"You—!"
The Third Mizukage did not even have time to spit out a complete sentence before he was forced to swallow all his frustration back down.
Don't you want to know the details of the deal between Tobi and me?!
What happened to negotiating conditions?!
But the blue-white Storm Release had already reached him.
His body instinctively jerked backward, narrowly evading the nine streaks of lightning attacking from both the front and sides.
That was close!
By the slimmest margin, the Third Mizukage barely escaped the deadly assault.
As expected of a Kage-level fighter.
If it had been an ordinary elite jonin facing that surprise attack just now, escaping alive would have been nearly impossible.
But had Shimizu really forgotten something?
"What?!"
The Third Mizukage had thought he had escaped death, only to discover that after missing their initial strike, the arcs of lightning suddenly curved through the air and attacked him again from behind!
That was the terrifying nature of Storm Release—a Kekkei Genkai capable of freely altering the trajectory of its attacks.
"Damn it—!"
The Third Mizukage twisted his body to its limit as he retreated at high speed, but even then, it was too late.
Several sharp tearing sounds rang out in succession as three beams of lightning instantly pierced through his body.
At the same moment, a streak of blue light slashed toward him from behind, completely cutting off his path of retreat.
With a single flash of the blade, the Third Mizukage was cut cleanly in half.
However, the strange lack of resistance from the strike immediately told Shimizu something was wrong.
That had not been the enemy's real body.
His gaze instantly shifted toward the lake beneath them.
Sure enough, in the next moment, the severed body dissolved into rippling water before merging completely into the lake.
A Water Clone.
"He escaped pretty quickly."
Even in a situation that close to death, the Third Mizukage had remained calm enough to find the correct response instantly. His ability to adapt in battle was terrifyingly sharp.
Then again, this was someone who had reached the Kage level.
For Shimizu Uzuki to think he could win through a simple surprise attack by exploiting an opening… that really had been underestimating his opponent.
Still, the attack had not been completely ineffective.
The faint traces of blood spreading across the lake proved that the Storm Release had done its job.
Unfortunately, even in a situation where escape should have been impossible, the Mizukage had still managed to avoid any fatal wounds.
Hiding underwater to heal? Let's see how long you can stay down there.
Hand seals formed instantly.
Lightning Release: Earth Flash!
A massive surge of lightning burst from Shimizu's hands and spread rapidly through the water.
Crackling currents instantly covered the entire lake, weaving together into a giant electric net waiting for its prey.
Although this Lightning Release technique was not particularly lethal, its attack range was enormous, its chakra consumption low, and the natural paralysis effect of lightning chakra made it especially effective against enemies hiding underwater.
Yet the figure Shimizu expected to force out of the lake never appeared.
Did he escape?!
No.
There was no way the Third Mizukage had enough time—or the ability—to instantly flee this area underwater.
As far as Shimizu knew, there was only one person in the entire world capable of moving through water at extreme speed.
Himself.
Because he could transform.
As for Kisame…
Well, Samehada was still in Fuguki Suikazan's possession at this point, and Kisame himself might not have even survived Konoha's assault on the Hidden Mist.
Shimizu naturally had no reason to think about some unknown brat whose age he did not even know.
Which meant the Third Mizukage was definitely still underwater, enduring the effects of the Lightning Release head-on.
But how long could he last?
After only a single breath, whirlpools suddenly began forming across the previously calm lake surface.
This was—
Soon, the first whirlpool erupted upward as a gigantic water dragon surged out from within it. Roaring furiously, it opened its massive jaws and lunged directly at Shimizu.
"So you've decided to risk everything…"
Instant Water.
After easily avoiding the first water dragon, the second and third arrived in front of Shimizu almost instantly.
Instant Water activated again.
Although he remained completely unharmed, the space available for dodging had clearly become much tighter than before.
As his eyes swept across the surrounding waters, Shimizu was startled to discover that the Third Mizukage had created dozens of Water Dragon Bullets at once, and every single massive dragon was charging directly toward him.
Across the battlefield, dozens of enormous water dragons roared thunderously in unison. Their gigantic bodies twisted through the air as they formed an inescapable net around Shimizu before crashing down upon him from all directions.
To be fair, the Third Mizukage's strategy was solid.
His resolve was unquestionable.
And his strength was undeniably worthy of a Kage.
But trying to land a ninjutsu attack on a fully alert Shimizu while fighting on water—
That still was not enough.
