Chapter 22: The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist (Part 1)
"Little sister, listen carefully. When we get to Konoha, you'll say your name is Hatake Komai. You grew up in a small country near the borders of Kirigakure. You have no parents—an elderly ninja raised you since childhood. The only thing your parents left behind was a note with your name written on it. Got it?"
After another day of travel, Chizuki walked while continuing to drill Jack—now going by Komai—on her "backstory" and the art of acting.
"I know already~ You've been saying it the whole way. I've memorized everything."
Jack… or rather, Hatake Komai, puffed her cheeks and replied with slight annoyance.
"Hehe, I'm just worried you'll forget. Oh, right—once we reach Konoha, you can't call me 'brother' in front of others anymore. I'm only six, and you look at least twelve or thirteen."
Seeing Chizuki repeat the same instructions again, Komai huffed, turned her head away, and quickened her pace, ignoring him.
Chizuki could only shake his head helplessly. This was no trivial matter—there was no room for mistakes. Still… when Komai got angry, she looked kind of cute.
The two of them moved swiftly through the dim forest. Suddenly, as if they had silently coordinated, they both came to a halt at the same time.
"There's someone ahead."
Having spent several days in the world of Naruto, Chizuki had been focusing heavily on chakra perception. After all, being born into a battlefield meant that if your sensory abilities weren't maxed out, you might not even notice someone lying in ambush right beside you.
Komai nodded. Raising her small hand, two surgical knives "flew" into her grip.
After carefully sensing for a moment, Komai added.
"Brother, they don't seem to be hiding their presence at all. It's probably a fight happening up ahead."
As an Assassin-class Servant from Fate, her class skill was Presence Concealment, making her extremely sensitive to the presence of others. Hidden enemies stood out to her like torches in the dark—unless, of course, they were significantly stronger than her.
"…"
Chizuki pondered briefly before speaking.
"Let's go take a look."
This was still within the Land of Fire. Although it was wartime, compared to the frontlines, this area could be considered the rear base. Anyone appearing here was likely part of an enemy reconnaissance unit—probably discovered and now clashing with Konoha's ANBU.
If they helped their side here, they might be able to return to the village as planned.
Having made their decision, the two exchanged a glance. Their expressions grew serious as they dashed toward the source of the disturbance.
---
At the same time, somewhere within the Land of Fire—
Might Guy, Ebisu, and Genma Shiranui, who had just been promoted to Chūnin, were carrying out a reconnaissance mission as a three-man squad.
At least… that had been the plan.
Their luck, however, didn't seem particularly good.
"This is bad—we're surrounded. There's no way out now."
Genma bit down hard on the senbon in his mouth, his tone filled with frustration.
"We don't even have any intel on the enemy. We've been chased this whole time, and we still don't even know who's attacking us."
As soon as he finished speaking, seven figures slowly emerged from the dense forest ahead.
The moment Ebisu saw them clearly, he instinctively took half a step back, his voice trembling with fear.
"Th-Those are… the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist?!"
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen were a title passed down within Kirigakure. Each of them wielded one of the seven legendary blades:
The Executioner Blade — Kubikiribōchō
The Great Sword — Samehada
The Longsword — Nuibari
The Blunt Sword — Kabutowari
The Explosive Blade — Shibuki
The Lightning Blade — Kiba
The Twin Blades — Hiramekarei
Each blade possessed unique abilities, and their wielders were equally formidable. They specialized in high-difficulty missions for Kirigakure, and their reputation was widely feared.
Their appearances were unmistakable:
Zabuza Momochi, Fuguki Suikazan, Kushimaru Kuriarare, Jinin Akebino, Raiga Kurosuki, Jinpachi Munashi, and Mangetsu Hōzuki.
Seeing the three trembling before them, the man at the front—Zabuza, wielder of the Kubikiribōchō—curved his lips into a sinister grin.
"Well, well… even brats from other villages recognize us. Looks like we've become quite famous."
He drew the massive blade from his back, his expression turning ferocious.
"Hm… looks like there's a chip in my blade. Guess I'll need some blood to help it regenerate."
It was an obvious excuse—almost laughable.
But none of the three found it funny.
The war had gone on long enough for the name of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen to become synonymous with terror.
"What do we do? We can't beat them. Doesn't matter how they got here—right now, the priority is survival. Someone has to return to the village with this information."
As the squad leader, Genma reacted instantly. He pulled several explosive tags from his pouch.
"Guy, Ebisu—I'll hold them off. You two run."
"No."
Guy and Ebisu rejected the idea in unison.
Abandoning a comrade and fleeing alone—neither of them could accept that.
Seeing his teammates' resolve, Genma felt a surge of emotion. But these were the infamous assassins of Kirigakure—cruel and ruthless. They wouldn't hesitate just because their opponents were children.
If they didn't run, none of them would survive.
Just as Genma was racking his brain for a solution, a figure suddenly flashed through the air and landed between the two sides, positioning himself in front of Guy's group.
The sudden arrival drew everyone's attention.
"Looks like I made it in time…"
The man wore a green outfit, had thick eyebrows, and an unkempt beard. He looked like a middle-aged man on the verge of a crisis.
But at this moment, his body was emitting visible chakra—green steam rising around him.
Ebisu and Genma exchanged shocked glances upon seeing someone dressed exactly like Guy.
Guy himself immediately recognized him and shouted anxiously:
"Father! What are you doing here? You're just a Genin!"
That's right—
This man was Guy's father, known as Konoha's "Eternal Genin":
Might Duy.
Though only a Genin, he had devoted twenty years of relentless effort to taijutsu, compensating for his inability to use ninjutsu or genjutsu. Through sheer perseverance, he had created the ultimate taijutsu—
The Eight Gates.
"Enough talk. You three run. I'll buy you time."
Gone was his usual goofy demeanor. His weathered face was now filled with resolve, his eyes sharp and unwavering as he stared down the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
"Run…? Father! They're all elite jōnin—and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen at that! There's no way you can defeat them alone!"
Guy stared at his father's back—thin, yet impossibly imposing.
In that instant, tears streamed down his face, his voice trembling with emotion.