The world I hear is completely different from yours.

PS: The extra chapter I owed you're finally here!

Chapter Ten: A Battle of Acting Skills

After blocking Ten's attack, Kushimaru lowered his head, seemingly unconcerned about Ten's sudden re-attack, and looked at his weapon with heartache. This precious ninja sword had a small nick on it from Ten's kunai. Although these ninja swords all had the ability to regenerate, he had never seen it damaged by any other weapon since he picked up this long sword, *Sew Needle*.

"The opponent's weapon looks like an ordinary kunai. So the reason it was able to injure the longsword and require stitches is because the kunai was covered in a lot of chakra?" Kushimaru Kurihara thought to himself, feeling a slight numbness in his hands as he gripped the longsword. He couldn't help but be secretly shocked: "This guy in the black robe in front of me is so strong. I feel like even the strongest member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Suigetsu Hozuki, is no match for him!"

Then, Kushimaru Kurishari looked up and asked, "How did you find out about me?"

Tianqing didn't reply. Instead, he drew his snake-shaped sword and blocked another weapon that was thrusting from behind. It turned out to be another Mist Ninja who was lying in ambush nearby!

The attack came from a large, short knife, its blade flashing with sparks. "Droplet Explosion!!"

"Serpent Sword and Shield Form!" Tian Qing flicked her finger, and the serpent sword instantly transformed, blocking the explosion from the opponent's weapon.

As a ninja, never believe a word the enemy says in battle; this is common sense among ninjas.

After Kushimaru Kurihara blocked Ameharu's attack and revealed his position, he immediately began using verbal deception to try and mislead Ameharu. By asking questions and deliberately using singular pronouns like "I" in his speech, he tried to make Ameharu think that he was the only one there, so that his companions hiding on the other side could launch a sneak attack.

He never expected that Tian Qing had already determined their location through her hearing and hadn't been fooled at all. Although the sound was greatly weakened in the strange fog, Tian Qing still managed to find the enemy at such close range thanks to her excellent hearing as a listener.

The second attacker, a Kirigakure ninja with his head wrapped in cloth and wearing a single eyepatch, was none other than Jinpachi Munashi, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist! He and Kushimaru Kurihara were known as the "Ruthless Duo," and the two worked together to kill more than fifty Jonin during the First Shinobi World War, earning them the reputation as the best partners among Kirigakure ninja.

After blocking the attack from Mushishi Jinpachi, Tenqing finally spoke. Her youthful voice, filtered through the Ultraman mask, became a rough male accent: "Your invisibility killing technique is meaningless in front of me."

At the same time, Tianqing flicked his wrist, and the snake-shaped sword twisted and opened its large mouth, biting fiercely at Kushimaru Kurihara!

All three were seasoned ninjas, so they naturally had no habit of engaging in idle banter. The only reason they spoke during battle was to use language to deceive and mislead, and even directly weaken the enemy's fighting spirit—all for the sake of survival.

"Perfect timing!" A cold glint flashed in Kushimaru Kurihara's eyes. "I'm going to sew you to this rock!!"

Before he could finish speaking, Kushimaru Kurihara, wielding his long sword *Sewing Needle*, launched a vicious straight thrust at Tensei.

At the same time, Mushishi Jinpachi also rushed forward with his ninja sword. Taking advantage of Tensei's dodge of Kurisui Kushimaru's attack, he mercilessly smashed down on Tensei's back: "Flying Spray Explosion Blade!"

Among the Seven Ninja Swords, the longsword *Sewing Needle* possesses a blade capable of piercing and sewing everything together. Anyone stabbed by this sword will have their wound filled with numerous sharp spikes before being sewn onto another object. Kushimaru Kurihara's favorite activity was sewing multiple enemies together and then watching them die in agony.

The Exploding Blade*Splash has explosive power. It will immediately explode as soon as it touches the skin. Its power is no less than that of a detonating talisman. Combined with the explosive ninjutsu trained by Muna Jinpachi, it is only necessary to lightly touch the opponent's skin with the blade to blow them to pieces.

With weapons that kill instantly upon contact, coupled with the perfect teamwork between the two, this duo, known as the "Ruthless Duo," has absolute confidence in their close-combat abilities!

However, today, their confidence was challenged. The man in the black robe and mask in front of them actually blocked their way with a strangely shaped sword!

His attacks didn't stop at all. Muli Jinba let out a burst of wild laughter: "Interesting. It's been a long time since I've seen a guy with such good skills as you! It's no wonder we've been lying in ambush here for ten days!" He had a confident and fearless expression, as if a group of reinforcements was about to arrive.

