"If the windmill were to stop just like this, wouldn't that be far too regrettable—especially when danger is right ahead?"
"Then let me see just how far this gust of wind of yours can blow."
Orochimaru's golden, slit-pupiled eyes remained fixed on Kiyohara without blinking for even a moment.
The wind continued to howl, carrying with it the increasingly close roars of approaching enemies.
"Then, many thanks to you, Orochimaru-sama," Kiyohara said.
The so-called "Power of the White Snake" was indeed extremely useful.
But Kiyohara would never inject it rashly.
Only a fool wouldn't consider the possibility that Orochimaru might have left some of his own chakra inside it—or some other inexplicable hidden trick.
Before his defection, Orochimaru had already planted a curse mark on Mitarashi Anko.
And later, when Orochimaru was defeated by Itachi, his revival still relied on the curse mark he had placed on Anko's neck years earlier.
Only after analyzing the components of this solution and confirming that there were no hidden dangers or backdoors would Kiyohara even consider using it.
If there really were any traps, then he would only research its composition—nothing more.
"It's still too early to speak of thanks. Go ahead and let the windmill spin freely," Orochimaru said with a faint smile.
He despised things that were boring, but when he encountered something interesting, it filled him with a sense of vivid excitement.
"According to my main body's perception, at least four elite Kiri-nin squads are currently infiltrating this flank. Their objective is to cut off the retreat route and expand their battle gains."
Those words made Kiyohara's heart tighten.
If the Mist shinobi succeeded in severing the retreat path, then Kurenai and the others who had already withdrawn would instead be in even greater danger.
Orochimaru seemed to see through his thoughts and continued calmly, "My main body needs to concentrate fully on dealing with the Six-Tails and Kiri's main forces. I can't spare more strength to watch over the flank. However, the retreat must remain orderly. Someone needs to slow down these infiltrating squads, buying time for the main force to regroup and rebuild the defensive line."
His gaze fell squarely on Kiyohara. "You volunteered to stay behind, which is perfectly timed. The Magnet Release techniques you've developed grant you outstanding mobility, making you ideal for executing delaying tactics using terrain and speed to harass, mislead, and conduct small-scale interceptions. There's no need to annihilate them; delaying them is enough."
Kiyohara immediately understood Orochimaru's meaning—this was also part of his own plan.
Operating alone, leveraging speed to maneuver—he could both "help his comrades" by delaying the pursuers, and "collect supplies" by scavenging the battlefield and accumulating merit. Two birds with one stone.
"I understand, Orochimaru-sama," Kiyohara said solemnly. "I'll do everything I can to slow their pursuit of the retreating forces."
"Heh… very good," Orochimaru's shadow clone said with a smile full of hidden meaning.
If Kiyohara were to die like this, it would simply be too boring.
After all, even if Kiyohara died, Orochimaru would still gain quite a bit from it.
A Magnet Release specimen—now that wasn't bad at all.
Puff.
In the next instant, Orochimaru's shadow clone dispersed into white smoke.
Kiyohara took a deep breath and wasted no more time.
He first quickly scanned the chaotic campsite around him.
Many tents and supply points hadn't been completely destroyed or evacuated amid the shockwaves of the Tailed Beast Bomb and the subsequent chaos—this was the perfect opportunity to "fill in the gaps."
Using the Body Flicker, his figure flashed between several half-collapsed structures.
In the medical tent, bandages and hemostatic agents had been left behind. At a supply point, there were several forgotten sealing scrolls—possibly containing soldier pills or explosive tags.
He even found two decent-quality kunai on a weapons rack that had been mostly corroded by acid.
All usable supplies were swiftly sealed into his own scrolls.
Thanks to the subtle metal perception provided by Magnet Release, he could even detect metal tools hidden in corners or buried under debris.
Just as he finished sealing a chakra short blade, a fluctuation appeared in his perception—not from the distant main battlefield, but rapidly approaching from the forest ahead, carrying the distinctive blood-tinged aura of Mist shinobi.
"They're here."
Kiyohara's eyes sharpened. He stowed the scroll and formed hand seals, chakra surging through his meridian system.
A metallic sheen spread across the surface of his skin beneath his clothes, as though a flowing black membrane had coated him.
Steel Release!
This bloodline limit produced effects very similar to Earth Release: Earth Spear.
However, unlike Earth Spear, Steel Release did not suffer from being countered by Lightning Release.
What truly limited Steel Release was the shinobi's own understanding of it—and their chakra reserves.
Then—
The magnetic field began to rotate.
The magnetic force generated by chakra resonated in a unique way, actively responding to the Earth's natural magnetic field.
This meant that Kiyohara could unleash astonishing physical power at any moment.
The domain of Magnet Release expanded beneath his feet.
In the past, he could only draw upon the magnetic field within a few meters of himself. Now, he could extend that range to twenty meters.
"Leaf Body Flicker Technique!"
At the instant he activated the flicker, repulsive force exploded beneath his feet, blasting a ring of compressed air from the ground.
Kiyohara's figure became a blurred afterimage, shooting straight toward the forest ahead.
Three Kirigaure shinobi squads had just burst out from the trees when they saw a black line slam toward them head-on.
