ϟ—Chapter Twenty-six — Burn it All—ϟ
Ka'rai hadn't felt this type of heat since Yakedo. The falling ash was… nostalgic, in a way. It reminded him of when he was so green with Nibi's chakra. So many months ago. That mission would've almost been a cake-walk had he been what he was now. It didn't matter… he was getting distracted.
His stomach hurt more from laughing than his chest did from Shinrai's 'Rasengan.' Well, that was because Jinsei roared as loud as he laughed just now. He never took his eyes off the sky.
It was red.
It was red because of him.
Just like Hidan, he brought Hell to Earth.
Another laugh busted from his throat. That meant he was strong, eh? Of course he was… Ka'rai took his eyes off the sky he burned red. He looked down at the stadium, or, what was left of it. There was more of it left than what he was expecting.
Half of it was utterly dust, up in flames and charred with brimstone. The other half was crumbling apart, with a sizable gold barrier around the infirmary. As a matter of fact, shattered barriers were falling apart all around the stadium.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that Miya was the most likely culprit for their existence. Mama was really good at barriers… But, that didn't stop his Infernal Bakugami. More than fifty people were dead, many, many more.
The power of Nibi's Full Domain was a drug to him. It pumped through every inch of his chakra. Everything about it was pure and utter ecstasy. It was liquid lightning churning and burning all throughout his body—it was the manifestation of the feeling that he could do anything. He wouldn't trade it for the world… Ka'rai let out another heaving cackle. He… he needed to find Hane, Yowui, Fuu, Sami, Cirru, everyone else.
He yanked the Jigoku blade from the brimstone it was stuck in. His armor was long-discarded from his battle with Shinrai. Jinsei had his bare upper body lit a bright blue. Once his Katana was sheathed, he weaved a single hand seal. "Jinsei Armor."
Jinsei roared and concentrated itself over Ka'rai, forming into armor. With a breath… he gathered himself. Nibi's senses were invading his… he could feel the painful lack of souls—one was right behind him.
Lightning screeched like a thousand birds behind Ka'rai's back.
"Raikiri!"
Jinsei reacted before he even could. Tendrils spat out and grabbed the hand as it started to slice through his armor, right where his heart was. He was more or less healed from his fight with Shinrai, but his chakra—not Nibi's—was spent. He only had about a fifth of it left.
All because of that Bakugami…
It didn't stop him from using another.
Jinsei at his back blew out toward his assailant. They were gone before the attack truly hit them. He's fast… His soul felt like a dude's, so did the voice he just heard. He was in front of him, crimson flashed from his left eye—his eyes widened.
"You're Naruto's sensei!" exclaimed Ka'rai, his Nibi-striken grin wide.
Kakashi narrowed his mismatched eyes. "Indeed I am."
"That must mean… you're strong." Ka'rai's own mismatched eyes glowed. As fire licked around him in concentric circles, Kakashi's Sharingan whirled, picking him apart. With his claws, Jinsei trailed him in a blaze toward the Copy Ninja.
Kakashi saw through his attack. An easy series of dodges left undamaged. Ka'rai looked the Jonin in the eyes—
—Everything went dark—
—Stay focused… don't get caught in such easy traps, Nibi scolded. Shinrai is an amateur with the Sharingan; your opponent here, however, seems to be much more skilled. Never look a Sharingan-user in the eyes.
Gotcha… In a flash, he gasped. Kakashi was trying to seal him—"Bakugami!"
His eyes widened and he was blown back. Ka'rai drew his Katana again and bolted after Kakashi. A kunai whirled in the Jonin's hand. Ka'rai caught it with the heat of hell and cut it in two. Using Nibi's essence, he grasped onto the Soul Eater's inside and roared their energy out in a beam.
Kakashi dodged, weaving hand seals. "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Molded from Kakashi's chakra, a dragon of water whirled to life. Its yellow eyes gleamed as it locked onto Ka'rai and blasted.
With a slice of his blade, Brimstone blocked the attack effortlessly. A palm to the smoldering rock of hell. "Bakugami," he uttered. The brimstone detonated in Kakashi's direction. His soul wasn't there, it was behind him—
Another thousand birds cried behind him and Ka'rai couldn't block. It went through this shoulder, piercing Jinsei's Armor like it wasn't there. Jinsei's instinct grasped onto Kakashi with searing chains. He wasn't going anywhere.
Ka'rai grinned and inhaled. "Fire Style: Flaming Cat Hairballs!" From his mouth, cobalt blue fireballs careened toward Kakashi. The first one that made contact ignited a log. Kakashi's soul was to his left, a dozen meters away.
A claw slash and the hairballs blazed toward the Konoha nin. They were dodged and dodged over and over. WIth a cackle, he forced them to split and surround Kakashi. "Combust!" he giddily commanded.
They blew into flames, no Bakugami. He had to touch them to insert his unstable chakra. Nibi, how well can the Sharingan see?
Extremely well, however, its strength lies in perception, not line of sight. In terms of obstacles, a simple dust cloud could render a Sharingan user blind.
Ka'rai smirked. Perfect. He stuck the Jigoku blade into the ground. Once again, brimstone and hellflame infested earth like a plague. Kakashi was forced to stay back, he couldn't approach without being consumed. The hellish fire burned blue with the command of Nibi's chakra.