At the same time, Tian Qing used her listening ability and heard the other party's headband give completely contradictory information: "He's lying. There's actually no ambush or reinforcements here. They just happened to pass by and saw a ship. Then, when they realized you were coming, they just hid!"

Upon hearing this, Tian Qing couldn't help but curse inwardly: What a despicable and shameless group of Mist Ninja! They lie through their teeth and have completely lowered the credibility of all ninjas!

Then Tian Qing spoke, his voice, disguised by the Ultraman mask, sounding unusually low and hoarse: "You dare to obstruct our Akatsuki organization's work? Our organization will not let Kirigakure get away with this!"

Thus, the Akatsuki organization appeared before the world several years before its founder, Nagato, was born.

PS: Please recommend and favorite!

Chapter Eleven: Ruthless

"The Akatsuki?" Kushimaru Kurihara appeared nonchalant, but secretly memorized the name. Not only was the organization incredibly powerful, but it also dared to spout such arrogant words after hearing about the Land of Water. It seemed this organization was indeed extraordinary.

This organization, with such skilled members and showing no fear of Kirigakure, clearly possesses considerable power. Therefore, upon returning to the village, I will request that the higher-ups thoroughly investigate this organization; however, before that, we must first eliminate them.

"It's time to use that move!" Kushimaru Kurihara made up his mind, gave Jinpachi Munashi a wink, and then slashed fiercely, colliding heavily with the snake-shaped sword. Using the impact of the collision, he turned around and quickly retreated, widening the distance between himself and Tensei. Then he quickly began to form hand seals.

The three of them had no intention of using hand seals or ninjutsu when they fought, and only used pure taijutsu to attack each other, because the distance between them was too close.

In ninja combat, distance from the enemy is a crucial factor, determining whether a ninja should use ninjutsu or taijutsu for attack. Since most ninjutsu requires the ninja to form hand seals, this means that to use ninjutsu, a ninja must put away their weapons and be unarmed.

Even with Itachi Uchiha's hand speed of five hand seals per second, and considering the time for raising his hands to form the seals and releasing the ninjutsu, it generally takes a ninja no less than one second to unleash an attack ninjutsu. In close-quarters combat, one second is enough for the opponent to rush in front of you and cut you in two.

This is why hand seal-less ninjutsu like the Rasengan is so important, because there are very few ninjutsu that can be used instantly in close combat and have great destructive power.

After creating some distance, Kushimaru Kurihara immediately dropped his weapon and began forming hand seals. This was an extremely risky move in battle. Even though he had created some distance, given the agility that Tensei had just demonstrated, he probably wouldn't even have time to unleash a ninjutsu before Tensei could reach him.

Doing this alone would be suicidal, but now, Kushimaru Kurihara had complete confidence in his partner. He had been partners with Jinpachi Murashi for many years, and he knew very well that when he formed hand seals, Jinpachi Murashi would definitely hold back Tensei's pace.

Sure enough, after Kushimaru Kurihara retreated, Jinpachi Munashi immediately stood in front of Tensei, gripping the Bakuto*Hibuchi with both hands, his moves were wide and powerful, he looked like a desperate warrior, with the aura of a one-man army that could hold off ten thousand.

As for the possibility of accidentally injuring Jinpachi with his advanced ninjutsu, Kushimaru Kurihara never considered it. As a ninja, isn't it normal to die or be injured in battle? He knew very well that if Jinpachi found an opportunity to form hand seals, he would relentlessly entangle his opponent, without caring at all about the possibility of being accidentally injured.

The "ruthless duo" of the Mist Ninja are ruthless to their enemies and equally ruthless to their own people.

"Water Release: Great Water Tornado Technique!!"

A gigantic water dragon hovered in mid-air, constantly drawing seawater from the surrounding ocean, its body radiating a chilling mist. The already powerful water-escape technique was further amplified in the face of the abundant water on the sea surface, taking advantage of the terrain.

The previously indistinct patterns on the water dragon's body had transformed into a hard carapace, and its body, which was originally the size of a small building, had instantly swelled to the size of a small mountain. Then, the water dragon opened its gaping maw, large enough to swallow an elephant whole, and charged menacingly towards Tian Qing!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

High waves surged across the sea, turning the once calm surface into a turbulent sea, littered with countless marine creatures killed in the battle, as if struck by a massive typhoon. The reefs where the battle had taken place were shattered by the water jets, the immense impact even creating a layer of mist that drifted across the battlefield.

"Success!" Kushimaru Kurishari wasn't surprised by the result. With the abundant water supply, the power of his Water Release technique was amplified to an unimaginable level. Even if there was a mountain standing in front of him, he was confident he could shatter it. As for the snake-shaped sword and shield that Tensei used in the battle, it was utterly insignificant in the face of this powerful Water Release technique.

