Blood.
It dripped from Zabuza's arm, running down to the edge of his fingertips.
He clutched the wound on his shoulder, grimacing at the pain. Flesh had been cleanly sliced—but by what?
There was nothing around him.
No enemies in sight.
Yet he was bleeding. Again.
What the hell kind of jutsu is that brat using?
Swish!
Another blade strike. This time it tore into his left leg.
Zabuza turned sharply, but the next instant—
Slash!
His back was cut open, blood spilling in a jagged streak.
Swish!
Swish!
Swish!
In less than ten seconds, he was covered in gashes—dozens of them—from every direction.
The sight left Kakashi and Sasuke stunned. Even Tazuna, an ordinary civilian, felt cold sweat running down his spine.
Was this… the power of a Genin?
The clearing was wide open, but Shigure was nowhere to be seen.
Not even the slightest indication of when or where he would strike next.
Is that boy… a ghost?
Suddenly, Zabuza leapt backward, launching himself toward the edge of the river.
From the distance, Shigure let out a faint "Hm?"
Did he sense my position?
But as Shigure narrowed his eyes, he saw it—Zabuza wasn't reacting to him. There was still confusion, even fear, in the Mist ninja's eyes.
No. That was just instinct. A lucky dodge.
It wasn't that Zabuza had sensed him. It was just a fluke.
He still doesn't know where I am. Not with the Transparent Release combined with the Silent Killing Technique.
Unless one had a chakra sensory ability or dojutsu, no one should be able to detect him.
Shigure raised his blade—Zangetsu—and prepared to move in again.
"Bastard! I don't know what kind of trick you're using, but I'll drag you out!"
Drag me out?
That depends on how you try to do it…
As Shigure rushed toward Zabuza once more, the older shinobi suddenly raised his hands—fingers flashing through hand seals.
Shigure halted immediately.
Those hand signs…
They look like... a Water Style technique?
[Analysis in Progress…]
"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Behind Zabuza, the river surged.
No wonder he jumped in that direction—he planned to use the river to fuel his jutsu.
In certain areas, using Water Release with a natural water source didn't just conserve chakra—it dramatically enhanced the technique's power.
Zabuza might've been wounded, but his battle instincts were still sharp.
A massive wall of water rose and surged forward—racing toward Shigure at breakneck speed.
He understood Zabuza's intent instantly.
A wide-range jutsu to force me out of hiding.
Shigure gripped Zangetsu with both hands and whispered under his breath—
"Breathe."
"Second Form – Car Wheel!"
His body spun, blade whirling. Chakra surged through the motion, forming a slashing ring of pressure that tore forward and outward.
The incoming torrent split in two before him—cleaved apart by the force of his strike.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The current scattered, uprooting trees and ripping through the surrounding terrain.
Even Kakashi was forced to act—scooping up Naruto and Sasuke while guiding Tazuna to higher ground as the river swept across the battlefield.
When the spray settled, Kakashi looked ahead.
"The stream… was cut in half?"
Though Shigure was still invisible, there was no mistaking it.
There was only one person on the field who could split a jutsu of that magnitude with a sword.
"Shigure…"
Zabuza smirked.
The Great Waterfall Technique hadn't hit its mark, but it didn't have to.
"I've got you now."
The torrent might not have landed a fatal blow, but its purpose had been achieved.
As the floodwaters receded, Shigure remained in his Transparent Release state—but now he understood.
Ninjutsu isn't enough to reveal me… but that wasn't Zabuza's plan.
He looked down.
The riverbank beneath him was wet sand and loose silt.
Every step he took left a mark.
Tiny ripples. Footprints. Shifting grains.
Even the perfect combination of Transparent Release and Silent Killing Technique couldn't hide the physical disturbance of walking on the ground.
I see…
So that's how he found me.
Shigure gave a soft chuckle. "Smart move, Zabuza. You really are an elite jonin."
A moment later, he released his Transparent Release.
His figure slowly shimmered into view.
Kakashi's visible eye widened.
"That's… Transparent Release," he whispered.
Naruto and Sasuke gawked, speechless.
"What kind of jutsu is that?" Naruto asked.
"How'd he… disappear like that?" Sasuke added.
They looked to Kakashi for answers.
The Copy Ninja's eye stayed fixed on Shigure, unreadable.
"That," he said, "was no ordinary ninjutsu…"
Naruto blinked in confusion. " Transparent Release? What's that supposed to mean?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Is that the secret behind his disappearance?"
Transparent Release…?
Kakashi stared at Shigure intently, as if trying to peel back the layers of his secrets.
"…Transparent Release, also known as Touton no Jutsu, is a type of Kekkei Genkai," Kakashi explained. "It allows the user to conceal both their physical form and chakra signature. A rare but incredibly useful support-type ability."
He folded his arms and muttered, "But I didn't expect Shigure to possess Transparent Release…"
"If I remember correctly, the only known user of this bloodline limit in Konoha is Gekkō Hayate."
"Wait—Moonlight?"
Sasuke's eyes widened slightly.
Could it be… Transparent Release is the bloodline of the Moonlight Clan?
I've never heard of that before…
But both Gekkō Hayate and Shigure could use it—how else could you explain it?
On the other side, Zabuza stared at Shigure with renewed understanding.
"Transparent Release, huh…?"
"No wonder I couldn't track you. You weren't just hiding your body—you erased your presence completely."
He clenched his jaw, remembering how close he'd come to dying without ever seeing his attacker.
"If I hadn't used the Great Waterfall Technique to disturb the terrain, I'd never have found you."
Zabuza's eyes gleamed with reluctant admiration.
"I'm known as the Demon of the Hidden Mist," he growled, "but you… with your Transparent Release and silent killing technique… you're no less than a phantom yourself."
"A demon… no, a ghost. A demon ghost."
Konoha's demon…
The title echoed in their minds, and no one could deny—Shigure had earned it.
At just twelve years old, he had forced Zabuza Momochi to the brink.
Even Kakashi, no stranger to child prodigies, was speechless as he looked at Shigure's back.
To make such a name for yourself… at this age…
Even during the bloodiest years of the war, this was rare.
"Ugh… damn it all!"
Suddenly, Kakashi groaned, clutching his head as if in pain.
Sasuke and Naruto flinched. "Kakashi-sensei? What's wrong?"
Kakashi turned toward Shigure, his eye brimming with dramatic despair, and wailed:
"I'm so jealous!! Why don't I have such a perfect ability!?"
"Perfect…?" Naruto echoed, blinking.
Sasuke frowned. "It's powerful, sure—but perfect?"
Kakashi didn't miss a beat.
"If I had that ability… I could sneak into the women's bathhouse unnoticed…"
Sasuke: "…"
Naruto: "…"
Both stared at their teacher with deadpan expressions of disbelief.
"…Pervert," they muttered in unison.
...
TN:
It's AU Again~ 😓
Just a quick clarification—
In Naruto canon, the "Transparent Release" mentioned here is actually the Transparent Escape Technique (透明逃遁の術), a jutsu created by none other than Jiraiya to... well, spy on women bathing without getting caught. 😅
Later on, he passed it down to Gekkō Hayate, who became particularly skilled at using it.
Now, in this novel, things get a bit confusing. 🤔
I think what happened is that the author either forgot or didn't know that Jiraiya originally invented the technique. In this version, only Hayate is shown using it—so maybe he's the one who created it in this AU? I'm not sure, but it's being treated like a bloodline limit of the Moonlight Clan, which it definitely isn't (neither in canon nor here).
That's probably why it's referred to as a "Release" rather than an "Escape" here.
Anyway, thanks for reading! 🙇♂️
...
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