I came to a stop right after getting out of the crater, my priorities shifting from escorting Isaribi to her little talk with Amachi and Anko, to reinforcing my other teammates.
Isaribi stopped next to me shortly after I did, looking slightly confused by my sudden halt.
"I have to go help my team," I told her, pointing in the direction where I sensed Anko's chakra.
"If you want a chance to get answers from Amachi, go that way. You'll find Anko, the purple-haired woman I told you about." I explained.
Seeing her nod, I continued.
"Just don't surprise her too much; she will blast you with a fire jutsu or send her snakes at you if startled." I chuckled before jumping away again.
It wasn't just the fact that Gai and Kurenai were locked in their own fights that made me run toward them. The biggest reason was that I sensed Mangetsu, somehow topped up on chakra, heading in their general direction.
From his position, the most direct way to Amachi was through the area where the fight was taking place. But I wouldn't take that chance.
I was confident that Gai would be able to handle Mangetsu easily if he opened a few gates.
However, with that unknown curse seal on him, Mangetsu was a wildcard.
I arrived at the shallow reefs where the fight was taking place. It was quite some distance from the lab, but it would still be in visual range if one stood on top of the hill.
Unfortunately, the hill was no longer there, and the elite bodyguards undoubtedly noticed it.
If we were lucky, they would leave and cut their losses, but considering Orochimaru was involved, I wasn't keeping my hopes up. Whatever we did to them couldn't compare to what Orochimaru would be more than happy to put them through for their failure.
Gai was preoccupied with a pale, young, green-haired woman who was flying above the battlefield using wings made of chakra. Just from the chakra reading, she was clearly the strongest of the remaining bodyguards.
Kurenai was engaged with the last remaining ninja, the other two frozen in place, no doubt caught in a nasty genjutsu.
The last ninja who was still fighting against her was using small spider summons and wind ninjutsu to weave complicated patterns of chakra-infused webs, trying to trap his opponent.
This was the fight I decided to end first. Mangetsu was close, and I was unsure about my ability to kill the green-haired woman in one hit.
I quickly gathered myself, Senbonzakura in hand, as I stepped forward.
"Hirenkyaku!" I announced as I appeared next to the enemy, my sword already in motion.
His eyes widened for a brief moment until life left them as his torso slid off his lower body, cut cleanly in two.
We already had a number of prisoners, especially if I counted the two caught in Kurenai's genjutsu.
"Thanks for the save," Kurenai said, trying to catch her breath after fighting three opponents.
"You would have had him eventually," I commented. "But there's another enemy on the way here. Please go help Gai so he doesn't have to destroy his body to win." I quickly continued, receiving a nod from her.
Mangetsu's arrival was anything but subtle.
A massive wave was speeding toward us, threatening to wash us ashore and crush us against the sharp reefs and jagged rocks of the coast.
"That jutsu is huge... Will you be okay?" she asked as the wave gained momentum, closing in on us by the second.
"Of course I'll be fine. There's nothing in the world I cannot cut." I grinned, channeling haki into Senbonzakura.
"Just stand behind me. That wave won't hit us." I asserted with confidence, feeling the pressure of Conqueror's Haki descend around me; the reddish-black streaks invisible to everyone but me.
"It's not often I get to use this more than once in a single day..." I said, a wicked grin still splitting my face.
The wave was close, less than a hundred meters away, and that's when I swung my blade in a downward motion.
"Divine Departure!" I exclaimed as the pressure around me dissipated with the cut.
The wave split cleanly in two, passing harmlessly around us. Even the sea itself was divided for quite a distance, creating a small ravine where large rocks once cluttered the seafloor.
The seawater quickly rushed back to fill the divided part of the ocean, creating loud splashing sounds.
"I think I've gone a bit overboard..." I laughed. "What do you say, Mangetsu?" I called out loudly, turning my head toward his chakra signature.
My answer came in the form of dozens of water clones appearing directly beneath me.
They breached the surface, trying to catch me off guard, but I had the split-second warning from Observation.
In a fight of this level, a split second was more than enough.
Electricity surged around me, the purple lightning dancing through the water droplets as I unleashed a defensive strike.
