Hey lads!
It's been a while, more than a month since my last update.
But don't worry, as you can obviously tell, I'm back and with another chapter for your viewing eyes!
Now let's begin, shall we.
Start:
The last clone of Naruto burst into golden flames, disintegrating into nothingness under the crackling surge of demonic power. Lord Furcas stood panting, his eyes wild and furious, dark energy still crackling around his hands.
His crimson gaze flickered over the dissipating embers before landing on the real Naruto, who had appeared just a few paces away, calm and unfazed.
"Well," Naruto drawled, crossing his arms with a hint of a smirk. "Guess that was the last one. Took you long enough."
Lord Furcas stiffened, his jaw clenched, and his face twisted in a vicious snarl. "You… How dare you make a fool of me! You think clones and tricks can stand against me?!"
"Not really, no. it was more of giving me time to test your peerage, judge their competency, stuff like that." was the casual reply he received.
The older devil's aura then flared violently, shadows crackling around his form like living snakes. "You little insect…! You think you're clever? My peerage may have failed, but they must have worn you down by now. You're nothing more than a stubborn pest delaying the inevitable."
"Worn me down?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, giving him a dry look. "You really think your minions could even scratch me? Hate to break it to you, but I'm just fine. Maybe you're the one who's tired."
A lilting, seductive laugh cut through the air, and Rizena, the name of Lord Furcas's queen, sauntered forward, a sultry smile gracing her flawless face. Her long, black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her smokey blue eyes glittered with mischief. She was a beauty, Naruto had no problem admitting that much.
And she was quite seductive as Naruto watched as she trailed a finger along Furcas's arm. "Careful, my lord. You're letting him get under your skin. I have to admit, though…" She cast a heated glance at Naruto, her lips curving into a wicked smile. "There's something about him that's… thrilling."
Furcas grunted in irritation, brushing her hand off as he glared daggers at Naruto, a hint of jealousy present in his gaze. "Tch. You think he's worth your attention? He's just a cocky brat who's about to be crushed."
Unbothered and feeling a bit cocky, Naruto smirked. "Maybe you should listen to your Queen. Sounds like she's already decided who's more interesting."
Rizena laughed again, her gaze never leaving Naruto as her eyes roamed over his figure. "Bold. I like that. But I'm loyal to my lord, darling. Shame, really."
"Yeah, tragic," Naruto replied dryly. "But, you know… I'm not interested in picking up someone else's leftovers."
An insult that many woman would not take lying down, but her…
Rizena's grin only widened, clearly amused rather than offended. Furcas's face, however, darkened dangerously, veins throbbing on his forehead. "You cocky little shit!" he barked. "You think your impressive? You're nothing compared to me! I'll make you beg for mercy!"
Naruto yawned. "Blah, blah, blah. Talk's cheap. You done ranting?"
What exactly compelled the blonde to be so disrespectful? Not even he himself knew.
It was just one of those cases where one woke up in the morning and decided they wanted violence to be the answer, or in his case, to be as much of an annoying bastard as possible.
And truthfully, it was kinda fun.
Furcas sneered, his lips curling into a cruel grin. "Oh, I'm just getting started. And when I'm through with you, that little coward Yukino will be next. She'll learn what happens when my tools fail me. I'll make sure she—"
The air turned ice cold.
Naruto's smirk vanished, replaced by a deadly, piercing stare that made even Rizena's flirty smile falter. "Say that again," he whispered, his tone like a frozen blade.
Furcas faltered for a fraction of a second, but his pride wouldn't allow him to back down. "That pathetic girl dared to disobey me. I'll teach her obedience once I've finished tearing you apart!"
Naruto's voice was calm—too calm. "She's not your tool. Not anymore."
Rizena's eyes flicked back to Naruto, intrigued despite herself. "Oh my… How protective."
After learning what she had went through, it was only natural that Naruto feel that way. And even prior to his life as Naruto Uzumaki, he was always the kind of devil who wouldn't hesitate to help and protect the innocent if he could.
That was something about him that hadn't changed regardless of how many years and what kind of circumstances.
If he can protect an innocent person, he most certainly will.
And Yukino was no exception to that. and having lost the mood to converse, Naruto readied himself for a fight.
Incidentally, it seemed like the older devil tired of conversation too.