Cobalt blue illuminated smoke covered the area. Ka'rai was utterly blind, his Nibi-enhanced eyes useless. The same applied to Kakashi's Sharingan. However, Ka'rai could still sense Kakashi's soul.
A sick smirk crossed his face as he cackled. I win!
Hiding means nothing if you make so much noise.
Kakashi already located him—he was moving toward Ka'rai faster than he could register. Another Raikiri was in his hand. Jinsei tried to block but Kakashi was just too fast—
Extra padding around the heart allowed for both Jinsei and Ka'rai to redirect the hit to his chest. Ka'rai took the opportunity to grab Kakashi by the head. Jinsei formed sharper—longer claws to take out that damned Sharingan—
A kick sent Ka'rai flying. Already on him, Kakashi kicked at Ka'rai, too fast to block. Whenever Ka'rai struck—or tried—it was blocked, parried, countered, all before he even started to make the movement himself. A slash from his Jigoku Katana burned with Jinsei but Kakashi dodged—hitting a chakra point to force Ka'rai to drop the sword.
Of course, a simple palm wasn't enough to get through Jinsei. That split second allowed for Ka'rai to exhale a gigantic fireball twice the size of Kakashi himself. A partial hit—half of Kakashi's body was smoldering. Ka'rai laughed and blitzed forward.
Another dodge out of the way of the Jigoku Katana, another counter—a kick to the gut. Jinsei planted Ka'rai and kept his position. A Kenjutsu exchange, expendable kunai sliced, melted, and torn by a blade from hell.
He was fighting. He was fighting one of Konoha's strongest Jonin. Nibi had her full domain; he'd never been this strong before. It was so fucking GREAT! Adrenaline and chakra and utter ecstasy fueled his strikes. He forced the pressure of his chakra to become oppressive. Heatwaves belted onto the Jonin and left Ka'rai unaffected. Kakashi kicked back and weaved the signs for an Earth Style jutsu but it didn't work. Brimstone took away everybody's Earth Style.
In that split second of wasted time, Ka'rai slammed his hands to the ground. "Fire Style! Jinsei Inferno!" All throughout the arena, Jinsei blazed. Kakashi was caught in the middle of it. The red sky above him was burned blue once again.
It wasn't the blue of the sky, but the blue of Jinsei.
He didn't want to kill Kakashi… Naruto cared about him. Still, he could burn him enough to where he couldn't fight for the rest of the battle. Jinsei solidified into a cage around Kakashi, then chains forced him to his knees and strung his hands out like a scarecrow's.
Keeping a Jonin in that situation would take a lot of chakra, Ka'rai.
Don't you have a lot, though?
My supply isn't infinite, especially with the lower levels of my power that you're using. If you want any more chakra, then you'd have to go into version two. Using Jinsei to not only refill your reserves, but keep him trapped is going to be costly.
"Fuck," cursed Ka'rai. I'll see if I can knock him unconscious. He took down all of the Jinsei that wasn't used to trap Kakashi and blurred toward him. The cage opened so Ka'rai could enter. Making sure to avoid eye-contact, he walked forward.
"Hey, dude!" he grinned, each step leaving the searing floor smoking. "Sorry I had to do fuck up your village, if it was up to me, I would've said no! But you know how these things are."
"You leaked the plan for the invasion… why?" asked Kakashi… he probably narrowed his eyes, Ka'rai didn't look to see.
The slamming of guilt threatened to tear Ka'rai's smile away. He didn't, he kept it up, reminding himself how good it all felt… the battle, the vaporized blood steaming from his wounds, the pure adrenaline of Nibi's full domain.
The power.
"There are Uzumaki here… I couldn't this happen to them without at least doing something. Plus, my girlfriend has been trying to get me to be a good person, I think it's working," Ka'rai laughed at his own statement. Then, he sighed, bringing up the blunt end of the Jigoku Blade. "This is going to hurt, but not going to kill you. I think Naruto would be sad if you died."
In a flash, Ka'rai struck Kakashi in the neck. The Jonin went limp in his chains. Ka'rai smirked at his victory, letting down the chains and the cage to leave Kakashi on the floor—
—A thousand birds cried—
—Black lightning thundered. The hair on Ka'rai's neck stood as static electricity fried hell in all directions.
"Ka'rai…" began Darui, his tone dangerous. "What the hell do you think you're doing?! Leaving such a dangerous enemy alive…"
"I thought that killed him—" he lied.
Darui didn't have the time to call him out on it. Another shock of lightning pushed back his gigantic cleaver. "Just go! Damage as much infrastructure as you can, maximize casualties!" commanded Darui, attacking Kakashi with his cleaver. "I'll take care of him!"
Without another second wasted, Ka'rai did exactly that. He couldn't bear to watch Kakashi die… For the first time since before his battle with Shinrai, his smile was wiped off of his face.
The Raikiri was potent.
It didn't hold a candle to the Black Lightning.
⁑ —ϟ— ⁑
What is going on with Ka'rai…? muttered Darui, narrowing his eyes on his opponent. He looked right below the mask, looking Kakashi in the eye was as good as stabbing himself in the heart. As Kakashi pounced away from Darui's cleaver, he didn't have the time to dwell on the actions of the Jinchuriki. Lord Bee was going to set him straight, anyway.
