The Land of Water, with its mountains and waters, was shrouded in mist year-round. From a distahe yers of mountains appear lush and green, with mist swirling atop their peaks, mountain after mountain, mist upon mist.

  The densely yered mountains revealed no trace of vilges or rice fields. They resembled drunk old men, wobbling unsteadily.

  But as one approached and stood at the foot of the mountains, their true form was revealed—chaotic, grand, and peculiar.

  Looking up, the mountaie with the sky, and the sky with the mountains. Surrounded on all sides, one could easily lose their sense of dire.

  In this enviro, the Kiri ninjas developed a bat style vastly different from that of mainnd shinobi. Even in war, it was rare to see them unch a full-on frontal assault.

  Their maiactics were probing, maneuvering, exging information, finding weaknesses, and ambushes.

  Patience was a virtue of the Kiri ninjas.

  Masashi was familiar with their style and uood the general shortings of them.

  Their ck of skill in direct assaults also meant they cked resilience for sedary attacks. Thus, he could often easily defeat them, though he deliberately held back from lethal force.

  After multiple enters, he noticed he hadn't seen a single shinobi from the ninja s. The pattern was too sistent to be tal.

  It seemed that internal divisions were beginning to surface within Kiri.

  Normally, if a fe ninja infiltrated their territory, the shinobi would be the first to act.

  Fh-ranking shinobi, their bodies themselves are treasures.

  When the Iwa ninjas killed the Third Raikage, Kumo didn't wage full-scale war on Iwa because the tter returhe Raikage's body untouched.

  Aside from this, ninja members with superior individual bat abilities were better suited to intercepting high-level threats.

  The absence of Kiri ninja s despite knowing a fe ninja resent could only mean their flicts with the Mizukage's administration were being apparent.

  Oensioed, it would usher in the most brutal era of the Bloody Mist.

  This reasoning was clear, but in his memory, several of his "old friends" were not the type to quietly accept family arras.

  "Kiri has been deploying more and more troops," Pakura remarked to him from a mountain slope, watg the ninjas vanish into the fog.

  The two had just finished a ration pill break when the Kiri ninjas found them again. Though they repelled the attacks with ease, the frequency of enters was increasing.

  "They're learning. But not fast enough," Masashi noted, sing the mist with his Sharingan.

  "We 't keep this up forever," Pakura pointed out, cheg their dwindling supplies.

  By now, she khat Masashi possessed a space-time ninjutsu that allowed him to escape encirclements instantly. But against aire vilge, they couldn't keep pying cat and mouse forever.

  The Kiri ninjas were gradually restrig their range of activity.

  "Yeah, it's definitely increasing," Masashi replied. Where are you, Obito?

  Obito had yet to show himself, nor had the old friends.

  If there rogress, it was that he had fully id the Flying Thunder God pathway to Kiri.

  But if this stalemate tinued, he'd have to sider leaving. After all, their ration pills were running out.

  "Let's wait one more time," he calcuted the frequency of the Kiri ninja appearances. "If they still don't show up, we'll officially retreat. For now, let's move outward."

  "Alright," Pakura agreed with a nod.

  The two had avoided lethal force during this time, and the Kiri ninjas, uanding this signal, mostly ehem with a "just doing the job" attitude.

  Not every Kiri ninja held grudges against the White Ghost or Pakura.

  ---

  As Masashi and Pakura began moving outward, someone i grew anxious.

  "Leaving so soon?"

  From a tree, Zetsu poked its head out. In the distance, Masashi and Pakura were little more than dots on the horizon.

  From a bird's-eye view, tless bck dots—Kiri ninja—were closing in on their position, attempting to intercept the two.

  But against the Flying Thunder God, such attempts were futile.

  The greatest strength of the teique was granting its user plete trol over their battlefield movements—freedom to e and go as they pleased.

  In bat, it enabled both offense and defense.