Furcas let out a vicious roar, his power exploding outward in a torrent of shadowy flames. Rizena stepped back, lips parting in a mixture of admiration and caution as her master's power tore at the ground. She glanced at Naruto one more time, her coy smile resurfacing. "I wonder… can you really back up all that confidence, golden boy?"
Naruto didn't answer. His expression was resolute, calm, and razor-sharp, his gaze fixed solely on Furcas.
He took a few seconds to contemplate, then finally, he spoke.
"Well," Naruto mused, rolling his shoulders as if bored, "it wouldn't be fair to go all out right from the start."
Confused, Lord Furcas sneered, barely containing his rage. "What nonsense are you spewing now, brat?"
Naruto lifted one hand lazily, a flicker of golden flame dancing at his fingertips. "I'm saying I'll hold back. No fun in ending this too quickly."
Lord Furcas' lips curled into a snarl. "You arrogant little—"
Before he could finish, Naruto's hands glowed faintly, shimmering with golden energy. He clenched his fists, and the aura surrounding him abruptly dimmed, becoming noticeably subdued.
"Three-fourths," Naruto said casually, almost as if talking to himself. "Sealing 75% of my physical abilities, magic, and endurance."
He allowed the air to settle before quirking a brow. "There. That should be enough to make this at least a little interesting."
Lord Furcas' eyes widened in disbelief before they hardened into a furious glare. "You… You think you can defeat me while holding back?!"
Naruto gave a lazy shrug. "If I'm wrong, you'll just prove it, right?"
Furcas took a step forward, veins bulging in his forehead, but Rizena placed a delicate hand on his arm, her voice lilting and soft. "Calm yourself, my lord." She leaned close, her lips brushing against his ear as she whispered something inaudible, her fingers trailing seductively over his arm. Furcas exhaled sharply, his rage briefly tempered.
She stepped away, if only barely, and a few seconds passed before Lord Furcas barked a harsh laugh, brandishing a massive glaive that materialized in his hand. Its jagged blade pulsed with dark, sinister energy, and shadows coiled around it like living serpents. "Fine then, whelp. Let's see if your arrogance holds up against this!"
Without warning, Furcas exploded forward, glaive in hand, the blade wreathed in shadow fire. He slashed horizontally with brutal force, aiming to cleave Naruto in half. Naruto barely moved, just enough to let the deadly arc pass inches from his torso. Furcas followed up with a downward smash that cratered the ground, black fire spreading like a spiderweb.
Naruto blurred behind him, fists igniting with golden flames as he drove a punch toward Furcas's spine. Furcas spun, blocking with the shaft of his glaive, but the impact sent him skidding backward, his boots digging furrows into the earth.
Rizena materialized to his side, daggers gleaming like twin icicles. She launched herself at Naruto, slashing at his neck and chest with fluid precision, each swipe leaving trails of frost in the air. Naruto met her speed with his own, weaving through her attacks effortlessly.
She flipped backward, conjuring a wave of crystalline ice spikes that surged toward him like a tidal wave.
But not one to get caught up in such an attack, Naruto thrust his palm forward, a golden inferno bursting from his hand to meet the ice. The elements clashed violently, the resulting shockwave flattening the ground around them. Rizena spun out of the blast radius, her lips curved into a sultry smile.
She was having fun, too bad for her handsome opponent that she was just a distraction.
Shadows spewed from his body like an unholy torrent, coiling into massive tendrils that lashed out in every direction. They snaked through the air, attempting to ensnare Naruto from every angle.
Naruto countered with blinding speed, flickering between the tendrils and smashing them apart with precise, flame-coated strikes. One caught his leg, tightening like a vice, but he melted it away with a burst of fire, only for Furcas to lunge in with a glaive spinning in a deadly cyclone of shadows and steel.
Oh uh.
The blonde immediately jumped leapt away, only for Ice to come from behind him in a volley meant to pin him in place.
Tsking, Naruto stopped immediately, heat flaring from behind his back as he allowed to be shot in the direction of his six and burning Rizena's stealth attack, at the same time, he caught the polearm of the glaive with his hands twisting it to the side as Furcas pressed down, trying to crush him with sheer strength.
"Not bad," Naruto muttered, his eyes glinting with excitement. "But not enough."
