Naruto: Mizuki The Savior

Chapter 225: Extreme Reversal

Inuzuka Kiba glared furiously at the normally shy boy who had suddenly turned violent. In the brief skirmish that had just broken out, not only had Kiba failed to gain the upper hand, even with Naruto's help they couldn't suppress the unremarkable-looking youth. Though the boy seemed two or three years older, it was still frustrating for a proud Konoha genin to lose to an unknown nobody. The sudden shift in the boy's demeanor had left Kiba completely confused.

"Hey, what's your problem? Why'd you attack out of nowhere?"

Normally, Kiba had no patience for people who resorted to violence without warning. But given the strength his opponent had just displayed, some proper exchange of words was now necessary.

Breathing heavily, Chōjūrō of Kirigakure replied through clenched teeth, "We of the Mist are not weaklings you can disregard. And our Mizukage is far from the pushover you're making her out to be. So what if she's a woman? Isn't your Hokage also a kunoichi?"

"You lashed out… just because of that?" Kiba asked in disbelief.

Everyone had seen the state of the Mist Village. Even if Konoha wasn't doing perfectly, it was still leagues ahead of the struggling Kirigakure. Unintentional contempt in their words during small talk had been picked up by Chōjūrō, who saw it as a slight against his beloved Mizukage, Terumī Mei.

The pressure of being from a "weak village" was something others rarely understood. That pressure had been bottled up in Chōjūrō for too long, and now, driven by a fierce pride born of inferiority, he exploded. The usually meek boy lashed out without restraint.

On Konoha's side, aside from Naruto and Kiba, the rest of the genin stood awkwardly, surprised that such a minor comment had escalated into a fight.

"Well then, let Konoha's guests experience a taste of Kirigakure's strength!"

Chōjūrō shouted as he charged again, swinging his dual swords at Naruto and Kiba. The Konoha genin found themselves in a tough spot. While Chōjūrō was a bit older, the two-on-one fight was still somewhat fair. But if others joined in, it would look like bullying the locals. They were guests in Mist, after all.

Unfortunately, things weren't looking good. Despite having both Naruto and Kiba, the pair was no match for Chōjūrō's swift and precise swordsmanship. Their usual brute-force style just didn't work against someone as technically refined and agile.

This wasn't the first time someone from Konoha had struggled against a skilled swordsman. Mizuki had experienced the same issue when fighting Suigetsu in the Land of Waves. When you couldn't suppress a swordsman's movement, brute force alone was hardly effective. And even numerical advantage wouldn't help much when the opponent was a true master of the blade.

From not far away, Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Mizuki had arrived at the scene but stayed hidden, realizing there was no real danger. They quietly observed the development.

"That Mist kid is pretty good," Kakashi commented, impressed by Chōjūrō's performance.

"Konoha ninja really don't fare well against swordmasters," Mizuki noted with disdain.

Jiraiya added, "No one likes fighting swordsmen. If you can't limit their mobility, they become like meat grinders on the battlefield. The only good counter is wide-area ninjutsu that gives them no room to escape."

He seemed to recall something from the past. "The last time I felt this helpless was when I fought Hanzō of the Salamander. And he wasn't even a pure swordsman."

"Hanzō of the Rain?" Mizuki asked.

That legendary ninja from Amegakure had once defeated Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade in a single battle—giving them their famous title as the "Three Legendary Sannin." If not for Nagato's summoning of the Gedo Statue, even the Rinnegan might not have saved them.

"Yes, that Hanzō," Jiraiya confirmed, without hiding the sting of that defeat. "Since Sakumo Hatake died, Konoha hasn't had any true swordsmen. We really don't know how to deal with this kind of enemy."

Technically speaking, even Sakumo wasn't a traditional swordsman. His specialty lay in assassination techniques—deadly to fragile types like puppeteers or genjutsu users. Unfortunately for Suna, puppeteers were a core part of their fighting force, which played right into Sakumo's hands and helped forge his fearsome reputation.

As for today's generation, Moonlight Gekkō had promise but suffered a serious injury before his potential could blossom.

Ironically, Sakumo's son—Kakashi—had not followed in his father's swordsmanship footsteps.

After watching a bit longer, Kakashi turned to the others. "Should we stop them now? It's gone on long enough."

Mizuki nodded. "Even if the Mist Village is weak now, the foundation of a Great Village remains. Just look at that boy. As long as they endure their current crisis, they'll reclaim their place in the ninja world."

Chōjūrō hadn't even inherited the Hiramekarei yet, but with just his current skills and age advantage, he was already pushing back both Naruto and Kiba. It was impressive.

Just as the match remained locked in stalemate, someone else intervened to de-escalate the situation.

"Chōjūrō, stand down." Ao of the Mist, who had also been observing, stepped forward.

Seeing this, Mizuki and Kakashi also came out of hiding. Mizuki placed a hand on Kiba's shoulder to calm him.

"Sensei?" Kiba asked, surprised.

"Cool it," Mizuki said calmly.

Naruto, however, wasn't as compliant. Even with Kakashi holding onto his arm, he kept struggling to go another round.

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