Overdrafting the Future, Starting in Naruto

Hōzuki Chigetsu immediately turned his body to water, escaping the four genjutsu in an instant. The moment his body reformed and he grabbed the Twin Swords, Hiramekarei, Kinoshita Genichi was already upon him. This happened to be the side where Genichi's real body was.

With his twin swords in hand, Genichi's long sword sliced through Chigetsu's body.

Splash!

Chigetsu's body turned to water again, wrapping around Hiramekarei and diving beneath the surface.

Genichi ignored him, flickering toward another Mist-nin. He brought his left long sword down while his right short sword slashed sideways. The Mist-nin used his own sword to block Genichi's long sword, but his abdomen was sliced open by the short sword. Blood, intestines, and other organs spilled out.

Just then, two hands shot out from under the water, grabbing at Genichi's legs. Genichi pulled his legs up, launching himself into the air. He then kicked out to his sides in a full split, sending two more Mist-nin who were swinging their swords at him flying.

Next, Genichi's body inverted. He plunged his long sword into the water below, and blood immediately bubbled to the surface. He pushed off the water's surface with one palm, and as the water level dipped, his inverted body shot into the air. After spinning like a gyroscope several times, he landed behind another Mist-nin.

The ninja turned, his eyes meeting Genichi's. His eyes went wide, his body froze, and he found himself unable to swing the sword in his hand.

Another Mist-nin silently closed in on Genichi from behind, thrusting his sword through Genichi's body and then through the mesmerized ninja in front of him.

Splash!

Genichi's body dissolved into a spray of water.

Water Release: Water Replacement!

The Mist-nin who had just killed his own comrade looked around in terror, searching for Genichi, but he was suddenly entangled by several streams of water and dragged beneath the surface.

Glug glug glug!

A large amount of blood rose to the surface.

The two remaining Mist-nin were terrified. "He's underwater!"

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The water's surface broke as high-pressure water jets shot out. The two ninja only had time to dodge the first jet before their bodies were pierced through.

Splash!

Genichi emerged from the water. He scanned the area and saw that only one Mist-nin was left on the entire battlefield: the masked Kuriarare Kushimaru. His left arm hung limply at his side, a deep gash on his forearm reaching the bone, cut by one of Genichi's shadow clone's palm knives.

Genichi's three shadow clones had already dispersed. Now, only his real body and Kushimaru faced each other on the water. As for Hōzuki Chigetsu, Genichi's senses told him he was fleeing southeast toward the sea.

Genichi realized that Kushimaru was covering Chigetsu's retreat.

Kushimaru tugged the steel wire in his right hand. From under the water, the longsword Nuibari shot out like a venomous snake, aiming straight for Genichi's head.

Ting!

Genichi swung his sword, deflecting Nuibari. He then shot forward, maneuvering across the water's surface like a water snake. Kushimaru controlled Nuibari, attacking Genichi again and again, but every strike missed. Genichi's water-based Body Flicker was too fast.

In just three seconds, Genichi was in front of Kushimaru. He swung his long sword at Kushimaru while his right short sword slashed toward his abdomen. Kushimaru used his steel wire to block, while Nuibari shot up from the water between them, aiming for Genichi. He had experienced Genichi's wind-enhanced blade before and knew he couldn't block it, so he was going for a mutual kill.

But Genichi had the Sharingan and could see Kushimaru's minute movements. And his reaction speed was even more astounding. So, before Nuibari had even broken the surface, the short sword in his right hand had already changed its trajectory.

Ting!

Nuibari was sent flying, knocked away by the short sword. The wind-chakra-enhanced long sword severed Kushimaru's steel wire and cut into his shoulder bone. At the same time, Genichi opened his mouth and shot out a highly condensed water needle. It shattered Kushimaru's mask and pierced his forehead.

Thump!

Kushimaru's body fell backward stiffly, splashing into the water. The longsword Nuibari sank with him.

Genichi was about to retrieve it, but the sword vanished with a poof. Not just Nuibari, but the other swords vanished as well.

"Quick on the uptake," Genichi huffed. He didn't have to think to know that Hōzuki Chigetsu had unsummoned them.

He looked in the direction Chigetsu had fled. In his perception, the man had already escaped to a ship at sea and was rapidly moving away from the coast. Genichi gave up the chase.

And with that, only a single member of the original Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist remained.

Clasping his hands together, Genichi drew all the water from the battlefield, moving it to one side. Without the water, over seventy corpses lay scattered across the area.

Looking at so many "cadavers for study," Genichi suddenly felt a bit troubled. He definitely couldn't take them all back. He could only pick the bodies of those who were strongest in life.

On the left side of the battlefield, at the edge of the forest, Aloe White Zetsu's face was merged with the bark of a tree, taking in the entire battle. "What a spectacular fight! A non-Uchiha who can use the Sharingan this well… Lord Madara will surely be very interested."

"Hmm?"

Just as he was about to collect the bodies, Genichi paused and turned around. A group of figures had appeared at the edge of the battlefield.

"Captain!" Akimichi Tōdō's voice rang out.

Genichi smiled. "Tōdō!" Konoha's reinforcements had arrived.

After deciding on a strategy, Hiruzen had immediately selected five squads to act as scout teams in the southern Land of Fire. These five squads were supposed to rendezvous with Genichi's team first, but they had run into Tōdō at the town and had rushed south. Although it was only a dozen or so kilometers, and they were fast, Genichi's battle had ended even faster.

