The forest smelled like burnt bark and iron.
Izumi lay on her side, fingers digging into damp soil. Her lips were split. Lightning residue still crawled across her nerves like insects under skin.
She could barely breathe.
Four seconds.
That was all she had managed.
Four seconds of contact.
It wasn't enough to drain his chakra.
But it had been enough to touch something deeper.
She closed her eyes.
Focused.
Extended her newly awakened sensory perception.
The Cloud shinobi was retreating.
Fast.
Controlled.
But something was wrong.
His chakra was steady.
Strong.
Yet beneath it—
His life force felt… thinner.
Dimmed.
Not depleted.
But shortened.
Like a candle whose wick had suddenly been cut.
Her pupils narrowed.
So that was the true nature of her ability.
Not just chakra.
Time.
Zack's voice trembled inside her.
He's still alive. He's stronger than you. We need to run.
"No."
Her voice came out as a cracked whisper.
"If he reports… we die."
If the Hidden Cloud learned of her—
They would capture her.
If the Leaf learned of her—
They would dissect her.
Danzo.
ANBU.
Hiruzen.
No one would allow a child who could erase lifespan to exist freely.
The decision crystallized instantly.
He could not leave this forest alive.
She pushed herself up.
Pain shot through her leg.
She nearly collapsed again.
Lightning damage had burned deep muscle tissue.
Her right arm hung weakly.
Likely fractured.
Internal bruising.
Chakra unstable.
And yet—
She moved.
Slow.
Silent.
Tracking him through sensory feedback.
The Cloud shinobi had stopped roughly two hundred meters away.
Resting against a tree.
His breathing was heavier now.
He touched his chest briefly.
Confused.
He could feel it too.
Something was wrong.
He examined his palm.
Small tremors.
Subtle.
But there.
"I was fine…" he muttered to himself.
He tried to regulate his breathing.
Tried to stabilize chakra flow.
But stamina felt… reduced.
Like he hadn't slept for days.
He didn't understand.
He thought perhaps the clash had destabilized something.
He did not realize—
Ten years had just been removed from his future.
Behind him—
A branch snapped softly.
His head turned instantly.
She stepped out from the trees.
Bleeding.
Half-limping.
Face pale.
Yet walking toward him.
His eyes widened slightly.
"You're persistent."
She didn't answer.
Her breathing was ragged.
Each step hurt.
But her gaze was steady.
He studied her carefully now.
No underestimation this time.
"You should have run."
Lightning gathered faintly around his fingertips.
She stopped ten meters away.
Calculated distance.
Calculated speed.
Calculated death probability.
High.
Extremely high.
But she had no alternative.
"If you leave this forest," she said quietly, "I die."
He tilted his head.
"Of course you do."
His smile was gone now.
Cold professionalism remained.
"You're an anomaly."
"And my village values anomalies."
So it was true.
He would take her.
Dead or alive.
The wind shifted.
Leaves rustled.
And in the silence between heartbeats—
They moved.
He vanished first.
Still too fast.
Pain exploded in her abdomen.
His knee struck her stomach, launching her backward.
She hit the ground hard.
Before she could recover—
His heel came down toward her skull.
She rolled at the last second.
The impact cratered dirt beside her head.
He was still far stronger.
Even weakened.
Even shortened.
Experience filled the gap.
She forced herself upright.
Blood ran down her chin.
"You shouldn't have come back," he said calmly.
She didn't answer.
She rushed forward instead.
Not to win.
To close distance.
He met her halfway.
Palm strike.
Her shoulder dislocated with a sickening pop.
White flashed across her vision.
She bit her tongue to avoid screaming.
He grabbed her throat again—
But this time she slammed her forehead into his face.
He staggered half a step.
That half-step saved her life.
She tore free.
Barely.
But the gap in power remained overwhelming.
This wasn't a duel.
It was survival against extinction.
End of Chapter 5.