Ken stood on a thick tree branch, eyes closed, unmoving.
Below him, the Forest of Death breathed.
Leaves whispered against each other.
Branches creaked under invisible weight.
Somewhere far away, metal clinked faintly.
Ken exhaled slowly.
Then—
Voices.
Three.
His lips curved upward.
Found you.
He stepped forward—
—and vanished.
The three older genin moved cautiously through the undergrowth.
Weapons drawn.
Eyes alert.
One of them suddenly froze.
"…Did you hear—"
The ground exploded.
"—something?"
Too late.
Ken rose between them like something crawling out of a grave.
His forearms were no longer human.
They were stone.
Dark, hardened earth coated his skin. His fingers had lengthened into jagged, claw-like extensions.
Earth Release: Earth Skin.
One of them opened his mouth—
Ken moved first.
His claw shot forward.
SQUELCH!
"AAGHHHH—!"
The sound tore out of the genin's throat as stone fingers pierced through his abdomen.
His scream died into a wet gasp as blood spilled down Ken's arm.
He collapsed.
The second genin reacted on instinct.
Hand seals—
Too slow.
Ken's foot slammed into his chest.
CRACK!
The air burst from his lungs.
His body slammed into a tree and went limp.
The third genin stumbled backward, shaking.
"N-no— wait—"
Ken appeared in front of him.
Eyes calm.
Expression empty.
His fist drove into the boy's gut.
The scream never came.
His eyes rolled back as his body collapsed.
Silence returned.
Ten seconds.
Ken crouched, retrieving the tokens from trembling fingers.
He didn't look at their faces.
Someone would retrieve them later.
He vanished.
Hours passed.
Ken stood by a river, drinking calmly.
Water ran down his chin.
Several tokens hung from his belt now.
"Boring…" he muttered.
He pressed his hand against the ground.
Earth Release: Earth Ears.
Chakra spread outward like roots beneath soil.
Nothing would sneak up on him.
Then—
Movement.
Three signatures.
Approaching directly.
Ken smiled.
He stepped forward.
Leaves crunched beneath his feet.
They appeared.
Inzuka.
Hyūga.
Aburame.
A proper team.
The Hyūga reacted instantly.
"There!"
The Inzuka grinned.
"Well, well… look what we found."
His partner growled beside him.
"Just surrender. You're alone."
Ken didn't reply.
His skin darkened.
Stone crawled across his body.
Arms.
Chest.
Neck.
Legs.
Until he stood completely encased in hardened earth.
Full Earth Skin.
The Hyūga moved.
He appeared in front of Ken instantly.
Eight Trigrams: Thirty-Two Palms.
His hands blurred.
THUD THUD THUD THUD
Precise strikes slammed into Ken's body.
Four.
Eight.
Sixteen.
Each strike meant to destroy chakra flow.
Then—nothing happened
The Hyūga's eyes widened.
Why—
Ken's fist buried itself into his stomach.
"GUHHHH—!"
Spit flew from his mouth as his body went limp
"Now!" the Inzuka roared.
The Aburame's insects exploded forward.
A black wave.
Hungry.
Ken's eyes sharpened.
Dangerous.
He stomped.
Ground beneath him softened.
Earth Release: Subterranean Voyage.
He vanished underground.
The insects swarmed empty air.
Then—
Ken erupted directly behind the Aburame.
Too close.
Too fast.
His claw thrust forward—and pierced him
Ken frowned and tried to jump back but—
The body dissolved
Bug Clone.
The kikaichū swallowed him whole, clawing against his hardened armor.
Ken Ignored them
His gaze shifted past the swarm—
—to the real Aburame, who had just reappeared beside the Inzuka.
Then—
With a sickening squelch—a spike pierced through the Aburame's back.
"Wha—AAAGHH!"
He screamed, blood spilled from his abdomen as he stared at Ken, unable to understand how the attack came from behind.
The bugs that had nearly breached his armor froze.
Then scattered.
The battlefield shifted.
Only the Inzuka remained.
His eyes burned.
"BASTARD!"
He and his partner spun.
"FANG OVER FANG!"
Two drills of flesh and steel tore forward.
Ken didn't dodge.
He grinned and took it head-on.
SCREEEEEECH!
Stone screamed.
Sparks exploded.
The impact drove him backward.
Earth Skin cracked.
Blood ran down his arm.
Pain shot through his nerves.
His grin widened.
"HAHAHA—!"
His laughter echoed.
"YES! Show me more"
Several Spikes erupted beneath the spinning drill.
Jamming it to a halt.
His claw shot forward—
—and grabbed the Inzuka mid-rotation.
The spinning stopped.
Instantly.
The Inzuka's eyes widened in horror.
"…No…"
Ken slammed him into the ground.
BOOM!
The earth cratered.
His partner lunged—
Ken's kick sent it flying with a yelp.
Behind him, the Hyūga forced himself up weakly.
"NO…!"
Ken appeared before him.
One strike.
The boy collapsed instantly.
Silence returned.
Ken stood still.
Blood dripped down his arm.
He retrieved their tokens.
Then he glanced nearby
Three genin.
Ino-Shika-Cho.
They stood silently, watching.
Their eyes met.
Ken smiled.
Blood traced slowly down his chin.Three genin lay broken at his feet.
The one with pineapple-shaped hair, most likely a Nara, stared at him for a long second.
Then spoke quietly.
"…We're leaving."
They retreated without another word.
Ken didn't chase them.
He watched them disappear.
He leaned against a tree briefly.
"Man…"
He exhaled slowly.
"That was fun."
His breathing was heavier now.
His chakra lower.
But he was smiling.
Not from madness.
From exhilaration.