In the forest ahead, Mikoto Uchiha carried a student on her back, while Mebuki Haruno bore two more. All three children—students from the last graduating class—were unconscious.
Behind them, Might Guy, Ebisu, and Genma Shiranui raced through the trees at top speed, escorting the group to safety.
Suddenly, everyone came to a halt.
Blocking the path stood seven figures of varying builds, each armed with strange, menacing blades.
The Mist-nin who had been pursuing them stopped as well and quickly called out to the newcomers:
"Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, these are the Konoha shinobi we were chasing. They seem to be searching for something."
One of the swordsmen grinned wickedly.
"Perfect. Capture them. And look—beautiful kunoichi from Konoha. Just what we like best."
"Hey, it's my turn first this time, right?" another barked.
"Shut up, I haven't had my fun in ages!"
Mebuki Haruno, the leading instructor, paled in shock.
"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen… from Kirigakure?!"
Each of these men was infamous across the shinobi world—elite jōnin of the Mist, each wielding a legendary blade stained with the blood of countless victims:
Fuguki Suikazan with Samehada, Jūzō Biwa with the Kubikiribōchō, Kushimaru Kuriarare with the Nuibari, Jinpachi Munashi with the Shibuki, Jinin Akebino with the Kabutowari, Raiga Kurosuki with the Kiba, and Mangetsu Hōzuki with the Hiramekarei.
Seven monsters, standing before them.
Mikoto Uchiha's face turned pale as the men's hungry gazes fell upon her.
"No… the Seven Ninja Swordsmen? I thought they'd been lured away!"
"I don't know what went wrong," Mebuki said grimly. "Something must have happened."
"An accident like this?" Mikoto whispered, despair gripping her. "Then we'll all die here…"
Her hand instinctively reached into her pocket and grasped the charm Ryoma had given her before parting ways. She pulled it close, as though it might protect her.
Guy, Ebisu, and Genma, still barely more than academy graduates, trembled with fear.
"We're surrounded," Ebisu muttered.
"There's no escape…" Genma added.
The tall, masked swordsman at the front gave a low, hoarse chuckle.
"Impressive. Even the children of Konoha know our name. But your blood won't be wasted—our blades are thirsty, and rust needs to be fed."
Mikoto stepped forward, shielding the unconscious students behind her, her teeth clenched.
"What do we do? Against them, we don't stand a chance…"
Her thoughts screamed one name: Ryoma… where are you?
A sudden voice broke through the tension.
"Ah, finally caught up!"
Mikoto turned, eyes widening. For a heartbeat, she hoped it was Ryoma. But instead, a strange man in a bright green jumpsuit, with a bowl-cut hairstyle and green aura, landed in front of them.
"Guy!" the young student cried. "Dad, why are you here?!"
Everyone turned in surprise. It was Might Guy's father—Might Duy, a humble genin of Konoha, often overlooked and underestimated.
"Don't say a word," Duy said in a deep, steady voice. "You children run. I'll hold them off."
"Run?!" Guy's voice cracked. "Dad, they're jōnin—the Seven Ninja Swordsmen! How can you fight them alone?"
"You can't possibly win!" Mikoto added, horrified.
Duy's expression hardened.
"Go. Don't forget… I still have the Eight Gates."
Guy froze, stunned. His voice trembled.
"But if you open the final gate… Dad, you'll—"
Duy turned to him with a smile, raising his thumb in their family's familiar gesture.
"That is self-restraint, my son. And now is the time to lay down my life to protect what matters most."
Guy's mind flashed back to his father's words: True victory isn't in defeating the strong… it's in protecting what's most precious to you.
Across from them, the Swordsmen roared with mocking laughter.
"A genin, daring to stand against us?"
"Your haircut alone would get you killed in the Mist!"
"Looks like a taijutsu user. Fine—try punching me. Let's see what happens!"
Duy's eyes narrowed on Kushimaru, who mocked him the loudest.
"If I punch you," he said coldly, "you'll die."
The Swordsmen howled with laughter.
"Did you hear that? He claims one punch will kill me!" Kushimaru sneered. "Come on then, old man. Let's see you try!"
Ignoring them, Duy turned back to Mikoto and the others, waving them away.