"Hello, Copy Ninja," greeted Darui, gripping his cleaver as it sparked with his Black Lightning.
Kakashi brandished a kunai. "Having Jinchuriki troubles, Darui of the Black Lightning?"
"That's none of your business." Darui weaved hand seals, Kakashi weaved the exact same seals.
"Black Lightning: Black Panther!"
"Lightning Style: White Panther!"
From Darui's blade a black panther roared from his lightning and from Kakashi's palm, a white panther sparked. The two beasts charged and they met in the middle—Darui's panther cleaved through Kakashi's and pounced on him.
Kakashi dodged. Darui had another attack planned. "Black Lightning: Shade Spark Senbon!" Thunder sparked on his cleaver. A slash to the air and countless senbon of black lightning shot toward Kakashi.
He leapt into the air, evading both attacks. The panther roared and pounced to meet him. Kakashi wove hand seals. "Water Style: Torrential Currents!" On one hand a current blasted around him like a shield, same for the other hand as well.
The Black Panther's claws blasted the water with electricity. It didn't touch Kakashi's skin, so he was unaffected—his jutsu was strengthened. Dauri's eyes narrowed as Kakashi destroyed his black panther with his jutsu concentrated over a kunai. Smart.
Darui whirled his cleaver as Kakashi landed. More hand seals with his blade in hand. "Black Lightning—"
"—Lightning Style!"
Dammit!
"Voltage Storm Wave!" they announced in tandem.
From Kakashi's palms and Darui's blade, lightning sparked and screamed out in a wave that blasted toward the other. The sheer voltage cracked the brimstone beneath and collided with a blast. Black Lightning would've overcome Kakashi's lightning… had a fireball not accompanied it.
The two forces canceled out with a bang. Darui groaned and sheathed his cleaver. This is getting dull. "Try to steal this Jutsu, Copy Ninja!" With his blade away, he could weave proper hand seals. "Storm Style: Laser Circus!"
Lightning churned like it was water. Pure voltage concentrated into a beam that blasted toward Kakashi in from seven different directions. Just barely, Kakashi was able to dodge them all. His uniform was nicked, half of his body was already burned by Ka'rai, Darui just had to finish the job. After all, he was the stronger one.
Retrieving his cleaver, Darui blasted toward Kakashi. Barely blocking with a kunai, Kakashi escaped his head being cleaved off. A kick from Darui met another kunai, as if Kakashi knew it was coming. Blood dropped from Darui's calf as he pushed harder against the kunai against Kakashi's neck.
"Black Lightning!" It thundered over his cleaver and cut through the kunai like it was butter. Just barely, Kakashi ducked his head and the cleaver sliced half of his ear off. No other damage was taken. Both arms were stuck holding the blade, he was wide open for Kakashi to stab at his side.
Dammit—a quick two hand seals. "Black Lightning: Pulse!" An electric shockwave blasted Kakashi back. The Copy Ninja's back skidded across the cracked brimstone. Darui didn't waste a second to follow up. A roar and he slammed his clever into the brimstone. Black Lightning erupted in another pulse, a bigger one.
Kakashi couldn't dodge. Another blast, his attire was ripped and his skin was burned even more. Both hands were free, Darui weaved proper hand seals. "Storm Style: Whirlwind Beam." Six beams of liquid lightning shot from his mouth, concentrating into a spinning beam of one.
With his mis-matched eyes wide, Kakashi crossed his arms. "First Gate—" the jutsu collided with the burst of chakra from Kakashi's body. It managed to wane the attack enough for it not to be lethal. Even still, there was a smoldering impact on his chest, his breathing was heavy.
Even still, a powerful aura of chakra radiated around him as he stood. Darui's eyes narrowed, still bleeding from the slice across his leg and the stab wound embedded in his side. It was between his ribs, into one of his lungs. Breathing was a lot harder than it was supposed to be.
"I didn't think I'd be pushed to use this so early," Kakashi noted, crossing his arms again with his palms out. Darui wasn't going to let him get it off.
"Black Lightning!" A crescent strike of midnight thunder boomed toward Kakashi.
"Second Gate: Gate of Healing! Open!" With a gasp, Kakashi was revitalized. A leap and he dodged Darui's strike, weaving hand seals. The same sequence of three twice. "Dual Raikiri." Two thousand birds screeched as two blades of lightning sparked in his hand.
He needs to get close for that to be effective—in a blink, Kakashi was in front of him. He's gotten faster! A flash and a slice, both Kakashi and Darui were in the air. An immense gash at his side spewed blood.
Darui barely reacted to Kakashi's next strike. His cleaver sparked with black lightning and deflected his next strike. He was higher in the air with each attack. Some he managed to block, other's didn't. A trail of lightning sparked behind Kakashi, it created a bolt of lightning, with Kakashi at the top, glowing white in the red sky.
"Lightning Style: Twin Lightning Quake!" Another flash and Kakashi and thunder roared long after the Lightning Blade struck. Darui's clever sparked against both Raikiri, but that didn't affect any of the other hits he was forced to take. Blood poured against the brimstone he was pushed up against.
