101-105

Chapter 101: Sudden Mutation—Thunder God Armor

Shiro trembled all over.

The person being referred to as a "little girl" was naturally Shiro, who had transformed into Mizunotsuki Oren.

Shiro had been lingering here for a long time, preparing to plant explosive tags.

The school and hospital were easy enough to handle earlier because of the large number of people moving around, so a little girl wasn’t too conspicuous.

However, now Shiro was outside the house of a prominent family in the Hidden Cloud Village. Halfway through burying an explosive tag, he was noticed.

“Uncle, are you calling me?”

Shiro took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm.

The more tense the situation, the more important it is to stay composed.

Perhaps the other person was only suspicious, but if he acted too out of the ordinary, they might confirm their suspicions and raise the alarm.

The only way to avoid detection was to act as normal as possible.

The ninja slowly approached Shiro, but when he saw Shiro’s delicate face, a blush crept onto his cheeks.

“Little sister, what are you doing here?”

“I’m playing hide-and-seek with my friends, but I’ve been hiding here for a long time, and they still haven’t found me.”

Shiro tried to sound as pitiful as possible.

Sure enough, the ninja’s hostility immediately vanished, replaced with a doting expression as he approached Shiro.

“Hide-and-seek, huh? They haven’t come for you after so long; they must’ve forgotten about you... Tell me which kids were playing with you, and I’ll help you teach them a lesson!”

Shiro twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth.

The last thing he needed in this situation was someone trying to be helpful.

He couldn’t even come up with a reason to decline.

“No, it’s okay. I know they don’t really like me. Maybe they went somewhere else to play.”

As Shiro prepared to turn and leave, the ninja blocked his path.

“You look like you’re still in the Ninja Academy. I know a teacher there who can help deal with those mean kids.”

Shiro furrowed his brow.

This guy was being way too serious. If this went on, he’d expose himself sooner or later.

Rather than continue this conversation, it might be better to just make a run for it.

“What’s that explosive tag in your hand? Explain, or I’ll call the ANBU.”

Shiro’s heart skipped a beat.

He had been hiding the explosive tag in his hand, but if someone looked closely, they’d notice it.

Seeing the ninja’s hand hover over his weapon pouch, ready to fight at any moment, Shiro quickly put on a hurt expression.

“Uncle, look into my eyes. Do I look like a bad person?”

The ninja relaxed slightly, instinctively looking into Shiro’s eyes.

In that instant, Shiro’s once dark pupils turned blood red, with three spinning tomoe (Sharingan markings) appearing within them.

The ninja’s serious face immediately became dazed as he stared blankly at Shiro.

Shiro let out a sigh of relief.

Luckily, his Sharingan worked, or else he really would’ve been in trouble.

Since the Sharingan had already worked, Shiro decided to save himself some effort and gave the ninja all the explosive tags.

“I’ll set them to go off in three days. With that, this task will be complete!”

Now that Shiro understood how effective his Sharingan was, he sped up the process of planting the explosive tags.

At each location, he used genjutsu (illusion techniques) on two ninjas, making them ignite the tags simultaneously in three days.

By the time all the explosive tags were buried, night had fallen.

Just as Shiro was about to return to the inn, he noticed lightning flashing in the distance.

Shiro activated his Byakugan (another type of advanced ninja eye technique) and quickly rushed toward the source of the lightning.

With the Byakugan, Shiro skillfully avoided running into any ANBU. He found a good hiding spot near the battlefield and quietly activated his Sharingan again.

Below him, a ninja was enveloped in lightning, while several others were attacking him.

The Fourth Raikage, A!

Ding! Recognized jutsu: Lightning Release: Lightning Armor!

Shiro’s face lit up with excitement. Even though the Lightning Armor was classified as a B-rank jutsu, its effectiveness was comparable to that of A-rank or even S-rank techniques.

By using lightning to continuously stimulate the body’s muscles, it enhances physical vitality and greatly boosts defensive power.

With the ongoing lightning stimulation, reaction speed also gets a significant boost!

