BORUTO ALTER: NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS
CHUNIN EXAMS: DAY ZERO
SARADA POUNCED TO THE FOREST FLOOR, black eyes scanning eerily quiet surroundings. All of the training Sarada endured with Boruto seemed to vanish in flashes of anxious fear, vulnerability vocal within the silent ideations of thought.
Shikadai and Usen took to the trees above- shadowing closely behind.
It was a formation agreed to by the three of them..
Sarada winced, eyebrows furrowing. She pictured the Kumo nin within her mind's eye.
The boy had dark skin, and bore a somewhat feminine face with bright green eyes paired with visibly long lashes. His hair was blonde, blonder than Boruto's, and it was fashioned into a curly afro, wayward strands slightly poking above his headband. He wore thick, almost clumsy looking gloves-
To Sarada's surprise, Usen didn't carry a sword.
She knew from Chocho that some Kumo nin employed a different type of ninjutsu- one based on channeling their chakra through the blade, an art termed Stance.
Neither Shikadai nor I pushed Usen about his abilities.. and he offered us nothing in terms of information on what they could be. Does Usen.. not use Kumo ninjutsu?
Sarada shook her head, eyes snapping above as she caught Usen turn backwards to peer at her from between a shield of passing leaves.
Usen strode tree to tree aboveside, subtly tracking both Sarada and Shikadai's movements.
Is he just cautious.. or does he intend to betray us?
Shikadai was the one who suggested he and Usen travel side by side.
Maybe it won't help in the long run.. At the least, it'll keep Usen from being compelled to immediately flee.. or worse.
The starting bell had rung about six hours ago.
So far, they hadn't encountered nor sensed anyone.
The proctors.. they must be using a genjutsu to keep us from sensing the other genin. Unless we're in their immediate area, we won't be able to detect anyone- friend or foe.
Shikadai's early observation rang within Sarada's mind.
Seven days.
Sarada swallowed harshly.
And this is only the first part of the Exams..
Trees towered for neigh kilometers above- Usen and Shikadai were so far up Sarada couldn't even hear them move.
aware of them purely based on kinetic sense alone.
Be safe, Shikadai.
It's too bad neither of us ended up with Inojin!
Sarada knew she could trust Shikadai-
At this point in the Exams however, their familiarity would almost be a hindrance. They had to be very careful about how they communicated in regards to Usen..
The last thing either of them wanted was starting a fight that would draw out a prolonged and unnecessary battle at the expense of Usen's obvious suspicions.
We agreed to head for the river.
Sarada focused a stern gaze ahead.
We have no supplies, and we're going to be here for seven days. We won't be able to make fires to cook.. at the very least, we need water.
However, all of them immediately understood what this necessity meant.
We won't be the only ones with this idea.
Almost as if on cue, Shikadai and Usen both zipped down to where Sarada ran, each of them taking up space on either side of her.
"So far, I don't see anyone." Shikadai reported.
Sarada furrowed her brows, focusing on each shadow they rushed past.
"That's a good sign. It's possible that for now the teams are waiting in safe spaces, at least until the second day." Sarada said with a grunt.
Usen nodded beside her.
"I'd say there's two groups of genin- genin like us who are choosing to work together.. and genin who opt to immediately betray their team." Usen said quietly.
The sound of rushing water met Sarada's ears.
We're close.
She wanted to respond to Usen, however she opted not to- at least not vocally.
Sarada motioned to both Shikadai and Usen with her hands. She directed Usen to her flank- and Shikadai back to the trees above.
Both of her teammates were smart enough to surmise what this meant-
Sarada would be the one to gather water, while they would keep their current positions-
far enough that Sarada's only signal would be that of a fight.
She ran ahead.
Birds chirped between evergreen leaves, almost jubilant in their song. The sun barely touched the forest, though wayward heaven's rays shot from above, light finding space between the forest's all devouring growth.
Sarada broke from a hall of trees-
The ground began to incline slightly, dirt steadily intermixing with pebbles and rock. The smell of water filled Sarada's nostrils, while the sound of it crashed melodically, unseen but easily heard.
Sarada stopped.
Breathing steadily, Sarada advanced, trying her best to mask the sound of movement upon the rocky, damp ground.
