The sky above the Clover Kingdom's Royal Capital split open.
This was not a break in the clouds or a sign of a storm. A pitch-black rift tore across the heavens like a wound carved open by an invisible blade, its edges crackling with ominous purple-black lightning. Sunlight was swallowed whole, and the day dimmed into an unnatural twilight, as if time itself was being drained.
Even worse, mana began to disappear.
Mages across the city froze in horror as their spells failed. Magic items dimmed, losing all luster. Even the simplest light spells refused to activate. Water stopped flowing, wind ceased moving, and the earth itself felt lifeless. The entire Royal Capital became a hollow shell, stripped of its soul.
"This is a mana vacuum!" Noelle Silva stood atop a tower, staring at the rift, her voice trembling. "That is impossible. The mana network of the entire world is being forcibly cut off!"
At the highest point of the city wall, Cedric stood still, his Rinnegan piercing through the sky and locking onto the rift. To him, it was not just a tear in space. It was an anchor, a gateway leading into endless darkness.
And something was coming through it.
"It is Shadow," Cedric said quietly, his voice cold and steady. "He found me."
Asta leaped up beside him, twin swords drawn, Anti-Magic crackling along their edges. "Then let him come! I want to see how strong this bastard hiding in the dark really is!"
Before he could finish, a massive purple-black beam of light crashed down from the rift, striking the Royal Capital's central plaza. The ground shattered, debris flew, and from the impact point, a figure slowly emerged.
It was humanoid, yet made entirely of shadows. Its form flickered and distorted, radiating overwhelming pressure. Its eyes resembled swirling voids, as if they could devour everything.
He had no true name.
He was Shadow, a scavenger of the Ōtsutsuki Clan, created to erase abnormal existences.
"Cedric Reinhart." Shadow's voice echoed like countless whispers layered together. "The Core of Origin within your body belongs to the Ōtsutsuki Clan. You stole a divine object. Your crime is unforgivable."
Cedric let out a cold laugh. "Divine? You Ōtsutsuki are nothing more than parasites. This world's power never belonged to you."
"Ignorant." Shadow raised his hand, forming a swirling black sphere. "What you call magic is merely the residue of chakra. The Core of Ryūchi Cave inside you is a runaway experiment. It will be reclaimed."
With a single motion, the sphere exploded into countless shadow tendrils that swept across the city like venomous serpents. Buildings crumbled, the ground cracked, and the very air tore apart.
Cedric's eyes narrowed as he formed hand signs.
"Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
A massive wooden construct rose into the sky, its countless arms smashing into the incoming shadows. But the severed tendrils transformed into swarms of tiny black insects, burrowing into the wood and rapidly corroding it.
"It is useless." Shadow's voice echoed everywhere. "Your power comes from my clan. I can take it back whenever I wish."
He brought his hands together.
"God's Judgment: Law of Annihilation."
In an instant, Cedric felt his chakra flow reverse. The Ryūchi Cave Sage Mode activated on its own, white scales spreading across his body. Even his Rinnegan struggled to maintain control.
Not good.
The White Snake's consciousness inside him stirred violently, seizing the imbalance.
"Cedric!" Noelle rushed forward, her Water Magic forming a crystalline whip that lashed toward Shadow. It vanished the moment it made contact.
"Weak." Shadow flicked a finger, forming a shadow chain that wrapped around her waist and slammed her into the ground.
"Noelle!" Asta roared, charging forward with Anti-Magic blazing from his swords. He swung directly at Shadow, but the figure dissolved into mist, allowing the attack to pass through harmlessly before reforming in the air.
"You are not even worth my effort," Shadow said coldly. "Surrender the vessel or be erased."
Cedric slowly rose to his feet. His hands formed seals as he activated both the Rinnegan and Ryūchi Cave Sage Mode at once. One half of his body was wrapped in Wood Release patterns, while the other was covered in white scales. Truth-Seeking Orbs hovered behind him alongside a phantom serpent of chakra.
"You are wrong," Cedric said quietly, his voice carrying an inhuman edge. "I am not anyone's vessel."
"I am my own god."
"Six Paths: Rinne Rage!"
The battlefield erupted.
Truth-Seeking Orbs turned into black spears. Wood Release and Senjutsu chakra wove together into a massive net. White serpent energy surged forward, merging into a single devastating attack that shot toward Shadow like a falling star.
For the first time, Shadow reacted.
"God's Barrier: Wall of Void!"
A black barrier formed instantly, colliding with Cedric's attack.
The explosion shook the entire Royal Capital. The ground collapsed, buildings were reduced to dust, and the rift above expanded further, threatening to swallow everything.
When the dust settled, Shadow still stood.
But a crack had formed on his barrier.
"Interesting," he said, a trace of emotion flickering in his hollow gaze. "You have fused multiple powers. But you cannot maintain this for long."
He raised his hand again. Several more beams descended from the rift as countless shadow creatures poured into the city like a flood.
"Next time, I will not hold back."
With that, his body dissolved back into the rift. The shadow army vanished along with him, and the sky slowly began to close.
The pressure, however, remained.
Cedric dropped to his knees, both Sage Mode and Rinnegan fading at once. His body was cracked, and beneath his skin, white scales writhed as if ready to burst out again.
"Cedric!" Asta rushed over, catching him before he collapsed.
"I am fine," Cedric said weakly, his eyes fixed on the sky. "But he will return."
Noelle stepped beside him, her voice quieter now. "We need to find the Ōtsutsuki sealing technique, its final form. Otherwise, next time... you might not still be yourself."
Cedric closed his eyes.
Deep within his mind, the White Snake whispered.
"He wants to take everything from you, while I am the only place you truly belong."
Cedric understood one thing clearly.
The real war had only just begun.
...
📢 Author's Note
The full completed version of Black Clover: I Awakened the Naruto System is now available on Patreon!
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✅ Complete — 149 Chapters
Join the journey of a boy from Hage Village who gains the mysterious Naruto System and rises beyond the limits of magic, changing the future of the Clover Kingdom.
🔥 I also have additional **18+ fanfics** available for readers who enjoy exclusive mature stories. 😉
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2. Elements of Lust – ATLA & Korra Mixed Smut
3. Doraemon: Filtering with Nobi Tamako
4. The Naive Me Who Became Someone's Everyday Secret
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