My prediction was nearly perfect. The Kiri civil war ignited shortly after the first whispers of a resistance group began to circulate.
Predictably, the coastal towns of the Land of Water were hit hard, with both sides relentlessly battling over them. Many towns were destroyed, while many others were abandoned. Some were put under heavy guard by one of the factions.
It felt almost like watching a war movie unfold right in front of me.
Both sides also attempted to access the port cities in the Land of Fire, but the Anbu teams stationed there quickly expelled them.
I've heard rumors about the Fire Daimyo sending a strongly worded letter to his Land of Water counterpart, urging him to rein in his ninjas.
Whether that rumor is true or not, the attacks eventually ceased, giving way to smaller-scale robberies. Nevertheless, the Anbu maintained a rotation of teams guarding the ports, just in case.
The chaos motivated me to train even harder than before. With Hinata rapidly learning any jutsu I taught her, I had to focus on developing more techniques, primarily small-scale lightning jutsu.
Unfortunately, I was still unable to tap into the surrounding natural chakra, at least not enough to create anything impressive. I could sense it and use it to enhance a few small jutsu, but entering Sage Mode would have to wait for years, at least until I reached my mid-teens, according to Tsuki.
I drew inspiration for my new jutsu from the best source: Madara. Just as Kakashi used Madara's techniques to create Purple Lightning in the anime, I fashioned my own versions of his 'Storm Release: Light Fang.'
While I couldn't make it as fast or as powerful, I used it as a base for my creation, which resembled Madara's quite a bit. It would take the form of a thin beam of ionized air that I could either create inside my mouth or shoot toward my enemy from my fingertips.
In a sense, it was a superior version of Byakurai. The downside of this jutsu was its reliance on nature chakra enhancement, meaning it took time to charge up—whereas Byakurai could be fired almost instantly from my fingers.
However, I suspect it will become faster as my ability to tap into natural chakra improves. For now, though, it serves as a good introduction for Hinata to the concept of nature chakra as a whole.
After this, I will teach her 'Shiden', which will also become significantly more powerful with that enhancement.
I was lucky not to be stationed on the border sooner, but eventually, my time came. Tenzo would be my mission partner and commanding officer.
It was almost winter again, and in the months since I started developing new jutsus, my arsenal had improved drastically, at least when it came to lightning jutsu.
I felt ready, but I truly wasn't prepared to sit idly for a month doing nothing. There was absolutely no activity during the mission, and I couldn't exactly train while on duty and guarding a town.
With nothing to occupy my time, I decided to start enhancing Senbonzakura. Try as I might, while my Senbonzakura might look and act like the Zanpakuto it was modeled after, it sadly wasn't one.
I didn't gain any bonus power while activating it, and there was no Bankai to achieve. So, I began working on creating a bootleg version of Bankai for my bootleg Zanpakuto. Although making so many improvements would take a considerable amount of time, I was lucky to have around four years until shit is likely to hit the fan.
Or at least, I hoped I did. This timeline was different enough that I wouldn't be surprised if events happened faster than expected. Alternatively, some significant events might not happen at all. But thinking about the future was pointless when I couldn't even fight Kage-level opponents yet.
With a bit of luck, perhaps my growth would mirror Itachi's, allowing me to reach S-rank status by the time I'm thirteen.
It might be wishful thinking, but that was my goal; however, it felt both impossible and insane, even to me. That didn't mean I wouldn't give it my all, though.
At the very least, I could engage in some light sparring with Tenzo. His fighting style with Wood Release was quite similar to my own, and even though his Wood Style was incredibly inferior to Hashirama's, it provided an excellent opportunity to experience what it might be like to face the deceased God of Shinobi.
I dodged and weaved through too many branches to count, my observation haki working on overdrive to keep me away from the ever-grasping thorns and spikes that kept growing from the main branches Tenzo sent my way.
I was focusing on evasion and counterattacks, and I needed to create some breathing room. The small forest Tenzo conjured quite casually surprised me; I hadn't expected him to create something on this scale.
The many twisting logs and roots always seemed to find their way to me, no matter how well I hid. The only way to truly dodge them was to use Hirenkyaku to leave the ground, but that would defeat the purpose of this exercise, just like using Dustless Bewildering Cover.
