Chapter 19: Possibilities! (Please continue reading)

"Damn leaf brat..." the middle-aged man gritted his teeth.

Genichi Keshita gave a light huff, jumped up, and kicked the man unconscious.

Turning around, the battle involving Sakumo Hatake and the others had already ended. Beside Namiichi Uchiha were two corpses, and Genichi noticed that his eyes were revealed to be two-tomoe Sharingan. Yamanaka En also had a corpse beside him, while Sakumo Hatake had two.

Footsteps echoed, and as Genichi looked toward the edge of the village, another Sakumo Hatake approached, dragging two people. Eight enemies in total—no more, no less. It was clear that En, the sensory ninja, had long since detected that the enemy had split into two groups, prompting Sakumo to guard the village outskirts.

*Thud!*

The two enemies were tossed aside by Sakumo, and their bodies burst into clouds of smoke. They were Shadow Clones. Genichi had assumed the ones here were the clones, but a moment’s thought made it clear: to be safe, Sakumo needed his main body to remain here to ensure he could provide timely reinforcements if his subordinates ran into trouble—especially a newcomer like him.

"Genichi, well done!" Sakumo praised with a smile.

Genichi had taken down two enemies single-handedly: one with his blade and one with Water Style. He had chosen to use a water clone from the start while keeping his main body hidden—an excellent tactical choice. Sakumo had seen this, which is why he had left one enemy for Genichi to engage. Furthermore, he noted that Genichi’s swordsmanship was quite impressive; his Iaijutsu (quick-draw technique) was so well-executed that it had genuinely caught his eye.

"My speed was still a bit slow; I didn't dodge that Wind Style attack," Genichi said modestly.

"Clones are meant to be bait, aren't they?" Uchiha Namiichi chimed in. He, too, was impressed by Genichi’s performance. He didn't act like a novice fresh out of the academy at all; he was as skilled and seasoned as a veteran.

"Namiichi, En, you two are in charge of interrogation," Sakumo instructed. "These guys are ninjas from the Land of Sky."

The Land of Sky. A realization dawned on Genichi. He recalled that this village had been wiped out by the Land of Fire during the Second Shinobi World War. In the future, they would attempt to assassinate Danzo at the Five Kage Summit, and in the film versions, they had even attacked Konoha. And then there was the Zero-Tails...

Zero-Tails! Genichi’s eyelids twitched. Does the Land of Sky possess the Zero-Tails right now? Could he manage to steal it and try being its jinchuriki? Although the Zero-Tails was considered "trash" by some, its chakra reserves were immense. As an accumulation of dark chakra, it would provide a near-infinite supply of energy as long as darkness existed. And in the world of ninjas, was there ever a shortage of darkness?

His thoughts racing, Genichi added a new item to his plans. Meanwhile, Namiichi and En began their interrogation. Half an hour later, the questioning concluded, and the three captives were summarily executed by Namiichi. Genichi didn't react; after all, there was no point in keeping them alive to eat his rations.

A campfire was lit, and Namiichi and En took turns reporting the intelligence to Sakumo and Genichi. "They have another base in the mountains with thirteen ninjas remaining, but only one is a Jonin. This is just one of the remnants' outposts; they likely have others, but these three didn't know where. This whole thing was a trap, intentionally set to lure our Konoha squad here."

Under normal circumstances, a mission like this wouldn't involve a powerhouse like Sakumo Hatake; it would typically be assigned to a Chunin squad, as Konoha had only rated this mission as C-rank. Now, however, the mission had clearly been upgraded.

Hearing this, Sakumo immediately decided, "Rest for the night, and we enter the mountains tomorrow."

Genichi and the others nodded. "Understood!"

The night passed without incident. The following morning, after breakfast, the four of them set off into the mountains. The base of the Sky Ninja remnants wasn't hard to find; by following the tracks left by the eight men from the day before, they soon reached a valley where a row of wooden cabins had been built along a stream.

Hiding in the bushes on one side of the valley, En performed a sensory jutsu and signaled shortly after: thirteen people, no mistake. Sakumo nodded and signaled Genichi.

*Water source nearby, use a water-based attack!*

Genichi nodded slightly and disappeared using the Body Flicker Technique.

Inside the valley, Genichi landed on the surface of the stream, spread his hands, formed the "Zai" seal, and then pressed his palms together. The water beneath his feet swirled and rose, circling his body. As more water was drawn from the stream, the momentum grew increasingly powerful.

*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*

Figures darted out from the wooden cabins and landed on the roofs. "It's the Leaf!" the Sky Ninja remnants spotted Genichi’s headband instantly.

Genichi swung his hands forward, and the spiraling water surged forward with a thunderous roar.

*Water Style: Water Colliding Wave!*

Though it was a standard technique, its scale was akin to Kisame’s Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave. Under the impact of the torrent, the wooden cabins shattered and collapsed. The Sky Ninjas leaped into the air, landing on the water's surface. Just then, fireballs appeared in the sky and rained down.

"Watch out!" the Sky Ninjas cried, scrambling to dodge.

*Boom!*

The fireballs slammed into the water, sending plumes of steam billowing into the air. Genichi performed another sequence of seals: *Zai - Si - Yin!*

Water surged up, congealing into a dragon. With a piercing howl, it bit into a leaping Sky Ninja, then dove headlong, slamming into another. Taking advantage of the thick steam, two figures darted into the crowd one after another. Leading them was Sakumo Hatake; wherever his blindingly white blade passed, Sky Ninjas fell. Having killed three already, Sakumo reached the Sky Ninja Jonin, and the air filled with the rapid clashing of metal.

Genichi had no time to focus on the others, as two Sky Ninjas were charging directly at him—they clearly saw this "brat" as a major threat. Genichi stood his ground, his hands moving so fast they left trails.

*Genjutsu: Bringer of Darkness Technique!*

With their vision sealed, Genichi threw several shuriken, which were quickly blocked. The two Sky Ninjas stopped, standing back-to-back in alert.

*Tap, tap, tap!*

Genichi sprinted across the water, feinting in one direction before using his quick-draw technique to take down the first man. The survivor, sensing his companion fall, panicked and roared, "Leaf brat, you bastard, come out! I'll kill you!"

He shouted while weaving seals, spewing a fireball into the air. It missed completely. Genichi closed the distance, attacking from various angles to test his opponent. The Sky Ninja, losing all composure, swung his blade wildly, providing Genichi with an easy opening to finish him with a single stroke.

Just like that, he had taken out four. By now, the battle was over. The sodden ground was littered with bodies. En stepped out of the woods and gave Genichi a thumbs-up. Genichi smiled and sheathed his blade. In an environment with water, he could truly unleash a different level of combat prowess. Without water, he could never have performed such a large-scale Water Style technique with his current chakra levels—or rather, he could, but he would be completely drained afterward.