Kakashi was on top, pushing his Raikiris into Darui's cleaver. Forcing himself, Darui weaved hand seals on the handle of his blade. If the Copy Ninja took one of his Raikiris off, then Darui would be able to push him off for a mere chance to stop the jutsu. Even still, he took that chance.
Darui thundered and Kakashi missed the chance. They were off of each other, the powerful aura of chakra on Kakashi was gone. The two gates he opened were closed. Kakashi was forced to pull down his headband, he was finished.
All of Darui's hand seals were completed. "Black Storm Style…" The gale of liquid lightning churned black. Kakashi's eye widened and his body flickered—enhanced by lightning. He must've copied it from Kumo.
He wasn't going to let Kakashi get away. "Midnight Laser Circus—!" Before the jutsu could complete itself, Darui fell to his knees. The searing ache of his ash-infested wounds brought him to his knees. "Dammit!"
As Darui's blurry vision refocused, Kakashi was long gone. More Konoha Shinobi started to enter the stadium, as did more from Kumo and their—temporary—allies. "Well… this is great." Darui forced his own flicker into the droves of allies. A medic helped him soon, and the arena turned into a hellish battleground.
Hell's ruler must've beamed at the dozens of corpses dropped onto its land.
⁑ —ϟ— ⁑
As the hospital above him crumbled into sand, Gaara noted that there was nobody there. As a matter of fact, Konoha was desolate in almost its entirety, in terms of civilians, at least. Shinobi were everywhere.
The cataclysmic shudder that rocked the earth must've been Ka'rai's Bakugami. That was the signal to transform. Sand from the fallen hospital overtook him, smothered him, entirely. A single tail hardened as magnetic blue metal spiraled around him.
He grew, grew, and grew… until he stopped about ten stories high.
His irises were but the four-pointed eyes of Shukaku, seeing the world through not only his eyes, but the connection to the earth. Each and every vibration sounded through his senses, as if they were crawling on his own skin.
The form he had wasn't truly Shukaku. His arms were longer, much bulkier. The Sands of his body weren't entirely formed… it was clumped together. The Shukaku Metal veins were barely visible, unlike the real thing. He was about a fifth of the size of Shukaku's true form.
All he could use without being overtaken was a partial transformation. On top of that, he couldn't activate his full domain. Shukaku's will and chakra would be too powerful for him to control. Even still, there wasn't much anybody could do to hurt him. Only the most powerful of Shinobi. All who could… were occupied.
The Nanabi's domain above was red, caked up with smoke burned blood's color by the many raging fires below. In the distance, the stadium that Ka'rai decimated was colored with a deathly blue glow. His fire… he was fighting somebody strong.
He also sensed something else, behind him, on the cliff face that the stone faces were on. Inside the mountain, there was a hollow space. A shelter. Inside of the shelter… was every civilian that was evacuated in Konoha.
It would take minimal effort for Gaara to collapse the shelter and slaughter them all. If it were a month ago, he would've done it without a second thought. So many existences ended to prove his own. But, it didn't quite correlate with this new… happiness power.
They were defenseless people who didn't do anything to him. They had utterly no power. At the same time… very little would make him feel more alive than snuffing out so many lives. If he killed them all, Mother would be happy, Shukaku would cackle in his head. Shukaku enjoyed all of the lives that Gaara took. He was the one who pushed him that far.
But… what would it be worth in the end? Killing those civilians would be temporary, the feeling would be fleeting. It wouldn't last, and eventually, he'd need to kill again to feel something. That was how it always was.
It didn't take long for Konoha Shinobi to surround him. They were three entire clans. One was led by a man with a scar, with his head in a spiky ponytail. The second was led by a man with red and spiky hair, with a single hand seal, chakra spewed and he matched Gaara's partial Shukaku in size. The final clan was led by a blond man with long hair.
The Ino-Shika-Cho, Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi. He'd heard of them… they were powerful, according to legend. Generations of three clans united dating back to the Warring States. Through Shukaku's face, Gaara smirked.
It was them that he was going to kill.
Those civilians, they won't be worth it… sparing them was kind, allegedly.
They were weak and worthless, anyway.
The three clans in front of him were not weak. Not at all. Their lives had meaning, so taking them had a purpose. Nothing about war was kind; it had no place in what he was about to do.
Gaara inhaled with the Tanuki's face. An exhale and a massive sandstorm blew bullets of sand into the three clans. A fourth of their forces were decimated by that attack alone. The lead Akimichi screamed out as his gigantic form was blown out, bullet holes made the red sky behind him glow through his skin.
Shadows sprawled and caught his own. The entire Nara Clan held down his gigantic form. Other Akimichi grew in size to replace their leader. The Yamanaka knew better than to mess with his mind… unless they favored dealing with Shukaku more than him.
Gaara couldn't help but cackle at their efforts.
Oh, how it was so hopeless for them.
Sand rose like a tidal wave.
Some managed to escape the gigantic attack.
Most didn't.
When it fell, it was red like a sea of blood.
⁑ —ϟ— ⁑
It was just her and Yowui. They managed to evacuate the stadium before Ka'rai blew it apart. Even still… the sheer magnitude of the explosion left her trapped. Under rubble, ash seeped through like water from a leaked pipe in the ceiling.
