Chapter 99: Turning the Tide (Part 1)
Feeling the pain on his cheek and the warm blood slowly trickling down, Fuguki Suikazan,
one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and wielder of the great sword Samehada, stood there completely stunned, staring incredulously at Koshino in front of him.
Even Fuguki himself couldn't believe that the injury on his face was caused by the kid standing before him.
Especially after recalling the previous exchange with Koshino, Fuguki's eyes were filled with confusion. How did that kid see me?
Could it be that he saw through Biwa Jūzō's Hidden Mist Jutsu? Impossible!
The Hidden Mist Jutsu is Biwa Jūzō's original secret technique. How could a mere kid see through it?
And how did the wound on my cheek appear when that kid's kunai clearly didn't touch me? Is this an illusion or reality?
As Fuguki locked his confused gaze on Koshino's frail figure, question after question emerged, leaving even an experienced and assassination-savvy Mist Jōnin like Fuguki dumbfounded.
Little did he know, while Fuguki was lost in confusion, Koshino was equally bewildered.
Just as Fuguki charged towards Koshino with the great sword Samehada, aiming to strike down Koshino's frail figure, Koshino,
having shed the shackles of "survival" and suddenly unleashed his chakra, had only one thought: to fight Fuguki to the death!
Then, as if the shackles of "survival" truly shattered, the potential hidden within Koshino, previously restrained by some kind of lock, suddenly erupted!
Under the dense cover of the blood mist, Koshino could actually "see" Fuguki's massive form!
When Fuguki appeared before Koshino with the great sword Samehada, Koshino, with his potential unleashed, had a very simple idea.
That was to infuse his kunai with wind-nature chakra refined to the extreme!
By using wind-nature chakra refined to the extreme, he aimed to enhance the lethality of the kunai and deliver a fatal blow to Fuguki!
Fixing his gaze on Fuguki's figure, Koshino controlled the wind-nature chakra refined to the extreme.
Almost at the instant Fuguki swung down the great sword Samehada, Koshino's pupils slightly contracted, and he slashed his kunai towards Fuguki!
Undoubtedly, Koshino's action of slashing down the kunai would seem laughable under normal circumstances.
After all, Koshino was wielding only a short kunai. Did he think he was using a katana?
Not to mention Fuguki's massive form, which was far beyond the reach of Koshino's kunai.
Even the length of the great sword Samehada couldn't be compared to an ordinary kunai!
So, when Koshino faced Fuguki wielding the great sword Samehada with just a kunai, he was at an inherent disadvantage.
But who would have thought that as Koshino's kunai slowly descended, and just as Fuguki's great sword Samehada was about to "slice" into Koshino,
absorbing the blue chakra "burning" on Koshino, there was a sudden "whoosh" sound!
The thin and sharp wind-nature chakra unexpectedly extended the range of the kunai's damage at that moment!
A blade of wind extended from Koshino's kunai!
Before Fuguki could bring down the great sword Samehada, the wind blade extended from Koshino's kunai successfully injured Fuguki's cheek!
And even as the crimson blood flowed from Fuguki's cheek, the wind-nature chakra, like a wind blade, continued to hum and buzz, attached to Koshino's kunai!
With his palm tightly gripping the transformed kunai, Koshino, who could now "see" Fuguki's figure with his own eyes, slowly curved his lips into a confident smile!
"Maybe... Maybe even I don't understand how I saw through the Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
"Maybe... Maybe even I don't understand, what kind of mutation occurred with the wind attribute chakra on the kunai!"
"But right now, there's only one thing I need to understand!"
"And that's with the power I currently wield, there's a good chance I can lead the Blade Squad out of this predicament!"
"If that's the case, what's the use of overthinking things?"
"Right now, I just need to hold onto one thought! And that's to kill all the Mist Shinobi in front of me and break through with the Blade Squad!"
"Boom!"
A blazing conviction filled Koshino's eyes.
Immediately, the Fuguki in front of Koshino suddenly realized that the "burning" azure chakra on Koshino's body had become even more intense!
However, Koshino didn't give the Fuguki more time to react. Taking advantage of the moment when his shackles were fully released,
with the firm intention of leading the Blade Squad to break through, just as the Fuguki noticed the change in Koshino, Koshino's figure once again vanished from the spot!
"Wind Body Flicker!"
"Whoosh!"
No mistakes, no hesitation, just like reading a book on 69shu!
That was the Wind Body Flicker, the secret technique of the Fourth Hokage!
Seizing the great opportunity to defeat the Fuguki in the first round, Koshino, with increasingly resolute eyes,
didn't hesitate at all and used the secret technique passed down by the Fourth Hokage to confront the Fuguki in front of him!
Moreover, when Koshino used the Wind Body Flicker again, even without much time to think, a profound and mysterious insight emerged in his mind!
If before, when Koshino controlled the wind attribute chakra, he was merely imitating the records of the Fourth Hokage's secret technique,
blending himself into the "wind," now Koshino not only blended himself into the "wind" but also perfectly combined with it, mastering the power of the "wind"!
When the Wind Body Flicker was suddenly used, what did the Fuguki see in front of Koshino?
In Koshino, the Fuguki seemed to see the shadow of the Fourth Hokage!
In other words, Koshino, who could now control the "wind," had astonishingly broken through the second stage of the wind attribute chakra nature transformation!
The secret technique of the Fourth Hokage he used could already be compared to the original creator!
And under the exclusive secret technique of the Fourth Hokage, did the Fuguki have time to dodge?
The answer was definitely no! The Wind Body Flicker of the Fourth Hokage, while not unrivaled in the world, was not something just anyone could withstand!
Moreover, among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the Fuguki was not originally known for "speed."
So, when Koshino used the Wind Body Flicker, the Fuguki saw Koshino's figure flash and disappear.
Even though in the midst of the Hidden Mist Jutsu, the Fuguki could observe the surrounding environment without any hindrance, unfortunately, Koshino's Wind Body Flicker was too fast.
As soon as the Fuguki noticed Koshino's figure, he found that Koshino, using the Wind Body Flicker, had already appeared behind him!
In the next second, when Koshino slashed down with the kunai in his hand, the extending wind blade fiercely cut into the Fuguki's back!
"Die!"