Daisugi: The Art of Growth

by LytnX5

New genin graduate as the hopes of the Land of Fire. Shinrai Uzumaki, adoptive brother of Naruto Uzumaki and the other wicked half of the Demon Twins. Kusari Hyuuga, sister of Neji Hyuuga, trapped by destiny. Gosei Senju, descendent of the Shodai and eldest heir to the Senju Clan. Their sensei, Ryujin Hiyenzo, Kyuubi Jinchuriki and former student of the Yondaime. FullSummaryInside

37. Chapter 31

?￢ﾜ ? ~ Chapter Thirty-one — Hopeless Desperation ~ ?￢ﾜ ?

Fuck… Everything ached. His head was spinning faster than the planet did. When he opened his eyes, all he saw was darkness. He flexed, finally moving his body. All he felt was jagged concrete. Sweat caked his skin, the heat was unbearable.

But, the pain, the damage he took, it made him stronger.

With a deep, aching breath, he bursted his chakra. The sky above greeted him with a red expanse. Smoke and ash filled his next breath.

Shinrai climbed out of the rubble, both of his Grass Cutters still in hand. He sheathed Yora and popped Shinrai back into the seal it belonged in.

"Well damn, Ka'rai," he muttered, staring at the stadium… or what used to be a stadium. It was crumbling, lit with fire and falling apart in its entirety. Immediately, he pulled the seal he used to track Naruto out of his pocket.

Next, he dodged a strike. He looked the kid in the eyes… he was younger than he was. Like, eleven? His outfit made it obvious that he was from Suna. "Hey man," Shinrai began. "What's your favorite food?"

"What?!" he questioned, before stabbing at Shinrai.

Rolling his eyes, he blocked the kid's strike with his hand, chuckling as the burning sensation lit up his hand. "My favorite food… is donuts." With his unstabbed hand, Shinrai punched a hole through the kid's chest.

Shinrai cackled once he saw the vacant pain in his eyes. He pulled the hand out of the kid's chest and flicked the blood off. A girl screamed behind him. With his brow raised, Shinrai looked behind to see her.

She kinda looked like the kid he just killed, somehow even younger. Nine? Ten? Shinrai almost felt bad for killing him. "You wanna be next?!"

Without another word spoken, she ran away. A ragged sigh made Shinrai's already aching throat worse. He looked down at his Naruto-tracking seal with his eyes narrowed. He's doing well alright… he's moving fast, too. His Sharingan whirled to life.

It's about time I catch up—

"Shinrai Uzumaki!" called a voice. A girl—that he knew.

He looked back and a smile crossed his face. "Natsuyo Senju!"

Panting, still visibly bruised from her battle with Rock Lee, she landed next to him. "Finally, an ally's face—" Her eyes widened with shock as her face contorted. "Your eyes?!"

"...Long story I don't feel like telling."

Slowly, she blinked. "O…kay." She cleared her throat. "Where's Gosei?"

"I don't fucking know, I just woke up like five seconds ago!"

"How did you survive—?"

"Last minute, I put a barrier around myself to shield against Ka'rai's attack. If it wasn't there, I'd be a pile of ashes right now."

Natsuyo nodded. "Alright."

"But, I do know where Naruto is," he continued, pointing to the seal in his hand. "I was going to go track him down."

Her eyes narrowed, then she nodded.

Shinrai flicked her forehead; she cursed. "Gosei's fine, dude. He's probably out there somewhere getting his ass kicked but surviving because he's just that type of guy, you know?"

"Right…" she muttered with a chuckle, rolling her eyes.

His Sharingan whirled with delight as made eye contact with her. "I'm going to be going at full speed, see if you can keep up."

In a scarlet flicker he was gone. Right behind him, Natsuyo blurred with yellow flames, boosted with wind at her back. "You're an idiot if you think that I can't!"

Shinrai laughed and the two blurred toward Naruto. He cursed as the seal told him he was getting farther from him, changing directions—"Slow down you nine-tailed fuck!" He shouted at the seal before jamming his chakra into the seal.

It didn't take long for Naruto's orange to flare through. Shinrai smirked as Naruto moved toward him. The ash picked up into a dust devil of pure black. It hurled in a fuming plume that blew both Natsuyo and Shinrai all the way off course. They stumbled—Shinrai's Sharingan was borderline useless in the rising smoke.

"Natsuyo!"

"I'm here!" Her voice came from his left.

He flickered in that direction and grabbed her shoulder. She grabbed onto his. A puff of smoke and his ivory blade was in hand. With a few hand seals, Shinrai muttered, "Entrusted Flame," and his Grass Cutter burned orange. "Keep yourself on fire, so it'll be easier to find each other in the dark."

Natsuyo nodded and her blonde hair burned yellow. Wind whirled around her, like she was paying special attention to combining both elements. Unconsciously, by the looks of it. With a deep inhale she blasted a drafting gust of wind to the floor. It cleared out the dust. She gave him a sly grin.

Shinrai rolled his scarlet eyes. "That works too."

In a tornadic whirl, the wind put out their fire and blasted into their faces. Shinrai coughed and choked as his airwaves were shoved full with smoke. From behind, something stabbed him—there was a blade through his chest.

Not again! He yelled out before donkey-kicking what stabbed him. It was made of wood, it shattered. The fuck—?

"Fire Release: Sunshine Shower!" From the smoke above, yellow fire fell like raindrops. Her silhouette was clear in the black of the smoke. With a single hand seal, she yelled, "Wind Release: Expansive Wind Dome!"

Again, the smoke was blown back. She gasped once she saw the narrow blade through the center of Shinrai's chest. "Are you—?"

"I'm fine, it's not the first time!"

She didn't argue, instead focusing on her wind dome.

With his newfound medical knowledge, he knew that keeping the sword in would minimize damage and blood loss. Ever since discovering the ability of his special chakra, minimizing damage wasn't exactly his priority.

Shinrai tore the narrow blade from his chest and cackled at the pain. Natsuyo gave him an alarmed glance, but Shinrai paid it no mind. Through the smoke, through the wind, battle cries screamed out. It wasn't from either Shinrai or Natsuyo.

They looked at each other.

In sync, they realized that they were caught in the middle of a skirmish. Glints from blades and headbands was the only light in the darkness. Booms from detonated jutsu and explosive tags rang through the sound of roaring flames. Natsuyo bit her lip but Shinrai grinned. He licked the edge of his ivory blade, relishing the taste of his own blood. "Natsuyo, can you like… blow up the wind?"

"Yes…?"

"Do that."

"But that'll take away our cover!"

"We can't whoop ass if we're hiding away, man."

"I'm not a man—"

"It's an expression." Shinrai shook his head. "Just do it! I need to get to Naruto!"

"Urgh! Fine!" With a flare of her chakra, she ignited her wind dome and waved the tiger seal. "Solar Flare!"

A wave of sunshine blasted the smoke away. A battlefield was around them. Konoha Shinobi and Suna Shinobi mostly; they were tearing each other apart. Not a second passed before Shinrai blurred forward and cut a Suna nin's head from their body. He barely blocked another strike—he was struck in the back.

Yellow fire burned behind him. With a single kick he shattered the hip of… a puppet—? His Sharingan allowed him to see another strike that he was forced to block. Another flicker and he was at Natsuyo's back.

A Jonin from Suna approached them, not saying a word as puppets flew around him. Shinrai's orange blaze and Natsuyo's sunshine flames aimed at the wooden puppets. Wind shielded them from the attack.

Instead of catching alight, their fire was blown away.

Shinrai's Sharingan picked apart the chakra. Two separate colors of chakra melded together. His eyes narrowed. "That isn't regular Wind Style…"

"I can tell that much," she bit back with an analytical tone.

"Not that it's an issue for me." Shinrai weaved hand seals—less than he anticipated for his blade. "Water Style: Whirlpool Devastation!" The wind around the puppets roared—Natsuyo below against them with her own wind.

According to Shinrai's Sharingan, she could only conquer half of it with her Godai. His water and her wind attacked the puppets but they seemed to flicker. Lights that Shinrai barely saw with his eyes added another type of chakra to it, the attacks were nullified.

Natsuyo looked entirely lost—her eyes widened as she had to dodge an attack. Shinrai would've gone to help her had the three puppets attacking him not been there. His blades struck against the invincible armor of ever changing chakra.

Upon a closer look, he spied seals. A language he didn't know, but was familiar with. It was the Land of Wind's own personal brand of seals; they learned it from Shukaku itself. Himself? Didn't matter. Point was, they were powerful yet extremely hard to detect.

He wondered if this would do the trick…

With his free hand, he whirled the chakra for a Rasengan. Dodging and weaving blades and chakra blasts of wind. He lost Natsuyo in the chaos… he would have to find her. "Rasengan!" he shouted once the Jutsu was finished.

He caught one. The Wind Shield that blocked the puppets fought against the Rasengan. The Rasengan had no chakra nature, so there wasn't really a way to counter it by messing with chakra. All he needed to do was overpower it.

With all of his attention on one puppet, the other two came from behind. He had to anticipate their attack—chakra burst from his heart, throat, and head. If they struck there, he'd be dead meat. His assumption was off—by a single second.

Both puppets aimed for his heart, then they stopped the moment his skin was pierced. The extra damage pushed him over the edge and he destroyed the puppet in its entirety. It felt like the wind shield wasn't even there…

Because it wasn't.

Yellow fire shown in the distance like a pillar.

Without another second wasted, he kicked both the puppets off of him before flickering toward Natsuyo. "Where the fuck did you go—?!"

Her pluming yellow flames were her only response. She was in combat, a Jonin. Blood poured from her and a barrier of fire boosted by wind was her only haven. Another flicker and he kicked at the Jonin—it was caught and he was thrown to the ground.

His eyes narrowed. "How are you still standing?"

