Just as Hibari and Hiyoko were lurking on a rooftop, fires suddenly erupted across the Land of Water's capital. Seeing the glow of the flames behind them, Hibari knew his subordinates had begun their operations.
Like a signal, as soon as the fires started, the Daimyō's Manor went into high alert. Soon after, Hibari heard shouts of "Intruders!" and "Where do you think you're going?!"
Then, he and Hiyoko quickly saw three figures chasing two others, constantly clashing. Every now and then, ninjutsu like Water Release, Fire Release, and Earth Release flew haphazardly.
With these events unfolding, the entire Daimyō's Manor descended into chaos.
"The time is now. Move out!" Hibari whispered, then formed a hand seal in front of his chest. Two shadow clones, identical to him, appeared.
Hiyoko, with an annoyed look that seemed to say, 'I'll settle this with you next time,' swiftly vanished with the two shadow clones.
"Huh? Wait a minute, couldn't Hiyoko also create shadow clones?" Hibari suddenly rubbed his head, somewhat dumbfounded, and muttered.
While shadow clones can generally use ninjutsu, they cannot use the Shadow Clone Jutsu themselves. However, Hiyoko was an anomaly; he could basically use any jutsu. Hibari had just been a bit tense and hadn't thought of it in the moment. But by now, Hiyoko was already gone, so remembering it now was useless.
After arranging this, Hibari didn't follow Hiyoko, the 'daredevil,' into the fray, to avoid being caught in the blast of that 'Mini-Hydrogen Bomb Jutsu' himself.
After observing the situation slightly, Hibari didn't make any reckless moves. Instead, he continued to lie low, observing the situation, planning to step in and 'correct' things if there were any unexpected changes.
Meanwhile, inside the Daimyō's private chambers, the recently retired Daimyō was awakened by the commotion. Simultaneously, two capable-looking shinobi quickly appeared in his room.
Seeing the Daimyō's still bewildered face from being woken up, they breathed a slight sigh of relief, knowing he was safe for now.
"What's going on outside? Why is it so noisy?" the Land of Water Daimyō asked, frowning.
One of the Guardian Ninja quickly replied, "Fires suddenly broke out all over the capital, and two intruders have entered the manor. I believe this must be related to what the Second Mizukage-sama announced earlier – that Iwagakure shinobi from the Land of Earth are causing trouble. The other three have gone to engage them. We two will stay here to personally protect Your Excellency the Daimyō, so please rest assured!"
The Daimyō was irritated upon hearing this. He slapped the bedding on his bed and exclaimed, "This is outrageous! What are they trying to do, those Land of Earth people? How dare they send people to cause trouble in my Daimyō's Manor! Could it be... hmm? Didn't the Second Mizukage mention something about assassination earlier? Could they be trying to assassinate me?"
One of the two shinobi quickly responded, "The specifics are not yet known, but I don't think that's the case. Perhaps they intend to steal some classified information from the Daimyō's Manor, or perhaps this commotion is meant to cover their true objective..."
The Daimyō calmed down slightly upon hearing this, then said, "Regardless of what happens next, this behavior from the Land of Earth has severely damaged the interests of our Land of Water. Inform the Second Mizukage that Kirigakure should prepare for war!"
The Guardian Ninja nodded swiftly and replied, "Yes, Your Excellency, the Daimyō. Once this disturbance subsides, we will immediately inform the Second Mizukage-sama!"
Hearing this, the Daimyō nodded. Although it was chaotic outside, he had two powerful Guardian Ninja by his side, so he wasn't overly worried. Could anyone really sneak in and assassinate him under such close protection?
Hibari hadn't anticipated that their casual mention of 'assassination' earlier would actually become their 'cover' at this moment. Because they weren't planning to stealthily assassinate the Daimyō anymore; they were preparing to forcefully kill him!
As the two Guardian Ninja guarded the Daimyō closely, one of them suddenly frowned, sniffed, and his expression changed to one of alarm. He angrily exclaimed, "The air humidity has changed! It's a precursor to a Water Release ninjutsu! Protect the Daimyō! I'll go see who it is!?"
Guardian Ninja were, after all, powerful shinobi. Moreover, this was the Land of Water, and most of their shinobi were Water Release users, extremely sensitive to water-related elements. This Guardian Ninja was no exception; the moment Hiyoko secretly began forming hand seals, he acutely sensed the change.
However, fearing it might be a diversion to lure him away, the Guardian Ninja didn't run far. He merely opened the private chamber's door, wanting to see what was happening outside.
The moment he opened the door, he saw three figures on a distant rock garden, indiscernible in their markings but identical in build. They were forming different hand seals, seemingly preparing to unleash a ninjutsu.
One of them had already summoned a stream of water from thin air, swirling continuously in mid-air. Another's body shimmered with electricity, also making no superfluous movements. The last one appeared to be holding his breath in his chest, seemingly preparing a Wind Release ninjutsu.
