The echo of the signal flare had yet to fade across the sea when Kushimaru Kuriarare's figure shot downward from the reef like an arrow released from a bow!
"All units, advance with me! Target—northeast, the second patrol line! Intercept the defectors and kill them!"
His cold voice passed through the mask, metallic and sharp, reaching the elite squads lying in ambush below.
They had seen the signal. The moment the order came, they moved.
Dozens of figures burst out from the forests and jagged rocks along the flank, following closely behind Kushimaru.
The long blade—Nuibari—cut through the air before him, releasing a faint, razor-sharp hiss.
Kushimaru moved like a gray bolt of lightning skimming the ground.
Across tidal flats.
Through the reef zone.
His objective was crystal clear—
Pierce straight into the waist of the enemy formation.
Disrupt their rhythm.
Buy time for the second patrol unit to regroup.
Buy time for reinforcements to arrive.
The defectors numbered only around three hundred. There were no nearby shogunate troops.
Leading a force several times larger, Kushimaru had no reason to hesitate.
To retreat without fighting—
Was a capital crime in Kirigakure.
Several enemy chūnin attempted to intercept him.
They never even saw him clearly.
The silver threads of Nuibari pierced their vitals in silence, dropping them lifelessly to the ground.
He was about to break into the core of the chaotic battlefield—
When suddenly—
A massive shadow burst out from the left like a cannonball!
It was enormous. Violent. Carrying the savage force of a deep-sea predator lunging for its prey—
Kisame Hoshigaki!
The shark-faced man was silent as the seabed.
No flashy jutsu.
No wasted movement.
His mutated arms—jagged like shark fins, sharper than steel—became his weapons.
Crossed together—
They slashed forward with the raw, overwhelming force of a tidal wave!
"CLANG—!!!"
Not the soft sound of flesh being cut—
But the violent shriek of metal colliding with something even harder!
Accompanied by the strained whine of steel under extreme tension—
Kushimaru's unstoppable silver threads—
Snapped.
A severed strand whipped uselessly away, embedding into the decaying ground.
Worse—
He felt it clearly.
The chakra he had infused into Nuibari—
Was being devoured.
Ripped away greedily.
So this is Kisame… good thing he doesn't have Samehada. Even so—this body alone is troublesome!
Kushimaru's heart tightened.
His momentum was forcibly halted. His foot even crushed a reef beneath him.
With a sharp flick of his wrist, he attempted to retract the remaining threads, searching for a new angle.
But Kisame—
As one of the apex predators of the shinobi world—
Gave him no such chance.
One strike.
Break the edge.
Then press forward.
Kisame's body moved again—fast, aggressive, relentless.
His foot slammed into the ground, sending shards of rock flying.
Like a parasite clinging to bone—
He closed in once more.
Those cold shark-like eyes locked onto Kushimaru.
Not just physical pressure—
But the suffocating feeling of having his power drained, his rhythm shattered—
Pinned him in place.
For that single instant—
"Kurisarare!"
A voice exploded from all directions, carried through the mist.
Cold.
Decisive.
"Submit—or die."
Before the final word even faded—
The mist to the right split open.
A figure tore through it at near-instant speed—
Jūzō Biwa.
His expression was indifferent.
His eyes colder than steel.
There was no trace of former camaraderie.
No hesitation.
That shout—
Was both persuasion and disruption.
After all—
Dead men do not surrender.
Before the voice fully landed—
Man and blade had already become one.
Seizing the fleeting opening—
With Kushimaru's weapon restrained by Kisame—
His movement stalled—
Jūzō poured all his strength and killing intent into his arms.
The massive Executioner's Blade carved out a brutal crimson arc—
Before the blade even reached—
The air screamed.
Blood, sand, and water were dragged into a storm of death—
The strike came straight for Kushimaru's waist—
No feint.
No hesitation.
This blow—
Was meant to end everything.
Kushimaru's pupils shrank.
The sense of imminent death pierced him like ice.
His left hand had already begun forming seals—
Chakra surged—
Preparing Water Substitution or Water Wall—
But Kisame's fin-like arms—
Did more than cut his threads—
They anchored onto him like hungry voids—
Devouring his chakra.
The flow—
Stalled.
Collapsed.
Like a rushing stream plunging into a bottomless abyss.
His hand seals faltered.
His right hand tried to reclaim Nuibari—
Or twist it into a defensive snare—
But Kisame stepped forward again.
A mountain of pressure.
Locking down every possibility.
Trapped beneath this human-tailed beast—
At the brink of death—
Kushimaru displayed the refined instinct of a master.
His core muscles twisted unnaturally—
His body tilted like a falling top—
Yet at the very limit—
He adjusted—
A burst of movement—
Almost like a Body Flicker driven purely by physical ability—
Gave him just enough lateral shift—
"SHHHK—!"
The crimson blade grazed past him!
The Executioner's Blade nearly scraped along his spine—
But not completely avoided—
The tip tore through his right waist—
Armor split.
Flesh ripped.
A spray of blood burst into the air—
The wound deep enough to reveal bone—
Even a glimpse of internal organs.
