NARUTO: I, KIMIMARO EVOLVE MY BLOODLINE LIMIT

The Ice Release kekkei genkai was a rare and peculiar power.

In the original series, only Haku was known to possess a pure Ice Release bloodline. Yet despite its potential, Haku relied almost exclusively on his Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals, seldom displaying the full range of what Ice Release might offer.

Perhaps it was because he genuinely detested killing, or perhaps Masashi Kishimoto never expanded the concept beyond its initial scope. Either way, Ice Release felt underdeveloped—until now.

Yukikawa Himi was different. His Ice Release wasn't just flashy—it was functional and diverse, capable of being molded into a variety of forms and battlefield tactics.

And there was another figure who had developed a unique interpretation of the style—Renga.

"Ice Lens: Solar Focus!"

A gigantic ice mirror formed high in the sky. As sunlight passed through the lens, it converged into a blazing beam that lanced down toward the sea.

"That was close!" Guren narrowly avoided the blast.

Wait—narrowly?

A beam of light had actually come that close to striking her.

"This technique's accuracy is awful," she muttered.

But Renga was laughing triumphantly. "Even if it's hard to aim, the destructive power is immense! You'll all be vaporized—just wait!"

Guren quickly realized the flaw. Renga's move, while flashy, had a long charge-up time. Of the four or five beams he'd fired, only one had even come close to hitting. It was more dramatic than practical.

Still, the damage was real. The crystal shield Guren had formed over the water shattered instantly under the light beam's intensity.

Far away, Yukikawa Himi, currently engaged with Kimimaro, took note of the technique and was momentarily impressed.

"He can manipulate Ice Release into something like that? What an imagination... perhaps he's worth recruiting."

Their eyes met briefly across the battlefield—two warriors of Ice Release recognizing each other's potential. But as their gazes locked, Himi saw it: Renga would never be the type to serve someone else.

"Heh. A lone wolf. Interesting."

"Not a good idea to let your guard down mid-fight."

Kimimaro's massive spiral bone spear tore through Himi's ice dragon, narrowly missing his chest.

"Ice Release: Giant Ice Sword!"

Himi retaliated, summoning a massive sword of ice to clash with Kimimaro head-on.

Even Kimimaro was stunned at the earlier light beam—it looked like something out of a sci-fi film. But upon closer analysis, it was little more than impractical showmanship.

Gathering sunlight? Requiring clear skies? Precise angles?

It would be devastating in large-scale warfare, sure, but for one-on-one combat? It was a liability.

"Haha! Think I can't aim? I was waiting for the perfect angle!" Renga howled. "Now you'll see the real power of my technique!"

His kekkei genkai was weak, so he'd spent years perfecting this "ultimate" move. He refused to believe it would always miss.

The ice mirror rotated. Another brilliant beam of light burst forth—not a single flash, but a continuous, cutting ray of energy, like a massive lightsaber, sweeping toward the cruise ship.

"Damn! If that hits, the ship's gone!"

Kimimaro turned back. "You shouldn't have looked away either."

"Ice Release: Countless Ice Spikes!"

"Bone Release: Bone Wings!"

With a snap, Kimimaro sprouted massive skeletal wings, shielding the skyward blast. "You're right. I'll leave the ship to my comrades."

Outside, red crystals burst into existence—Guren's Crystal Release enveloped the cruise ship in a massive Scarlet Fruit, creating a fortress-like dome.

The deadly beam cut across the crystal, but failed to breach it.

"Impressive," Guren murmured. "He's already able to scale it to this size…"

On the deck, Jugo, now transformed, was kneeling—his skin dark and marked, his chakra flooding into the crystal to maintain it.

The Scarlet Fruit, the pinnacle of Crystal Release defense, was holding—for now. But even it had a time limit. The crystal dome sealed off airflow, and with so many aboard, oxygen was limited.

"Jugo… thank you."

"Now," Guren said, her eyes focused, "I know how to counter Renga's technique."

Meanwhile, the Snow Ninja, who had been preparing to target the ship, switched targets. All attention turned to Kimimaro.

They knew it—he was the greatest threat.

Elsewhere, Jiga was laughing maniacally.

"You think you two can stop me?"

"Even on the sea, I brought plenty of iron sand. I've trained by eating iron—my entire body is a conductor! Everything bends to my magnetic field!"

His hand swept out, sending waves of glimmering iron sand at the two young opponents.

"Ranmaru-nii, did you see it?"

Hanabi landed beside him, having just dispatched several genin. "His chakra is unstable—he has to manually control it to avoid being crushed by his own sand.

If I'd already mastered higher-level Gentle Fist, I could stop him with a single hit. But for now, I'll need your help."

Ranmaru nodded. "Understood. Hold him off just a little longer."

His eyes shut tight, feeling the charge building in his twin lightning blades.

"This Lightning Blade… I haven't used its full power yet. But this time, I will. Against that Jiga, it has to be one strike—one kill."

Behind his closed lids, his Red Eye burned—tracking Jiga's every movement, every magnetic pulse, and every opening.

Since Kimimaro trusted him, Ranmaru knew he had to deliver a decisive blow.

The twin Lightning Blades in his hands crackled with chakra, their shape perfectly tuned to disrupt magnetic flow—an ideal counter to Jiga's Iron Sand manipulation. But that only reinforced Ranmaru's urgency. If Jiga sensed the danger and chose to retreat, Ranmaru doubted he could keep up. His chakra-enhanced vision was powerful, but physically, his body still lagged far behind standard shinobi.

Meanwhile, young Hanabi fought with firm resolve, pushing back the enemy ninjas who had slipped past the front line.

She caught sight of the incoming iron sand, reshaped into deadly, glinting blades that surged toward her. Her eyes sharpened.

If this were Hinata-nee or Neji-nii, they'd handle this easily with Rotation or Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. But I haven't mastered either yet... Still, I won't let myself be outdone here!

She centered herself and circulated chakra through her tenketsu.

"I can't perform the full Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, and my Rotation is incomplete—but Big Brother Kimimaro's training taught me to fight through that. Even a partial technique can make a difference!"

"Eight Trigrams: Palm Windmill!"

It was a modified opening stance of the Rotation technique—spinning just enough to knock aside the first wave of blades. The follow-up came quickly, a denser barrage of iron sand.

"Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms! Again—Thirty-Two Palms!"

Hanabi stepped forward, striking with speed and precision. Her palms landed rapid blows, generating bursts of chakra that disrupted the iron sand mid-air. Her movements weren't as smooth as Neji's, but they were enough.

From a distance, Jiga's grin twisted.

"Tch... This brat's tougher than she looks! But let's see how she handles this!"

He raised both arms, the iron sand behind him roiling into a massive construct—spiked, whirling, and humming with magnetic force.

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