The shadow in the darkness slowly emerged into view.
He wore a dark, high-collared short-sleeved shirt, layered with brown triangular leather armor, and in his left hand he held a short blade—its edge faintly stained with fresh crimson.
Shimizu's sharp eyes caught it immediately.
Drops of blood were still sliding off the tip.
He just killed someone…?
"Uchiha… Shisui?" Shimizu's voice carried a trace of surprise. The boy had appeared less than thirty meters away from them.
That distance—any jonin could cross it instantly with a Body Flicker Technique.
It wasn't just Shimizu. Even Orochimaru showed a flicker of reaction.
After all, the one standing before them was merely a chunin who had only been promoted the previous year.
"I noticed a Sand shinobi observing you, Shimizu-senpai, and Orochimaru-sama… so I took the liberty of dealing with him," Shisui Uchiha explained calmly.
So that faint sound earlier—the one that had alerted both Shimizu and Orochimaru—
It had been the sound of a blade piercing through flesh.
As for whether this was truly Shisui…
The moment Shimizu met his eyes, he felt a subtle dizziness.
That was the effect of a Sharingan that had reached a certain level—interfering with the flow of an opponent's chakra.
A mere Transformation Technique could never replicate something like that.
At this age… already a two-tomoe Sharingan?
With that thought, Shimizu's left hand slowly eased away from the hilt of his sword.
"Haa…" Shisui let out a quiet breath and deactivated his Sharingan.
The instant Shimizu had placed his hand on his blade, Shisui had felt an instinctive urge to flee.
It was a primal warning—an innate sense of danger.
Just the act of touching that sword had made it feel as though he were standing on the edge of death.
Quickly, Shisui explained why he was here.
"The Sand forces are advancing too aggressively—we can't hold them back. During the retreat, everything fell into chaos, and I got separated from the others."
"Just now, I was being pursued by a squad led by two Sand jonin… I barely managed to shake them off before running into you and Orochimaru-sama."
Shimizu nodded and stepped forward, casually inspecting the Sand shinobi Shisui had killed.
A middle-aged man, wearing a Sunagakure forehead.
There was no immediate way to determine whether he had been a chunin or a jonin.
But a ninja capable of silently infiltrating within thirty meters of both him and Orochimaru…
That alone meant he was no ordinary opponent.
And yet, such a person had been killed in a single strike by Shisui's short blade.
Was the enemy too weak… or was Shisui simply that strong?
"It's likely this Sand shinobi was already lying in wait here before Uzuki-kun and I arrived," Orochimaru concluded after a brief analysis.
That was the only explanation that made sense.
Otherwise, for someone to approach this close without either of them noticing—while they were on high alert—
That would be truly terrifying.
"Shisui, do you know the current situation inside Kikyo Castle?" Shimizu asked, voicing all the doubts he and Orochimaru had accumulated along the way.
Fortunately, Shisui was observant and well-informed. He had a general grasp of the situation within the city.
Under his detailed explanation, the truth behind Konoha's predicament finally came to light.
Several days ago, Sunagakure had poisoned Konoha's drinking water.
The "poison" itself had no direct harmful effects on the human body, which was why even the medical corps—and even Tsunade—had failed to detect anything unusual at the time.
However, once inhaled sand entered the body through the respiratory system and combined with this substance, its true toxicity would manifest.
For a significant period of time, it could completely block the body's ability to refine chakra.
That was the real reason Sunagakure had created the massive sandstorm within Kikyo Castle—
To fully activate the poison's effects.
At last, Shimizu pieced everything together.
All the military preparations—the construction of facilities, the deployment of troops—
They had all been leading toward the final objective: capturing Kikyo Castle.
Their prolonged strategy of surrounding the city without attacking outright had been deliberate—
Waiting for the tunnels to be completed.
Waiting for the One-Tail's jinchūriki to arrive.
Waiting for the right moment for the poison to take effect.
Perhaps… his and Orochimaru's desperate assault had disrupted even more of their plans than they realized.
But one thing was now certain—
At the very least, these three strategies had been executed simultaneously.
Shimizu couldn't help but imagine it—
What if he and Orochimaru hadn't shown up tonight…?
Then Tsunade, his teacher Kousuke, and the Ino–Shika–Chō trio would most likely have perished here.