"Don't know! Don't care!" Shinrai shouted back. Another roar of his chakra. Entrusted Flame coated his blade and he sliced through Natsuyo's wall of fire. They roared yellow then white and no hand seals were weaved when Shinrai yelled, "FLAMING WHIRLPOOL DEVASTATION!"

The white fire whirled like water and burned over the Jonin. An inhuman whirl of white fire illuminated the smoke. The Suna Jonin collapsed to the floor, in two pieces. Shinrai bisected him at the chest.

Before Shinrai's smirk could fully cross his face, another kick sent him tumbling across the rubble. Natsuyo was beside him, heaving and bleeding—a glint. Shinrai blurred and caught a kunai to the shoulder, so Natsuyo wouldn't take it to the neck.

Konoha Shinobi blasted forward, fending against Suna's force. Shinrai and Natsuyo stood back to back, alit with fire, facing the battlefield as just two other soldiers.

"I don't think we'll be able to get away from here," Natsuyo managed through her wounds.

Slowly, Shinrai nodded. "Fuck."

—⊱✿⊰—

So, Neji unlocked the Tenmei Byakugan, noted Hiashi as he sat, legs crossed on the dirt, in front of the Main Branch's mansion. A decree of Fate, etched in the eyes of the chosen. Hiashi would have to look into the stars for anything out of the ordinary. Fate was written in the stars, and the Tenmei was fate weaponized.

As unfortunate as it may have been, Neji might never be in the condition to use his Tenmei in battle. The match with Nanabi's Jinchuriki left him broken, almost beyond repair. A shudder of a breath rattled Hiashi's body.

"You seem troubled, Lord Hiashi," said Toneri as he sat beside his Clan Head.

Hiashi shook his head in response. "It is no matter; it cannot be helped."

Red skies and ashen snow belted over the Hyuuga Clan's Compound. Any lesser Byakugan would be blinded, but not his own. To his surprise, the Hyuuga Clan Compound was… desolate. He expected his Hyuuga Clan to be a prime target in the invasion, especially for Kumo. Either way, he should be at least grateful for that. All of the Hyuuga's civilians and children were evacuated in the Hyuuga's private shelter. Deep underground and guarded by the Hyuuga's best.

He and Toneri.

It was then when someone entered the compound. At that same time Toneri stood. "Lord Hiashi… may I battle him? Do not interfere, I wish to test the extent of my abilities against him."

"...Go ahead," permitted Hiashi. In a blur, Toneri flashed away from Hiashi's side. The Head of the Hyuuga Clan was alone to peer into the ash. His clansmen were fighting, but… whatever opponents caught them off guard, slaughtering them, were invisible.

Hiashi's eyes widened. Invisible fighters—? Why could he not see them? Were the secrets of the Byakugan leaked?! Damn it all. Each Hyuuga killed rose his anger more and more—Deep lavender eyes snapped with intense chakra.

Veins around his temples pulsed and churned on his forehead, under his eyes, on the bridge of his nose. Blood and chakra pushed through them to fuel the power of his Midnight Eyes. A miniature night sky shifted in his irises.

The Byakugan's vision was able to be circumvented, yes… but not the Tenmei's. Hiashi's blood boiled at the sight. The Chinoike Clan invaded his Hyuuga Clan. A clan from Kumo. Seething hatred pulsed within his chakra.

The Swastika swirled in his eyes, formed from the stars above. "Teamon." The First Decree of Hiashi's Fate has been uttered. Every weakness in everything within the Hyuuga Compound was clear as day. From any distance, it didn't matter if they were right in front of him or a hundred miles away; Hiashi picked apart every flaw, and he could strike it.

Phantom Juken strikes crippled the Chinoike Clan members. One at a time, but with how fast he was, they might as well have been simultaneous. A single Juken strike wasn't debilitating, but multiple… In the first five seconds of his assault, half of the Chinoike invading force was unable to fight.

While focusing on the full power of his Teamon, Hiashi flared his chakra. Two Side Branch Shinobi bowed at his side. "Tell the clan that for this battle, they must fight without their Byakugan. The enemy has discovered the secrets of our eyes."

Both looked shocked for a second, but nodded and flickered away.

"You made it easy for us to discover your secrets, Hiashi Hyuuga."

A voice from beside him. He saw her long ago. The weak points on her body were a staggering zero. Nothing he could strike with his Teamon. "Machia Chinoike… Head of the Chinoike Clan." He stood to look her in the eyes, those Ketsuryugan.

That Dojutsu was a derivative of the Byakugan. Her eyes were inherently inferior to his. Her pale skin was bloodshot, molding, as if the blood inside of her was a sentient being trying to break out. Long white hair bled from her scalp like a wound.

"What is your business with my clan?" asked Hiashi, the edge of a razor to his tone. Even while looking at her, conversing with her, he kept the focus to disable the Chinoike forces with his Teamon.

Machia's skin turned redder, the bleeding ruby of blood. "Your eyes, why else would the Hyuuga matter to anybody, if not for your eyes? Besides, all you've done is limit yourself to the Byakugan and what it can do.

"Without your Byakugan, the Hyuuga is nothing but a group of well-trained civilians."

"If that is what you think, then you know nothing about the Hyuuga," spat Hiashi. He crouched into the stance of the Juken.

Machia remained still. "What wouldn't I know about the Hyuuga? After all… it was my idea to infiltrate so long ago."

Hiashi went cold. "What did you just say?" he asked coldly, with all of the calmness and composure he could muster.

A cold smirk crossed Machia's lips. "It was I who suggested Lord Raikage to kidnap your daughter so long ago. For a long time I wished to know the secrets of the Byakugan. I've studied your clan for years.

"Once the White Eyes of Hinata Hyuuga became known to me, I knew it was time for me to act. Lord Raikage found it too conspicuous for a Chinoike to infiltrate, so he sent one of his subordinates to do the job.

"He failed. The White Eyes were lost… even still, I managed to discover the secrets of your eyes. But, now, all I need is the secrets of the Tenmei Byakugan. And of course, there's no other pair worth having other than yours."

Hiashi didn't respond. It was her. It all led back to her. It was her idea to take Hinata from him. It was her idea that led to Hana's death. It was her who requested his head, and had to force Hizashi to die in his stead.

Even still, his brother's sacrifice was for naught. The Byakugan's secrets were discovered anyway. Hizashi… Died for nothing.

Hiashi trembled. He shook with unimaginable fury. A quick check with his Tenmei. With the decree of Teamon, the Hyuuga were gaining an edge; most of the Chinoike force was either dead, disabled, or on the back foot. Those who were immune, however, needed to be dealt with personally.

Those like Machia.

With a breath, he deactivated his Teamon. He trusted his clan to last until he was done with her. "Machia Chinoike," Hiashi growled, the Swastika in his eyes broke apart and drifted to the left of his irises. "By fate's decree… I will slaughter you for the slight you made against the Hyuuga Clan." A White Tiger roared as the new constellation in his eyes.

"Seioubu." The Second Decree of Hiashi's Fate has been uttered. Four roars screamed from the forming pure white chakras.

At the same time, blood spewed from every opening, every pore on Machia's body. Free from her command, it spiked out in gory tendrils toward Hiashi. He didn't even move. A White Tigress of pure Jade Chakra cut the blood.

Machia's blood reeled from the pain. Quickly, she severed the connection between the blood and her body as the blood hardened from ruby to white.

Growling, the ethereal tigress stood at attention in front of Hiashi. Three more tigresses, all the same white jade as the first, formed from the chakra he summoned with his Seioubu. All four of them had the same level of fury that Hiashi did. After all, it was that event that summoned them.

Fate's second decree to him was that he would destroy Kumo for its slight against the Hyuuga Clan. What better time to use his Seioubu than now? It was written in the stars. His victory here was guaranteed.

Before ordering them, he looked upon his tigresses. Unbeknownst to all, he named them. All four. The two closest by his side, who defended and attacked alongside him no matter what. They were Hinata and Hanabi. Right in front, the most defensive and fiercely loyal to him, who he didn't need to command because she knew. She was Hana.

The one in front, the one most furious, the one he couldn't quite control, but he trusted to be ferocious with every attack, the one who turned Machia's blood to jade. She was Kusari. His Four Tigresses steeled his temper from a searing hunk of metal to a steaming blade. The blade that would sever Machia's fate for good.

"Intriguing Jutsu," said Machia, eyeing her white-frozen tendril of blood. In a flash, her hands formed into seals. Tigress Kusari didn't waste a second before blitzing toward Machia. She dodged her attack. Tigress Hana pounced across the battlefield to slash at Machia.

A wound burst from the inside out on the Chinoike's skin. Blood wrapped around Tigress Hana's neck and whipped her into Tigress Kusari. Hiashi's eyes narrowed in a scowl. "Hinata, go."

Tigress Hinata growled and leapt at Machia. The relentless assault stopped Machia from completing her sequence. Good, whatever Jutsu she had planned was better off kept away. With his Tenmei, Hiashi picked apart the chakra of Machia's blood. The signature was off, it was minutely different from the rest of her chakra.

The chakra had its own sentience to it. Machia's blood was sentient. It was similar to how Hinata described the sand of Suna's Jinchuriki. Just like his White Tigresses… troublesome. The way she fortified her blood within her body minimized her weak points entirely. Nothing Teamon could exploit.

All he needed for one of his White Tigresses to get a single solid hit. A swipe from the tigress' claw turned anything into pure white jade.

"Hanabi, go,' sneered Hiashi. There was nothing he could hold back in this assault. He needed to tear her apart. Tigress Hanabi was enthusiastic to leap into battle alongside her family. Machia found herself weaving and bobbing the four-tigress assault. Her Ketsuryugan bled a gory ruby.

Blood punctured through her skin and stabbed through the White Tigresses. It constricted all four and held them to the ground. Hiashi's Byakugan pulsed. "Air Palm!" A blast of air hit Machia and she was blasted back.

