Tōshirō didn't have time to think. He quickly began forming hand seals, extending his hands outward: "Ice Release – Infinite Ice Wall."
Within moments, he formed a hollow ice sphere surrounding his body, providing 365-degree protection from all sides to ward off the incoming attack.
"Crack."
The Mist Village ninja growled in annoyance as the ice wall was solid and thick like stone, and a strong sword strike only created a few cracks.
Tōshirō sighed in relief; had it not been for his quick reaction, he could have been injured while still searching for the enemy.
Moreover, the weather here was working in his favor, enabling him to execute this ice wall with remarkable speed.
The ice wall separated Tōshirō from the Mist ninja, and he began observing the situation. Then, he swiftly formed hand seals, dropped to his knees, and placed his hand on the ground, channeling chakra through his open fingers into the icy surface.
"Ice Release – Hell's Hand."
This technique was specifically designed to integrate with the defensive "Infinite Ice Wall," combining both defense and offense.
The Mist ninja sensed danger and quickly retreated, but within moments, a massive ice hand emerged from beneath him and grabbed hold of him.
The ninja's expression froze; it felt like he was a fish out of water facing this ice-using opponent.
Then he noticed something unusual in Tōshirō's eyes – an additional number of black circles appeared in his Sharingan.
The ninja was aware of some information about Sharingan development; as the number of black circles increased, the Sharingan's power noticeably strengthened.
Damn it, this boy had undergone a sudden evolution during the battle.
The ninja cursed inwardly, wondering where this monster had come from. His name wasn't listed among the promising young talents from the Hidden Leaf Village.
Being an Uchiha, how had he never heard of this boy before?
The ninja decided to end the fight quickly to avoid further risk. He bit his finger and slammed it onto the ground, releasing numerous mysterious black symbols that spread rapidly, followed by a large amount of white smoke revealing a creature about three meters tall.
It wore armor resembling a beetle, had large bulging eyes, and eight legs with huge claws.
Tōshirō was momentarily surprised. "A crab?"
The Mist ninja leaped onto the crab's back, looking down at Tōshirō from above, commanding the crab to attack him with its massive claws.
With a single strike, the ice wall shattered under the crab's force, and snowy mist filled the area. When the mist cleared, there was no sign of Tōshirō.
The ninja frowned as he saw someone dashing toward Tsunade.
He sent a shadow clone to attack, striking the target effortlessly, but it was so easy that he paused for a moment, realizing that Tōshirō was merely a shadow clone.
Tōshirō, who had been hiding in the snow, seized the moment and attacked, pulling the enemy's shadow clone into the snow.
He picked up the weakened Tsunade, his face serious: "Let's go."
At that moment, mist spread through the air.
The Mist ninja raised an eyebrow slightly, puzzled by the mist, as he hadn't used that technique himself.
There was only one possibility left – it was Tōshirō's doing, as the Sharingan is capable of copying techniques, and the Uchiha clan had collected many jutsu, including those from the Mist Village.
Still, most Uchiha only used their clan's techniques despite possessing many jutsu.
"How naive." The ninja smirked as he formed hand seals: "Explosive Bubble Shadow!"
"Boom."
The shadow clone exploded.
Tōshirō's eyes narrowed, but he was a step too late in reacting. He covered Tsunade with his body to shield her: "Get down."
As the smoke cleared, Tsunade slowly opened her eyes and saw Tōshirō's cracked face, as if paint was peeling off. "Tōshirō, your face…"
Tōshirō took a deep breath and reassured her, "Don't worry, it's my technique."
"Ice Armor," covering his body with a layer of ice, granting him solid protection, similar to Gaara's "Sand Armor."
Without this technique, Tōshirō would have been severely injured.
However, Tōshirō was in a bad state, with his chakra almost completely depleted.
He reached into his pouch and pulled out smoke bombs, throwing them.
The ninja sneered, thinking Tōshirō was too weak to aim accurately.
But the bombs were just a trick, releasing thick smoke that obscured visibility.
Tōshirō whispered to Tsunade, "It'll hurt a bit, bear with it."
Though she didn't understand at first, Tsunade soon realized.
Tōshirō had several shadow clones waiting, ready to execute his plan.
The shadow clones grabbed Tsunade and Tōshirō and launched them forcefully into the air, letting them escape the pursuing ninja.
In the end, they landed safely in the snow.
"Oh, that hurts…"
Instinctively, he reached out with his other hand to touch the ground, feeling the cold and granular texture, realizing it was snow and not Tsunade's chest. She was lying close to him.
It seemed the awkward situation that could have occurred – grabbing her chest and saying, "What a soft feeling," only to have her punch him in anger – didn't happen.
Tsunade regained consciousness shortly after Tōshirō did, clutching her head and muttering the same words he did. She gave him a slight look of reproach, as if blaming him for throwing her unexpectedly.