Shukaku would have rampaged freely across the battlefield, unstoppable.
And in the end, the tens of thousands of Konoha shinobi stationed here would have been wiped out completely—unable to refine chakra, reduced to helpless prey.
It was a chilling what if.
In the original story… was Sunagakure really this powerful during the Third Great Ninja War?
No… that wasn't it.
Sunagakure itself wasn't overwhelmingly strong.
It was just that, for this war, they had committed everything they had.
And here at Kikyo Castle… this was only a portion of Konoha's total strength.
So the more accurate question was—
Had Sunagakure really pushed mighty Konoha to this extent?
"Konoha brat… let's see where you run now."
The sudden voice didn't surprise any of the three.
The Sand squad that had appeared made no attempt to hide. They formed a tight encirclement, cutting off every possible escape route.
Hah… admirable courage.
"Nara Shikaku's mind really is something," Shimizu remarked casually, continuing their earlier conversation. Much of the intelligence they had pieced together came from Shikaku's analysis.
"Shikaku serves as a strategic advisor among Konoha's higher-ups. He's worked under me before—someone like him won't remain a minor figure in the future," Orochimaru said.
"You actually value people just for being smart?" Shimizu asked, slightly puzzled.
"Just as I value your intelligence, Uzuki-kun."
Tch… what a hypocrite.
Shimizu glanced at Shisui Uchiha, who was gritting his teeth. The tomoe in his Sharingan were beginning to spin faster.
Looks like he's been bullied pretty badly…
To think that the future "Shunshin no Shisui" had been chased around by a group of nameless enemies like this.
"You—!" The Sand squad leader's expression darkened as he realized they were being completely ignored.
Their squad might have only four members, but it was an elite formation:
One veteran jonin as leader, another jonin, and two seasoned chunin.
Their mission was simple—clean up any "stragglers" who had survived the larger battles.
The previous "straggler" had been Shisui.
As only a chunin, he had naturally been no match for such a team and had been forced to flee.
Only thanks to his two-tomoe Sharingan and exceptional Body Flicker Technique had he managed to escape.
But now…
They had caught up to him again.
"…Do you think ignoring us will save your lives?" The squad leader gave the signal to attack.
"Hehe... Orochimaru, it seems you've misjudged me," Shimizu said.
And in the next instant—
He vanished.
A streak of green light flashed.
The Sand leader's pupils shrank violently.
"I'm just an ordinary man…"
The first Sand shinobi collapsed.
Shimizu disappeared again.
A second flash of green light tore through the air.
"…just a bit stubborn."
The second enemy fell into a pool of blood.
Shimizu vanished a third time.
"Orochimaru-sama… shouldn't we help Shimizu-senpai?" Shisui asked, glancing at Orochimaru, who stood with his hands hanging loosely at his sides, making no move to intervene.
"They're nothing more than minor characters… just watch," Orochimaru replied, a faint, peculiar smile curling at his lips.
"He's 'Shunshin Shimizu'!" the Sand leader exclaimed in alarm.
"Life and death don't matter—if you've got a problem, come at me," Shimizu said coldly.
A third streak of green light flashed—
But this time, the target was a jonin. His reaction speed was noticeably faster, and Shimizu only managed to sever his left arm.
"Captain… the other one is Orochimaru…" the injured shinobi gasped, clutching his mangled shoulder, blood pouring through his fingers.
"…Yeah. I heard them," the leader replied grimly.
They had kicked an iron plate this time.
And now, there was no escape.
Because the one who hadn't moved all this time—Orochimaru—had already locked onto them.
Like a venomous serpent lurking in the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.
"Ha… hahaha…"
As time passed, Shimizu felt his chakra recovering—his natural regeneration, combined with soldier pills, was bringing his strength back.
My power… it's returning.
Once, he had been just a chunin, dreaming of becoming a powerful jonin.
Not long ago, he had achieved that rank—yet still looked up at the towering figures of the Sannin.
But now…
He stood beside them.
He had reached a level where even the future "Shunshin no Shisui" would have to look up to him.
"Die," Shimizu said softly.
Two streaks of blue light shot forward in an instant, piercing through both enemies' chests.
Thud.
The two Sand shinobi collapsed simultaneously—lifeless.
..
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