Naruto: I, Uchiha, Just Want to Die

Chapter 107: Death Approaches! Uchiha Ci, Catch the Sword!

Everything before his eyes turned into black and white lines.

All sounds stretched into a single piercing tone, and everything he could touch, everything he could sense, was drowned in a dazzling white light.

It was as if hell itself trembled.

Even the sea under the force of such power had no choice but to cry out in submission.

At the epicenter of the clash between two colossal swords, the seawater split apart, sending towering waves surging to the heavens!

Birds flying across the horizon were startled by the deafening boom and fell abruptly.

Countless civilians in the Land of Hot Water, already plagued by disaster, simultaneously raised their heads, gazing at the radiant beam that soared into the heavens.

A ferocious wind howled as the center of the battlefield erupted. Even a casual sword swing from the combatants could unleash massive, exaggerated wind blades.

The Root ninjas nearby turned pale and scrambled to retreat.

What they saw left them utterly dumbfounded, staring blankly at the two figures clashing with their massive swords at the center of the battlefield.

One wielded a red blade, the other a blue, each creating bold arcs as their strikes collided within the thick white mist at astonishing speed.

Each collision caused sparks to burst forth, staining the foggy battlefield a vibrant yellow.

The blades carved luminous crescent trails, and the interplay of light and shadow refracted endlessly through the mist.

Amidst this chaos, two ecstatic, almost euphoric, roars of rage echoed from within the haze—

"Uchiha Ci!!!"

"Hozuki Mangetsu!!!"

With a deafening BOOM, the two massive swords collided once again, unleashing a whirlwind that scattered the mist in an instant!

This time, the battle leaned toward the upper hand of Hozuki Mangetsu. His blue blade, forged from the legendary Seven Swords of the Mist, sliced through the fiery red sword inch by inch, ultimately cleaving downward!

At this critical juncture, the broken red sword suddenly retracted, transforming into a torrent of chakra that concentrated on Uchiha Ci's fist.

The fist glowed brilliantly, resembling the first light of dawn piercing through the horizon.

With one punch, the energy blade shattered!

The battlefield returned to a tense equilibrium.

But the tide of battle had already shifted.

Hozuki Mangetsu, gasping heavily, stood on the water with his sword as support,

while Uchiha Ci, lying on the water's surface, panted laboriously, as if utterly drained.

Mangetsu's expression darkened, his tone icy as he sneered,

"Uchiha Ci, that technique you used, the one focused on your fist—you can't pull that off again, can you?"

"You can't keep fighting me like this all day," he added with a glare filled with frustration.

"You sneaky liar!"

At the last moment, Uchiha Ci had tricked him once again. Using that fragile, paper-thin flaming sword with its flashy effects, he had baited Mangetsu into depleting the entirety of the chakra stored in his Mist blade.

Now, both of them were incapable of using such devastating techniques.

"Heh, dumbass!"

Uchiha Ci smirked, raising a middle finger at him.

Meanwhile, his miniature Zero-Tails spirit devoured the negative emotions emanating from Mangetsu, creating dark chakra that Uchiha Ci channeled into his forbidden technique: Body Revival.

Veins bulged on Mangetsu's forehead as he clenched his teeth. He couldn't decipher the gesture, but instinctively he knew it wasn't anything good.

The next moment, Mangetsu dashed across the water, his sword gleaming as he taunted,

"All your schemes come to this: a straightforward battle of skill.

"With your pathetic swordsmanship, those illusionary long blades you create through ninjutsu are nothing more than fleeting mirages!"

"Completely worthless!"

Uchiha Ci ignored the banter. Fully revitalized by Body Revival, he leapt to his feet with renewed vigor.

Performing a series of hand seals, he summoned an ordinary flame blade and lunged forward, meeting Mangetsu's strike head-on.

But just as his fiery blade aimed for Mangetsu's vital point, it was effortlessly severed mid-air by the chakra-infused blade of Mangetsu's sword!

Startled, Uchiha Ci's pupils contracted as Mangetsu's massive sword struck his chest, sending him flying backward.

"Urgh!"

"Damn this weapon gap!"

Regaining his balance mid-air, Uchiha Ci landed heavily on the water, coughing up blood. His gaze lingered on Mangetsu's weapon, his mind racing.

Before he could compose himself, Mangetsu was already mid-air, delivering a ferocious downward slash!

In desperation, Uchiha Ci discarded his flame blade, quickly forming seals and slamming his hands into the water. Two spiraling Water Release: Water Fang Blades emerged, intercepting Mangetsu's strike.

The clash unleashed an ear-piercing screech as the spiraling water blades struggled to withstand the impact.

Though his Water Fang Blades could block, they were incapable of inflicting damage on Mangetsu, whose Hydrification Technique rendered him nearly invulnerable.

Before long, Mangetsu retracted his blade and stomped down on the Water Fang Blades, launching himself into the air. With both hands gripping his sword, he unleashed a spinning horizontal slash at Uchiha Ci.

Uchiha Ci barely rolled away in time to evade the attack.

Mangetsu sneered, morphing into water mid-air, reappearing on the surface, his blade ready for another strike. Ignoring the incoming Water Fang Blade, he stomped toward Uchiha Ci, aiming a kick at his face while swinging his sword toward Ci's hands.

Realizing Mangetsu's intentions, Uchiha Ci dodged the kick by plunging his head underwater, using his arms to push off the surface and flip into the air. He retaliated with a thrown Water Fang Blade before releasing a hail of needles from a wrist-mounted senbon launcher.

But when he wiped the water from his face and reactivated his Sharingan, Mangetsu was gone.

Suddenly, pain erupted from his back as a sword impaled him through the chest.

The second blade of the Hiramekarei severed his left arm at the wrist.

Eyes wide with shock, Uchiha Ci coughed up a mouthful of blood, his body wracked with pain. Yet, he forced a grin through gritted teeth.

Mangetsu's icy voice echoed behind him,

"Uchiha Ci, a ninja without arms who can't form seals is nothing but dead weight."

Casting aside Ci's severed arm, Mangetsu severed the tendons in Ci's limbs, rendering him motionless.

He hoisted Ci's limp body, his expression twisted with cruel glee.

"You're as good as dead!"

Despite the grim situation, Uchiha Ci's eyes gleamed with strange delight.

The prospect of death seemed to amuse him, a twisted smile forming on his lips.

Mangetsu, however, wasn't finished.

Shaking his head in irritation, he muttered,

"Such a pain. But once I sever your head, there's no way you'll recover, not even with that so-called immortality."

Ci, still repairing his tendons through Body Revival, looked at Mangetsu with growing anticipation.

This man had thought of everything!

"So—"

Mangetsu raised his swords, their gleam reflecting his frenzied excitement.

"This is the end for you, Uchiha Ci!"

As he swung down—

A familiar voice rang out from the distance,

"Wait, wait, WAIT!"

"You idiot, why are you fighting again?!"

On the distant water, Uchiha Seijiro sprinted toward them, a massive scroll strapped to his back.

He panicked at the sight of Ci on the verge of decapitation, his pupils shrinking in horror.

With no time to think, Seijiro pulled out a small black scroll adorned with the Uchiha clan crest.

"Damn it, no choice!"

Twisting his body, he hurled the scroll with all his might toward Ci.

"Uchiha Ci—"

"CATCH THE SWORD!"