He kicked off the ground, somersaulting over Furcas and using the glaive as leverage to wrench the weapon from his grip, sending it spinning through the air. Furcas didn't falter, forming a new weapon from shadow—a massive broadsword wreathed in black fire. He charged forward.
Naruto ducked under a decapitating slash, only to have Rizena rush him from behind, her daggers stabbing toward his kidneys. He flickered out of existence for a moment, reappearing a few feet away. Rizena halted, eyes wide, before Furcas attacked again from out of nowhere, sweeping his sword in a brutal arc.
Sidestepping and allowing the blade to pass by him harmlessly, Naruto repaid his near death experience by slamming his fist, in the form of a hook, right into Furcas's gut with the force of a cannon. Furcas spat blood, crumpling backward as the impact sent him skidding far back across the ground.
But Naruto wasn't done, just after his punch, he spun, backhanding the dagger that came close to stabbing his back courtesy of Rizena, and following his momentum, he nailed the side of her face with a brutal right hook, before he followed it up with a left hook to the other side of her face, pretty much smacking her around with devastating power.
And just as he finished with his second hook, he spun, throwing a spinning side kick that connected painfully with her chest and sent her away.
But proving she wasn't a queen just for her good looks, Rizena managed to conjure a huge barrage of ice lances that rained down on Naruto like deadly comets even as she was sent flying back before maneuvering mid air to land and skid on her feet.
He darted through them, leaving afterimages as he closed the distance, but Furcas intercepted just as the blonde aimed to put her out of commission, forming a massive scythe wreathed in darkness and swinging it in a wide arc.
Naruto leapt over the blade, and while airborne, fired a concentrated beam of golden fire at Furcas's face. Furcas conjured a dome of shadows that absorbed the attack, and Rizena seized the moment to release a freezing mist, enveloping Naruto's form.
The mist solidified into thick ice, trapping Naruto inside. Rizena's smile was triumphant, but it lasted barely a second before cracks spiderwebbed across the ice, and it shattered in an eruption of fire and steam. Naruto's gaze remained unwavering, his eyes glinting with interest and a hint of respect.
"Gotta admit," he said, rolling his shoulders. "You're not bad when you put in the effort."
Furcas snarled and raised his hands to the sky, shadows pooling into a colossal sphere overhead, pulsing with chaotic energy. Rizena mirrored him, gathering ice and lightning into twin orbs that crackled with deadly power.
They unleashed the combined onslaught—a tempest of black flames and frozen thunder—crashing toward Naruto like a divine judgment. Naruto braced himself, his own power surging as golden flames erupted around him.
The opposing forces collided, igniting the battlefield in a deafening explosion that obliterated the landscape for miles. The shockwave uprooted boulders and tore massive fissures through the ground, the sheer impact rattling the heavens.
As the smoke cleared, Naruto stood unfazed, his cloak singed and eyes glinting with excitement. Furcas and Rizena stood a distance away
While it was true that he was holding back massively, no thanks to those seals he put on himself, but despite that, Naruto could acknowledge that at the very least the pair he was facing were powerful and in a few leagues above their dead peerage or in the queen's case, her fellow members.
Strong they were and the shinobi was actually enjoying himself.
Although… now was probably a bad time to be lost in thought. And that was made abundantly clear with what happened next.
Without a word, Furcas summoned a towering wall of shadows that shot forward like a tsunami, crashing across the ground and warping everything in its path. Naruto leapt into the air, but Rizena was already on him, launching a barrage of freezing icicles from above. The crystalline spikes glinted ominously in the dim light as they closed in on him from all angles.
Impressive, and if not for the fact that he was immensely capable, they certainly would have skewered him, but he was immensely capable, and as such, Naruto twisted midair, spinning through the frozen barrage with blinding speed, his golden flames incinerating any shard that came close.
He hit the ground, swiftly flickering out of existence just as Furcas appeared, glaive already swinging with destructive force. The blade cleaved through the air where Naruto had been, slicing apart the stone ground with ease.
Furcas snarled, pivoting to spot Naruto reappear several meters away. Shadows coiled around his arms like living serpents, and with a vicious snarl, he hurled them like spears. The air warped and cracked as the deadly tendrils raced forward, splitting into dozens of needle-like projectiles.
