"Move, damn it!"
"If you don't want to burn to ashes, fight back with everything you've got!"
Hair whipping wildly and his face twisted with fury, Fuguki Suikazan's roar echoed across the battlefield.
Orders were a survival instinct carved into the bones of Kirigakure shinobi.
The moment the Uchiha flame dragons soared into the sky, dozens of Mist jonin and hundreds of chunin surged forward instead of retreating, savage determination blazing in their eyes.
Kirigakure's chunin were not the strongest fighters, but they were disciplined and highly coordinated—the backbone that held the army together.
Facing the terrifying inferno swallowing entire streets and the descending flame dragons, they did not attempt large-scale water techniques that required long casting time.
Nor did they possess many high-level jutsu.
Instead, they chose the fastest and simplest response.
Working in small groups, with genin supporting them, they launched basic Water Release techniques for both defense and counterattack.
Their chakra waves instantly synchronized.
"Water Release: Water Turbulence!"
Mist shinobi leaned forward and spat torrents of water.
From genin came narrow streams.
From chunin came high-pressure jets blasting forward like water cannons.
Over a thousand streams erupted simultaneously, slamming into the ground and the approaching flames.
Water struck the earth, forming expanding pools of muddy water.
Under continuous chakra flow, those pools transformed into wide, low surging barriers.
Like the advancing edge of a tsunami, they surged forward, pushing against the sea of flames and descending dragons.
Individually, Water Turbulence was weak.
But when nearly a thousand were combined—
They formed a massive wet buffer zone before the Mist formation.
Flames hissed violently as they burned the water, producing enormous clouds of steam.
The fire could not be extinguished completely.
But its advance slowed.
The heat weakened.
Most importantly—
They bought the jonin behind them precious time.
Behind the watery barrier, dozens of Kirigakure jonin completed their hand seals.
Their chakra surged like a flood about to burst a dam.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
In the next instant, they lifted their heads and roared forward.
A thunderous torrent of blue water burst from their mouths.
The streams merged and expanded wildly midair, forming an enormous wall of raging water stretching from ground to sky.
With crushing force, it surged forward—
Directly colliding with the descending flame dragons.
The Water Turbulence from the lower ranks formed a damp shield resisting the flames.
The Great Waterfall from the jonin became the hammer of retaliation—
An ocean attempting to drown the sky itself.
The next moment—
Water and fire collided.
HISSSSS—
BOOOOM—
Not a simple explosion—
But a violent, continuous annihilation.
Crimson flame dragons plunged headfirst into the towering wall of water.
Extreme heat clashed with overwhelming torrents.
Blinding white steam exploded outward in expanding rings.
One by one, the flame dragons dimmed as they plunged deeper into the water.
Their blazing bodies were torn apart by the crushing current, breaking into scattered sparks and boiling droplets.
At the same time, the Great Waterfall began to evaporate beneath the relentless assault of the dragons.
Steam thickened until visibility dropped to nothing.
The clash between hundreds of flame dragons and towering waves transformed several streets of western Infinite City into a deadly white fog.
Firelight refracted through the steam, creating warped flashes of orange and red.
The roar of water and crackle of flames intertwined.
Scalding droplets rained down like a storm, striking the burned skin of Mist shinobi and forcing muffled cries of pain.
Sight vanished.
Sound warped.
Only dense steam and the smell of burning filled the battlefield.
But the Uchiha counterattack did not stop.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
The Crimson Guard had already retreated to a safe distance from the inferno.
Prepared Uchiha shinobi rapidly formed hand seals.
White cyclones appeared and blasted into the fog from multiple directions.
The winds did not disperse the steam.
Instead, they churned it violently—
Driving the scalding vapor directly toward the Mist army.
Just as the Mist shinobi struggled to regroup within the steam—
Another wave of Uchiha attacks struck.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
"Lightning Release: Lightning Sphere!"
In an instant, the white battlefield fog was torn open by dazzling blue light.
Spear-like bolts of lightning and crackling spheres blasted toward the indistinct Mist silhouettes hidden in the vapor.
Guided by Hyūga Byakugan, the lightning struck with terrifying precision.
"AAAGH!"
"Left side!"
"Defend!"
Lightning pierced effortlessly through the damp vapor.
Extreme heat ionized the water along its path, leaving momentary vacuum trails.
A Mist chunin raised a Water Formation Wall—
But a lightning spear pierced straight through both barrier and body.
His charred corpse collapsed twitching.
Elsewhere, several Mist shinobi attempted to defend back-to-back.
A lightning sphere exploded among them.
Electric serpents burst outward with violent crackles.
Their screams vanished beneath the thunder.
Only smoking bodies remained.
The damp air amplified the range and lethality of Lightning Release.
Stray arcs spread through the moisture, paralyzing even those not directly struck.
Movements slowed.
Bodies stiffened.
With vision gone, ears ringing, and skin burning from steam and lightning—
The Crimson Guard's lightning assault became the crushing weight upon the Mist forces pushing into the city's core.
Casualties climbed rapidly.
