The five clones lurking outside the cave entrance saw that the Evil God was about to disappear. Their hands quickly formed seals, and they shouted in unison:
"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Technique!"
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
"Lightning Release: Chidori Sharp Spear!"
Five elemental Ninjutsu erupted instantly, blasting toward the phantom of the Evil God. After performing the techniques, the five clones dissipated as their Chakra was exhausted.
Boom—!
The five elemental Ninjutsu slammed violently into the Evil God's translucent spiritual body, instantly enveloping it. Flames, torrents, lightning, wind blades, and earth and stone raged together, as if to completely tear him to shreds.
Because the Evil God was too mysterious and had never been mentioned in the original work, Aoki Yoru could only try all five types of Ninjutsu to see if any would be effective.
At this moment, Aoki Yoru, standing on a tree outside the cave, was concentrating intently on sensing every movement inside, not daring to relax for a second.
"Hmm?"
Aoki Yoru's brow furrowed, a trace of solemnity flashing in his eyes as his hand tightly gripped his sword hilt—the five elemental Ninjutsu were useless against the Evil God.
It wasn't that the power wasn't great enough; it was simply ineffective. Hitting the Evil God was like hitting a spatial wall; the two were not in the same dimension.
Immediately, Aoki Yoru raised his ninja sword and unleashed a slash already enveloped in Natural Energy.
"Sage Art: Immortal Might Flowing Wrap!"
A massive, incredibly sharp slash tore through the air and rushed toward the Evil God in the cave.
Wherever the sword light passed, the cave entrance and rock walls were sliced open with savage gashes, yet its momentum didn't diminish at all. It lunged at the Evil God's phantom like a thunderclap, the air itself shrieking from being split by this Sage Power.
Skreeee—!
The moment the Sage Art sword light struck the phantom, a non-human shriek tore through the grotto.
The sound was sharp enough to pierce eardrums. Aoki Yoru tightly covered his ears with both hands, but it was useless. The screeching seemed to carry a curse from the abyss, making his soul tremble with stinging pain.
The Evil God was wounded. The phantom was covered in cracks, and blood-colored energy and fragments of itself spilled out uncontrollably. The entire figure flickered, looking as if it might dissipate at any moment.
At that moment, a sixth clone outside the cave immediately dashed into the cavern, pulled out a sealing scroll, and Chakra emanated from its five fingers.
"Sage Art: Evil Method Sealing!"
The clone took the opportunity to seal the spilling blood-energy and phantom fragments into the scroll.
Hiss—!
The Evil God seemed completely enraged. The phantom looked at Aoki Yoru's clone, which was collecting its body fragments on the ground, and a blood-red light condensed in front of it, growing brighter and brighter.
At the final moment, the clone finally finished the seal, quickly rolled it up, and threw it out of the cave with all its might.
Boom—!
The blood-red light shot through the clone. Perhaps because the god was enraged, the power even blasted a massive hole three meters in diameter into the ground.
Aoki Yoru appeared at the cave entrance with a Body Flicker, grabbed the scroll, and quickly retreated.
Then, a voice appeared in Aoki Yoru's head. It didn't come through his ears; it acted directly on his soul.
"Human, this isn't over. Next time we meet, I will surely extract your soul and refine your spirit."
In Aoki Yoru's perception, after the Evil God said this, the phantom slowly dissipated.
Suddenly, Aoki Yoru captured an extremely faint spatial fluctuation behind the Evil God. Just as he was about to extend his spiritual power into it, he stopped himself.
His eyes narrowed slightly, and his brow furrowed. His expression held a mix of hesitation and wariness; he was unwilling to let go of the chance to track the Evil God, yet he feared the hidden dangers within. For a moment, he was caught in a dilemma.
"There's only one chance. If I miss it now, I don't know when I'll have such a good opportunity again."
Aoki Yoru gritted his teeth and made up his mind. Naruto was about to graduate, and the plot was about to begin. By then, even with Super Kage-level strength, one could be taken out by a Tailed Beast Ball from the Ten-Tails at any time.
He was only 26 in his previous life, and in this world, he would only be 19 by the time of the Fourth Shinobi World War. If he died, his combined age from both lives would only be 45, not even half of some people's lifespans.
Coming to this world, his goal was to live safely until old age. If he died this time, he didn't even know if there was a third world. If not, it would be a huge loss.
Having made his decision, Aoki Yoru extended his spiritual power toward that spatial point.
"Hmm? Is it being blocked?"
His spiritual power stopped abruptly at the spatial fluctuation, unable to advance an inch, as if blocked by something.
Seeing the phantom about to disappear, Aoki Yoru had a sudden inspiration and wrapped his spiritual power around it.
Chira—!
Passing through that faint spatial fluctuation, Aoki Yoru's spiritual power followed the collapsing fragments of the Evil God and fell into a bizarre space.
The surroundings were filled with a dark red blood-mist so thick it wouldn't disperse, permeating with the scent of decay and curses. Countless twisted souls floated in the air, letting out faint, agonized whimpers.
There was no solid ground beneath his feet, only a constantly squirming black viscous substance that rose and fell slowly like a living thing.
In the distance stood countless broken and twisted black pillars. Their surfaces were carved with savage, sinister runes, emitting a heart-palpitating pressure.
The sky was a deathly dark purple with no light, only spatial rifts that looked like open wounds, constantly dripping pitch-black corrosive droplets.
There was no life here, no sound—only endless desolation, despair, and an extreme, dense aura of evil.
Suddenly, as if sensing something, two giant red eyes appeared in the sky.
A voice appeared in Aoki Yoru's mind: "Ant, since you have come, then stay. There is a price for profaning this god."
"Ugh..."
Aoki Yoru's face turned pale. His spiritual power had vanished, and it felt as if a piece of his soul had been violently severed.
"Fortunately, it's only a small loss. I can recover after some rest."
Aoki Yoru patted his chest with lingering fear; he had truly been reckless this time.
"Is that so!"
A voice rang out in his mind. Aoki Yoru was instantly startled. He formed hand seals and scanned his body from the inside out.
As if sensing something, Aoki Yoru's face became extremely unsightly. He felt a black aura within his soul, tightly entwined around it.
He extended his five fingers, Chakra bursting from the tips, and pressed them hard against his chest.
"Release!"
As the seal was undone, the Natural Energy stored in his body instantly surged out, washing through his physical form.
Aoki Yoru's spiritual power gathered the Natural Energy and rushed toward the black aura, his soul struggling to break free from its grasp.
Pfft—!
Aoki Yoru spat out a mouthful of blood, his expression grim. That black aura hadn't budged an inch.
"Human, I told you before that our next meeting would be your end. Become nourishment for this god."
"Urgh—!"
Aoki Yoru's teeth were tightly clenched, veins bulging on his temples and neck, his face flushed red as every inch of his muscle trembled violently.
Using all his spiritual power to carry the Natural Energy, he desperately charged at the black energy entwined in his soul.
"Hmph! Boring struggle. You did not bow upon meeting a god; your true life is forfeit. Your name is already on the Tablet of Reincarnation."