Finally, I managed to jump back far enough from the thrashing trees to launch a counterattack, deep purple lightning surged around my arm before I precisely shot it Tenzo's way. It pierced through many wooden constructs he put in place, but ultimately stopped far from hitting him due to the wooden maze he had created.
"Looks like even Shiden can't get through this..." I sighed, though such a result was to be expected. "Now... let's see how my Crystals do." I warned Tenzo, who simply nodded and cocooned himself in even more wood.
I fired a small crystal bullet Tenzo's way; its relatively small size was perfect for flying through the thick defenses. He saw it coming through a small gap in his newly erected wall and blocked it with a thick branch, neither of us knowing what effect my Crystal Release would have.
When the bullet impacted the tree branch, the entire tree crystallized almost instantly, causing us both to pause.
I quickly fired more concentrated projectiles, transforming our training field from a forest into a fey-like landscape of crystal trees, trapping Tenzo in a prison of his own making.
"Uh... sorry about that, Captain. I thought the Wood Release would be a bit more resistant to crystallization," I said, quickly shattering the crystallized trees to free him and restore the training field to its previous form.
"That jutsu you used... It's not supposed to hit people at all, is it?" He asked, looking for confirmation.
"That's right, Captain. It packs a lot of my parasitic crystal. It's supposed to eat away defenses and turn them into more crystal for me to use, but I didn't expect it to work against Wood Release as well as it does against Earth Release," I confirmed, earning a nod from him as his suspicion was confirmed.
Could it be that my rudimentary nature chakra enhancement of the jutsu made it much more effective? Or was Crystal Release simply a natural counter to Wood Release?
Whichever it was, it seemed that if I ever had to face the zombie Hashirama, I would have the advantage in the ninjutsu department.
"I'm afraid you'll have to figure that out another time, Ryuuzaki. We can't exactly go all out while on mission... Even this is pushing it," Tenzo said, slightly disappointed that we wouldn't be able to explore this further.
I nodded in agreement; at least I had new information to digest.
Luckily, there were no major incidents while I was stationed there. The most thrilling experience was screening the refugees to ensure that no spies or ninjas were mixed in.
We found far fewer than anticipated, mostly rebel lookouts sent to discreetly monitor the ports. Fortunately for us, I could sense their chakra from miles away.
They were given a simple choice: turn away or fight. Thankfully, they all chose the first option.
Returning to the village was like stepping back into the good old routine. I created clones to learn Fuinjutsu and focused on the theory behind developing new jutsu.
I trained every day, either alone or alongside Hinata. I also tried to encourage Sakura to train a bit harder. My efforts were met with varying degrees of success, but I found out that she was at least reading the notes on chakra theory and jutsu creation that I had given her some time ago.
Forcing her to train might make her more reluctant to take things seriously later, so I decided to wait until she understood that being a ninja is dangerous.
It wasn't until shortly before my tenth birthday that something interesting happened while I was stationed in one of the prot cities. A small force of nine ninjas attempted to raid the town.
Thankfully, Tenzo was with me again, so I thought dealing with them wouldn't pose much of an issue. We confronted them near the coast, standing on the water in a standoff.
The attackers were clearly Yagura's loyalists; their headbands proudly displayed on their foreheads.
"Turn back, Mist-nin," Tenzo warned them, his voice harsh and unyielding. His arms were already forming hand seals in case they attacked. The only response from them was a water jutsu aimed directly at me. They must have thought I was an easy target.
Before the attack could hit, I vanished from the impact zone, and Tenzo retaliated with his own water jutsu.
The depth of the sea below made it impractical to use more powerful Wood and Crystal jutsu, which meant I would have to train with both lightning and water today.
The attackers drew their weapons, most of them wielding standard katanas. With Senbonzakura confined to my mindscape for enhancement, I would have to rely on my fists and kicks for close combat.
I quickly sent a surge of electricity toward the group, splitting them apart. Three opponents landed near me, while the rest faced Tenzo.
"Three on one, huh? That doesn't seem fair..." I taunted them, adopting a playful tone.
