"It's time you saw what real power looks like."
Amamiya Raizen's tone turned colder as the red light in his eyes deepened.
Susanoo, the monstrous guardian born of his Mangekyō, loomed behind him—just a skeletal frame for now, its bones glowing crimson in the night. Primitive, incomplete, yet its defensive aura was overwhelming.
Susanoo's defense is absurd, Raizen thought. Senju's wood constructs could crush mountains, but they cracked under pressure. This thing? It's like fighting inside a fortress.
The Third Elder snarled, veins pulsing at his temples. "Don't let up! Charge!"
The Hatake ninja realized long-range attacks were useless. With a battle cry, they rushed in, blades flashing like silver rain.
"Pathetic."
Raizen's chakra surged, red light roaring to life. The skeletal giant's arm swept forward—an executioner's swing backed by divine fury.
"Boom!"
The world trembled. The impact tore through the ground, sending shockwaves rippling across the courtyard. Dust exploded into the sky, drowning out screams and the sound of steel snapping like twigs.
When the haze cleared, a dozen Hatake ninjas lay scattered, twitching, coughing blood, weapons bent out of shape.
"A bunch of useless trash!" the Third Elder bellowed, spittle flying. His men, trembling, forced themselves upright again, clutching their broken blades and charging once more.
Lightning sparked across their bodies, thunder roaring through the storm-dark sky.
"Ikazuchi!"
Blades gleamed with crackling chakra as the Hatake's famed Lightning Style swordsmanship came to life—each swing faster than the blink of an eye, sharp enough to carve through armor.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Dozens of strikes slammed against the crimson skeleton. Sparks scattered, but Susanoo didn't budge. The sound was like swords slashing solid iron—hollow, hopeless.
The Hatake warriors froze. Even together, their combined strike had failed to make a single scratch. Their faces turned pale.
So that's the limit of your "elite sword style"? Cute.
Raizen's smirk twisted into something cruel. "You done?"
Two massive chakra discs materialized in Susanoo's hands—boomerangs made of condensed energy, their edges warping the air around them.
"Go to hell."
He threw them.
The air shrieked. The space around the discs distorted violently, pulling everything inward. The Hatake ninjas screamed as their bodies twisted, crushed by invisible force before they even hit the ground.
When it ended, there was only red mud and silence.
The Third Elder's face contorted in rage and grief. "Damn you! You think the Hatake can be crushed so easily!?"
Raizen stepped forward through the blood-soaked courtyard, Susanoo following, its skeletal ribs scraping the ground like the steps of a god of war.
"Old man, you're next."
The Elder's chakra flared violently, sparks bursting from his skin. "Don't underestimate me!"
Thunder erupted around him, forming an armor of living lightning. His hair stood on end, his body glowing like a thunder god descending to earth.
He charged, speed breaking sound.
Raizen's eyes flicked, calm and calculating. "An Elite Jōnin, huh? Five years ago, I'd have run. Now…" He chuckled. "You're already dead."
"Cross Cut!"
The Elder roared, leaping high. Lightning surged through his blade, forming a glowing cross of energy.
Raizen didn't move.
The twin arcs slammed down like thunderbolts, tearing open the ground, splitting the courtyard in two. Houses behind Raizen crumbled from the shockwave.
"Hahaha! That's what arrogance gets you!" the Elder shouted, drunk on fury and fear.
Then the smoke stirred.
A howling vortex ripped through the dust, scattering it to the wind. Crimson chakra flared upward like a rising inferno.
Raizen stood unharmed within the storm.
Blood dripped from his right eye, his voice low and cold. "It's better to erase garbage like you early."
The crimson skeleton behind him began to change. Veins of chakra pulsed through its frame, flesh knitting over bone. The half-formed Susanoo rose higher, armor plating its limbs, eyes burning with divine wrath.
The earth shuddered as it reached its half-complete form—a humanoid titan wrapped in blood-red light, its killing intent suffocating everyone in sight.
The Third Elder stumbled back, trembling as the full force of Raizen's chakra slammed into him like a tidal wave.
This isn't human… it's a god wearing skin.
Raizen's lips curved into a ghost of a grin. "Now then. Shall we finish the tutorial?"