It was a genuine Water Dragon Bullet.
No fancy modifications, no awe-inspiring prelude—just a water dragon formed purely from chakra. It surged into the sky upon appearing, circled briefly, and then plummeted straight back down.
Waiting for this water dragon was the shadow clone's Lightning Release: Earth Walk.
This was a Lightning Release ninjutsu that utilized conductivity to defeat enemies.
Typically, it was used to channel lightning into the ground, conducting electricity through the earth to catch opponents off guard.
It was even more effective on wet terrain... but this time, its purpose was different.
It was simply to electrolyze the water dragon!
The water dragon roared as it passed through the shadow clone. Once the shadow clone's chakra was exhausted, it vanished into a puff of white smoke. At the same time, the azure water dragon began to change...
Its brilliance and solidity faded, replaced by an endless ethereal quality and an elusive, intangible aura...
The dust finally settled.
The Iwa ninjas' barrage of attacks was nearly ready to launch.
The scene froze at that moment.
A towering Earth Flow Wall blocked the rushing river.
A group of Iwa ninjas, their gazes tense and resentful, poised to unleash their ninja tools or techniques...
High above, Kuraken stood, his expression ferocious yet exhilarated!
And then...
The boy who had never once moved from his spot.
And behind him, the faintly visible Hydrogen Release giant dragon!
The boy's gaze cut through the battlefield, locking onto Kuraken's eyes.
His expression remained calm.
Everything that had just happened seemed, to him... insignificant?
"Goodbye."
The boy's lips moved, and the Hydrogen Release giant dragon behind him surged into the sky, crashing down fiercely toward the group of Iwa ninjas!
A moment later.
Boom!!!!!!
A deafening explosion pierced the heavens!
Kuraken's face still bore that ferocious expression. In his heavily injured and exhausted state, he failed to sense the danger approaching. Along with the group of Iwa ninjas still attempting their attack, he was instantly swallowed by the blaze!
With that.
This Iwa frontline unit, specifically formed to counter Konoha's White Fang, was entirely wiped out!
And when the explosion ceased.
The obstructed river resumed its cheerful flow, rushing forward once more.
First, it filled the deep crater left by the blast. The high heat evaporated much of the water, sending plumes of white steam rising into the air.
But soon, the following currents replenished it, and everything returned to normal.
Yet the instigator of all this, Yuto Souta, was nowhere to be seen...
...
Not long after.
Several shadowy figures appeared, their forms gradually solidifying.
It was Hatake Sakumo and Namikaze Minato, who had rushed over at full speed after hearing the explosion!
The two top-tier Konoha shinobi each carried a boy on their backs—Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Obito...
"Kakashi, is this the place?" Hatake Sakumo surveyed the surroundings, asking in a deep voice.
"Probably... yes, I think so..."
Hatake Kakashi's voice carried some uncertainty.
It seemed like it, but also not quite.
He remembered that when he left, the river here wasn't this wide.
And... though the river had widened, why did it feel like the water volume... had decreased?
Hatake Kakashi couldn't quite pin it down.
But just then, some objects drifting along the shore caught his attention.
Namikaze Minato noticed them too. In a flash, he appeared beside the objects and picked one up.
Only then did the group see what it was...
It was a severed human arm!
"It looks like it was broken off by immense force... and there are scorch marks from Fire Release. The age seems to be around 20 or so."
The hand was large—it clearly didn't belong to Yuto Souta, who wasn't even six years old.
The three of them immediately breathed a sigh of relief...
But then, more severed limbs and body parts floated down from further up the river, once again raising their tension to its peak!
"This... it couldn't all be Yuto Souta's doing, could it?"
Hatake Kakashi murmured, dazed.
From these remains, it wasn't hard to deduce the identities of the deceased.
The thickness and size could indicate their age.
They didn't belong to Yuto Souta.
Namikaze Minato's brow furrowed deeper.
He had a hunch that this was undoubtedly connected to his brilliant yet headache-inducing student.
The widespread scorch marks on the remains were the best proof.
This little guy... had he developed another massively powerful Fire Release ninjutsu?
As Namikaze Minato analyzed, his heart grew increasingly anxious!
No matter how clever or extraordinarily talented Yuto Souta was, he was still less than six years old!
"Kakashi, White Fang-senpai, please step back a little."
As he spoke, he bit his fingertip, swiftly formed hand seals, and slammed his hands onto the ground!
"Summoning Technique!"
Bang!
With a massive puff of white smoke and a loud thud, a giant toad dressed as a samurai descended from the sky.
Its landing spot was strikingly similar to the Earth Flow Wall one of the fallen Iwa ninjas had used earlier.
"Gamabunta, please block this river for me."
Namikaze Minato said respectfully.
The toad was none other than Gamabunta, the battle-type summon from Mount Myoboku.
"Oh? What trouble have you run into, Minato kid?"
Noticing Namikaze Minato's unusual expression, Gamabunta asked while shifting his massive body.
Namikaze Minato didn't respond.
With Gamabunta blocking the river, the riverbed, still not fully refilled, was exposed once more.
The battlefield from not long ago was laid bare to the air again!
Especially that deep crater...
The water flow hadn't washed away the charred marks on the crater. Namikaze Minato reached out to touch it and could still feel the residual heat!
At this point, everything seemed to make sense.
Two words flashed through Namikaze Minato's mind.
Forbidden Technique!
Only a forbidden technique of immense power could explain all this!
What was a forbidden technique?
A technique so powerful that it could even harm the caster, thus banned from use!
It was common knowledge that Iwa excelled in Earth Release, and against a genin not even six years old, they wouldn't need to waste something so extravagant...
So, everything became clear.
A flicker of sorrow and regret passed through Namikaze Minato's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
He struggled to steady his breathing and adjust his expression before turning to Hatake Kakashi. He confirmed once more that Uchiha Obito, still on Kakashi's back, remained unconscious.
"Kakashi..."
"For now... let's not tell Obito about this!"
Namikaze Minato said in a heavy voice.
Hatake Kakashi's entire body trembled!
--- Translator Note ---
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