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Zabuza spat a mouthful of saliva onto the ground. It was thickly streaked with blood.
The Kisame standing before him was in an equally battered state, yet he was utterly unaffected by the pain of his injuries. Even with his ribs shattered and broken, his combat prowess had not diminished in the slightest. As a result, in this prolonged, grinding war of attrition, Zabuza had found himself gradually pushed onto the back foot.
'Just what do I have to do to finally put this bastard down?'
Zabuza could feel a deep, leaden ache throbbing through both his arms. He knew full well that the longer this dragged on, the more precarious his position would become. He had to end this swiftly and decisively.
Zabuza was just steeling his resolve to muster every last ounce of his strength and settle the score with Kisame once and for all. But in that very instant, the shinobi brought back through the Impure World Reanimation abruptly ceased their attacks. They wheeled around and withdrew at full speed, their retreat even faster and more sudden than the ambush they had initially sprung.
"What the hell is going on?" Zabuza watched Kisame's figure recede and vanish into the dense, swirling fog, his face a mask of utter bewilderment. Yet, even in his confusion, he did not dare let his guard drop for a single moment. Kisame, no matter what else he had become, was once a shinobi of the Hidden Mist. He was equally, terrifyingly adept at launching surprise attacks from within the cover of thick mist.
Only once he was absolutely certain that Kisame had truly withdrawn did Zabuza finally plant the tip of his Executioner's Blade heavily into the ground and lean upon it, gasping for ragged breaths. Even in death, Kisame remained a monstrously formidable and tenacious opponent. But where had he disappeared to now?
Zabuza's mind was a whirlwind of unanswered questions. Just then, Mei Terumi strode over and immediately issued orders for the Mist shinobi who were still capable of moving to provide swift medical aid to the wounded. The sudden incursion of seven reanimated shinobi had plunged the already desperately struggling Hidden Mist Village into an even more catastrophic predicament.
At this moment, the number of injured shinobi now exceeded the number of those still unharmed. The Hidden Mist Village had no time whatsoever to rest and recover. After suffering these successive, devastating blows, the village stood teetering on the precipice of total annihilation at any given moment. The weight of that reality pressed down upon Mei Terumi's heart like a crushing boulder.
Being the Mizukage... was truly an impossible burden.
Mei Terumi had no luxury of time to wallow in despair. Beyond organizing the shinobi to treat the wounded, she also needed to confer with the village's remaining core combat strength. At the same time, she had to express her profound gratitude to Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Kurotsuchi, who had rushed to their aid.
Tsunade and Jiraiya were taking the situation relatively in stride. The Impure World Reanimation was, after all, a technique originally developed by the Second Hokage. The two of them were intimately familiar with its mechanics. The reason it had been classified as a forbidden jutsu was simply due to its profoundly unethical and inhumane nature. After the Second Hokage's passing, virtually no one had ever employed it. Seeing deceased shinobi return to the world of the living was, for them, only mildly unsettling. When facing these reanimated foes, they were still capable of maintaining absolute, level-headed clarity and fighting with their full, unrestrained strength.
Kurotsuchi's emotional state, in contrast, was exceedingly heavy and grim. Han and Roshi had both been jinchuriki of the Hidden Stone Village. Not only had they been robbed of their lives and stripped of their tailed beasts, but now, through the Impure World Reanimation, they were being denied even the peace of eternal rest. This was the gravest, most egregious form of disrespect that could be inflicted upon the dead. Yet, confronted with this horrific reality, she found herself utterly powerless. Beyond a deep, mournful sigh, there was nothing else she could do.
When she saw Mei Terumi approaching, all she could manage was a forced, strained smile. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words would come. In the end, the only thing she could utter was a broken, "I'm so sorry."
"This sin lies squarely with the Akatsuki. It has nothing to do with the Hidden Stone Village. If this is allowed to drag on any further, I fear the Hidden Mist Village will not be the only one to suffer the consequences," Mei Terumi said, simultaneously offering Kurotsuchi words of comfort while also giving voice to the gnawing, deep-seated anxiety within her own heart.
"They wouldn't simply withdraw without a specific reason. Even if they couldn't kill us outright, those reanimated shinobi could easily have continued tying us down and preventing us from targeting the Akatsuki's main force. Their sudden, coordinated retreat now... could it be that the Allied Shinobi Forces are about to make landfall?" Jiraiya's voice was deep and heavy with thought.
Tsunade cast a glance, complex and unreadable, towards the Mist shinobi who were still frantically tending to one another's wounds. She shook her head faintly but offered no verbal comment.
"We should set out immediately!" Kurotsuchi declared, clenching her fists so tightly her knuckles turned white. "We cannot allow them to continue committing these atrocities any longer."
