As the heir apparent, Nawaki wasn't about to believe there was any place in Konoha that wasn't friendly to him!
Hearing him say this, Uchiha Haru and Uzumaki Kushina exchanged a glance filled with mutual pity.
Training in the duel arena wasn't something you could just walk out of early, people died doing that.
And death was definitely not a pleasant experience.
They were both victims of that truth.
After Nawaki's bold words, Seisui simply raised a hand and grasped at the empty air.
In an instant, the once lively group froze, their expressions going blank.
In another room, Uzumaki Mito sensed the sudden shift.
She walked into the hall and saw the stunned group, her eyes settling on Nawaki with a shake of her head.
"That foolish kid…"
Of course, she knew Seisui's abilities well.
As Konoha's current ultimate deterrent, very little escaped her notice, especially anyone close to Kushina.
"The duel arena, huh."
"Good, let that brat learn a lesson."
With that, Mito quietly left.
Meanwhile, inside the duel arena, Nawaki stared wide-eyed at the sudden transformation, utterly shocked.
"W-where is this place?"
Seisui smiled faintly, spreading his hands and announcing, "Welcome to my world!"
"He's here! He's here again!" Minato leaned close to Kushina and chuckled.
Whenever someone new entered, Seisui always did this little routine.
Kushina thought back to her own first time here and nodded in amused approval.
"Seisui's so full of himself."
"That's just how he is," Minato chimed in. "Not like me, I'm totally serious."
Kushina gave Minato a skeptical look.
Uchiha Haru quietly stepped back a little.
So embarrassing.
One was a sly show-off, the other seemed cheerful but kind of silly.
How did she end up stuck with these two?
Watching Seisui with his arms wide open, Haru hesitated but then edged closer.
Yeah, this isn't so bad.
"Whoa, this place is huge!" Nawaki exclaimed, overwhelmed by the endless arena.
He formed hand seals quickly. "Genjutsu: Release!"
Seisui folded his arms, smiling, signaling him to keep trying.
"Release!"
"Release!"
Nawaki tried several times, but nothing changed. He looked disappointed.
Kushina couldn't stand it and kindly explained, "This is Seisui's bloodline ability, a space for training jutsu and combat."
She thought for a moment and added, "Death here isn't real death."
"Wanna have a thrilling match with us?"
Kushina smiled invitingly.
"A match?" Nawaki blinked, still catching up to what she said, then nodded instinctively.
Seeing his nod, Kushina cheered, "Awesome!"
"We three against you two!" She grabbed Haru and Nawaki, pulling them to one side, and turned to Seisui and Minato.
"This time I'm going to wipe the slate clean!"
Haru opened her mouth, reluctant to split up from Seisui.
But after glancing at Kushina, she kept quiet.
Seisui and Minato exchanged a look, then Seisui asked Kushina, "You sure?"
"We're pretty strong, you know."
Kushina wasn't impressed. "Enough talk, let's start!"
Seisui glanced at Haru and sighed, then reluctantly began the duel.
"3!"
"2!"
Nawaki was just realizing what was happening when he suddenly felt his body being restrained.
There was a countdown timer hovering mid-air.
"Huh?"
"What's this?"
Muttering, Nawaki looked to Kushina, but the countdown ended just then.
"1!"
"Fight!"
At the countdown's end, Haru immediately took distance.
"Sharingan, Activate!"
Her Two-Tomoe eyes flickered open.
After being teammates so long, she knew well that standing together against Seisui would only mean a total wipeout.
Kushina did the same.
Both sprinted off to opposite sides.
Seisui and Minato exchanged glances and ignored Nawaki, each chasing one opponent.
Facing Seisui, Haru drew her blade.
"Let me see just how big the gap is between us!"
Seisui nodded, "I won't hold back!"
He didn't fear bruising Haru's confidence.
Every time she lost, she fought harder to catch up. She'd never quite reach him, but she always tried.
Seisui slowly drew his blade, preparing to charge.
But Haru stepped back, biting her sword's handle, and quickly formed seals.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Fire Technique!"
Flames spewed from her mouth as she spat out a stream of fireballs.
Seisui entered flow mode, water mist swirling around him, his figure darting across the arena.
"Iaijutsu: Wind Pressure!"
Timing it perfectly, Seisui slashed, sending a strong gust of wind.
The fireballs shrank under the wind's force.
"Iaijutsu: Wind Slash!"
Seisui made no move to hold back, sending a sharp strike directly at Haru.
Her Sharingan eyes spun rapidly, making the swift slash appear in slow motion.
Her body couldn't keep up with her eyes, making it hard to react.
But Haru wasn't dodging, she infused chakra into her sword.
The next instant, a flaming slash clashed against Seisui's attack.
Heat waves rippled through the arena.
"Huh?" Seisui was surprised and noticed Haru had switched blades.
Seeing his gaze, Haru raised her sword and explained, "My grandfather used chakra to mold this metal ninja tool for me."
Seisui sucked in a breath. The Uchiha clan really was loaded.
He imagined Uchiha Setsuna, the crafty elder, probably embezzling a fortune.
Meanwhile on the other side,
Minato looked at Kushina seriously.
"Kushina, I'm going all out this time!"
"Good!" Kushina said, hands forming seals.
"Coordinated Light Formation!"
Nawaki looked around anxiously.
"Is this how you guys duel?!"
=============
95+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon.com/Veltoria