Muli Jinpachi lay on the water's surface, panting heavily. Just moments before, when the water dragon crashed down, he had unleashed all his chakra and sprinted away to survive. Due to the excessive chakra he had used, he could no longer float on the surface and most of his body was submerged.

"Why didn't they chase after me just now?" Muli Jinpachi recalled the other party's last actions. Facing the oncoming water dragon, the other party did not make any move to run away. If it were him, he would have taken someone down with him even if he died.

PS: Bonus chapter for donations

Chapter Twelve: The Colossus of Obelisk

As the water gradually calmed, the mist that had been billowing across the battlefield slowly settled, revealing the scene inside.

Kurishi Kushimaru stared in shock at the battlefield where he had just witnessed the enemy's corpses. Instead, there was a towering blue giant.

This is a giant with only its waist and upper body suspended on the sea. It is deep blue in color, with its head bowed and back bent. It stretches out two strong arms to surround Tian Qing, protecting her completely.

The giant's skin had the texture of a living being, but Kushimaru Kurihara swore he had never heard of such a life form in the ninja world. The numerous faintly glowing patterns on the giant's skin were exactly the same as the giant barrier technique he had seen on the walls of Kirigakure, but he remembered the village's barrier team clearly stating that such giant barriers could only be inscribed on inanimate objects, otherwise they wouldn't work.

Then, the giant moved.

It raised its head, and only then did Kushimaru Kurihara and Jinpachi Murashi notice that the giant actually had a pair of tall antlers growing from its head. When the giant straightened up, Kushimaru Kurihara could hardly believe his eyes; this giant was taller than the walls of Kirigakure!

At that moment, Kushimaru Kurihara was once again overwhelmed by fear, muttering to himself, "What is this?"

This time, Tianqing answered quickly: "This is my summoning beast, Obelisk the Tormentor."

The giant soldier glanced at Kushimaru and Jinpachi with a human-like expression, his eyes full of mockery, like a god seeing two swaggering ants, and then slowly raised his fist, which was as big as three or four people.

"So this is your trump card? Damn it!" Jinpachi Munashi's face flushed red as he shouted, "Don't underestimate the power of the Mist Ninja!!" Then he desperately squeezed out the chakra in his body, rapidly swinging his explosive blade *Higanbana*. The fear and anger in the face of death made him vaguely break through his limits: "Higanbana Nineteen-Slash Explosive Blade!!"

Nineteen explosive blades formed a blade array, enveloping Tian Qing. Even in this situation, Wu Li Jinba remained rational. With his attack power, he was merely a tickle to such a massive summoning beast, so he naturally chose to prioritize attacking the summoner.

Upon seeing Mushiro's attack, Ameharu smiled slightly. How could he not have anticipated that the enemy would concentrate their forces on the shaman? As a giant puppet, he had already installed a dedicated control pod in the chest of the Titan of Obelisk for the shaman to ride in and pilot. With just a thought, the Titan would automatically place him into the control pod.

Unlike other summoning ninjas, Tianqing wouldn't foolishly stand on the summoning beast's shoulder and wait for the enemy to attack. The best way to prevent the enemy from prioritizing the summoner is to hide the summoner inside the summoning beast's body, right?

Moreover, the opponent's attack is no match for Obelisk's Colossus defenses!

With a backhand slap, as if swatting away mosquitoes, the giant warrior shattered all the incoming explosive blades, leaving not even a spark!

To build this giant puppet, Tianqing spent countless amounts of money, and all the barrier teams in Konoha worked together to inscribe countless barrier spells on the puppet's shell. Afterwards, Tianqing fed the puppet a Devil Fruit, turning it into a peculiar life form called the Giant God Soldier.

With the combined blessing of the barrier technique and the Devil Fruit, the Giant Warrior possesses extremely terrifying defensive power and an indestructible body. The deadly attack from Mujina Shinpachi was not even as effective as a gentle breeze.

After shattering the opponent's flying blade attack, the Colossus raised its hand again with an agility completely different from other giant golems, and slammed it heavily towards Muri Jinpachi.

The Devil Fruit granted the Colossus more than just increased resilience. After consuming the Devil Fruit, the Colossus, now a living being, possessed agility unmatched by other giant golems, and its arms attacked at an astonishing speed.

"Snapped!!!"

Like a strong man swatting a cockroach with a slipper, the giant warrior slammed Muri Shinpachi deep into the sea with one palm, creating a huge crater in the water and splashing up a tall wave. Then, traces of blood slowly rose to the surface.

