After leaving the cave, Shimizu Uzuki didn't slow down for even a moment, sprinting westward with relentless urgency.
Sunagakure had already tracked him to that location, which meant the so-called "safe zones" were shrinking rapidly. If he lingered any longer, he risked being completely surrounded.
It was time to break through.
He needed to regroup with Arai and the others, escape Sunagakure, and leave the Land of Wind behind.
Although he hadn't fully recovered to his peak condition… it should still be enough—at least for running.
After all, there was no longer any need to clash head-on with Sunagakure.
And yet—
As he looked out over the western district, an area that had remained largely untouched by the war and still lay in eerie tranquility, a faint sense of unease crept into his mind.
The darkness ahead felt like a massive beast with its jaws wide open, waiting for him to walk straight into its maw.
An ambush?
The night was quiet. Moonlight bathed the streets in a pale glow, while a gentle breeze stirred the drifting clouds.
Everything appeared normal.
But the instinct he had honed through countless brushes with death told him otherwise.
Somewhere in the darkness—
Someone was watching him.
Shimizu stopped immediately, expanding his sensory perception to its absolute limit.
Four hundred and ten meters.
Nothing.
No chakra signatures.
And yet… the danger remained.
Like a rat hiding in the shadows, concealed by some unknown method.
Something like those two elite jōnin earlier? Earth Release, perhaps…?
Then—
His eyes caught something subtle.
Fine grains of sand, drifting through the air.
"…Come out, Shukaku," he said calmly, addressing the empty street.
"I don't know how you managed to get out… but if you're just going to watch and not act, I might as well leave."
"Leave?"
An aged voice echoed from the darkness.
So it really was the One-Tail's jinchūriki.
"Go ahead and try," the voice suddenly exploded right beside his ear.
In the next instant, the ground beneath his feet had already turned into loose sand, surging upward to wrap tightly around his legs.
Sand Binding Prison!
Shimizu's expression flickered with shock—this was the kind of attack that could cripple both legs instantly.
But then—
Splash.
His body dissolved into a scatter of blue water, spilling across the sand.
"A water clone, huh…"
The figure in the shadows let out a twisted chuckle.
"You're quick to run, kid."
Only now did Shimizu get a clear look.
The old monk's body was half-transformed, warped by the power of the tailed beast. Gone was the calm, benevolent appearance he once had—what stood before him now was something far more monstrous.
Bunpuku… or rather—
Shukaku.
The monk likely knew he wasn't suited for combat, so he had let Shukaku take control.
That was the only explanation.
And once Shimizu realized what he was facing—
His strategy became clear.
"You've been chasing me this whole time… looking for revenge?" he asked, slowly drawing his sword.
"The damn monk doesn't like you… and neither do I," Shukaku stretched lazily before bursting into wild laughter. "Actually, I should thank you—thanks to you, I get to come out and have some fun."
"So you'd better last a while, you arrogant brat."
All I did was throw a few words at it… and it holds a grudge like this?
Shimizu dashed forward, sword in his left hand, as a streak of blue-green light shot toward Shukaku.
In the next moment, he leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding a devastating sweeping strike. As the two passed each other back-to-back, his right hand suddenly flared with a crackling blade of lightning.
Then—
Two flashes of light, one blue and one green, fell simultaneously.
Slash.
Shukaku's arms were severed cleanly.
"Your speed is impressive…" Shukaku turned slowly, fixing his gaze on Shimizu.
Meanwhile, the sand scattered across the ground began to flow upward, reconstructing its lost limbs at a visible pace. Within just a few breaths, what had seemed like a crippling injury was completely restored.
As long as there was chakra—
Shukaku could regenerate endlessly.
And the chakra of a tailed beast… was a boundless ocean beyond human comprehension.
"Oh? Not continuing the attack?" Shukaku sounded almost disappointed, as if he had expected Shimizu to press his advantage the moment its arms were severed.
Instead, after that brief, dazzling strike—
He simply stood still.
What a pity.
"You… how did you get out?" Shimizu sheathed his sword calmly. "That seal shouldn't have been so easy to break."
"…Did someone help you?"
What is he planning?
Shimizu Uzuki's sudden shift into a non-hostile stance left Shukaku momentarily puzzled.
"Hmph. I go wherever I please," Shukaku replied arrogantly. "Who's going to stop me?"
Shimizu let out a faint chuckle. "You've met the Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, haven't you?"
Around them, sand began to gather silently, creeping in from all directions toward the battlefield.
Shukaku's gaze never left him.
"I think the old man wasn't bad," Shimizu continued after a brief pause, his tone turning unexpectedly sincere. "In fact… I admire him."
Boom—!
Without warning, an immense surge of sand erupted upward, forming a colossal sphere that sealed off the entire battlefield in an instant.
"Hahahaha! Nowhere left to run, brat!" Shukaku roared with manic laughter.
"You call this fighting fair?!" Shimizu snapped.
"Compared to a sneaky human like you, this is practically honorable," Shukaku sneered, flicking his long tail smugly. "Now die."
"Wait—"
Sand Binding Prison!
Crack.
Silence fell within the sand sphere.
Shukaku clicked its tongue in boredom. "Tch… this is dull. I told you, monk, this fight's no fun at all. Such a weak little—"
But as the sand dispersed—
There was nothing inside.
"…Good."
"You've managed to anger me."
Shukaku's eyes narrowed before slowly closing, its senses spreading outward in search of its prey.
A few breaths later, its eyes snapped open, feral and vicious.
"To the west…!"
"You're not getting away!"
......
The wind howled past his ears as Shimizu ran for his life.
He had to shake Shukaku off while they were still inside Sunagakure—while the beast was restrained, unable to fully unleash itself without concern.
If it followed him out and revealed its true form—
Then not only would he be unable to escape, even Arai and the others would be doomed alongside him.
From the very beginning, Shimizu had never intended to fight it head-on.
That was a tailed beast.
The last time he had managed to defeat the One-Tail, it was only because Orochimaru had taken the brunt of the battle, engaging it directly at close range. All Shimizu had needed to do was wait in the shadows for the right moment and deliver a decisive strike.
But now—
He was alone.
And only by facing such a monster directly could one truly understand just how overwhelming it was.
This was its home ground, no less.
What was he supposed to do—exchange dozens of jutsu, exhaust all his chakra, and then lie down and beg for mercy?
That was nothing short of suicide.
Which was why, the moment he severed Shukaku's arms in that first exchange, he had immediately created a shadow clone to stall for time—
While his real body fled without hesitation.
He had originally thought the shadow clone, being stronger than a water clone, might last a little longer.
But it had been destroyed almost instantly.
And the memories it returned only reinforced one thing—
His decision to retreat immediately had been absolutely correct.
Shukaku's attacks were so vast they could engulf the entire battlefield. A single moment of carelessness, and even he might not have escaped.
Not fighting head-on… was the right call.
...
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