The Fourth Raikage A used this Lightning Armor as the core of his powerful taijutsu (hand-to-hand combat techniques)!

“You dared to try and assassinate me? You must not know my power!” the Raikage shouted.

Shiro’s brow furrowed.

Even though this assassination attempt had nothing to do with him, it would surely put the Hidden Cloud Village on high alert.

If that happened, the explosive tags he had planted would be discovered.

To prevent that, he would have to eliminate all the assassins here.

Though there would still be plenty of ANBU around afterward, their numbers would be significantly reduced.

But before doing that, Shiro needed to make some preparations.

Ding! Found compatible jutsu for synthesis: Lightning Release: Chidori Stream and Lightning Release: Lightning Armor. (Success rate: 80%, Failure rate: 18%, Mutation rate: 2%) You have 1 synthesis attempt remaining. Proceed with synthesis?

A grin spread across Shiro’s face.

The system had detected the combination he was thinking of!

When the system finds compatible jutsu, the success rate becomes incredibly high, and even the mutation rate doubles.

With just a 7% success rate, Shiro would still give it a shot, so with 82%, there was no hesitation.

Synthesize!

Ding! Synthesis in progress!

Ding! Synthesis successful!

Ding! Jutsu mutation detected!

Ding! You’ve obtained S-rank jutsu: Lightning Release: Thunder God Armor!

Shiro was stunned for a moment, then broke into a jubilant grin.

Success was expected, but he never imagined that the 2% chance of mutation would trigger.

He had just gained an S-rank jutsu: Thunder God Armor!

Filled with confidence, Shiro leaped into the fray without hesitation.

“Lightning Release: Thunder God Armor!”

In an instant, Shiro’s entire body was surrounded by countless arcs of electricity, which reached out and grasped the air, suspending him mid-air.

Shiro couldn’t help but laugh again.

While the Water Shark Bullet Jutsu allowed for aerial combat, it required being submerged in the water and a lot of lung capacity.

Otherwise, you’d drown before defeating the enemy.

But with Thunder God Armor, none of that was necessary. The lightning alone held him up in the air.

What’s more, Shiro realized that his affinity for lightning had increased dramatically.

This meant that in Thunder God Armor mode, he could use any Lightning Release jutsu without hand seals, simply with a wave of his hand!

He could infinitely spam jutsu like Lightning Spiral Needles, driving his enemies crazy.

Laughing, Shiro flew toward the battle using his Thunder God Armor.

The combatants below looked up, momentarily forgetting they were in a fight to the death.

Seeing the lightning-clad girl, they wore expressions of awe.

“Is this a goddess? Do gods really exist in this world?”

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 102: A Mountain Weighing Down*

Shiro found himself being stared at by a group of people, causing a hint of shyness to creep onto his face.

He started to sympathize with celebrities—being stared at by so many people every day, especially those obsessive fans, and yet they act as if nothing is out of the ordinary.

In the Hidden Mist Village, Shui Wuyue Cheng suddenly felt a cold shiver run down her spine, as if being stared at by dozens of people simultaneously, her skin covered in goosebumps.

"Cheng, are you okay?" Mei Terumi asked with concern.

"I suddenly feel like I'm being watched by over a dozen people. I've got goosebumps all over," Shui Wuyue Cheng replied, her body trembling briefly, but her eyes quickly regained their resolve.

"No matter what, I still have to visit several clans today to clear Shiro's name! The next time he comes, he will be a hero of the Hidden Mist Village!"

At that moment, Shiro smiled as he looked at the group of people.

Shiro would not let their stares deter him from taking the opportunity to eliminate them; this was the perfect time to strike.

Shiro then channeled lightning and slowly descended to the ground.

"The goddess is coming," someone muttered.

Suddenly, several people's heartbeats and breathing sped up, and they couldn't help but move toward Shiro.

Shiro was a little stunned; he hadn't used any charm techniques.

But since they were coming to him of their own accord, Shiro wasn't about to show mercy.

"Lightning Release: Thunder Prison!"