"Shiden!" I cried out, extending my arms to the sides as the current exploded from my body, easily clearing my personal space of Mangetsu's clones.
"I see you have this under control. Stay safe," said a slightly dazed Kurenai before she jumped toward Gai.
Mangetsu did not surface to face me directly; instead, I was met with a barrage of small water bullets.
It seemed he decided to play it safe and stay within his element, now that it was possible. This fight would be far more troublesome than our last scuffle.
"Joking around cost me the fight before," he said from his fully liquefied form, his voice resonating from every direction around me.
"Just let me get Amachi. I don't care about the rest," he added, as his chakra signature stopped moving but remained fused with the ocean water.
"I can't do that, Mangetsu. He has a lot to explain to our Hokage," I replied. "Why even go so far to save him?" I asked, hoping he would give up his charge.
"It's a deal I made with the psychotic snake. I work for him, my brother stays safe," he replied quickly, finally surfacing.
His Hydrification jutsu looked different; the curse mark was clearly taking hold.
Instead of the normal, clear, almost see-through water form, he appeared as if his skin had lost all color, coated in a sickly sheen of dirty water. The blackish-blue dominated this form, and his previously light eyes had turned yellow with black sclera, resembling Orochimaru's curse seals more than Amachi's.
"I see..." I said quietly, getting back into a defensive stance. "There's no way for both of us to leave alive, then." I finished my thought, narrowing my eyes as I saw him grin for the first time during this fight.
"Ah, you understand. Good to know I'm not the only one with a younger sibling," he said, looking relieved that he didn't have explain himself.
Without wasting any time, he shot a massive lightning bolt my way, prompting me to quickly use Hirenkyaku to dodge.
I coated Senbonzakura in Shiden to provide a defense in case I couldn't evade in time.
Releasing it here would be nearly useless. The only real way to hurt him was either with Armament Haki or a powerful lightning jutsu. Both quite difficult to use while controlling the cherry blossoms.
I kept dodging more and more lightning strikes, but Mangetsu appeared as fresh as ever.
His chakra was recharging as the curse seal took hold; it seemed he was absorbing chakra from the water around him, filtering the natural chakra into his own through the curse mark.
I couldn't outlast him this time. The best outcome would have been an eternal stalemate if I stayed defensive.
I rushed towards him, dodging left and blocking a lightning bolt that predicted my move.
Shiden held strong against Mangetsu's attacks. He clearly saw me coming and prepared Hiramekarei to deflect my strike, but I hoped he would defend instead of dodging.
"Crystal Crescent!" I exclaimed as I closed in, unleashing a thin, sharp wave of crystal that forced him to jump over it and clash with me in mid-air.
However, he wasn't defending himself at all. Instead, he aimed for my neck, allowing my sword to pierce his shoulder even though he knew I could harm him in his liquefied state.
I barely reacted in time, crystallizing myself as much as possible and tilting my head to minimize the damage.
The scraping of his sword against my crystallized body was much louder than I expected—was it just adrenaline running high?
Even as I disengaged, leaving a hole in his shoulder, he pressed on, only relenting after I used Hirenkyaku to escape.
I returned my body to normal, noticing a streak of blood running across the side of my neck. It wasn't a deep wound, but it served as a reminder that I wasn't invincible.
My crystallization had saved my life here, but it wasn't fast or complete enough to prevent the damage.
Mangetsu, on the other hand, was openly bleeding but seemed unbothered by it. His face contorted in barely disguised anger, which was very different from the calm demeanor he showed before succumbing to the curse mark.
His bleeding quickly healed, but he, too, could be harmed. If he bled, he could be killed.
As soon as his shoulder healed, he charged at me, swinging Hiramekarei wildly. This was a far cry from the careful and precise technique he had demonstrated before.
I attempted to block his attack and counter with a riposte, but the force behind his strike sent me flying. I flipped in the air and landed back on my feet.
"It wasn't even a stationary block, and yet..." I muttered, shaking the shock out of my arm as I prepared for another onslaught.
Haki surged through me, accompanied by chakra reinforcement. It was now a battle of stamina; neither of us could decisively win in the ninjutsu department, so brute force was our only option.
We clashed again, but this time, I held my ground, deflecting his reckless attack and switching to a false-edge cut, catching his thigh with the swing.