Instant Water activated repeatedly.
Shimizu's figure flashed across the battlefield at blinding speed, weaving effortlessly through the tiny gaps between the intersecting water dragons as though he were toying with them.
BOOM—!!!
Every single attack missed.
The enraged water dragons could only crash helplessly into the lake, venting their fury against the water itself as their unwilling roars echoed across the battlefield.
In the end, Shimizu emerged completely unscathed.
Not even a single droplet of water had touched his clothes or hair.
"How... is that possible?!" The Third Mizukage stared blankly at the gradually calming lake surface.
He could hardly believe it.
An attack carrying such overwhelming force and terrifying momentum had been completely evaded through sheer speed alone.
How could someone possess such monstrous speed?
He had always known that "Shunshin Shimizu" was fast, but intelligence reports were ultimately just cold words on paper. They could never compare to witnessing it firsthand in battle.
"I never expected someone your age to grow to this extent already." The Third Mizukage breathed heavily. Even for him, unleashing that many Water Dragon Bullets had been an enormous drain. His voice carried a trace of exhaustion and loneliness. "Konoha truly is powerful..."
Shimizu himself had consumed quite a bit of chakra as well.
Instant Water was indeed incredibly useful.
But no matter how effective it was, repeatedly activating it nearly a hundred times within the span of a few breaths still placed a massive burden on the body and chakra reserves.
To completely evade that overwhelming barrage of water dragons, he had pushed Instant Water almost to its absolute limit.
That was the only reason he could achieve such a terrifying result.
"Earlier, I thought you were just some overhyped Mizukage..." Shimizu said calmly. "Turns out you actually do have some skill."
The nonstop attacking, defending, and dodging made this battle incredibly intense. If he still possessed the same chakra reserves he had in the past, he probably would have started running dry already.
"Heh... so even a Mizukage like me was looked down on by a mere jonin." The Third Mizukage let out a faint sigh. "Looks like if I don't pay some kind of price today, I may really die here."
Shimizu frowned slightly.
"You think you can still escape?"
"If I don't try, how would I know?"
At this very moment, Konoha's main forces were likely already rushing toward this battlefield, while the Mizukage's remaining guards were probably being wiped out one after another.
Yet even in such a hopeless situation, the Third Mizukage still maintained a powerful fighting spirit.
Perhaps this was the confidence and will possessed by all Kage-level shinobi.
"Then let's try it."
Shimizu dispersed the chakra sword in his hand.
In battles at this level, unless he was ambushing a completely defenseless target, landing meaningful damage with a weapon against an experienced opponent with no obvious weaknesses was extremely difficult.
Besides—
He still had nearly half his chakra remaining.
He could afford the fight.
His hands rapidly formed seals.
Shadow Clone!
Water Clone!
In the blink of an eye, three Shimizus appeared and surrounded the Third Mizukage in a triangular formation.
The final opening in the encirclement was soon filled by another arriving figure.
"Uchiha... Fugaku!"
"Finally caught up." Fugaku let out a slow breath. "You two really know how to run. In such a short time, you actually managed to move beyond the range of my steam."
His gaze shifted toward the Third Mizukage's battered condition. Blood still flowed from the holes in his chest and abdomen where the Lightning Release had pierced him.
Then he glanced at the completely unharmed Shimizu.
"Shimizu, I never imagined you alone could push a Kage-level shinobi this far."
A strange light appeared in Fugaku's eyes.
"This time... fate has finally chosen to favor the Uchiha Clan."
The Third Mizukage may not have understood the deeper meaning behind those words, but Shimizu did.
If the Third Mizukage died here today, then the Uchiha Clan would become Konoha's greatest heroes.
This was completely different from Shimizu assassinating the Third Raikage during peacetime.
If he and Fugaku killed the Third Mizukage here on the battlefield, the achievement would elevate the Uchiha Clan's prestige to unprecedented heights.
This was wartime.
And they would be killing the leader of an enemy hidden village within the enemy's own territory.
Such a victory would massively boost Konoha's morale while crushing the spirit of the Hidden Mist.
If they succeeded, the war between Konoha and Kirigakure might end immediately.
Restoring the glory of the Uchiha Clan...
That had always been Fugaku's deepest obsession.
Could it be...
That Fugaku was also aiming for the position of Fourth Hokage? The thought suddenly surfaced in Shimizu's mind.
...
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