His right Tenmei shifted, the stars whirled from the White Tiger of the West to the Heavenly Swastika of the North. All four Tigresses lost half of their strength as Hiashi uttered, "Teamon." The bindings of the White Tigresses snapped, one by one.

Hiashi crouched and his Tenmei pulsed. His right eye returned to the White Tiger of the West. All four Tigresses surrounded Machia, leaving a space for Hiashi. "Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Air Palms."

First, there were two phantom strikes of air. Precisely, they struck Machia. That sentient blood fortified her skin and blocked the palms. It didn't matter, it still held her down. Four Air Palms. Eight Air Palms. Sixteen Air Palms. Thirty-two Air Palms. Sixty-Four Air Palms. Tigress Kusari was the first to assault Machia after the palms were done.

Next was Hanabi, then Hana, Hinata was the last. The slight delay in attack created false hope with small openings. As the tigresses clawed, blood spewed from Machia like senbon. They were held down by growing spears of constriction. At the same time that Machia weaved hand seals, a barrier of blood hid her away.

Teamon shifted in his right eye—

"Blood Style: Sea of Blood."

An eruption of blood spewed from the shattered barrier. It was like a tsunami of gore. It churned all throughout the Hyuuga Compound, flattening every building within the compound. Both eyes whirled into Teamon's Swastika. There were no weak points in the ocean of pure chakra.

No—Hiashi growled as it took everything in his power to stay above the churning waves of liquid flesh. Wood and stone floated from the bottom of the waves to the top. It was only the Hyuuga Clan's walls that kept the spewing Sea of Blood contained once Machia stopped adding to it.

"Blood Style: Twin Blood Dragon Jutsu!" From the barely calmed waves of blood, twin dragons swirled in a waterspout.

Hiashi didn't waste a second before cutting off the Jutsu with Teamon. "How… dare you…" sneered the Hyuuga Clan's Head. His Tenmei peered beneath the waves at an utterly flattened landscape. So many Hyuuga were dead. Impaled by shrapnel, drowned in blood, or killed by the bolstered Chinoike forces.

Red below and red above.

Searing white roared alongside the shifting of his eyes to the White Tiger. Tigress Hanabi, Hinata, Hana, and Kusari awoke in a fury. None of them wasted a second before charging Machia.

Ketsuryugan glowed and all four White Tigresses were consumed by the fleshy waves. "You don't stand a chance now. Do not make this harder than it needs to be. Be happy, you'll join your wife and brother soon enough. Most of the Hyuuga already have.

"I'll make sure to treat your daughters kindly under my care."

Hiashi released his White Tigresses as fury pulsed through his veins. He needed the full power of Teamon to win this battle. "Speak of my daughters again and you will never live to repeat that offense."

"I have a child of my own. I know better than to be cruel to children—"

"It was your order to kidnap Hinata!" Hiashi snapped. Keeping his composure became impossible. The full force of his chakra churned the waves of blood that drowned his Hyuuga Clan. "Look at what you did to my compound. Your words of morality mean nothing."

"And are you really much better? You enslaved your own brother and sent him to die in your place. You are a coward, Hiashi Hyuuga. By collecting your head, I'm simply collecting what I'm owed."

Hiashi's stomach churned with guilt and fury at the mention of Hizashi. "I'm sick of hearing you speak." His chakra molded as the visage of the Eight Trigrams spread across the sea of blood. "I will end your fate right here, and right now."

A whirlpool opened under Hiashi, but he stood. The Eight Trigrams he stood on were solid. "Vacuum Palm." Machia was pulled onto the platform. Blood shot out, but Teamon disabled it. Hiashi would never let her touch him.

"It is here where your fate will meet its end," Hiashi promised. Searing stone was his expression as he said, "First of the Eight Trigrams: Zeni." The first Trigram surrounding the lotus glowed. The twin starry Swastikas of his eyes whirled as everything went black around the Eight Trigrams.

Machia oozed with her own gore. A bloody armor spewed around her. Hiashi didn't react as the black dome of his Eight Trigrams synced with his Tenmei. The head of his Trigram pointed north, to the constellation of the Swastika.

"Zeni: Teamon."

Every chakra point in Machia's head became weaker, any defenses she had were for not. Teamon struck every chakra point in her head as she was trapped in the Eight Trigrams. Immediately, her Ketsuryugan shut off and her head went limp on her neck.

The sentient blood on her body moved as Machia herself went unconscious. Hand seals weaved—She couldn't speak the Jutsu name. With the attack completed, Hiashi was forced to let down his Eight Trigrams barrier.

His left eye shifted to the White Tiger. In a flash of white jade, Tigress Hana roared. As Machia's possessed body retreated, she was struck. Blood didn't spill on the clawed wound severed into her stomach. Solid Jade Chakra spread and Machia was overtaken—

A sudden whirling blade came from above and below the spreading jade.

Machia's blood cut her in two.

The jade section of her torso was flung into the Sea of Blood while Machia's insides stitched itself together, falling under the gory waves. Tigress Hana faded away as Teamon was activated at full power.

Weak points showed themselves as Machia's blood had nowhere near the refinement of its much more intelligent controller. Teamon ripped Machia's body apart. Hiashi's face contorted more and more into a snarl as he roared with chakra in his starry eyes.

He thought of everything this woman did.

She took Hana away from him.

She took Hinata's White Eyes away from the Hyuuga.

She took Hizashi from him.

She took the Hyuuga Compound from him.

Ripping her apart was oh so sweet… Hiashi's eyes narrowed. He focused his Byakugan to his back, only to discover that he couldn't. There was nothing there. Hiashi couldn't see behind his back.

Dammit—Hiashi growled, watching Machia's body float away in the receding Sea of Blood. The Fate of his vision had no use ending here. To kill her, would mean that his eyes would die along with her. Not a soul would respect a blind Hyuuga Clan Head.

Hiashi wouldn't let that woman take another damn thing from him.

It took all the self control that Hiashi could muster to not cry out in rage as he deactivated his Tenmei. The veins on his head calmed to just around his temples. His constellation broke apart as the midnight backdrop faded to the deep lavender of a Byakugan scared by the Tenmei.

With that, it was just the remaining Chinoike soldiers fighting against what was left of the Hyuuga… on a flattened and scarred space that reeked of blood. Soaked wood and dripping stone was scattered around the landscape.

The red sky dropped mocking ash onto the destruction of the Hyuuga.

At his feet, there was a doll. Old, by the looks of it. The blood that soaked the fabric through and through wasn't the only sign of wear and tear. Hiashi picked it up, inspected it. What used to be shiny raven, faded to black.

Stitched white buttons on the face, meant to be eyes. An ever present smile… its visage comforted even Hiashi.

Hinata. It was an old doll of his eldest daughter, of Hana's spitting image.

With a breath, he held it tighter in his hand. A lump in his throat formed, as if he was talking to Hinata herself. "I'm sorry to place this burden onto you once again, daughter.

"But, once again, I need you to become the Hope of the Hyuuga Clan."

—⊱✿⊰—

Meanwhile, as Hiashi and Machia began to battle, Toneri leapt from rooftop to rooftop over the Hyuuga Compound. An objective was the apple of his Byakugan eyes. While a significant portion of the Hyuuga Clan were fighting against the Chinoike, a smaller portion found themselves cut down by a puppet master.

A blur and his deep lavender Byakugan tracked the hundred puppets cutting down his brethren. One of which was a Main Branch Member, son of an elder. He'd be next in line on the council after his mother died. Well, that would be if he lived.

Toneri watched idly by as one of the puppets cut his heart out. It was then, when he interfered. The puppet went to gather his body, but an Air Palm made the wooden construct implode. Guarding the dead body of the Main Branch member, Toneri watched as puppets placed themself in a circle around him. He could see each and every one.

The threads of chakra spewed all connected back to one man, or rather, puppet. Two layers of a puppet body surrounding a heart. Poison dripped from every blade of every puppet. Over a hundred. Not that he'd get hit, that was impossible from a Shinobi of his caliber.

The master of the hundred puppets approached as they continued to surround him. Finally, he was in the line of sight of somebody without a Byakugan, the line of sight of a blind man. "Sasori of the Red Sand," greeted Toneri, looking up at the sky. Not that he needed to to see it.

"I suppose you adore the color of the sky, if your moniker is anything to go by."

"My introduction to you is a pun," snarled Sasori as he approached, voice deep with his artificial teeth chattering. "And you're a Branch Member, your Byakugan dies along with you. You, Toneri of Heaven, are a waste of my time."

Ignoring the insult, Toneri calmly walked forward. "If it were up to me, I'd let you run a muck here all you want. Unfortunately, it is not."

His deep lavender Byakugan pulsed. He pulled a hundred senbon, all between his fingers. "The Hyuuga Clan is not yours to kill." One senbon was launched into one puppet each.

The ashen wind blew as Sasori grumbled. The chattering teeth of his puppet sounded like irritated steps up stairs. "Is that it?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" asked Toneri before weaving a single hand seal. Sealing matrixes reminiscent of the Caged Bird constricted the puppets, burning them before detonating. A hundred bangs and a hundred puppets gone.

"You…" Sasori snarled. The bladed tail of his puppet whipped out like it was a scorpion. Of course, Toneri weaved out of the way. His Byakugan spied the poison cloud Sasori attempted to lead him toward.

"Air Palm," he muttered before blasting it back. The blade went to strike from behind—Toneri flipped over it and locked onto the chakra that controlled Sasori's tail. A quick strike to the air with a single figure. A miniature air palm cut off the chakra and the tail went limp.

A flicker and Toneri landed on the wood of Sasori's puppet shell. "Let me get you out of here, shall I?" His palm thrusted forward with the Juken at the same time a mechanism popped from Sasori's left arm.

"Die!"

A bombardment of senbon shot out unidirectionally, all of which were poisoned. Two fingers were all he needed on each hand. With blinding speed he flicked every single one of the senbon to the ground. None of them even grazed his skin.