She slipped between two tall trees, seeing the river's blue hues in the distance. A trail of darkened rocks led to the hissing forge- while huge stones within the river stood resolute as water violently crashed against them, sound loudly bubbling beyond.
It was then Sarada noticed that the birds had stopped chirping.
Aside from the sound of the stream.. It was silent.
Sarada's eyes darkened.
Something happened here. A fight.
Sarada grimaced, gritting her teeth while forcing reluctant limbs forward.
Scared?
A sneering inner voice scoffed.
You're an Uchiha. If this scares you, you might as well tear out your own eyes.
Sarada curled fingers into a tight fist, pushing forward. She stepped over rock and bristles of wayward grass, slowly making way to the water that now, was only a few meters away.
It was then Sarada saw a body.
The body was face up-
The body's chest heaved, and Sarada could see blood pooling underneath it, slipping into the rocks that the wounded genin laid upon.
Sarada's heart beat frantically-
Should I go back to Shikadai and Usen?
The Uchiha girl stilled.
No. If there's an enemy.. they need to think I'm alone.
Sarada set black eyes firmly ahead, focusing on the genin's body as she cautiously approached.
Water rushed and bubbled beside the wounded genin. Trees loomed on either side of the river, leaves silently gasping in response to a passing and hissing wind.
Sarada was within arms reach of the body now.
The genin was male. He wore a Sound headband.
His skin was cutwith strange markings that bled profusely, though Sarada could tell that the wounds weren't lethal.
She gingerly knelt beside the genin.
The boy's eyes were tightly shut closed-
Though he murmured as if in a dream.
Sarada frowned.
She reached for the boy-
Before noticing another body across the river.
Unlike the Sound genin..
This one was a corpse.
Sarada's eyes widened as fear clawed at senses that threatened to override a collected demeanor.
The corpse lay flat on its back, unnervingly still as its legs slightly met soft touches of moving water.
A boulder was halfway buried where this dead genin's head would be. Portions of the rock were darker than the rest of it.
Whoever did this moved the stone from the river!
It was then Sarada noticed that the corpse and the wounded Sound nin both wore wristbands that bore a bright gold sheen-
While their cloth bands were missing.
The forest seemed to grow darker somehow.
Sarada returned her attention back to the wounded Sound nin.
"Hey, can you hear me?" Sarada whispered.
The sound genin's face grimaced-
His murmurs continued.
Sarada inhaled sharply, reaching for the boy's shut eyes.
She lifted the Sound genin's eyelids upwards slightly-
Noticing instantly his pupils were dilated.
Genjutsu.
...Shouldn't it be dispelled by my physical touch? What genin could cast genjutsu strong enough to circumvent that?
Sarada slapped the boy across the face.
Nothing.
Sarada stood, dragging the Sound nin from the secluded, pebbled shore. She-
Senses flared in warning-
She immediately dropped the Sound genin, keen sight spying a shadow that halted before slinking back across water.
Shadow jutsu?!
Sarada leapt a few paces back. She turned her head away from the stream, looking for and finding a circle of dwindling sunlight on the shore.
Frenzies of thoughts flew through Sarada's mind.
Sarada momentarily lost focus, finding herself staring at the poor genin decapitated by rock.
I have to-
Muscles painfully froze against her will.
Sarada fought against the invisible force that constricted across her body.
How! There's no shadow-
No.. I see it!
An opaque hand curled about Sarada's body as if a snake, while a thin blackened line danced between a circuit of shaded, ethereal lines-
Aided by wavering leaves jutting from long branches, tall rocks poking above currents.
The sun.. it's setting!
The position Sarada fled to.. the one with no shadows..
It was safe- however that safety was only for a moment. As light fled the forest, Sarada could see that plumes of shadows loomed all about her.
A quivering cord of blackness danced from natural pockets of darkness. Sarada followed it, until finally she saw him smiling down, staring from a bent branch that hung over the river.
He wore a black coat that wavered below a slouched frame. His eyes were dark- calculating and violent.
Light brown hair traveled past a round chin. His mouth was contorted in a misanthropic grin. On the genin's left arm, Sarada saw three cloth bands wrapped. On his right..
A gold wristband.
Sarada's heart-
"My… you're scared." The genin cooed-
His voice is coming from behind me?!
Sarada wanted to turn her head-
She couldn't. The strength of this genin's shadow possession was strong.
Sarada heard a slight rustle of clothing as her attacker approached.
