Chapter 52 (Patreon)

“Boy... what’s your name?”

The moment the shadow clone vanished, Itachi Uchiha appeared behind Mihawk without a sound. A kunai slipped from the sleeve of his black cloak patterned with red clouds and stabbed toward Mihawk’s back.

Kurenai’s eyes widened.

“Mihawk, behind you!”

Whoosh!

Mihawk spun around and swung his blade at Itachi, showing no concern that the kunai might reach him first.

The willingness to trade wounds without hesitation caught even Itachi off guard.

Faced with the approaching blade and the boy fighting with his eyes closed, Itachi abandoned his attack and leaped backward.

Still airborne, he brought two fingers before his mouth.

“Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu.”

Flames erupted from his lips and rapidly expanded into a massive fireball that hurtled toward Mihawk.

Kurenai’s expression darkened.

“I couldn’t even see him weave the hand signs...”

With his eyes still closed, Mihawk charged directly toward the flames, one hand gripping his sword.

“Kurenai-sensei, help that jōnin. It doesn’t look like he can handle the shark-faced one alone.”

His warning snapped Kurenai’s attention toward the battle near the river.

“Mihawk, be careful!” she called before leaving. “Your opponent is Itachi Uchiha! He became an ANBU captain at thirteen and slaughtered the entire Uchiha clan. He’s an S-rank rogue ninja!”

Mihawk gave no sign that he had heard her.

He swung his sword.

The blade tore through the scorching air, splitting the enormous fireball cleanly down the middle. Flames surged past him on both sides as he charged through the opening and closed the distance between himself and Itachi.

Itachi watched the blindfolded assault without showing surprise at Mihawk’s extraordinary perception.

Instead, he spoke in a quiet, thoughtful voice.

“You’re young, yet you already understand the true danger of the Uchiha.”

Mihawk did not deny it.

“Genjutsu is one of the most troublesome things in this world. And when the opponent is you, I can’t afford to underestimate it.”

Ordinary genjutsu posed little threat as long as Mihawk kept his eyes closed. Even if he were caught in one, his Observation Haki would still allow him to locate his opponent’s true body.

However, there were two genjutsu against which he had no confidence whatsoever.

Tsukuyomi and Kotoamatsukami.

Itachi possessed the former, while one of Shisui Uchiha’s eyes—the eye capable of casting Kotoamatsukami—was also in his possession.

That was why Mihawk had closed his eyes the instant Itachi attacked.

Without another word, Mihawk raised his sword and slashed at him.

“Your swordsmanship is remarkable,” Itachi observed as he calmly turned aside, allowing the blade to pass beside him. “Every movement embodies speed, precision, and lethal intent.”

He immediately countered with a kick aimed at the left side of Mihawk’s head.

“But the Sharingan can see through ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu alike.”

Mihawk raised his left arm. Armament Haki hardened around it as he blocked Itachi’s kick.

“In the eyes of the Sharingan, your sword is too slow.”

Mihawk answered with a side kick of his own.

Itachi crossed both arms to block it, then used the force of the impact to leap backward.

By the time he landed, Mihawk had already returned his sword to its sheath and lowered himself into an iai stance.

“Then try avoiding this.”

A chilling sense of danger locked onto Itachi.

“Armament Iai!”

Mihawk drew his blade.

A dark silver flash tore through the air. Pitch-black Armament Haki intertwined with the silver-white edge, forming a dark-red Ranged Slash nearly six meters tall.

It roared toward Itachi.

The distance between them disappeared in an instant.

It was Itachi’s first time witnessing an attack of that nature. Even his normally impassive expression changed.

BOOM!

The Ranged Slash swallowed him whole and continued forward, carving a trench more than ten meters long into the ground.

A familiar burst of smoke followed.

Two broken halves of a wooden log dropped into the newly formed ravine.

Itachi was already standing atop a nearby tree, looking down at Mihawk from above.

Then the piercing cry of countless birds rang through the battlefield.

A figure appeared behind Itachi.

Lightning blazed around Kakashi’s right hand as he drove it toward Itachi’s heart.

Itachi glanced over his shoulder, his expression remaining perfectly calm.

Kakashi’s eye suddenly widened.

He stopped his Raikiri before it could connect and pushed off the branch, leaping toward another tree.

BOOM!

Before Kakashi could escape, a violent blast erupted behind him. The force struck like a hurricane, hurling him through the air and sending him crashing into a tree.

Mihawk turned his face toward the river below.

“So after using the Substitution Jutsu, you immediately created a shadow clone,” he said. “Your real objective was to lure Kakashi in.”

Although his eyes remained closed, his attention was fixed on the real Itachi, who had appeared beside Kisame Hoshigaki.

“You detonated your own shadow clone,” Mihawk continued. “Even knowing the pain would return to you... you still did it without hesitation. You really are a terrifying man.”

Itachi looked at him once more.

“Young man, what is your name?”

Mihawk held his sword at his side.

“Nerona Mihawk. I’m a genin, just like your younger brother.”

At the mention of Sasuke, not the slightest change appeared on Itachi’s face.

But Mihawk’s Observation Haki caught the subtle shift in his emotions.

Kisame bared his sharp teeth in a grin.

“A brat capable of launching a slash like that is only a genin? The people running Konoha must be blind.”

Mihawk turned his blade toward Kisame and smiled faintly.

“I can hear your sword breathing.”

“Heh... You’re right. My sword is alive.”

Kisame rested Samehada against his shoulder. The bandages around the blade had loosened enough to reveal several sharp scales underneath.

He looked at Mihawk with open interest.

“Mr. Itachi, Konoha truly deserves its reputation as the cradle of geniuses. First it produced someone like you, and now a monster like this appears during a time of peace.”

His grin widened.

“I feel like I’m looking at the birth of another White Fang of the Leaf.”

“The disturbance we caused will draw reinforcements soon,” Itachi replied evenly. “The boy’s perception allows him to fight without looking into my eyes. Unless I use that technique, killing him in a single strike would be difficult.”

His gaze lingered on Mihawk for a moment.

“There’s no reason to waste any more time here.”

Itachi turned away.

“Kisame, we’re leaving.”

The two Akatsuki members disappeared in an instant.

Mihawk continued sensing their presence until it had faded completely. Only then did he slowly open his eyes.

The shinobi who protects the village from within its darkness...

A quiet sigh escaped him.

I’ve never met an enemy whose heart was so gentle.

That was precisely why Mihawk had held back instead of fighting at full strength.