Small birds made of lightning chirped as they flew in all directions, and the arcs of electricity began to attract one another.

With Shiro as the power source, thick bolts of lightning, as wide as bowls, wreaked havoc on the ground.

To Shiro's surprise, with the enhancement of his Raijin Armor, he could even control the originally chaotic arcs of lightning.

"Not good, run!"

"We've angered the goddess, everyone run!"

Shiro's lips curled slightly; this was now a one-sided slaughter. The ninjas below were like moving targets, easily chased down by Shiro.

However, all the lightning arcs intentionally avoided the Fourth Raikage, A.

Even though Shiro was still angry with A over what happened with Hinata Hyuga, A was a crucial ally for the final battle.

Besides, with his Lightning Armor, A could easily evade the attacks. There was no real chance of killing him.

In just a few seconds, the ninjas were all struck down, turning into charred remains on the ground.

Seeing this, Shiro deactivated his Raijin Armor and descended to the ground.

A, still in shock from what had just happened, stared blankly at the scene in front of him.

Although A had the strength to defeat these ninjas, the method Shiro used was something he had never seen before.

A small trace of fear rose in his heart.

Shiro, now without the Raijin Armor, appeared as an ordinary girl.

However, unlike the darker-skinned ninjas of the Cloud Village, Shiro, disguised as Shui Wuyue Cheng, had skin as pale as an eggshell.

"Raikage-sama, are you alright?" someone asked.

"Who are you?" A finally snapped out of his shock and looked at Shiro in confusion.

Had Shiro not saved him earlier, A would've already arrested her just based on her pale skin.

Shiro had anticipated A's suspicion and had already prepared a response.

"My name is Shui Wuyue Cheng. I'm a tourist from the Hidden Mist Village, traveling the world. I didn’t expect to encounter something like this right after arriving in the Land of Lightning."

If he had lied, A, as the Fourth Raikage, would have easily uncovered inconsistencies. However, by admitting to being a traveler, Shiro lowered A’s guard.

Though there was no escaping the scrutiny of the Anbu, this would buy some time.

"Shui Wuyue... Cheng? Your timing really helped me out," A said.

The Shui Wuyue clan was a prominent family in the Hidden Mist Village, possessing the Ice Release bloodline limit.

A had never seen someone from the Shui Wuyue clan use Lightning Release before.

Just then, a female ninja hurried over. She looked a few years younger than Mei Terumi, but her skin was much darker. Even so, her beautiful face couldn’t be concealed.

"Raikage-sama, are you alright?" Mabui asked anxiously.

"I’m fine, thanks to this young lady from the Shui Wuyue clan who saved me," A responded.

"Shui Wuyue?" Mabui turned to look at Shiro, her eyes scanning him as if trying to see through him completely.

Shiro unconsciously took a step back.

But before he could react, Mabui quickly dashed over and wrapped her arms around Shiro's head, pulling him into a tight embrace.

"Such an adorable little sister! And your skin is so enviable," Mabui exclaimed.

Shiro felt as though he was being crushed by two mountains, and breathing became difficult.

Mabui's grip was incredibly strong. Even with Shiro’s advanced physical training, it was nearly impossible to escape her affectionate hug.

Just as Shiro was about to reach his limit, Mabui finally released him, allowing Shiro to take deep breaths.

"It’s getting late. Let’s have the little sister stay with me tonight," Mabui suggested.

Shiro could only hear a buzzing in his ears and had no idea what Mabui was saying.

He instinctively nodded.

Mabui's face lit up with joy, and she once again opened her arms, lifting Shiro in a princess carry.

"Wonderful!" Mabui cheered.

A, however, frowned as he watched Mabui leave.

He didn’t believe for a second that someone could travel the world at the age of twelve or thirteen, especially not someone with such immense power like Shiro. His suspicions only deepened.

Mabui, sensing A's thoughts, smiled knowingly and shook her head.

"Let’s go home," Mabui said, carrying Shiro.

After they left, A’s face grew serious. He snapped his fingers, and several ninjas appeared.