His leg flew off, blood spewing into the ocean below us, but he didn't seem to care. He attacked again, his leg re-forming from the water as he stepped forward.
Using his knee, he struck my stomach with a dull thud. I barely managed to grab his arm before he could launch another powerful sword strike, forcing the fight into a brawl.
I gripped his wrist tightly and twisted it, ensuring he couldn't swing at me while I thrust Senbonzakura toward him with my other hand.
In a brutal but effective move, he let me impale his hand and gripped the guard of my sword, preventing me from stabbing him in any vital areas.
Breaking the short stalemate, I let go of Senbonzakura and grabbed the back of his thigh, forcing him down onto his ass and making him drop Hiramekarei in surprise.
Reacting instinctively, he shot a massive amount of water from his mouth at me. It was an effective move, blasting me away along with Hiramekarei.
I landed and rolled with the fall, coming up on my knees a considerable distance from Mangetsu, who pulled Senbonzakura out of his hand and swung it a few times, testing the blade.
I quickly got to my feet and assumed a longpoint guard, pointing Hiramekarei at him.
I hadn't used a longsword since arriving in this world, so there was no point in being flashy.
The sword seemed to hum in my arms, almost like Senbonzakura did. But it felt hesitant, as if reluctant to harm its master.
I knew that Samehada was somewhat sentient, but did this mean that all of the hidden mist swords had some degree of sentience too?
There was no time to think about it, though. Mangetsu was already charging at me, the curse mark nearly completely taking over. His technique was gone, replaced by overwhelming speed and power.
We clashed again, the clang of steel against steel echoing in the air as we exchanged blows, neither of us able to land a decisive hit.
I used the superior reach of Hiramekarei's longsword form to bind and deflect most of his attacks before he could even attempt them.
This tactic would never have worked against him in his right mind, but in his current state, he was mostly flailing wildly, not unlike the other experiments I had fought that day.
Unfortunately for me, his control over water increased along with his madness. As I cut into his side once more, a whip of water surged from the wound and struck me square in the chest, sending me flying.
I quickly got up and prepared a block, but Mangetsu was slowly losing his form, with water rushing all around him and creating a massive blob.
The water itself looked sick; instead of the clear or light blue of the shallow sea, it had the appearance of oil-spill in the deep ocean, with streaks of brown swirling around the clear seawater surrounding Mangetsu as a central point.
In mere seconds, the blob of water matched Kurama in size, possibly even surpassing him.
Mangetsu's chakra was all over the place, but the largest concentration was directly in the middle of the water congregation, glowing a sickly yellow instead of the light blue it had been before.
"What in all of the fuck did Orochimaru do to you?" I muttered, trying to sense Mangetsu's spirit instead of his chakra.
It was still there, weak and chained, but it still existed.
"Maybe... just maybe. If I hit him hard enough..." I whispered to myself, tightening my grip on Hiramekarei.
"I guess there's no time like the present. There's no way I'll be able to do something similar without Hiramekarei." I steeled myself, raising the longsword above my head and drawing on its stored chakra.
"Let's see if I can beat some sense back into you, Mangetsu... As it stands, this will be my strongest cut." I yelled aloud, gaining the attention of the massive blob of water.
The hesitation inside Hiramekarei lessened significantly as its chakra flowed freely under my command. I flew up using Hirenkyaku, making sure I was out of range for a moment.
"Armament to cut him, Conqueror's to shave the spirit, and chakra to unleash my fury," I chanted to myself, feeling the distinct crackle of Haki infusion coursing through Hiramekarei.
The air grew heavy; even the other fights seemed to have paused momentarily.
Clouds gathered above me as I channeled more and more Haki, creating an aura greater than anything I had ever produced.
"It's time." I breathed out. "One single cut." The whisper escaped my lips right before I moved.
My Hirenkyaku reached new levels of speed. With time to gather myself, I flashed in front of the massive blob and swung Hiramekarei, unleashing all the chakra stored within it.
"Getsuga Tensho!" I cried out with the downward swing, unleashing a pure silver wave from Hiramekarei with all the chakra gathered inside Mangetsu's sword.
