The Thunder Sword: Fang in his hand dissolved into a brilliant surge of light and was absorbed directly into his body.
Kisame was stunned.
He could feel the current of energy swimming inside him, drifting from his arms to his torso to his legs, as though it were searching for a place to settle.
In the end, it chose the least expected place—
His rear.
3. Evolution: Sharktail Lightning Whip
"Fizz!"
Kisame sucked in a sharp breath, his pupils shrinking to the size of pinpoints as a cold sweat poured down his face like rain.
A sharp, stabbing pain struck from behind, making Kisame groan. His body arched involuntarily, and with a bizarre "poof," something extended from his lower back—a tail.
It was a long, grayish-brown appendage over a meter in length, with two fin-like extensions at the end, resembling a shark's tail at first glance.
But it wasn't just that. Lightning shimmered across its surface in silver patterns, crackling with power. This wasn't a normal tail.
It was… the Sharktail Lightning Whip.
"Rrgh!"
A primal roar tore from Kisame's throat. A storm surged within him—an uncontrollable, wild power demanding release. Driven by instinct, he lashed out with the tail.
Crack!
With a sharp snap, a tree trunk as thick as a barrel split clean in half and collapsed with a rumble.
Then, a massive bluestone—taller than a man—was obliterated with a single swipe of the lightning tail, fragments of stone scattering like shrapnel in every direction.
The sheer force was terrifying.
Clearly, with the help of the strange cheat-like device known as the Iron Eater, the Thunder Sword: Fang had fully merged with Kisame—not just assimilated into his body, but retaining its deadly traits and power.
As for the price he paid—
Aside from the searing pain in his backside, he was now even less human in appearance.
Then again, Kisame had never looked particularly human to begin with.
If losing humanity was the price of strength, then so be it.
He was Kisame Hoshigaki, the Monster of the Hidden Mist. Giving up his humanity? Just part of the job description.
The only issue now was… dragging this thunderous shark tail back to Kirigakure would probably raise a few eyebrows.
Just then—
Kisame had an idea. Contracting the muscles in his lower back with precision, he focused—and something miraculous happened.
Whoosh.
The Sharktail Lightning Whip, like a serpent returning to its den, instantly retracted into his body and vanished.
Retractable.
Kisame's eyes lit up.
Immediately, he thought of close-quarters combat scenarios—moments of grappling, stalemates, a sudden surprise attack from behind. With this tail, his unorthodox taijutsu from his past life could now be unleashed to devastating effect.
Time to leave.
After a brief moment of reflection, Kisame began clearing up. First, he needed to destroy Black Hoe Leiya's body. Then it would be back to Kirigakure to resume his life as a genin.
Because the remaining six of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were now on his list.
But perhaps the earlier commotion had drawn attention.
Whoosh!
A searing fireball the size of a human head curved through the night sky, blazing toward Kisame like a comet.
"Hmm?"
Kisame reacted quickly. He grabbed Leiya's corpse and flung it forward to intercept the incoming fireball.
Ssshh—
With a hiss of steam, the water in Leiya's corpse vaporized instantly, leaving behind only a shriveled husk that dropped lifelessly to the ground.
A second later, Ye Cang stepped from the darkness, expression ice-cold.
She immediately recognized the boy before her—the one who had leapt from the dam and vanished into the mist.
What shocked her most, though, wasn't that he had escaped—
"You… killed your superior?"
Ye Cang's voice was frigid, her brows slightly furrowed as she looked at the young Mist ninja.
She'd sensed that Leiya had already been dead before she'd even acted.
Kisame said nothing. He neither confirmed nor denied, leaving the truth to fester in her mind.
He was calculating.
Ye Cang was no ordinary opponent—an elite jōnin with a dangerous Kekkei Genkai and many allies nearby. Even with the Sharktail Lightning Whip, Kisame couldn't be sure of victory.
So, he fell back on an old strategy.
Run.
He opened his arms wide, stepping back toward the cliff's edge, flashing a toothy grin.
"Scorch Release Ye Cang… if fate allows, we'll meet again."
Before the words even finished leaving his lips, Kisame turned and jumped off the cliff.
Whoosh.
Ye Cang rushed forward, stopping at the edge and staring down.
All she saw was the waterfall cascading endlessly, plunging into the abyss below.
Even for a shinobi, falling from this height was certain death.
But—
That grin. That unwavering calm, even in the face of death. The merciless precision of slaying a superior. The insane decision to leap off a cliff.
All of it burned into Ye Cang's memory.
If this boy survived… he would be dangerous.
As Ye Cang stood, lost in thought, the rest of the Suna team finally caught up.
When they saw Leiya's withered corpse, they assumed he had been killed by Ye Cang herself.
This revelation brought cheers. The mission had already been a great success—they had destroyed infrastructure across the Land of Water and now claimed the life of a member of the Seven Swordsmen.
Their return would be met with glory and promotions.
Ye Cang glanced at her celebrating subordinates, hesitated—but in the end, said nothing.
What troubled her was the absence of Thunder Sword: Fang.
Had the strange boy taken it over the cliff with him?
She led the team along the riverbanks, circling the waterfall in hopes of finding Kisame's body or the missing sword.
But this was enemy territory, and Mist reinforcements were no doubt on their way.
They couldn't linger.
Eventually, Ye Cang gave up the search, took Leiya's corpse, and retreated with her team.
The cliff thundered on, the roar of water muffling the whispers of fate.
Halfway down the cliff, a solitary tree clung to the rock, its roots embedded in crevices, branches reaching skyward.
Like the tree, Kisame had endured.
He had called out his lightning tail mid-fall, using it like a grappling limb to twist and steer his descent. While battered by the cliff's jagged surfaces, the impact was slowed significantly.
When he spotted the tree, he knew he would live.
Now, the Sharktail Lightning Whip was coiled tightly around the trunk, suspending Kisame in midair.
After catching his breath, Kisame used his limbs and the climbing knowledge he'd retained from another life to descend the rocky slope to the valley floor.
Darkness surrounded him. No moon, just the endless crash of water.
He slipped into the river, tail moving lazily behind him.
Like a shark gliding through the deep, he vanished into the current, heading silently toward the open sea.
The moon was hidden, the clouds thick.
What had happened this night… would remain cloaked in shadow.