spread his arms and charged like a freight train.
His entire body pulsed with boiling chakra. Lariat was a secret taijutsu technique from Kumogakure, and when used by the A–B Combo, it was almost guaranteed to decapitate the target.
When performed in a Tailed Beast Cloak state and utilizing the bony protrusions from the elbow to strike, the power of Lariat increased dramatically.
Even from a distance, Jiraiya could sense the razor-sharp chakra surging through Killer Bee's arms.
Not daring to meet it head-on, he swiftly formed hand seals. A massive swamp erupted from the ground beneath Killer Bee, dragging his momentum down and slowing him.
Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!
The swamp was so vast it could swallow even Manda, the giant serpent Orochimaru summoned.
Killer Bee's Tailed Beast chakra lashed out, its tails smashing the swamp surface to launch himself back into the air.
At that moment, Jiraiya exhaled a dense stream of chakra oil, igniting it with Fire Release to create a towering inferno.
With the lead fighters clashing, the rest of the shinobi followed suit and charged into battle, chaos erupting on all sides.
Buzz!
Shimizu curled his hand slightly. The Tenrō Flame Blade materialized in his grip, its surface shimmering like fine dragon scales. Upon closer inspection, those scales were actually countless miniature swords burning within the flames.
Brilliant petals of flame bloomed beneath his feet as he vanished in a flash, reappearing right behind Samui.
Samui's eyes widened in shock. She hadn't expected another teleporting shinobi on par with Minato.
She quickly drew her short red-handled blade, intercepting the flaming sword.
Clang!
The moment the red-handled blade met the Tenrō Flame Blade, the metal visibly turned red-hot at the contact point.
Shimizu raised an eyebrow. Samui's sword was surprisingly decent quality.
Far stronger than the kunai wielded by Omoi—if Omoi had tried to block that slash, his kunai would've snapped in half.
A flicker of seriousness crossed Samui's elegant features as she took several steps back, using the momentum to disengage.
The force of the impact had left her palms tingling from the shock.
Many Kumogakure shinobi practiced Lightning Release-enhanced taijutsu, combining it with chakra flow techniques to strengthen their bodies.
But even among them, very few possessed strength on Shimizu's level.
"You're stronger than I thought."
Samui spun her blade in a graceful arc.
Her golden shoulder-length hair fluttered in the wind, and the motion made certain... assets sway slightly—drawing the eye.
Shimizu glanced once, then looked away.
Samui was impressive—but ultimately just a pretty face. Her abilities had already peaked; she had no room left to grow.
"Interested in joining Kumogakure? We could offer the Uchiha Clan much better treatment."
Samui was smart. From the moment their blades clashed, she knew she couldn't defeat him.
She had spotted the Uchiha crest on Shimizu's shoulder when he moved and immediately realized his identity.
Wasting no time, she began trying to recruit him—stalling to buy more time for Killer Bee and Yugito.
"A mature and composed woman like you... sure talks a lot."
Shimizu smiled faintly.
According to the databooks, Samui was known for being mature, calm, and generally quiet—only speaking when necessary.
The fact that she was now chattering nonstop clearly meant she was stalling.
The next second, Shimizu's attack resumed.
Samui frowned, her blue eyes reflecting the blazing red sword approaching fast.
"Cloud Style: Flying Blade!"
She wasn't the type to go down without a fight. Even if she couldn't win, she had to hold him off.
Her red-handled sword crackled with lightning, transforming into a blade of pure energy.
But it barely held off Shimizu's assault for a second before the blade was knocked from her hand. Shimizu struck her square in the chest with his palm.
A sealing formula in black ink spread from his palm across the deep valley of her chest, binding her in place.
"Samui!"
Yugito's pupils shrank.
As a jinchūriki, she had always been treated with disdain in Kumogakure. Samui was one of the few people who accepted her—a comrade she truly cherished.
Minato, still sparring with Yugito, glanced over.
Shimizu's teleportation was even sharper than before—faster than he'd ever seen.
He's a shinobi like me…
Minato smiled bitterly. Shimizu had developed his own version of the Rasengan too—a no-hand-sign technique made to suit his high-speed combat style. It was a convergence of kindred minds.
Kakashi dodged several Lightning Release techniques in succession. Taking advantage of the brief lull as the enemy hesitated, he closely analyzed the different Lightning jutsu they'd unleashed.
Seeing so many variants at once deepened his understanding of the nature transformation.
Feeling inspired, he retreated to a safe distance.
He crouched slightly, gathering chakra in his hands…
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