Chapter 51 — The Hot Springs of the Land of Whirlpools
"ROAR—!"
From the shore, the Third Mizukage faintly heard the Three-Tails' muffled roar beneath the water.
His expression changed instantly.
He could clearly sense it—
The Three-Tails' massive chakra presence was receding like a falling tide.
"Not good—the Three-Tails—"
Before he could finish, the bone clone that had been silently entangling him seemed to curl its lips beneath the mask in a victorious smirk.
It suddenly abandoned all defense.
No dodging.
No guarding.
Like a moth diving into flame, it hurled itself straight at the Third Mizukage.
"Get out of my way!" the Mizukage roared, anxiety flashing in his eyes.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen were equally startled by the suicidal charge, yet none slowed their assault.
"Exploding Blade Technique: Explosive Severing!"
Munashi Jinpachi's blade Shibuki, wrapped in countless explosive tags, detonated violently.
BOOM—!
The explosion blasted the bone clone backward. Its armor shattered under the force.
But the trajectory was wrong.
The blast sent it flying directly toward the Mizukage—who was attempting to break away toward the lake.
"Dead Bone Pulse: Dance of the Clematis — Modified."
Midair, the bone clone ignited its remaining existence.
Unlike Kaguya Naoto's indiscriminate forest of bones, this technique was refined—focused.
Countless razor-sharp bone spikes erupted from its body, forming a rapidly extending path of death—a living corridor of bone spears that surged toward the Mizukage with terrifying precision.
The speed was overwhelming.
The attack engulfed the entire space around him.
With no time to evade, at the final instant—
His body liquefied.
BOOM—!!
The bone corridor detonated upon impact, shattering into thousands of razor fragments that blasted outward indiscriminately like bone shrapnel.
When the shockwave subsided, the bone dust scattered to nothing.
The Third Mizukage reformed from liquid state.
He appeared unharmed.
But that single delay—
was fatal.
---
Beneath the lake.
Namikaze Yami had already fully subdued the Three-Tails.
With a quiet murmur, the beast's chakra vanished completely.
The lake surface collapsed inward, forming a massive vortex as water rushed to fill the sudden void.
Yami burst through the water's surface, breathing slightly heavier. Even for him, forcibly subduing a fully restored Three-Tails underwater required considerable effort.
From across the water, he looked calmly at the ashen-faced Third Mizukage.
"The gift of Kirigakure… I'll gladly accept it."
Behind him, the golden bone chains slowly retracted back into his body.
Unhurried. Unbothered.
As though this had all been trivial.
The Third Mizukage stared at him, as if trying to carve the figure into memory forever.
"Who… are you?"
Yami gave no answer.
He did not even spare him another glance.
His figure vanished instantly.
Only after confirming the enemy was truly gone did the Mizukage's tightly wound nerves loosen slightly.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He clutched his chest, complexion pale.
Whether from the catastrophic losses Kirigakure had suffered—
or from the backlash of forcibly using the Hōzuki clan's liquefaction technique—
even he could not tell.
---
After leaving the battlefield, Yami did not slow down for even a moment.
Ignoring chakra expenditure, he pushed his speed to the absolute limit. His figure flickered continuously between forest and marshland, so fast that only a blurred afterimage remained.
In less than half a day, he had completely distanced himself from Kirigakure's core territory. Without pause, he crossed the borders of the Land of Water and entered the lands that once belonged to the Land of Whirlpools.
When his feet touched that soil again—once prosperous, now reduced to broken walls and waist-high weeds—his steps unconsciously slowed.
Time was the most merciless force of all.
The once-glorious Uzushiogakure had long been erased by war and years. Only scattered foundations and rotting beams remained, like faint whispers of former splendor.
Walking among the ruins, Yami felt rare emotion stir in his chest.
Once upon a time, he had been nothing more than a newly deployed Konoha genin—treated as expendable cannon fodder, struggling at the edge of life and death, his future shrouded in darkness.
Had he not awakened the system in that desperate moment, he too might have ended up like these ruins—forgotten, buried, meaningless.
And yet now—
Carrying multiple bloodlines, capable of standing firmly among Kage-level powerhouses when going all out…
All of that transformation had occurred in such a short span of time.
---
As he traveled, he discovered a hot spring half-hidden by overgrown grass. Crumbling corridor pillars surrounded it; this must once have been a popular hot spring inn.
Yami removed his battle-worn clothes and submerged himself into the warm spring water.
Heat seeped into his bones, washing away fatigue and the lingering scent of blood.
After changing into clean garments, he restored his usual appearance. The water's surface reflected his face and frame, and only then did he notice—
His clothes felt tight.
Perhaps due to the physical changes brought by multiple bloodlines, his height had subtly increased again. At a glance, he now appeared no different from a fully grown adult man.
He calmed his thoughts and sank into the system interface to examine the greatest gain from this Kirigakure operation.
---
[Ding! High-density Chakra Aggregate (Three-Tails Isobu) — Soul escaped. Estimated value: 2000.]
As expected, the Three-Tails' soul had fled.
But the key rewards still appeared.
---
Multiversal Rare Pawn Shop System
Host: Namikaze Yami (Platinum Card)
Multiversal Credit (Upgraded): Overdraft limit / 2000
Redemption (Upgraded): Redeem pawned items, 0 handling fee / time
Targeted Origin Trace (New): When samples are insufficient, spend points for directed origin tracing
Exchangeable Items:
(Water Style Affinity — 600)
Six Paths Power – Isobu (1/9) — 1000
---
Originally intending only to redeem Six Paths Power, Yami paused when he saw the newly unlocked Water Style Affinity.
"…Exchange Water Affinity. Exchange Six Paths Power."
[Current Pawn Points: 7555]
Like the enhancement he had once obtained from the Five-Tails, a force far deeper than ordinary tailed-beast chakra—closer to the origin of power itself—flowed slowly into his body.
His very life essence seemed to rise another tier.
His perception and control of chakra entered an entirely new realm.
As for Water Affinity—
Though not as immediately explosive as a bloodline limit, he could clearly feel his control over Water Release strengthening. Its power increased, and most water techniques would now require far fewer hand seals.
Looking at the hot spring before him, he casually waved his hand.
A sphere of water rose naturally from the surface and gathered obediently into his palm.
Effortless.
---
After finishing, his gaze fell upon the five Uzumaki clan members (alive) listed under Redemption.
After brief consideration—since the redemption time limit had not yet passed—he activated it.
With a flash of light, five unconscious red-haired figures appeared on the open ground beside the hot spring.
Though still comatose and barely clinging to life, at least they were no longer trapped in that sunless laboratory.
Seeing them stirred something within him.
He himself had benefited from the remnants of the Uzumaki legacy.
Perhaps—
He could preserve a final spark for this fading clan.
He would take them with him.
Even if only to ensure that the embers of the Uzumaki did not vanish entirely from this world.