Naruto didn't dodge. Instead, he clenched his fists, flames condensing tightly around them, and punched forward. The impact of his strike unleashed a blazing shockwave, disintegrating the shadow spears in an instant and scorching the ground black. But Furcas didn't stop, already moving again, forming more tendrils to pursue Naruto with relentless speed.
The shinobi weaved through them effortlessly, moving like liquid fire as he ducked, spun, and parried the lethal tendrils with precision. At the same time, Rizena positioned herself at a distance, lightning arcing between her fingers. She raised her hands high, conjuring a sphere of condensed ice that sparked with electricity, and sent it hurtling at Naruto.
He saw it coming and instantly formed a barrier of golden fire. The frozen orb smashed against the barrier, detonating in an explosion of ice shards and crackling electricity. Lightning bolts surged out, branching like veins, and shattered the ground where they struck, creating craters and jagged fissures.
Naruto barely moved in time to evade the lethal arcs, but just as he landed, Furcas appeared at his back, massive shadow axe raised high. The weapon crashed down with a sound like thunder, and Naruto crossed his arms to block, his flames pushing against the suffocating darkness. The ground shattered under his feet from the force, and Naruto felt the bite of shadow energy gnawing at his defense.
With a defiant snarl, Naruto pushed back, his flames igniting in a brilliant flash that burned through the shadows and sent Furcas flying backward. Rizena took the opportunity, having circled behind him, and threw both daggers forward, each one spiraling with concentrated ice energy. Naruto twisted his body to avoid the first, but the second clipped his shoulder, a thin layer of frost forming on his cloak.
Ouch…
That genuinely hurt.
Basking at her achievement, Rizena grinned, but being smart enough to obviously recognize that the battle was far from done, she spread her arms wide, and from the ground erupted massive crystalline ice structures, jagged and viciously sharp. The frozen spires surrounded Naruto from every angle, and with a flick of her wrist, they all converged inward, aiming to impale him from all directions.
Naruto's eyes widened in surprise, and instinct took over as golden flames burst from his body in a towering pillar, vaporizing the ice in an instant, steam rising from the ground in chaotic swirls. Furcas took advantage, appearing through the mist with a broad shadow blade, swinging with brutal, unrestrained force. Naruto blocked the blade with his forearm, but the sheer power behind the strike made him skid backward.
With relentless determination, Furcas pressed the attack, his movements wild but calculated. Shadow claws erupted from his fingers, tearing through the air with precision, while his glaive shifted in shape—becoming a wicked scythe that arced with dark energy. He spun it with deadly grace, aiming to decapitate Naruto in a single swing.
Naruto caught the scythe between his palms.
And as can be expected, Furcas sneered and twisted the weapon, sending a surge of shadow energy coursing through the blade. The blast forced Naruto to jump back, barely avoiding a follow-up slash that cleaved a trench into the earth he had been formerly standing in.
Rizena appeared at Furcas's side, summoning a gigantic serpent of ice that coiled around her body before lunging at Naruto with a thunderous roar. As it neared him, the serpent shattered into thousands of razor-sharp shards, each one whistling through the air like a hailstorm of death.
'What is with you two and summoning serpents?' Naruto couldn't help wonder internally, responding to the immediate threat on his person as he formed a sphere of compressed fire before releasing it in a shockwave.
The fireball exploded outward, scorching the ice shards and blasting them to vapor. But Rizena was already launching her next attack—an array of ice lances charged with blue electricity, each one deadly enough to pierce through steel.
Strangely enough, Furcas didn't wait for the ice lances to land, charging at Naruto from the opposite side much to the shinobi's confusion as he paid attention to his rapidly closing appearance and the ice lances coming his way.
The glaive was replaced with a pair of shadow gauntlets, pulsating with dark flames as Furcas, now in Naruto's personal space, threw rapid, punishing punches. Naruto blocked and parried, meeting each strike with a fiery counter.
At the same time…
Rizena's ice lances smashed into the ground around them, detonating in electric blasts that sent arcs of lightning skittering across the battlefield. Naruto had to dodge mid-combat, narrowly avoiding both Furcas's fists and the explosive ice lances, moving with fluid grace between each lethal blow.
