Asenyi roared in fury, his voice echoing through the dark night. "Die!"
In a blink, he appeared right beside Izumi, his powerful right foot aimed straight at her head with lethal intent.
But Izumi's reflexes were lightning fast. Her body swayed gracefully to the side, narrowly dodging the deadly kick. Without missing a beat, she countered with a kick of her own.
Twisting her waist, Izumi unleashed a fierce roundhouse kick that connected solidly with Asenyi's waist.
"Ah!" Asenyi gasped as the force sent him spinning violently through the air, rotating uncontrollably.
He crashed onto the ground, clutching his injured side in pain. His eyes locked onto Izumi with a mixture of shock and disbelief. "Your kicks… they generate that kind of rotational force too?"
Izumi sneered confidently, a spark of pride shining in her eyes. "Exactly. When Chakra bursts forth, it spirals and rotates. By combining this with martial arts, I can infuse normal strikes with special rotational power. It catches opponents off guard because it doesn't look like anything unusual. Of course, it damages my own body too. That last kick wasn't full power—I didn't want to injure myself badly—but my leg still aches like hell."
Panting but resolute, Asenyi slowly pushed himself up. "My name is Asenyi. And you are?"
"Uchiha Izumi," she replied, steady and calm.
Asenyi smiled despite his injuries. "Impressive. Such strength at your age is rare. But don't get too confident—we still don't know who will win this fight."
He pulled out a military ration pill, swallowing it quickly to recover stamina. Without hesitation, he charged at Izumi again, determination blazing in his eyes.
Izumi danced around his attacks with agility, striking back with precise, powerful blows that sent him hurtling through the air.
Yet each time he was knocked down, Asenyi rose again. His persistence was exhausting, and he kept pushing forward without giving up.
Izumi frowned thoughtfully. "Hmph. He's trying to wear me down. He knows I just learned this lightning technique and can't maintain it for long. He's waiting for my powers to fade, then he'll strike to finish me."
She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. "Then I have to end this quickly."
Izumi stopped attacking and began focusing deeply, preparing something special.
Asenyi noticed her pause. Confused but eager to capitalize, he thought, She's standing still… now's my chance!
Charging forward like a cannonball, he roared, "This ends now!"
But as Asenyi closed the distance, Izumi's body erupted with a fierce storm of lightning chakra.
Her usual light blue aura darkened, shifting into an ominous black glow.
Strange, glowing incantations—talismans she had painstakingly inscribed earlier—appeared all over her fair skin, weaving an intricate web of power. The sight was haunting, almost eerie in its intensity.
Asenyi's eyes widened in shock and alarm. "What is this? Storm Release? No… it's something else, but it's incredibly dangerous!"
He had already committed to his charge and knew there was no turning back. The narrow path meant the brave often won. He trusted his years of battle-hardened ninjutsu to see him through and kept charging.
Inside her mind, Izumi analyzed rapidly. Chakra alone won't be enough this time. I need to combine it with spiritual power—let the spiritual energy within me intensify my ninjutsu.
She focused, willing her body to fuse lightning-style chakra with the swirling spiritual power inside.
"Let the lightning chakra and Rasengan merge," she whispered fiercely.
The air around her crackled and sizzled, electric sparks dancing wildly as energy surged through her arm.
Izumi glanced at her hand in awe and caution. This was the first time she used a Rasengan infused with Divine Ink spiritual power and lightning properties combined. The raw power was wild and nearly uncontrollable. She knew she had to release it soon before losing control.
Simultaneously, the black talismans glowing on her skin weren't just for show—they were mountain-moving and protective talismans she had carefully crafted in previous battles, designed to shield and empower her.
The talismans thrummed with energy, and Izumi felt her body flood with newfound strength. The sharp pain that had been burning in her arm subsided significantly, and her limbs felt light and nimble, almost weightless.
Her Sharingan eye scanned the advancing enemy with precision, tracking his towering figure and the massive fist he swung.
Then, a confident smile crept across Izumi's face.
In a blur, she vanished—reappearing suddenly right in front of Asenyi.