"Hane, you alright?" Yowui managed through his haggard breaths.
She gave a stiff nod. "Yeah… I just… can't believe…" Ka'rai. Everything was the utter cold of shock and disbelief. "Everything I said… just… meant nothing."
Yowui let out a sigh and shrugged. "I don't know what to say about it, honestly." Another deep breath. "I guess when you're powerful like he is, you just do whatever you want."
Hane winced, shaking her head. "That's bullshit."
"Is it really? Do you wanna go look outside? What's going on right now is all because a couple of strong people decided it was going to. Us? Well." Yowui snorted. "We're just left to deal with the consequences… and we can't do anything about it."
"Just…" Hane slammed her hands onto her face. The sound of the slap was barely audible behind the backdrop of fire, the distant screams of battle, and everything that was going on. "Shut, up."
"Why? Because I'm right?" Yowui caught himself. "Sorry, that was a mean thing to say. But like…" He sighed. "Yeah, I should shut up."
"No, you're right… I just…" Hane's hands were wet. Wet with her own tears. "If Ka'rai won't listen to me, my boyfriend, I love him… and he loves me. If he won't listen to me, then who will?! Who?!"
"Keep it down," muttered Yowui. "We're hiding for a reason, y'know."
"Sorry—" Hane choked on her tears. She tried to wipe her eyes. The look on Yowui's face, it was stiff, uncomfortable. "This… it's… everything is just so hopeless."
"My parents," Yowui began with a breath. "They always said to just do what you can when stuff like this comes up."
"I have. It's not enough…"
"Then try harder," said Yowui, bluntly. "That's how I got this far…"
"And you're not Ka'rai," she stated, her glare was tired and her tears were already dry.
Yowui shrugged. "Yeah, I know… but I still got the one-up on Cirru… had a whole stadium cheering for me, and against him. If you told the little farm boy back at the academy that happened… he wouldn't believe a word you said. It's worth at least something, right?"
"I guess…" she sighed. Hane forced a smile. "Thanks, Yowui."
He returned the smile. "No probl—"
The ground below them rose. A massive explosion rang Hane's ears and she was greeted by the red sky as the rubble around them collapsed. Immediately, Hane drew her tanto. Her crazed eyes darted around, they were high up, like they were on a mountain. There were fighting Shinobi in the distance, entire armies uprooted by the sudden formation.
A fourth of the entire village rose.
Another cataclysmic boom. Hane, Yowui, and every Shinobi in their line of sight were blasted to the slanted ground. "Not this shit again!" screamed Yowui.
Hane looked toward the mountain's summit. It was a volcano—a volcano suddenly formed in the middle of Konoha. Yowui grabbed Hane's hand and sprinted down the mountain with her. "We need to get off this thing now. I am not getting caught in a second volcanic eruption."
"Fair enough," she sputtered before flickering down alongside him.
Roars screamed out behind them. They weren't roars of men, they were roars of beasts. At the edges of the volcano, pillars of magma towered like the tallest buildings in Kumo. They were hundreds of feet tall.
A Konoha Shinobi, they seemed isolated from their battle. They charged at the two of them. Without thinking, her tanto extended into a ninjato while Yowui created a Stormbreaker Fist. Hane cut at them, aiming low for a non-lethal hit. They leapt above, but they couldn't dodge mid-air.
Yowui slammed into their guarded hands and they tumbled down the mountain. In a flicker, Hane sliced their achilles and they were out of the battle. Another Konoha ninja attacked. He kicked Hane in the head. On the ground, she saw a mace—another mace matched it, defending her.
Kay!
"Stormbreaker Point!" yelled Yowui, aiming his attack at Hane's assailant.
"Earth Style," Kay began. "Armadillo Claw Prison." Two claws, that of an armadillo, constricted the Konoha Chunin. Yowui's Stormbreaker Point stabbed into his back, the right side. He screamed out as the voltage pierced him, leaving a shocking hole where Yowui stabbed.
He went limp in Kay's prison, she lifted her mace to finish the job—"No!" Hane yelled, stepping between them. Of course, Kay stopped as not to hit her.
"Move," she commanded.
"No." Hane remained resolute. "He's done! He can't fight anymore!"
"Konoha produces the best Med Nin in the world. He could be healed in a short amount of time. That would lead him to being a threat down the line," she explained. "You cannot heal a dead man."
"You don't know that for sure—"
Kay kicked Hane out of the way. Afterward, she was free to crush the man's skull with her mace. The ANBU didn't pay any mind to the blood and gray matter that dripped from her mace. "You're not cut out to be a Shinobi. You have no chance of being promoted to Chunin."
Hearing that… hurt. More than the kick to her side. A whole lot more. Hane clenched her fists on the ashen mountain. She couldn't even bring herself to respond.
Yowui visibly shivered at the sight of a crushed skull. Averting his gaze, he trekked beside Hane instead of his teammate.
In a flash, Kay picked both of them up to move them out of the way of a gigantic fireball. When they landed, they were behind a joint force of Iwa and Kumo Shinobi. Konoha's forces were quickly approaching from all directions.
Kay bit her finger then slammed her hand on the floor. "Summoning Jutsu."
