YORU and Tanggu Xigu clashed fiercely, their blades colliding in a relentless exchange. YORU's Observation Haki firmly locked onto every single movement of Tanggu, allowing him to counter effortlessly whenever Tanggu attempted to strike.
Tanggu felt utterly suffocated. Just moments ago, he had clearly spotted an opening on YORU's right side. But the instant he tried to thrust forward, YORU reacted as if he had already anticipated it, forcing him to switch to defense mid-attack.
"Hey, hey, did you forget to eat or something?" YORU mocked lazily. "Your strength doesn't match that big mouth of yours."
Rage surged in Tanggu's chest. Just as he was about to curse, YORU's sword suddenly slashed toward his right shoulder. Tanggu swallowed his anger and focused entirely on defending.
Squelch!
Before his horrified eyes, YORU abruptly changed the direction of his strike mid-swing and drove his blade straight into Tanggu's left abdomen.
Boom!
Countless magma currents erupted from the Akatsuki Sword!
Under Kumagai's terrified gaze, Tanggu's left side exploded violently!
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
Just as YORU was about to finish him off, Nozawa Hayato rapidly formed hand seals. A massive water dragon roared toward YORU with overwhelming force.
YORU's face showed a hint of impatience. He swung his sword forward in a single motion.
Boom!
A dark red magma slash burst forth like a blade of energy, releasing a violent wave of heat that clashed directly with the water dragon.
Rumble!
The water dragon was instantly split in half, its power completely shattered as it dissolved into rain that poured down from the sky.
The rain, however, carried scorching heat. The temperature from the severed dragon turned every drop into boiling water.
Nozawa and the others' expressions changed drastically. Feeling the burning rain, Nozawa quickly formed hand seals to create a water barrier.
Even so, the exposed skin on their bodies blistered under the intense heat.
YORU stood silently, holding his sword in one hand, calmly watching their miserable state. He wasn't using any sword technique at all. He had simply compressed magma to an extreme degree, wrapped it in chakra, and fired it outward. Because it was released through the Akatsuki Sword, it appeared like a sword strike.
Nozawa Hayato's face turned grim as he stared at YORU, who stood there completely unfazed. That indifferent expression felt like a mockery of his earlier arrogance.
The burning pain on his skin made his lips twitch.
Ninjutsu… swordsmanship… neither could harm him!
His face darkened. How could such a terrifying bloodline limit exist in this world?
If ninjutsu and swordsmanship couldn't defeat him—
Nozawa shot a glance at Kumagai beside him.
"Kid, I didn't expect you to actually have some skill," Nozawa shouted, trying to distract YORU.
YORU smirked. "Yeah. Looking at you drenched like drowned rats… no, more like boiled ones."
"Damn it!"
Nozawa's eyes turned bloodshot. This brat's mouth was unbearable!
Just as he was about to explode in anger—
His expression suddenly shifted.
Kumagai's genjutsu had activated.
"Genjutsu: Dark Prison!"
This was Kumagai's signature illusion. Anyone caught in it would be dragged into a pitch-black prison filled with thirteen forms of torture. Those with weak willpower would collapse mentally inside the illusion, becoming nothing more than empty shells.
YORU suddenly found himself in complete darkness. He couldn't see anything around him.
"Welcome," Kumagai's sinister voice echoed. "This is the prison I prepared for you. Enjoy it well."
YORU curled his lips in disdain.
"Genjutsu?"
His eyes ignited like molten magma, blazing fiercely.
Boom!
An endless dark red light shattered the darkness. Kumagai stared in horror as his illusion transformed into a boiling sea of magma.
He stood suspended in midair while the magma below churned violently, as if waiting to swallow him whole.
"No—!"
He screamed unwillingly as his body plunged into the magma.
"AHHH—!"
His agonized cries echoed endlessly. His flesh melted instantly, his bones slowly dissolving. The unimaginable pain left him completely helpless.
In reality, he would have already fainted. But inside the illusion, his mind remained painfully awake.
Gradually, Kumagai's eyes lost focus. His entire body sank into the magma, leaving nothing behind.
"Kumagai! Kumagai!"
In the real world, Nozawa shook him violently. Foam spilled from Kumagai's mouth, his eyes vacant—his mind completely shattered.
"Damn it! Why did this happen? The genjutsu clearly worked! Why is he the one who collapsed?!"
YORU glanced at the broken Kumagai indifferently.
"That was a trick I discovered during training," he said calmly. "Magma can be used to create illusions. With my mental strength, I can drag enemies into a space of absolute despair."
He called that place—
Purgatory.
"His mind is already destroyed," YORU added coldly. "Stop wasting your effort. Soon, you'll meet him underground."
Nozawa roared in fury. "Don't get cocky, brat! This next move will crush you into pieces!"
"Shadow!"
Both Nozawa and Kumagai's companion unleashed their chakra at full force, forming hand seals at incredible speed.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Jutsu!"
An A-rank technique!
The water mass condensed into a massive pillar, surging toward YORU with crushing pressure.
At the same time—
A sharp screech rang out as Tanggu poured all his remaining chakra into his blade and slashed with everything he had. A wind-infused strike tore through the air, slicing toward YORU.
YORU remained calm. He turned the Akatsuki Sword into magma, and the magma on the ground surged upward, covering his body.
He became a monstrous figure clad entirely in magma.
He raised his right index finger toward the sky. All the magma converged into a single point.
Boom!
A massive sphere of magma formed at his fingertip, compressing endlessly.
A dark crimson sphere—
Radiating absolute destruction—
Was born.
YORU raised his arm like he was aiming a gun, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
"Goodbye… you three nobodies."
The magma sphere shot forward like a bullet.
"Magma: Death Blast!"
Under Nozawa and the others' horrified gazes, both the water pillar and the wind slash were as fragile as paper. The magma sphere shattered them instantly upon contact.
A dark red beam tore through the water and surged toward them.
A colossal pillar of magma shot into the sky, reaching its peak before exploding into countless magma fragments, painting the entire world crimson like the most brilliant fireworks.
It was like a volcanic eruption.
Everything—
Was annihilated.
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