She shut her eyes, gritting teeth while anger flared within her.
"You.." Sarada started.
Her captor laughed.
"I didn't kill Yamizura.." the boy sighed.
"He killed himself trying to use some stone technique. I caught him right when he activated it.. and it fell on him."
Another laugh.
"Regrettably." The genin holding Sarada in place stalked ever closer, until she could see him circle around- starting from the corner of her right eye.
The genin stood before her, while his shadow clone kept the possession jutsu active-
resting upon its perch over rushing currents.
The genin's Konoha headband shone in the encroaching darkness. His brown hair wavered across a derisive countenance.
Sarada didn't know this genin personally...she knew of him.
"Menda.. Nara..!" Sarada rasped, mustering what speech she could as Menda's jutsu constricted lungs that struggled for air.
Menda's black eyes glittered in slight amusement.
"You're alone, Uchiha." Menda's voice was almost kind.
"We're both of Konoha. I'll only take your cloth band, and let you go." Menda spoke as his eyes darted past Sarada.
Menda's speech bore the sound of a smile then.
"I did do that to Sakai over there.. the Sound nin. He attacked me once he realized what I was planning.. after Yamizura was killed." Menda offered Sarada a scoff, an easy glare returning to meet Sarada's strained eyes.
"He's not bad. I want to keep him under genjutsu until I'm done farming here. Even with those wounds.. if the Sound were to wake up, it would make things more complicated."
What do I do?!
Sarada's mind burned with panicked stratagems and vague concepts of reprisal.
Sarada's gaze darkened.
If I use it.. the Sharingan.. for less than ten seconds.. I should be able to escape Menda's jutsu and signal Shikadai and Usen…
With that said, the physical toll of the Sharingan's temporary promise of power could make Sarada a liability to her team.
Shikadai wouldn't abandon her.
Shikadai was Sarada's friend- with the Exams going on, she didn't want to strand him with a powerful foe on the first day either.
Menda.. He was employing genjutsu and shadow possession at the same time.
Which meant-
If I use the Sharingan, I'll immediately have less chakra than Menda, making me a crutch to whatever plan Shikadai could come up with.
A thought suddenly came to Sarada.
What if they followed me?
Usen wouldn't...Shikadai probably would.
Maybe he's waiting for me to make a move.. so we can launch a simultaneous escape!
In a real battle scenario this tactic wouldn't work..
With the proctor's exam-wide genjutsu however, such a feint would be logically permissible.
"I'm serious about letting you go.. you know.." Menda said, pulling Sarada from her thoughts.
Menda gave a hurried, nervous laugh that set Sarada on edge.
His listless eyes met her.
"I'm not like you.. I'm not even like Shikadai..." Menda raised a hand to his neck, pausing before lowering it back to a waiting pocket.
It was then Sarada noticed Menda's neck was scarred- darkened treads of agitated and coiled skin traveled up Menda's neck- further, even down to hidden skin below bulky clothing.
Menda continued.
Sarada's own skin chilled.
His chakra.. it's increasing..
"I've only talked to Him maybe once or twice. it was years ago...We.. we were both little kids. He's.. you know- Everyone..everyone else.." Menda's eyes hardened.
"They treat him like a prince."
Menda gave a scornful, quick laugh.
"Its all of you, though. They treat all of you like nobility. The..the children of the heroes who won the war, right..? Rest of us are left to die or live a pathetic life in the shadows of those who succeed by bloodline."
Sarada returned Menda's mockery.
"Yet you betray your own team. You disgraced the hopes of genin no different from you. That's not something I would have done." She said, purposely stealing a glance at the clothbands tied to Menda's left arm.
Menda shrugged.
"Had they been Konoha nin perhaps I would've waited to see what would happen.."
Menda looked away from Sarada. He focused on the torrents of water that loudly rushed beside.
"Like I said, I'm not like you guys. Genin like me.. don't get second chances." Menda finished.
Evening's cold steadily settled upon both ninja.
Silence.
Menda broke into a hushed, almost whimpering laugh.
"I can sense you infusing chakra..Guessing that's your answer." Menda whispered.
Sarada said nothing.
The river's currents slowed, now warbling in peaceful ignorance.
Sarada's right eye roared with an expulsion of chakra.