A pop and Suberi had Kay on her back. Hane's eyes widened a bit. Before she could speak, Kay did. "You two, c'mon."
Hane didn't waste a second before leaping on Suberi's back. She couldn't bear to see the carnage. Already, the screams of dying men and women rang out. Jutsu activated. Another boom from the volcano, lightning sparked in the cloud of ash above.
Yowui was similarly quick to follow. The moment they were both on, Suberi blasted through Konoha's forces and down the mountain.
"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" screamed out a voice. It was an ally, Hane could tell by the tone.
"Where… are we going, Kay?" asked Yowui.
"To Konoha's treasury. I was given an objective to rob it for every Ryo in there. You two, are going to help Suberi keep watch." Kay turned her eyes on Hane. "I just want to let you know, that the only reason you have any value, is because as much as I hate to admit it, you're the only one who can reliably keep Ka'rai on a leash.
"Without that, you're worthless."
What hurt… was that Kay wasn't even trying to insult her. It was simply what she believed. There wasn't any ounce of condescension in her tone. It was all monotone truth.
Well… it looks like I'm worthless
A sudden boom. It was cataclysmic. All three looked back to see where it came from. The shockwave blasted them across the ground. It was a miracle that they were already off of the mountain. The gigantic pillars of hardened lava collapsed like buildings.
The volcano that once took up a fourth of Konoha collapsed. Even from where she was, she heard the horrified screams of every Shinobi. Whether they were from Kumo, Konoha, Iwa, it didn't matter. They all sounded the same when they screamed for their lives.
A fourth of the village detonated, going up in waves of fire and ash.
Finally, the shockwave hit them.
Suberi was blasted, knocked into smoke from the impact. Kay barely managed to erect a wall of earth to catch them. Even it was blown into dust. The cloud of dust obscured the land. Everything was so… flat.
So many people were just… gone.
Not even Ka'rai could destroy like that.
What followed was a triumphant roar. It was victorious, like it had won something. The sheer malice behind it made her blood run cold. The ethereal presence reminded her of Ka'rai. He eyes widened.
Of course.
Of course it was another fucking Jinchuriki.
She was riddled with cuts and scrapes from being knocked around the jagged rocks of destroyed Konoha. Everything was surprisingly… quiet, after that. After the roar, after the Jinchuriki. The shockwave put out any fires. The explosion killed everybody too close. It was a miracle that Kay came when she did. It was just… the wind of war.
The wind of death.
The wind Hane wished would never blow again.
Taking in the landscape, Hane felt every cut, scrape, and ache on her body. Tears almost welled in her eyes again. All she could bring herself to do was take in all of the death in front of her.
What if someone could've stopped it?
What if someone like her was in charge, could things have been better…
Well, there was no point in thinking about it. People like her never had the power to do anything like that.
It was just as Kay said.
Hane was worthless.
⁑ —ϟ— ⁑
The sky was barely ever like this. It was choked up with smoke and ash. Even still, Fuu found it beautiful. From high up, Konoha was nothing but a red glowing bruise on the earth. What happened with Neji and Kusari… it pissed her off. So, she went into the sky to calm down.
It worked, almost too well. The massive explosion Ka'rai made, Fuu could see from up in the sky. It was like a miniature sun appeared for a second… it was beautiful. But, it made Fuu competitive. The invasion she was supposed to help started a few minutes ago. It was about time she played her part.
With the sun behind her, Nanabi's wings shimmered with light. The scales on her brown skin shimmed like daytime stars. Her armored arms churmed a stormy gray. Evening-colored chakra spewed as she summoned all the power she could muster.
She needed to make Nanabi proud. Making Ka'rai jealous would be a nice plus as well. Fuu reached out toward the sun, grabbed it. The force she felt was heavy. She could feel how pleased Nanabi was.
Go on. Throw it, Fuu.
Fuu giggled with the sound of a swarm. "Tengai Shinsei." With a roar, she hurled her hand down. Soon after, the roar of the sun burned behind her. A ball of pure sun the size of a building barreled through the clouds, into the smoke of Konoha. Fuu didn't see where it landed, which sucked. But it just made her laugh harder.
She buzzed to a different spot. Threw another. To a different spot, she flew and tossed down a third. A different spot, a foruth. A new place and a fifth. By then, Fuu found herself huffing in the air.
Don't overdo it… you'll lose the wings then fall to your death.
Damn… With a deep breath, Fuu channeled Nanabi's sunset chakra. Do you think I did more than Ka'rai?
Yes, easily… a shame we can't see it—
Fuu bolted down the sky, cackling to herself like the crazy girl she was. "YES!"
Where the hell are you going?
To see all the destruction I caused!
Fair enough.
With glee, Fuu blasted through the smoke. The air was churning with movement. So many deep and frantic breaths. Everything was hot. Probably because of all the fire. There was a giant ass volcano by the village, too. She could see Gaara by the stone faces on the mountain. So many Shinobi were fighting each other. Five other villages were ganging up on Konoha, it was so great to watch. Though, Konoha and the invaders seemed about even.
It made sense once she saw the giant barriers. Entire armies were boxed in massive barriers of golden chakra. She knew that there was supposed to be a really big summoning jutsu… did the Konoha Shinobi notice them and block them in? Yeah, that made sense.
