Rin walked to his side, hesitated for a moment, then softly asked, "Kiyohara-kun… this sword, are you really planning to keep using it? After all, it belongs to Kirigakure…"
"War spoils."
Kiyohara interrupted her directly.
"Whoever takes it owns it. If Kirigakure refuses to accept that, they can send someone to take it back."
He spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Rin opened her mouth slightly, but in the end, she said nothing more.
Because Kiyohara had always handled spoils this way before.
Kurenai sat by the edge of the ship, staring quietly at the waves rolling beside the hull.
Kakashi stood at the stern on guard duty, his Sharingan remaining active the entire time as he monitored the sea behind them.
Might Guy sat cross legged on the deck while eating soldier pills to recover. Continuously opening the Sixth Gate had placed an enormous burden on his body, and he needed to restore his strength as quickly as possible.
Hyuga Ginka stood beside the mast, constantly using her Byakugan to search for nearby reefs.
Her emotions were equally complicated.
As a member of the Hyuga main family, she had been taught since childhood that the Byakugan was Konoha's strongest dōjutsu. The Uchiha clan was merely a cursed bloodline whose power came from emotionally stimulated mutations.
But today, she had witnessed the terrifying nature of the Sharingan with her own eyes.
No.
More accurately, she had witnessed the terrifying nature of Kiyohara.
Copying ninjutsu one on one, and even unleashing greater power than the original user afterward.
Was that even reasonable?
"We're here."
Kiyohara suddenly spoke.
Ahead of them, the outline of the coastline finally appeared within sight.
Konoha's camp had been constructed against the mountainside. The tents were arranged in perfect order, and patrol shinobi could be seen moving atop the watchtowers.
The Golden Sand Ship gradually slowed before finally docking steadily beside the temporary harbor.
"Vice Captain Kiyohara!"
The shinobi standing guard immediately came forward to greet them, but the moment they saw everyone aboard, especially Samehada resting on Kiyohara's shoulder and the Executioner's Blade hanging from his hand, every single one of them froze in place.
"Th… this is…"
"War spoils."
Kiyohara jumped off the ship. The Golden Sand Ship instantly disintegrated behind him, turning into streams of golden sand that flowed back into his gourd.
"Where's my teacher?"
"Lady Tsunade is… in the main tent."
Kiyohara gave a small nod.
This operation had not only earned him two legendary shinobi swords, but also dozens of copied Water nature jutsus.
Most importantly, they had shown Kiri their muscles.
From this point onward, Kirigakure would definitely become far more cautious when launching attacks.
"Kiyohara."
Tsunade's voice suddenly came from behind him.
At some point, she had already walked over to his side.
"Sensei."
Kiyohara greeted calmly.
"You killed two members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?"
Tsunade's gaze landed on the two giant swords he carried.
After all, anyone walking around with weapons that huge would naturally attract attention.
"That's right."
Kiyohara nodded.
"Sensei, can you have someone remove the sealing formula on them? Or at least temporarily seal the weapons themselves."
Kiyohara already planned to reforge the Executioner's Blade.
His own shinobi sword happened to lack materials, so he might as well melt this thing down and forge a completely new blade.
As for the design, he preferred a straight sword, something similar to Sasuke's Kusanagi sword in shape.
"You're not planning to hand them over?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
"Does sensei want her disciple to surrender them?"
Kiyohara blinked while looking at her.
Tsunade stared back at him.
She suddenly realized that this brat using such an expression on her actually felt rather uncomfortable.
There was no helping it.
After all, she was Kiyohara's teacher.
Even if her disciple were incompetent, Tsunade would still arrange good things and a good future for him.
Not to mention that this disciple was outrageously capable.
He was practically the perfect successor to inherit her legacy.
"Hmph. Fine, keep them. I'll speak to the old man myself."
Tsunade waved her hand dismissively.
Kiyohara was her disciple. Protecting the fruits of his labor was hardly difficult.
Moreover, the previous owners of these two shinobi swords were Juzo Biwa and Fuguki Suikazan.
Now that Kirigakure had lost two members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, they would certainly be furious.
But for Konoha, this was unquestionably something that could greatly raise morale.
"Sensei is mighty indeed."
Kiyohara smiled faintly.
This was the advantage of having powerful backing.
If he had merely been a talented commoner shinobi, accomplishing something like this would definitely have damaged his reputation in certain circles.
People would accuse him of greedily coveting famous swords, lacking the Will of Fire, and all sorts of nonsense.
But now that Tsunade herself was backing him, the story became that a heroic young genius deserved legendary blades.
"You…"
Hyuga Tetsumon also approached from the distance.
With his Byakugan, he had naturally noticed the two shinobi swords on Kiyohara immediately.
"Lord Tetsumon, Kiyohara managed to…"
Ginka quickly explained the entire situation to him.