But she understood that Tōshirō had been trying to save her, so she didn't argue about it.
Tōshirō was exhausted from chakra depletion, while Tsunade was weakened from poisoning. In these critical times, they didn't care about gender differences, supporting each other slowly until they reached a rock offering some shelter, where they considered their next move.
Tōshirō gently set Tsunade down, resting her against the wall, and looked at her curious face before adding, "I know you want to say something, but now's not the time for unnecessary things."
He then sat on the snow, leaning his back against the rock, sighing as his breath formed mist in the cold air.
Tsunade nodded submissively, her beautiful brown eyes watching Tōshirō.
Perhaps because he had saved her, she began looking at him differently.
Not that she hadn't liked him before, but now there was a strange feeling she couldn't explain.
Tōshirō said quietly, "There are Mist ninjas nearby. I left shadowy traces on purpose; maybe we can trick him."
He continued, "We shouldn't wander around too much, or our footprints will be everywhere."
Tōshirō's body was weary despite the intense cold, and he was sweating.
Chakra is extracted from a blend of physical abilities and spiritual energy, and excessive extraction can cause extreme fatigue.
Concern showed in Tsunade's eyes as she gently wiped the sweat from his face, saying softly in a rare tone, "You look so weak."
Tōshirō swallowed his saliva, feeling thirsty: "I've consumed too much chakra. If the enemies see us in this condition, I'll be in big trouble."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Do you want me to help you recover your chakra?"
Tōshirō shook his head and smiled bitterly: "You can't use chakra right now. How would you help me? And I've never heard of any medical jutsu that can restore others' chakra."
Tsunade replied confidently, "Trust me, I have a way."
Tōshirō was skeptical: "You?"
Tsunade lowered her head slightly and responded in a soft voice, her ears burning with heat and redness.
Kuzan asked, "How?"
If Tsunade could regenerate his energy, why not continue to face the shinobi?
He was handed an "A" level jutsu from Itachi, and if it hit the target, he could defeat the enemy instantly.
Tsunade raised her sleeve, revealing her white arm, and said, "You need to bite me."
Tōshirō looked at the white arm presented to him, feeling confused.
In his mind, healing through biting was something performed by members of the Uzumaki clan, and not just anyone could do it.
However, Tsunade had ties to the Uzumaki clan, as she was the granddaughter of Mito Uzumaki.
Tsunade explained that while her blood did not carry the full powers of the Uzumaki clan, it could restore some chakra by drinking her blood.
With no other options available, Tōshirō decided to bite, and to his surprise, he found that her blood was not unpleasant. In fact, it helped to soothe his dry throat.
After a moment, Tsunade said, "That's enough. You should have recovered some of your energy by now."
Tōshirō stopped the process, and Tsunade commented shyly, "Do you enjoy doing this?"
Tōshirō smiled and said, "Your blood is refreshing."
Then he continued, "I've regained some chakra, and that's enough for now."
Tsunade suggested, "Let's leave here and return to the village."
Tōshirō refused, saying, "Before we leave, I need to kill that ninja."
Tsunade's eyes widened in disbelief: "Tōshirō, are you crazy? You're already strong, but you're not in a condition to face an opponent of this level. This isn't like your usual cautious self."
Tōshirō replied confidently, "No, this is caution itself."
Tsunade: "?"
Tōshirō added, "He's seen all my abilities. To ensure a peaceful life in the future, I must kill him, or else there will be bounty orders on me everywhere."
Tsunade had no argument against his logic, and it was clear that he had a compelling reason to kill his opponent.
Tōshirō said, "Tsunade, I want you to help me check something."
Tsunade: "What is it?"
Tōshirō activated his Sharingan and asked Tsunade to count the tomoe in his Sharingan, receiving a result that delighted him.
His Sharingan had evolved during the battle, becoming two-tomoe. It wasn't surprising that in his confrontation with the ninja from the Mist Village, his eyes could keep up with the movements. Now, next time, he wouldn't be at a disadvantage.
According to Tōshirō's skill level, he should have evolved to a two-tomoe or even three-tomoe Sharingan a while ago, but because he hadn't been using the Sharingan's power regularly, it remained stagnant. Now, under some pressure, the Sharingan had evolved rapidly.
Tōshirō said, "I'll use a shadow clone to get you out of here, and once I'm sure there's no danger to you, I'll look for an opportunity to kill this Mist ninja."
Tsunade insisted, "No, I won't go. I won't leave you alone."
Tōshirō: "?"
Tsunade blushed slightly and quickly clarified her stance: "I mean, if you can't defeat him, you can always come back to me to absorb more of my blood to restore chakra and heal. That way, you'll have a greater chance of overcoming this enemy."
Tsunade felt her logic was sound, and Tōshirō did not object. After confirming that the rear was secure, he made his decision to attack.
(End of Chapter)
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