High above, Hoshiyomi sensed what was happening on the ground and couldn't help but smile. The ones who had arrived were Kisame and Ameyuri.
It was an interesting pairing. They were originally members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist in the canon, and Lightning Release and Water Release were among the best elemental combinations.
Although neither of them wielded their ninja swords now, the coordination of their ninjutsu could still produce an effect where one plus one was greater than two. Without Itachi present, the Kisame–Ameyuri duo was quite intriguing.
Judging from their chakra levels, they weren't the real bodies, but that actually made them perfect test subjects for evaluating Sasuke and the others' progress over the past three years.
Thinking of Ameyuri, Hoshiyomi subconsciously glanced down at Sasuke. Come to think of it, Kuugetsu's Sword of Kusanagi: Chokuto had originally been Sasuke's blade. Since he had given Sasuke's sword to Kuugetsu, shouldn't he compensate him with another one?
Given Sasuke's mastery of Lightning Release, giving him the Lightning Blade: Kiba would be a perfect match.
Speaking of which, Hoshiyomi had once planned to cultivate a Konoha version of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, but later abandoned the idea because he couldn't find suitable candidates.
Now that the "rookies" had all grown up, maybe this Konoha Seven Ninja Swords plan could be revived, depending on the situation.
Lightning Blade: Kiba for Sasuke, perfectly complementing his Chidori-based techniques.
Longsword: Nuibari for his own son, combined with Invisibility Release and Silent Killing—extremely practical.
Blunt Blade: Kabutowari for Chōji; just imagining it paired with the Expansion Technique felt exhilarating.
Executioner's Blade for Jūgo—left hand wielding the Executioner's Blade, right hand using Axe Slash Explosive Strike, turning him into a battlefield bulldozer. The blade's life-draining regeneration plus Jūgo's Cellular Absorption would make him an iron berserker.
Explosive Blade: Shibuki for Shikamaru. That kid was probably Konoha's best user of explosive tags anyway—giving it to him would even save him money.
Greatsword: Samehada as a secondary weapon for Kimimaro—absorbing chakra to replenish his bones, plus sword–user fusion. With Kimimaro's external bone armor fused with Samehada, he'd basically become Konoha's "Shark-man."
Twin Blades: Hiramekarei for his daughter. Hiramekarei might look a bit ugly, but wasn't his daughter aiming to be a full-time caster anyway? Using it to fire chakra cannons in her spare time would be quite fitting.
The more Hoshiyomi thought about it, the more excited he became, feeling a strange sense of accomplishment.
...
While Hoshiyomi was lost in his daydream of Konoha's Seven Ninja Swordsmen, the battle below was already on the verge of erupting.
"Water Release: Great Shark Bullet Technique!"
With Kisame's loud shout, a massive blue shark suddenly burst up from the ground, its gaping maw lunging toward Neji and the others. Neji had been the first to detect Kisame's presence, so he had long since prepared himself.
He steadied his breathing, gathered chakra in his palm, and struck out with a Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm. The chakra blast collided with the Great Shark Bullet midair, instantly producing a tremendous shockwave.
The shattered water from the destroyed technique splashed over everyone present, soaking them thoroughly.
At the same time, Ameyuri had already made her move. Without anyone noticing, she appeared behind the group and raised her hand to unleash Lightning Release: Lightning Fang.
The water from the shattered Great Shark Bullet had drenched the battlefield. All Ameyuri needed to do was place her hand on the ground, and a wide-area Lightning Release would strike everyone present.
The combination was simple yet highly effective. Unfortunately for her, Neji—thanks to his Byakugan—had already detected Ameyuri's movements. The moment he shattered the Great Shark Bullet, he shouted:
"Get out of the way!"
Trusting Neji completely, everyone leapt onto the surrounding treetops, narrowly avoiding Ameyuri's Lightning Release.
At that moment, Kisame suddenly laughed.
"Not over yet! Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
As he spoke, Kisame forcefully spat out a massive torrent of water. Enormous waves of Water Release surged forward in layers, and the trees beneath Neji and the others could not withstand the raging flood, collapsing one after another.
Seeing everyone fall into the water, Kisame stepped atop the waves and looked down at Team Guy with a condescending 3.
"Now," he said, "this is where the real fun begins."
With that, Kisame stomped heavily on the rolling waves and, riding the rushing current, charged straight toward Guy. The door-sized greatsword in his hands was raised high, ready to deliver a devastating downward slash.
On the other side, Ameyuri bared a mouthful of shark-like teeth and likewise dashed across the waves toward Kakashi. Unlike Kisame's massive blade, she wielded two kunai crackling with lightning.
Faced with the combined assault from the two of them, no one present showed the slightest fear. Lady Chiyo immediately flung out her chakra threads, pulling Sakura to a safe position.
In battle, protecting the medical shinobi always came first—this was a lesson learned from long experience.
As Chiyo pulled Sakura away, the others moved at once.
Just as Kisame was about to strike Guy, a figure shot up from the water. Lee roared and launched a powerful upward kick, his foot slamming into Kisame's wrist.
Kisame had assumed that Guy was accompanied by nothing more than a group of ordinary chūnin—aside from Neji, who showed some promise. He never expected this sudden greenhorn to possess such terrifying strength.
Caught off guard, Lee's kick landed squarely on Kisame's wrist. Even Kisame, in pain, was forced to release the greatsword from his grasp.
Seizing the opportunity, Neji followed up with another Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm. Having already suffered once, Kisame was careful this time—twisting his body midair to barely evade the fearsome strike.
However, he forgot that there was still another member of the team.
At some point, Tenten had already slipped behind him. She had summoned a massive hammer plastered with explosive tags and leapt high into the air.
The hammer crashed down onto Kisame just as he dodged the Vacuum Palm. The seasoned Kisame's muscles bulged as he tried to block the blow with both arms—but he hadn't expected the hammer to be rigged with explosive tags. With Tenten's sharp cry, Kisame was blasted by the explosion and hurled back into the raging water.
"Did we get him?" Tenten asked, panting slightly as she looked toward Neji, still gripping the hammer.
Neji's expression suddenly changed. He stomped the ground hard and grabbed Tenten, pulling her away in an instant. The moment they left their original position, a water arrow shot out, slamming into a distant tree and blasting a massive hole into its trunk.
Just after Kisame fired the water arrow, a loud shout rang out:
"A-daaa!"
Kisame looked up to see Guy descending like a falling mountain, his right leg raised high, ready to smash down with a crushing kick. In the water, even an ordinary jōnin—or even a Kage—would have been unable to dodge such a blow.
But Kisame's speed underwater was faster than a shark's. The instant Guy's powerful kick came down, Kisame had already slipped beneath the surface with a splash, vanishing without a trace.
Caught off guard, Guy himself sank into the water. When he turned his head, he saw Kisame looking at him with a half-smile.
"If you're so eager to die," Kisame said calmly, "I'll be happy to see you off."