Suddenly, the sky began to drizzle. Or so it seemed—until they realized it wasn't rain at all. The sheer heat pouring from Duy's body was evaporating the moisture in the air, leaving trails of mist and steam. His skin glowed red, as though aflame.
Then he roared:
"Eight Gates Released Formation!"
The air trembled with his chakra.
"The Eighth Gate—Gate of Death… OPEN!"
With a thunderous shockwave, Duy's power erupted outward. His body blazed like a furnace, his aura crushing the ground beneath his feet.
The Eight Gates—Opening, Rest, Life, Pain, Limit, View, Wonder, and Death.
When the final gate opens, the user's strength multiplies beyond imagination—greater even than the Five Kage combined. But the price is certain death, as the body burns away its very life force.
Duy had become a blazing red titan, ready to sacrifice everything for the next generation.
The ground trembled, and for a moment time itself seemed to freeze.
"Kurirare! Fall back—now!" shouted Fuguki Suikazan.
"What?" Kushimaru Kurirare blinked in confusion.
Before he could react, Might Duy—his body engulfed in crimson steam, skin glowing red like heated steel—appeared before him in an instant. His fist shot forward.
No one even saw the movement. Only a blazing red afterimage remained, and then—
CRACK!
The sound rang dull and heavy.
Kushimaru's eyes widened. A heartbeat later, his entire body erupted—shattered into bloody fragments that sprayed across the battlefield.
Both Konoha and Kirigakure shinobi froze in shock.
What just happened?
One man… had destroyed one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen with a single blow.
Guy's eyes filled with tears.
Dad was right… The Eight Gates really can end a fight in an instant.
The Seven Swordsmen had become six. Terror spread across their faces as they instinctively stepped back, staring at Duy as if he were a demon risen from the depths of hell.
From the trees, another voice rang out in desperation.
"Lord Fuguki, help me!"
Kisame Hoshigaki burst from the forest, only to stop dead in his tracks. His eyes locked onto the blazing figure radiating overwhelming power.
"Wh—what is that?!"
Before he could react, Duy struck again. Kisame was launched like a ragdoll, crashing through tree after tree until his body vanished into the forest.
At that moment, Ryoma and Rin arrived on the scene—just in time to witness the impossible.
A man in green, with a bowl-cut hairstyle, his body steaming red and feral like a beast…
Ryoma's eyes widened.
That's… Guy's father. Might Duy. The man who would one day defeat the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
He hadn't expected to witness this moment with his own eyes.
History is being rewritten before me…
If Kisame was killed here, Akatsuki itself might never form as it once had. The ripples of change were unpredictable, even for Ryoma.
Suddenly, the system's voice rang in Ryoma's ears:
[Ding! Based on the current situation, the host has three choices—]
[Option 1: Fight alongside Might Duy and annihilate the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
Reward: A-rank ninjutsu – Eight Gates Formation + A-rank taijutsu Morning Peacock.
Option 2: Stand as a witness to this era's most brilliant flames—watch the Eighth Gate burn as Duy destroys the Swordsmen, then finish off any survivors.
Reward: A-rank ninjutsu – Eight Gates Formation + A-rank taijutsu Evening Elephant.
Option 3: Prevent Duy from opening the Gate of Death and ensure all seven blades remain in Konoha's hands.
Reward: Favorability +100 (Might Duy), +100 (Might Guy), +30 (Mikoto Uchiha).]
Ryoma frowned.
This makes no sense. The Eight Gates—especially the Eighth Gate—is a technique capable of rivaling Madara himself. At minimum, that's an S-rank forbidden jutsu, not some "A-rank."
The rewards were misleading. Both Morning Peacock and Evening Elephant were techniques already born from the Eight Gates Formation—handed down from Might Duy himself. With Duy alive, Ryoma could learn them directly. If Duy died here, those secrets might vanish forever.
No. These options are traps.
He clenched his fists. Preventing Duy's death meant not only preserving a living legend, but also ensuring the Eight Gates could remain a secret ace in Konoha's hands.
Mikoto's favorability bonus didn't even matter to him.
What mattered was this: Might Duy wasn't some "eternal genin." He was a man who could reshape history with a single night of crimson flame.
And Ryoma intended to change that history—before it consumed him too.
...
TN:
🦊 Pa-treon-com/LordMerlin (+30 Chaps)