Chapter 23: Terumi Mei's Crisis! Ishihara: Something's Wrong!

Chapter 23: Terumi Mei's Crisis! Ishihara: Something's Wrong!

Phew…

Ishihara finally let out a long breath after finishing all the materials. He shook his head slightly, feeling the strain.

This study session had been more exhausting than any before, as he had expended a tremendous amount of energy in a short time. However, the results were very satisfying.

The secret techniques weren't particularly important; even the Life Chain had little use for him. What truly mattered was the vast amount of medical knowledge now in his mind, with countless sparks of inspiration flashing.

He couldn't wait to start a research project.

Not long after, Orochimaru returned with his team.

Seeing Ishihara's smiling face, Orochimaru felt pleased as well. "It seems you've made good progress."

"That's right, we can start formal experiments now!" Ishihara said, smiling and feeling relaxed.

"That's impressive!" Orochimaru paused, then shook his head. Although he had long since given up comparing himself to Ishihara, witnessing Ishihara's entire process of learning medical ninjutsu left Orochimaru in awe.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Orochimaru asked, "Do you have a target?"

Ishihara smiled and slowly uttered two words, "Byakugan!"

Orochimaru's pupils constricted. Ishihara had previously mentioned his method for training the Sharingan, though it wasn't yet complete, so he hadn't shared it with Orochimaru. He hadn't expected Ishihara to now set his sights on the Byakugan.

Having conducted extensive research on the Sharingan, Orochimaru understood the complexity involved. It was in a league of its own compared to other bloodline limit.

He licked his dry lips as he looked at Ishihara. "Interesting, are you planning to master all three great dojutsu?"

Ishihara calmly replied, "That's not urgent, but to advance my research, I need stronger insight. So, the Byakugan is essential!"

Orochimaru's eyes gleamed as he composed himself. "I see, that's why you came to Kirigakure!"

Kirigakure had a Byakugan from the Hyūga clan's main house. This incident had caused a huge stir on the battlefield back then, which was no secret to Orochimaru. He also understood the uniqueness of the Byakugan. The Hyūga clan was divided into the main and branch families, with the branch family members having the Caged Bird Seal. Upon death, the seal would destroy their neural pathways and the Byakugan's structure, making those Byakugan unworthy of Ishihara's interest. Thus, he had set his sights on the Byakugan from Kirigakure's main house.

"It seems we're in luck. I happen to have some information on that Byakugan," Orochimaru said with a sly smile.

Ishihara's eyes lit up. "Then let's get moving."

…

In a mountain village in the Land of Water.

Ao, who possessed the Byakugan of the Hyūga main house, and Terumi Mei were locked in battle!

Their attackers were fighting with a frenzied, almost suicidal determination, making the situation dire.

Struggling to fend off the enemies, Ao shouted angrily, "You idiots! This is Lady Terumi Mei! Does Lord Mizukage want to go to war with all the bloodline limit clans in Kirigakure?!"

Terumi Mei was no ordinary person. She had a powerful clan heritage and possessed two bloodline limit: Lava Release and Boil Release. If someone with such potential died, her clan would undoubtedly go berserk.

But their attackers remained silent, continuing their relentless assault.

Terumi Mei was both shocked and furious. She couldn't believe that the Fourth Mizukage would dare to attack her.

"Damn it, there's definitely something wrong with Yagura. He can't be unaware of the consequences of this!"

In Kirigakure, only the Hozuki clan and the Kaguya clan with their Shikotsumyaku were stronger than her clan. But the Kaguya clan, due to their nature, could never gain real power or become Mizukage. And the Hozuki clan's prodigy, Hozuki Mangetsu, was already dead.

She was the almost certain future Mizukage, the leader of the bloodline limit clans and ninjas during the Blood Mist era.

"If I die here, the Hozuki clan will definitely think Yagura is targeting us. Then Kirigakure will fall into chaos!"

Terumi Mei felt a deep sense of urgency. She couldn't afford to die.

But there were too many enemies, and even one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Kisame Hoshigaki, was attacking. She couldn't escape.

"Has the support not arrived yet?!"

Watching her numbers dwindle, Terumi Mei's heart ached. These were her carefully trained subordinates, and losing even one was a great loss. Now, they were almost all dead.

She was also about to reach her limit.

"Don't blame me! This is Mizukage-sama's order!"

Kisame Hoshigaki gritted his teeth and growled. He knew well the terrible consequences of killing Terumi Mei, but if he didn't, Yagura would kill him. He didn't want to die, so Terumi Mei had to die.

Kisame Hoshigaki's face twisted as he swung his sword, Samehada, relentlessly.

"It's over!"

Terumi Mei was running out of chakra. Facing the heavy attacks, she struggled more and more, feeling a sense of despair.

But then…

A terrifying chakra wave erupted in the distance.

"What the…?!"

Both Terumi Mei and Kisame Hoshigaki looked in that direction, their hearts pounding.

The power of this chakra wave hinted at a devastating jutsu. If it was aimed at them, they wouldn't survive.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines.

In the next moment, their eyes widened in horror.

From afar, a pillar of light carrying a violent, destructive force shot towards them.

"Damn it, they're targeting all of us!"

"Block it!!!"

Kisame Hoshigaki hastily raised Samehada to defend himself.

Then, in the desperate eyes of everyone, a terrifying thunder waterfall crashed down from the distance.

Boom!

The violent lightning chakra slammed into the ground, engulfing everyone in an instant. The explosions were deafening, shaking the entire earth.

From a distance, Ishihara let out a sigh of relief. "Made it just in time."

Orochimaru's intelligence had been wrong; they hadn't found Ao at the designated location. Fortunately, Ishihara's sensory abilities detected the battle nearby, and they had rushed over.

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you afraid you might have killed Ao too?"

"Don't worry, I controlled it. This level of attack should only severely injure them, not kill them," Ishihara shook his head and headed towards the battlefield, feeling puzzled.

Given the previous situation, Terumi Mei and Ao shouldn't have survived, considering the number of enemies and the presence of someone as strong as Kisame Hoshigaki.

But Terumi Mei was supposed to become the Fifth Mizukage, which didn't add up.

"Could my presence have already triggered a butterfly effect?"