A sharp, clear shout rang through the air.
The kunai in the young girl's hand grew rapidly, water swirling around the blade until it transformed into a sixty-centimeter-long short sword. It was a technique that condensed rotating currents into a lethal edge, much like the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju's Water Style: Water Severing Blade.
CLANG!
With a decisive strike, she threw the water blade, intercepting the black spear hurtling through the air. The spear's trajectory shifted just enough to graze Ren Uchiha's cheek before whistling past into the distance.
Immediately after:
"Water Style: Water Surface Slice!"
The girl bent low, her palms pressing against the earth. Two swirling vortexes of water erupted beneath her feet, eliminating friction as she slid across the ground like a ghost, arriving directly beneath Ren.
Then, in one fluid motion, she caught the falling Ren in a bridal carry.
Ren was momentarily stunned. A faint, sweet scent drifted into his nostrils—a fragrance like hibiscus blooming by the sea.
Before he could process the sensation, the Jashin Cult leader's gaze turned cold. Staring at the uninvited intruder, he whipped two more black spears forward and slammed his foot into the ground, his hands locking into the Snake seal as he prepared a devastating Jutsu.
"What are you dazing off for? Get ready to run!" the girl hissed.
Her emerald eyes narrowed. Noticing Ren's bewildered expression, she furrowed her brow in annoyance and simply tossed him aside. Ren barely managed to avoid face-planting into the dirt.
Her fingers blurred into a sequence of seals:
Ox — Snake — Ram.
"Water Style: Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
A thick, white fog rapidly blanketed the area, swallowing the entire village square in an impenetrable veil of mist. Ren felt a soft, delicate hand grab his own, followed by a voice that chimed like silver bells in his ear.
"Let's go!"
"Go?" Ren looked up.
A stray lock of reddish-brown hair escaped the girl's hood, dancing near her ear like a crimson sunset cloud. He quickly regained his senses, his brow furrowing as he shook off her grip and stood up.
"I can't leave!"
When he had protected the little girl, Yuko, from the first spear, his palm had been sliced open. His blood was still on that spear, or perhaps on the ground. If the cultists retrieved it, they could activate the Curse: Death Controlling Blood!
Ren couldn't gamble on whether they knew the cult's core curse. If he fled now and was killed by the ritual, the system might judge it as a "meaningless death" or even suicide.
There went his five hundred million!
From the moment he stepped forward, Ren Uchiha never intended to retreat. His gaze turned fierce, and the crimson Sharingan began to spin violently in his eyes. He slammed his palms onto the ground.
"Super: Deathmatch Barrier!"
A faint red dome expanded instantly, locking the three Jashin cultists and Ren inside. The barrier shot toward the sky, forcefully pushing everyone else—including the girl and the villagers—outside the perimeter.
"This is my fight alone!"
Ren stood up amidst the rolling white mist, a thrill of excitement curling the corners of his mouth. Through his Sharingan, he could see the silhouettes of his three enemies shifting in the fog.
He let out a cold sneer. "You like sneak attacks, don't you?"
"Fine. Let's start Round Two!"
Outside the barrier, the girl who had just saved him stood in shock. Looking at Ren's defiant figure inside the red dome, she gritted her teeth in frustration.
Is he an idiot?! She had created the perfect opening for him to escape, and instead, he chose to lock himself in a cage with three fanatics. He was practically begging for death!
Hidan, also pushed outside, stared at the barrier in disbelief.
"Ren, have you lost your mind?!" he screamed. "Attacking the Lords of the Cult will get the whole village killed! You're just a Genin—you can't beat them!"
Ren didn't turn around. He simply raised a thumb over his shoulder and laughed heartily.
"Don't worry. Until I die, not a single one of them leaves this barrier!"
"Hidan, take this chance! Take everyone and run!"
Without waiting for an answer, Ren began to sprint through the mist. The red glow of his Sharingan trailed behind him like a long, bloody ribbon. Thanks to the girl's Hidden Mist Jutsu, he now had the tactical advantage of concealment.
Inside the fog, the Jashin leader realized the situation had turned thorny. He barked orders at his subordinates.
"He has the Sharingan; he has the visual advantage in this mist. But we have him outnumbered! It's three against one—the advantage is ours!"
"Mato, use your Wind Style to blow this mist away! Takeshi, guard the perimeter and protect me. I'm going to get that brat's blood and cripple him with the Death Controlling Blood curse. Then, we kill him!"
The leader dashed toward the black spear embedded in the ground. Mato began weaving seals for a Wind Jutsu.
However—
Shhh! Shhh! Shhh!
Three dark shadows pierced through the mist, hurtling toward them!
"What? Stones?"
The three cultists flinched, stepping back as their movements were interrupted. But these weren't just stones. This was the pinnacle of Uchiha-Style Shurikenjutsu!
In Ren's hands, anything could be a lethal projectile.
Staying low, Ren circled the barrier at high speeds. He snatched up stones, broken branches, and even one of the cult's own black spears from the ground, flinging them with relentless precision.
The first three stones were a mere distraction. What followed was a literal storm of debris.
In just ten seconds, Ren threw over thirty stones and a dozen sharpened branches. It was a localized "Bullet Hell" of projectiles.
Have you ever seen a 'Danmaku' playstyle, friends?
Hidden within the swarm of wood and stone was a single black spear, screaming through the air like a hurricane. The cultist named Mato, who was a split second away from finishing his Wind Style seal, heard a sickening thud.
The black spear transfixed his chest. He collapsed to the ground without a sound.
But Ren wasn't done! He skidded to a halt, his fingers already locked in a blur of seals.
Rat — Tiger — Dog — Ox — Hare — Tiger!
"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Jutsu!"
Six spheres of roaring flame lunged forward like hungry beasts!
Simultaneously, he whipped out three ninja wires from his pouch, weighted with stones, and hurled them at the remaining two cultists. His hands blurred again:
Snake — Dragon — Rabbit — Tiger!
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu!"
With a flick of his finger, a concentrated stream of fire erupted, racing down the wires toward his targets with terrifying speed.
"Damn it! What is wrong with this kid?!"
The Cult Leader gasped, his eyes wide with horror as he dove to the ground. His mind was reeling. How can one brat throw this much lethal junk at once?!
Ren sneered through the mist, his voice dripping with disdain.
"You thought the three of you were surrounding me?"
"Wrong!"
"It's me, alone, surrounding all of you!"