Naruto: Different Path

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The Mist Ninja attacked Naruto once again, but fortunately, Yamato used Wood Release to block the attack. 

However, the large-scale techniques were draining Yamato's chakra, and he was already breathing heavily. 

The three Suiko members launched an attack. "Water Style: Water Dragon Barrage!" 

Three water dragons rushed toward the Mist Ninja, who laughed and said, "You dare use Water Style in front of me? 

You're just as naive as those other fools." He quickly countered, "Water Style: Water Wall," raising a barrier that blocked the attack, clearly demonstrating his superiority in Water Style over them.

Seizing the moment while the Mist Ninja was forming hand seals, Naruto charged again, stabbing with his Lightning God Sword into that strange water barrier around him, but the result was the same. 

Using the force from being repelled, Naruto retreated to Suiko's group and asked, "Does anyone here know Fire Style?" 

Ashika replied, "Fire Style? I can use it but in this environment..." Naruto interrupted, "Don't worry about that now. 

We have to try. If Fire Style can evaporate the water around him, we'll have a chance." 

Suiko was concerned and said, "Even if we use Fire Style, won't he just block it with Water Style? We won't be able to hit him."

Naruto thought momentarily and then said to Yamato, "You attack with Wood Style, and I'll handle his attacks. 

Ashika, use Fire Style on him." The three nodded in agreement. Yamato's Wood Release rapidly entangled the enemy. 

The Mist Ninja responded, "Water Style: Water Cutting Blade," a high-pressure stream of water aimed to cut through Yamato's Wood Release. 

Naruto quickly formed hand seals, "Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!" A thick earth wall rose from the water, blocking the attack.

However, the water stream was so powerful that it sliced the thick earth wall in half, though it lost the strength to cut through Yamato's Wood Release. 

Yamato's Wood Release almost bound the Mist Ninja, even though the water barrier hindered his movements. 

He swung his water blade quickly, cutting through the Wood Release into pieces. 

At that moment, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Ashika's fire attack hit the Mist Ninja, producing a lot of steam, but his water barrier blocked the flames, leaving him unharmed.

Naruto attacked again with his Lightning God Sword, which was repelled like before.

The Mist Ninja laughed, "You've gone through all this trouble just to try and evaporate the water around me, huh?" 

"But in this environment, your Fire Style is useless." 

He moved further into the sea and taunted, "Unless you can evaporate all the water in the ocean, it's meaningless."

Naruto frowned. Using Fire Style had been a desperate attempt, and making it work effectively in the ocean was hard. 

At that moment, Hinata ran out from the ship. Seeing her, Naruto shouted, "Didn't I tell you to stay away? This battle isn't for you!"

 Hinata, clearly worried, shouted back, "Naruto, a large group of enemy reinforcements is heading this way! We must finish this fight quickly, or we risk getting surrounded!"

Her warning put Naruto in a tough position. If they retreated, it would expose a lot of their information to the enemy. 

But if they continued fighting without being able to break through the Mist Ninja's defence, they would run out of time. 

Naruto knew he could defeat the Mist Ninja with enough time, but they didn't have that luxury now. 

Without discovering a weak point, defeating him quickly seemed impossible.

Hinata softly said, "I've discovered his weakness, but there's a problem..." 

Naruto immediately asked, "What is it? Tell me!" 

Understanding the urgency, Hinata explained, "The enemy's jutsu works by gathering a large amount of chakra on his body and attaching it using a special method." 

"When attacked, he mixes his chakra with the surrounding water to form a unique liquid barrier." 

"This liquid, controlled by his chakra, can change shape and absorb most attacks flexibly." 

"Additionally, there's a small gap between the liquid and his body, so your Lightning Style can't directly hit him."

"Instead, it spreads through the surrounding water."

Naruto momentarily thought and asked, "So, we need to continuously attack him to drain his chakra, but we don't have enough time. We'll already be surrounded by the time we break his defence." 

Hinata nodded and added, "That's true based on his chakra levels, but there's another weakness." 

"This technique only works in areas with water, so he keeps moving away from the shore." 

"If we can force him into a place without water, he won't be able to use it."

Naruto recalled that the Mist Ninja had been subtly moving toward deeper water throughout the fight. 

It made sense—being near water was a great advantage for him. 

Naruto quickly devised a plan with Yamato and the others and launched the next phase of their attack.

Yamato began his assault with Wood Release, trying to drive the enemy toward the shore. 

However, the Mist Ninja, aware of his jutsu's limitations, refused to move closer to the shore. 

The three Suiko members continued using Water Style to keep him busy. 

Meanwhile, Naruto created two shadow clones to build chakra for a large-scale jutsu. 

Subtle tremors spread through the water below, though they went unnoticed amid the chaotic battle.

"Earth Style: Land Uplift!" Naruto and his two clones cast the jutsu together, causing a large chunk of land to rise beneath the Mist Ninja. 

"Not good!" the Mist Ninja realized, trying to dive back into the water, but Yamato's Wood Release kept obstructing him, and the land continued to rise. 

Naruto's Lightning God Sword struck again, but since there was still water around, the Mist Ninja formed his water barrier just in time to block it. 

Naruto shouted, "Ashika! Use Fire Style! Don't worry about me!"

Although hesitant, Ashika unleashed a Fire Style jutsu. Both Naruto and the Mist Ninja were engulfed in flames.

 However, Naruto's Lightning Armor protected him from the fire, and the remaining water quickly evaporated.

With the water gone, Naruto's Lightning Style finally hit the Mist Ninja directly, rendering him powerless and ending the battle.