In the time Toneri deflected the senbon, Sasori reattached the chakra of his bladed tail. A leap into the air to dodge. Toneri summoned all the chakra he could into both his palms. "Double Air Palm!"

The blast of air imploded Sasori's puppet shell. What came out was a humanoid puppet, with red hair and a Suna Jonin's uniform. The real Sasori was exposed now. Toneri's Byakugan made it clear that his target was the heart.

A core of chakra to which every single thread connected to. How Sasori managed to live in such a state was unimaginable to him. It was none the matter.

Toneri blitzed in close, fire spewed from Sasori's hands. A crouch and he rotated. The fire spewed around his rotation and blew back Sasori. In the dome, he struck out with Air Palms. "Eight Trigrams: Rotating Consecutive Air Palms!"

Sasori dodged his attacks. Without the heavy shell weighing him down, Sasori was immensely faster. Toneri would actually have to put some effort in. Carrying the momentum of his spin, he whipped toward Sasori in a blur.

Spinning blades like fans cut toward Toneri, but all Sasori hit was a single strand of hair. A single palm toward the heart and Sasori leapt back. A miniscule pop only a Byakugan could see. From under his fingernail, a storage seal. Another senbon with a cursed seal shot out.

It hit Sasori, right in his heart. The puppet master didn't seem to notice as he detached his arm and lit the spinning blades alight with fire. Toneri dodged and weaved a single hand seal. In the one place Sasori could still feel pain, he did.

The puppet screamed out as his heart was burned from the inside out. Toneri flooded his chakra into the seal to make it quick. Sasori had no reason to suffer. Only five seconds passed before Sasori's puppet went limp and the chakra in his heart went out.

With a deep breath, Toneri collected himself. The battle was quick, and he didn't waste a second before scanning the Hyuuga Compound with his Byakugan. Every Hyuuga that could fight was either dead or still fighting… against opponents he could not see.

In a flash, one of Hiashi's personal Hyuuga ANBU appeared next to him. "Our opponent is the Chinoike Clan. They discovered the secrets of the Byakugan and can circumvent our eyes. Fight without your Byakugan."

In that same flicker, he was gone.

Toneri hummed, allowing his Byakugan to recede. The red sky above was so clear without the blanket vision of the Byakugan. Before he went to battle the Chinoike, he looked back at the corpse of his previous opponent.

Toneri Hyuuga had killed Sasori of the Red Sand… and he didn't even have to use his Tenmei.

—⊱✿⊰—

Gamaken slammed his Sasumata on the head of a snake. Gamabunta bisected another. Both popped into smoke. Jiraiya stood above on Bunta's head, looking over the rubble of Konoha. A good amount of Konoha's residential sector was destroyed, an equal amount was not. It was saved by the one and only Jiraiya the Gallant.

His white hair was streaked black with ash as he looked upon for his next target. It seemed that he didn't need to look for much longer. The red sky sparkled with golden sand as it was swiped toward him. Jiraiya dodged, leaping from Bunta to Ken in a single bound. "Aha! So it seems that you're my opponent, Lord Kazekage!"

Of course, the Kazekage was accompanied by over a hundred Suna Shinobi. That complicated things. Well, that just meant he needed to call for backup. A plume of fire roared into the sky from Jiraiya's lungs.

The Kazekage scoffed at the act. "Are you that scared of me, Jiraiya? Well I suppose it's only right. I'm a Kage, and you're but a soldier."

"Nah… I'm not scared of you," rebutted Jiraiya with a smirk, earning a composed scowl from the Kazekage. "But, the odds aren't really in my favor here. You have a hundred men by your side! I just have two toads as reinforcement!"

"Do you think we're worth less than a hundred men, Jiraiya?" asked Gamabunta, his tone dangerous.

The Toad Sage chuckled. "I mean, about fifty? Fifty ain't a bad number, don't get me wrong—"

"Don't make me leave, Jiraiya," threatened Bunta.

"Hey!" yelled out Jiraiya. "Alright, you alone are worth a thousand men! How about that?"

"That's more like it," grumbled the toad.

"Are you done frolicking with your coffin-mates, Toad Sage?" asked Rasa, forming a golden… Tanuki. The Kazekage was forming a mock Shukaku.

"Shit—" he kicked off his sandals and summoned two more toads on Gamaken's head. "Alright guys! We gotta kick this into high gear!"

"Dammit Jiraiya!" shouted Ma, hopping onto Jiraiya's left shoulder.

"You just summon us and tell us to start movin!" continued Pa, hopping onto his right shoulder.

"That's your job!" Jiraiya bit back, with Gamaken ungracefully leaping out of the way of a tsunami of golden sand. As they landed, Jiraiya used chakra to keep his footing. "Gonna need Sage Mode for this battle."

As he said that, Konoha Shinobi flickered to Jiraiya's side, landing atop the still standing buildings of Konoha's main residential district. The Toad Sage laughed triumphantly. "Aha! Konoha Shinobi! You know what to do! Slaughter the enemy!

"Bunta! Hold off Rasa and buy me some time!"

Gamabunta leapt into the air to dodge a golden claw strike. A roar of the Golden Shukaku belted out with bullets of gold. The giant toad was forced to deflect as many as he could with his blade.

Jiraiya looked down at Ken. "Keep me out of harm's way until my Sage Mode is complete, go it?"

"Alright, boss! I apologize if I'm ungraceful while doing so."

With a smirk, Jiraiya sat cross-legged on Gamaken's head with his hands clapped together, Ma and Pa had the same pose as Jiraiya did. From there… the Natural Energy molded into his system.

—⊱✿⊰—

Dammit, dammit, dammit, Miya cursed over and over. Only half of her chakra remained after she used Infinity, and now she had the possibility of fighting Killer Bee. The Hachibi's Perfect Jinchuriki and undeniably The Strongest Man Alive.

All she needed to do was disrupt the woman who was summoning him… an Uzumaki. The thought of killing another Uzumaki felt like a stab to her heart. She'd do what she must to protect her home.

The Hyuuga woman directed her to the northwest corner of the village. From there, she had to summon Runa to help her out. The feline had to ride on her shoulder to keep up with her Adamantine flickers. She already had the second gate opened; it was the only way her body could move the dense and heavy Adamantine Chakra that coursed through her system.

"Runa?"

She had her claws dug into Miya's Jonin vest, barely hanging on. "Fifty feet to your left. That's where I smell a woman."

It took barely a second for Miya to approach. There was a red barrier surrounding her, and she was staring with terrified daggers. It was shown a thousand-fold in her amber-red eyes. By creases on her face, it was obvious that she was a bit older than Miya was.

Her crimson hair curled at the tips, her pale skin looked clammy from anxiety. Chakra radiating in and out of the barrier blew at the wind around, creating a breeze. It blew Miya's hair and chilled her spine with fear that wasn't her own. Ka'rai's mother…

Runa disappeared in a puff of smoke. Miya leapt down and placed a hand on the barrier.

"Arasei Uzumaki," she greeted.

"Miya Uzumaki," she greeted in kind, her voice hardened and stiff.

Miya's eyes narrowed. "I don't want to kill you if I don't have to."

Arasei didn't answer, simply staring at her. The seal below her was nearly complete, only but a few more strokes if what Toneri said about it was correct. It was that same language from the Land of Grass… Miya couldn't reverse and disable it.

Arasei weaved a hand seal.

The barrier blasted Miya back through a tree. Chains made from the same chakra of that barrier rocketed out to grab her. Miya's Adamantine Chains shattered Arasei's barrier chains. As she flickered forward, Miya weaved hand signs—her Adamantine Chakra churning.

Breaking that barrier would take a strong attack.

Her hand seals finished. "Adamantine Dragon Fist!" Golden chakra whirled around Miya's body, surrounding her in a serpentine aura of scales. Around her fist the dragon's head formed. Both her and the beast roared in tandem.

The dragon slammed into the barrier at the same time Arasei reinforced it with her own chakra. They battled and shifted, cracks formed on the barrier. Miya pushed harder with her Adamantine, Arasei pushed back with her barrier.

At least she wasn't focused on the—That presence.

"Rasenova!"

From the opposite side of the barrier, an eruption of fire that Miya felt even through her aura of Adamantine blazed. The surrounding trees burned black. It was obvious Arasei couldn't reinforce the barrier from two opposite points.

At the very same moment it shattered, Adamantine Chains blew out from the remains. Ryu was suffocated by over twenty—a barrier wall blocked Miya's kick. Ryu was above her—he was thrown into Miya.

Arasei's chakra was visible, frantic—like a heartbeat off the charts. She managed to make another mark—

"Bansho Ten'in," Ryu growled. Miya turned to look at him. Version Two, four tails… the fleshy red chakra flickered between his image and the Kyuubi's. Miya had to forcefully repress the scalding memories of that day.

Even still, she felt the burning hole of him through her stomach. Where were you…?

As Arasei was pulled toward Ryu, she weaved a hand seal. A barrier formed between the two and Adamantine Chains whirled out to constrain Miya. Her Adamantine was much stronger than Arasei's; it took little effort for her to break out. Even in that split second, she was gone.

Another two marks were made on the seal used to summon Killer Bee. Both Ryu and Miya blurred toward her. Arasei shielded herself with barriers used as shields on her arms. They both shattered but her Adamantine Chains held back both her and Ryu. Miya broke out much faster than Ryu did.

Arasei was kicked in the chest—away from the seal. A puff of smoke and lightning charged into her system. Substitution—

The chains wrapped around Ryu had no endpoint, but they glowed. A hiss and a detonation and Ryu roared out—Miya had to shield herself from Ryu's out burst. Her heart was pounding in her chest from just being near him. All of the emotions she suppressed for the sake of the mission were all pouring out and—Arasei—

A blur and Miya had her hand around her fellow Uzumaki's neck. The frantic kicks to her chest loosened her grip and Arasei weaved hand seals. "Water Style: Whirl-Wave!"

