Mizukage's Pokémon Ninja Scroll

Chapter 478 People from Konoha

"Bang bang bang bang~"

The continuous striking sound was like a great bell, with a tone that was sometimes high-pitched and sometimes deep.

Rings of transparent shockwaves spread out in all directions.

The earth trembled rhythmically with the sound of the hammering, and the sound traveled into Kirigakure.

The thick fog that permeates the air year-round seemed to be somewhat dispersed by the sound waves.

However, even the ordinary people in Kirigakure did not show the slightest panic when they heard the earth-shaking sound coming from afar.

Instead, some people swayed and danced to the rhythm of the tapping, their faces beaming with enjoyment.

Even those traveling merchants from other places who came to post missions for the first time, after a moment of panic, were immediately helped by helpful people nearby.

"Don't worry, it's probably the Mizukage training the village's ninjas again."

Just as the man was speaking, the knocking in the distance suddenly stopped.

Immediately afterwards, a piercing roar echoed through the sky.

Even the clouds in the sky seemed to be blown away by the howl.

"Yo~ I knew it! Judging from the rhythm, it must be Lord Zabuza training with Lord Mizukage. Lord Ao wouldn't be calling out in such a melodious way."

"Hey~ that's right, that brat Yugao's beating wasn't right. The sound of the punches during training was muffled, there's definitely a difference."

The two men exchanged a glance, their lips curving into smiles of mutual appreciation.

The businessman, who had just heard the explanation, was left feeling somewhat confused.

On the contrary, the few Kirigakure ninjas who were passing by did not show any surprise when they heard these ordinary villagers making fun of their own village's leaders.

It seems they have become accustomed to this state.

Perhaps it's because Tachibana Kanagawa had too much contact with these villagers when she was doing her daily tasks, or perhaps it's because the people-friendly atmosphere that Kirigakure is promoting now is very effective.

As the saying goes, although ninjas are still respected, the respect they receive is no longer the kind born of fear and dread.

It was more like the respect the villagers gave to the "guardians".

Although some older generation ninjas are not used to this change, overall, things are developing in the direction that Tachibana Kenkawa hoped for.

At the end of the street, a burly, white-haired man silently took in all of this.

After pausing for a moment with a thoughtful expression, he continued striding towards the Water Shadow Building.

Meanwhile, at the training ground outside the village.

Floating in the air, Tachibana Kanagawa's giant hand, formed purely from Sage Chakra, pressed down firmly on the Tailed Beast's perfect form, "Zero Three-Tails," which was still struggling and roaring below.

The blue-purple tortoise, over ten meters long, had its body surging with violent dark chakra, but it was still unable to break free from the sage-like hand that firmly imprisoned it.

Seeing this, Jianchuan Ju couldn't help but purse her lips and say disdainfully.

"Seriously, it's one thing to be getting tougher, but at least you should be able to revert to your Tailed Beast Ultimate form on your own, right?"

As she spoke, Tachibana Kenkawa slowly raised her left hand.

The blue-gold sage chakra energy around his body surged violently, and his left arm seemed to expand and grow instantly, transforming into a giant iron fist of energy more than ten meters high.

Yu Gao, who was watching the battle from the side, quickly covered his eyes, only daring to peek at the situation through his fingers.

You know, he was the one who got beaten up there yesterday.

Now, seeing that blue fist again, Yu Gao could even faintly feel waves of phantom pain emanating from his body.

Yu Gao peeked through his fingers and saw that before his teacher's raised fist could even strike, Yu Gao was already watching.

The blue-purple turtle below, which was being held by another hand, suddenly twisted its enormous head.

It seemed to transform into a rapidly extending purple python, twisting and turning as it lunged towards the floating jujube tree in the sky.

"Oh ho~ You've come up with a new trick?"

Even Tachibana Kanagawa herself didn't expect that the fully-formed "Zero Three-Tails," which originally only acted recklessly and instinctively without any independent consciousness, could now actually use such a sneak attack technique.

Of course, this simple trick wasn't enough to make Jianchuan Ju panic.

The raised energy left arm transformed from a fist into a claw, grabbing the snake's head, which was still thrashing about in the air.

With a forceful pull, the snake's head, which had already stretched several times its original length, was stretched even further, as if it were being pulled out of the tortoise shell.

The snake's head looked incredibly 'thin and fragile,' even somewhat comical.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

From within the "snake head" came Zabuza's hoarse and distorted wail.

Subsequently, the entire "Zero Three-Tails" rapidly disintegrated and dissipated, turning into a cloud of black smoke that quickly contracted and merged into Zabuza's body.

Zabuza, having lost the support of his tailed beast body, also fell rapidly from the air.

With a thud, it crashed to the ground.

Seeing this, Tachibana Kanakawa waved his hand to dispel his Water Release: Sage Mode.

It floated down slowly from the sky, landing curiously in front of Zabuza, who was lying on the ground.

"Huh? You controlled that last sneak attack yourself? You can actually control the complete form of a Tailed Beast now?"

On the ground, Zabuza, his face covered in mud, struggled to his feet, his body aching slightly.

He looked at Jianchuan Ju with a helpless expression.

"How could it be so easy? I could only barely control myself for a moment in the instant before I was about to collapse from your beating."

"In actual combat, it will definitely be of no use at all."

Upon hearing this, Jianchuan Ju nodded thoughtfully.

"That's true. You're so weak, it would be a miracle if you could truly control it now. I'd be grateful if you could train yourself to the point of being able to control it freely."

Zabuza rolled his eyes when he heard Tachibana's words.

Even Yu Gao, who had just come over after the battle, secretly turned his head away, not wanting to see his teacher's arrogant face.

Zabuza's tailed beast transformation is different from that of a normal Jinchuriki; he cannot establish a bond through communication.

If one can control such a massive amount of energy through their own strength and will, then they probably wouldn't need this half-finished tailed beast to enhance their power.

Kanagawa Tachibana looked at Zabuza, who was still somewhat unconvinced, and said with a smile.

"You'd better step up your game. Mei has already developed his second bloodline limit. He became a Jonin entirely through his own strength."

"We're all part of my Shadow Guard, aren't you ashamed of yourself for relying solely on luck?"

Although Zabuza still had a sour face after hearing this, he had clearly taken Tachibana's words to heart.

Just as the three were talking, a ninja dressed in ANBU uniform appeared instantly in the center of the training ground and spoke respectfully to Tachibana Kanagawa.

"Lord Mizukage, an envoy has arrived from Konoha. Elder Yuanshi requests your presence to receive him."

A smile flickered across Jianchuan Ju's face as he looked at the curvaceous figure of the ANBU member in front of him.

"Ming, I was just talking about you. Also, I already said, when we're not around, you can just call me Ju."

Upon hearing this, Mei Terumi, wearing an ANBU mask, blushed slightly and turned her head to the side. Fortunately, the mask concealed her face, and no one else noticed.

Seeing this, Tachibana Kanagawa stopped talking nonsense and waved to the other two.

"Let's go see what kind of trouble Konoha is up to this time."

(End of this chapter)