Naruto and his team retreated quickly, taking the captive with them. Hinata had noticed that the enemy reinforcements were getting very close. 

Once Naruto's squad returned to their base, they all rested. Everyone was relieved that they had defeated the enemy in time. 

Naruto said, "No, we have Hinata's Byakugan to thank for this. Without it, we would have been at a serious disadvantage." 

The others agreed, their grateful gazes falling on Hinata, who shyly replied, "It was nothing... It was everyone's effort. I just spotted the enemy's jutsu."

Naruto continued, "Yes, the Byakugan was crucial this time, but we still have important work to do even though the battle is over. 

We need to extract as much information as possible from these Mist Ninja prisoners. However, interrogation isn't my style, so I'll leave that to you." 

Yamato nodded, "Leave it to us. " He took Kengo and Ryo to question the captives while the others stayed behind to rest and wait for any intel.

Naruto leaned close to Hinata and whispered, "Hinata, come with me to the back room. I need to ask you something." 

Even though he couldn't see her expression under her mask, Naruto was certain she was blushing. 

He led the way to the room, with Hinata following. Her head lowered. She was too embarrassed to meet his gaze. 

Naruto closed the door and, still speaking softly, asked, "Hinata, do you have any thoughts about this mission? I want to hear your honest opinion."

In a quiet voice, Hinata responded, "The enemy was much stronger than anyone we've faced before, completely on a different level." 

I don't think I was ready to fight them... Besides that, I didn't feel anything too different." 

Naruto looked at her seriously and said, "You possess one of the most unique bloodline limits in the Leaf, the Byakugan, which gives you unparalleled insight. 

It can be incredibly helpful to your team if you only use it for support. But the Hyuga clan's Byakugan isn't just known for its sensory abilities. 

It also has powerful close-combat techniques and a unique form of absolute defence, the Rotation."

Hearing this, Hinata lowered her head in deep thought, aware of her shortcomings. 

Naruto sighed, "For your age, your current strength is understandable. But it's also a matter of personal effort. I suggest you at least learn Rotation." 

"If you could have ensured your safety during this mission, we might have been able to defeat the enemy sooner."

Naruto's words caused Hinata's head to lower even more, almost touching the floor. She silently vowed to keep pushing herself to improve. 

Seeing her like this, Naruto felt bad and gently patted her head. "I might have been a bit harsh. Don't beat yourself up over it. Just keep working hard from now on, okay?"

At that moment, Yamato's voice came from outside, "Captain, the preliminary interrogation is complete." 

Naruto turned to Hinata and said, "Let's go hear what Yamato found out." They left the room and joined the others in the main hall.

Once seated, Yamato looked around and said, "Unfortunately, we didn't get any valuable intel." 

Naruto noticed that Kengo and Ryo seemed downcast, clearly frustrated by the lack of success. 

Naruto tried to lift their spirits, "Even if we didn't get anything useful, tell us what you found. It'll still help us plan our next move. And don't get discouraged. Interrogation isn't exactly our speciality."

Yamato sighed, "Not only did we fail to get valuable information, but we also learned some bad news." 

"From what we gathered, the Mist Ninjas prioritize the mission above all else and don't care about their comrades." 

"These so-called 'Blood Mist' trained shinobi have lost most of their emotions." 

"So, exchanging these captives for any of our Leaf comrades isn't work."

Naruto thought for a moment, "That is indeed bad news. We had suspected it, but it's still disappointing. What about their strength?" 

"Did you find out how many enemies we're up against or if they have any particularly strong shinobi?"

Yamato sighed, "Based on the insane tone of the Mist Ninja we questioned, we can assume they've brought a large force." 

"These guys were just the vanguard, and the enemy has thoroughly prepared for this operation." 

"However, we couldn't determine the strength of their top fighters. They won't make any major moves until they've gauged our abilities."

It was no wonder Yamato and the others felt disheartened. Naruto understood how complicated things had become. 

However, as the captain, he had to make decisions during tough situations like this. 

He began giving orders, "I doubt the Mist will attempt a rescue mission for their own. These guys are likely considered disposable. 

Let's have a few Chūnin from the base escort them back to the Leaf and hand them to the interrogation department. 

Starting tomorrow, we'll change our tactics and operate during the day. Widen the search area; if you find anything suspicious, report it immediately. 

Do not put yourselves in unnecessary danger. Does anyone have any objections?"

The group nodded in agreement. The enemy preferred to move at night, meaning they would likely hide during the day. 

Though daytime operations posed their risks, it was a better time to catch the enemy off guard. 

Still, there was always the danger of getting discovered and attacked.

Naruto continued, "Yamato, use your Wood clones for the search. If anything seems off, dispel the clone immediately." 

"The rest of you should do the same. If you find something suspicious, don't make a scene. Act as if nothing is wrong." 

"The enemy likely won't act during the day if they're trying to stay hidden."

The next morning, everyone followed the plan they had discussed. 

Naruto stayed at the base to guide Hinata's training and sent out some of his shadow clones to assist with the search. 

It wasn't the most efficient method, but it was the best they could do. Hinata, meanwhile, struggled with mastering the Rotation technique. 

Despite her hard work, her talent in this area seemed limited, starkly contrasting Neji's. 

Although Neji was from the branch family, he had a natural gift. Naruto couldn't help but reflect on the way the Hyuga clan operated. 

While their system preserved the Byakugan, it also stunted its growth. 

True prodigies had emerged from the branch family before, yet the main family always had only one heir per generation. 

There was no guarantee that heir would be the most gifted. For now, Naruto is focused on helping Hinata improve her abilities.

If she could become more capable of protecting herself, it would also ease the burden on him.

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