Uchiha Kage didn't waste any unnecessary words. He just kept using Samehada to swat down the Water Clones in front of him.
However, he was merely wasting his energy in vain.
For every Water Clone he destroyed, more would appear.
Endless. Absolutely endless. All it brought was despair—nothing but despair.
"Too scared to even speak? Then let me show you, one last time, the frenzy of the sharks!", Watching the boy still struggling in vain amidst his Water Clone encirclement, Kisame clapped his hands together, a sinister grin spreading across his face as he performed his final hand seals.
'Water Release: A Thousand Feeding Sharks!'
Under the influence of chakra, all of Kisame's Water Clones transformed into countless ferocious sharks with gaping, bloody maws.
"Shark Frenzy Bite!"
'What a pity, Itachi-san.'
'It looks like this fellow clansman of yours won't even leave behind a corpse.'
Watching the Uchiha boy get devoured completely by the swarm of sharks, Kisame's face lit up with satisfaction.
A brat was still just a brat—he had merely lured him a little, and the kid had rushed headlong into the trap set just for him.
BOOM!
But before Kisame could enjoy his victory for long, the devoured Uchiha Kage suddenly turned into a puff of white smoke.
"Shadow Clone?"
'He actually sent a Shadow Clone carrying Samehada to meet me?'
'This brat…'
'Truly unexpected.'
Kisame's already round, beady eyes widened even further.
———
'Ninja Art: Water Release: Hidden Mist Jutsu!'
At the same time, Uchiha Kage, who had been standing atop a tree watching the shark spectacle unfold, activated his own jutsu.
"If I were really surrounded by all those chakra-infused water sharks, I might have actually gotten hurt."
'But too bad—there is no "if."'
Uchiha Kage raised one hand toward the sky while placing the other over his chest.
Utilizing the abundant moisture in the forest, he conjured a dense mist—and then, his figure disappeared into the water vapor.
"Hidden Mist Jutsu? Even our Kirigakure's signature technique?"
The A Thousand Feeding Sharks technique, unable to find its prey, dissipated into water on the grass.
And Kisame, who had been tricked, quickly tensed up, alert to his surroundings.
'Using Kirigakure's techniques against a rogue ninja from Kirigakure?'
'This brat… what the hell is he thinking…'
"But since you were kind enough to deliver Samehada right into my hands, I don't really care what tricks you're planning."
Picking up Samehada, which had fallen from the Shadow Clone's grasp, Kisame suddenly felt a lot more at ease.
As long as he held this sword, he was in his complete form.
'…Huh?'
A thunderous explosion suddenly erupted through the air. Kisame barely managed to glimpse a streak of blue lightning before his entire body was sent flying, as if struck by an electrified iron bull.
A mix of numbness and searing sharpness surged through his chest.
Before he could even make sense of the first attack, another streak of blue lightning flashed behind him.
SPLAT!
Kisame had no time to react. After taking successive hits, his body twisted and spun violently through the air before crashing heavily into the ground.
'Is this… Kumogakure's Lightning Release Armor and Taijutsu?', Lying on the ground, Kisame stared at his shattered ribs and ruptured organs, along with the residual traces of crackling Lightning Release chakra still flickering over his body.
He finally recognized the attack method.
'But this is simply too unbelievable!'
'Why does this guy not only know Kirigakure's signature jutsu but also Kumogakure's most secret technique?'
With his form completely concealed by the dense mist and his absurd speed and strength from the Lightning Release blitz, Kisame realized—he had no way to fight back.
Even though he was now gripping Samehada's handle tightly, desperately absorbing chakra to heal himself, it was nothing more than delaying his inevitable execution.
"It seems a single Lightning Release isn't enough to take your head."
Uchiha Kage's slightly regretful voice echoed through the mist.
"You… who the hell are you?"
'A guy who can use so many hidden techniques from different villages… there is no way he is just some brat!'
Forcing himself to recover, Kisame gritted his teeth and pushed himself up, leaning against the still-protesting Samehada.
"Dead men don't need to know too much."
He had merely been testing the combination of Kirigakure and Kumogakure techniques, but the results had been far beyond his expectations.
There was no need to waste any more time.
