Kudo Shin's face went pale.
When Hozuki Fuguki charged toward him, he could practically smell the stench of death.
But just then—
His body suddenly lifted off the ground. Out of reflex, he turned his head, only to see that Uchiha Kai had doubled back, grabbed him, and was dragging him at full speed.
"Uchiha… Kai?"
His mind went blank.
After spending so much time together, he knew Kai's personality well.
In his eyes, Uchiha Kai was a pure egoist.
If lending a hand didn't endanger himself, he might pull a comrade along—but only if he already acknowledged that person.
But the moment his own life was on the line, Kai would never hesitate to abandon a teammate.
Talk of the Will of Fire? That was just lip service.
So—why?
Why would he save him, a mere commoner?
Before he could make sense of it, Kai had already caught up with Nara Kazama, scooping him up with his free hand. With both of them in tow, Kai bolted madly into the distance.
Kudo Shin: "…"
Nara Kazama: "…"
The two were completely dumbfounded.
Obviously, Kai's actions clashed with everything they thought they knew about him.
And it wasn't just them.
Even Hozuki Fuguki, who had been about to strike, froze in bewilderment. His mind filled with question marks.
Then came the anger.
Good grief!
As an elite Jounin, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, wielder of the great blade Samehada—
If he let three Konoha brats slip away like this, wouldn't the whole shinobi world laugh itself silly?
Unforgivable!
Consumed by rage, Fuguki gripped Samehada and charged.
"Brat, you've made me angry!" he roared as he gave chase. "Stop right there!"
Uchiha Kai twitched the corner of his mouth, as if hearing a joke.
Still running, he shouted back:
"Jounin? That's it?"
"With that brain of yours, you dare call yourself one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen? Are you trying to make me laugh to death so you can inherit my Konoha forehead protector?"
"You say stop, and I'll just stop? Do I look like an idiot?"
"What, did you suffer three years of brain thrombosis to spout nonsense like that?"
"Old man, maybe you should retire to the Mist Village nursing home already. This battlefield is for the young. What are you doing out here at your age?"
Damn it!
Fuguki nearly spat blood from sheer rage.
Damn brat! It was just a figure of speech—did he have to twist it so far?
Everybody said things like that!
The more he thought about it, the more it burned.
This Konoha brat's mouth was filthier than anything he'd encountered.
The worst part—he couldn't even think of a comeback, because Kai wasn't wrong.
He couldn't exactly argue, "When I say stop, you should stop."
The kid wasn't stupid!
Which only made him angrier.
His eyes burned with fury as he bellowed:
"Konoha brat—you're dead!"
"Even if I have to chase you till the sun sets, I'll cut you down!"
"Forget every other mission—today I swear, I'm killing you!"
Kai scoffed, not taking him seriously.
If not for the two deadweights he was carrying, he would've already turned around and carved Fuguki apart.
So he kept trash-talking, venting his frustration.
"Go on, you can do it!
But take care of your health, old man—don't throw out your back now!
Don't push yourself too hard!"
The words sounded like concern, full of I'm only thinking of you.
But everyone knew—it was mockery, salt rubbed into wounds.
No enemy could stomach that.
Least of all Fuguki, an elite Jounin and one of the Seven.
If word got out that a brat had run circles around him while mocking him, how could he ever show his face again?
So he pushed harder.
Chasing wildly, hurling jutsu, senbon, kunai, and shuriken in every direction.
Everything except Samehada itself, he flung at Kai.
But it was useless.
Kai's taijutsu was too strong—especially his endurance over long distances. Fuguki could only eat his dust.
No matter how much power he put in, he couldn't catch up.
Even his jutsu couldn't reach the boy.
It was maddening.
How the hell had Konoha spawned such a creature?
His combat strength was average—but his ability to run was absurd!
Nara Kazama: "…"
Kudo Shin: "…"
The two were long past words.
Sure, being carried like baggage was humiliating—but they weren't stupid.
They knew if Kai let them down, they'd be cut down in seconds.
So… better like this.
What they couldn't understand was why Kai had to goad Fuguki so much.
To them, it was insane.
But Kai, in his heart, was cursing them both.
If not for these two wastes, he'd have killed the man already.
Now, all he could do was run and vent with insults.
Time crawled by.
One chased, the other fled—for nearly half a day.
In truth, Fuguki wanted to give up.
Chasing someone he could never catch—what was the point?
He was exhausted.
Fat, elite Jounin or not, running for hours had drained him.
He was a ninja, not a track athlete!
But every time he considered stopping, Kai would loop back just to taunt him again.
No uncle could bear that.
No aunt, either.
So even while cursing inwardly, Fuguki forced himself to keep up, pride on the line.
And so, time slipped into the evening.
When they finally reached the coast again, they spotted something in the distance—
Over a dozen great ships, sails billowing, flying both the Konoha and Uchiha standards, cutting through the waves toward the Land of Whirlpools.
Their drawn-out chase had clearly drawn attention.
Moments later, more than ten elite Jounin darted across the sea's surface toward them.
At their head—Uchiha Shisui.
Fuguki: "…"
He had a thousand curses in his chest—yet no idea whether he should even say them.
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