"Raikage-sama, what are your orders?" one of them asked.

"Investigate this girl. Why is she in the Cloud Village, and check if there is a Shui Wuyue Cheng in the Hidden Mist Village. Also, clean up this area," A ordered.

He looked at the scars left by the lightning on the ground and shuddered slightly.

"I hope she really is just a tourist. If she wanted to cause destruction, who knows how many people would die," A muttered.

Shiro was gasping for air.

For the first time since being crushed by Tsunade's strength, he had encountered such overwhelming force again.

He hadn’t expected the impact to be so powerful and unavoidable.

After taking several deep breaths, his mind started to clear, and his body began to function normally again.

Opening his eyes, Shiro found himself in a room, lying on a bed with several women’s clothes nearby.

"What on earth just happened?" Shiro exclaimed.

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 103: Probing*

Just as Shiro was at a loss, not knowing what to do, Mabuyi suddenly walked out wrapped in a towel.

Seeing Shiro's confused expression, she couldn’t help but laugh.

“What are you doing? That’s your change of clothes. Go take a shower.” Mabuyi said while wiping her hair with a towel, glancing at Shiro with a hint of complaint. “Orange, you're so cute and pretty, but how do you smell so sweaty?”

In a corner of the Hidden Mist Village, Shuiwuyue Cheng suddenly sneezed and looked around in confusion.

“Who's talking about me behind my back? Could it be Shiro-kun...”

For a moment, Shuiwuyue Cheng's face turned red.

In the Hidden Cloud Village, Shiro shot a glance at Mabuyi.

He had been working hard all day, burying 10,000 explosive tags. His clothes were soaked through several times, so it was only natural they had a bit of a smell.

With some dissatisfaction, Shiro grabbed his clothes and headed into the bathroom.

The bathroom was small, only about a dozen square meters, which was tiny compared to the presidential suite Shiro was staying in. In the middle of the bathroom was a large wooden tub, covered with a wooden board, though steam still escaped.

Just as Shiro was about to undress, he noticed something very important.

…

About twenty minutes later, Shiro came out, his face flushed.

Because of the bath, Mabuyi didn’t notice anything unusual about Shiro. She put down the scroll she was holding and patted the bed beside her.

“Little princess, all clean now? Come sit next to your big sister.”

Shiro froze in place.

Although Mabuyi’s skin was quite dark, without a doubt, she was a real beauty.

As a normal guy, it was hard for Shiro not to let his imagination run wild after hearing that.

Seeing Shiro’s reaction, Mabuyi covered her mouth and laughed.

“Relax, I just want to talk. I’ll let you go in a bit.”

Shiro breathed a sigh of relief but still didn’t dare sit beside her, choosing instead to sit at the far end of the bed.

Mabuyi didn’t say much about this, but her expression suddenly became serious.

“Shuiwuyue Cheng, the eldest daughter of the Shuiwuyue clan. Why have you come to the Hidden Cloud Village alone?”

Shiro trembled all over.

He didn’t actually belong to this ninja world, nor had he been here long enough to understand much of the ninja world’s naming customs.

When the Fourth Raikage asked for his name, he had instinctively blurted out the name Shuiwuyue Cheng.

He hadn't expected to be questioned about it now.

“Can’t a Hidden Mist ninja come to the Hidden Cloud Village for a little fun?”

“You can, but as the eldest daughter of the Shuiwuyue clan, coming here alone—aren’t you worried we might capture you as a hostage? A lot of people covet your Ice Release, you know!”

Shiro immediately stood up, taking a few steps back and preparing to use his Sharingan’s genjutsu at any moment.

“Don’t be so tense, little princess. Today, we’re letting you off the hook for saving the Raikage. Don’t worry!”

“So, what exactly do you want with me? It can't just be about taking a bath, right?”

“Of course not. I want to confirm whether you really are Shuiwuyue Cheng!”

Mabuyi’s eyes locked onto Shiro, who knew very well that even the slightest misstep in his expression would be noted by this sharp woman.