Furcas threw a punch aimed at Naruto's face, but Naruto ducked under it, landing a brutal palm strike to Furcas's sternum that cracked armor and sent him flying. Rizena used the opening, rushing in with her daggers flashing with blue sparks. Naruto swiveled on his heel, blocking the first dagger with his palm and catching her wrist to stop the second.
With his grip on her hand, he immediately flung her away and with such strength that she was tossed on the other side of the battlefield, leaving him and her master to be the only two in the battle sight, and grabbing the dagger that she dropped as she was tossed away, Naruto, in that same motion, hurled the weapon at the charging Furcas, forcing the devil to block it with his gauntlets.
Now once more in his personal space, the two male devils exchanged hand to hand combat.
And immediately it was made clear who was the superior as Naruto weaved and dodged, blocked and redirected. Anything that the older devil threw was defended against with ease much to said devil's frustration.
Worse, as Naruto slipped past a cross, he finally began to go on the offensive as he responded with a punishing brutal attacks of his own that connected. Cross, rear kick,, elbow to the side of the temple, a knee to the nose…
With each second, any and all witnesses could only feel pity as Lord Furcas was getting brutally clobbered with, and Naruto wasn't done as he then threw a four punch combo, three to the guts and side, with his last punch being an uppercut that sent Lord Furcas's sight up high as his head was violently tipped back.
The sheer force of Naruto's uppercut actually caused Lord Furcas's feet to leave the ground and be several feet up in the air, but Naruto wasn't done.
In the last split-second, he grabbed the insufferable devil's ankle just as he was about to get hurled away from that brutal uppercut, with Naruto pivoting and whirling around while swinging him overhead, before he began to slam Furcas on the ground painfully only to bring him back up and swing him overhead but this time from the other side.
And Naruto slammed Furcas on the floor once more, then again, and again, and again. Repeatedly forming craters as he did so with each attempt.
Only after the seventh or eighth slam, did Naruto finally have mercy as he flung Lord Furcas away, with said Lord righting himself in the air so he could be on his feet, panting and wheezing as pain flared from every nerve in his body.
Especially from his front and back area.
"You Fucking animal." Lord Furcas growled hatefully. "How dare you do this to me!?"
Naruto scoffed. "As if you wouldn't do the same to me if I wasn't stronger against you. although…" a contemplative expression crossed his visage before he shrugged. "I guess I can be nice and wai-" He suddenly tilted his head to the side as a jagged spear shot forward from behind, passing by him before he glanced over his shoulder.
"Nice of you to come join us again."
A teasing smirk was tugging at the end of Rizena's lips who looked a bit worse for the wear after everything he had dished out towards her. "I couldn't just leave you boys alone, especially since you play so rough~"
Naruto couldn't help but chuckle lightly. "I see, but in my defen-" sadly the blonde could not finish his sentence as waves of shadowy tendrils erupted from the ground, with Naruto immediately leaping upwards high up in the air while allowing flames to shoot from his feet.
Would it kill for the guy to have some manners and allow them to have a conversation in peace? Naruto couldn't help but wonder as he eyed the older male devil with annoyance.
Taking swift advantage, Rizena reacted immediately, forming a gigantic ice mirror overhead and reflecting Naruto's image through it. Suddenly, copies of Rizena emerged from the reflective surface, all holding daggers coated with lightning, and they surged toward Naruto from every angle.
He narrowed his eyes, spinning midair and igniting his entire body with golden fire, creating a spiraling inferno that consumed the illusions instantly. The real Rizena dropped from the sky, blade raised high, but Naruto caught her by the throat mid-descent, holding her effortlessly as she struggled.
Furcas roared and formed a titanic spear of pure shadow, throwing it with unyielding fury. Naruto tossed Rizena aside and punched the spear head-on, shattering it into fragments that rained down like burning ash. Furcas charged through the chaos, meeting Naruto with a ferocious brawl, exchanging blows once more despite the previous time's painful conclusion.
Just like last time, the difference in skill was made clear, but unlike last time, Naruto ended it quick due to Furcas's queen being in close vicinity, as he grabbed Furcas by the throat and slamming him into the ground with a devastating explosion of fire.
Before he could follow up, ice chains erupted from the ground, wrapping around his limbs, restricting his movements all the while Naruto's eyes widened in surprise before they landed swiftly on the one responsible, a panting Rizena who stood a bit of a distance away with a triumphant grin.