Menda stepped backwards, startled though still composed. He looked downwards at Sarada's feet.
He's aware of the Sharingan's powers!
Sarada tore herself from Menda's possession, skin bleeding as tendrils of shadow dug to desperately hold blurred afterimages in place.
She twisted towards Menda's shadow clone, flashing two kunai for it.
Menda's clone vanished from the branch in a burst of fog-
Freeing Sarada at the same time. She twisted into Menda's center with a forward facing flip- launching into a crushing blow meeting Menda's chest..
That instantly gave way to a plume of smoke.
Hurry-
Sarada's one Sharingan glowed underneath a bang of purple hair-
She propelled from rocky ground, flying backwards into the forest.
Where's the real Menda?!
Sarada deactivated her Sharingan as she hopped upon a nearby branch, some meters above and away from the river.
Can't waste chakra trying to locate him using the Sharingan.. not now!
Sarada move-
A fine bandage of webbing loudly thunked against bark.
Underneath falling shoots of web, shadows writhed for Sarada's body.
What is this?!
Sarada deftly evaded viperlike shadow, forcing herself into a slide down the tree's trunk.
hair on Sarada's neck shifted-
She turned just as more webbing shot for her. Sarada ambled into a contorted evasion, grimacing in dim humor at how loud the webbed impacts were against the trees silently enduring behind.
The strength of this webbing.. it's easily stronger than steel. With that said, his attacks are loud enough that Usen and Shikadai wi-
Sarada's eyes widened.
As wires of webbing flew about Sarada, more shadows sped along the ground.
Sarada flipped onto calloused hands, crouching low as two snakes of shadow whipped from the forest floor.
Before Sarada even had time to react, four more tendrils curled alongside her, each one angling for the Uchiha's own shadow.
Sarada somersaulted backwards, seconds away from Menda's stabbing jutsu. She vaulted against the wood of a nearby oak, sweat dripping down her brow.
She-
Just as Sarada was about to move, her wrist was caught by a stream of webs.
Wait- how?!
Sarada was stuck.
Sarada's eyes constricted in alarm, watching shadows crawl up the oak she was prisoner to.
Menda.. or whoever is doing this..can change the velocity of the webbing?!
It was a simple trick- getting Sarada's senses used to the initial intensity and speed of technique-
Sarada rolled up the oak as far as she could, swinging legs away from the shadows that rose from bark to entrap her.
Another shadow passed over Sarada's face-
Menda fell from above, a book sized spider on one of his shoulders.
"Sundering Stance, Fifth Ring!"
Usen's quiet voice boomed about the woods.
"Phalanx Shield!" Usen finished, invisible chakra billowing about him in such degrees it caused his hair to waver violently in the shady dusk.
Usen landed below Sarada with a pulse of air goaded by chakra-
Inexplicably- a formation of earth formed midair before Sarada's perplexed expression.
The earth then molded into a series of long spears, stabbing for Menda's now suicidal free fall.
The spider Menda controlled spat four strands of webbing- each of them attaching to the trees that were even higher than he.
Menda grabbed onto the webs, hanging there as Usen's jutsu loudly crumbled apart, falling downwards to meet the Kumo genin on the forest floor.
Sarada felt another presence beside her-
"Shikadai!" She gasped. Shikadai gave Sarada a stern smile. He clung to the tree with chakra, clapping hands together as he climbed to Sarada's webbed wrist.
"Wind Release: Lesser sickle technique!" Shikadai intoned. A sharp cut of air slashed across Menda's webbing-
While giving Sarada a moderate cut on her palm in the process. She instantly pulled free, righting herself beside Shikadai.
They exchanged haggard glances.
Sarada ignored her bleeding wound.
"Oi…" Menda's voice hailed from above.
He stood on a nest of webbing. Menda's arms were crossed, while the spider he carried repositioned itself on Menda's body.
"I was hoping to come across you early." Menda susurrated with a calm, wicked rasp.
Menda's tone deepened.
"It's nice to see a familial face."
Usen dashed up to Shikadai and Sarada with impressive speed. He perched slightly below Sarada-
It was then she noticed that Usen's gloves were gone. His hands were covered in strange calligraphy, swirling tattoo-like markings that seemed to move upon his ebony skin.
Sarada shook her head, dismissing the dizziness that swam about her thoughts.
The limitations of the Sharingan…!
