As expected, a figure emerged from within the Falls of Truth.
Guy stared intently at the center of the waterfall. A silhouette appeared quietly, accompanied by voices that drifted into Guy's mind.
"To be honest, you really have no right to keep talking about 'youth' all day anymore."
"You're an old man now; stop overexerting yourself before you break your body for good."
"I know you feel the need to set an example for Lee, but nobody needs you to act tough just to save face."
Hearing these negative words, Might Guy's expression immediately soured.
"Come out! Stop hiding in there and spouting nonsense!"
"Fine then, I'll let you see what you really look like!"
Suddenly, Kisame leaped out from the Falls of Truth, startling Might Guy into an immediate combat stance. Kisame recognized him instantly.
"What is this rare beast doing here?!"
Guy shouted as he delivered a powerful kick.
"You, who have forgotten your youth! Let me give you a lesson!"
"Guy, that's not your reflection!" Aoba warned.
"Be careful!"
"Leaf Rock Destroyer!" With a roar, Guy delivered an elbow strike that smashed Kisame directly into the stone wall.
Rocks shattered and flew in every direction as Kisame spat out a mouthful of blood.
"He just charged out of the Falls of Truth the moment you opened your eyes!" Motoi shouted to Guy.
Guy looked at Kisame, his expression somewhat confused.
"What kind of fish was this guy again? A pufferfish?"
"No, he has spikes... maybe a porcupine fish?"
Kisame let out a cold laugh. "Your IQ is the same as ever, lower than a rare beast's."
"This man is a spy from the Akatsuki."
"If he escapes and leaks intel, it'll be a total fail," Killer B rapped, pointing at Kisame.
At that moment, Samehada, beneath Kisame, betrayed him again, still finding Killer B's chakra more delicious.
"That damn Samehada!"
Kisame gnashed his teeth in anger at the blade. Nearby, Aoba finally recognized him.
"This must be the shark-man from the Akatsuki who partners with Itachi!"
"He looks very weak right now. How did he get in?"
Seeing Samehada begin to drain the Eight-Tails' chakra, Kisame realized this was actually an opportunity. He dived into the water, and as Killer B's body grew weak, Kisame grabbed Samehada's hilt.
A surge of pure Tailed Beast chakra flowed into his body. At that moment, a kunai with an attached wire thrown by Aoba pierced Kisame's arm.
"A technique to paralyze the enemy by injecting chakra? That suits me just fine!" Kisame said, instantly draining Aoba's chakra to nothing.
"Water Release: Water Shark Bomb!"
A massive shark surged forward, carrying Kisame away from the scene.
"Pursue him! He must not escape the island's barrier! We have to take him down before then, or I won't be able to sense him!" Motoi shouted, pointing toward Kisame.
"I'll stop him!" Might Guy crossed his arms over his chest.
"Eight Inner Gates! Sixth Gate of View: Open!"
A terrifying gale erupted, startling many within the forest. Killer B manifested an arm of the Eight-Tails and hurled Guy into the distance.
Guy pursued him through the air. Lacking a means of flight, he summoned a Ninja Tortoise and used its shell as a stepping stone to launch himself further.
Having just landed, Kisame was about to use a shark to transmit the intel when he saw Guy closing in.
"What a persistent man!" Kisame sneered.
"I saw it! That scroll you gave the shark contains the intel! Don't even think about escaping!"
"Can you stop me? I have the geographical advantage here!"
"Water Style: A Thousand Feeding Sharks!"
Hundreds of sharks manifested in the sea.
"I can't tell how many there are. In that case!" Might Guy leaped into the air.
"Ha! Morning Peacock!"
"Then I'll just smash every single one of them!"
However, Guy soon realized the true meaning of the "geographical advantage." Because they were in the ocean, the sharks were endless. The Morning Peacock alone couldn't destroy them all.
"Then take this!" Guy landed in the water.
"You actually think you can stop sharks in the water? Fine, wait to be torn to shreds."
As hundreds of sharks closed in, the veins on Guy's face began to bulge.
"Seventh Gate: Gate of Wonder! Open!"
The moment it opened, a shroud of white vapor instantly pushed back the surrounding seawater. Kisame nodded, finally understanding Guy's fighting style.
"A true rare beast. It's rare to see a ninja who can push their body this far with Taijutsu alone."
"This is the third time I've seen it."
Kisame pressed his palms together and began to weave hand signs.
"The Taijutsu coming next is on a completely different level from before."
"A one-hit-kill fist, you don't see this every day."
Kisame smirked. Facing such a powerful opponent, he wanted to see the man's ultimate technique.
"That blue chakra is actually forcing the water back..."
"Water Release: Super Shark Bomb Jutsu!"
A colossal shark lunged toward Might Guy, its maw ready to devour everything in its path.
"Daytime Tiger!"
Guy threw a punch, and a white tiger erupted through the water like a king, surging directly toward the Super Shark Bomb. The surrounding seawater was instantly vaporized by the pressure.
Kisame sneered, for his Super Shark Bomb was no ordinary Ninjutsu, it was designed to absorb chakra to increase its own power. If the Daytime Tiger was made of chakra, it would only be swallowed, resulting in a fatal counterattack. It was the classic "stronger against the strong" technique.