There were dozens of armies trapped in dozens of barriers. Fuu was supposed to help with this whole thing, so she'd try to break them. In a buzz, she blasted toward the one nearest. There was a distraction in the air. Fuu looked back.
Kusari. She was over hundred feet in the air, sparking with lightning—did she jump—?! A hole was blown into her chest. She felt the air on her lungs, inside her body. She couldn't help but scream. It was all bloodied and it HURT! The same jutsu that Neji used, Ingoken… that must mean her arm was broken.
It wasn't. Both of Kusari's hands grabbed Fuu's exposed ribs. She pulled her close and looked the Jinchuriki in her sunset eyes. "I… told… you…" Her tone held so much fury that it made the very air shiver… Kusari could barely speak. "That fate… wills me… TO KILL YOU!"
Another Ingoken blew a hole through her chest— Fuu screamed. It hurt—that fucking word—fate—Her armored arm grabbed Kusari's skull. She squeezed as hard as she could to turn Kusari's head to mush. "I told you… DON'T SAY THAT FUCKING WORD!"
The lightning coursing through Kusari was turned against her. How dumb this bitch had to use lightning against her. Fuu made the lightning fry her from the inside out. Afterward, she whipped Kusari a hundred feet to the shattered village below.
Shivua…
What?!
Nothing, keep fighting.
In a flash, she was in front of Kusari again. Fuu drove her armored fist to Kusari's face and she went skidding across the flames and rubble. Nanabi's chakra filled her vacant chest. Fuu couldn't breathe, everything was going blurry.
Y'know, you should really make sure you don't get hit by attacks like those.
Fuu just growled, summoning the Kyoku Winds to encase Kusari in a heatwave tornado prison. It gave her time to regenerate as well. Her regeneration was a lot faster where she was fully armored, like her arms. The pain didn't subside… Fuu hated hurting… especially because it put tears in her eyes.
Why did things have to hurt? It was terrible. It was just—Kusari yelled out a battle cry. Fuu's sunset eyes widened as Ingoken blasted a hole through her tornado prison. Kusari ripped off her jacket and her headband— a seal on her forehead was glowing. The skin around burned black. The same exact thing happened to Neji.
The air pulsing around her was so much stronger. Fuu had to stop it—she blurred in front of the weak point and clawed at Kusari's face with her hand. With a roar she ripped the skin from her cheeks, exposing her now bloodied teeth.
Kusari was barely affected by it. An Ingoken kick took out Fuu's leg. Nanabi's Jinchuriki screeched out with the agony of losing a limb again. Rage shot out a bolt of lightning at Kusari's chest. It burned a hole through her flesh, but her ribs remained intact. Kusari bolted manically to the hovering Fuu.
Her leg was gone and her chest was nearly finished regenerating—Kusari could destroy her faster than Nanabi could repair her—NO! A blast of wind howled toward Kusari but she used her Ingoken to blast it into nothing.
With another lightning-charged leap, Kusari was at her level again. Before Fuu could turn the lightning against her, Kusari deactivated it. Fuu latched her hand onto Kusari's neck anyway, but Kusari blocked it with her hand. For a second, furious sunset orange peered into irate pale lavender.
It… made Fuu pause, even if for just a second. The unbridled fury was scarily similar to how she was whenever she thought about Taki. That seal on her forehead screamed, like a scolding parent, like a warden when their prisoner was trying to break out.
Was… was Kusari like her—? Ingoken, channeled through the knee battered her again. It bled into her chest and Fuu cried out from the agony. Tears screamed down her face as she hurled Kusari back at the ground with an angry grunt.
Kusari was embedded in the rubble. In a buzz, Fuu blitzed Kusari further underground. With a blast of chakra, Kusari managed to break out. She grabbed Fuu's tail and slammed her to the ground. Next, an Ingoken kick snapped one of her wings in half.
The searing agony made Fuu wail. Tears were streaming and pouring and her body so desperately wanted everything to stop. A whip from her tail blew Kusari back hundreds of feet, leaving Fuu with time to breathe. She barely could with her half-grown lungs.
Y'know… you're not exactly wrong.
What do you mean?!
That seal… it's hurting that girl, holding it back…
So… she's suffering?
Well, you ripped its face off, so I'd say so.
Fuu ignored Nanabi's remark. There was nothing Kusari could do to make Fuu like her. But… if she was trapped, if she was hurt because she was caged… then she at least deserved some sympathy. Plus, Ka'rai would be happy about it.
A roar and Nanabi's chakra rose like a dawning Sun. Her wing regrew itself. Chakra spewed from her half-grown leg and her falling-apart chest. Fuu was going to put Kusari out of her misery. Death was so much better than bondage.
In a buzz, Fuu tracked down Kusari. The pulsing she made in the air was the most obvious thing on the radar aside from Gaara, and whatever Hiyenzo was doing with Yonbi's Jinchuriki. Over hundreds of feet of shattered rubble, she went into what used to be a dog park.
Burning trees and smoldered grass surrounded a lake caked up with ash. Kusari made herself apparent by blowing away the fire in a tree with her chakra. She belted out a gust of wind that blew Kusari into the lake.