Miya blocked and—"Fire Style: Phoenix Flame Bombs!"

The searing heat came from right behind her. She made her Adamantine flare and she was caught in the middle of the two jutsu. Steam ripped from her charred uniform and she seethed. A flash of amethyst and she drew her dagger.

"Third Gate: Gate of Life! OPEN!" In a golden flash she tore through Arasei's chest. Blood dropped to the floor. Through what must've been agony Arasei weaved a hand seal.

Below them, blood hissed. Green glowed all surrounded by an 'X.' Just like the Caged Bird—

"Summoning Jutsu!" Arasei cried.

A gigantic puff of smoke blew both Miya and Ryu back on their back. The ash Ryu created kicked up into the air. A whirlwind swirled the steam, smoke, and ash into a tornado of power. The presence at the center of the whirlwind made Ryu's Kyuubi look like a puppy.

Her very core trembled. Miya's eyes rattled in their sockets from the sight she saw. We…. we… failed…

"Dammit," Ryu snarled beside her.

Miya couldn't bring herself to look in his direction. Was it because of what was in front of her, or was it because she couldn't bear to look him in the face after all that happened between them? It didn't matter.

The only thing that mattered in the face of the Strongest Man Alive was true power.

The whirlwind subsided and blew in an airwave. Her air was blown back. Pebbles and dust rose, defying gravity as his presence made itself known. The earth cracked. Trees shattered. The man laughed. It was heavy, joyous, bombastic.

It stopped as soon as it started. He was talking… to Arasei—Ryu noticed at the same time. Both of them blurred toward Killer Bee.

The man glared. An ethereal lavender aura made everything on him glow. Eight magatama beads sat around his neck like a necklace. They were black against the glowing purple. The Kanji for iron symbolized on his shoulder, spreading in a matrix of seals that coalesced on his chest. The Kanji for Power.

His glare stopped Ryu and Miya in their tracks like a silent command. "Arasei, get to steppin. I handle this unfortunate pairing."

Her bleeding seemed to have stopped as she nodded. In a blur, she left. A blade of fire burned from the Kyuubi's chakra as Ryu said, "Bansho—"

A hit sent him tumbling into earth he shattered with his body. Where he once stood was a tentacle. "Nuh uh uh!" he said, playful, like a child on a playground.

Miya stared at him, in utter disbelief. That was all it took—?

She didn't have time to blink. He was in front of her. The aura of indomitable strength suffocated her. "I don't know if Ka'rai or Arasei would appreciate it if I killed you…" he mused to himself. "Well, I'm sure I can fuck you up without killing ya'!"

Miya went to slash—all of the air was blasted out of her lungs by a kick. Before she knew it she was back first into a tree, right next to Ryu. He barely managed to move, even through his Four Tailed Cloak.

Killed Bee stood above both of them, cracking his knuckles, smiling.

Ryu was the first to stand, but Miya followed him soon after. "Infinite Void…" she whispered, still barely able to breathe. "I have one charge… If I can get that off, the battle is won."

"You can't use Infinity?"

Miya shook her head. "Not unless—"

"Well!" interrupted Killer Bee, leaning against a tree with a notepad in hand. "While you two strategize, I'll write down the bars I have whirlin' in my mind? Got that?"

Miya sucked her teeth. "I had to use it to defeat Han earlier. I'm at half chakra. It's Infinity or Infinite Void."

"I have… an attack," Ryu began. His expressionless, demonic face remained still even as he spoke. It was the definition of unnerving. "If I get it off, it will damage him greatly. I cannot guarantee a kill unless I hit his head. We try that before Infinite Void. If I—"

"Okay, I'm done."

A purple flash knocked both of them in the chest. The feeling of broken ribs was utterly agonizing. With blood pouring from her mouth, Miya stood. Ryu did as well.

A demon and a lady… found themselves facing down the human avatar of a God.

—⊱✿⊰—

Yosei Senju stood above a fallen army. Formerly five-hundred strong. Otogakure, with some help from Iwa mounted an assault on the Senju compound, or rather, attempted to. They didn't get within a hundred feet of her home.

The endeavor was rather easy, she didn't even break a sweat. A bloody ground matched the red sky above. Vines adorned with foot-long thorns rooted above and below the ground. Some of them had the grime of intestines and other varieties of flesh. It took more time than she would've liked to admit. She was no Yellow Flash speed wise.

Strength wise… Killer Bee was more of a match for her.

Alas, neither were currently there to give her a challenge. With a single breath, a golden dot formed on her forehead with red rings whirling to life around her eyes. Her irises turned from green to gold, matching the dot on her forehead.

Sage Mode.

She sensed plenty. Gosei was with Miya's Genin, battling two opponents. Natsuyo was with Gosei's teammate, one of the Demon Twins, caught in a battle. Kakashi's Genin were close by. None of them were in immediate danger, she didn't feel the need to intervene. They needed the experience of life or death battle, like she did.

Could they lose their lives out there? Absolutely. But, it was what they signed up for when they became Shinobi, and she signed up for the possibility of losing her children the moment she became a mother.

She took note of the other powerful chakras she sensed. Orochimaru was fighting the Hokage. If she intervened, then Orochimaru's death was guaranteed. High priority.

Jiraiya was fighting the Kazekage. They seemed evenly matched by the condition of their chakra. Of course, that could change on a dime. However, she trusted Jiraiya to handle himself, even against a Kage. Low priority.

The Hyuuga Clan compound was… desolate. She sensed both Hiashi and Toneri, but a vast majority of the Hyuuga's Shinobi were gone. It would've been unsettling had she not been used to sensing death in spades. Low priority, the Hyuuga Clan's business was not hers.

Miya and Ryujin seemed to be skirmishing with a weaker opponent. She—by the feel of the chakra—must've been slippery. It would end within the minute she was sure. Low priority.

The Nibi's Jinchuriki was traveling with the Nanabi's Jinchuriki; they were notable targets, yet still children and inexperienced with their Bijuu's chakra. A squad of ANBU could take them out. Yet, they were still Jinchuriki. Middle priority.

Shukaku's Jinchuriki was terrorizing the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi Clans. Yosei turned her head in that direction. It was near the evacuated civilians. Maximum priority. In a flicker, she made her way across the rubble of Konoha. Fires burned and ash fell from the red sky.

As she traveled, a massive detonation rattled the Natural Energy all throughout Konoha, it was aimed at her. The shockwave of the explosion washed over her like a breeze. Yosei sensed him above. Clay bombs fell from the sky all around her.

With a sigh, she stopped her approach toward Shukaku's Jinchuriki. Up into the sky, she sensed a man on an object. It was constructed with Explosion Release. Yosei's eyes narrowed. A Kekkei Genkai user. Explosion Release was made from Earth and Lightning, so any Lightning Jutsu would disable the explosions. In the same vein, the unstable nature of the chakra made it that any combustion would set off a detonation of the chakra.

"Yosei Senju!" yelled the man from above. "What do you think art is?!"

Yosei didn't respond to his nonsense. Instead, she gathered Natural Energy in a dome around him. On the clay construct he flew on, he rammed right into an invisible dome of Senjutsu. He was trapped.

"HEY! WHAT THE HELL?!" he screamed out. Yosei couldn't actually hear him, but she could sense the vibrations of speech on the dome. A flick of her wrist and he plummeted down from the sky in a second.

A massive crash sounded as Yosei's Senjutsu ball hit the rubble in a plume of smoke. With a single half seal, she uttered. "Sage Art: Flaming Dome." The Senjutsu prison lit up with flames. Yosei created a second dome of Senjutsu to encase the ensuing explosion.

Her new barrier shook as the clay construct the man flew on detonated with the man who created it inside. The only part of Konoha that was destroyed was the rubble of what already was dust.

Yosei put out the flames with a single hand seal. The man's charred body managed to stand. His headband made it clear that he was from Iwa… not that it mattered. Another hand seal and Yosei uttered. "Sage Art. Vine Release: Thorn Coffin."

The Iwa Shinobi screamed as thorny vines grew from the ground below him. He was too injured to move, as if he'd be fast enough to move out of the way regardless. They wrapped around him and constricted his movements as the vine's thorns cut him into ribbons.

His death came a short second after. Just as she finished, something else caught her attention. It was the most gigantic chakra. Chakra she hadn't sensed since… ever. It had the same feel as the other Jinchuriki…

Killer Bee had arrived in Konoha.

Yosei couldn't help but smirk, despite how dreadful the situation had become. Finally, she muttered. A damn challenge.

A flicker and she was gone.

—⊱✿⊰—

Team 8 was strong, Gosei had to give them that. On top of their individual strengths, their teamwork was some of the best he'd seen with his own eyes. Only Naruto and Shinrai's brotherly bond surpassed it. How he envied them. Imagine if Team 5 could work like they did…

Under normal circumstances, with him on their side, they were invincible. However, when fighting against two cursed Jonin out for blood, it seemed to only amount to delaying the inevitable.

A swarm of insects blocked out the ash and bloody sky. Shino was nowhere to be seen, he was preparing a jutsu. It was up to him, Kiba, and Hinata to hold off Kuro and Kura.

Akamaru burned with chakra as he barked. Kiba growled in sync, drilling around Hinata as she yelled, "Rotation!" The centrifugal force of Hinata's Jutsu bolstered the impact force of Kiba and Akamaru's Fang over Fang.

They blasted toward Kura, as Kuro attempted to get in the way, Gosei erected a wall of earth. Kuro ceased movement as the Earth Wall shattered into bullets at Gosei's command. A strike of his staff, and the earth beneath Kuro split open.

"You think this pathetic shit is Earth Style?!" questioned Kuro, weaving hand seals.

