____________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Earth Release: Rock Wall!"
Kurosuki Raiga clapped his hands together. Instantly, a massive stone wall erupted from the ground in front of him, several meters high and over three feet thick. It stood firm and blocked Akira's attack.
Using that brief moment, Raiga turned and tried to flee.
"Where do you think you're going?!"
A figure shot forward like an arrow and cut off his escape route.
Raiga's expression darkened. If his reactions had been even a little slower earlier, he might have died right there.
"Hmph!"
Seeing Raiga stop, Akira snorted coldly.
"Kid, don't get cocky!" Raiga growled through clenched teeth. Akira was strong, no doubt about it, but Raiga wasn't afraid.
"Oh? Is that so?"
Akira gave a faint, mocking smile. Of course he knew what Raiga was thinking. After all, Akira was still several years younger than him.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
Akira suddenly slammed both hands onto the ground. A scorching wave of heat burst up from the floor, roaring forward and swallowing Raiga in flames.
His movements flowed perfectly, leaving Raiga no chance to catch his breath.
"Damn it!"
Raiga roared in anger. A pale green layer of chakra spread across his body, shielding him from the burning flames.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Technique!"
A giant dragon formed from blue-violet fire soared into the sky, turning the entire horizon the same eerie color.
This can't continue. I need to run. If I stay here, I'm dead, Raiga thought through gritted teeth.
Just then, he heard rapid footsteps behind him.
Raiga's heart nearly stopped. He turned around sharply and glared at Akira.
"What are you trying to do?"
Akira grinned, a bloodthirsty smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Heh. If I'm planning to kill you, why would I let you walk away so easily?"
Raiga's face went pale.
Because beside him, four more Akira had appeared.
Each clone had weaker chakra than the original, but they still felt dangerous.
"Damn it!"
Raiga clenched his teeth. He knew things looked grim, but he wasn't about to give up.
After all, his opponent was just a seven-year-old brat. As one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, he had no reason to surrender.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear Technique!"
He quickly formed hand seals. Sharp stone spears burst from the ground and shot toward the four Akira.
But faced with the rain of stone spears, Akira didn't panic at all.
He simply kicked out with his right leg.
Crack!
The spears shattered instantly.
"Damn!"
Raiga's eyes flickered with a new idea. He pulled out a scroll, muttered a short incantation, then tore it open.
"Water Release: Water Prison Technique!"
The ground split apart. Countless tiny droplets rose into the air and rapidly formed a spherical prison, trapping all five Akira inside.
"Huh?!"
Raiga stared in shock.
"As expected of an Uchiha… even that didn't work!"
He hadn't imagined the Water Prison would fail to restrain them.
"Hmph. No matter. Once I bring them back to the Hidden Mist, I'll deal with them there. No matter how terrifying the Uchiha are, inside the Mist Village they won't be able to fight properly."
Raiga let out a sinister laugh and prepared to leave.
"Do you really think you'll make it back to the Hidden Mist alive?"
Akira's voice suddenly sounded from behind him.
Raiga's entire body trembled.
Slowly, he turned around.
Standing before him were several shadow clones of Akira. Each one carried the aura of an elite jonin.
"Damn it! How did you figure out my movements?" Raiga demanded through clenched teeth.
"Simple," Akira replied calmly. "That scroll you just tore open had something of mine hidden inside. I already guessed you'd run back to report to your father, so I prepared in advance."
"Hahaha! Impressive!"
Raiga burst into wild laughter.
"I didn't expect you to predict my movements. But that just confirms it. You really are from the Uchiha clan!"
His expression twisted with madness.
"Whether you admit it or not, today the Uchiha clan will be wiped out!"
"Oh really?"
Akira's voice turned icy.
"I'd like to see how you plan to destroy the Uchiha."
"Hmph! Since you're asking for death, I'll grant it!"
Raiga roared.
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
In an instant, countless water pillars erupted from deep underground and blasted toward Akira and his clones.
Akira frowned slightly. The pressure behind those pillars was enormous. This attack wasn't something to take lightly.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
He formed hand seals and spat out a blazing blue-violet fireball straight toward the incoming water.
BOOM!
The collision exploded violently. Shockwaves tore through the surrounding forest, snapping trees like twigs as dust filled the air.
When the smoke cleared, Raiga sneered.
"Well? Looks like you've already lost."
"Heh. Is that so?"
Akira chuckled softly.
Suddenly, crimson chakra burst to life around his body.
"You—"
Raiga's pupils shrank. The heat pouring from Akira's chakra was terrifying.
"Fire Release: Secret Art – Flame Bullet!"