Pain exploded through his body like lightning.
The impact shattered his balance.
With a muffled groan—
He staggered backward.
Ambushed by two shinobi as strong as—or stronger than himself—
Gravely wounded—
Kushimaru understood—
This was the end.
"It's over, Senior Kushimaru."
Kisame's low, hoarse voice sounded right beside him.
In that fatal moment—
As pain shattered his focus—
As chakra and consciousness wavered—
Kisame's arms—
Still hooked to Nuibari—
Exploded with monstrous strength—
A violent pull—
A twist—
"Urgh—!"
Kushimaru lost his grip.
The blade slipped from his hand—
Clattering onto the reef.
At the same moment—
Jūzō's eyes flashed.
His wrist turned.
The Executioner's Blade—
Still carrying momentum—
Drew an impossible arc—
A killing half-circle—
Its force redirected—
Into a faster—
Crueler—
Reverse slash.
This time—
The target—
Kushimaru's exposed neck.
In his final moment—
Behind the mask—
His eyes reflected the approaching blade—
Growing larger—
Covered in blood—
His own—
And that of former comrades.
He could even see every scratch on its surface.
Perhaps—
His lips moved faintly.
A trace of mockery—
Toward fate.
Toward betrayal.
Toward himself.
"SHLK—!"
The blade cut cleanly.
Flesh.
Bone.
Severed.
The sound—
Swallowed by the chaos of battle—
By roaring jutsu—
By the endless waves.
Kushimaru Kuriarare's head—
Flew.
Spinning.
Those calculating eyes—
Frozen in their final moment—
Staring at the gray, suffocating sky.
Below—
The two figures stood in the blood.
Calm.
Cold.
As if finishing a routine task.
The headless body collapsed.
Knees first—
Then forward—
Splashing into blood and mud.
Nearby—
The once-feared Nuibari lay silently on the reef.
Its silver surface stained red.
Blood seeped down its grooves—
Dripping into the cold earth.
Another blade of Kirigakure—
Broken.
Kisame and Jūzō exchanged a glance.
No words.
They turned—
And charged toward the second patrol.
The killing—
Continued.
—
When the crimson flare tore through the sky—
Like a wound bleeding across the heavens—
Terumi Mei's heart sank.
"…Emergency signal?!"
Her pupils contracted.
All her calculations—
Shattered.
Kushimaru's signal meant—
Something had gone terribly wrong.
Anxiety clawed at her—
But she forced it down.
She could not lose control.
She was the commander.
Thoughts flashed through her mind—
What happened?
Was Fuguki lying?
What was the Uchiha planning?
How large was this trap?
Then—
Her eyes hardened.
"All forces—!"
Her voice rang clear through the sea wind.
Firm.
Absolute.
"Advance toward the signal location! Maximum speed! Prepare for engagement!"
There was no time for detailed planning.
Every second—
Meant more deaths.
She moved first—
A streak of motion rushing down from the high ground.
Behind her—
The Kirigakure main force surged forward—
Like a breaking tide.
The distance closed rapidly.
The smell—
Changed.
No longer just salt—
But thick—
Overwhelming—
Blood.
The sounds—
Weapons.
Jutsu.
Screams.
A symphony of slaughter.
Then—
She broke through the last line of reefs—
And saw—
Hell.
The second patrol—
Her men—
Were being surrounded—
Cut apart—
Slaughtered—
By an equally numbered—
But stronger—
Enemy force.
Armor shattered.
Bodies fell.
Blood soaked the shore.
Further ahead—
She saw—
Kushimaru's headless corpse.
And—
Kisame.
Jūzō.
Betrayal.
Massacre.
The blood of her comrades—
Burned like magma—
Shattering all restraint.
"Uchiha's dogs—!!!"
Her scream tore through the battlefield.
Her calm—
Gone.
Her eyes—
Like molten lava.
Rage.
Grief.
Hatred.
All erupted.
Without waiting—
Her chakra surged.
Hand seals formed in a blur—
"Lava Release—Lava Monster Jutsu!"
Scorching, corrosive lava burst from her mouth—
A raging torrent—
Sweeping across the battlefield.
Where it passed—
Even rock melted.
"Follow Lady Mei! Kill the traitors!"
Jinin roared—
Charging forward with Kubikiribōchō—
Crashing into the enemy lines.
"Main force, flank attack! Leave none alive!"
Raiga's lightning blades erupted—
Blinding arcs of electricity—
As he led a rapid assault.
Three core powers of Kirigakure—
Struck like blazing spears—
Into the enemy.
And in response—
"Defensive formation!"
"Water Wall—now!"
Under Jūzō's command—
The defectors shifted instantly.
Outer units abandoned pursuit—
Hands flashing through seals—
"Water Release—Water Wall!"
Walls of water rose—
Layer upon layer—
Forming a curved defensive barrier—
Intercepting the incoming destruction.
The lava slammed into the walls—
Hissing—
Boiling—
Colliding—
As the battle—
Reached its peak.
200plus chapters ahead on my patreon Ph4nt0mTL