Gosei didn't need hand seals as he yelled. "Earth Release: Faultine Bedrock Explosion!"

The ground beneath Kuro split open and earthen shrapnel blasted from the fault. His violent violet aura spat and shielded him from the attack. It didn't stop him from weaving hand seals. "Earth Style: Imploding Quake Jutsu!"

Beneath Gosei, Kiba, and Hinata, the earth imploded. A crater destabilized the rubble below them. Gosei barely kept his footing, but Hinata gilded across the collapsing earth as if it was a dance floor. A gentle step into a strike at Kuro's chakra core. He stumbled back.

With Kiba disabled and Hinata's attention divided, Kura attempted to attack from Hinata's side. She dodged a crystalline lance as if she planned to all the time. A flawless execution and a strike to Kura's chakra core.

Her speed, her grace flowed with the white wind of her blessing. Gosei collapsed along with the imploding earth. Hinata's bout was out of his line of sight as he collapsed into the crater at Kiba and Akamaru's side.

Once again, he knew how it felt for him not to be the strongest there. All the prestige of his Senju lineage seemed to mean nothing. "Dammit…" he groaned. I can't let her out do me.

"Gosei," said a voice, calm. His soul leapt from his skin as he looked behind to see Shino with a hand on him, crawling with his hive of insects. "You need to use your curse—"

"Absolutely not," Gosei refused with a sneer.

Kiba's eyes went wide. "You have a fucking Curse Mark?!"

"I wish I didn't."

"What you wish doesn't matter," stated Shino. "The only thing that matters right now is the current. The reality. The reality is that you have this power, and that this power, whether you despise it or adore it, can turn the tide of this battle and save the life of not only my team, bur yourself, and perhaps even your own team.

"My Jutsu is almost complete. It will buy you enough time to activate it, even if you have difficulties." With that, Shino disappeared into a swarm of insects, a clone.

Gosei's fists clenched. "Dammit all…"

"Listen," Kiba barked, his feral eyes peering into Gosei's. "If any of my friends die, because you are too much of a fucking pussy to use that mark, then I swear I'll never forgive you. I'll tell everyone that you're a coward. You said you wanna be Hokage, huh? No coward deserves to be Hokage."

Gosei glared at Kiba, the force of his chakra made the earth quake. "Don't you dare talk down to me, Inuzuka."

"I'll talk to you however I fucking want when it comes to my friends." Kiba stood and Akamaru pounced on his shoulder, growling to drive Kiba's point home. "They die, and you pay the price."

Gosei clenched his fists. The earth rumbled, standing alongside him. Phantom agony of Orochimaru's Curse already made him want to scream. With a leap, Gosei followed Kiba back into battle. Water whirled around his staff.

Kiba was already attempting to alleviate the pressure that Hinata had with Both Kuro and Kura on her—trying to kill her. Blood poured freely from the wounds on her chest and head. Kiba was swatted away like a fly.

"Turtle Destruction Wave!" Gosei shouted, blasting the water from his staff directly at Kura. Hinata dodged the strike and Kura tanked it like it was nothing. Kuro blasted forward and knocked Gosei in the skull.

Gritting his teeth, Gosei stood his ground and threw a fist. It connected with air. Kuro grabbed Gosei's fist and flipped him onto an outcropping of rock. Just barely, Gosei wriggled out of the way of the attack and it missed his spine.

"Fang Over Fang!" roared Kiba as he and Akamaru barreled into Kuro's chest. His grip on Gosei was released and he wasted no time turning the Earth into a spiky maw that stabbed at him.

Hinata was strong enough to match one of those monsters on her own—somehow. "Keep them separated!" yelled Gosei. Immediately, a wall of insects blocked off Hinata as she fought Kura. It was just Gosei and Kiba against Kuro.

"Like that's gonna work—" snarled Kuro, interrupting himself with his own attack as he weaved hand seals.

Gosei weaved a sign of his own. A crystalline blue clashed against the expansive black of Shino's swarm. "Water Release: Aquatic Armory!"

Liquid swirled from Gosei's staff and surrounded Kuro as water spewed and attacked him in the shape of blades, bows and arrows, axes, spears, clubs—a spiky expanse of crystals blasted the water into vapor.

"Crystal Style," began Kuro with a snarling glare. "Ruby Prism Attack." The crystals froze into ruby and blasted toward Kiba. Pure instinct drove Gosei to attempt to match it with a blast of chakra from his staff. He stood between the Jutsu and Kiba, only lasting a short five seconds for Kiba to get out of the way.

A Fang Over Fang whirled into Kuro's side while he was focused on the Jutsu. It broke the Iwa nin's focus; the Jutsu boomed into shrapnel. Gosei charged in, picking up rubble from the ground to slam it into Kuro's face. A blast of chakra blew them back.

Kuro weaved more hand seals. "Crystal Style: Quartz Spear!" A white crystal spear formed in his hand and he hurled it at Gosei. It was too fast for him to dodge this time. It went through his torso, right under the left side of his ribs.

Gosei cried out and Kiba snarled. Another spear formed in Kuro's hand, but before he could throw it at Kiba, it dissipated into nothing. The buzz of the surrounding swarm became utterly deafening. The moving chakra became so intense that it was visible to the naked eye.

Finally, Shino emerged from his swarm, his hands in the Ram Seal. "Aburame Hidden Jutsu: Nasonov Buzz."

The crystal spear holding Gosei down evaporated into chakra that went into Shino's swarm. Gosei's eyes narrowed as he inspected the Jutsu. The insects are absorbing the Chakra of our enemies…

Kiba glared at Gosei. "Alright man! Don't waste your time!"

"Don't order me around!" Gosei snapped back. Everything went cold as he sent in chakra to bypass Miya Uzumaki's seal, a built-in mechanism in case of dire circumstances… just like this one. His entire body trembled at just the thought of the mark.

Suddenly, an insect dropped. Then a dozen more—then a hundred more.

"What?" Shino said, his head darting at his deteriorating swarm.

Kura cackled as the wall of insects fell. Hinata was heaving, bleeding and bruised. At the same time, Kura's left arm was limp, and her right eye was dead-looking and lazy."You're trying to take our chakra? This chakra?! This cursed chakra?! You didn't think there would be any consequences to that?!"

"Impossible…" muttered Shino in disbelief. "I adapted my insects to the Mark's chakra when I experimented with Hinata's—"

"Shino," she started, looking back at him with wide white eyes. "What I have isn't a curse, it's a blessing. The vile chakra I had before is gone."

"You must've thought you were so fucking smart," snarled Kuro. Shino's swarm was dead, the red sky and ash was clear once again. "But, you're just another dumbass waiting to die."

Kura weaved one handed seals—Hinata struck forward with her Juken Dance but Kura kicked her away. "Crystal Style: Diamond Chasm."

Sparkling white maws of diamond roared out from under Shino and took a piece from his body before he could react. His right arm and half of his torso was gone in a bloody mess. Once again, Gosei's body went cold.

"SHINO!" Kiba screamed. He drilled toward Kuro with a furious Akamaru. He smirked and stabbed at the drill with a Quartz Spear. Kiba screamed but not out of rage, but pain. His skin was ripped open and blood poured from the sizable gash at his side.

Cold subsided… magmic heat rose. Fear was banished by fury. How dare those bastards hurt his allies with him as a witness. How dare they—Gosei roared. The violent violet aura of the Curse Mark spewed like venom. The anger opened the floodgates.

Senjutsu pumped through his chakra system, corrupted. Magmic Cursed Marks of Earth cracked across his skin as he snarled. "My name… is Gosei Senju." The marks ceased spreading once they covered his body entirely.

"Descendant of the Shodai and heir to the Senju Clan!" Gosei pointed his staff like the ladle of justice. "And you two, are the scum of the earth. It's about time I wipe you from under my boot."

Kura cackled. "You think you're all that just because you have a Curse Mark too?! You really are fucking pathetic!"

With his birthright ability, he found the clarity to sense the world around him, even if just a bit. Shino's body was present, but there was no chakra to go along with it. Shino was dead—

Another violent eruption of chakra. The earth exploded without him even having to command it. A blur and he whipped Kuro in the face with his staff. White chakra blurred past and a furious strike ravaged Kura's chakra core. Both Iwa cowards stumbled backward from the attack.

"Kiba," Hinata began, composed, calm. "Take Shino's body and hide."

"Hey—!" he coughed up blood, wiping it from his mouth. "I'm not going to just leave—"

"Do not make me repeat myself, Kiba." Venom seeped into her tone as the white wind blew stiff.

The Inuzuka froze, tears welling in his eyes, mixing with the blood of his wounds. He screamed before bolting toward Shino's body with Akamaru in tow.

Kura snarled. "Oh no you don't—"

The white wind of Hinata's blessing whipped her in the throat with her Juken Dance. A roar and Gosei rounded on Kuro. Each strike of the staff accompanied a new fault in the earth. Gosei twirled it with never ending momentum.

A scream and Kuro blasted Gosei back with a crystalline burst. All it took was a crescent blade of water to saw right through it. "DON'T RUN FROM ME YOU COWARD!" The visage of the Shodai roared alongside Gosei as he weaved a series of hand seals.

His staff whipped in the air and the earth shattered and roared like a beast awakened. Golden eyes formed alongside the serpentine visage of a dragon. "Earth Release: Earth Dragon Jutsu!"

It roared and belted toward Kuro. With his own series of hand seals, a diamond wall erected. The dragon was blocked, but the diamond cracked. Gosei weaved another series. "Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!"

A second elemental beast. Pure aquatic volumes churned from Gosei's lungs to form the serpentine beast. It joined the beast of earth and diamond shattered. It blasted Kuro with the dual elemental elements.

Hinata unloaded her own fury onto Kura while Gosei devastated Kuro. Her steps may have been gentle, but they felt the complete opposite of that. For once, Hinata didn't bother with destroying her chakra, she ripped her body apart from the inside out.