"Dead men? I'm not the type to just sit around waiting to die."
Kisame formed a hand seal over his chest, and in the next instant, his figure also vanished into the mist.
Hidden Mist Jutsu—he could use it too.
"Trying to counter my Hidden Mist Jutsu with your own? That's laughable."
'Byakugan—Activate!'
With his Byakugan's vision, Uchiha Kage quickly locked onto Kisame's presence.
Boom!
Once again, a lightning-infused fist slammed into Kisame's body, tearing out another large chunk of flesh.
But this time, Samehada refused to heal him.
With a flick of its tail, the sword slapped Kisame's hand away and slithered into the grass—then, like a bullied child returning to its father, it ran straight back into Uchiha Kage's hands, nuzzling against his cheek.
"It's over," Uchiha Kage leaped down from the treetop, landing beside Kisame, who was still convulsing and coughing up blood.
"…Such a pity… I still… never got to see… that world…", Kisame weakly writhed on the ground, but it was clear—his time was up.
Uchiha Kage had shattered his ribcage.
The only reason he was still alive was his monstrous physique.
'That world…'
'Infinite Tsukuyomi?'
Uchiha Kage silently waited for his opponent to die.
He seemed like a pitiful guy, but he wasn't worth any sympathy.
Still, compared to Uchiha Itachi, Kisame was certainly much better.
"Not dead yet?"
Even with most of his blood drained and his eyes unfocused, Kisame's soul still hadn't departed.
'Wait—could it be…'
Realizing something, Uchiha Kage quickly dropped Samehada.
But he was still a step too late.
Swoosh!
From the gaping mouth of Samehada, a fully intact Kisame suddenly burst out—he had been hiding inside the entire time.
"Sorry, kid. This is my true assassination technique!"
With his head now transformed into a shark's maw, Kisame lunged, his razor-sharp fangs clamping down on Uchiha Kage's throat.
Snap!
The serrated teeth closed with a chilling crunch.
But…
"Impossible! Your body… what the hell!?"
A perfect assassination attempt. A flawless biting attack. No one should have been able to avoid it.
Yet Kisame was stunned to find his teeth had clamped down on nothing but air.
"I must say, I'm impressed. From the moment you picked up Samehada, you abandoned any hopes of a direct battle, hiding inside and waiting for me to drop my guard."
And because his chakra signature blended with Samehada's, not even the Byakugan could detect him.
In this shinobi world, Kisame truly was the most like an actual ninja.
Even Uchiha Kage had to admire that.
"How… how is this possible… your eyes?"
Clearly, he had bitten into the Kage's neck, yet what he actually bit into was nothing but air.
Kisame had no understanding of what kind of jutsu this was.
Until he saw that pair of astonishing eyes on the other's face suddenly turn scarlet.
'Mangekyō Sharingan?'
'This brat… has already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan at such a young age?'
"Exposed?", To prevent another sneak attack from Kisame, Uchiha Kage had never dispelled his intangibility, which led to the full display of the Mangekyō Sharingan in his pupils being completely seen by the other party.
Fortunately, the White Zetsu that had disguised itself as Kisame earlier had already been killed by him.
There were no other traces of White Zetsu nearby either, so there was no need to worry.
As long as he silenced the Kisame before him, the information that he possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan would not fall into the hands of the Akatsuki—for now.
"Who… exactly are you?", Returning to his original normal form, Kisame was overwhelmed by immense shock.
Why did every Uchiha he encountered have the Mangekyō Sharingan?
'No, something is off—this young man's oppressive aura…'
'It seems even stronger than that masked man who calls himself Uchiha Madara.'
'A genius surpassing Itachi-san? Or… an ancient monster resurrected through some unimaginable jutsu?'
"I don't know either, but the one who found me said he saw the light, so he named me 'Kage(Shadow)'."
The mist and moisture in the air gradually dispersed.
The night rain finally ceased, and the heavy dark clouds were blown apart by the wind, revealing a long-hidden half-moon.
Under the moonlight, the young man stood upon a long shadow, looking down at the ninja on the ground.
"You said earlier that you yearned for that world. That world… is it like this?"
The scarlet Mangekyō spun like a windmill.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/ZenonTL
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through Patreon.