The long, cold winter night was destined to be a cruel slaughter of blood and fire. Inside the Three-Clan Alliance's compound, the absolute most elite forces of the Akahane clan were mounting their most stubborn resistance.
Battle cries shook the heavens. Sparks flew in all directions as weapons clashed. It was impossible to tell how many corpses had already fallen below. Cherry-red blood spilled across the ground. Every single shinobi present had gone red-eyed with bloodlust, subconsciously swinging their swords, subconsciously weaving hand seals.
Akahane Akira panted heavily. His right hand, gripping his sword, trembled slightly at an extremely rapid frequency—a symptom of his arm muscles being pushed to their absolute limits.
His entire body ached excruciatingly. There were two long, narrow sword wounds—one on his back and one on his ribs—both so deep the bone was visible. It was a ghastly sight, and his chakra reserves had already been depleted by more than half.
This can't go on, Akira knew clearly in his heart. He parried Kimei Takuya's assault while simultaneously spinning to dodge a kunai tagged with an explosive note thrown by Hoshino Ren. He leapt upward, escaping the blast radius the exact moment the tag detonated.
The only reason he had managed to hold out this long was that the two opposing Peak Jōnin didn't want to be dragged down to hell with him. They had been constantly circling and besieging him, neither willing to take on the role of the primary attacker. Yet, even under these circumstances, he was still in an incredibly wretched state. The enemy simply wanted to grind him to death bit by bit. After all, a cornered Peak Jōnin fighting desperately for their life was a truly terrifying thing.
Seizing a brief moment to scan the battlefield, he saw that the situation was extremely dire. Of the twenty Jōnin he had brought, half had already fallen. Only two of the four Elite Jōnin remained. These were the absolute elite of the Akahane clan! Thinking of this, Akira's heart bled, and his hatred for 'Owl' deepened another degree.
"Yui! Hoshi! Horetsu! Come here!"
Akira called out. Sensing Hoshino Ren and Kimei Takuya closing in again, his hands instantly blurred through a series of seals. "Crimson Flame Pillar!"
The earth suddenly cracked open, and two pillars of crimson fire, mixed with molten magma, erupted into the sky, temporarily blocking the two Peak Jōnin.
Three figures arrived at Akira's side: the two remaining Elite Jōnin and Akahane Yui.
"Father..." Yui cried out in alarm, hastily reaching out to support him. Seeing the deep wounds on his back and ribs, tears almost fell from her eyes. She said trembling, "Hold on, Father. We can definitely carve a path out of here."
Akira waved his hand weakly. "There is no time. Listen to me now. We have no hope left tonight. Hoshi, Horetsu—the two of you will protect the young miss and break out of here. Once you return to the compound, go straight to the ancestral hall and find the Great Elder! As long as he is there, the Akahane clan still has a final sliver of hope! After that, you must immediately lead our clansmen away from here and return to our original territory! Although it is barren, it is relatively safe. Only by preserving the spark of our lineage can our clan ever hope to rise again! I will stay behind and cover your retreat."
"Father, you..." Yui choked on her words, tears shimmering in her eyes. She bit her lower lip fiercely to keep the tears from falling.
Akira spoke extremely fast. In just this short time, Hoshino Ren and Kimei Takuya had bypassed the pillars of fire and were charging back at them.
"Go quickly! I hereby order: from this moment forth, Akahane Yui is the new Patriarch of the Akahane clan! Your absolute priority is the survival of our lineage!"
Akira roared, shoving his daughter away before turning back to intercept the enemy. The two Elite Jōnin quickly supported her, calling out urgently, "Young Miss..."
Yui took a deep breath, the thick stench of blood filling her nose. She took one last look at her father's resolute back, gritted her teeth, and said, "We're leaving."
Engaged in combat with the two opposing Clan Heads, Akira smiled with relief. The remaining half of his chakra erupted violently. With a single, forceful swing of his sword, he forced the two men back. His hands blurred into afterimages. "Secret Jutsu: Raging Sea of Fire!"
The earth began to tremble. Columns of scorching fire laced with magma erupted into the sky, indiscriminately engulfing everyone on the battlefield, friend and foe alike. Buildings began to collapse, and a towering inferno spread in all directions. The perimeter walls began to crumble. The Chūnin and Genin standing atop them screamed as they plummeted down, many falling directly into the flames, emitting agonizing wails.
The scene was transformed into an absolute chaotic hellscape of fire.
Under the protection of the two Elite Jōnin, Yui broke through the encirclement and sprinted straight toward her clan's compound.
"Akahane Akira!"
Hoshino Ren roared, his eyes bloodshot. The vast majority of the casualties from that indiscriminate attack were from his Three-Clan Alliance. How could he not be furious?
Kimei Takuya was slightly better off. The men he brought were all elites. Under such a massive area-of-effect Ninjutsu, they suffered casualties, but it wasn't overly severe and remained within acceptable limits.
Akira coughed violently. The reason he hadn't used this move from the start was twofold: firstly, it was entirely indiscriminate and would affect everyone in range; secondly, the chakra consumption was astronomical. He had nearly half his chakra before using it, but now he was completely drained. He was only standing out of sheer willpower.
Half an hour... I must buy Yui and the others at least another half hour, Akira thought to himself, his grip on his sword tightening another fraction.
Leaving the battle here aside, the clash at the Akahane ancestral hall had also entered a white-hot phase.
Relying on his intangibility, Xuan traded blows with his opponent in close-quarters Taijutsu. He had attempted to strike the old man with the Rasengan several times, but the opponent had masterfully deflected or evaded it every time. The Great Elder's Taijutsu had truly reached the pinnacle of perfection. His speed, power, and technique were utterly flawless. He was undeniably the strongest Taijutsu combatant Xuan had ever faced. Furthermore, the old man's application of Ninjutsu was effortless. He casually wove spells into his attacks with perfect timing and positioning. If Xuan didn't possess a completely broken Jutsu like his intangibility, he would likely have been pushed into a very miserable state by now.
Thinking of this, Xuan's gaze shifted slightly. Just beneath the wrist of the old man's sword arm, a tadpole-like formula was faintly visible on his skin. It was the mark Xuan had planted the very first time he grabbed him.
While Xuan was looking for an opening to strike, Akahane Sora was doing exactly the same. Having slaughtered his way through his entire life, his strength and experience were maximized; he was only half a step away from reaching the Kage level. Yet, facing a Jutsu that made his opponent completely invincible to all attacks, he felt like a dog trying to bite a turtle—completely at a loss for where to sink his teeth. Nevertheless, he forced himself to remain calm. In moments like this, panic was fatal. Once you panicked, it was over.
"Scattering Heavenly Fire!" With a sweep of his longsword, a scorching wave of chakra sword energy cleaved forward. It phased through Xuan's body and violently detonated behind him, transforming into a barrage of fireballs that shot in all directions, blasting the ancestral hall. The pillars burst into raging flames, and thick plumes of smoke billowed into the air. The hall groaned and creaked, sounding as though it might collapse at any moment.
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