But in the next instant, Kisame froze. His Super Shark Bomb had been shattered.
The Daytime Tiger ripped through the shark instantly.
"How?! It should have absorbed his Ninjutsu! Why?!"
"No... could it be it's not a chakra-based blast?!" Kisame roared.
"Raaa! My Youth!"
BOOM!
A terrifying shockwave of vapor erupted from the sea, instantly consuming Kisame. All the sharks and even the seawater were blasted backward as the massive air pressure covered the entirety of Turtle Island.
Naruto, Killer B, and the others on the island stood in stunned silence.
"That is Guy's Eight Inner Gates technique... Daytime Tiger," Yamato explained to the group as he watched.
The sheer force of the wind pressure left Naruto and the others in awe.
After the Daytime Tiger subsided, Kisame lay on the ground. Might Guy stood over him, holding the scroll, staring him down. As Kisame tried to move, Guy slammed a foot down onto his hand.
…
The moment Kanon emerged from the Flower Realm onto Turtle Island, a terrifying wind pressure swept toward her.
"This pressure... vapor? Is it the Seventh Gate?!" Kanon was shocked. A red ribcage manifested around her body, instantly redirecting the air pressure.
In Kanon's knowledge, the only people capable of opening the Eight Inner Gates were Might Guy and Rock Lee. But there was no way Lee could pull off a move of this scale. She could open the Seventh Gate herself and knew the Daytime Tiger, and this move was clearly it.
Seeing the technique, Kanon immediately realized Might Guy was on this island. Her expression grew grim, not because she feared Guy, but because she feared Kisame would die before she could reach him.
"Forget it, I have to hurry!" Kanon's Mangekyo Sharingan activated, and she was enveloped by the Flower Realm.
…
Kisame was restrained by Yamato's Wood Release. Naruto and the others looked on with surprise.
"As expected of Bushy-Brow Sensei, he actually defeated this guy!"
Aoba walked up to Kisame.
"If this goes well, we might uncover the Akatsuki's strategic plans."
"And the true identity of the enemy leader."
"I'm not as good as Inoichi-sama, but I'll do my best to extract the information."
Just as Aoba placed his hand on Kisame's head and his consciousness was about to enter, Kisame suddenly bit off his own tongue. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he began to struggle.
"He... he bit his tongue! To prevent me from getting the intel, he regained consciousness through sheer force of will."
Kisame laughed. This was the world of his dreams, he couldn't let the most important information fall into their hands.
"The Eye of the Moon plan... I want to see it too..." Kisame clenched his fists, and a surge of immense strength shattered the Wood Release.
"I want to see it... that world without lies... it's right before my eyes!"
Yamato was shocked. He had used Wood Release to suppress Kisame's chakra; how could he still possess such strength?
Might Guy prepared to throw another punch, but suddenly, Kisame spat out the Water Prison Technique, trapping himself inside. Guy's fist couldn't reach him through the water.
In that moment, Kisame looked around. His mouth was stained with blood, but he wore a smile.
"Itachi-san, you were right..."
At this moment, Kisame remembered the first day he had partnered with Itachi.
"From today on, I am your partner." Kisame, wearing the Akatsuki cloak, looked coldly at Itachi.
"Former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Kisame Hoshigaki. Pleased to meet you."
"You are Uchiha Itachi of Konoha. I've heard much about you."
"I heard you didn't leave a single Uchiha alive."
"I understand you quite well, which is why I chose you as my partner in the Akatsuki."
"The feeling of killing one's own kin is truly indescribable, isn't it, Itachi-san?"
Itachi had replied coldly: "You certainly talk a lot."
"Perhaps you think you know me, but what about yourself?"
"Wandering lost in the mist, only to end up here. You're nothing more than a stray who can't even decide where he's going."
"We are not fish, we are humans. No matter who it is, it's only at the very end that we see what kind of person we truly are."
"Only on the brink of death can one see their true self!"
"Don't you think that's the meaning of death?"
Inside the water prison, Kisame looked at the crowd, and even saw the space-time distortion of the rose pattern in the distance.
"Itachi-san, at the moment of your death, did you see your true self too?"
"Did you really care for Kanon? Or did you truly want to kill her?"
"Itachi-san, it seems that to say I was a hopeless person... wouldn't be entirely true."
Naruto, Yamato, and the others readied their jutsu, waiting for Kisame's counterattack. But at that moment, a roar echoed across the field.
"Kisame-nii!"
Everyone turned their gaze. Behind them, a young girl with long black hair, wearing a red Uchiha-style trench coat, appeared. The Three-Tomoe Sharingan in her eyes and her refined features left no doubt as to her identity.
Kanon looked at Kisame, covered in blood and smiling at her. At this moment, she could wait no longer.
"Kanon!" Naruto looked at her in shock.
"Kanon Uchiha has appeared!" Yamato and Guy both dropped into combat stances.
"Emergency! Kanon Uchiha is here!" Motoi shouted, and Killer B prepared to strike.
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