The Kaguya warriors hesitated, their eyes flicking between their commander and the chaos below. Kaguya Tani's face was a storm of rage, veins pulsing at his temple as his voice split the air like thunder.
"Disobey my orders, and your families will pay when this war is done!"
The words hung in the air like a blade at their throats.
Every Kaguya on the field froze. Charging meant death. Retreating meant execution. There was no path left but forward.
"For the honor of the clan—kill!" someone screamed.
That broke the silence.
Steel clashed, the earth trembled, and three hundred Kaguya shinobi roared as they surged toward one man—Amamiya Raizen.
Raizen exhaled through his nose, a weary sigh cutting through the rising storm. "Figures." His hands flashed through seals.
"Summoning Technique!"
A burst of smoke engulfed the plain. When it cleared, a massive toad stood beside him, a blade strapped to its back and years of battle etched into its eyes.
"Raizen… your human wars never end, do they?" the toad rumbled.
"That's exactly why I'm trying to end this one." Raizen's tone was flat. "Let's make it quick."
He crossed his fingers. Dozens of clones exploded into being around him, blanketing half the field.
"Toad Fight, take the left flank."
"Understood."
The toad unsheathed its enormous sword with a low growl and swung—one sweeping arc that split earth and bone alike.
Raizen's clones moved like a storm front, hands already forming seals.
"Lightning Style: Chidori Stream!"
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Chakra crackled, hissed, and screamed. Elemental techniques collided in the muddy air, lightning wrapping around wind, water exploding into vapor.
The Kaguya met them head-on. Their bloodline limit hardened their bones into ivory blades, gleaming like weapons of the gods. The battlefield became a meat grinder of white and red.
Raizen vanished from sight—then reappeared behind one of them, his palm glowing blue.
"Rasengan."
The sphere drilled through the shinobi's chest before he could blink. The body hit the ground a heartbeat later.
Raizen didn't even look at it. His breath came rough, but his thoughts were cold and clean.
So this is shadow-level power, huh? Barely scraping the bottom.
If he faced someone he could counter, victory was simple. If not… he'd be exposed like wet paper.
"The strength still isn't enough," he muttered, flickering through the battlefield like lightning reborn. "But it will be."
He decapitated two more enemies in one pass, the blood barely drying on his blade before he vanished again.
End the chain of command, end the chaos.
His gaze locked on Kaguya Tani, still barking orders from behind the lines.
Raizen's fingers tightened around a marked kunai. The seal shimmered faintly.
"Flying Thunder God: Transmission."
He disappeared.
Kaguya Tani's instincts screamed. Bone spurs erupted from his arms just as a blade struck from nowhere.
"Clang!"
The collision numbed Raizen's arm. He landed lightly, flexing his wrist. "Not bad for a fossil."
"Die!" Tani roared, spinning and thrusting his bone blades. They skewered nothing but air.
Raizen's afterimage flickered and vanished.
Tani twisted, heart pounding—then pain exploded across his back. Raizen's hand was already there, a glowing Rasengan pressing against the armor of bone that barely kept him alive.
If not for that defense, his spine would've been dust.
Raizen stepped back, expression unreadable. "You've got good instincts. Shame they won't save you."
"Flying Thunder God mark?" Tani repeated, realizing what those strange glimmers on his armor meant.
"Congratulations," Raizen said dryly. "You're my personal GPS now."
Tani's eyes widened. Fear flickered for the first time.
"Everyone! Surround him!" he roared, desperation cracking his voice.
The Kaguya obeyed, surging like a tide.
Raizen's kunai gleamed with an eerie light, his chakra pulsing in rhythm with the beat of his heart.
"Let's see how long your clan can dance before the storm ends."