The blob of water disintegrated under the power of the attack. The silver wave continued, not even slowed down by the initial hit, carving through the island almost effortlessly and cutting it in two.
A deep scar now ran through the middle of it, allowing seawater to flow into the newly created channel, deeper than the coastal reefs and wide enough to require a large bridge for travel.
My arms shook, and my legs gave out; the attack had drained a significant amount of my chakra.
"Fuck... I guess I overdid it again," I groaned, disappointed in my lack of control over my own power in the heat of the moment.
Gai landed next to me and helped me up, his fists covered in blood, like he had just punched through someone — not too far-fetched, actually.
"Ryuuzaki-kun, are you alright? That attack was... intense," he said, his voice completely serious.
I nodded, collecting myself from the whiplash of expending most of my chakra.
"I'm fine, but he's not done yet," I said, using my sensory ability to detect Mangetsu's chakra gradually replenishing.
Judging from the amount being replenished, he must have been on death's door after my attack.
"I'll need your help with him. The curse mark has completely taken over." I said grimly, to which Gai smiled encouragingly.
"Yosh! We will take him down together!" he announced loudly, a green aura coming to life around him.
I sealed Hiramekarei into one of the storage seals tattooed on my right arm. With the chakra inside it gone, it wouldn't be nearly as useful as before.
"I'm ready, Gai," I said, preparing myself to move faster than ever.
"Do you know how to hurt him?" Gai asked, lowering his stance and getting ready to charge at a moment's notice.
"Lightning works, and fire should also be effective if it's hot enough," I replied.
He frowned for a moment before his chakra erupted once again.
"I see. I shall cover myself in flames of youth!" he exclaimed before springing into action.
His departure cratered the earth, with his speed resulting from pure physical might, not a jutsu like mine.
I followed closely with full-speed Hirenkyaku, still struggling to keep up with Gai's pace.
A colossal wave of water rose up to try and stop us, but Gai's fist rocketed through the air, igniting it with his punch.
He did it again and again. In less than a fraction of a second, he delivered so many punches that the attack aimed at us was completely evaporated, clearing the way forward.
I drew my fist back, ready to unleash a fully powered punch as I darted to the side.
"Meteor Impact!" I cried out, striking the mass of water with full force, obliterating most of it and revealing part of Mangetsu's body.
"Gai!" I called out to my fellow Jonin, and he understood immediately.
His arms blurred once more as more streaks of white-hot flame struck the remaining water, leaving Mangetsu mostly exposed.
I dashed toward him, kicking Mangetsu upward, as far away from any water source as possible.
Gai followed with a powerful jump, shattering the earth once more as the cliff he stood upon collapsed into the sea below.
He caught Mangetsu in mid-air and restrained his movement in an instant, beginning to spin.
I recognized the move; I had seen it on screen too many times in my past life.
I flashed above him and pushed with all my might toward the island, giving him as much momentum as I could.
The massive Reverse Lotus landed perfectly, cracking almost half of the island on impact.
Gai quickly jumped away, knowing I was right behind him with Shiden covering my fist.
The dazed and seriously injured Mangetsu had no chance to dodge, and my left fist struck directly through his abdomen while my right arm placed a powerful chakra-suppressing seal on him.
His curse mark receded, allowing his eyes to regain some of the humanity they had lost, but in the process, his healing was also gone.
"Heh…" he chuckled, spitting out blood. "I guess even this wasn't enough…" His chuckle turned to full laughter, causing him to cough up even more blood.
"Bullshit... without help, you would have won," I told him with a hollow laugh.
"And yet I'm the one with a hole in his stomach," he pointed out. "My brother, he might be out of your reach, but—" He tried to continue, but I interrupted him.
"If I see him, I'll get him away from the snake," I said, not needing further explanation.
"And my sword," he muttered, slowly drifting into unconsciousness. "Don't let that... fuckwad Yagura get it..." he forced out, his voice strained and his body giving out.
"Sure... Such a great sword would be wasted on someone like him anyway," I nodded as his eyes closed.
I quickly crystallized his body and shattered it into a million pieces, ensuring that no scientist would desecrate his corpse.
"Sleep, warrior..." I muttered as I slowly stood up, nursing my own injuries from the fight.