"Ah—!"
The instant Uchiha Kai turned his head, the Cloud shinobi collapsed without warning—
Reduced to a puddle of blood.
Kamui: Distortion.
After his ocular power was infused with fragments of reincarnation authority, the range of his dōjutsu doubled.
What once could only tear off an arm or a head—
Could now grind an entire human being into flesh and pulp.
The sight sent the surrounding shinobi stumbling backward in panic.
"What kind of ability is that?!"
"Damn it—he just looked at Zofi and his limbs and head were twisted apart?!"
"No—no… he wasn't torn apart—he was erased!"
"A monster… that thing isn't human!"
Even among elite jōnin, there were always a few whose courage cracked first.
Unfortunately for them, those few happened to be standing together.
They were truly terrified.
An ability that erased people silently, without warning—
It was too bizarre.
Too unnatural.
Like death delivered by a glance.
No one knew who that boy would look at next.
"Hmph! What are you panicking for?!"
Seeing his subordinates falter, Raikage A snorted angrily.
"First that massive Water Release, now this strange dōjutsu—this brat is still young and lacks combat sense!"
"Before his chakra runs dry, there's no way he can kill all of us!"
Those words jolted the shaken Cloud and Stone shinobi back to their senses.
Right.
Young.
Too young.
Burning chakra so recklessly—how many times could he possibly sustain that?
Hearing this, Jiraiya, who had just arrived behind them, fell silent.
Truly silent.
He glanced at the two villages' forces, shook his head, and quietly moved off to the side.
Chakra exhaustion?
After witnessing Kai's chakra firsthand, Jiraiya doubted that even wiping out all of Kumogakure would empty him.
That—
Was reputation.
"But what exactly is this kid planning?"
"He unleashed such an enormous Water Release, yet only sealed the perimeter instead of flooding it…"
"Does he really intend to kill everyone here?"
With those doubts in mind, Jiraiya slipped around toward the Cloud forces' rear.
Above the ravine.
[Ding—Defeated Kumogakure jōnin. Obtained rare trait: Chakra Affinity (Blue).]
Kai's gaze shifted back to Yugito Nii below.
He spoke softly.
"Honestly, against a perfected jinchūriki like you, I never planned to kill you at the start."
Thump.
Her heart slammed violently.
What did that mean?!
The single sentence made Yugito's hair stand on end.
Even the Two-Tails, Matatabi, screamed warnings inside her mind.
"Run! Yugito, run! The chakra inside this human is more terrifying than the Nine-Tails'!"
At once, dense blue flames erupted outward.
She tried to envelop herself completely and retreat.
But—
Kai had spent immense effort shaping this Water Release domain—
And had deliberately sealed it from the outside.
How could he let them escape?
The moment the blue flames emerged, violent pressure slammed into the surrounding air.
Like a mountain bearing down.
Crushing her so hard she nearly collapsed.
"No… not like this!"
"I—proud as I am—cannot be defeated by some unknown child!"
In the next instant, she cast aside all hesitation.
Her will fused completely with the Two-Tails' chakra.
Her claws lashed out—
Aimed directly at the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki!
As long as the Nine-Tails was released, no matter how terrifying Uchiha Kai was, the situation would change!
Clang—!
But just as her hand moved—
The sound of chains colliding rang beside her ear.
Cold metal clashed, right before her eyes.
Something was wrong.
If she couldn't live—
Then no one would!
Yugito forced her tailed-beast cloak outward.
Ten centimeters.
Five.
One.
She could already feel the goosebumps rising on Naruto's neck.
But just as she tried to advance—
A numbness crept in.
Psh.
The tailed-beast claw extending from her fingers began to dissolve.
"Ugh—ah!"
Her transformed state collapsed rapidly, starting from her fingertips.
The blue chakra flames hissed like water dousing fire—
Then vanished entirely.
The violent aura around her body was suddenly shackled.
In an instant—
It withered.
The cat-demon form disappeared.
Only then did Yugito realize—
Six pitch-black chains had wrapped around her body at some unknown moment.
Chains hovering between reality and illusion, their edges twisting with eerie light.
The moment she looked at them, her mind reeled.
Worse—
From those chains seeped a viscous, pitch-black substance—
Like bone-burrowing parasites, drilling into her body.
They sealed every source of her strength.
Her chakra pathways.
"Move… move! Move already!"
Yugito's expression contorted as she desperately tried to stir.
But—
The chains didn't just seal her chakra.
They nailed her in place.
She couldn't move at all.
Her catlike pupils—once sharp with tailed-beast power—were now filled with confusion and fear.
Why couldn't she move?
Her pride, her tailed-beast power—
Before this Uchiha boy, it was as fragile as paper.
"Senra Heart Chains."
Only now did Kai's calm voice reach her ears.
As if he'd merely done something trivial.
He hadn't even focused his gaze on her—
Only waved his hand lightly in her direction.
Humm—
The air beneath the chains groaned again under unbearable pressure.
"Senra Heart Chains… what kind of ninjutsu is this? I've never even heard of it…"
Yugito muttered blankly.
Questions flooded her mind.
Heavy ones.
So heavy it felt like her skull was filled with stone.
"Something's wrong! Everyone—attack together!"
At this moment, both Ōnoki and Raikage A finally realized the danger.
They shouted simultaneously.
Especially the Fourth Raikage, who surged forward without hesitation.
The one bound was their jinchūriki—
One of their village's strongest assets!
If they lost the Two-Tails while trying to seize the Nine-Tails—
That would be an unforgivable disaster.
So they moved—
All out.
Nearly two hundred elite jōnin surged together.
Even a Kage would struggle against that.
But intent was one thing.
Reality was another.
The instant they prepared to act—
Kai moved first.
He smiled faintly and raised two fingers.
Then—
He flicked the air.
Tap.
A crisp, almost pleasant sound.
But—
The chains binding Yugito began to quake violently.
Clatter—clatter—
Black liquid dripped from them.
Dispersing into the air—
Becoming countless hair-thin black threads, their edges twisting with distorted light.
They vanished halfway into nothingness.
They ignored space.
Ignored distance.
Ignored defensive ninjutsu entirely.
Each thread pierced with perfect accuracy—
Straight into the vital points of every Cloud and Stone shinobi.
There were no explosions.
No screams.
It was as quiet as planting seedlings in a field.
Yet the result was horrifying.
Thud.
Thud—!
Nearly two hundred elite shinobi—
Who had been forming seals and charging just moments earlier—
Stiffened all at once.
Then collapsed.
One after another.
Like puppets whose strings had been cut.
Dust billowed.
Life and death—
Unknown.
The entire sequence passed like a gust of wind.
Suffocating.
After finishing, Kai brushed his hands together and turned to the only two who had avoided it.
"The Tsuchikage of Iwagakure?"
He looked up at Ōnoki, still hovering in midair—
At the massive stone hand frozen above Hinata's head.
A faint smile curved his lips.
"Do you need—"
"—me to dig you a grave?"
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