"No. The Allied Forces are not lacking for the addition of just a handful of us. If the Akatsuki were to suddenly double back and strike again, and we had already departed from the Hidden Mist Village... at that point, the entire village could be utterly wiped out," Tsunade countered, her brow furrowing deeply.
She had herself once held the mantle of Hokage and understood Mei Terumi's excruciating predicament with painful, intimate clarity. To call it being caught between a rock and a hard place would not be the slightest exaggeration. Joining the encirclement and annihilation of the Akatsuki was undeniably critical. But the Hidden Mist Village had simply been bled white.
It no longer possessed the capacity to project any meaningful force onto a distant battlefield. All it could do now was try to recover and rebuild. If they were to lose even a few more of their remaining elite jonin, then even if the Hidden Mist Village miraculously survived the Akatsuki's onslaught, the smaller, surrounding shinobi villages would inevitably swoop in to exploit their catastrophic weakness.
"I will assign personnel to remain here and guard the village. Zabuza and I will accompany you and coordinate with the Allied Shinobi Forces," Mei Terumi stated.
"You two?" Tsunade was momentarily taken aback. Mei Terumi's own condition was far from optimal, and Zabuza's was even worse. If he were to go with them, his only likely fate was death.
"Yes," Mei Terumi affirmed with a resolute nod.
"Tell me, where do you suppose Midorima is at this very moment?" Tsunade asked.
"The Hidden Mist Village already owes him an insurmountable debt," Mei Terumi replied, shaking her head.
"I am aware of that. The Hidden Leaf Village owes him just as much. What I mean is, he is not the type of man to run and hide. Based on my understanding of his character, he should be racing here right now, even if every single one of us is praying that he doesn't show his face," Tsunade said, her voice tinged with perplexity. "The Akatsuki is deliberately targeting the Hidden Mist Village. And ever since he was branded a rogue ninja, his sole, unwavering objective has been the destruction of the Akatsuki."
"I know that. But precisely because of that, I... Just as you said, he isn't someone who would flee. When the Akatsuki makes their move, he will inevitably appear. So, even if we tried to stop him, he would still find his way to the battlefield. The very fact that he hasn't appeared yet must mean that he is currently in the midst of something even more critically important," Mei Terumi reasoned, as much to convince herself as the others.
She was not afraid of Midorima finding himself in deep trouble. What she truly feared was that some unforeseen accident had befallen him—that he desperately wanted to be there but was physically incapable of making it. And the most extreme, horrifying extrapolation of that fear was "death."
"You have a point," Tsunade conceded with a nod. "In that case, you will accompany us. Zabuza and the remaining shinobi will stay behind and be responsible for the Hidden Mist Village's protection."
Zabuza, who had been lurking nearby and eavesdropping on their entire conversation, could restrain himself no longer. He leaped out from his hiding spot, his voice thick with indignation. "I still can fight."
Tsunade walked directly up to Zabuza and delivered a light, precisely aimed tap to his collarbone with the edge of her palm. Zabuza's face instantly flushed a deep, agonized crimson.
"You're in this kind of shape, and you still think you can fight?" Tsunade challenged him pointedly.
Zabuza clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth, but no words came out in retort.
"You. Send men to locate Mangetsu and bring him back. He went off alone to stall the Second Mizukage. The pressure on him must be immense, and I fear his current situation is far from good," Jiraiya interjected.
Zabuza felt a rush of heat rise to his face at having his condition so starkly exposed. "This is the Hidden Mist Village! We have no choice but to fight to the bitter end. This injury to my collarbone is nothing serious!"
In an instant, both Tsunade and Jiraiya turned their pointed, expectant gazes directly upon Mei Terumi.
"You and Mangetsu will oversee the evacuation of the villagers. I will go with them to confront the Akatsuki," Mei Terumi commanded.
"But I...!"
"This is an order!" Mei Terumi's voice sharpened with absolute, commanding authority.
His jaw clenched so tightly it seemed his teeth might crack, Zabuza turned on his heel without uttering another word and stormed off.
"Let's move," Mei Terumi said, turning to face Jiraiya and Kurotsuchi.
Without a moment's hesitation, the two of them, along with Tsunade, fell in closely behind Mei Terumi and departed from the Hidden Mist Village.
Gritting his teeth in silent, impotent fury, Zabuza stood rooted to the spot for a long moment, unable to force out a single word. He was just about to turn and head back into the village when his mind suddenly flashed to Mangetsu Hozuki. He immediately dispatched search parties to scour the surrounding area. Eventually, at a location roughly five kilometers from the village, they discovered Mangetsu lying motionless in a pool of his own blood.