And taking advantage of that, a powerful and admittedly painful two legged kick connected with Naruto's chest, courtesy of the downed Lord Furcas, sending Naruto skidding back on the ground while Lord Furcas quickly got on his feet once more.
Grunting in annoyance and partly in pain from that last attack, Naruto melted the chains off him, glaring at the king and queen pair who now stood next to one another.
Seconds passed, long and tense as the combatants eyed one another.
Then…
"Not bad." Naruto admitted, a hint of respect in his voice. "While it is true that I'm holding back a lot. You've both fought very well. I can't deny that. and your teamwork is very respectable."
He held no love for Lord Furcas, but even he had to admit that he and his queen were a powerful pair who were proving to be quite a challenge in his current state.
"Save your flattery." Lord Furcas snarled.
Naruto's brow twitched, he chose to be respectful for once to this fossil of a devil and this was the response?
Heedless of his opponent's agitated mental state, Furcas gathered his power in a swirling vortex of darkness around his body. Shadows writhed like living tendrils, and with a violent surge, they shot into the sky, forming a monstrous black storm overhead. The air grew thick with oppressive energy, and the ground quaked as the massive shadow cloud began to rain down spears of darkness, each one capable of piercing through steel and shattering stone.
Naruto's eyes narrowed, Golden flames ignited around his body before erupting into a towering inferno that spiraled into the sky like a blazing tornado.
The two opposing forces clashed mid-air, shadow spears disintegrating on contact with the scorching flames, but for every spear incinerated, more replaced them, relentless in their assault.
Fine… if that's how he wanted to play…
The shinobi then vanished from the ground, appearing high above the chaotic battleground. With a swift motion, he swung his arm forward, releasing hundreds of compressed fireballs that rained down in a blazing hailstorm, colliding with the shadow spears and exploding in fiery bursts that turned the sky into a hellscape of golden and black.
Furcas gritted his teeth, forming dozens of shadowy portals around Naruto's position, each one firing massive beams of concentrated dark energy. Naruto twisted through the onslaught with unparalleled agility, dodging some blasts while slamming his palms against others, detonating them in mid-air with controlled bursts of fire.
Suddenly, Rizena appeared beneath him, her hands outstretched as a colossal ice lotus bloomed at his feet, spikes shooting upward with blinding speed. Naruto flipped backward, dodging the frost flowers, but Rizena was relentless.
She clenched her fists, and the frozen blooms shattered, sending ice shards racing through the sky like shrapnel. Each shard crackled with blue lightning, arcing dangerously through the air.
Naruto summoned a wall of fire, the golden barrier melting the ice projectiles instantly, but the lightning twisted around the flames, striking at him with lethal precision. One bolt grazed his shoulder, tearing through his cloak and burning his skin. He barely had time to recover when Furcas barreled in from the side, wielding twin shadow blades that cut through the air with vicious speed.
Naruto parried the first slash with a forearm, flames igniting around his wrist to burn away the shadow energy, but the second blade cut through his side, dark tendrils burrowing into his flesh and trying to consume his essence.
Snarling, Naruto unleashed a pulse of golden energy that forced the tendrils out, scorching the wound closed in an instant.
Furcas didn't relent, raising his hand and conjuring a dome of absolute darkness around Naruto, compressing it rapidly. Naruto felt the crushing pressure, but he didn't falter. Instead, he clenched his fist and slammed it downward, his fire detonating in a concentrated sphere that shattered the dome from within, sending burning fragments scattering in every direction.
The ground below had been reduced to a molten wasteland, but Rizena was unfazed. She floated high above, gathering power in both hands, her eyes glowing with malevolent intent. Lightning crackled and danced along her arms as she summoned a massive storm cloud, black as night, which rumbled ominously.
With a flick of her wrists, a torrent of colossal lightning bolts descended, each one aimed at Naruto. The sky lit up with blinding arcs of electricity, and Naruto planted his feet, pushing his flames to the limit. A massive, spiraling inferno erupted around him, forming a barrier that absorbed the lightning, dispersing the lethal energy harmlessly into the ground.
Seriously, what was with all these magical attacks?
Unfortunately for the blonde, Rizena wasn't finished.