A dozen strikes and she severed every tendon in both of her arms. Kura screamed but Hinata paid it no mind. With her Juho, she tore the muscle from her bones solely to make her suffer. Blood pooled from the extensive internal bleeding.

The next thing Hinata targeted was her airways. She severed her trachea at seven different points in the blink of an eye. Her accuracy was surgical, trained, Kura would never breathe again. A blessed burst of white chakra directly to Kura's core of chakra shocked her.

Next, Hinata struck her in her mouth—open from screaming. "Air Palm." A blast and her severed lungs popped from being overloaded by air. The sheer pressure blasted her away alongside her sibling, who was crushed by the dual elemental dragons.

The Blessed and the Cursed stood side-by-side, above their two victims. Gosei openly snarled, while only Hinata's eyes gave but a peek into the infinite ocean of rage she felt.

"Kura…" wheezed Kuro, outstretching his hand at his sister.

With blood pouring from her eyes, Kura couldn't move a thing. Her entire body was disabled. Kuro himself was mangled, his right forearm tore off, his ribs caved in, blood pouring from his mouth like a waterfall.

Simultaneously, they nodded.

Hinata's eyes went wide as she saw something. Gosei's eyes went wide as he felt something.

They both knew it was bad. In a white and violet blur they blitzed toward the twins but it was too late. An eruption of malicious magmic chakra overtook the Otokos and their charge halted right there. The evil chakra belted off of them in waves, searing waves.

"Dammit!" Gosei snarled, feeling the power shoot up—right past theirs, even in their enraged states.

Hinata dropped down into the stance of her Juken dance, the white chakra whirled around her. "They've entirely regenerated from our attacks."

"You're kidding?!" questioned Gosei as his chakra blasted.

"You two…" snarled Kura, standing to her feet. "Are going to fucking regret that."

"Instead of being cocky, you should've finished us off while you had the chance," Kuro spat, standing beside her.

Their chakras became one in the same, a fusion curse. Two second level Curse Marks melded into one. Their skin turned from that deep brown to a shimmering onyx, sparkling like crystals. They each had one horn of jagged quartz, with demonic sclera of black and irises of white.

"It doesn't matter how strong you get!" shouted Gosei, slamming his staff to drive his point home. "You'll never overcome true morality with your despicable—"

In an instant, Kuro grabbed Gosei's head, lifting him up off the ground. "Oh… we'll see about that."

It was at that moment where a cold dagger of fear pierced Gosei's furious armor.

—⊱✿⊰—

After so effortlessly defeating Roshi, Ryujin felt like he could take the world on. Killer Bee was a sobering reminder that he was far from that. The Perfect Jinchuriki landed on his back, sitting on him. A tentacle was wrapped around his neck—it was like he was helpless against the overwhelming strength of true power.

Killer Bee, in the most degrading way possible, whipped Ryujin's rear with the hand he wasn't using to hold the tentacle. "C'mon! Giddy up Kyuubi! YEE-HAW!"

Ryujin screamed out and roared. His entire cloak of chakra ignited with Ruinfire. It made Killer Bee freeze, even if just for a minute second. An Adamantine Chain wrapped around his neck.

"Shinra Tensei!"

The force of chaos blew Killer Bee off of The Ninth. The tentacle was still around Ryujin's neck as they were both in the air. Killer Bee smirked. He cracked the tentacle like a whip and slammed Ryujin into Miya.

He was still alight with Ruinfire, it spread to Miya as Ryujin collided with her. The pain screams of pure fear made his ears vibrate. What did she see? Which one of her worst nightmares came true before her eyes as her skin popped and seared from the heat? Ryujin didn't know. He didn't care to know.

All he knew was that she was suffering. Like she made him do. It was what she deserved. Unfortunately, she was his ally at that moment, Without her—

You don't need her, Ryujin, snarled Kyuubi. I am right here. What makes you think that she'll be of any use? The same pathetic woman who caged you out of fear. I am all you need, Ryujin.

I am all you'll ever need, because I am the only thing in your life that matters. Do you disagree?

Kyuubi's intent flooded him as he stared at Miya's horrified, pained face. A twisted smirk crossed the face of the Ninth's Vessel. With a roar he returned to battle with the Hachibi—a tentacle slap sent him right back down beside Miya.

You're pathetic.

Ryujin snarled and looked up. The purple of Killer Bee's cloak stained black with ink as he weaved hand seals. "Ink Style!"

Just barely starting his own sequence to counter, Miya guarded with her body and chains. The Ruinfire didn't stop her from protecting him. Nothing infuriated Ryujin more. How about he showed her a real ally. Ryujin switched up his sequence of hand signs.

"Imaginative Wave!" In the visage of a painting, ink poured from Killer Bee's skin and washed toward the two in a wave.

Miya's golden chains dripped black as Kyuubi's vessel slammed his hands to the ground. "Summoning Jutsu." A massive plume of smoke popped from behind Miya and Ryujin. It seems that the Hachibi's ink could extinguish Ruinfire…

From the smoke, a green fireball that melted like liquid spewed toward Killer Bee. The Strongest Man Alive didn't even move. Kelhaar's fireball spewed over him like it was a mere bucket of warm water.

"Dammit," cursed Kelhaar, looking at Killer Bee. "Why didn't you summon me earlier?!"

"I didn't have the chance to."

"I suppose that makes sense."

Without another second wasted, Ryujin placed a hand on Kelhaar. Kyuubi's chakra seeped into the snake and he hissed as his green eyes burned crimson. "That's one tail's worth."

"Ryu," Miya started, shaking. The remnants of Ruinfire distorted her voice and her figure. "Give me some. It'll replenish my reserves—"

Don't you dare spare her an ounce of my chakra.

I wasn't planning to.

Ryujin didn't dignify Miya with a response as Kelhaar exited the smoke in a charge toward the Eighth. Killer Bee saw him coming and stepped back in a blur. As if Kelhaar was a schoolyard plaything, Killer Bee punted the serpent high into the sky.

Right after, Ryujin bolted toward him. Killer Bee smirked and matched Kyuubi's Jinchuriki. Their palms locked and they pushed against each other. No matter how much strength he summoned, The Strongest Man Alive was just an immovable wall he could do nothing against.

"Aye, fool! Bring out some more tails! Or else, I'll have a fun time turning Konoha into the earth's least favorite bruise!" Killer Bee stopped matching Ryujin to slam him into the ground.

"Shinra Tensei!" Kyuubi's Vessel yelled. Killer Bee braced himself, keeping his legs firm as that chaotic wave of force blasted over him… it was just like a breeze, he didn't move an inch.

…Nothing?! Ryujin felt his heart drop into his stomach.

Killer Bee just shook his head. "You seriously thought that would do anything?"

Kyuubi's will blasted over him in a wave and he roared in response. Lightning blasted and mixed with fire in the demonic mouth of the cloak. It merged into a plasmic beam that struck Killer Bee right in his face. All he did was snort. "A cigarette has more kick than that shit."

Suddenly, Killer Bee whipped Ryujin around into Kelhaar, who had just finished his descent from the sky. They both tumbled into a heap onto the dirt. The Strongest Man Alive belted out a bored groan. "C'mon! Gimme the tails, yo! All I see is four! You ain't Son Goku, bro!"

Ryujin only growled as a response. He blasted with Kelhaar at his side. Ruinfire melded with the venomous flame. With one of his seven blades, he slashed. The fire ball split in half and missed him completely.

A flip and a kick then Ryujin was blasted black. "Your fire ain't shit! My bars are the real hits! Now sit down and listen to me spit!"

It seemed Miya finally recovered from the effects of the Ruinfire. An Adamantine Chain blurred past Killer Bee. "From one to nine, it's Eight-o and I that have the real shine!" He pulled on the chain and yanked Miya toward her. WIth his fists he pummeled her, creating a beat to his raps.

"My women tens, they pay a fine for being fine in dimes!" A donkey kick plowed Miya into the dirt. Kelhaar hissed at Killer Bee before striking. He grabbed the serpent by the fangs. "If there was a crime for spittin rhymes, I'd be doing an immortal's time!"

He whipped the snake like a whip, cracking both Miya and Ryujin in the face with his tail. All it took was a flick of his wrist to snap the serpent's fang. It was large, like a spear. He threw it like one and it impaled Ryujin to the floor.

Kelhaar's searing poison would've made Ryujin scream had Kyuubi's cloak not force him into silence.

Don't you dare be my vessel and scream.

Killer Bee cackled as he lifted Kelhaar above his head. From there, he military pressed him as he continued rapping. "My strength is indomitable, my status is profitable, my name is honorable! And y'all dickheads are incomparable! To me! The one and only rapping Killer Bee!"

He threw the snake into the air again, but followed him this time. All it took was a drop kick to send him plummeting toward the earth like a meteor. One of his seven blades, he hurled it down and it stabbed the snake through the body.

Kelhaar! Ryujin smoldered and snarled with fury. His ally… With a roar he stood, Kelhaar's fang still impaled in his torso.

A plume of smoke lulled over the crater that the snake made. It was blasted back when Killer Bee landed. Miya was heaving, bleeding, bruised, and yet, she still stood to face him. Not seeing her suffering the agony of her wounds was starting to get on his nerves, Kyuubi's Vessel couldn't help but snarl at the unsightly sight of Miya Uzumaki.

Killer Bee snorted. "Yo! Hiyenzo! Eight-o called you a bitch!"

Kyuubi's will overtook Ryujin as the vessel growled at the insult. Miya shot him a glare. "Don't let him get under your skin!"

"Too late," quipped Killer Bee as he ripped the cloak from Ryujin's skin, peeling it off with a blade. A pained roar that blew back Miya. A tentacle sprouted from Killer Bee's arm and snapped his mouth shut like a muzzle. "Yo breath stank!" Another kick and Killer Bee sent Ryujin tumbling into the dirt.

