"Hu~~~"
Seimei exhaled softly as he looked at the lifeless body of Yukikaze lying on the ground.
He had to admit, although Yukikaze wasn't the strongest of the Jonin he had faced, he was definitely one of the hardest to kill.
Because there were too many eyes watching, Seimei couldn't use his Mangekyo Sharingan abilities freely. On top of that, he hadn't yet mastered Lightning Release, which would have countered Yukikaze's Water Transformation Technique.
As a result, it took him quite a bit of effort.
It was only because of his own powerful abilities and abundant chakra that he was able to overpower Yukikaze in such a short time.
Otherwise, the outcome would have been uncertain.
Shaking his head, Seimei stopped dwelling on it and turned his attention to the battlefield around him.
Earlier, while he had been locked in fierce combat with Yukikaze, both sides' ninjas had kept their distance from this area, but they had all been paying close attention.
Now that Yukikaze had been defeated, the Konoha ninjas were naturally invigorated.
In contrast, the Kirigakure ninjas showed visible agitation.
Even though they still outnumbered the Konoha forces by 50%, their confidence was clearly shaken.
This was the impact a high-level ninja could have on the battlefield.
Seimei's gaze quickly swept across the enemy ranks and landed on Kurosaki Takeo, who was struggling to stand and retreat toward the Kirigakure group.
Kurosaki had been injured by Seimei's Rasengan earlier and had spent the time healing. But even now, he hadn't fully recovered.
It was the perfect time. Seimei had used a lot of chakra to kill Yukikaze, and now he needed to replenish it.
With that thought, Seimei's figure flickered and, in the blink of an eye, appeared in front of Kurosaki Takeo.
Seeing Seimei suddenly appear, Kurosaki froze, his eyes briefly flashing with despair.
But after despair came a surge of madness.
He raised his kunai and, with a roar, thrust it directly at Seimei.
Yet, Seimei didn't even move as he watched Kurosaki's futile attack.
The next moment, just as the kunai was about to make contact, Kurosaki's body froze, his once ferocious expression suddenly replaced by confusion.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan~"
It turned out that the moment their eyes met, Seimei had already trapped Kurosaki in a genjutsu.
With Kurosaki immobilized, Seimei wasted no time. He raised his hand to perform the Chakra Absorption Technique, ready to drain all of Kurosaki's chakra.
But just then, two voices rang out almost simultaneously.
"Captain Kurosaki!"
"Stop!"
Hearing the sudden shouts, Seimei halted his hand signs and looked toward the source of the voices.
Two figures were rushing toward him.
*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh~*
Several kunai flew rapidly in his direction.
Seimei tilted his body slightly, easily avoiding the attacks.
But this was only the beginning.
In the next instant, the two attackers swiftly completed their hand signs, each unleashing a Water Release technique.
"Water Release: Water Gun!"
"Water Release: Water Shotgun!"
A water column and a barrage of water bullets shot toward Seimei.
One aimed directly for his chest, intending to deliver a fatal blow, while the other blocked his escape routes, attempting to limit his movement.
Their coordination was seamless, indicating they had done this many times before.
However, while this might work against others, it wasn't enough for someone like Seimei.
Without hesitation, Seimei's hand signs shifted, transforming the intended Chakra Absorption Technique into the Water Release: Water Wall Technique.
In an instant, a wall of water rose in front of him. The water column and bullets splashed against it, creating a shower of droplets, but they did no harm to Seimei.
Seeing this, the two approaching Kirigakure Chunin's expressions changed. Still, they glanced at the immobilized Kurosaki and gritted their teeth, charging toward Seimei again.
"Hmph!" Seimei snorted coldly. His hands flashed through a new set of hand signs, summoning another Water Release technique—Water Dragon Jutsu!
*Roar~*
With a roar, a massive water dragon appeared and rushed toward the two Chunin.
"Watch out!"
The one on the right shouted a warning.
At the same time, he dove to the far right, avoiding the dragon's attack.
Thanks to the warning, the one on the left also dodged to the far left.
The next moment, the water dragon crashed into the ground between them, sending a spray of water into the air, momentarily separating them.
However, neither was injured.
Just as they were about to breathe a sigh of relief, a transparent wind blade sliced through the air, heading straight for the neck of the Chunin on the right.
Though he managed to dodge in time, the wind blade severed one of his arms.
"Ah!" A sharp, brief cry of pain escaped his lips.
The left-side Chunin shouted in panic, "Keita! Are you—"
Before he could finish, an inexplicable chill washed over him.
In his line of sight, Seimei's figure had disappeared.
He glanced to the side and saw a figure holding a blade standing there.
Who else could it be but Seimei?
In an instant, his heart leaped into his throat. He tried to lunge forward, hoping to avoid the imminent attack.
But it was too late.
Before his feet could even move, a gleaming blade pierced through his chest, directly through his heart.
*Spurt~*
A large mouthful of blood spewed from his mouth.
His life force quickly faded.
Seimei showed no mercy as he yanked the blade free.
This hastened the Chunin's demise, and soon his breath ceased entirely.
Seimei then turned his attention to the remaining Kirigakure Chunin on the right.
At this point, Keita had lost an arm and was deathly pale.
Seimei's body glowed faintly blue.
In the next moment, he vanished again.
Seeing this, Keita's face twisted in terror, but before he could react, a long blade stabbed through his abdomen.
Keita looked down at the blade protruding from his belly, then up at the figure in front of him. His face contorted with madness.
Forcing down the blood rising in his throat, he roared, "Monster! Let's die together!"
As he spoke, he attempted to activate an explosive tag hidden in his palm.
But before he could do anything, his entire body went rigid.
In his last conscious moment, all he saw were a pair of blood-red Sharingan filling his vision.
Seimei shook his head at the sight of his entranced opponent. Then he quickly formed a hand sign and performed the Chakra Absorption Technique.
In an instant, Keita's chakra flowed out of his body, surging into Seimei's hand and being converted into his own chakra.
With a Level 6 Chakra Absorption Technique, Seimei could absorb 2,000 chakra points per second and convert them fully into his own.
Once the target's chakra was drained, the technique would even extract their physical and spiritual energy to create more chakra.
Every enemy ninja who fell prey to Seimei's Chakra Absorption was completely drained, and Keita was no exception.
*Boom~*
A few seconds later, Keita's withered body collapsed.
Seimei retracted his hand and began walking toward Kurosaki Takeo.
This time, no one dared to stop him.
(End of Chapter)