Despite his growing anxiety, Shiro forced a smile on his face.

“How exactly am I supposed to prove who I am?”

Mabuyi tossed a scroll at him. Shiro caught it and, upon reading its contents, furrowed his brow.

It wasn’t that the questions were particularly difficult.

The questions on the scroll were things the real Shuiwuyue Cheng would definitely know about 70% of.

Shiro had picked up a lot of information during his time in the Hidden Mist Village, so most of the questions were clear to him.

But it was the remaining 30% that posed a problem.

These questions, while phrased politely, were clearly probing the secrets of the Hidden Mist Village.

If Shiro answered them the way the real Shuiwuyue Cheng would, he’d have to give away a lot of information.

But since it was Shiro here, that wasn’t going to happen.

After all, he much preferred the Hidden Mist Village over the Hidden Cloud Village.

“Sorry, I won’t answer these questions,” Shiro said, tossing the scroll back to her.

Not knowing how many traps were hidden in the questions, he decided to dodge them all.

“Even though I’m out exploring, I still won’t reveal the Hidden Mist Village’s secrets.”

Mabuyi smiled slightly, putting the scroll aside, and then suddenly lunged at Shiro.

“Alright, if you don’t want to talk, that’s fine. Just keep your big sister company tonight.”

Shiro’s whole body shuddered.

This was practically forcing him to make a choice between being a beast or being worse than one!

He immediately struggled to get away.

At first, Shiro thought about using genjutsu to control Mabuyi, but someone as clever as her would surely be on guard.

And with her frequent contact with the Fourth Raikage, any anomaly would be noticed immediately.

It was better to keep playing along.

Shiro quickly broke free and fled the room.

Watching him leave, Mabuyi’s expression became serious. She picked up the scroll again and examined it closely.

“Shuiwuyue Cheng... everything checks out, but when did she learn Lightning Release?”

She sniffed her hand, a smile forming at the corner of her mouth.

The next morning, Shiro slowly opened his eyes.

The bed was extremely comfortable, but Shiro hadn’t slept well at all.

The reason was simple: he had maintained the transformation into Shuiwuyue Cheng all night.

Having something extra made him feel uncomfortable.

But he had no choice. He had to keep it up in case Mabuyi came in for a surprise inspection.

“You’re awake?”

Instantly, all of Shiro’s sleepiness vanished. He quickly grabbed the blanket and moved backward.

“When did you get here?”

“Since you fell asleep.”

A cold chill ran down Shiro’s spine. Ever since arriving in the ninja world, he’d been on high alert, so much so that even the slightest sound outside would wake him.

Yet last night, he hadn’t noticed a thing.

“Don’t be so nervous. I’m not a bad person. You looked so exhausted, so I added something to your bath to help you sleep.”

Shiro’s mouth twitched. If this wasn’t being a bad person, then what was?

No wonder he had slept like the dead all night.

The only silver lining was that his transformation hadn’t been undone.

“By the way, little Shuiwuyue, you were mumbling in your sleep last night about planes, 'otaku joy drinks,' a 'treacherous Kishimoto,' and something about Otsutsuki Kaguya. What’s that all about?”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 104: Luring the Snake Out of Its Hole

Shiro started feeling uneasy.

There’s no way Mabui could have made this up.

After all, aside from Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, none of it belonged to the world of shinobi.

Fortunately, Mabui seemed more curious than hostile.

"I came across these things during my travels," Shiro explained. "Cars are vehicles that race across the ground, and planes are machines that fly. As for that old trickster Kishimoto, he’s a bad guy who dug a pit for others to jump into, and once they do, they can’t get out for over a decade. Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, on the other hand, is a very powerful woman!"

Mabui’s eyes lit up, clearly fascinated by Shiro's words.

"Really? That sounds interesting! But I can’t leave Kumogakure. And that old trickster Kishimoto sounds awful—why does he keep digging pits? What were those people thinking when they jumped in?"

Shiro chuckled bitterly. He was one of those people who’d jumped into the pit for more than ten years.