"Wind Style: Winding Blade Dance!" Golden wind tore apart the trees and coalesced around Killer Bee. Effortlessly, he shattered the Adamantine wind blades, hipping and hopping over the battlefield.

Put up a better showing before I kill you.

A muffled roar that might've been language bellowed from behind Killer Bee's makeshift muzzle. Miya sprouted Adamantine Chains that wrapped around the Eighth's Vessel. In that split second of time, Ryujin pulled Kelhaar's fang from his torso. Blood spewed from the wound, Ryujin didn't fucking care.

Ruinfire enveloped Kelhaar's fang and the oily flame burned green with what was left of the venom. Demonic chakra curled the ground into obedience. With every ounce of chakra he could muster, be blitzed toward speed.

His top speed was… dodged, effortlessly. Killer Bee was spaced out, talking to the demon he sold his soul to. Ink spewed onto the Ruinfire claw. A single hand seal, and the ink morphed into a seal. It had the Kanji for Subside. The fire disappeared. Miya went to mess with the seal—all it took was a flex and a kick for her to be knocked to the dirt.

While Miya was on the dirt, she slapped a hand onto the ground, a seal.

"Man!" Bee yelled, stomping his foot. Just the aura from that attack blasted both combatants back. "Y'all really aint shit! I can't help but admit! Your strength is nothing, nada, zip. I'm barely getting any domain from this, you fools ain't legit! Your power level's low like saggy grandma tits!"

From the ground, seals sprouted Adamantine Chains that tried to restrain him. Two of his seven swords and he whirled. They deflected the chains but left an opening. It didn't take more than five seconds for the power of the sun to return to the Ryujin's hand. "Rasenova!"

Ryujin didn't have enough time to form a Bukimina, but that at least should do something. Especially when hands of chakra sprouted from his cloak. Dozens of hands, and each of them formed Rasengans.

It was all the power he could muster with quickness. Killer Bee was bombarded by the regular Rasengan while the Rasenova shattered his two blades. With a roar, Ryujin pushed forward. All Killer Bee did was let out a grunt as the jutsu's fire whirled around him in a storm.

"Wind Style: Fujin's Unbreakable Gale!" Miya screamed. Ryujin's firestorm roared to white from the fanning of Miya's jutsu. Said woman didn't waste a second before sprouting droves of Adamantine Chains to hold Killer Bee down.

Ryujin weaved a single hand seal. The white firestorm whipped into oily distortion as it became Ruinfire. Killer Bee wasn't moving, they've trapped him. "Prepare your Jutsu," Ryujin spat, finding it within him to speak with Miya.

Two hands cupped as Ruinfire screamed in the void. A Rasenova formed in the Ruinfire, it bled from yellow to a dying red as it whirled. It whirled and whirled and whirled before collapsing in on itself. A black whirling void of living nightmares.

With all the speed he could muster, Ryujin charged in. His Bukimina Rasenova sucked in the existing Ruinfire, empowering it. This attack was significantly stronger than the one he used to disable Roshi.

Setting his demonic eyes on Killer Bee's head, Kyuubi's Vessel roared, "Bukimina… RASENOVA!"

At that exact time, the Hachibi's head whirled around Killer Bee's human skull. A mini Bijuu Bomb formed within the Ox's horns nigh instantly. The baseball-sized Bijuu Bomb clashed with Ryujin's Bukimina Rasenova. Even at that size, it stopped the jutsu in its tracks.

The sound of thunder boomed when the two jutsu collided.

With a huff of lightning, Killer Bee launched his Bijuu bomb but it was eaten by the collapsing blackhole of Ryujin's jutsu. His tentacle slapped Ryujin and the jutsu detonated on Killer Bee's shoulder, not his head.

Dammit! roared Ryujin, Miya, I swear—he couldn't complete his sentence as Kyuubi's chakra screamed. It overtook him. He didn't have the chakra reserves to sustain the cloak—it evaporated off of him as Ryujin forced it off of him.

Kyuubi took his skin as payment, a swelling headache as he felt his body grow weaker and weaker—

—A dominating aura blasted the skinless, bleeding Ryujin across the scorched dirt. The last thing he saw before everything went black was Miya. A prepared seal was in her hand.

She slammed it on the floor and they disappeared in a flash of white.

—⊱✿⊰—

Finally… Miya huffed, on her knees with everything aching and searing as she looked upon her void. Blood poured from her wounds with multiple bones visibly broken. The shudders of what she saw, what she felt… under the effects of Ryu's fire… it still made her want to claw her own eyes out.

Killer Bee was able to sit in it. Even still, Ryu's Jutsu, that Bukimina Rasenova, it utterly destroyed him. His arm was a useless, smoldering turd hanging at his side. He didn't waste a second before severing it with his remaining blades. Despite that, no blood spilled from the wound.

Miya's protective aura of Adamantine was gone, but she didn't need it. She was safe in her realm of Infinity. Nothing could hurt her now. "It's… over," she spat, forcing her hand into a half seal. A modified Ram Seal, with her middle finger crossed over her index. "Infinite Void."

Miya commanded every atom in Killer Bee's body to separate. It, it didn't happen—even still, blood spewed from his body in arcs all over. How—?!

For a second, Killer Bee's body went limp. The next second, Miya's Infinite Void of white shifted to lavender. Her eyes went well and she felt… powerless. She felt like a toddler. Like a toddler staring down her angry father.

"So… you think this is true power, Miya Uzumaki?"

The trembling from her pain and from her fear ceased once she heard that voice. It was not the voice of Killer Bee. It was… the Hachibi's voice… NO! Miya pumped every ounce of chakra she could into Infinite Void. It didn't mean a thing. It was like a fly running into a metal wall.

That was what she was compared to the Hachibi. Just a fly on the wall. The lavender became deeper, ink dripped from every point of the infinity, staining it black.

"Do you claim this… seal as your domain?"

Killer Bee shook his head, commanded by the Hachibi's chakra. "I disagree."

A sea of ink flooded the Hachibi's Infinite Void. It shook, ripping itself apart as the Bijuu roared. Miya screamed, using the embers of her chakra to futily fight against the Hachibi. Of course, it meant nothing.

She was nothing in the face of absolute power.

Infinity shattered.

In a lavender flash, they returned to the real world. Ink reformed Killer Bee's lost arm, good as new. Next, it filled all of the cuts from Miya's attack. All Miya could do was cough up blood in heaps as she stared on. It… broke… Infinity….

The Jutsu she spent years creating was gone, shattered into dust… just like that. Ryu… where's… Ryu? She forced herself to stand, even though her legs buckled and cramped and SCREAMED for her to just accept her fate and die.

There wasn't a chance in hell.

She looked to her left and saw Ryu. Her heart hurt with a wound of emotion. Without his Kyuubi cloak, he trembled on the floor, his skin burned to ash and mangled from the effects of version two. She gripped Ryu with a chain and pulled him by her side.

Killer Bee simply watched with narrowed eyes.

Miya didn't waste the chance. She flickered away to try and escape with Ryu. Killer Bee kicked her back to the ground, keeping her still under his foot. With a cry and all the strength she could muster, she grasped at Killer Bee's ankle and pushed. He didn't even seem to notice. Adamantine spilled from her skin to help, but all that did was make her arms heavier.

After a bit, Killer Bee shot a grin at Miya. "Eight-o likes you, you get to live."

Before Miya could process what he said, he shattered her sole chain and snapped up Ryu, placing a seal on him so he wouldn't move an inch. "But Kyuubi's going to come with me."

NO! NOnnonononoo—"GIVE HIM BACK!" Miya roared. The veracity, the force of chakra, it even caught Killer Bee off guard. A sea of pure Adamantine chakra spewed from her. The ground was crushed into a crater from the pure weight… but she couldn't move either. The weight of her own chakra pinned her down. Without the Eight Inner Gates to make her body strong enough to use the chakra, she was dead weight.

That didn't stop the onslaught of Adamantine Chains Miya sent his way. Of course, of course, he dodged them all without an issue, with the most idiotic grin on his face. Miya loathed that man—just seeing him made her so livid.

Killer Bee laughed. "Y'know! Eight-o really likes you, Uzumaki!"

She just snarled, barely able to form words in her primal state. She just needed to get Ryu back. Bee dodged and dodged and—he was hit—

It wasn't by her.

The hit made Ryu drop to the floor. Miya's chains didn't waste a second before grabbing him and pulling him into the churning area of Adamantine she created.

Even still, she looked up to see just who saved Ryu.

"Yosei…" she muttered, looking toward the back of Konoha's strongest. Even then, Miya managed a small smile. Yosei was here. That meant… victory was possible.

Where Killer Bee was the Strongest Man Alive. Yosei Senju was the Strongest Woman Alive.

A true battle… of the Strongest vs the Strongest.

—⊱✿⊰—

I expected more from those two, muttered Yosei, sensing the sorry states that Miya and Ryujin were left in after their battle with Killer Bee. The full power of her Sage Mode faced the Hachibi's Jinchuriki.

Killer Bee just looked at her with a smirk. "Yosei Senju…"

"Killer Bee," she greeted in kind.

He went silent, spacing out, almost. Yosei tilted her head curiously. He's conversing with the Hachibi…

"I do too, Eight-o," finally said Killer Bee with his smirk growing.

Yosei tilted her head the other way at the remark. "What did the Hachibi say?"

"That he sees you as someone who could surpass the Bijuu," answered Killer Bee, his seven swords whirled from his back as he entered the stance.

A small, haughty smile curled Yosei's lips as she made the Monkey Seal in return. "Well, you wouldn't be the first Jinchuriki I've killed."

Killer Bee laughed with a blade in his mouth. "You think you can kill me?!"

"Well, there's only one way to find out, isn't there?"

"Damn right."

A flash.

?￢ﾜ ? ~ Chapter End ~ ?￢ﾜ ?