"Damn, these guys from the Sea Ninja Village really can't be underestimated!"
Carrying a comatose prisoner on his back, Zabuza leaped rapidly through the trees while looking back. Only after confirming there were no pursuers did he finally breathe a slight sigh of relief.
Although he had fled, it was merely a decision Zabuza made after assessing the situation; it didn't mean he was afraid of Wolf Fang Avalanche.
Even if Wolf Fang Avalanche's abilities countered him to some extent, Zabuza believed that if the battle continued, he would undoubtedly be the one to emerge victorious.
However, entangling with an opponent in their own headquarters was not a wise move for Zabuza. Since he had already gathered vital intelligence and captured a prisoner, his only thought now was to retreat.
Perhaps in the past, Zabuza wouldn't have given the Sea Ninja Village a second thought, but after discovering so many oddities, he would be a complete idiot if he still thought they were just a bunch of small fry.
If he were to encounter dozens or even hundreds of Chunin, an assassination-type Jonin like Zabuza wouldn't stand a chance! Moreover, judging by the current situation, the enemy had at least thirty or forty Jonin. Even if they were only at the level of a Special Jōnin, it would be enough to easily wipe out their investigation team.
"The Sea Ninja Village seems to have mastered some method of large-scale physical enhancement for Ninjas, and they also have that animal modification ability! If there are no restrictions on this method, then this intelligence is far too important!"
"If our Ninja village could also master this ability..."
Zabuza's gaze was solemn, yet it also revealed a hint of fervor. For Kirigakure, this was both a crisis and an opportunity. The Sea Ninja Village might challenge Kirigakure's status, but at the same time, if they obtained this enhancement method, Kirigakure would surely leap to become the strongest Ninja village in the entire Ninja World!
In this era, there were no "over-the-top" Ninjas like Senju Hashirama or Uchiha Madara. Any Kage from the Five Great Ninja Villages would likely struggle against a thousand Chunin.
Perhaps only the current Mizukage of his own village could contend with a thousand Chunin, and that wouldn't be because of his own strength, but because he was a Jinchuriki, possessing a Tailed Beast as an infinite power bank.
While Zabuza Momochi was still lost in thought, he suddenly felt as if his legs were being grabbed. Mid-leap, Zabuza lost his balance and fell straight from the tree with a crash.
"What? What's going on!?" Zabuza exclaimed in surprise. Looking down, he saw pairs of snow-white arms growing from his legs, crossing over each other to grip his ankles.
His pupils constricted slightly. Zabuza reached out, wanting to draw the Greatsword on his back, but felt his wrists tighten. He saw two more arms sprout from his waist, seizing his wrists.
Before he could react, one arm after another sprouted from various parts of his body, locking his joints. Zabuza couldn't move at all and could only wriggle on the ground like a maggot.
"Damn it! What kind of ability is this?"
Despite being a Kirigakure Jonin who was battle-hardened and had seen countless strange secret techniques, he had never witnessed such an eerie sight.
These arms growing from his body looked fair and delicate, slender and soft, but their actual strength was staggering. Even with the empowerment of Chakra, Zabuza couldn't break free at all; his wrists and ankles were even being squeezed to the point of intense pain.
"That was so easy... It seems the fighting style of Ninjas is quite countered by my ability!"
A calm voice rang out. Zabuza struggled to lift his head and saw a beauty with long black hair and a striking figure walking toward him from a distance. The woman had an intellectual air about her, with a slight smile on her lips as she looked at Zabuza lying on the ground with a curious expression.
This was, of course, Nico Robin. In terms of strength, even though Nico Robin had been enhanced by Vegapunk and had learned to use Chakra, she wasn't actually that powerful. Normally, even if she could defeat Zabuza, it would never have been this easy.
However, Nico Robin's Flower-Flower Fruit ability was unpredictable. In the One Piece World, when facing monsters with incredible physical toughness, it had the flaw of insufficient strength. But for fragile Ninjas, these limbs growing directly from their own bodies were a natural counter.
After all, Ninjas were all "glass cannon" mages or high-speed assassins, and Nico Robin's Flower-Flower Fruit didn't need to account for the target's evasion at all. It was almost a guaranteed hit upon activation and had virtually no travel time, essentially guaranteeing the first strike. Combined, this meant Nico Robin could practically insta-kill ninety-nine percent of the Ninjas in the Ninja World.
Aside from certain individuals who had modified their bodies to be non-human or Ninjas who had trained their physical bodies to the limit, only a few Bloodline Limit Ninjas who could directly manipulate secret techniques without needing Hand Seals could counter this ability.
Clearly, Zabuza Momochi did not fall into that one percent. Thus, before he even saw Nico Robin, he had been discovered by her using Observation Haki and captured with her Flower-Flower Fruit ability... "What? That fellow Zabuza was also captured by the Sea Ninja Village?"
Kisame looked at the newly arrived intelligence and felt a massive headache coming on. It had only been four days since arriving in the Land of Sea, and his superior and colleague had already been taken out. Were they investigating the Sea Ninja Village or Konohagakure?
"Just what is going on? The enemy's intelligence is so precise. Could they have some kind of wide-range detection Ninjutsu?"
"This is bad. If that's really the case..."
Just then, a commotion came from outside the base. Kisame Hoshigaki's expression changed as he drew the long sword in his hand and leaped out.
When Kisame arrived outside, he happened to see a tall figure walking in. A group of Kirigakure Chunin were swarming around that figure like they had found their pillar of support, their faces full of excitement.
How could they not be excited? They had originally thought that coming here to investigate a newly established small Ninja village would be an easy task. In the end, the Commander went missing on the very first day, and by the third day, the Deputy Commander had also been captured, leaving only the shark-faced Jonin, Kisame, to hold the fort.
The key was that Kisame wasn't cut out for leadership! While he was a capable fighter, his previous work involved silencing witnesses; asking him to organize a plan was truly asking too much of him.
On the contrary, when most Chunin saw this shark-faced man, the first thing they thought of was that if the mission failed, they might be silenced by him!