Chapter:80

"It's okay if you want to use Melt, but I can reluctantly accept the kiss. Though, that means we'll still have to fight, right?" Kirito said casually, flicking his wide sleeves as he secretly grasped Kyōka Suigetsu. Under the watchful eyes of Mei Terumi and her Mist Ninjas, he thought to himself, Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu.

"Of course, we won't give you the chance to use your illusions," Mei Terumi replied with a faint smile. She swiftly formed hand seals and released her Water Style: Hidden Mist Technique. Thick fog began to seep from her mouth, quickly enveloping the entire area where Kirito stood, making it impossible to see.

"Hmm, a Mist Hidden Technique enhanced with Water Style chakra. You are worthy of being the Fifth Mizukage. The concentration of this mist is far superior to the usual technique," Kirito's voice echoed from within the thick fog.

"I'm honored to receive praise from the Phantom God Kirito, but this is where it ends," Mei Terumi replied as she quickly prepared to release her Kekkei Genkai, Lava Release.

"Yes, it's over. I accepted your first kiss," Kirito's voice cut through the mist.

Before Mei Terumi could complete her hand seals, Kirito suddenly appeared right in front of her.

Her pupils dilated in shock, and before she could react, her hands—still in the midst of forming seals—were grabbed by Kirito.

To her astonishment, Kirito leaned in and kissed her.

Silence fell over the battlefield. The Mist Ninjas surrounding them stared, their expressions frozen in disbelief, unable to process what they had just witnessed.

Finally, it was Ao, the 'White-Eyed Killer', who broke the stillness. "When did he—? Protect Mizukage-sama!"

He immediately drew a kunai and slashed at Kirito, and several other Mist Ninjas followed suit, attacking him in unison.

But Kirito was unfazed. With a few swift movements, he dodged their strikes and, in the blink of an eye, reappeared several hundred meters away.

Mei Terumi stood still, her mind reeling. She had been kissed—forcefully—by a traitor. Even though Kirito was undeniably handsome, the situation was too shocking for her to process.

[Ding, congratulations to the host for obtaining three Senzu Beans!]

Hearing the system's reward notification, Kirito wiped his lips and made a few symbolic hand seals. "Not a bad kiss. For the sake of your Mizukage-sama, I won't kill anyone today. Until next time," he said, his voice taunting.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ao growled, his face flushed with fury. As Mei Terumi's closest protector, he had just witnessed his Mizukage being humiliated, and his anger boiled over. He ordered the surrounding Mist Ninjas to launch a surprise attack on Kirito.

But before they could act, Kirito spat out a fireball from his mouth. Upon impact, the fireball exploded into a sea of flames, engulfing the area around them.

This wasn't an ordinary fire technique—it was Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique, amplified by Kirito's senjutsu-enhanced chakra. Its power was so immense that it rivaled Uchiha Madara's Great Fire Annihilation from the Fourth Great Ninja War.

The Mist Ninjas were paralyzed by the sheer scale of the inferno. Reacting quickly, they combined their efforts to cast Water Wall Jutsu.

The water wall collided with the flames, sending thick steam into the air, obscuring their vision even further. Even with dozens of Mist Ninjas working together, they could only hold off Kirito's fire long enough for a stalemate.

Sensing the growing threat, Mei Terumi unleashed her Water Style: Water Pillar to finally extinguish the flames.

"Lady Mei, are you alright?" Ao rushed to her side, concerned.

"Where's Kirito?" Mei Terumi asked, shaking her head to clear her thoughts.

Perhaps due to the surprise of the kiss, her cheeks were flushed a deep red, and her entire body trembled slightly. It was unclear if it was from anger or something else entirely.

"I kept track of him with my Byakugan the whole time," Ao replied, shaking his head. "After using that powerful fire technique, he vanished."

Ao sighed and continued, "He managed to appear right in front of you in an instant, despite being surrounded. The rumors are true—his genjutsu must rival Uchiha Itachi's."

"No… perhaps he's even surpassed Itachi," Ao mused grimly. "When he cast that fire jutsu, I observed with my Byakugan that his chakra spiked more than tenfold, similar to the powerful chakra of a tailed beast. How Konoha allowed someone like him to rise is beyond me."

"Damn him," Mei Terumi muttered under her breath. Remembering the kiss, she felt a mixture of anger and embarrassment, her fingers lightly brushing her lips.

After a pause, Mei frowned and asked, "Ao, what exactly is going on here? I don't recall giving orders for anyone to be stationed in this area."

Ao hesitated, clearly uncomfortable. "This…"

"What? Are you hiding something from me, the Fifth Mizukage?" Mei's voice grew sharp.

"I wouldn't dare, Mizukage-sama," Ao replied quickly, bowing apologetically before revealing the truth. He explained the secret arrangement made by Elder Yuanshi and the Hidden Mist.

Mei Terumi had been aware of the peace treaty with Sunagakure, as she had signed it herself. The details of the negotiation, however, had been left to the Elder Master, who had requested Pakura as part of the deal.

Though she felt a twinge of guilt, Mei understood the strategic advantage of eliminating Pakura, the Scorch Release user, for the benefit of the village.

She patted Ao on the shoulder, a wicked smile forming on her face. "Ao, don't keep secrets from me in the future. Understood?"

"Yes, Mizukage-sama," Ao bowed again, feeling embarrassed.

"What do we do next?" Ao asked. "Should we report this incident to Konoha?"

"What? Do you want the entire world to know that Fujiwara Kirito kissed me?" Mei snapped, a vein popping in her forehead.

"I wouldn't dare!" Ao immediately bowed lower, his face pale with fear.

"Enough of this," Mei said impatiently. "Order the team to collect the bodies of our fallen comrades. Check if Pakura's body is among them."

"And make sure to investigate the cause of death for everyone. I want to know if Kirito was behind their deaths."

Soon after, the results of the investigation were reported back.

"Mizukage-sama, we did not find Pakura's body," Ao reported. "After investigating the cause of death of the Mist Ninjas, we found they were killed by a variety of strange weapons and explosives, some similar to the puppet techniques used by the Sand Village and the explosion techniques of Iwagakure."

"In addition, we found the body of the special jonin, Dohiten. All the moisture in his body had been evaporated, likely by Pakura's Scorch Release."

"I see," Mei Terumi responded. With confirmation that Kirito hadn't killed any of her people directly, she felt a strange sense of relief.

Her thoughts, however, drifted back to the kiss, and her face flushed again. "That damn bastard… Don't let me catch you next time," she muttered under her breath.

(End of the Chapter).

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