At this moment, the Konoha ninja, including Akimichi Tōdō, were stunned by the scene before them. Over seventy bodies lay strewn about. The battlefield itself wasn't that large, making it feel densely packed with corpses. None of the newcomers were rookies; all of them had rich combat experience, but they were still shocked by the sight, their scalps tingling.

Gulp. "He didn't… kill them all by himself, did he?" someone whispered, swallowing hard.

His comrade next to him stared blankly. "I… I think he did."

"This guy… I hear he's only eleven?"

"Idiot! Use a respectful title from now on!"

"This is terrifying. He took out so many enemies by himself."

"He doesn't even look injured."

"Is this something a human can actually do? Even the Sannin probably couldn't face an encirclement by this many enemies and kill them all, right?"

"Yeah, it's just too scary!"

"So strong!"

"This isn't a prodigy anymore. He should be described as a monster."

The Konoha ninja murmured amongst themselves. The jonin leading the squads also felt their mouths go dry, especially Yūhi Shinku, Kurenai's father. Looking at Genichi standing amidst the corpses, he had a sense of unreality. This is my daughter's classmate?

Just then, Tōdō exclaimed in shock, "Captain, you killed all of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen too?"

"What?"

"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist?"

"I heard there were seven—no, six of them, and all of them were jonin-level!"

An uproar went through the Konoha ninja. If all six swordsmen were here, plus the other Mist-nin… looking at the numbers, there were probably more than ten jonin, right?

Hiss! Even Yūhi Shinku couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.

But Genichi just chuckled lightly. "No. One of them, a guy from the Hōzuki clan, got away."

This casual remark immediately drew another wave of gasps.

"So amazing!"

"Only one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist is left!"

"Lord Genichi's strength must be on par with the Sannin, right?"

"To witness such an unparalleled genius shine with my own eyes… what an honor!"

It took a full two minutes for everyone to recover. Then, they all started helping Genichi clean up the bodies. Genichi selected ten corpses, sealed them, and took them with him. As for the others, he could only have the Fire Release users among the Konoha ninja burn them.

However, Genichi didn't return to Konoha immediately. He rested for a night and set out the next day.

While Genichi was still on his way back, Hōzuki Chigetsu had already returned to Kirigakure. So many had been dispatched to kill one person, yet he had returned alone, his forces almost completely annihilated. And he brought the news that Suikazan Fuguki, who had been assassinated by a mysterious enemy earlier, had also been killed by Genichi.

Listening to Chigetsu's report, the Third Mizukage's usually calm face couldn't hide his shock. He had been cautious enough, had taken Genichi seriously enough. He had sent the remaining six of the Seven Swordsmen, plus Anbu elites and other ninja squads. And yet, so many had failed, and were almost completely wiped out. Even with the Third Mizukage's heart of ice, he felt it crack at that moment.

After a full half-minute, the Third Mizukage finally composed himself. He looked at the shame-faced Chigetsu and said, "The failure of this mission is not your fault. It was I who underestimated this person. Go back and rest well."

Chigetsu nodded and left, his body slightly hunched.

The Third Mizukage sighed to himself, then issued a series of cold orders. "Immediately investigate all intelligence on Kinoshita Genichi. His importance is to be designated S-rank, and make sure every ninja in every village knows it. Secondly, issue a command that from now on, if any ninja encounters Kinoshita Genichi, they are authorized to abandon their mission. Third, the Intelligence Division will immediately begin researching all existing intel on him and formulate targeted countermeasures."

The orders were noted down by the Anbu guarding the Mizukage and were then quickly relayed to various departments by other administrative staff. As these orders and the news of Genichi and the failed encirclement mission spread, the entire Village Hidden in the Mist was shaken.

The name 'Kinoshita Genichi of the Hidden Leaf' quickly spread throughout Kirigakure. Not just active-duty ninja, but even students at the academy came to know it. And the news spread with incredible speed throughout the Land of Water, and then, through the intelligence personnel of various villages, rapidly across the entire ninja world.

By the time Genichi returned to his village, back in Kirigakure, Hōzuki Chigetsu had committed ritual suicide in his home, leaving behind a note taking full responsibility for the mission's failure and heavy losses.

Mizukage's Office.

Upon receiving the news of Chigetsu's suicide and looking at the six ninja swords that Chigetsu had someone deliver, the Third Mizukage's expression was heavy with grief. He then issued an order: "Place a bounty on Kinoshita Genichi of the Hidden Leaf throughout the entire ninja world. The price is 500 million ryō!"

The Anbu taking the order was shocked. That price was too high! In the ninja world, the bounty for a jonin was generally between 20 to 40 million ryō. Only those with extremely famous reputations, like the Sannin of Konoha, would have such an extraordinary price.

But then, thinking about the losses Genichi had inflicted on the village, the Anbu felt the price wasn't high at all. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen, each worth 30 million, seven of them would be over 200 million. And the number of other jonin who had died at Genichi's hands was more than ten. At 20 million each... a 500 million ryō bounty seemed reasonable.

As for the fact that Chigetsu wasn't killed by Genichi… if it weren't for Genichi, would an elite jonin like Chigetsu have committed suicide to atone for his failure?

"In addition, release all intelligence on Kinoshita Genichi to the public!" the Third Mizukage ordered coldly once more.

There were quite a few powerful bounty hunters active in the ninja world, such as Kakuzu, who had once tried to assassinate the First Hokage and managed to escape unscathed. If someone could kill Kinoshita Genichi, the Third Mizukage would be very happy to see it.

(End of Chapter)

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