The expression on Hyuga Tetsumon's face instantly shifted into shock. He almost sucked in a cold breath.
But the weather here was too cold, so he restrained himself.
Instead, his eyes widened slightly.
Why could the Hyuga clan never produce a genius like Kiyohara?
No… that wasn't entirely correct either.
Hyuga Tetsumon shook his head slightly.
It seemed that after witnessing Kiyohara's example, Hiashi had started wondering whether there might also be people with Hyuga blood living outside the clan.
So he went to investigate the Kohinata branch family.
And unexpectedly, he really did discover a genius there.
Kohinata Mukai.
Although Mukai only possessed one Byakugan, he could conceal it.
That perfectly compensated for the Hyuga clan's greatest weakness, their inability to work as spies.
After all, the whites of their eyes were naturally pale. Anyone who saw them immediately recognized them as Hyuga clan members. Almost nobody would mistake it for cataracts.
However, Mukai was already somewhat old and even had children. In that regard, he could not compare to the young and promising Kiyohara.
"Give me the swords first. I'll have people deal with them."
Tsunade extended her hand toward Kiyohara.
Seeing this, Kiyohara handed both shinobi swords over without hesitation.
"Everyone else, disperse."
Tsunade waved at the increasingly large crowd of Konoha shinobi gathering around them.
The others could only obey and leave.
Afterward, Tsunade told Kakashi and the others to go rest first, while she personally brought Kiyohara to the fuinjutsu squad.
She instructed the sealing team to seal the two shinobi swords temporarily before arranging for them to be sent back to Konoha, where Kushina would remove the summoning formulas placed upon them.
When it came to fuinjutsu techniques, who was the strongest?
Without question, it was the Uzumaki clan.
The authority of Uzumaki sealing arts was beyond dispute.
As he watched the shinobi swords being escorted away under heavy guard by specialized shinobi, Kiyohara had already begun thinking about how to deal with Samehada.
While still aboard the ship, he had conducted a simple observation of Samehada.
He discovered that it possessed no gender.
Nor could it reproduce asexually.
Therefore, the best solution was cloning.
Not completely cloning an identical copy, however.
Instead, he would locate a creature similar to Samehada, remove the nucleus from its egg cell, and replace it with Samehada's nucleus to achieve cloning.
This was the simplest cloning method available.
As for research data and technical knowledge, Kiyohara had already received some "sponsorship" from Orochimaru.
The experimental base he destroyed on the Summoning Beast Island in the Land of the Sea happened to contain research materials related to cloning.
Those materials had conveniently fallen into Kiyohara's hands, saving him an enormous amount of early stage investment.
"Sensei, I'm heading back to rest first."
Kiyohara waved toward Tsunade.
Today was also the day the "Last Will" would arrive, so he wanted to return early and wait for it.
"The news that you killed members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen will spread throughout the shinobi world very soon."
"And then?"
Kiyohara asked.
"And then…"
Tsunade turned her head slightly and looked at the side of his face.
"You'll be placed on Kirigakure's kill list. And you'll become someone every other village pays close attention to."
"Oh."
Kiyohara's reaction was incredibly calm.
Tsunade sighed.
"You're not worried at all?"
"Would worrying change anything?"
Kiyohara asked in return.
"Am I not already their target anyway?"
Tsunade was instantly left speechless.
Because this brat actually made perfect sense.
Kiyohara had probably already ranked fairly high on Kirigakure's kill list ever since he killed Kurosuki Raiga.
"However…"
A smile appeared on Kiyohara's face.
"If they dare to come, I wouldn't mind collecting a few more shinobi swords."
"There are seven in total. Gathering the full set sounds pretty interesting."
What Kiyohara wanted was not limited to the seven shinobi swords of the Land of Water.
He was also very interested in the "Treasured Tools of the Sage of Six Paths" of the Land of Lightning.
Those were among the rare rule based artifacts within the shinobi world.
As long as the conditions were fulfilled, their effects would activate automatically, making them terrifying beyond measure.
"You…"
Tsunade subconsciously wanted to say that Kiyohara was being too arrogant.
But after thinking about it carefully, three members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had already died at his hands, so his words really were not empty boasting.
After all, the second generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen still had not achieved the overwhelming fame of the original generation.
"Forget it. Don't go back yet."
Tsunade suddenly grabbed Kiyohara's hand.
"?"
Kiyohara looked at her in confusion.
Pulling and tugging at him in broad daylight did not exactly look appropriate.
Especially since he was still her disciple.
Would people think he was being taken advantage of through hidden rules?
"Come gamble with me."
Tsunade spoke righteously.
She had just noticed that Kiyohara was barely injured, so she immediately wanted to drag him into satisfying her gambling addiction.
"Fine."
Kiyohara could only nod helplessly.
Seeing him agree, Tsunade directly brought him into her tent.
