Five hours later…
A child sized corpse floating face down in the ocean stirs and eventually flips over to take deep breaths of oxygen.
The body of Shogo takes deep breaths even though he should by all accounts be dead given there is a hole present in his heart that goes clear through to the other side.
The hole is now sealed with what looks like blood red coral emerging from his chest?
Shogo's vacant eyes scan the horizon as if looking for something in the distance. All the while, the muscles in his back and arms are taut and bulging as he treads water frantically.
Something is missing. Shogo is clearly not mentally all there. It is as if his body is overtaken by something animalistic in nature.
Shogo's breathing is haggard and rough almost to the point of hyperventilation. Fists closing and opening periodically as if he is trying to get blood pumping through them.
Barely visible veins start to pop along Shogo's arms and neck as his teeth grind.
Subtle shakes begin to occur all over Shogo's body making the water touching him churn and even start to simmer.
Shogo hunches over and begins to coil into himself, arms crossed as if trying to stop the shaking. His shoulder's bulge as if they are about to rip out of his skin,
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"
A visceral scream of immense pain and rage erupts from the mouth of Shogo with such force it further disturbs the ocean water.
6 hours later...
About 50 miles from the Mizu's shipwreck, a group of 50 or so men and women of various ages, garbed in dark clothing with a royal blue arm band and tantos strapped on the small of their back, stand lined up in standard ten by five formation.
They all stand motionless and at attention in front of one man standing without care in front of a roaring bonfire licking the darkening mist filled sky with its tall flames. Embers freely break off in every which direction.
Not a soul utters a single word as they are being scrutinized by the watchful eye of the most powerful shinobi the land of water has ever produced, Byakuren.
Byakuren is not a physically imposing man by any stretch of the imagination, in fact, to the untrained eye he would appear to be a half-blind middle-aged man with long unkempt salt and pepper hair covering both his head and face.
His height is nothing remarkable as it may be even a bit below the average fully grown male. His most notable characteristic being the long thin scar stretching from just below his hairline down to his bearded chin over his left eye that is milky white and unresponsive.
No, it isn't Byakuren's underwhelming appearance putting the fear of a god into the droves of trained and armed assassins. It is the very real reality that if he wished it. Byakuren could end the lives of everyone in front of him with a simple gesture.
His past exploits as the longest tenured and most powerful ninja employed by the Water Daimyo had earned him a fearsome reputation. One that would cause widespread hysteria should he ever decide to travel outside of the Land of Water's territory again.
Byakuren stands facing his subordinates with his hands held behind his back with the only thing moving being his long hair and beard blowing in the wind along with the dancing flames behind him.
Suddenly, a puddle of water forms a few feet to Byakuren's left. The liquid is jostled for a few moments then builds up from the floor before solidifying into the tall and lanky blonde teen who confronted Shogo after decapitating Mizu. The new arrival looks at Byakuren and mutters under his breath before fishing for something in his pocket.
The teen takes what appears to be a forearm length scroll out of his pocket and holds it out to Byakuren while impatiently tapping his foot.
Byakuren remains unfazed, keeping his eye on the legion of warriors in front of him.
"You're late, boy..."
Byakuren's gravelly but soft voice hangs in the air, the atmosphere itself grows heavy with the older man's veiled frustration at the young man's tardiness. His mouth opens briefly, allowing the moonlight to glisten off of his unnaturally pointed teeth.
The teen sucks his teeth and avoids looking at the man next to him. Sweat starts to form on his brow from the pressure hanging over him. Smoothing his razor thin mustache with two fingers to appear unfazed, the addressed "boy" finally answers Byakuren.
"That scaly donkey fed his clan's prized possession to one of his personal summons for safe keeping. If I hadn't quickly scoured the area around where you blasted apart the ship, this scroll would be at the bottom of the ocean by-"
"Silence"
Byakuren quiets the sassy explanation and turns his good eye towards the northeast. A few quiet moments pass before the teen bristles at the unexplained interruption and with a scowl on his face turns to Byakuren.
"What is it!?"
Byakuren's eye narrows at the teen's tone.
"Gengetsu."
The teen's hands clench into fists at the lack of honorifics when Byakuren says his name. Nevertheless, Gengetsu stays silent and lets the older man continue.
"Did you make sure to kill any stragglers from that traitor's boat like I instructed you to?"
Gengetsu raises a nonexistent eyebrow at the question,
"My clones took care of any riff raff while I searched for the scroll. Why?"
Byakuren lets out sigh,
"Your slopiness is unbecoming of your status as a clan head, how does a shinobi of your prowess allow something to track you back to our doorstep? Your grandmother will be so ashamed."
Gengetsu flinches as Byakuren slowly brings his wrinkled calused right hand up to his messy beard, combing the length of it with sharp long fingernails.
"RAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"
The humid stagnate air on the beach shatters as if the primal scream summoned a thunder strike from the sky, cold sweat goes down the backs of the unsuspecting ninja as they all turn their eyes to the northeast, following Byakuren's eye line.