Akira raised his left hand. A blazing sphere of fire condensed in his palm.
"That aura… it's…!"
Raiga's face changed drastically.
That power surpassed even Kage level.
Had Akira already broken through that limit?
"Go."
With a flick of his finger, the blazing fire sphere shot toward Raiga.
BOOM!
The fireball smashed into the ground. Rocks exploded outward as smoke and debris surged everywhere.
"Cough! Cough!"
Raiga clutched his chest. A metallic taste filled his throat as he spat out two mouthfuls of blood.
Struggling, he raised his head.
Akira stood there, looking down at him with pity.
"Don't underestimate me!!"
Raiga roared, his entire body shining with blinding light.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bead Technique!"
Rumbling sand surged upward from underground, forming a massive sandstorm.
"You forced my hand!"
Raiga thrust both hands forward. The sand pouring from his palms began to merge together.
"What kind of technique is this?"
Even Akira looked surprised.
"Sand Waterfall Technique!"
Raiga threw a punch. A massive torrent of wind and sand surged forward like a collapsing desert, roaring toward Akira.
"Hmph!"
Akira snorted.
A powerful gust suddenly erupted around him.
The wind scattered the sandstorm and twisted into several massive spiraling currents. The currents wrapped together, forming a colossal tornado that slammed straight into Raiga's Sand Waterfall.
BOOM!
CRACK!
RUMBLE!
The shockwave shattered nearby trees. Raiga's face went pale as the force rattled through his body, making his bones feel like they were about to break apart.
"That bastard…"
Raiga growled through gritted teeth.
Although the Sand Waterfall had been stopped, the recoil alone nearly tore his body apart.
If this mission failed, his life would be in danger. Even if he survived and returned, he would lose everything.
"I won't allow that! I'm the genius of the Kurosuki clan!"
"Wood Release: Wood Clone Technique!"
Raiga shouted.
The sand in front of him suddenly reshaped itself into two clones identical to him.
"My illusion clones have Kage-level combat strength!"
Hope filled his voice.
But the next moment, he froze.
Because as soon as the two clones approached Akira, they didn't even last three seconds before vanishing completely.
"Impossible!"
Raiga's eyes widened in disbelief.
"What, still not done?"
Akira said coldly. His patience had already run out.
The next instant, Akira's real body suddenly appeared beside Raiga.
He stepped down hard on Raiga's stomach, pinning him to the ground.
"How… is that possible…?"
Raiga couldn't understand. Akira had been far away just moments ago.
Akira smirked.
"Phantom clones, huh?"
His eyes flicked toward a towering tree nearby.
"Then your real body should be hiding up there."
With that, Akira kicked Raiga violently, sending him flying over a hundred meters away.
"Pffft!!"
"AAAH!!"
Raiga let out a miserable scream as a mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips. His body collapsed forward, face-first onto the ground.
"Your illusion clones are pretty tough,"Akira said with a faint smile as he looked down at the pale-faced Raiga sprawled on the floor. He stepped closer.
"W-What are you trying to do?!"
Panic filled Raiga's voice. The pressure coming from Akira felt incredibly dangerous. Deep down, he already knew the truth: he was no match for him.
"Kill you. Then keep moving."
Akira said it as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
"No… don't!!"
"I won't accept this!"
Boom!
In the next instant, Akira's palm pressed down on Raiga's head.
The fight ended just like that. Raiga died effortlessly beneath Akira's hand, exactly as Akira had expected.
Without another glance, he continued forward.
Before long, he encountered another member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen—Suikazan Fuguki.
"Well, this is interesting. You actually made it this far," Fuguki sneered. "But your luck ends here."
His hands flashed through a series of seals.
"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"
A high-pressure stream of water shot straight toward Akira.
Akira snorted coldly and slammed his right foot against the ground. Cracks instantly spread across the floor.
He leapt into the air, dodging the attack with ease, his body suspended midair.
"Kid, you're pretty capable," Fuguki said with a cruel grin. "But so what? You're still going to die!"
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
A savage look crossed Fuguki's face as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Then torrents of water surged in from all directions. The flood wrapped around Akira like a prison, locking his body in place. He couldn't move. He could barely even breathe.
That's some serious power, Akira thought as he stared up at the ceiling.
Didn't expect to run into an opponent like this.
Even so, he wasn't panicking.
"For someone like you, I normally wouldn't even bother using Susanoo's chakra… but I guess I'll make an exception."
The moment he finished speaking, Akira vanished.
The next instant, he appeared behind Fuguki.
"Water Release: Chidori Sharp Spear!"
