Facing Akio, Kisame ignored the pursuers behind him. The unbearable memories flooded back, the shameful banner from back then…
"Shark-face little brother, why did you butcher that fat guy? Did that greedy fatty owe you wages?" Akio asked with a grin.
Kisame actually used his brain for once. His gaze lingered on Akio's red hair, and realization dawned on him.
"So that Ashura was actually you transformed… truly unexpected."
"You recognized me? Now that you've discovered my secret… I guess I'll have to silence you." Akio's eyes flashed "murderously."
Kisame tightened his grip on Samehada. At a time like this, this newly-acquired blade was the only thing that offered him the slightest sense of security.
He glanced at the pursuers behind him. His dead-fish eyes spun around, clearly calculating something.
Akio smirked.
"When they catch up… you're not planning to yell 'Hold them off for me!' and then turn around and run, right?"
Kisame froze, then seriously began evaluating the plan.
The shark brain clearly wasn't very bright.
The pursuer with the highest speed, Terumī Mei gradually closed in. She slowed down and stopped right in front of Kisame.
"Stopped by someone?"
Mei's gaze passed over Kisame and landed on Akio and Kimimaro, finally stopping on Kimimaro.
"So, the Kaguya clan actually has such a handsome little boy left. Shame you're a bit young. Come here to big sister."
Faced with Kimimaro, Mei began flirting instantly.
"God?" Kimimaro looked at Akio.
Akio scratched his head.
"Little pretty boy really has charm. But something feels off… I'm such a handsome man standing right here, how did she just ignore me?"
Kisame rolled his dead-fish eyes.
After teasing Kimimaro, Mei shifted her gaze to Kisame.
"Hoshigaki Kisame, you don't need to run anymore. The Hidden Mist is weak right now. You voluntarily executed a traitor; your past offenses can be written off."
Before Kisame could answer, the rest of the pursuers arrived.
Hozuki Mangetsu immediately questioned her:
"Terumī Mei, why didn't you attack him?"
Mei lazily gave Mangetsu a glance.
"The village is short on manpower. Hoshigaki Kisame is still useful."
"A guy who could rebel at any moment…"
Boom! Kisame slammed the tip of Samehada into the ground, drawing everyone's attention.
"What an honor," he said. He wasn't running anymore, just watching.
"Ahem!" Akio coughed twice, reminding them that someone else was here before Mei and Mangetsu tore into each other.
"Kaguya remnants?" Mangetsu immediately locked onto Kimimaro.
Akio stared speechlessly.
Did he really have zero presence?
Two people in a row looked only at Kimimaro and ignored him.
Thankfully, this time Mei finally turned toward him.
"A red-haired uncle? Looking closely, you're pretty handsome too. Shame you're a bit older. Not my type… I'd still prefer that little Kaguya boy to come to big sister."
Akio: "…"
After a long silence, Akio sighed helplessly, rubbed Kimimaro's head, and vanished.
He had spotted the first "notebook target" among the group and went to send him "to the heavens."
A pure ascension, straight to join the sun side-by-side.
His figure appeared among the Mist shinobi. He raised one foot and kicked.
The shinobi screamed as he flew higher, and higher, and higher, until he vanished into the sky.
Akio had used his full strength. With "Akio Acceleration," the guy could easily fly a kilometer or two.
Ignoring all the stunned faces around him, Akio flickered away, appearing next to Kimimaro again.
"Ahem! First, let me introduce myself. I'm Uzumaki Akio, the 'old undead Uzumaki' you all keep talking about." He glanced at Mei.
"Hmm… I should be around 121 years old this year. A little old. Only a hundred years or so. My apologies."
Mei's expression stiffened slightly… a little embarrassed.
"AAAAAAHHHH!"
A scream rang out, right after Akio's introduction, the kicked shinobi finally began falling back down.
Mei ignored her embarrassment. She looked at Mangetsu.
"Water Release — Water Shockwave!"
They both used Water Release together, forming a small pond to catch the falling man.
Even so, from that height, he still lost half his life and collapsed unconscious.
After saving their comrade, Mei lifted the brown hair covering her right eye.
Her turquoise eyes locked onto Akio.
Mangetsu also grew tense, Akio's actions had been far from friendly.
"Uzumaki Akio-senpai, the Hidden Mist has already surrendered to the Land of Whirlpools…"
Akio waved his hand.
"Yes yes, I know you surrendered. But you still haven't paid your debts. So, I came to take a look and unexpectedly got to watch a nice show."
"We'll gather the compensation soon," Mangetsu said.
"Please be patient."
Akio paused, then suddenly realized:
"Ohhh… you were waiting for those small clans to rebel so you could confiscate their assets and use that to pay your debt. Smart move."
The surrounding shinobi stirred, clearly, they had not known this was a setup.
"They already intended to rebel. We merely acted with the tide," Hozuki Half-Moon's voice came from behind as Ao supported him over.
Akio chuckled.
"Do whatever you want. But with your injuries, if I send you to the sky now… you'll probably die."
Mangetsu instantly flickered to his father's side, fully alert.
Half-Moon gave a bitter smile.
He knew exactly where he angered Akio earlier, he had casually called him "old undead."
"Senior, could you allow me a few days to recover? You may stay in the Hidden Mist for a while. Having you attend our Fifth Mizukage succession ceremony would be our honor."
Akio blinked.
"Fifth Mizukage?"
"That's right. Terumī Mei is only twenty, and her strength already surpasses mine. In the Mist, the strongest becomes Mizukage."
Akio smiled and looked back at Kisame.
In his eyes, Mei… might not necessarily defeat Kisame now that he had Samehada.
Following Akio's line of sight, Half-Moon also looked at Kisame.
"Hoshigaki Kisame… are you willing to become a member of our new Seven Ninja Swordsmen?"
"Two Swordsmen. Two," Akio corrected with a grin.
"C-cough…" Half-Moon nearly coughed blood.
Their invasion of the Whirlpools was mostly to retrieve the four missing blades.
"You should hurry and rest. After the Fifth Mizukage succeeds, I'll send you to the heavens myself. I'm being very merciful."
"Senior, can we buy back the blades with money?" Mangetsu asked hopefully.
He was unwilling to accept Mei as the Fifth Mizukage. If he had a suitable sword, he believed he might not lose to her.
Akio shook his head, then looked at Kisame, ignoring the reactions of everyone else.
"I was actually thinking of creating my own Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Land of Whirlpools someday."
Kisame: "…"
He had a very bad feeling about this.
---
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