This is where the advantages of combining a giant puppet with a Devil Fruit become apparent: it not only benefits from the Devil Fruit's enhancements but also avoids the side effect of being afraid of seawater.

Kushimaru Kurihara finally realized what was happening. Without hesitation, his face pale, he turned and ran: "Monster! We must get back to the village immediately and call for reinforcements!"

As a ninja with rich combat experience, after observing the battle with the Giant Warrior, Kushimaru Kurihara immediately realized the Giant Warrior's weakness: although its attack speed with both hands was extremely fast, its own movement speed was insufficient! Therefore, if he used all his strength to retreat, the opponent would definitely not have time to stop him!

Kurihan Kushimaru secretly made up his mind that once he returned to the village, he would immediately lead a large number of reinforcements back, and then he would make that damned man in black robes wish he were dead.

"As expected of an elite ninja, they spotted the problem with the Giant's mobility at a glance," Amemori said, watching Kushimaru Kurihara's retreating figure at high speed. "But how could I not have considered this problem? Did you think that the Giant would be helpless just because we created a little distance?"

"Let's see the Giant Warrior's Devil Fruit ability! Gum-Gum Fists blasting everywhere!!!"

That's right. The Devil Fruit that Ame obtained from the last One Piece world was the Gum-Gum Fruit that originally belonged to Luffy. This is the real reason why the Giant Warrior can perform such high-speed attacks.

"Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora!"

The giant's arms suddenly extended to an unbelievable length, and in an instant, it threw hundreds of punches in the direction the enemy was fleeing!

Kushimaru was instantly reduced to a pulp, but the Giant Warrior's fist continued its relentless momentum, the swirling wind even piercing through the thick fog surrounding the Hidden Mist Village, creating a massive hole in it. Through the hole, starlight shone on the sea surface of the Hidden Mist Village for the first time.

The combat capability test of the Colossus was completed. Tian Qing smiled, released the Colossus from its summoning, boarded the small boat he had deliberately prepared, installed the propulsion system, and quickly left.

P.S. It seems I'm not destined for perfect attendance; I couldn't even manage the first day.

The new traitor in the interlude

In a ward at the Kirigakure Hospital, young Kisame Hoshigaki sat blankly on the bed, staring at Kirigakure outside the window. The distant sky was perpetually shrouded in thick fog. Kisame used to love this kind of weather, but now, he felt no joy whatsoever.

At this moment, Kisame Hoshigaki's head and body were wrapped in bandages, making him look like a mummy. His left hand was in a cast, and his two legs were hanging from the suspenders of the hospital bed.

His left hand was broken, both legs were comminuted fractured, his skull was cracked, five ribs were broken, and he suffered 73 fractures of varying sizes all over his body. Several internal organs were ruptured and he was bleeding heavily. When Kisame Hoshigaki was sent to the Kirigakure Hospital, the medical ninjas even thought he wouldn't live more than three days.

However, Kisame Hoshigaki miraculously survived, and his body continued to recover. According to the doctor's estimate, he would be able to be discharged from the hospital in about two months and return to his daily ninja missions.

"This must be my two seniors protecting me," Kisame Hoshigaki thought to himself.

The ward was unusually quiet, with no one else around, except for the occasional mechanical beeping of the medical monitoring equipment.

I remember the day I set off, it was just as quiet around me.

Memories of the past floated through Kisame Hoshigaki's mind. As a candidate for the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the young Kisame Hoshigaki was directly recruited into the Anbu after demonstrating his talent in swordsmanship, and he acted alongside the current Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

However, due to Kisame Hoshigaki's bizarre appearance, which made him look nothing like a human, his companions didn't interact with him much. In the cold and impersonal Kirigakure, this lack of popularity wasn't a big deal; after all, according to the Blood Mist policy, his companions wouldn't live long anyway.

However, having no comrades means having no opponents to practice with, and having no real combat practice means that one's own strength will stagnate. Those who have not been tested in real combat have a very high mortality rate on their first mission, which is common knowledge in Kirigakure.

"Fortunately, I had the help of two seniors," Kisame Hoshigaki thought to himself.

For some reason, Kushimaru Kurishari and Jinpachi Murashi took Kisame Hoshigaki with them, carried him on several missions, and saved him several times.

Kisame Hoshigaki will never forget that day.

That day, two senior officers led me on a patrol through the thick fog, and we unexpectedly discovered a reef with a small boat and some supplies on it.

The two seniors immediately recognized that this was left behind as an escape route for spies hiding in Kirigakure, so they planned to send a signal to call the villagers. Unexpectedly, a man in black robes ran towards them at that moment.