kacha rang out again and again. A pale white, icy bone mask grew from the bloodied flesh of his face and covered it completely.
Two points of red light flared within the hollow eye sockets. A terrifying presence filled with hatred and the urge to destroy erupted outward, tearing the prison apart from the inside and grinding it to pieces.
At the same time, Homura Mitokado and Nagato had nearly walked out of Sunagakure. Feeling the overwhelming force behind them, both stopped at once.
The grin on Homura Mitokado's face froze as he turned slowly, a trace of shock and gravity appearing in his eyes for the first time. Towering sand and dust surged upward like a wall joining earth and sky, rolling forward and swallowing Sunagakure and the sun itself.
The world was dyed a suffocating yellow. Homura Mitokado gave a low laugh that held no ease, only weight, and glanced at Nagato.
"Ryoma," he said with a lick of his lips, "it looks like we accidentally let something dangerous loose."
"'Shadow' really knows how to cause trouble," Nagato snorted, lifting his hand before slowly lowering it again.
"Ryoma?" Homura Mitokado raised a brow.
"We go to Konoha first. We do not have time to waste on it," Nagato said coldly. "Next time, we take the soul."
With that, he and Nagato vanished. Homura Mitokado shrugged and joked that when Cee, Zetsu, and the Third Kazekage came back to see this, it would not be much of a surprise, then disappeared before the sea of sand crashed down.
The sand struck the ground like a tidal wave. The earth shook as houses collapsed, and terrified screams were drowned out by the roar.
Takigakure lay hidden behind a massive waterfall. The falling water masked the village completely, and entry required passing through the curtain of water into a lush valley beyond.
Once ambitious enough to attempt the assassination of Hashirama, the village had retreated from the world after being heavily wounded by Kakuzu. Now, this hidden Ninja village had become a living hell.
Black clouds churned overhead as lightning tore down again and again. Buildings shattered like toys, and flames and debris scattered while the cries of the villagers were swallowed by thunder.
A massive Guai hound rampaged through the burning streets, its body plated in gray brown armor and its steps shaking the ground. Flames poured from its jaws as it crushed anyone who tried to stand in its way.
Above, Guai birds circled and released feathers that exploded on impact. Shockwaves and fire wiped out whole areas, leaving nothing but ashes and screams.
Twin headed giant snakes slid through the ruins, spewing purple poison. No matter how the villagers attacked, the wounds on their bodies healed in moments.
On the ground, a young girl with short blue green hair and dark skin ignored the shouts to retreat and formed seals as she flew upward. Her scales powder technique scattered and paralyzed the snakes.
"Finally forced her out," muttered the man carrying the executioner's blade as he stood on the head of a Guai bird. Looking at the seven tail Jinchuriki called Fuu in the sky, he relaxed, then frowned at the village tower below.
At the same time, deep beneath the tower, Hiruko moved through the secret archive room in his Black Red Kumogakure Cloak. Scrolls were ripped down and tossed aside as he searched in growing agitation.
At last, he found a dusty flat box hidden at the bottom of a shelf and opened it with Swift Release. Inside lay a single food storage scroll.
"Found it," he breathed as he read the contents, his voice trembling with excitement. "Secret Art, Land of Earth Grudge Fear."
His brow furrowed as he read further, realizing it required creatures similar to the Land of Earth Grudge Fear to be cultivated and implanted. That explained why it had been abandoned here.
In the entire Shinobi World, only Kakuzu possessed such Land of Earth Grudge Fear. Hiruko's eyes gleamed as he decided that he would have to obtain living samples without Kakuzu ever finding out.
In the Land of Demons, at the Final Line of Defense, Naruto Uzumaki lost focus for a brief moment. The horrific pain of his severed arm traveled back through the nerves merged with the statue and slammed into his body. His control wavered as the sensation overwhelmed him.
"Argh!"
Naruto Uzumaki let out a hoarse scream he could not hold back, and his vertical pupils shrank to pinpoints from the pain. Driven by instinct, he pulled the massive body of the Rock Colossus back a short distance. This was a reflexive retreat in the face of unknown power and the threat of Ryoma.
However, Naruto Uzumaki quickly remembered the words Da Sheji had spoken earlier. "This is the only portable device on me with active offensive capability," she had said. The only lethal weapon. She had only this one.
That thought instantly extinguished the panic and caution brought on by the agony. In their place came a colder, sharper malice and killing intent. The uncertainty in his golden slit pupils vanished, replaced by a venomous chill mixed with anger.
"Heh heh heh…"
A low, malicious hiss echoed through the drifting dust, and Naruto Uzumaki spoke in a raspy, icy voice filled with open mockery. "So this is all you can do."
He stopped retreating and instead forced the damaged Rock Colossus forward, taking a heavy step. The remaining stone arm lifted high and smashed down at the barrier once more. Boom. Boom boom.
"It seems I was right. You can freely modify your own body and even connect your nervous system to dead matter."
Da Sheji shook her head as she spoke, her tone calm. "But it is a pity. Your understanding of the human body is still very primitive, otherwise this ability would be far more terrifying."
She stopped looking at Naruto Uzumaki and tilted her head slightly, studying with interest the Jidu clenched in Kakashi's hand. Her gaze lingered on the weapon as if examining a specimen.
"The weapon in your hand," Da Sheji asked, "what is it called?"
Kakashi froze for a moment, clearly not expecting that question in a life and death situation. He tightened his grip on the hilt and answered instinctively, "'Jidu'"
"'Jidu'?" The corners of Da Sheji's mouth lifted into a thoughtful, almost pleased smile. "I see. That name is astonishingly fitting."
Then let us play along. She slowly turned back, and her deep golden slit pupils settled once more on the chest of the Rock Colossus. They rested on the face of Naruto Uzumaki, twisted by chill and Wrath.
"I believe the ability of this 'Jidu' is to construct a temporary projection that diverges from the target individual along their path of fate," Da Sheji said, her voice rational and precise. "No wonder…" She gently touched the emblem of the entwined tree and snake on her chest. "No wonder I felt an instinctive rejection toward you from the very beginning."
"Thinking back, it was fear and unease at how close I once came to walking the wrong path myself, to becoming an inferior product."
Boom.
Hearing this, Naruto Uzumaki's motion faltered as he controlled the statue's strike. "Inferior product?"
Looking at the woman below who spoke such words as if they were self evident, Naruto Uzumaki laughed in anger, his voice trembling with Wrath. "You…"
"Let me do a comparative analysis for you," Da Sheji interrupted without mercy, her calm making it even colder. "Since you possess such an ability, you must have pursued 'immortality' and the unknown. Let me think about when you chose a road different from mine."