Smouldering heat passed through the area. The wounds stuck to the skin like gravel on dirt—it was a bloodwork so chaotic and extreme that simple civilians would have lost their minds at the sight.
Yet the ninjas fought with their lives on the line. Kyojiro himself was stuck in a perilous situation—his fiery hair, now almost painted red, dripped a drop from time to time like water dripping on stone.
The ground beneath him cracked—his skin pulsed with tremors and heat and the ionizing feel of lightning all around him.
His eyes sharpened as he looked at the man in front of him—a Jonin.White hair that clung to his face at almost shoulder length, a dark complexion that immediately contrasted with the sky-blue eyes. If Kyojiro hadn't seen the show itself, he would've almost assumed the man was the main character.
"You— I will kill you and bring revenge to all my fallen comrades!" the man shouted in a gruff tone. He rushed forward, his own sword—a curved talwar—slashing at Kyojiro.
Kyojiro couldn't help but narrow his eyes. His breath immediately multiplied his strength—the strength of his breathing coursing through his veins.
His katana rushed in response, immediately clashing with the talwar in a cacophony of noise.
SWISH
TING
Kyojiro's Sharingan observed the very foundation of the man—how he walked, how he reacted to a surprise attack.His katana, a dull grey, blurred through the air, slashing and hacking at the man before he could counterattack.
It wasn't a simple increase in swordsmanship—the Kumo Jonin himself knew it.
His very knowledge of the sword was less than Kyojiro's.
Yet instead of backing down, the man rushed forward. Using the increased slashing range of the curved blade, he continued probing Kyojiro....
The white-haired Kumo Jonin gritted his teeth. His hand grabbed kunai from his pouch as he threw them at the opposing Uchiha.
Sweat poured down his temple. His lungs greedily absorbed the air around him. 'This guy—even if I'm giving it my full focus… he's far too good.'
The Jonin had at first neglected the few strikes as luck, but as the battle continued, he noted—his opponent didn't just understand his own talwar, but instead was understanding the Kumo swordsmanship itself.
His pupils dilated as he immediately made distance. 'Yet despite your genius—your end is today.' He gritted his teeth, plunging the sword into the ground below him.
His hands immediately shifted through hand seals, his resolve strengthening within him even as the Uchiha made his way. 'You killed some of the kids I taught myself in the academy… you ruthless killer, you deserve to die.' His blood boiled every time he imagined the corpses of his village.
His chakra heeded his call, mending—turning—into something new. It vibrated with an unmatched frequency; sparks emerged across his body the closer the Uchiha got.
The white-haired ninja couldn't help but clench his fist as the lightning traveled over his arms, the sparks joining together like wires in a framework. 'I might only be able to use this for a minute or two—'
He looked toward those evil eyes. 'That's enough.'
Before the opponent could reach, the lightning immediately enveloped him. 'Lightning Style—Half Chakra Mode.'
His figure was instantly bathed in a shroud of lightning. His muscles burned, his nerves fried—yet amidst that pain, they grew stronger, sharper.
The Half Chakra Mode was meant to only be performed at a safe limit. Its use wouldn't grant untold strength to anyone, yet the Kumo Jonin had done the unthinkable. He had increased the dosage beyond what anyone could handle.
SWISH
His figure moved with speed he never dreamed of achieving. His fist shot out, immediately smashing into the Uchiha's jaw.
BOOM
The fiery-haired ninja's head snapped—the man twisted through the air, ragdolling like a broken puppet before falling.
Yet the Kumo Jonin didn't stop. His blood boiled even further as he noticed the state of the Uchiha—hurt, but not out of the fight....
In distant lands that bore the wrath of lightning, where men wore courage and loyalty like a badge unlike any—before the war, before the bloodshed, before the beginning—
"Brother Kichi, Brother Kichi! When will you teach me the ultimate lightning blast like you said?"
A young kid around the age of nine lightly tugged the man's arm.
The man, white-haired with sky-blue eyes, smiled brightly as he saw the kid. "Well… once you and your friends score good marks, I'll teach all of you, alright?"
The other kids who were peeking curiously immediately lit up at the mention, jumping from their hiding spots. All of them cornered the teenager. "Please, Brother Kichi! We'll top—just teach us!" Their smiles and laughter intermingled with one another.
Kichi couldn't help but laugh with them. He had his own ninja way—to protect the young, to make the Village of Kumo rise to the top so all wars could finally stop.
Looking at their smiles, he couldn't help but feel warmth in some corner of his heart. 'Perhaps that's what's left of my humanity.' He shook his head before patting all of them.
Dark faces, yet their smiles lit up his whole world....
The Kumo ninja shook his head, dispelling the very memory that was haunting him. Yet his eyes couldn't help but catch their faces. 'Mimoru, Tanita, Kira, Misoke…'
His eyes teared up for a second. Their headless, decapitated faces stood like a haunting nightmare.He noticed the way their bodies were cut—clean, sharp, precise.
Shivers ran down his back as reality hit—their dreams, their hopes, and everything their lives amounted to…
He turned toward the recovering Uchiha. "You are the bane—you killed all of them, you murderer!" he shouted. His heart thumped not just with hatred, but with vengeance.
"Your blond hair and dutiful eyes are a lie… you are a monster!" His arms groaned, the ground cracked beneath him.
The Kumo Jonin had only one simple thought—Avenge his comrades.
............
Love Ya guys, Enjoy the feast ;).
40 Powerstones= 1bonus chapter