"A Collaboration Ninjutsu?" The Guardian Ninja instantly recognized their intent, frowning as he spoke swiftly.
Meanwhile, the other Guardian Ninja inside the private chamber reacted just as quickly, forming hand seals and slamming his hand on the ground. An Earth Wall burst through the stone pavement, rising straight up, completely shielding the Daimyō behind it.
Generally, the more chakra used in a ninjutsu, the greater its power. Collaboration Ninjutsu might use complementary modes to increase power, but most still adhered to this principle.
The Guardian Ninja standing at the door looked closely. The amount of chakra and the nature transformations used by the three figures in the distance weren't particularly high. Based on this logic, the power of this Collaboration Ninjutsu should at most reach the level of an A-rank ninjutsu. While A-rank ninjutsu is indeed powerful, he was confident he could block it, especially with a teammate behind him who had already deployed a defensive ninjutsu.
He even suspected whether these three were deliberately releasing such a ninjutsu to lure him out.
Therefore, he didn't act rashly. As long as they ensured the Daimyō's safety here, then even if the enemy concocted some flashy plan, it would be useless, wouldn't it?
Thinking this, he slowly began forming hand seals, chakra surging within him. The defensive Water Release: Water Formation Wall could be released at any moment.
Hiyoko initially felt a slight tension when he saw the Guardian Ninja open the chamber door. While this Collaboration Ninjutsu sounded simple, it was quite demanding to execute. If any step was disrupted, the jutsu could easily misfire.
But that guy was quite something. He opened the door, clearly saw Hiyoko, but seemed to overthink things. His cleverness backfired. Instead of immediately coming to stop him, he just formed hand seals where he stood, preparing to take the hit.
Watching this, Hiyoko almost burst out laughing. Perhaps this reaction would be perfectly reasonable in most situations, but this just happened to be that small percentage of other circumstances!
'It's good that this guy isn't bothering me...' Hiyoko thought to himself, his hand speed not slowing. As he completed his final hand seal, the swirling water stream in the air suddenly surged towards the direction of the private chamber door.
At the same time, the electric current in the other shadow clone's hand transformed into a long whip, also lashing out towards the door. The last shadow clone opened his mouth and exhaled a stream of air towards the target. This airflow was slightly slower but still followed closely behind.
'What kind of bizarre jutsu is this? Are they playing tricks?' The Guardian Ninja couldn't understand this rhythm, a hint of confusion in his mind.
These three incoming techniques seemed to have no power, one after another, and he couldn't perceive any 'synergistic' effect. It was as if three almost useless C-rank ninjutsu were being 'thrown' from a distance.
However, he didn't genuinely underestimate them and cautiously released the ninjutsu he had been holding back.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!" the Guardian Ninja bellowed softly.
The next second, a massive curtain of water rose from his feet, completely blocking the entire door.
The ensuing scene surprised him slightly. The water stream and electric light didn't seem to intend to collide. Instead, after approaching the Water Formation Wall, they stopped in mid-air. Then the electric current struck the water stream. Before he could fully comprehend, an invisible airflow, seemingly 'late to the party,' enveloped the water stream that was being stimulated by the electricity. It then expanded slightly, as if some invisible gas had been added.
'What does this mean?' The Guardian Ninja thought to himself, frowning.
Although he didn't understand the situation, he dared not be too careless. He secretly increased the chakra in his hands, adding more density to the Water Formation Wall.
From Hiyoko's perspective, this person's actions were utterly foolish. A smile crept onto his lips, then he formed the Tiger hand sign and softly chanted, "Obliteration Release: Phoenix Annihilation."
As his words fell, Hiyoko breathed out a flame towards the 'mysterious' mass.
As the flame flew, Hiyoko grimaced, as if experiencing a toothache, muttering to himself, "I never thought I'd die under a 'hydrogen bomb'..."
The moment his words ended, in the Guardian Ninja's gaze, a small flame rapidly struck the strange mass, then ignited some gas. The next second, his eyes filled with terror because the gas seemed about to explode, and the sheer power instinctively made him feel the threat of death.
"S-rank Collaboration Kinjutsu: Annihilation!"
This was the last sound the Guardian Ninja heard, seemingly coming from the caster's mouth.
'S-rank... Kinjutsu?' The Guardian Ninja thought to himself.
Before his thoughts could fully settle, an earth-shattering roar emanated from the Daimyō's Manor, engulfing the entire Land of Water's capital.
Countless people witnessed a violent explosion of fire rising from above the Daimyō's Manor in the night. Then, a powerful shockwave instantly spread outwards, and a dark mushroom cloud rose into the night sky from that location.
Hiding in the chaotic capital, Hitenn, who was ready to rendezvous with Hibari and his team, could clearly see the shocking scene even without activating his Byakugan.
"S-rank... Kinjutsu...?" Hitenn Hyuga muttered in shock.
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