Not long afterward, Tsunade's triumphant voice could be heard from inside.
Things like, "I've got seventeen cards here, how could you possibly beat me? Beat me instantly if you can!"
Unfortunately, that proud voice quickly transformed into one of disbelief.
Everyone knew that Tsunade's gambling skills were equally terrible regardless of whether she gambled against other people or against herself.
That was her true consistency.
Naturally, the result was obvious.
Tsunade was quickly crushed by Kiyohara.
While the master and disciple pair were busy gambling, the situation on Kirigakure's side was nowhere near as pleasant.
Inside the main command tent, over a dozen Mist shinobi sat on opposite sides. Flickering candlelight cast swaying shadows across every face.
"That is the current situation."
Mei calmly reported everything she knew.
"Kiyohara led a six man squad in a surprise attack on Supply Island Number Three. Lord Fuguki Suikazan and Lord Juzo Biwa … were killed in action. The Executioner's Blade and Samehada have both been taken."
A series of suppressed gasps sounded throughout the tent.
A Mist jōnin with a scar across his face abruptly stood up.
"Six people? They only had six people?"
"Yes. Six people."
Mei nodded.
"But the ones who killed the two lords were mainly Kiyohara himself."
She spoke quietly.
"Can the shinobi swords still be summoned back?"
One of the Mist shinobi turned to ask the young man seated within the tent.
Hozuki Mangetsu.
The greatest genius of the current generation of the Hozuki clan, a prodigy hailed as a child prodigy since youth, and also the vice commander of Kirigakure's eastern frontline.
"No."
Mangetsu shook his head.
Even before Mei returned, Hozuki Katsuki had already sent shinobi back to request a summoning attempt.
Unfortunately, it had failed.
For generations, the Hozuki clan had controlled the summoning contracts of the seven shinobi swords. If even he could not retrieve them, then it likely meant Kirigakure had permanently lost those two swords.
Clearly, Konoha had already performed some kind of treatment on them.
At this point, they were merely having Mei recount the details of the battle more thoroughly.
"What characteristics does Kiyohara possess?"
Mangetsu asked.
He was extremely curious about just how strong this young shinobi he had never met actually was.
"His chakra reserves are extremely deep. He can perfectly copy any ninjutsu he sees, and even… improve them."
Mei paused briefly, lowering her voice further.
"Lord Fuguki's Thousand Feeding Sharks jutsu was completely crushed head on by Kiyohara using the exact same Water jutsu. The scale was even greater, and the control was far more refined. As for Lord Juzo's Executioner's Blade, it never even touched the corner of his clothing."
"Copying ninjutsu…"
An older Mist shinobi stroked the stubble on his chin while frowning deeply.
"The Sharingan does possess that kind of ability. But as far as I know, the Uchiha clan mainly copies hand seals and chakra flow. To instantly learn a technique and surpass the original version on the spot requires not only ocular power, but also a profound understanding of the elemental nature itself."
"He has all chakra natures."
Mei added.
"So far, Kiyohara seems to have displayed techniques from every elemental nature."
Genjutsu counted as Yin Release, while medical ninjutsu could be considered an application of Yang Release.
"And while we still don't know which sacred land's inheritance he possesses, there are fluctuations of natural energy on his body. Lord Fuguki's Samehada fusion form was partially burned by his Fire Release… he literally boiled part of the sea."
"Boiled part of the sea…"
Someone muttered the words in disbelief.
To achieve that kind of effect, the temperature of the flames would have to reach an utterly terrifying level.
Ordinary Fire nature techniques were usually limited in naval combat because seawater absorbed heat far too quickly.
But if the flame temperature became high enough to generate explosive steam the moment it touched seawater, then it became an entirely different matter.
This incident would deliver a severe blow to the Kirigakure's morale.
"Lord Aoba, I recommend adjusting our strategy."
Mangetsu turned toward another shinobi.
The old man called Aoba slowly opened his eyes. His left eye was a normal dark brown, but his right eye was a cloudy gray white, a permanent injury left behind from an earlier battle.
"Speak."
"Continuing to directly exhaust ourselves against the Konoha and Suna alliance forces along the coastline is disadvantageous for us."
Mangetsu pointed toward the map spread across the table.
"With Kiyohara and the Hyuga clan present, our Hidden Mist Technique and Silent Killing Technique are both being heavily weakened."
His finger moved across the map, extending inland from the coastline.
"I propose that our main forces continue confronting the allied army here. However, our tactics should shift toward harassment and delay rather than pursuing large scale battles."
At the same time, he pointed toward a river junction.
"We should dispatch an elite unit through the inland waterways of the Land of Rivers, bypass the frontal battlefield, and strike directly into the interior of the Land of Wind."
Discussion immediately erupted throughout the tent.
"Inland warfare? But that's Suna's territory. Their puppet masters have the advantage in deserts and hilly terrain…"
"Then we simply won't fight them in the desert."