  Isu's "vision," the Kiri ninja barely had a ce to glimpse Masashi before he used the Flying Thunder God to vanish with Pakura.

  "The pn is a plete failure…"

  He mused.

  Obito had visited Konoha aurned badly injured, his hatred for Masashi reag unpreted levels.

  This time, Zetsu had known Masashi was the intruder and had hoped to trap him. However, Obito wahe Kiri ninjas to capture or kill him, using this as a pretext to attack Konoha and incite further chaos.

  Destroying the Uchiha had always been the goal.

  While Konoha's political enviro had ged, the flict between ninja vilges and s hadn't disappeared.

  But the current situatio him thinking this operation had been a disaster.

  The White Ghost's reputation would likely haunt the Kiri ninjas as a nightmare. Killing would only bring hatred, but overwhelming the Kiri ninjas so pletely would shatter their morale.

  Many shared Zetsu's se.

  ---

  As Masashi moved outward, Masu, Mei, Zabuza, and Ameyuri als into a.

  After the death of Fuguki, the previous geion of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen was wiped out.

  Following Kisame's defe with the Samehada, the vilge had hurriedly assigned Masu, Zabuza, and Ameyuri as successors to their respective swords. These three were the only remaining members of the current geion of Seven Swordsmen.

  The group headed to intercept Masashi.

  They acted indepely of the other Kiri ninjas. Mei, perhaps, was an exception, but Masu had ht snuck out.

  Their destination was a coastal area where Masashi had reportedly first nded.

  Both the Flying Thunder God and the Edo Tensei had been battlefield legends siobirama's era. Veteran ninja s khem well.

  Intercepting a Flying Thunder God user with numbers alone was futile.

  If this ninja also had plenty of chakra, it was better to give up.

  At the coastlihe group began their vigil.

  Waves crashed against the rocks, filling the air with the sound of water. Eainja checked their gear.

  By nightfall, they lit a bonfire.

  With Masashi's pride, he would undoubtedly approach if he saw the fire.

  Zabuza and Ameyuri, unfamiliar with him, were skeptical but didn't oppose the pn.

  To Masu and Mei, however, Masashi was even more arrogant than his .

  As night fell, the fire drove away some of the cold. Each of the four stared at the ever-ging fmes, lost in thought.

  Suddenly, Masu grinned.

  "He's here."

  The others followed his gaze to the east.

  A faint silhouette emerged from the shadows.

  Zabuza reversed his grip on the Executioner's Bde, his expression devoid of anger, desire, or any disible emotion.

  His gaze was hollow.

  A young man skilled in silent killing teiques and water jutsu, Zabuza had already bee one of Kiri's most elite ninja. Most of his enemies lost their lives before even sensing his presence.

  Wheed, he cealed all traces of his existeh precision, including his emotions. Yet, sweat glistened on his forehead—not out of effort, but fear, a physical rea triggered by shock.

  Zabuza could see the figure standing in the shadows but could not seheir presence. His grip tightened on the Executioner's Bde, muscles tensing involuntarily.

  Even in Kiri, those who mastered silent killing to this extent were exceedingly rare. The person before him was a level above.

  In trast, Ameyuri appeared far more spirited. The girl gripped her Lightning Bdes tightly, her face brimming with excitement.

  Mei, however, was tense.

  Of everyone present, she had the most enters with Masashi and could sehe difference.

  Oher hand, Masu carried the Twinsword casually over his shoulder, exuding an air of nonce.

  Gng at the shadowed figure, he spoke with mild annoyance, "Hey, you're ag pretty high and mighty these days, aren't you?"

  "Not at all." The man stepped out from the darkness.

  The firelight illuminated his face.

  Though he wore her a Konoha forehead protector nor the standard attire of Konoha shinobi, the Sharingan in his eyes left no doubt about his identity.

  The White Ghost.

  Known for his water mastery b on the absurd and his merciless effi taking the lives of Kiri ninjas, the White Ghost's ruck fear across the battlefield.

