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Blood waters (Chapter 18)
🕑 Added 2023-08-15 14:01:41 +0000 UTCChapter 18
Utakata could feel his master’s hands on his back as he circulated the six tails chakra around his body. It took a week, but he finally managed to sustain one tail cloak for a while. It felt terrific to Utakata. He felt his power at least double. He was more durable, faster, stronger, and his wounds healed faster while he was in one tail cloak, but he refused to be consumed by it and lose control.
It was only double power. He was still weak, even though he could now defeat most chunin-level shinobi. Yet fighting jonin-level shinobi was still a bit too much for him. He couldn’t be overconfident over such a level of power. He still needed to improve himself. Too bad he didn’t have time to do that, as he would leave the village for the frontlines of the Land of the Lightning tomorrow.
“Good, your chakra is stable,” Harusame said. “But try to limit the time you use the six tails chakra. If you overtax yourself, you will fall and won’t have the strength to defend yourself for at least a day. Remember that your safety is your priority. If your life is in danger, please retreat.”
“If I am allowed to,” Utkata replied.
At least Utakata could retreat from a battlefield stating that his life was in danger. It wouldn’t be good for the village to lose the six tails. But he had to be careful; otherwise, the village might seek to punish him for his cowardice. But he should be able to survive. Only a few more years and the war should end. Yet Utakata knew that once Yagura takes the position of the Fourth Mizukage, it would bring more bloodshed to the village.
Thinking of the future and what it would bring, Utakata got even more concerned. He didn’t have a Kekkei Genkai, so he should be safe from the massacre that Yagura would enact on the illusion made by Obito. Yet it didn’t mean he wouldn’t be fighting them. Utakata could see Yagura using him to kill shinobi with Kekkei Genkai.
It may be time to think of leaving the village. If the war won’t end soon, and he will be put in more danger, then it would be better to fight against Hunter-nin rather than risk his life daily against Cloud or Leaf shinobi. Still, he would need money to live in other countries and hide from the Hunter-nin—the money he was slowly saving. So, if an opportunity is presented to him, he might take it and leave the Mist.
“Rest for today, and make sure you are taking care of yourself,” Harusame said as he stood up and left.
Harusame probably went to report Utakata’s progress to his superior. But Utakata didn’t care. He needed to rest well before tomorrow, as he didn’t know what would await him on the battlefield. After checking his equipment and seeing that there wasn’t anything wrong with his stuff, Utakata ate his dinner and went to sleep early.
…
Utakata looked at the children his age nervously, sitting in front of him and by his side while they were sailing to the southern border of the Land of the Lightning. Utakata recognized some of his classmates. All of them were fresh from the academy, and they were seasick. It was their first voyage. And Utakata could only think it was their last too.
Utakata almost scoffed when they boarded the land and saw his comrades showing relieved expressions. They had no idea what was waiting for them. Either way, Utakata and the rest of the shinobi quickly gathered in groups of a hundred. Then a woman came in front of Utakata’s group. She was a tall teenager, no older than sixteen, with bright auburn hair.
“I am Mei Terumi and your commander,” The woman didn’t shout, but her voice was heard far and wide. “You will answer to me and only listen to my commands. If I order you to fight, you will fight. If I order you to retreat, you will withdraw. No one, apart from Mizukage himself, can overrule my orders. So, I better not see you questioning my orders, or you shall be punished. Am I understood?”
“Yes, ma'am,” Everyone yelled out, and for some reason, Mei Terumi seemed furious and took a few deep breaths to calm down.
“Utakata, come forth!” Mei Terumi yelled out.
Utakata stepped forward, and he could see his commander be quite surprised. He didn’t know what surprised her. His age? His cold expression? It didn’t matter, as Mei Terumi soon hid all her expressions and motioned him to follow her. Utakata did so without any words. He knew it was better not to question his commanders.
“You are younger than I expected,” Mei said as soon as their entered her tent. “I thought the new jinchuriki would be someone more capable.”
“A more capable shinobi would be harder to control,” Utakata replied.
“I don’t care about the politics right now,” Mei responded harshly. “We were ordered to advance our forces, but it is impossible. As even though the southern border is plains and fertile lands, a bit further, the mountainous range and valleys present a perfectly defensible position for the Cloud shinobi. Without some serious firepower, we are stuck here.”
“You expected me to be the serious firepower?” Utakata asked.
“Yes, are you?”
“I can use the six tails chakra, but only to one tail,” Utakata answered. “At best, I could hold off a jonin level shinobi.”
Mei Terumi sighed in disappointment. Utakata, on the other hand, ignored her and sensed shinobi around her tent. There were four jonin lever shinobi surrounding the tent. It looked like they were Mei’s guards. Mei herself was even stronger. Utakata could sense immense chakra from her. Even if it was weaker than Yagura’s, Mei was still just a teenager.