"Watch out! Leaf shinobi!"
The warning was only half-shouted.
Kiyohara had already plunged into the first squad's formation.
His speed was so fast that the Mist shinobi only saw a fleeting shadow—followed by blooming sprays of blood.
Blade light flashed.
Iron sand adhered to his shinobi blade, extending it by dozens of centimeters, transforming it into a pitch-black weapon.
The chakra-metal blade hummed violently under Wind Release enhancement. Semi-transparent currents spiraled around it, producing a piercing shriek, and upon closer inspection, arcs of electricity danced along its surface.
Kiyohara tightened his grip, lowering his stance and storing power.
Both Lightning Release and Wind Release shared one defining trait—extreme sharpness.
He had already applied this principle to steel wire when using the Manipulated Shuriken Technique.
Now, he applied it directly to his blade.
The terrifying chakra conductivity of chakra metal was fully unleashed at this moment.
Wind and lightning intertwined, screaming atop the iron-sand blade!
Whoosh!
The ground trembled as Kiyohara became a blurred afterimage once more.
The first Mist chunin tried to form seals but his head was already severed.
The second genin hastily threw shuriken. Kiyohara twisted aside, the blade reversing its arc, cleaving through both the kunai and the man's arm.
The third was the squad leader, an experienced shinobi. The moment Kiyohara appeared, he had already used the Substitution Technique.
The wooden log was split in two, and his true body appeared five meters away.
Cold sweat poured down his temple.
The Substitution Technique merely allowed the user to burst chakra for an instant, increasing speed enough to swap places with a substitute.
But just now, he could clearly feel that if he had been even a fraction of a second slower—
He would have been killed by this suddenly appearing Leaf shinobi!
The surviving Mist jōnin dared not be careless. He wished his parents had given him two more hands just so he could form seals faster.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
A roaring water dragon formed behind him and surged toward Kiyohara.
Yet even at such close range, Kiyohara's speed allowed him to evade the dragon-shaped torrent.
Before the astonished eyes of the Mist shinobi, Kiyohara withdrew to a point fifty meters away—casually stabbing a stunned Mist genin in the rear as he passed.
Puchi.
Blood splattered.
"What kind of monster speed is that?!"
"Who is it—the Yellow Flash?!"
"Damn it, is this even human speed? Is he running or flying?!"
"Stop him!"
One of the Mist squad leaders shouted.
Kirigakure had fought Minato before—or rather, this was the third time they had encountered a troublesome Body Flicker specialist.
The first was the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato.
The second was the recently famed prodigy, "Shunshin Shisui."
"You're all far too… slow."
Kiyohara's black eyes reflected the faces of the Mist shinobi.
Anger, shock, disdain, resentment—every emotion imaginable.
This was the full spectrum of human expression.
"Unfortunately, this still isn't my limit," Kiyohara murmured.
By "not his limit," he meant that although his dynamic vision was starting to lag, his nervous system could still keep up with his current speed.
This was the benefit of massive spiritual energy, layered with the gifts of multiple futures.
As long as he had enough chakra, Kiyohara could streak across the battlefield like an arrow loosed from a bow, running free and unrestrained.
In other words, unless he ran into exceptionally tough opponents—or those capable of reacting to his speed—he already possessed the qualifications to crush weaker enemies.
Anyone slower than him, anyone who couldn't react in time, would become nothing more than stalks of chives beneath his blade.
Now, he was about to begin his low-budget version of battlefield domination.
He couldn't dance through the battlefield like Uchiha Madara, becoming the unrivaled king of war—
But bullying the chunin and genin on the flank?
That, he could absolutely do.
Grab them in handfuls, refine them instantly!
Turn them all into my piled-high battle merits!
In the next instant, repulsive force exploded beneath Kiyohara's feet once more. His body twisted, streaking like a refracted black line toward the second squad.
"Spread out!" the jōnin of the second squad roared.
Too late.
Kiyohara's speed formed absolute suppression on the battlefield.
He wasn't Minato, he didn't possess the Flying Thunder God Technique that ignored space itself.
But in straight-line acceleration and sudden directional changes, he was now brushing against the capture limit of an ordinary shinobi's dynamic vision.
Blade light flashed again.
This time, Kiyohara did not pursue instant kills.
The iron sand greatblade swept horizontally, forcing three opponents back at once, while his left hand pulled a stack of explosive tags from his sealing scroll, flinging them like birds onto surrounding tree trunks and rocks.
"Explode."
He spoke a single word.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Successive explosions hurled dirt and splintered wood into the air, thick smoke billowing everywhere.
The Mist shinobi were forced into defense, their formation thrown into chaos.
Kiyohara was already charging toward the third squad.
"Arrogant!"
The Hidden Mist jōnin Yamagami Hako roared in fury. Among the flank forces, he possessed one of the sharpest neural reflexes.
Because of that, he could actually react to Kiyohara's speed.
Yamagami Hako wielded a broad-bladed greatsword.
"I'll cut you down!"
The blade came crashing down with a tearing roar.
Kiyohara did not dodge.
His once fair hand turned pitch black.
With Steel Release hardening, his right hand shot up and grabbed the blade directly.
Clang!
(End of Chapter)