Fierce Battle! Purple Lightning!

Kakashi's mind raced. His worst fear had materialized.

Gen's bluff with the signal flare could have worked—scaring off cautious foes. But against determined Akatsuki? It was a death sentence.

I need to get Gen out. NOW.

Before he could move, Itachi materialized before him, Sharingan blazing crimson.

"Apologies, Senpai."

"..." Kakashi sighed, pushing up his forehead protector. The scarlet Sharingan whirled to life beneath. "If I were you, I'd retreat."

He channeled chakra, voice icing over. "But stay. Fight us until ANBU arrive... and we will end this today."

"Perhaps." Itachi's tone remained placid, yet chakra surged beneath his cloak. "You might survive. But your student?"

SHUNSHIN!

Itachi lunged. Kakashi met him, kunai clashing in a shower of sparks!

---

"Should've run when you had the chance, brat!" Kisame snarled, Samehada whistling through the air like a scythe.

Each swing carved craters in the earth, felling trees and shattering boulders with thunderous force.

Gen didn't reply, fluidly dodging the onslaught. Part of him wanted to flee.

But seeing these two? He saw a path to complete Kakashi's [Exclusive Quest]. And the new side quest flashing alongside it was too tempting:

[New Side Quest: Kakashi's New Crescent Moon]

[Show Kakashi who truly matters to him now!]

Morally dubious... but convenient. He'd accepted both.

His confidence wasn't baseless. He could stall Kisame. And Itachi? The self-proclaimed Konoha spy likely dreaded fighting fellow Leaf shinobi. Give him an "irresistible reason" to disengage...

Failing that? Gen's speed was his lifeline.

"Perfect timing..." Gen muttered, flipping backward as Samehada cleaved the ground where he stood. Violet sparks began crackling around his clenched fist. "...to test Purple Lightning!"

Kisame's next strike blurred—a silent, horizontal decapitation! Yet the swordsman's eyes narrowed in sudden confusion.

THUD!

Samehada struck... a log wrapped in mud?

Earth Clone?! Kisame's shark teeth ground together. When did he—?

FWOOSH-FWOOSH-FWOOSH!

A barrage of senbon and kunai erupted from the surrounding trees!

"Tch. Child's play!" Kisame spun Samehada into a shimmering disk.

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

Every projectile deflected. A Mist Swordsman's blade mastery was absolute. And through the metallic storm, Kisame's gaze locked onto Gen's true position.

"Found you!"

Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!

Gen's riposte was instant—a roaring sphere of flame engulfing Kisame's path!

Water Release: Water Wall!

Kisame didn't hesitate. Underestimating any opponent was fatal. And the threat of ANBU lingered.

HISSSSS—!

Fire met surging water. A scalding steam explosion blanketed the battlefield. Visibility plummeted to zero.

Gen seemed panicked. Hands flew through seals.

Earth Release: Earth Wall!

Multiple earthen barriers erupted, boxing him in.

"Fast hands..." Kisame mused, peering effortlessly through the mist—a product of his Kirigakure heritage. Then he sneered. "Fool. Fighting a Mist ninja in mist?"

His own seals blurred.

Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!

ROOOOAR!

A colossal serpent of water burst through the steam, shattering Gen's walls like pottery! Water and debris sprayed everywhere.

Kisame surged through the chaos, Samehada poised for the killing blow.

Huh?!

He froze mid-lunge. A terrifying, alien chakra spiked—prickling his skin like ice needles.

At the blast's epicenter, Gen stood eyes closed.

Crackling around him...

...was lightning.

But not blue. Not white.

Purple.

Shimmering arcs of purple lightning coiled around his body like living serpents. They refracted through the mist, painting the fog with eerie, shifting rainbows.

Gen's eyes snapped open. A predatory smile touched his lips.

"Took you long enough."

His voice cut through the hissing steam.

"And thank you... for the perfect conductor."

CRACKLE—ZZZZZRRRAAAAAK!

The violet lightning erupted. Not in a straight line—but spiderwebbing violently outward, leaping hungrily onto every suspended water droplet in the saturated air!

A net of purple death surged toward Kisame, faster than thought!

The swordsman's face paled.

Impossible!

---

Meanwhile...

Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!

Earth Release: Earth Wall!

Kakashi blocked Itachi's fireball with an earth wall, gritting his teeth. Itachi's hand-sign speed was inhuman—even Sharingan-assisted copying felt strained.

A true genius. Itachi wielded ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu with flawless precision. His combat IQ was terrifying: meticulously analyzing every move, countering only after understanding the threat.

Just like me... Kakashi thought grimly, parrying a kunai flurry. But sharper. Faster. And that Mangekyō...

He risked a glance toward the violet-lit mist where Gen fought. Dread warred with a flicker of desperate pride.

Hold on, Gen. Just hold on...