Water Release: Cutting Rain was an advanced ninjutsu, a cornerstone of the Third Mizukage's Jutsu arsenal.
It allowed him to manipulate the very currents of moisture in the air, condensing them into a relentless, razor-sharp downpour that could penetrate enemies across a devastatingly wide area.
His purpose in unleashing it now was twofold.
First, to use the all-encompassing rain to feel for Yuta's location through the disruptions in the water.
Second, to flood the enclosed space of the barrier, transforming the terrain into a vast aquatic domain—a stage upon which his power could be expressed to its fullest.
It was a sound tactical plan. Unfortunately, Yuta, sheathed in the orbiting spheres of his Sage Art: Spirit Devouring Spiral Sphere (vortex), could simply ignore it.
The swirling vortex of chakra and natural energy around him rendered the slicing rain harmless.
'No way to pinpoint him?'
Blind in the searing white void, the Mizukage simply closed his eyes.
The Cutting Rain wasn't merely an offensive technique; he could use the feedback from the countless droplets to map his surroundings. Yet… he felt nothing. Perhaps the blinding light interfered with even this refined perception.
Or perhaps… his opponent wasn't touching the water at all.
A small blessing: the jutsu had done its secondary job. The floor of the barrier was now a shallow, churning lake. At least he was standing on familiar ground.
The Mizukage half-crouched, pressing his palms flat against the water's surface. The cool, familiar touch sent a wave of calm through his racing heart.
'There.'
If he couldn't see or hear, he would read the battlefield through its ripples. He would feel Yuta's movement in the flow.
'Is that his real goal?' Yuta observed from his vantage, his expression unreadable.
Without fanfare, one of the Spirit-Devouring Vortex (Rasengan) spheres orbiting his form shot forward. A single sphere was more than enough to erase a Kage from existence.
'It's coming!?'
A violent surge in the water flow screamed a warning. The Mizukage's face tightened, an instinctual, primal terror flooding his veins.
'Move! Now!'
'I'll die! If that hits.'
'Damn it, what is that thing? Its speed—!'
His hands became a blur. A Clone materialized directly in front of him an instant before the annihilating sphere would have made contact. A fraction of a second later, and it would have been over.
The hand seals are complete.
The Mizukage allowed himself the ghost of a relieved breath.
The moment the Spirit-Devouring Vortex (Rasengan) touched the clone, the clone detonated. Not a simple dispelling, but a cataclysmic, S-rank explosion.
A deafening roar filled the space, followed by a scalding shockwave that hurled water into the air and twisted the very atmosphere into a heat-hazed delirium.
And as the first clone vanished in the blast, a second one formed and exploded in rapid succession!
'This Jutsu (clone)… it resembles the S-Rank Secret Technique, Jōki Bōi (Evaporation Violent Blast), mastered by the Second Mizukage, Hōzuki Gengetsu… So the Third Mizukage knows it as well.'
It made sense. The succession of Kage in the great villages followed set patterns—master to student, parent to child, or to a trusted guard. For the Third Mizukage to inherit knowledge from his predecessor was perfectly logical.
However… even the fury of an S-rank Jutsu meant nothing before the Spirit-Devouring Vortex (Rasengan).
The thunder of the second explosion hadn't fully faded, the superheated air still expanding, when the Mizukage's briefly steadied nerves snapped taut once more.
The cacophony simply… ceased. In the span of a few seconds, all the explosive energy, the displaced water, the raging heat—everything was completely, utterly annihilated.
His desperate gambit was not entirely without merit, however. The power of Jōki Bōi had managed to cancel out one sure-kill strike from the vortex sphere.
A sudden, whimsical understanding bloomed in Yuta's mind. So this is why Uchiha Madara said things like that back then.
'He actually offset one of my Spirit-Devouring Vortexes. Not bad.'
'So, how will you block the next nine?'
A line dripping with villainous flair. A little chuunibyou, perhaps, but gods, it felt satisfying to think!
'The explosion… it's gone?'
Though his sight and hearing were stolen, the Mizukage could still feel the aftermath of his own technique through the water beneath him and the fading tremors in the air. The conclusion was inescapable. He had just deployed an S-rank forbidden technique.
And his opponent's single attack simply erased it.
'Could an enemy who wielded such power truly be as young as he appeared?' A tremor of dread, cold and unwelcome, ran through the Mizukage's core.
'No. I must seize the initiative back!'
'Summoning Jutsu… Yes!'
His senses were nullified, but his bonded summon would not be affected! With its aid, he could reverse this hopeless situation!
His mind made up, the Mizukage's hands moved.
First, two quick seals. From his mouth, a torrential waterfall over a dozen meters wide erupted, crashing through the space between him and where he last sensed Yuta.
Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!
Hidden behind the roaring curtain of water, his hands flew through another, more complex series of seals.
Pomf!
A cloud of white smoke billowed, and the Third Mizukage's summoned companion materialized within Yuta's line of sight.
It was… decidedly unusual.
The creature was a massive sphere, its back slightly arched and covered in a forest of long, slender, needle-like spines. As if aware of Yuta's scrutiny, the spines swayed faintly, independently.
'This thing… why does it look like a giant sea urchin?'
'Seriously, are all of Kirigakure's summons this bizarre?' Yuta mused internally. 'The Second Mizukage's was a giant clam. The Third's is a giant sea urchin. And the future Fourth, Yagura, is the jinchūriki of a giant turtle… This village's aesthetic is certainly… cohesive, they all follow a pattern.'
"Urchin. I'm counting on you," the Mizukage said, relief palpable in his voice as he placed a hand on his summon's rough hide.
His sea urchin perceived the world through the photosensitive cells embedded in its spiny, tentacle-like projections. It could detect minute changes in light and shadow, mapping the environment with perfect clarity.
In other words, through his partner, he could now pinpoint Yuta's exact location and anticipate his every move.
The tide of battle was about to turn!
The Third Mizukage felt the urge to smirk, to reclaim his lost confidence. But the moment the sensory data from the giant sea urchin flooded into his mind through their bond, his nascent smile died before it was born.
The steadfast companion who had fought beside him for decades… was trembling.
It was afraid.
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