Chakra erupted from his body like a storm, splitting into countless needle-like spikes that shot toward Fuguki.
"Damn it!"
Fuguki felt his body being torn apart by the assault and hurriedly spun around to counter.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
A massive fireball burst from his mouth and slammed into Akira's water attack. Fire and water collided, canceling each other out.
Even so, the backlash sent Fuguki stumbling backward more than ten meters.
"Damn it!"
He cursed viciously, eyes blazing.
"If that's how it's going to be… then die!"
Fuguki clapped his hands together as chakra gathered wildly between them. A glowing blue sphere quickly formed.
Akira's expression turned serious.
He recognized the technique immediately.
"Just as expected… the son of the Fifth Raikage really does have impressive strength."
"Water Release: Giant Rasengan!"
Without hesitation, Fuguki hurled the massive Rasengan toward him.
Akira's pupils shrank. His hands flashed through seals as water surged around him.
"Water Release: Super Heavy Water Prison!"
The massive sphere was trapped inside the dense water barrier.
But the shockwave from the Giant Rasengan still exploded outward, blasting Akira off his feet and slamming him to the ground.
Fuguki's cold face slowly broke into a grin.
"Haha. Looks like that's the limit of your strength."
"Oh? And who told you that?"
Akira suddenly let out a cold laugh.
His body slowly began to float upward, his feet lifting several inches off the ground.
"What?!"
Fuguki's eyes widened in disbelief.
He had never seen anything like this before.
What the hell is this guy… some kind of monster?
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
An enormous surge of water rushed toward Fuguki.
"Water Release: Defensive Formation!"
Fuguki unleashed his strongest defensive technique, forming a barrier that blocked the incoming flood.
"If that's all you've got," Akira said with a smirk, "you won't survive my next attack."
His hands formed seals again. His knees bent slightly before he kicked off the ground.
A terrifying storm erupted inside the water prison.
The thick water walls shattered apart under the force, and the violent current sent Fuguki flying through the air.
Boom!
Fuguki slammed into the ground in a miserable heap, barely avoiding being knocked unconscious.
He struggled to his feet, roaring furiously.
"You bastard! What gives you the right to fight me like this?!"
He simply couldn't accept the reality that Akira might actually be stronger.
"Hmph. Still refusing to accept it? That's just how fate works."
Akira's eyes shifted into a strange red-and-white pattern.
He reached toward his left chest.
Crack.
A ring dropped to the ground.
In its place, a long sword appeared in Akiras hand, its blade gleaming with a chilling murderous aura.
"This weapon," Akira said calmly, "is called the Kusanagi Sword."
"It was once the most powerful treasure of Konoha."
Fuguki's entire body trembled when he heard that.
He never expected Akira to possess such a terrifying weapon.
No… I can't lose!
I'm the pride of the Mist Ninja! I won't let trash like him stand above me!
Fuguki clenched his fists. His arms swelled as muscles bulged beneath his skin.
"Earth Release: Rock Spear Technique!"
His hands flashed through seals. Sharp stone spears erupted from the ground, piercing upward as they rapidly formed.
"Water Release: Super Heavy Water Prison!"
Walls of water rose up, blocking the incoming attack.
"Hah! Useless!"
Fuguki waved his hand, and the rock spears drilled through the water barrier, breaking through the flow as they shot forward.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
Akira opened his mouth and unleashed a massive wave of flames.
Fuguki's pupils shrank.
"Not good!"
He instantly leapt away to avoid the attack.
Boom!!
The entire water prison exploded apart as the flames tore through it. Countless droplets of water rained down everywhere.
"Cough… cough…"
Akira coughed violently, pain flashing across his face.
That last fire attack had completely drained the chakra in his body.
He wiped the blood from his lips and looked up at Fuguki.
"Didn't expect such a small water prison to drain so much chakra… but this still isn't enough!"
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
A massive water dragon surged forward, roaring as it lunged toward Fuguki.
Fuguki's face twisted with ferocity.
"You think that's enough to beat me?! Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
The two gigantic techniques collided violently.
In the end, the earth dragon shattered, and the massive flood swallowed the entire arena, engulfing both fighters.
"...That should be the end of it, right?"
Up in the viewing stands, Shikaku muttered quietly. His plan had already failed, so there was no reason for him to stay.
"Hm?"
He suddenly stood up in confusion.
In the middle of the raging water, a figure in black slowly emerged, his head breaking through the surface. His clothes were soaked and messy.
The man clenched his fist… then relaxed it.
"Phew… finally finished."
Akira wiped the sweat from his forehead.
This was a new technique he had developed recently.
And its power was terrifying.
"..."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________