Two blades shaped like a joined pair of flatfish dropped into Mangetsu's hands, one left, one right. His chakra surged into the Twin Flounder Blades, and a cool blue light rippled across their steel.
Mangetsu was the one who pushed all seven swords of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen to their limits.
In the world before Kaede's changes, Mangetsu appeared only in memories, and his final "return" was through Impure World Reincarnation—never at full power. Even so, he was frightening, leaving a deep impression during the Fourth Ninja War.
Here and now, Mangetsu was worse—worse for anyone standing against him.
The Twin Flounder Blades look the smallest and "weakest" among the seven, yet they are also the bloodiest. In some ways, they are even more terrifying than Samehada.
Their special nature is simple and cruel: the more you kill, the stronger they get. The Twin Flounder Blades store the user's chakra—and the chakra of those they slay—for later release.
If those blades have killed enough, they edge toward invincible.
The wielder never worries about running dry. The swords can bank any chakra nature. Of course, not everyone can draw out their full potential.
Mangetsu can.
And alongside him stood Suigetsu—whose body shrugs off physical attacks, the so-called "Demon Reborn." Suigetsu's fixation on cutting is an obsession. Because of it, his methods often look cruel: he hacks off limbs, then studies the head.
That "demon" title likely started there.
At the time of this Chunin Exam, Suigetsu was at the height of that obsession with severing. Every fight sent him into a jittery thrill. He hefted Zabuza's blade and came up behind Gaara.
No tactics. No teamwork. Just a giant sword arcing straight for Gaara.
Before he even reached striking distance, he sprang and chopped downward in a brutal overhand cut. The blow alone could have split a trench into the stone.
Against a normal genin—or even many jōnin—there'd be no time to avoid it. Even if they did, it would be desperate and clumsy.
But this was Gaara—absolute defense incarnate. As the blade fell, sentient sand rose in a hard wall and stopped Suigetsu's strike cold.
Suigetsu didn't stop. He twisted his grip and slashed sideways. Again. And again. Each cut met the wall of sand and died. His voice sharpened with frustration. "Damn it—your sand is disgusting."
Gaara stared back from behind dark rings, more irritated than worried. How could someone talk this much mid-swing?
From the first clash Suigetsu's mouth hadn't stopped—mostly muttering to himself—but it painted him as hot-blooded and easy to provoke.
While Gaara's patience thinned, Mangetsu slipped through the edges of that "absolute defense" without anyone noticing and stood before him.
A heartbeat later, the Twin Flounder Blades flashed with a strange gleam—and a bolt of Lightning Release crashed into Gaara's body.
(End of Chapter)
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