Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

Kisame Hoshigaki forcibly steadied his mind. Just before the shark missile reached him, he used the Body Flicker Technique to vanish from his original position, narrowly avoiding the attack.

Then, without hesitation, he launched a counterattack.

Likewise, Uchiha Haruki didn't back down at all. He met the assault head-on, clashing directly with Kisame in a fierce confrontation.

Although Haruki's chakra reserves weren't as vast as his opponent's, he could still hold his own for a short duration. Because of that, their intense battle created a massive disturbance.

Thankfully, they were fighting on the open sea. Had it been on land, their clash would've required evacuating everything within at least a one-kilometer radius.

Even so, the sheer intensity of the battle terrified both the Hidden Mist and Konoha ninjas nearby, forcing them to retreat far from the fight.

Their battle continued for nearly fifteen minutes. In the end, neither could gain the upper hand.

Still, it had to be said—Kisame's combat experience was indeed formidable.

Once he realized close-quarters combat wasn't to his advantage and his ninjutsu couldn't quickly end the fight, he immediately changed tactics, choosing to fight underwater.

Thanks to his unique physiology, Kisame could breathe underwater like a fish, giving him an overwhelming advantage in aquatic combat.

Haruki was fully aware of this and refused to enter the water, avoiding that disadvantage at all costs.

Thus, the previously explosive battle suddenly turned eerily quiet.

Haruki stood still on the sea's surface, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan spinning at full power, scanning every corner of the ocean, senses wide open, prepared for a stealth attack.

Meanwhile, Kisame lay in wait, hidden beneath the waves, exercising tremendous patience.

As an elite ANBU-level ninja—one who treated himself as a tool to complete missions—patience was Kisame's greatest strength.

And since the environment left Haruki with nowhere to retreat, Kisame could afford to wait forever.

After all, his mission was to stall Haruki's reinforcements, preventing them from aiding the northern front.

So dragging out the battle was completely acceptable.

But just because Kisame could afford to wait didn't mean Haruki could.

Although their ship had been destroyed—making their support mission more or less a failure—Haruki still needed to reach the battlefield, otherwise he couldn't justify his actions.

This put him in a highly passive position.

Yet in another sense, this was a perfect opportunity.

Haruki hadn't forgotten his plan: to capture Kisame alive and turn him into his personal "chakra battery."

And situations where he appeared to be on the back foot made it easier to set the trap convincingly.

Still, he had to tread very carefully.

Because he only had one shot—if Kisame became suspicious, capturing him would be nearly impossible.

Given his personality, if he sensed something was off and had no way of escaping, Kisame might even choose suicide. And then everything Haruki worked for would be lost.

So—he had to seize the right opportunity.

He also had to consider the Hidden Mist and Konoha ninjas nearby.

Why?

Because to capture Kisame alive, he would almost certainly need to use the Mangekyō Sharingan—and that was his second greatest secret. Unless absolutely necessary, it could not be exposed.

Thus, any variables that might reveal his secret needed to be accounted for.

Fortunately, his earlier clash with Kisame had already scared off everyone nearby, and at such a distance, as long as he was careful, it shouldn't draw attention.

Time ticked away, second by second.

Countless thoughts raced through his mind.

Finally, at a certain moment, Haruki made up his mind.

Just then, a water dragon suddenly shot out from behind.

Haruki immediately spun around. When he saw it, his eyes lit up.

"Perfect timing," he thought to himself.

Raising both hands, he rapidly formed hand seals and cast:

Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!

Another dragon formed and roared into existence.

The two water dragons collided in mid-air with a thunderous crash.

Torrents of water rained down like a violent storm, obscuring Haruki's vision.

And then—Kisame appeared within the downpour, right ahead.

With swift hand seals, Kisame released a surge of chakra, scattering it into the surrounding rain.

In an instant, the falling droplets transformed into countless fine needles, shooting toward Haruki.

Haruki sensed the danger at once.

But instead of retreating, he charged forward.

With a shing, his long blade left its sheath and flashed into his hand.

He swung it rapidly, deflecting the rain-needle barrage, all while rushing straight toward Kisame.

Kisame immediately tried to dive back into the ocean, but Haruki stepped hard on the water's surface and injected a large amount of Water Release chakra into the sea.

Suddenly, the water around them turned thick and viscous, slowing Kisame's movements.

This was a usage of chakra nature transformation—changing the property of the water by infusing it with chakra.

It was similar to injecting Wind Release chakra into a blade to enhance its cutting ability. Both were temporary enhancements to an object or environment.

The only drawback was that water transformation was less efficient—a luxury Haruki could afford only because of his ample chakra reserves.

Still, the results were satisfying.

Kisame's escape was halted, and Haruki closed in.

Shing—!

Haruki slashed, dragging the fight back into a domain where he held the advantage.

Though Kisame already knew he wasn't Haruki's equal in swordsmanship, he had no choice but to draw the long sword from his back and engage.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sharp ring of clashing steel echoed through the air.

Haruki's blade moved like the wind, his Sharingan tracking Kisame's every move, predicting his intentions based on earlier patterns.

This time, it took less than a minute for Haruki to land a serious blow.

Shunk!

His blade pierced forward—and under Kisame's disbelieving gaze, stabbed straight through his heart.

Haruki's face lit up with satisfaction.

But then…

Drip. Drip.

Instead of blood, water began leaking from the hole in Kisame's chest.

Haruki's eyes widened.

"Not good—!"

He leapt backward instinctively.

Boom!

Kisame's "body" collapsed into a splash of seawater—just a Water Clone.

He had fallen into a trap.

And before he could retreat more than half a step, a figure burst from below the sea, appearing behind Haruki and placing a phantom palm against his back.

Suddenly, a light-blue water prison formed around Haruki, trapping him inside.

He couldn't move.

It was one of Kisame Hoshigaki's signature jutsu:

Water Style: Water Prison Technique!