Rain, who had lost his legs, looked back at Torifu. The look in his eyes held an emotion that was hard to place. Anger? Hatred? It seemed to be neither, but there was a hint of envy. Then, as soon as he touched the seawater, Rain turned into a small fish and swam into the ocean.
Torifu's mind became clearer. He used a few healing jutsus on the distant Uzumaki Ashina. Although they weren't very effective on mental wounds, they were able to ease some of the pain. He then ran to the beach and looked at the vast, endless ocean. The sun was shining brightly today, and the surface of the sea was sparkling. Waves crashed onto the shore, making it seem especially calm, as if the battle that had just occurred was just a figment of their imagination.
But Torifu knew for a fact that it was not a genjutsu; it was real. Rain had submerged himself in the sea and would not run away. The real battle was just about to begin.
Uzumaki Ashina slowly recovered and used his Adamantine Sealing Chains to tie up the guard inside and out. He then walked over to Torifu. "This is my fault. I wanted to fight in an open area, but I didn't expect him to be able to use the power of the sea."
Torifu shook his head. "He has an advantage in the sea. He wouldn't fight me seriously on land. He would try his best to drag me out to sea. This isn't your fault." He then smiled. "Besides, the Land of Whirlpools is only so big. Other than the village, it's all forest. We can't very well fight in the village, can we?"
Seeing that Torifu could still joke, Uzumaki Ashina patted him on the shoulder. "It's been hard on you, helping an old man like me restore his country, and I've only been a burden to you."
Torifu waved his hand indifferently. "Don't say that, senior. I've had a great time with you and the Second Prince these past few days. And I'm not just doing this for you."
Ashina nodded. "I understand. You're doing this for that girl over there."
Torifu turned to look at Naori. At that moment, everyone who had been controlled by Rain was standing there blankly, like a mannequin, because Rain was gone.
"Yes. We grew up together. I'm the one who brought her here, so it's only right that I take her home." He then looked at his other companions. "And them. They're all my good friends. I guess this is a case of 'with great power comes great responsibility.' There's nothing to be done, since we're friends."
At that moment, Torifu turned to look at the sea, and Ashina saw a rising sun in his eyes. 'Hashirama, you've really taken on a great disciple. This child will be a good leader. He will definitely surpass you.'
Just then, layers of waves suddenly rose on the surface of the sea. The waves crashed onto the beach, almost submerging half of it. The sea had just been so calm, but now it had turned into this in an instant.
"Senior, this is the final battle. Please help me contain that guard."
Ashina nodded. "Okay. You need to be careful. The chakra he's giving off now is much stronger than before."
Torifu's brows furrowed. "I can feel it too. It seems he can't use his full power on land." Rain's chakra was actually on par with, or even surpassed, Torifu's, but he had been utterly defeated by Torifu on land. This was very unusual. It turned out that he couldn't use his full power on land.
"I'm going, senior." Torifu leaped high into the air, and a cloud crane appeared out of thin air beneath his feet, carrying him toward the sea.
The deeper he went into the sea, the more Torifu felt a sense of oppression. Unfamiliar whispers also kept appearing in his ears.
"You've come." Rain's voice came from the bottom of the sea.
Torifu stood on the cloud crane, looking down at the sea. "Of course. Let's finish this."
The surface of the sea did not stir. Rain's voice came again. "Do you know how much I envy you for being chosen by the master to be his vessel for reincarnation?"
"I don't know, and I don't want to be a vessel for the master you speak of."
Rain's voice was clearly a little angry. "Why! To be the master's vessel is an honorable thing! Everyone will envy you! Why won't you come back with me!"
Torifu smiled slightly. "Because I'm not tired of living yet. My dream is to live a peaceful life in this wonderful world, teach my students, and play with my kids. I have no interest in being a vessel for reincarnation."
"Then don't blame me!" With Rain's furious roar, a giant pillar of water shot up into the sky! Rain then emerged from it. A stream of water extended from the pillar, holding Rain up. His legs had been fully restored, but they were now covered in small fish scales. With a wave of his hand, Torifu felt the sky suddenly darken! He looked up and saw a massive whale rapidly falling toward him! This was the first time Torifu had ever seen such a colossal creature, either in this life or his previous one. If it were a living whale, Torifu wouldn't know how to deal with it. But this was just a whale made of water, though he still couldn't take it lightly.
Torifu pointed his right hand at the whale! A beam of blue-white light shot out, piercing the whale and freezing it instantly! He then sent out a few blades of sword chakra, which cut the whale into several pieces, causing them to fall into the sea and create a massive tidal wave.
But this was no time to relax.
"My friends, I'll need your help." Torifu then bit his finger and pressed it against the air. A complex formation appeared in the air. With a puff of white smoke, Aokumo and Ryūfū appeared in the air. Torifu stepped onto Aokumo's back, which felt as solid and reliable as always.
"Aokumo, Ryūfū, it's been a while since we've fought together."
Aokumo chuckled. "Let's finish this quickly. We still have to go home and see our kids."
Torifu felt a little speechless. There was no way he could get all fired up about this.
"Be careful!" Ryūfū spat out three cloud swords from his mouth, which killed the three swordfish that were rushing toward Torifu.
Rain's eyes were fixed on Torifu. "Our battle isn't over yet. You shouldn't be so relaxed." With that, he quickly ran toward Torifu! As he ran in the air, a stream of water appeared under his feet with every step, holding him up. Torifu had never seen anyone use Water Release like this before. It was too powerful. But he wasn't afraid. He directed Aokumo to fly toward Rain!
He slashed at Rain's arm with his sword, but he only heard the sound of metal clashing. Rain smiled. "Your sword won't work on me anymore." He then clenched his hands in the air and pulled down hard! The pillar of water that had been reaching for the clouds suddenly shattered! It was as if the sky was falling. Torifu's view of the sky was completely covered by the shattered, falling water pillar. There was no place to escape!
"The real battle has just begun."