Sarada slammed a closed fist against wood, forcing dulled senses awake.
Shikadai's eyes darted to Sarada, then..
He smiled upwards to his fellow clansmen above.
"Come on, Menda. We barely know each other." Shikadai spoke with a friendly tone that carried an almost hidden animosity.
"What is this genin to you?" Usen asked softly.
Shikadai's face darkened. He ignored Usen's question.
"You've got two extra cloth bands, Menda." Shikadai jeered.
Sarada turned halfways to Shikadai, keeping her voice low.
"He..Menda.. attacked the two other genin he was assigned to. One of them is...dead." Sarada grimaced, picturing the genin who's head was crushed by stone.
Shikadai's eyes widened- even Usen turned.
"Something like that.. and they're not stopping the Exams?" Shikadai questioned- though it seemed as if, for a moment, disbelief and fear shook through him.
Usen focused attention back upon Menda.
"They may not know. Or.. the way the genin died wasn't against whatever rules we are to adhere to." Usen answered.
Sarada swallowed harshly. That realization alone was grim.
Of course it gets worse.
Despite the three of them being united..
Menda wasn't backing down.
"What do you know about his jutsu, Shikadai?" Sarada pressed.
Shikadai's eyes didn't leave Menda, answering coolly.
"Not a lot. He can use shadow stitching.. not even I can. And.. his mom is an Aburame."
Sarada laughed despite the scenario they found themselves in.
"That explains the spider."
Menda crouched upon his web. He formed a jutsu sign.
"If I can take you all out here.."
A swirling gray cloud rose from Menda's skin, settling over portions of his clothing as if paint.
Insects-
Usen suddenly swung his head towards Shikadai and Sarada in alarm-
Simultaneously, Sarada lasered in on a large beetle with a dark red spot-
it proudly marched across bark on the tree across from her.
Menda's cackling scream accompanied a buzz of chakra that began to snap in the air.
"Ninja Art:.. Melanophila!" Menda clamored-
Pain.
Sarada's skin burned, blinded while small pockets of flame clung to her forearms.
explosion of heat and fire barked into the air, throwing Sarada into instantly contrasting kisses of cold winds-
Just as acid curled upon the forest with gleeful pops, sparking into flame.
"ARE YOU SURE we shouldn't just take it?" Akadou's voice met Boruto's ears.
Night was setting in.
Visibility, already low, was made worse by the fact that no matter where they went, they were constantly in the midst of a maze of trees.
With that said..
Within a hastily made clearing, a bundle of rations waited. Eu-Mi initially moved to investigate it recklessly, but Boruto caught her by the hand.
"Wait, we don't know what that is." Boruto had warned.
Eu-Mi now stood to Akadou's left, standing half a head taller than her two teammates.
"It's food." Eu-Mi retorted with a quiet hiss.
Boruto's blue-silver eyes narrowed at the pile of boxed foodstuffs waiting to be opened. Leaves wavered in the growing winds that were all around them-
Boruto shut his eyes, trying to listen past nature's barrier.. hoping, to no avail, to detect any competing genin hiding uncomfortably close by.
It would make sense to wait here with the rations.. right?
Either a team of genin or a lone wolf could feasibly take this opportunity to catch their hungry and confused competition unaware. Boruto clutched the cloth band tied to his left arm.
To make matters worse.. I can't sense anything aside from Akadou and Eu-Mi.
Boruto turned, looking up at Eu-Mi's disapproving frown.
"We don't know what else- or who else, is out there." Boruto cautioned.
"So," Eu-Mi rolled light brown eyes, summoning scroll somewhat uncurling from around her neck.
"Your idea is to wait here, staring at something we need until someone else comes along?" She jeered.
Akadou nodded, slanted eyes slightly opening to regard Boruto.
"She has a point." He whispered.
Boruto glared at the rations- and in the next second, his stomach growled.
"Fine. We take half-no, less than that. Definitely not all of it. This is probably part of the Exam too. Testing us.. seeing how efficiently we can carry supplies while on the battlefield. Look at how they're packaged." Boruto nodded ahead.
The three inched closer.
Eu-Mi laughed softly, half impressed.
"You can see that clearly from here?"
"I can see clearly enough. The rations are positioned and packaged in a way to effectively neutralize whoever is carrying them." Boruto answered.
