Sharp splashes echoed as the Mist Ninjas sealed the perimeter under the Pufferfish Demon's command. Several shinobi dove into the water, shadows slicing through the sea.
Despite the effort, the formation wasn't tight. Their numbers-just fifty-left plenty of space for someone determined enough to slip through.
Shhhhhh!
Several figures burst from the fading smoke, bolting in the opposite direction of Watermelon Mountain's Puffer Ghost.
"Stop them!"
No hesitation followed. Mist Ninjas surged toward the attackers. Chaos exploded instantly-colliding blades, chakra bursts, and urgent cries filled the space above the rolling surf.
Konoha's team had no plans to retreat. Knowing they were as good as dead, they burned chakra carelessly and fought with rabid intensity. Each strike carried the weight of desperation-every kill bought them value in death.
"Art Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
"Wind Style: Water Wall Formation!"
"Secret Technique: Insect Jade!"
Their array of techniques wasn't clean or ordered-but it worked. All that mattered was damage. Even though the Mist Ninjas tried to fight smart and conserve their chakra, it didn't matter when fire and wind and insects swirled together on instinct alone. Bodies dropped into water that hissed on contact with fire-jutsu heat.
Puffer Ghost didn't bother waiting any longer. Watching his side lose ground enraged him enough to abandon caution altogether.
His hands flew in rapid succession-Chou-Shen-Mao-Zi-Hai...
Forty-four seals flashed in barely over one second before his chakra snapped forward and summoned it.
SPLASH!
An enormous water dragon surged up from the sea's surface-thick-bodied and three meters wide at least. Puffer Ghost guided it forward with both hands clenched tight.
BOOM!
It didn't strike anyone cleanly, but the impact blanketed several Konoha shinobi as it slammed into the sea. Four of them were caught helpless in its radius-one screamed in agony as his leg twisted unnaturally with the blast force.
"Go!"
Scattered and broken apart, the remainder of Konoha's fighters fell fast under the Mist Ninja counterattack.
When it ended, bodies floated amidst reddened waves. A fifth of Puffer Ghost's force lay dead or critically injured-but the mission could now resume. Or so he thought.
He kicked one body aside and glared at his shinobi with barely contained fury.
"Useless idiots! You lost that many to scraps off Konohagakure's table?!"
Nobody dared respond. Even so-the sensor ninja risked stepping forward to speak just above a whisper.
"Lord Pufferfish Ghost... should we proceed with the sneak attack mission?"
His eyes narrowed-and then he remembered what they'd come here for in the first place.
"Tch. Fine. Take the bodies and-"
RIPPLE...
They heard it before they saw it-the gentle vibration of sea water shifting from calm to alert. It stopped everyone mid-sentence.
"Enemy attack!"
Puffer Ghost launched off his feet instantly-instinct saving his life by seconds. The rest failed to move so fast.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bite Explosion!"
FWOOSH!
From above-a vortex twisted into motion, dragging waves upward and hurling Mist Ninjas out of position before smashing several in place with needle-sharp currents. Some were pierced clean through-even their screams vanished beneath crashing surf as water dragon shapes tore through them from below.
BOOM!
Another detonation blanketed the ocean surface with mist once again-but this time it wasn't from their side. Nearly twenty Mist Ninjas died instantly in that single technique-shattered by pressure and chakra far beyond their level.
Even Puffer Ghost wobbled slightly in the air above what remained of his forces-shook by how easily he could've died just now. Some shinobi took nervous steps back without even realizing they'd done it.
Tszz...
Beneath what was left of the mist, low mocking laughter surfaced first-then came movement. A figure rose from the sea, water cascading from a soaked cloak wrapped tightly around him.
Two limp bodies dropped unceremoniously into the water beside him-Yamanaka Ao and another ninja who had carried Kushina before falling unconscious mid-escape.
"You Mist guys disappoint me," said the man beneath the cloak with barely disguised disdain. "Is this really what cruelty looks like now? Each generation weaker than the last…"
SHIK!
It hadn't finished his sentence when blood burst from his chest-a blade piercing straight through from behind without warning.
"You gave your opinion too early," snarled Puffer Ghost from behind. "Dead people don't get to speak about Mist tradition."
He twisted the blade once-ensuring damage-and yanked it free cleanly before backing away quickly just in case it wasn't enough to end whoever this cloaked bastard was.
"Huh?"
Even impaled through the heart-the man's tone didn't change at first. Calm-as if nothing had happened at-
PLOP! Squelch…
Black tendrils emerged from both ends of his wound-snaking around Yamanaka Ao's fallen body nearby. In sheer horror, every Mist Ninja watched as those tentacles plunged into Ao's chest-
-and dragged his heart out whole with smooth precision before slipping it back into the cloaked man's own body cavity without hesitation.
Ba-dum… Ba-dum...
Louder than expected-the heartbeat filled their minds even louder than their ears-and no one could explain why it sounded so... strong again already.
"What... is happening?" whispered one ninja, barely breathing now.
No one had answers-not even Puffer Ghost himself, eyes wide watching black threads fortify tissue that should be dead by now.
"You should be grateful," said the man casually, coat finally sliding off to reveal what lay beneath-black threads lacing together muscles that looked too old or too new or not human at any level anymore. Four masks sat embedded along his spine-none normal… none silent either.
From their mouths came sounds-guttural pain twisted beyond words-and then those masks writhed violently beneath his flesh until each tore loose entirely-
SHRRRIP!
From his back exploded four creatures made entirely of shadowy black tentacles-roughly humanoid but standing unnaturally tall and completely wrong in every way possible. Their shapes screamed nightmare even as they stood silent on either side of their master now.
"I apologize for arriving uninvited," said the man again-voice now disturbingly calm given what stood behind him.
"But allow me to introduce myself clearly this time."
"I am Kakuzu-contracted agent for the [God of War] … Akira Senju!"
As he finished speaking-a whisper of realization swept across what was left of Mist's remaining shinobi-
Even Puffer Ghost stepped back with wide eyes full of conflicted rage and fear-
"What? No... That's impossible!"
💕💕
READ 45+ ADVANCED CHAPTER AT MY P@TREON!
at [email protected] /Zaneninjacat
💕💕
💀💀 gimme powerstones!💀💀