She pointed at the blazing tornado, and the storm cloud itself descended, merging with her own energy and forming a titanic serpent made of pure electricity and frost. The serpent lunged at Naruto, its massive fangs snapping at his head. Naruto clenched his fist, flames condensing into a dense sphere that he thrust forward.
The serpent clamped its jaws around the fireball, and for a split second, the world seemed to freeze.
Then it exploded.
A blinding burst of light consumed the battlefield, sending a shockwave ripping through the landscape and obliterating everything within a mile. Furcas shielded himself with a wall of shadows, gritting his teeth against the force, while Rizena fell back, her creation vaporized in the blast.
Naruto landed amidst the chaos, unscathed, his gaze locked on the recovering pair. Furcas growled, blood trickling from his lips, but his aura burned even darker, a vortex of void energy spiraling around him. Rizena regrouped at his side, her breath heavy but eyes still alight with manic determination.
In perfect synchronization, they unleashed their ultimate combination attack. Furcas channeled every ounce of his shadow energy into a single point, forming a sphere of pure destruction that pulsed with malignant power. Simultaneously, Rizena created an ice formation that encased the sphere, amplifying and containing its unstable power.
They launched it together—a colossal orb of darkness, encased in freezing ice, crackling with arcs of electricity. It tore through the air like a meteor, obliterating everything in its path. Naruto narrowed his eyes, gathering golden fire into both hands before slamming them together, creating a blazing sphere of his own.
He hurled it forward, and the two attacks met in midair, colliding with unimaginable force. The resulting explosion shook the entire dimension, cracks forming in the sky itself as the ground was torn apart by the eruption.
As the dust and smoke cleared, Furcas staggered, his form trembling from the strain. Rizena appeared a bit of distance away from him, panting, her seductive composure shattered. But Naruto wasn't done.
At this point, enough was enough.
…
He was suddenly behind Rizena, faster than she could react. A choked gasp left her lips as she glanced down to see his arm thrust through her chest, golden flames licking at her wound.
Her body trembled, and she coughed up blood, unable to even scream. She turned her head back, her gaze locked onto his—shock, pain, and some strange glimmer of fascination mingling in her fading eyes.
"N-No…" Furcas whispered, horror etching itself into his features.
With a swift motion, Naruto pulled his arm free, and Rizena collapsed to her knees before crumpling to the ground, her once alluring features now pale and lifeless, a pool of crimson spreading beneath her.
Furcas roared, eyes wide with fury and grief, his power skyrocketing as his sanity seemed to unravel. Shadows erupted around him, forming a monstrous, writhing beast of pure malice. He no longer spoke—only screamed, an incoherent wail of rage and loss.
Naruto's expression remained impassive, his eyes cold as he watched the descent into madness. He rolled his shoulders, the golden flames wreathing his body growing even brighter.
But though his eyes were cold, somewhere deep inside, the seventh hokage realised the kind of monumental pain he had inflicted on the older devil who was losing himself to grief. And deciding to put an end to that grief, Naruto's own power surged to overwhelming proportions, immediately surpassing Lord' Furcas power in both quantity and sheer density.
Whether it was due to madness, recognizing danger, or something else, Furcas lunged forward, driven by pure fury and part desperation, his monstrous shadow beast form roaring as it surged at Naruto with lethal intent. Waves of void energy crashed toward the blonde, distorting space with their sheer density.
But Naruto didn't move—he didn't need to.
In an instant, the world erupted.
A cataclysmic explosion of golden flames burst from Naruto's body, spreading out in a colossal sphere of annihilation. The inferno surged outward with unstoppable force, engulfing the battlefield and incinerating everything in its path. The roar of the flames drowned out Furcas's final scream as his monstrous shadow form was swallowed by the apocalyptic blaze.
The shadows were torn apart, burned to nothingness, and Furcas's body was reduced to ash, his power crushed and obliterated under the sheer weight of Naruto's might.
The entire artificial dimension trembled, the sky fracturing like broken glass as the flames continued to surge and destroy absolutely everything in its path. Yet despite the sheer devastation, the blast remained controlled—its edge stopping well short of where Yukino knelt, where out of consideration for her, Naruto spared her.
But for Lord Furcas? He was long since burned away.
End.
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.
It was pretty long, but I do hope you all liked the battle.
With that, we are finally done with our first rating game for this story!
Take care lads.
Peace.