"Uzumaki is right." Akadou muttered.
"It looks like there's string attaching the rations together. Carrying it would be cumbersome- and loud." Akadou turned towards Boruto.
To Boruto's surprise, Akadou handed Boruto his staff.
"I didn't want to tell you guys this.. frankly, I don't trust either of you yet. But my jutsu allows me to spread sensory ninjutsu into the grass below us. It's a small area- about 10 to 15 meters." Akadou stepped forward.
"I can't speak for what could be in the trees.. I do know that at least right now on the ground, there's no one around." Akadou then looked back at Eu-Mi and Boruto.
"We're all hungry. Again, I think Uzumaki is right- it would be dumb to take all of the rations. I'll quickly gather what I can- enough to feed one person for a day, then we can split it amongst ourselves once we're back in a secure location." Akadou nodded, red eyes almost glowing underneath hooded eyelids.
"You both stay there and keep watch. I'll try to be right back." Akadou jogged ahead for the rations with confidence only his sensory jutsu could afford.
Boruto watched silently.
As Akadou lifted the rations from their boxes, Boruto saw that the rations themselves were held within black spheres that were tied into a net of string that in turn, attached to other circular parcels of food.
Eu-Mi laughed.
"Annoying…" She spat under her breath.
Boruto said nothing.
Akadou was already having trouble moving the rations- getting caught in the net of string and half-opened boxes, while the spheres that contained food were heavy enough that Akadou visibly struggled.
"Just cut them free," Eu-Mi suggested with a bemused chuckle.
Boruto regarded her for a moment.
Both Akadou and I have been cautious this entire time.. Eu-Mi though.. She seems almost bored.
Boruto didn't know much about Rock Lee. He knew that the man was a friend of dad's-
According to Naruto himself, Rock Lee was an expert in hand to hand combat.
In some scenarios.. Rock Lee is even stronger than Sasuke.
Naruto's past praise of Eu-Mi's father washed over Boruto's thoughts.
Boruto could hardly sense any chakra from Eu-Mi. Yet.. despite being a genin, she was on assignment in Amegakure-
Boruto glanced downwards at Eu-Mi's dressings, specifically, her two-toed boots. He had assumed that they bore Anbu design by circumstance..
Though now Boruto wondered if that circumstance went further.
Eu-Mi caught Boruto staring at her. Boruto quickly averted his gaze. Eu-Mi brushed past him-
"Wait, where are you going?" Boruto hissed in sudden confusion.
Eu-Mi answered without turning around, raising her voice to a degree it was apparent she didn't care if she was heard by others.
"I'm cutting our friend free." Eu-Mi answered.
Boruto paused- forcing himself to calm his mind.
The brace he wore on his Rasengan arm offered an almost manufactured comfort.. he held it, holding his tongue to the sound of Akadou's hushed struggle.
Eu-Mi stopped short of Akadou, shaking her head as the fellow genin struggled.
Eu-Mi produced a kunai within a flourish of fingers-
She slashed the weapon across string entangling Akadou-
And the moment she did a high pitched horn blared.
Boruto's heart sank.
A tripwire..!?
the sound echoed throughout the Forest of Death as Eu-Mi laughed even louder.
"Did you really just shit yourself too?" She exclaimed as Akadou threw the net off of his body-
Boruto scrunched his nose.
She's right...What is that smell..
A horrid, curling vapor filled Boruto's nostrils.
Seriously.. what is-
Boruto opened his mouth to voice that very previous thought-
Only for the odor to strangle speech away from him as it sped between clenched teeth.
...It was almost as if the scent was a smoke.
The vile, creeping miasma traveled between evergreen oak to such a degree it nearly eclipsed them.
Akadou, who had been silently cleaning himself of string, perked up.
"Uzumaki Boruto!" Akadou screamed.
A rush of violent hot air pressed against the crown of Boruto's head.
Boruto saw himself as if he was outside of his own body. He saw Eu-Mi.. Akadou..
And the wave of bleeding, black water that screeched between pines with an almost organic, pulsating movement.
Boruto gathered chakra into the soles of shaking sandals, spinning from where he stood as horrific sound squealed from the center of impact.
What is thi-
The disgusting smell grew stronger.
A storm of blackness curled upwards from the forest floor. It shrieked within roaring friction as if a caged animal, shaking the ground.