Fuu hurled down a bolt of lightning, but Kusari dodged. A growl made blood pour from her mouth, mixing with the tears on her face. Another bolt was dodged. Fuu let out a frustrated roar and the wind for miles picked up.
A miniature storm bombarded Kusari with wind and lightning. On the water, she crouched and rotated. Water picked up and whirled from under her. That rotation jutsu protected her from Fuu's storm.
But, it wouldn't protect Kusari from Fuu herself.
The Jinchuriki blasted through her defense and held her underwater, forcing her to drown. Kusari flipped up out of the water, wrapping her legs around Fuu's neck and pulling herself up, taking Fuu's arm with her.
With Fuu's head between her legs, Kusari almost struck with her Ingok—an eruption of sunset chakra illuminated the area and blasted Kusari to the lake's shore. With quick inhales of panic, Fuu whipped her head toward Kusari on the shore. She almost killed me—
You are welcome, sneered Nanabi. Hurry up and get rid of Shivua for me… that'll make things a lot less of a pain down the line.
Her name's Kusari?
Just kill it!
Fuu jolted and looked toward Kusari. A tanto of bone was in her hand. Fuu didn't have the space to question it. But… Fuu didn't have to do anything to take her down. The seal on her forehead illuminated from green to white. Kusari grasped at her head and wailed.
Part of Fuu wanted to ridicule her for all the pain that she forced her through, but the other part just felt bad. It was pitiful… to be so trapped that she couldn't even fight as much as she could.
Kusari really was better off dead.
Fuu buzzed in an electric bolt and struck Kusari in the stomach. It brought her to her knees but Fuu slammed her head onto the shattered concrete and screamed. Again and again, Fuu clobbered and battered her into the jagged ground.
No matter how many times Fuu slammed it, it wouldn't even crack—"WHY WON'T YOUR FUCKING SKULL BREAK?!" she screamed out and punched her as hard as she could.
Kusari remained intact. With a snarl, Fuu grabbed her by the hair and looked her in the eyes. Her entire face was just… blood. The searing heat of the seal made it boil on her forehead…
All Fuu could do was look. She almost felt the hate she had for Kusari fade away… it… was just… pure suffering. Suffering was etched onto Kusari's face like she was a statue. It was almost as if Kusari wanted to die.
Kusari just wanted to be free…
Just like Fuu did.
Fuu prepared to grant Kusari her wish. Just as she did so, Kusari's hair rose. A pure burst of chakra blew Fuu back off of Kusari. She entered a stance and rasped, "Eight Trigrams… Eight Barbaric Palms."
The tone was ancient… older than Nanabi, even. Hey—
"TWO PALMS!" Kusari roared and she blitzed, Fuu couldn't react as two holes were blown in her chest.
"FOUR PA—!" Kusari collapsed to the floor. Fuu did too, wailing, and screaming, and screeching all because it HURT SO FUCKING BAD!
Somehow, she managed to stand. Fuu needed to end her, to free her… no matter what. "I'LL KILL YOU!" Her hand churned with chakra. It was the liquefication technique she used to kill her team. If she couldn't crush her skull, then this would definitely do the trick.
All that would be left were her bones.
Before she could kill Kusari, something bright and blue stopped her. Jinsei was wrapped around her hand and Ka'rai stood in front of her. "NO!" Fuu screamed out.
"Fuu… you know she's off limits," he said, scolding.
"NO! I NEED TO KILL HER!"
"I said she's off limits, Fuu—"
"LET ME FUCKING KILL HER!"
"No. I made a promise to Shinrai, I can't break it."
"FUCK HIM AND FUCK YOU!"
Jinsei roared and ignited Fuu in chained constraints while also healing her. It felt good for the pain to be soothed but UGHH she hated being trapped. Ka'rai talked with Kusari for a bit, before igniting her with Jinsei too before blowing her away with Bakugami. He was… helping her?!
With a sigh, Ka'rai walked back toward Fuu all nonchalantly. "Shit dude, Kusari really fucked you up… you alright?"
"Why… did you help her?!"
"I told you why. I understand why you want to kill her so bad, but—"
"NO! You DON'T!" roared Fuu. "She's trapped! She needs to die so she can be free! She's suffering because she's alive! She's better off dead!"
"Woah, those are some… surprisingly kind thoughts!" Ka'rai crouched down and grinned, patting her on the head. "I'm proud of you, Fuu!"
"Fuck you…" she huffed, narrowing her eyes. With both Jinsei and Nanabi's chakra… she was nearly healed already. "Don't get in the way when I'm trying to free people! Okay?!"
"As long as you're not killing someone I don't want to be killed, then do whatever you want, Fuu," Ka'rai said before slinking her across his shoulder. "I'm going to find Hane, Yowui, and Kay. I can sense their souls like a mile away from here. We have to stick together so nobody dies, alright?"
"Fine…" muttered Fuu. With a grunt, she summoned her Kyoku Winds and blasted out of Jinsei's restraints, keeping the fire on her so she could heal. She got off of Ka'rai's shoulder and hovered beside him. "I don't need you to carry me."
"Fair enough," he muttered before blasting off on all fours. At the same time, Fuu buzzed alongside him.
All Fuu could think was… I really wish I could've killed her.
ϟ—Chapter End—ϟ