Monster?
The "monster" in Akimichi Dōtō and the others' eyes was none other than Hyūga Kumokawa himself.
Seeing their throats bob as they stared at him from a distance, he knew the Wind Release ninjutsu he had spent hours building—burning through more than half his chakra—had delivered exactly the impact he wanted.
Just as Uchiha Madara could unleash terrifying power from a simple B-rank Fire Release technique, Hyūga Kumokawa, with his Ōtsutsuki bloodline talent, could naturally achieve the same.
The entrance had been flawless. It had stunned everyone present in an instant.
But that was nowhere near enough.
He needed to brand fear into their very bones, to make this first public appearance something none of them would ever forget.
"Humans… are you people of Ninshū?"
The ancient, raspy voice reached their ears once more. Aburame Ryūma, who had nearly died from the last attack, snapped out of his terror and instinctively looked toward the black figure shrouded in the distant rain.
"…"
No one answered. They were still too shocked.
Ninshū? What Ninshū?
"No answer?"
Hyūga Kumokawa's voice was soft.
He slowly closed his eyes and opened his mind completely, extending his senses toward the power high above in the night sky.
If the Ōtsutsuki could do it without eyes, then there was no reason he—with both the Byakugan and the Ōtsutsuki bloodline—couldn't achieve the same.
His spiritual energy stretched out like countless threads, reaching for the moon hidden behind the storm clouds.
Just as he neared his limit, he finally felt it—that strangely familiar power.
Even though the connection was faint, its overwhelming might was unmistakable.
It was the colossal Tenseigan formed from the convergence of every Byakugan belonging to the Ōtsutsuki descendants, a qualitative leap born from sheer quantity.
Despite the hundreds of thousands of kilometers between them, his bloodline let him pry open a single sliver of "authority."
What was known as ocular power began flooding into his body. The world before his eyes sharpened, and the hidden strength within his Byakugan stirred to life.
Buzz!!
In an instant, an incomparably terrifying aura erupted from Hyūga Kumokawa.
Everyone who looked at him felt a primal fear surge up from the marrow of their bones.
It was like an invisible blade pressed to their throats, like the apex predator at the top of the food chain licking their skin. In that moment they all instinctively wanted to step back.
But then Hyūga Kumokawa slowly opened his eyes. His thin eyelids lifted, revealing brilliant blue orbs that glowed like polished glass in the darkness—as though they had crossed centuries to gaze upon the world once more.
His stare drove into them like a thousand blades, pinning every single person in place with nothing but a look.
"Such tremendous power…"
Hyūga Kumokawa lowered his gaze to his own palm and slowly clenched it. The joints cracked sharply.
Crack!
Just prying open a single thread of it already granted this much strength?
"Still not enough," he murmured, licking his lips. "Far from enough!"
At the same time, while Hyūga Kumokawa shifted his focus and familiarized himself with the power—
"Gah! Hah!"
The others, who had been frozen stiff, suddenly felt the invisible restraint lift. They gasped desperately, fighting to steady their ragged breathing.
"Damn it! Damn it all!"
Aburame Ryūma finally broke free of the suffocating fear. Sweat and rainwater slid down his trembling throat.
His pupils shook as he glared at the distant figure. Beneath the terror, resentment and hatred boiled up, twisting his blood-drenched face into something grotesque.
He couldn't die. Not here!
He had to survive and report everything to Lord Danzō!
That terrifying chakra and aura couldn't belong to some nameless nobody!
They had probably unleashed a real monster—one that had been sealed away and was now free. A monster who had lived for who knows how many years!
If something like that regained its full strength, none of them would survive. They had to act now.
"Akimichi Dōtō! Troy!"
Like a cornered beast fighting for its life, the fear of death burned away his hesitation. Aburame Ryūma roared hoarsely, "If you don't want to die here, attack while he hasn't recovered his full power! Do it!!"
The words snapped Akimichi Dōtō and Troy back to reality. They realized instantly that if they didn't move now, it would be too late.
That horrifying aura was growing stronger by the second. Soon a single glance from the monster would strip them of any will to resist.
The two opposing sides set aside their enmity without hesitation.
They were shinobi—men who carried their lives on the edge of a blade, who licked rust from the edge of knives.
They would never give up without a fight, even against a true monster!
From the look of that devastating Wind Release ninjutsu, running was pointless.
But if they could hold out until reinforcements from the Hidden Cloud or the Konoha arrived, they still had a chance to kill this monster!
When facing a monster, the only way to win was to become even more insane than it. If you were crazier than the monster, what did it matter that it was a monster? When you went mad enough, even monsters could be bitten and torn apart, leaving bloody strips of flesh behind!
Whoosh!
The air seemed to boil with heat. Hyūga Kumokawa raised his lowered eyelids, and flames suddenly flared within his blue eyes.
It was an avalanche of fire—an ocean of flames surging straight at him!
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet!"
"Fire Release: Great Flame Technique!"
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
From afar, the Konoha shinobi puffed their cheeks and formed seals, spewing scorching flames and raging gusts of wind.
The wind fueled the fire, turning it into a blazing sea that roared toward Hyūga Kumokawa, threatening to burn him to ashes!
Boom!!
The scorching heat wave hit like a solid wall, warping the air as it rushed forward. It felt like invisible fiery hands closing around their throats. Troy and the Konoha ninja instinctively held their breath.
Their pupils trembled as they stared hard into the distance, burning the scene into their memories.
The crimson waves of fire rolled forward like a mighty flood. The light from the tidal flames divided the space between them into two distinct realms.
Everything warped under the terrifying heat. In the roaring crimson fire tornado, all was consumed, as if they had stumbled into a blazing nightmare where reality itself felt illusory.
Huge amounts of rainwater evaporated into thick white steam, instantly blanketing the entire area in dense fog.
"How is it? What happened? Is he dead?!"
Troy stared desperately. The charred skin on his face had peeled away, revealing raw scarlet flesh and blood vessels beneath, making him look even more monstrous.
But as the mist gradually cleared, his eyes widened in horror.
Within the sea of raging flames, a figure distorted by the heat slowly became clear.
The wild, surging flames parted obediently as they approached him, flowing around the silhouette.
Hyūga Kumokawa raised a hand in front of him. An invisible repulsive force diverted the flames to either side. Even the rain slid away from him, leaving only the firelight licking across his face and reflecting in those deep blue eyes like those of a god—or a demon.
Repulsive force—the shared ability of both the Rinnegan and the Tenseigan.
"Ants."
Ash swirled around him as he gazed at the distant group and spoke softly, "Your power is just as weak as your lives."
Buzz!
Blue chakra surged out, wrapping around his body like a flowing robe.
His feet slowly left the ground. Under the horrified stares of everyone present, he rose steadily into the air.
At the same time, several hundred meters away, dozens of figures who had been moving stealthily through the shadows suddenly came to a halt.
The one in the lead stopped and looked up at the floating figure in the distance. Rain-soaked white bangs covered his left eye, while his visible right eye narrowed slightly.
"What… is that thing?"
***
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