Most of the time, all he could do was curse that old trickster Kishimoto.

But when he finally crawled out of the pit, he found it hard to adjust.

"The world is vast, and it's full of strange people and events. I believe you’ll be able to travel around like me someday!"

As Shiro spoke, his expression darkened.

In the final battle, Mabui was crushed by the Ten-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb, meeting her tragic end.

Without waiting for Mabui to stop him, Shiro bolted out of the room.

If he stayed in contact with Mabui any longer, he'd eventually expose himself.

And besides, the clothes Mabui had given him were uncomfortably tight.

He was eager to find a secluded spot to change.

But no matter where Shiro went, two ANBU members kept following him. There was no chance of removing his transformation jutsu, let alone changing his clothes.

Resigned, Shiro retreated to the inn and waited patiently.

The day passed quickly, and the time he had arranged to meet Killer Bee was drawing near. The ANBU still hadn’t backed off.

Meanwhile, Shiro’s shadow clone was enjoying itself elsewhere.

"It looks like I’ll have to use a shadow clone to meet Killer Bee."

Shiro, who had been lying on the bed, suddenly stood up and walked out of the presidential suite.

He arrived at the spot where he had previously met Killer Bee.

Killer Bee was already waiting there, surrounded by several shinobi.

"Yo, yo! How did you like my concert these past two days? Didn’t it cleanse your soul?"

"It did!"

"It had to have!"

The shinobi around him forced smiles as Killer Bee waved his hands, making rap gestures.

"I’m here," Shiro said calmly, standing in front of Killer Bee without any emotion on his face.

"Yo, yo! Kid, you missed my concert these past two days—that’s a huge loss!"

Shiro forced a smile.

Killer Bee’s raps were probably only appreciated by his own students. Shiro definitely couldn’t endure that kind of performance.

"Do you remember what we agreed on?"

Killer Bee’s expression turned serious, his gaze locking onto Shiro.

"I remember. So, are we starting now?"

Shiro didn’t think a mere shadow clone could take on Killer Bee. Besides, his mission was to lure Killer Bee out, not defeat him.

"Since we’re still in the village, why don’t we head outside to fight?"

"What for? I think this place is just fine." Killer Bee shrugged nonchalantly.

Shiro sneered and formed a Rasengan in his right hand, immediately smashing it into the ground.

Boom!

The massive explosion shook the earth, sending rocks flying in all directions.

"My ninjutsu is highly destructive. If I use it here, it’ll cause quite the panic."

"Fine, I’ll fight you outside."

Killer Bee pretended to follow Shiro, but the shinobi around him panicked.

"Killer Bee-sensei, the Raikage has been ambushed recently! You absolutely can’t leave the village on your own!"

"Yeah, Killer Bee-sensei, the Raikage said you must stay inside the village!"

Killer Bee smirked, then bolted out of the area in a flash.

As Shiro walked ahead, he suddenly realized Killer Bee had dashed past him, leaving him dumbfounded.

"Damn it! Go notify the Raikage! Killer Bee-sensei is trying to run away again!"

"We’re going to get chewed out by the Raikage again."

Shiro sighed. It seemed Killer Bee had been scheming to escape all along, and the sparring match was just a cover.

But Shiro didn’t care what Killer Bee’s intentions were, as long as he managed to lure him out.

He quickly gave chase.

After about ten minutes of running, Killer Bee finally shook off the shinobi tailing him, and even Shiro almost lost him.

Though Shiro was skilled in advanced taijutsu, he still fell short against the elite of Kumogakure, especially someone as formidable as Killer Bee.

"Kid, I don’t really want to fight, but since you helped me escape, I’ll meet your demands!"

Shiro almost spat out blood.

He had been chasing after Killer Bee the whole time, so where did the "helping him escape" come from?

Meanwhile, back at the inn, Shiro slowly opened his eyes.

He touched his ring, and a surge of chakra pulled him into its space.

Shiro entered the ring first, and shortly after, Itachi Uchiha, Obito Uchiha, and Kisame Hoshigaki appeared as well.