"Life ain't fair, brat," one of them shot back, starting a hand seal sequence.
"Oh, I meant unfair for you," I corrected him cheerfully, intentionally exaggerating my childish voice.
The brief moment of stunned silence was all I needed. My body acted on instinct; my legs carried me swiftly to the ninja halfway through his hand seal.
My fist, charged with both chakra and haki, collided with his ribcage, obliterating the upper half of his torso. The rest of him collapsed into the sea, leaving only blood coating my fist.
"Oh, I huess it's two against one..." I said, still maintaining my cheerful guise. "You really should pay attention when fighting, you know." I chided them, watching as their expressions shifted from smug and determined to shocked and confused. All according to plan.
I didn't give them a chance to strike back. Instead, I quickly performed three hand seals, making use of the time they spent hesitating to prepare my new lightning jutsu.
With two willing test subjects in front of me, I announced, "Lightning Style: Charged Beam!" An incredibly thin beam of lightning shot from my mouth, moving almost like a whip as I turned my head to use it like a cutting edge.
The two slightly panicking ninjas hastily erected a wall of water and tried to dodge. However, the beam cut through the water as if it weren't there, remaining competely unaffected.
One of my opponents failed to jump in time; the beam caught his arm as he attempted to parry with his sword. His katana was severed almost instantly, and the beam contiuned on, severing his arm frim his body, cauterizing the wound as it struck.
His cry of pain was soon interrupted by the sounds of battle from the other fight; it was clear our opponents stood no chance against Tenzo, even though he could not fully utilize his Wood Release.
"Fall back!" shouted the chakra-enhanced voice of the Kiri team leader. "We're facing Forest Hunter Tenzo!" The last unharmed ninja quickly grabbed his disarmed comrade and fled as the leader's voice echoed once more.
I didn't pursue them; instead, I rushed to Tenzo's position. The chakra I sensed from his fight felt unusual, as if someone had perfectly mixed their chakra with the surrounding water.
When I arrived at the scene, it was almost surreal. The water itself was rising and thrashing around as if it were alive, preventing Tenzo from pursuing the retreating ninjas.
I understood what was happening; one of our opponents must be from the Hozuki Clan. I tried to locate his body within the mass of water he commanded, but it was impossible. The chakra was evenly distributed throughout the large mass.
"But if his chakra is running through this giant wave evenly..." I muttered, preparing for a powerful punch.
I jumped high, using Hirenkyaku to position myself. With another Hirenkyaku, I propelled myself toward the massive wave, my fist pulled back.
"Meteor Impact!"
The hit landed with a deafening boom, sending water splashing around us, creating the illusion of rain for several seconds.
A human-shaped body formed from the water, lightly wounded but far from out of the fight.
"Go get them, captain. I'll handle this," I said, positioning myself between him and Tenzo, my earlier playful demeanor replaced by focus. He nodded, conceding that I was a better match against a Hozuki.
Before the opponent could react, I unleashed a flurry of small crystal needles toward him, giving Tenzo the time he needed to disengage and pursue the three remaining Mist ninjas.
The Hozuki cleanly dodged the crystals, his eyes narrowing.
"You're no ordinary kid..." he murmured, likely realizing who I was. He paused, narrowing his gaze challengingly.
"My name is Hozuki Kogetsu. Remember it well, Bloody Blossom, for I shall be your last opponent," he declared, shifting his posture from casual to ready, his knees slightly bent in preparation to move at any moment.
"We'll see about that, but I welcome the challenge," I replied, adjusting my own stance.
He rushed at me, moving quickly with his hands empty, a sign of taijutsu user, quite surprising for a Mist ninja.
I waited for him to close the distance and stepped aside from the punch he threw, capturing his arm and flipping him over my body. He quickly adapted to my, by ninja standards, unconventional tactic, flipping mid-air and landing shakily on the water's surface.
His landing left him open for an attack, and my left leg lashed out, striking him directly on the outside of his right thigh.
His leg exploded into a mass of water, rendering my attack ineffective and forcing me to jump back from his instant counterattack. His fingers formed the shape of a gun and he fired a small drop of highly pressurized water at me.
