Sarutobi Yamakita and Hibiscus Takuma watched in horror as Hyūga Shibuya was torn apart midair, his body erased by the twisting void of Raizen's Kamui Shuriken. They didn't even have time to grieve — only a cold certainty that they might be next.
Below them, the battlefield was chaos incarnate.
The black flames of Amaterasu raged across the plains, devouring everything they touched.
The once-disciplined Hyūga coalition had broken formation completely, their screams drowned beneath the roar of burning chakra and collapsing terrain.
When Raizen unleashed Amaterasu through his bow — guided by precise Flame Control — it became more than fire.
It was the grim reaper's scythe, sweeping through flesh and armor alike.
In less than ten minutes, the Hyūga coalition had lost nearly five hundred shinobi.
Half of them burned alive.
Others were torn apart by Raizen's arrows or trampled by their own panicked allies.
Even veteran shinobi, hardened by years of war, lost their nerve before that black flame — an enemy they couldn't fight or extinguish.
Raizen floated high above them, arrows of black fire raining down like divine punishment. Each shot landed with thunderous impact, leaving behind a crater and a cluster of corpses charred beyond recognition.
The Hyūga troops tried to scatter, but there were too many of them. Each shot claimed another two, three lives — and the flames only spread wider.
Man is a strange animal — terrified not by death itself, but by what it can't understand.
Even the bravest ninja quailed before a fire that clung to flesh and refused to die.
"All Hyūga coalition units, listen up!"
The order rang out, desperate but commanding.
"This flame can't be extinguished by normal means! Anyone touched by it, cut off the infected limb immediately! Use Water and Earth Style to isolate and suppress the fire!"
Sarutobi Sanbei, one of the Hyūga's veteran tacticians, barked the orders as he formed seals.
He didn't know what this flame truly was — but after observing for minutes, he understood one thing:
Every ninjutsu, no matter how terrifying, has a weakness.
Amaterasu's flames might burn everything living, but even fire has limits.
Water, sand, and certain sealing techniques could contain it — at least, for a while.
Under coordinated counterattacks, water walls surged up and mud barriers closed ranks.
Gradually, the spread of the black flames slowed.
The Hyūga's Water and Earth Release units bought the army precious breathing space.
From the sky, Raizen exhaled a low sigh through gritted teeth.
"Smart bastards. So you figured out how to stall it…"
Susanoo's great wings folded. In a heartbeat, the giant dropped from the clouds, its golden bow dissolving into a blade of pure chakra, burning black at the edge.
"Fine," Raizen muttered, eyes narrowing behind the Mangekyō glow.
"If distance doesn't work— I'll bring the fire to you myself!"
Susanoo's sword ignited, a storm of black flames crawling up its length.
With a single swing, it unleashed a horizontal wave of Amaterasu — a wall of burning death sweeping across the ground.
Screams followed instantly.
A dozen Hyūga shinobi were bisected before they even raised a defense. Their bodies burned to ash before hitting the dirt.
"Everyone, attack him together! Don't let him land another strike!" Takuma shouted. His hands blurred through seals, summoning a roaring tornado that tore through the lines — a technique powerful enough to kill a Senju commander once.
But Raizen only laughed.
"Cute."
Susanoo's massive sword came down in a single, brutal arc.
The tornado was sliced cleanly in two, scattering into harmless gusts.
"Feel the power of a god!" Raizen's voice echoed through the smoke.
The black fire began to shift, reshaping at his will — Flame Control turning defense to offense and back again.
When struck, it formed shields of pure darkness.
When attacking, it twisted into scythes, spears, and claws, cutting through the battlefield like liquid shadow.
Meanwhile, Inuzuka Daisaku's Konoha forces pushed forward from the flanks, striking the Hyūga coalition while their focus was fixed on Raizen. Between the black flames and the Konoha assault, the Hyūga forces were crumbling.
"Use sealing teams! Don't let that thing move!"
Sarutobi Sanbei's command came like thunder.
Dozens of seal specialists dropped to one knee, their blood mixing with ink as they drew glowing runes into the earth.
"Fūinjutsu: Evil Spirit Binding Seal! (Fūinjutsu: Akuma Fūin!)"
Chains of crimson light burst from the seals, wrapping around Susanoo's limbs, chest, and head — tightening until the giant's movements slowed to a crawl.
Raizen's body jerked as the energy constricted him.
"Tch… you little pests."
He tried to break free, but the chains pulsed with layered sigils, their chakra synchronized by the team below.
For the first time, Susanoo was bound, unable to move.
Then Raizen's right eye began to spin violently. Blood ran down his cheek. Pain lanced through his skull — but he didn't hesitate.
"Kamui!"
The world distorted around him.
Susanoo's colossal form rippled and vanished — twisting space itself.
The sealing chains fell to the ground with a hollow crash.
The sealing team looked around, stunned.
"He's gone…? Did we—"
They never finished the sentence.
The sky above them turned black.
A colossal crimson shadow fell from the clouds.
BOOM!
The impact shattered the ground, crushing half the sealing team instantly.
Raizen's Susanoo reappeared, crimson and towering, eyes burning like twin suns.
He didn't need to speak.
His presence alone said everything:
This was no longer a battle. It was judgment.