“You are dismissed, be prepared for battle by tomorrow morning,” Mei said, and Utakata left her tent without a word.
Utakata spent the rest of the day walking around his camp, looking for strong shinobi around him. He didn’t know where he would be stationed, but it would be better to stay with stronger shinobi than the weaker. It would increase his chances of survival. And he would do anything to improve his chances of surviving through his war.
As the night fell, Utakata found a nice place to rest, surrounded by several powerful shinobi. He should be fine even if the Cloud Shinobi decided to attack at night. After eating the provided rations, Utakata covered himself with a blanket and lay on the soft ground. Utakata was used to sleeping on the ground by now. And the dark sky didn’t bother him.
…
The following day Utakata woke up one of the first, as she sensed shinobi starting to move around. Utakata waited until more shinobi got up before getting up himself. He took his rations and ate in silence. He could tell other shinobi knew what he was and tried to avoid him. Utakata was thankful, as he didn’t want to deal with others.
Soon enough, every shinobi were called to report their status. Once everyone was gathered, orders flew. Teams were designed for reconnaissance to scout areas in front of them. Other groups were ordered to gather shinobi, known for their expertise in water-based jutsu, so they could utilize the nearby forest and mist jutsu to mask their presence.
Utakata, with the rest of the shinobi, were to stay back for now and wait. If the Cloud shinobi approach first, they would move to engage. If not, the scouts will go further, and they will follow behind them. Utakata hoped for a quiet day, as he could see the green boys around them getting tenser with each moment. But Utakata hoped for too much as he felt shinobi approaching them from afar.
Lighting struck as the mist started to thicken. Utakata sensed that the lightning didn’t manage to hit anyone, and soon, the Mist shinobi created water shields to direct lightning away from them and hold their position. Utakata and the rest of the Mist shinobi quickly moved forward. The scouts quickly worked together to show where the enemy was. Utakata and the rest followed water trails to the enemy.
The Mist shinobi commanders, adept at using water to control the battlefield, create water clones to confuse their opponents. They form misty illusions, making it challenging for the Lightning shinobi to target them accurately. The rest of the Mist shinobi followed their example, and with the mist still covering the area, they managed to approach the Cloud shinobi without too much trouble.
Utakata sensed that the Cloud shinobi moved quickly to surround us and take higher places. Utakata used some long-range water-style jutsu to show the other shinobi what the Cloud was doing. It seemed that it worked, as Utakata’s comrades quickly took positions to counter them. Soon enough, the battle became a jutsu fest as lighting and water flew around Utakata.
Utakata took it slow and, reserving his chakra, took out stranglers who found themselves alone on the battlefield. Utakata made sure not to leave the Mist shinobi and stayed close to the stronger ones, supporting them while looking for stranglers nearby. Utakata’s tactic worked like a charm, as the battle seemed to end, and he still had quite a bit of strength in reserve.
Probably recognizing the severity of the battle, the Mist shinobi commanders initiated a tactical retreat, using mist to cover their withdrawal. They regroup in the nearby forest to regather their forces and assess the situation. Utakata quickly found Mei Terumi, who was speaking with other commanders. Ultimately, it was decided to take the injured and retreat further away.
Even though the Mist had to retreat on the first day from the battlefield, it didn’t seem like they were losing too much. The Cloud shinobi didn’t try to pursue them, and Utakata could sense that they were taking their injured and leaving the battlefield too. It was hard to say who would have come on top if the battle continued, but the losses would be too much to pay for such information.
Utakata understood that in battles at the borders of the Land of Lightning, the unique combination of Mist shinobi's water-based tactics and Cloud shinobi's speed and precision creates an intricate dance of strategy, manipulation, and combat prowess. The outcome of such clashes often hinges on which side can exploit their environment and techniques more effectively. And the Cloud shinobi knew these territories better than the Mist.
It was only the first day, and Utakata couldn’t sense a third of the shinobi he came with. The retreat seemed to be a good call as the survivors were dead tired and wouldn’t be able to fight for much longer. It will take at least a few weeks to familiarize the green boys with the battlefield. That is, if they manage to survive that long.
Still, Utakata took pity on them and brought food to a few who couldn’t even move. They probably didn’t even recognize him as they took their rations and devoured them. They will need all the energy they can get for the next day. So, even if they were too tired to move, they needed to eat. Some commanders didn’t care about their men and, at best, advised them to eat before going to sleep.
Mei Terumi wasn’t like most commanders, and seeing the state of her shinobi, she quickly organized everyone to get their rations. Maybe she saw Utakata helping others or did it of her own volition. She helped other shinobi belonging to the other commanders with their rations. At least she knew they needed the energy to fight better the next day. And seeing that there wasn’t much for him to do, Utakata took his rest.