I dodged to the side, my eyes widening for a moment. This was the perfect water jutsu in my eyes: not flashy, not overwhelmingly massive, but useful, fast, deadly, and efficient.
I quickly made sure my sensory abilities were operating at maximum efficiency, focusing all my energy into decoding the water gun technique he had just used.
I moved further away, making his next shot easier to dodge, but he continued firing more water bullets my way, forcing me to keep dodging.
Meanwhile, his free hand went through a series of hand seals.
"Water Style: Water Fang Bullet!" he intoned as the water around me stirred slightly, the only physical warning I received.
A barrage of drill-like water bullets broke the surface, barreling toward me from many directions. I used Hirenkyaku to reposition myself, dodging the most dangerously placed bullets that came from directly under my feet.
I landed far to Kogetsu's left, my hands clasped together in a hand seal.
"Crystal Style: Thousand Staking Spears!" I muttered under my breath, the intonation helping me focus.
The water close to Kogetsu crystallized, unleashing numerous crystal spears upon him in a similar manner to how his jutsu had attacked me.
He dodged a good portion of them, but a few pierced right through him, his Hydrification jutsu allowing him to be hit without any injury. The spears that struck him still drained some of his chakra, and he must have noticed, judging by the intense stare he leveled at me.
"I see, so that is the true power of your Crystal Release... you bloodline wielders truly are demons," he snarled, his face contorted with barely restrained rage. "But my Hydrification jutsu won't be beaten today, certainly not by you!" he cried, his voice laced with a crazed edge.
"I'm afraid I'll have to disagree there, Kogetsu-san," I replied, my voice measured and even. "You see, I've already figured out your jutsu." I dodged another salvo of his water bullets, seamlessly weaving between them.
"And even though my way of doing it is different..." I trailed off, forming a finger-gun just like Kogetsu's. It took a few seconds, but a bullet slowly formed on my index finger and shot toward Kogetsu, who let it pass harmlessly through his body. His mouth hung slightly open, and his eyes were unfocused.
"You see, I needed to see if my captain captured some of your friends alive. We need information, after all," I said casually, my expression hidden behind my facemask, but my voice warm, almost as if I were explaining something to a child for the first time.
"But then you showed me a jutsu I find... well, perfect, honestly. And your Hijutsu piqued my curiosity, too." I quickly used Hirenkyaku again to dodge another barrage of water jutsu. "And now I know that Tenzo is coming back with two prisoners, so I can finish this," I concluded, earning an angry exclamation from Kogetsu.
His face twisted in what he believed to be righteous anger. "I'd like to see you try!" he yelled and sank into the water, transforming into the monstrous form of a living wave that he had when fighting Tenzo.
"A shame it has to be this way, really. I wanted to learn so much more from you..." I sighed and dropped into a runner's stance, haki already coating my fist along with chakra reinforcement.
I rushed toward the large water construct, dodging the tentacles that tried to catch me.
"Meteor Impact!" I cried as my punch connected, creating an instant effect. The sound of water splashing overwhelmed everything for a moment, but the sensation of my fist impacting a solid body brought me back to reality.
I looked up and caught Kogetsu's wide eyes, my fist buried all the way through his chest, coated with his blood.
"Farewell, Hozuki Kogetsu. I will remember you as a man who showed me the true potential of Water Release," I said quietly to the dying man, my voice softer than I had expected.
I pulled my fist out of his chest and carried his body to the land, where I sat on the dock, washing the blood from my hands as I waited for Tenzo to arrive.
I didn't have to wait long. Tenzo appeared quickly, his mask off, carrying two unconscious ninjas.
"You... killed him?" he asked, surprise written all over his features.
I nodded, still washing the blood away.
"He was a strong opponent, captain," I said simply, my arm finally free of Kogetsu's blood.
"Good job, Ryuuzaki. Hozuki are always tough to deal with... especially near water," he said, his eyes softening slightly, pride evident in his voice.
I nodded, knowing he was right. Without Haki, the only way to deal with them would have been with lightning release, but I had really wanted to test if Haki would work in this situation.
"We'll have to write a report now, won't we, captain?" I asked, my voice resigned and my expression sour. His nod confirmed my deepest fears. We simply couldn't escape bureaucracy.