Asenyi, charging recklessly forward, was caught completely off guard. His body slammed to an abrupt halt as a searing pain exploded in his abdomen.
"So fast!" he gasped, looking down to see Izumi's swirling black lightning Rasengan piercing deep into his body.
The powerful, rotating chakra and spiritual energy tore mercilessly at his insides.
His body bent in an unnatural, agonizing curve.
Izumi's right arm, still locked inside his abdomen, gripped him tightly. Taking large, determined strides forward, she carried his wounded form with her.
With a thunderous whoosh, their bodies blurred into streaks of light as they sped relentlessly through the distance.
"Yaaaahhh!" Izumi screamed, adrenaline fueling her as she ran, dragging Asenyi's body.
The injured man crashed through tree after tree, each collision felling giant trunks in their path.
Eventually, the violent dash gouged a deep, long gully into the earth.
Under the dark night sky, a strange blue-black figure carrying a blue-green one streaked past, leaving behind a bright white afterimage that shimmered like a shooting star.
The crackling sounds of lightning mixed with the booming thunderclaps filled the air, illuminating the area with wild bursts of electric energy.
Suddenly, the light vanished.
Izumi and Asenyi now lay within a huge, deep pit carved from their wild collision.
Gasping for breath, Izumi collapsed to the ground, her right hand still embedded in Asenyi's ruined body.
A large portion of flesh in Asenyi's abdomen had been obliterated. His skin was charred black, the flesh trembling in disbelief at his fate.
He looked at Izumi once more, recalling the defeats that had led him here, and never imagining he would fall to a young girl's hands.
But despite everything, the battle had been exhilarating. With a faint smile, his eyes slowly closed for the last time.
Izumi painfully pulled her fractured hand free, wincing at the severe fractures that now bent her fingers painfully.
Suppressing the pain, she used a sealing scroll to contain Asenyi's corpse.
Summoning a giant serpent, she fed the scroll into its mouth, letting it vanish back to its territory for safekeeping.
Using the last of her chakra, Izumi filled in the deep gully with debris, making the terrain look chaotic and natural once again.
Exhausted, she dragged her aching body and two unconscious comrades toward her teacher's location.
But the pain overwhelmed her.
She collapsed onto the ground, unable to stand.
Lying beneath the endless Milky Way and countless twinkling stars, Izumi smiled bitterly.
"Ha… phew, phew… this is so exhilarating… truly satisfying. No wonder they say combat is the fastest way to grow stronger, hahaha… but it hurts so much. My entire body feels like it's breaking apart. When will the reinforcements arrive?"
Her eyelids grew heavy, and she soon slipped into a deep sleep.
In a haze, she heard voices. When she finally opened her eyes, she found reinforcements around her, skillfully applying Medical Ninjutsu to her wounds.
Her teacher, Sarutobi Muraki, looked down at her anxiously.
"Izumi, where's the enemy?" he asked urgently.
Izumi, irritated but feigning weakness, thought, Damn, my teacher worries about the enemy when his student looks like this.
"I killed two enemies and drove off the other," she replied softly.
"Really?" Muraki's eyes widened. "You're actually that strong?"
Izumi smiled brightly. "Teacher, I learned their ninjutsu. My whole body glowed with power, and after using it, my speed and strength skyrocketed. That's how I drove him away."
Muraki shook his head in disbelief. "A Genin beating such powerful Jonin… you—"
Before he could continue, a nearby ninja interrupted, "Let's take her back first. The rest can wait."
Muraki nodded with a tired laugh. "You're right. I was too impatient, thinking only about the enemy."
The ninja added, "Based on what she said, those three Jonin have all fled. Only the three Kumogakure Chunin were lost. We'll send people to continue the pursuit. Everyone should rest and recover in the Village."
"Alright, Izumi. I'll take you back," Muraki said gently.
Together with the others, Izumi was escorted back to the village.
At the hospital, she was wrapped tightly in bandages like a zongzi—her injuries severe but slowly healing.
While Izumi rested, her mother suddenly burst in. Tears streamed down her face as she saw her daughter's battered condition.
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