"Whoa! Who’s this little girl? How did she get in?" Obito exclaimed dramatically.

Shiro twitched. He was still in the transformed body of Haku.

"I’m Shiro!"

"Shiro-kun? I didn’t think you were into this kind of style. Looks like last time’s ‘incident’ was on purpose~" Obito teased.

Shiro snorted coldly.

He briefly considered taking advantage of Obito’s goofy Tobi persona to teach him a lesson.

"Shut up, Tobi," Itachi said calmly. "Shiro wouldn’t have called us here to discuss his preferences."

"Right, Killer Bee has been lured out. You all need to hurry to the lake outside Kumogakure before he escapes."

"I knew Shiro-kun could pull it off!" Obito cheered, moving to embrace Shiro.

Shiro frowned.

In this form, he really didn’t want Obito to hug him.

Without hesitation, Shiro kicked Obito, sending him flying.

"Less talking, more moving! My shadow clone won’t last long. Itachi, take my kunai with you, and I’ll teleport when the time comes!"

"Understood. I’ll wait for your signal."

"Itachi, be careful with that kunai—don’t store it in any awkward places, or things might get..."

Before Obito could finish, he noticed a shoe flying towards his face.

"Shiro-kun, I’m sorry!"

end

Chapter 105: Surrounded and Attacked

Killer Bee frowned as he looked at Shiro.

He had been the one to suggest a sparring match at the start, but now he was the one constantly delaying it.

If the Raikage, A, caught up with him, there would be no chance of slipping away anytime soon.

How would he ever fulfill his dream of performing his rap concert in all the Five Great Nations?

“Kid, are we fighting or not? If not, I’m outta here!”

Killer Bee finished speaking and made a move to leave.

Shiro forced a smile. This was just a shadow clone—one touch and it would vanish.

But if he didn’t start the fight, Killer Bee would really walk away, so he had no choice but to dive in headfirst.

“Alright, I’m ready now. Let’s begin!”

“Good!”

Killer Bee’s eyes lit up, and in an instant, he drew seven swords.

Each sword was skillfully placed between different parts of his body.

Shiro’s lips curled into a slight smile.

Even though Killer Bee’s seven swords greatly enhanced his defense, they also slowed down his movements.

In other words, all Shiro needed to do was keep his distance and wear him down.

With that thought, Shiro quickly formed hand signs.

A water dragon erupted from the ground, rushing toward Killer Bee.

“Water Style, huh? But it’s way too naïve to think this can hurt me!”

In a flash, Killer Bee began spinning rapidly, and the water dragon was instantly sliced apart by his blades the moment it touched him.

Killer Bee was about to proudly break into a rap when the solid ground beneath his feet turned into a muddy mess.

“Nice move, but you really think this can stop me? Wait, why are there so many birds?”

Killer Bee’s pupils shrank, and he quickly adjusted his stance mid-air.

Suddenly, all the crows in the sky transformed into flying shuriken, speeding toward him.

Killer Bee snorted coldly and started spinning again.

All the shuriken were deflected and turned into puffs of smoke.

“Hm? Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique? So this kid’s from the Hidden Leaf, huh?”

Killer Bee frowned.

The biggest difference between Leaf ninjas and those from the other four Great Nations was that while most other nations stuck to specific types of jutsu, Leaf ninjas were versatile in all types of techniques.

This was largely due to Konoha’s prime geographic location.

Situated at the center of the world, with fertile lands, everyone wanted to settle there.

As ninjas from other nations moved into Konoha, its collection of jutsu grew more diverse.

“If he’s a Leaf ninja, I can’t take it easy!”

With a cold grunt, Killer Bee launched himself toward Shiro.

“Kid, prepare to die!”

Killer Bee’s speed was blinding, and in an instant, he was right in front of Shiro, who was still forming hand signs, with no time to react.

Boom!

Shiro’s shadow clone exploded, knocking Killer Bee back a few steps.

Hidden in the Mist Village, Shiro couldn’t help but shake his head.