Within mere breaths—
Over a hundred Mist shinobi fell.
The rising losses ignited the savage ferocity buried deep within the Blood Mist army.
"Don't let them widen the distance!"
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Water Release: Water Iron Cannon!"
"Where are the sensory ninja? Find them!"
Mist jonin roared commands as survivors unleashed water techniques without regard for chakra exhaustion.
Water dragons tore through the steam.
Walls of water rose in the streets.
The battle devolved into brutal attrition and relentless bombardment.
Every alley.
Every building.
Could become a death trap at any moment.
Then—
Just as the battle reached its fiercest stalemate—
"Out of the way!"
A deep voice like distant thunder erupted from the rear of the Mist formation.
A massive figure surged through the mist and leapt high into the air.
It was Kisame Hoshigaki.
The subordinate personally deployed by Fuguki Suikazan.
Kisame's hands formed seals at terrifying speed.
Enormous chakra surged from his body like a raging ocean.
Even the air trembled.
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
He opened his mouth wide—
As if compressing an entire sea within his chest.
Then—
BOOOOM!!!
A catastrophic flood erupted.
Empowered by chakra rivaling that of a tailed beast, the torrent smashed through ruined streets and drowned burning debris.
Water devoured everything indiscriminately.
Both armies alike.
The water level rose visibly.
Within seconds—
Several hundred meters of battlefield transformed into a raging artificial lake.
The terrain had changed.
Uchiha ground traps disappeared beneath the water.
Crimson Guard snipers using windows and high vantage points were forced to retreat onto rooftops.
Familiar streets became dangerous and unfamiliar.
Death could lurk beneath any ripple.
The Mist shinobi adapted immediately.
Like fish returning to water.
Their movements became fluid.
Water techniques flowed more freely.
Spears and blades of water shot upward from beneath the surface.
At the same time—
The massive flood cooled the battlefield.
The temperature dropped sharply.
Steam from the earlier clash condensed instantly into dense gray fog.
Even the clouds above seemed to swirl beneath the sudden shift.
The burning smell faded.
Cold, damp mist replaced it.
Armor and kunai gathered beads of water.
Cold seeped into everything.
Fuguki Suikazan stepped forward behind Kisame.
Walking calmly across the rising waves.
Feeling the water-rich air around him, he grinned.
Samehada pointed directly at the Uchiha on the rooftops.
His voice carried across the battlefield through vibrating chakra.
"Now…"
"It's our turn."
"The flames of the Uchiha—"
"Will be extinguished in this water."
"Such arrogance."
A cold voice cut through the roar of waves.
From atop a half-collapsed tower—
A figure leapt down.
Landing directly upon the water.
Uchiha Fugaku.
Clad in crimson armor, the Uchiha fan crest burned beneath the dark sky.
His black hair fluttered in the damp wind.
His three-tomoe Sharingan rotated slowly.
Calm as a glacier beneath the sea—
Yet filled with boiling fury.
His right hand rested upon the hilt of his blade.
The sword had not yet left its sheath.
Yet his presence already felt like a drawn blade.
Step by step, he walked across the water toward Suikazan.
Within moments, he reached the center of the lake.
Behind him—
The burning city and the Crimson Guard.
Before him—
The Mist commander.
Fugaku stopped.
Balanced calmly upon the shifting water.
His thumb pushed the sword guard slightly forward.
A sliver of steel caught the firelight.
"Mist brute."
"Your head…"
"I, Uchiha Fugaku—"
"Will take it."
"Uchiha Fugaku?" Suikazan snorted.
"A nobody thinks he can challenge me?"
Yet instead of advancing—
Suikazan stepped back half a pace.
His massive hand slammed onto Kisame's shoulder and shoved him forward.
His cold gaze locked onto Fugaku.
"Kisame."
"Bring me those Sharingan."
"And his head."
The killing intent in the order weighed down like crushing ocean pressure.
"Understood."
Kisame's deep voice rumbled.
His shark-like eyes locked onto Fugaku.
Without moving his feet, he formed seals.
"Water Release: Water Shark Bullet!"
The lake exploded.
Several massive sharks formed from compressed water burst from the surface, tearing toward Fugaku and obscuring the battlefield with massive waves.
At the same moment—
Kisame vanished beneath the water like a real shark.
Fugaku's Sharingan spun rapidly, instantly reading the chakra flow and attack trajectory.
He did not retreat.
Instead—
He slammed his foot down onto the water.
BOOM!
Chakra burst beneath him.
The force stabilized his body and shattered two incoming sharks into sprays of water.
His left hand had already drawn several kunai with explosive tags.
Without even looking—
He hurled them toward the spot where Kisame vanished.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions erupted across the water and beneath its surface.
Flames and waves clashed violently.
Just as their duel began—
"Three jonin!"
"Surround him and kill that Uchiha!"
Suikazan ordered coldly, sinking slightly into the water's surface.
His eyes remained fixed on Fugaku.
"As for the rest—"
"Charge!"
"Leave no Uchiha alive!"
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