----
Naruto, Itachi, and Gai stood atop the now-settling water, carefully observing the surface. Naruto had even activated his mini-map.
They knew Kisame Hoshigaki wouldn't go down so easily, which meant he would likely launch a counterattack from underwater.
"Gai-sensei, be careful!" Naruto warned.
"Understood!" Gai didn't really need the reminder. He swiftly leapt backwards, narrowly dodging Samehada, which slashed upward from below.
That's right after careful consideration, Kisame had decided to target Gai first.
Among the three, this guy looked like the weakest so taking him out first made the most sense!
Missing his initial attack, Kisame immediately formed hand seals:
"Water Release: Four Sharks Rain!"
Four shark-sized water sharks leapt from the surface, jaws wide open, rushing toward Gai.
Itachi's Sharingan spun, 'Got it. Learned that one
"Leaf Strong Whirlwind!" Gai jumped slightly and unleashed a powerful spinning kick, dispersing the four sharks.
But Kisame smirked confidently.
Who would have thought this jutsu has a second phase?
Of course, Naruto did. "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
The four shattered sharks broke apart into dozens of palm-sized mini-sharks, swarming toward Gai only to crash into Naruto's quickly-formed water wall.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Crimson Claws!" Itachi didn't stay idle, either. Not only did he help Naruto steal Kisame's jutsu, but he also helped take down the original user.
This kind of behaviour was like… Well, best not to compare it to anything.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!" Kisame wasn't surprised he could do that too.
The incoming fireballs collided with Kisame's water barrier, fizzling out instantly.
However, the shuriken hidden within still passed through and continued their trajectory.
"Oh? So you hide the shuriken in the flames to increase penetration?" Kisame quickly grabbed Samehada, swiping away the incoming projectiles.
This was probably the correct way to handle Uchiha shuriken techniques.
After all, dodging would likely result in a sudden boomerang strike from an unseen angle. Better to deflect unless wires were attached, in which case, well… good luck.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
Since Naruto had no cooldowns or casting delays, he immediately followed up with another attack.
Kisame saw it clearly, but his tiny eyes held great confusion. 'Wait—how many hand seals was that again? And why is that water dragon so huge?!'
There was no time to think. Rather than matching the 44-seal Water Dragon Bullet against Naruto's absurd version, Kisame instead chose a more efficient response:
"Water Release: Shark Bullet Jutsu!" (Only seven seals!)
Itachi's Sharingan spun again.
Got it. Learned that one too.
Two massive water sharks, each about the size of a small house, shot forward and smashed into Naruto's oversized water dragon.
Though they managed to shatter the dragon's head, the sheer impact greatly weakened their force.
At the last moment, Kisame swung Samehada, absorbing the remaining chakra in the water dragon, causing the remaining water to collapse into the lake below.
Samehada let out a series of strange cries, seemingly communicating something.
Kisame, fluent in "sword language," murmured to himself, "Oh? You like this guy's chakra? Well, endure it for a while longer."
"But first, I need to deal with this one."
Kisame suddenly rushed forward, raising Samehada high and swinging it down toward Gai.
Gai sidestepped the attack and countered with a whip-like kick aimed at Kisame's right ribs.
Kisame retracted Samehada, positioning it defensively. The spikes on the sword's surface suddenly stood on end.
Gai stopped his kick just in time, flipping backwards to create some space. "That sword is really troublesome in close combat."
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Itachi, taking advantage of the opening, fired a massive fireball nearly ten meters in diameter from Kisame's right flank.
Kisame swung Samehada, slicing through the flames. However, Samehada let out an unhappy growl absorbing chakra was fine, but the fire was too hot!
Kisame, like a parent calming a grumpy child, reassured it: "Now's not the time to be picky—"
"…Oh crap."
The moment the fireball dispersed, Kisame locked eyes with Itachi.
Instantly, a swarm of crows seemed to crash into his face.
Luckily, Samehada's spiked tail suddenly stabbed into Kisame's palm, inflicting pain and breaking him out of the genjutsu.
Just as he snapped back to reality, he saw it—
A thin water blade sliced diagonally toward him.
It was Naruto's Water Severing Wave, aiming for a precise diagonal slash.
This jutsu was as sharp as a high-pressure water cutter. Had Kisame tried blocking with Samehada, the sword might not have been cut in half, but it would certainly be damaged, with its spines shaved off.
Recognizing the danger, Kisame made a split-second decision.
He performed the second movement of the nationwide elementary school morning exercise routine "Young Eagle Takes Flight."
Specifically, the side-body stretch without the arm movements.
At the same time, he retracted his chakra control over the water's surface, allowing himself to sink slightly underwater.
By a hair's breadth, he dodged the lethal attack. However, his left shoulder still lost a chunk of flesh.
Kisame let himself fall into the depths, his blood spreading through the water.
"…Can't afford to let my guard down for even a second."
"What sort of monsters are this?"
With Samehada's assistance, Kisame quickly healed his wound, flexing his shoulder to check its mobility.
Samehada, however, stuck out its tongue it had given away too much chakra and was now starving.
The more chakra Samehada absorbed, the larger it became. Conversely, when depleted, it shrank now it had shrunken to the size of a slightly thick executioner's blade.
At this moment, ten Naruto shadow clones dove into the water, swimming toward Kisame.
Among them, Clone #001, the big-brained genius, casually began charging a Rasengan.
Because of the water currents, Clone #001 struggled to maintain the shape of the Rasengan.
However…
Due to its rapid rotation, the Rasengan created an underwater vortex which promptly sucked in and crushed four other clones nearby.
…Truly a case of "friendly fire".
Kisame, watching this unfold, tilted his head in confusion, 'Is this Nine-Tails brat okay?'
Even Naruto himself, receiving his clones' memories, was stunned. Rasengan can do that?!
The surviving clones immediately spread out, increasing their distance from each other. Each began charging their own Rasengan.
Now, six miniature whirlpools rushed toward Kisame like underwater tornadoes.
Kisame, deciding not to take any chances, quickly countered: "Water Release: Five Feeding Sharks!"
Five water sharks surged from Kisame's fingertips, lunging at the clones.
However, the moment they entered the whirlpools, the sharks' heads were instantly shredded.
Yet, because Kisame continued channelling chakra, the sharks quickly regenerated eventually tearing through the clones.
Naruto glanced at Itachi. Could he copy jutsu through this much water?
Itachi, as if reading his thoughts, smirked. "I can clearly see the chakra, but I'll need to reverse-engineer the hand seals later."
…Hack.
Naruto suddenly felt that maybe…
Maybe what he really wanted wasn't Kisame's Jutsu—
…but a pair of Sharingan.
----
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