For a shadow clone, that had been a pretty good performance.

Even if his real body had been there, he could have only left Killer Bee with a few scratches before being taken down.

He would have fallen under Killer Bee’s swords, no doubt.

“The explosion should be happening soon. I’d better get out of here too!”

Shiro smiled faintly and suddenly transformed into a flash of golden lightning, disappearing from sight.

As he landed, an orange monster suddenly came crashing toward him.

Bang!

Both figures fell to the ground, and Shiro’s ears were met with a wailing sound.

“Ow! Who’s the idiot who ambushed Lord Afei?!”

Shiro’s face twitched as he stood up and started stomping on the prone figure of Uchiha Obito.

“Ouch! Shiro-kun, stop! Aren’t we supposed to be best teammates?”

Shiro felt a sense of relief wash over him.

While Obito was still acting as goofy Afei, it was the perfect chance to vent his frustrations. Soon, he’d lose this opportunity.

“Shiro, enough. We need to focus on the Eight-Tails,” Uchiha Itachi said coldly.

Shiro gave Obito a few more stomps before finally stopping.

“Right, my shadow clone’s gone, so we need to hurry!”

With that, Shiro canceled his Transformation Jutsu, reverting back to his male form. Without the extra weight, his movements became much more agile.

The four of them raced ahead and soon arrived at the spot where Killer Bee had been waiting.

At this moment, Killer Bee stood with his seven swords, warily watching his surroundings.

“Come out, kid! If you don’t show yourself soon, I’m leaving!”

Shiro grinned mischievously and nodded to the other three.

The four of them appeared simultaneously around Killer Bee, surrounding him.

“Red clouds, black cloaks—you must be the Akatsuki organization that’s been so active in the Great Nations.”

It wasn’t surprising that Killer Bee recognized the Akatsuki.

To the average ninja, the Akatsuki was a mystery, but the higher-ups of the Five Great Nations were quite familiar with them.

The Akatsuki had often taken on covert assassination missions that the nations didn’t want to handle themselves. In fact, the Five Great Nations had given the Akatsuki the most contracts!

Even the Land of Fire and Konoha had used them.

Konoha had even planted Orochimaru within the Akatsuki to steal information. If it weren’t for his desire to take Uchiha Itachi’s body, Orochimaru might still be part of the Akatsuki.

“So, what does the Akatsuki want with me? Did someone hire you to kill me?”

“Since you know, just prepare to die!” Kisame Hoshigaki roared, charging at Killer Bee with his Samehada sword.

Killer Bee smirked.

If the four of them had attacked him with long-range ninjutsu, he might have been worried.

But if it was a close-combat fight, there was nothing to fear.

“Come on, feel the power of my rap!”

Kisame swung Samehada quickly, but each strike was deflected by Killer Bee’s swords.

“Such speed… Looks like I’ll need to get serious!” Kisame growled, clearly annoyed.

He placed Samehada beside him, allowing it to merge with his body, transforming him into a shark-like figure.

Shiro was momentarily stunned.

This was Kisame’s strongest form—the Shark Mode!

Kisame had used this form to nearly kill several Konoha ninjas, and if it hadn’t been for Might Guy, Kisame would have survived!

But thinking this could defeat Killer Bee was a fool’s dream.

Samehada was nothing more than a parasite attached to the Three-Tails, while Killer Bee had the Eight-Tails inside him.

If he summoned the Eight-Tails, Kisame would be crushed!

Yet, the other three members of Akatsuki made no move to help.

Instead, they stood at three different points, blocking any chance of Killer Bee escaping.

“Kisame, watch out for his Tailed Beast transformation!”

“Don’t worry, Itachi-san. Just focus on preparing the seal!”

Killer Bee’s eyes grew serious. Even one Kisame was tough to deal with, and the other three hadn’t even started fighting yet.

Judging by the situation, the remaining three were likely even stronger!

But fortunately, the Fourth Raikage, A, would definitely come to find him. All he needed to do now was one thing.

Stall for time!

(Chapter End)