Bits of light shone from within the cloud under night's growing darkness-
Boruto saw onyx liquid drip from the ghastly apparition.
The smell coming from it. That's..
Boruto's entire body tensed.
Blood..?
Akadou, now free, rushed back to Boruto.
Eu-Mi still stood by the rations, hopping in place. A wild grin formed at the corner of flushed cheeks as she stared down a slowly approaching and blackened storm.
Chakra rang within Boruto's eardrums. It was a violent call, inhuman in ferocity.
Boruto handed Akadou back his staff- though neither genin offered a single word.
Fear.. gripped them both.
"It's.. metal...All of that.. it's..." Akadou gasped.
The smell of wet and rotted blood dripping from howling iron was blinding.
Boruto coughed up spit in revulsion, narrowing blue eyes at the solvent cataclysm that swirled upwards, whipping against trees.
Akadou stumbled backwards.
He panicked, dropping all pretense of composure in the face of something that denied concept of understanding.
Boruto felt much of the same fear.
Blonde hair fled across the young Uzumaki's forehead as he stared into a screaming, reeking abyss.
Shinki.
JIGEN SIGHED.
Otogane's genjutsu took a toll on Jigen's borrowed body. However, Jigen had appearances that necessitated to be maintained.
He stilled crying bones, and swallowed the blood that had begun to build up within his throat.
"Deepa.." Jigen greeted, forcing a smile.
He and Deepa met upon a glass dais amongst calm black sea- the usual meeting place for Kara..
Though now, it was only the two of them.
Them, and Otogane's lingering, ever watching will.
Jigen turned attentions back to his Inner, offering a more genuine grin.
Deepa seemed.. agitated.
Jigen chuckled.
What now.. Deepa. I came here at your insistence.
Jigen didn't view Deepa as anything other than a tool, an extension of Jigen's will. However, Jigen knew that to maintain bonds of loyalty, certain self sacrifices had to be partaken.
Deepa knelt before Jigen, though the Inner's eyes were crazed and peeled open. Deepa breathed haggardly, and his countenance genuinely piqued at Jigen's faraway notion of curiosity.
Jigen parted cold lips to speak-
Though to his continued surprise and dull amusement, Deepa spoke out of turn.
The words that Deepa stutteringly and angrily delivered shook Jigen. He knew it did- he felt it.
As Deepa's eyes fell upon Jigen's dying vessel, Jigen knew that Deepa noticed as well.
Jigen.. didn't care, however.
No.
There was much more at stake now.
Everything he had built..
Cursed Eye..
Seated upon a humble throne, Jigen doubled over, falling to the dais.
He vomited blood, shock singing across dying cells.
Amado has betrayed you.
Deepa declared.
He sent that new Inner, Kashin..Koji.. to recruit me to join them in a scheme to destroy you. To take your prize away from you, Lord Jigen. Due to Amado and Kashin's deceptions.. One of Victor's Outers has fled to Amegakure. No doubt, this Outer intends to steal Kawaki from you.
Jigen understood well enough.
Amado, Jigen was sure, wasn't confident in Deepa's loyalty to Kara. So he manipulated a situation where regardless of what Deepa did-
Kawaki's safety and with it Jigen's life..
Was compromised. A further pain reeled within Jigen. The irony of it almost caused him to intermix unbecoming bouts of laughter between bleeding groans.
All of those conversations.. those schemes..
Jigen gave the Scientist's absent personage a snarling grin.
Is the weakness I feel now.. the blood I taste.. a symptom of your healing, Amado?!
Jigen's pupils dilated in ancient anger that not even he fully understood.
The image of Kawaki's body- a body that was nearly complete for Jigen's usage-
Floated within Jigen's mind, almost as if his thoughts comprised the biofluid that kept Kawaki alive within the cold cylinder the vessel had called home.
Jigen coughed violently, creasing thin fingers against glass-
As Deepa watched in silence.
The Lord of Kara's black within black eyes glowed with mirth.
Jigen shakily dabbed at the recycled blood that fell from the corners of taught lips, composing himself.
Then, The Lord of Kara unceremoniously climbed to reclaim his vacant Throne.
So..
Jigen thought.
It's come to this..
Jigen felt as if he could almost sense the reflection of Amado's oval glasses glaring back from the black sea below.
Has it..., you wretched thing!
