Chapter 40: The Flaming Blade and the Fleeting Shadow
The Fire Release technique Akatsurugi had just unleashed was on a level that could be considered a Kekkei Genkai. The Third Raikage analyzed the situation coldly. The ability to propel himself with flames from his feet and achieve flight... he had never heard of such a thing. While he wasn't a Fire Style user himself, decades in the shinobi world had taught him that flight was not a standard fire technique. This, combined with the unnatural power of the flames, pointed to one conclusion: a bloodline limit.
A troublesome one, but not an insurmountable problem.
The same couldn't be said for his guards. Not everyone possessed a defense like the Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Two of them were already struggling against the oppressive heat of the black-red sea of fire.
"We must exit this inferno," the Raikage growled, feeling the intense temperature gnawing at even his own chakra cloak. He moved to grab the sensor ninja and make a break for it, but Akatsurugi was faster.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Technique!"
From within the roiling sea of fire, a colossal dragon's head erupted, its maw gaping wide as it descended to consume the Raikage and his team.
The Raikage's body flared with brilliant blue sparks. There was no more time for deliberation. He snatched up the sensor ninja and became a bolt of lightning, tearing through the dragon's head and out of the fiery perimeter with speed so immense Akatsurugi could barely track it.
The other guards were not so fortunate. The two who had initially cast the Water Wall were instantly engulfed and incinerated. The remaining three fought desperately, their chakra flaring as they tried to withstand the devouring flames.
Akatsurugi's primary targets had been those water users and the sensor. The Raikage had saved the most critical one.
Seeing the Raikage blur back into the fire to rescue the others, Akatsurugi knew his window was closing. He had to eliminate the sensor ninja, or he would never be free of this pursuit.
A shadow clone, holding a Great Ball Rasengan, swooped down toward the sensor ninja, who stood alone now. The Raikage was there in an instant, his fist phasing through the clone's chest before the Rasengan could land.
Poof.
"Just a shadow clone. You are cautious," the Raikage frowned, his plan to use the sensor as bait having failed. The real Akatsurugi remained elusive in the sky.
Watching from above, Akatsurugi once again felt a chill at the Raikage's speed. Against such velocity, only a dedicated taijutsu specialist could hope to compete.
"It seems I have no choice but to use it," Akatsurugi murmured. The sensor had to die. He couldn't stay airborne forever, and if the Raikage ever ambushed him, being forced to reveal his elementalization would be a catastrophic intelligence leak.
He raised the sealed hilt of Ryūjin Jakka. The time for holding back was over.
"All things of this world turn to ashes. Ryūjin Jakka."
A wave of intense, focused heat bloomed from the sword. It was not the wild, spreading fire of his ninjutsu, but a dense, razor-edged flame that sheathed the blade itself, humming with latent, destructive power.
"Hmm?" The Raikage's focus sharpened. He saw the flames wreathing the blade. A chakra-conducting weapon? Or another facet of his bloodline?
"Lord Raikage! The flames... they're emanating from the weapon itself! The chakra is incredibly dense!" the sensor ninja cried out, his voice tight with alarm.
The Raikage's mind flashed to the famed swords of Kirigakure. Was this a similar treasure?
"Having a sensor really is a nuisance," Akatsurugi's voice carried down, cold and final.
The Raikage immediately moved to shield the sensor, his body crackling with energy. He would not let this target be taken.
"Jōkakō Enjō (Scorching Flaming Prison)."
Akatsurugi swung the flaming zanpakutō. There were no hand seals, no buildup of chakra. A roaring tornado of fire simply manifested, wrapping around the sensor ninja with impossible speed. The flames spun and compressed, a vortex of incineration.
The Raikage moved, but he was a fraction of a second too late. The fiery prison collapsed in on itself, and when it vanished, the sensor ninja was gone, reduced to particles of ash on the wind.
"The flames appeared without a seal..." The Third Raikage's expression was now one of pure, grim solemnity. This changed everything.
Akatsurugi felt a significant portion of his chakra drain away. Wielding Ryūjin Jakka's released form was costly. But the result was absolute.
He looked down at the enraged but helpless Raikage. The man was a powerhouse, but a powerhouse who couldn't reach his enemy was impotent.
"Third Raikage, I'll be keeping your head on reserve. I'll collect it another day." With that, Akatsurugi sheathed his zanpakutō, the flames dying away, and flew off into the night, leaving a trail of fading embers.
The Third Raikage could only watch, his face a thunderous mask of fury and frustration. Without his sensor, finding Akatsurugi again would be like searching for a single leaf in a forest.
Next time, he vowed, I will not come unprepared. Next time, I will not give him the sky.
The events in the Land of Hot Water did not stay secret for long. Spies from every major village soon reported the news.
Konoha possessed a shinobi capable of killing a Jinchūriki. The death of the Two-Tails' host sent shockwaves through the shinobi world. To kill a Jinchūriki was to demonstrate power on a Kage-level scale.
When the subsequent deaths of elite jonin like Yoshino Kaze and Kujōgawa were also traced back to the same individual, the legend grew. This previously unknown Konoha shinobi had systematically eliminated some of Kumo's finest.
Dossiers began to circulate in the offices of the Kage. A name, once obscure, was now underlined in red: Akatsurugi. A disciple of the late Uchiha Kagami, a wielder of strange fire techniques and flight, and now, the slayer of a Tailed Beast. The shadows of the great villages now knew his name, and they watched.