  During the Third Great Ninja War, whehe Kiri ninjas saw t waves ahead, they khe White Ghost was leading the charge. Those with advanced bloodline limits would immediately retreat.

  The Silent Killing Teique, the Hidden Mist Teique, Boil Release, Ice Release—any one of these teiques could serve as the erstone of a formidable anization.

  No matter how prosperous Kiri was, they couldn't afford such devastation.

  The st time the White Ghost infiltrated, thousands of Kiri ninjas chased him in vain. Later analysis revealed they weren't even his first victims.

  Konoha itself had suffered prior.

  The Flying Thunder God was a secret teique of the Hokage lineage, not taught to Uchiha. It had to have been stolen!

  For a brief moment, some in Kiri sidered reag out to the Uchiha , proposing that the White Ghost join their vilge.

  The feud between the Uchiha d the Hokage's leadership wasly a secret. Developing an Uchiha bran Kiri seemed like a strategic move. After all, they were all a s with a tradition of diversifying their iments.

  Rumor even had it that the White Ghost was a notorious flirt, and the kunoichi of the Land of Water were famously alluring. Mei was both beautiful and powerful—a perfect match.

  Such rumaira, and her suitors vanished ht, fearing the White Ghost might arrive on their doorstep demanding more jutsu.

  Mei was livid.

  So, upon seeing him finally appear, she skipped the pleasantries and cut straight to the point. "Are you here to meet Fuguki?"

  "Mei, still so impatient." Masashi chuckled. From a certain perspective, Mei was one of his "beors." Though she might disagree with that assessment.

  Although he actally tore her clothes ohat had truly been an act—she'd been running too fast.

  He always treated his beors with familial warmth. Unfortunately, far too many people misuood him.

  Refleg on this, he couldn't help but touch his face.

  How many sps had he endured in his "first pythrough"?

  This time around, only one. Mei's.

  "Why are you alone?" She noticed his gesture a a wave of satisfa. "Where's the person you rescued—Pakura?"

  "Pakura? Who's that?" Masashi feigned ignorance. He hadn't brought Pakura along precisely to avoid plications.

  "Don't py dumb. That's between Suna and us," Mei retorted. "She's not from Konoha. Are you proteg her because you want her Scorch Release?"

  "Oh, you mean Suna's Scorch Release user." Masashi nodded casually. "I saved her because it was ve. Good deeds bring good karma."

  He raised his brows at her, a sly grin on his face. "Remember, Mei—I saved you too."

  The other three turheir gazes to Mei in unison.

  "Freezih ice before unfreezing me doesn't t as saving me!" Mei fumed, holding back her anger. "Let's get to the point. Are you here to meet Fuguki or not?"

  "What happehen?" Masu suddenly chimed in. "You two didn't really... have something going on, did you?"

  Nobody in Kiri knew what transpired between Mei and the White Ghost back then. They only knew he emerged with mastery of Boil Release, blended seamlessly with water to wreak havoc.

  Normally, this would warrant interrogation to firm whether he'd used sedu teiques. But Mei's backer was Elder Genji, so no one dared challenge her. Instead, the Kiri forces cluded: White Ghost could copy bloodline limits.

  "Nothing happened," Mei snapped, gring daggers at Masashi. "I just barely escaped being captured."

  "Then, you're here for this mission, aren't you?"

  "Correct," Masashi admitted. "But Fuguki's death was ued."

  Kiri's successiohods were rough.

  "So, you'll honor the agreement, right?"

  "Fuguki's death was an act," Masu replied, his casual demeanor hardening slightly. "But I personally see o tinue. We handle our own problems. Raise the price, and it's off the table."

  Masu was cut short by Masashi's words.

  "If I told you your Fourth Mizukage is under genjutsu trol," Masashi said with a smile, watg their reas carefully, "would you still be so fident?"