Mangetsu interrupted directly.
"The inland waterways of the Land of Rivers are highly developed. We can use Water jutsu for rapid mobility. Our targets are here, here…"
"And here."
He tapped three oasis towns located along the border of the Land of Wind.
"If we seize these locations and establish inland supply lines, we will no longer be completely dependent on maritime transport. We can sustain ourselves through warfare itself."
"And…"
"The Sand Village is already fighting enemies on two fronts. Their main forces are tied down by us along the western coastline, leaving their inland defenses weak. Once we establish a foothold within the Land of Wind, our situation will improve greatly."
Aoba remained silent for a long time before slowly nodding.
After the meeting ended, Mei followed the crowd out of the main tent.
The night had grown deep, and the salty smell of the sea wind rushed toward her face.
The sensation of that hand pressing against her backside surfaced once again within her memory.
As well as that frivolous sentence.
Live on in your ugliness.
"Kiyohara…"
She softly repeated the name, emerald green eyes igniting with flames.
I will absolutely wash away this humiliation one day!
Mei roared inwardly.
At the same time, she understood very clearly that the current gap between their strengths was simply too enormous.
Because of that, she decided to focus all her efforts on developing her bloodline limit.
Meanwhile, after returning to his tent from Tsunade's place, Kiyohara quietly waited for the arrival of the "Last Will."
Until finally, at a certain moment, a new voice appeared within his mind.
[Please retrieve your alternate future self's last will and urn. Make sure to properly take care of their remains.]
A new future had arrived!
Kiyohara slowly calmed the excitement surging within his heart before focusing his consciousness inward.
Inside his mind, a pitch black urn suddenly appeared. Metallic decorations protruded along the edges of the lid.
Upon the urn was an emblem shaped like a bolt of lightning.
The moment Kiyohara saw it, he found it somewhat familiar.
"Kumogakure's Cloud symbol…"
His consciousness stared at the new urn.
"So this time it's a future from Kumogakure's timeline?"
He extended his hand, fingertips touching the cold lid.
The instant the opening widened to about the breadth of a palm, a black hand suddenly shot out from inside and grabbed the edge of the lid.
The skin of that hand was dark, its muscles sharply defined, veins bulging visibly across the back.
Immediately afterward, a tall and sturdy figure slowly rose out from the urn.
Kiyohara slightly raised his brows.
Kumogakure was famous for producing dark skinned shinobi, but the complexion of the man before him was particularly deep.
Although it was not the traditional pure black complexion of Kumogakure, it instead resembled a mixed blood appearance.
Slightly lighter than Killer B.
As expected, this truly was another version of himself from Kumogakure's timeline.
The translucent spirit fully emerged.
He stood over one point nine meters tall. Muscles coiled around his body like sculptures carved from stone. His bare upper torso was covered in countless battle scars, the most striking being a massive claw mark stretching diagonally from his left shoulder all the way to his right abdomen.
He wore a Hidden Cloud style flak jacket. Short golden hair stood upright like bolts of lightning.
"Yo, past me."
The new future casually greeted Kiyohara.
Kiyohara gave a slight nod.
Perhaps it was because of the ultraviolet exposure in Kumo, but some people there naturally had darker skin.
Of course, this future's complexion was still considered fairly acceptable.
Even in Konoha, it would not seem out of place.
The most notable thing, however, was his body.
He was unbelievably muscular.
Kiyohara even suspected that if he inherited this future, he might also inherit some of its physical vitality.
"Your name is?"
Kiyohara asked curiously.
"Yotsuki Kiyohara."
The spirit spoke in a deep and powerful voice carrying the distinctive accent of the Hidden Cloud.
"I'm a member of the Yotsuki clan."
Yotsuki Kiyohara.
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow slightly.
No wonder his skin tone was darker than average.
The Yotsuki clan was one of the major clans of Kumogakure. Their physical energy far surpassed ordinary shinobi, and they possessed extraordinary compatibility with Lightning Release techniques.
Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that in the harsh environment of the Land of Lightning, those lacking physical talent had already died out long ago.
The only ones remaining were the elite selected by nature itself.
Kiyohara carefully observed this alternate self whose appearance resembled his own yet possessed an entirely different temperament.
Yotsuki Kiyohara's features were rougher, his brow ridge higher, his nose sharper, giving off the untamed aura of a wild beast.
"How did you die?"
Kiyohara asked directly.
Yotsuki Kiyohara grinned broadly, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.
"The Eight Tails tore me apart. That bastard went berserk while I happened to be too close. I tried to forcibly suppress it using Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and then…"
He pointed toward the enormous claw mark across his chest.
"That was the result."
"That's all?"
Kiyohara felt that Yotsuki Kiyohara's strength should have been quite formidable.
(End of Chapter)