*Ding~*
A crisp tallic clash echoed through the air.
Seii slashed out with his blade, knocking the kunai out of Yamada Shinichi's hand.
Without pausing, Seii swiftly rotated his wrist, slicing horizontally across Yamada Shinichi's chest, leaving a long, bloody gash.
"Ugh~"
A searing pain shot through Yamada Shinichi, causing him to let out a muffled groan as he staggered backward several steps, montarily widening the gap between himself and Seii.
Just as he was about to catch his breath and pull out another kunai, Seii was already closing in.
*Whoosh~*
A cold gleam flashed from Seii's blade as he swung again, this ti aiming directly for Yamada Shinichi's neck.
At that mont, Yamada Shinichi was too weak to dodge.
In the nick of ti, a kunai shot in from the side.
A chill ran down Seii's spine.
Out of the corner of his eye, Seii spotted the incoming kunai and realized that if he continued with his attack, he would inevitably be struck by it.
Even if it didn't kill him, it would leave him gravely injured.
Clearly, the timing of the attack was deliberate.
"Hmph!"
Seii snorted coldly, abandoning his attack for the mont. He shifted slightly to the side, slicing the incoming kunai out of the air with a horizontal slash of his blade.
Because of this, Yamada Shinichi narrowly escaped death.
Without hesitation, Yamada Shinichi leaped back several tis, putting more distance between him and Seii.
Seii didn't bother to pursue. He cast a glance at Yamada Shinichi but lost interest.
After their previous exchanges, Seii had already seen through his opponent's tactics. Creating another opportunity to finish him off wouldn't be difficult.
Besides, the slash he landed earlier on Yamada Shinichi's chest, though not fatal, had severely weakened him. His remaining combat strength was likely less than half of his peak.
Thus, there was no need to chase him down relentlessly.
Right now, the two Mist ninjas in front of him were more pressing.
Seii turned his attention to where the kunai had co from and saw two Mist Jonin approaching him from opposite sides.
Behind them lay a fallen Leaf Jonin, his throat slit, lifeless on the ground.
In this support squad from the Leaf Village, there had been six Jonin, while the Mist had ten. Seii had been holding off three of them, leaving seven Mist Jonin remaining.
Seven against six.
Five of the Leaf Jonin were engaged in one-on-one duels with the Mist Jonin, but this particular Leaf Jonin had been caught between two enemies.
It was no surprise that he was killed.
After all, not every Jonin had Seii's strength, able to take on multiple opponents and still prevail.
In fact, aside from a few geniuses, the vast majority of Jonin were just ordinary people, with their combat strength fairly even.
In a one-on-one duel, unless there was a significant tactical disadvantage, the chances of victory were about fifty-fifty.
At worst, it might be sixty-forty.
And in a chaotic battle full of unexpected twists, such small differences could be negligible.
Jonin with a win rate far higher than this were the elite of the elites, commonly referred to as "elite Jonin."
The fallen Leaf Jonin was clearly not one of these elite.
Facing two opponents of the sa level, it was no surprise that he lost.
Moreover, there was no guarantee that his opponents were of the sa level as him.
Seii glanced at the Mist Jonin on the right. With his Sharingan, he could see that this Jonin had chakra reserves far beyond the average Jonin.
Additionally, there was a constant, highly active flow of chakra in his body, suggesting he was continuously maintaining a certain technique.
Compared to the slain Leaf Jonin, this Mist Jonin seed like an elite.
But that would only be confird through battle.
With that thought, Seii's body glowed faintly with blue light as he activated the "Instant Blade Technique."
In an instant, his speed soared to the limit. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the Mist Jonin.
Their eyes t, and Seii prepared to cast the "Sharingan Genjutsu."
However, his opponent was quick to react, sensing the danger imdiately. The mont Seii activated his Sharingan, the Mist Jonin closed his eyes.
Seeing this, Seii had no choice but to abandon the genjutsu.
But his attack couldn't stop.
*Whoosh~*
The blade glead.
Seii swung his sword, aiming for his opponent's neck.
*Ding~*
Another crisp tallic clash sounded.
The Mist Jonin raised his short sword, precisely blocking Seii's strike.
Before Seii could adjust his stance, his opponent pressed forward.
The Mist Jonin twisted his body, dodging Seii's blade, and his short sword scraped against Seii's long sword, aiming straight for his neck.
*Screech~~*
The grinding of sword against sword produced a harsh, nerve-wracking sound as sparks flew between them.
Seii's eyes lit up at his opponent's reaction. Despite exchanging only a single move, it was enough for him to see many things.
For example, his opponent's swordsmanship was quite skilled.
This sparked Seii's interest.
Having mastered both the "Konoha Style Swordsmanship" and "Uchiha Style Swordsmanship," and fused them into a perfected "Sword Art," he had further developed ultimate techniques like the "Instant Blade Technique" and the "Phantom Blade Technique."
Most sword-wielding ninjas were no longer a match for him.
Now, finally encountering a worthy opponent, Seii was eager to test his skills.
With that thought, Seii leaned back, narrowly dodging the Mist Jonin's short sword.
Without hesitation, he unleashed his perfected swordsmanship and engaged his opponent in a fierce exchange.
For a while, the clashing of blades echoed without pause.
Seii's instincts were correct; his opponent's swordsmanship was indeed impressive.
If it had been an ordinary Jonin, they would have already been caught in a fatal mistake and killed in short order.
That was likely how the fallen Leaf Jonin had died.
His opponent's current state reminded Seii of himself before awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan, when he could defeat many Jonin using only swordsmanship.
Unfortunately for his opponent, he was now facing Seii.
In terms of swordsmanship alone, let alone overall combat ability, Seii far surpassed the average Jonin.
After a fierce exchange, Seii had not only avoided making any mistakes but had also probed his opponent's limits.
At a critical mont, Seii spotted a flaw in his opponent's technique. He struck with precision, slashing toward his neck.
*Pfft~*
However, to Seii's surprise, there was no sound of the blade slicing through flesh, nor any blood.
Though his blade had connected with the Mist Jonin's neck, at the mont of impact, his opponent's neck, along with half of his body, turned into water.
"The Hydration Secret Technique?!"
With just a glance, Seii recognized the technique.
This ability to transform one's body into a liquid state could only be achieved through the Hydration Technique, a secret jutsu of the Hozuki Clan from the Hidden Mist.
Seii hadn't expected his opponent to be a mber of the Hozuki Clan, and judging by his skill, likely a core mber at that.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have mastered such a secret technique.
At that mont, Seii realized the technique he had seen earlier within the Mist Jonin's chakra flow—the one constantly active—was indeed the Hydration Technique!
So, it was a semi-passive ability after all.
It made sense. Otherwise, how could he have accurately liquefied the targeted area at the exact mont of attack?
If it required precise pre-emptive activation, the technique would be too impractical and wouldn't be considered a secret of the Hozuki Clan.
"I wonder if I could learn this technique?"
The thought suddenly crossed Seii's mind.
But he quickly shook his head. The Hydration Technique wasn't sothing that could be learned just by manipulating chakra.
There were many prerequisite steps involved.
And that was the crucial part.
Seii doubted that even if he defeated his opponent, he could extract the necessary knowledge from his mind. Such secrets were likely protected by seals.
So, relying on the Sharingan's copying ability to learn it was out of the question.
As for reverse-engineering it from his opponent's body…
That was sothing Orochimaru would do, not him.
He'd rather spend that ti improving his "Mirror of the Heart Technique" proficiency.
After all, what's a re Hydration Technique compared to his "Heavenly Subjugation"?
(End of Chapter)
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