Morning arrived as a gradual thinning of the bruised sky, though the sun remained a pale, distant rumor. The freezing fog stayed heavy—a silver-grey maze that draped over the skeletal beech trees like damp wool.
We moved in a staggered line, Todoroki cutting the path while Naruto and I flanked Gantetsu. Every shadow in the mist felt heavier without the Jōnin taking the vanguard. Leaving Kakashi and Anko behind to secure the orphans and the prisoner was the only tactical option, but walking into a Shinobazu stronghold without our safety net made the freezing fog feel suffocating."
The base loomed out of the mist like a ghost fortress.
The structure appeared stable. High walls of dark timber and weathered plaster rose from a foundation rooted in volcanic rock. Teal roof tiles sat heavy under a rime of frost, their sharp angles cutting through the grey horizon. I adjusted my glasses, the purple tint helping me categorize the compound's edges against the blur of the forest. A stray lock of faded pink hair tickled the edge of my mask as I categorization the jagged horizontal lines of the timber walls.
The gate stood unguarded, swinging with a rhythmic, metal-on-metal groan in the wind.
"It's too quiet," Naruto whispered. His voice hitched. He kept his right arm tucked tight against his ribs, the orange fabric of his jacket stiff, and the dark mixture of red and purple smelling of scorched resin as the heat rose.
"It's the wrong kind of quiet. Empty," I replied.
I caught a scent—a warm, resin-heavy draft rising from a floor vent. I hesitated, my skin prickling. Residual heat, I told myself and swallowed hard.
Beneath the soles of my tabi, the floorboards gave a faint, rhythmic shudder.
Wind. It had to be the wind rattling the tiered gables.
We crossed the central courtyard toward the main mansion. Todoroki moved like a hunter, his dark green vest vanishing against the mossy shadows, though his injured ankle made his gait uneven. The mossy sash at his waist broke up his wiry silhouette, swaying rhythmically over his dark trousers as he favored his left side.
K-tink.
The sound was tiny—the matte silver-gray of Todoroki's forearm bracer brushing a thin tension line hidden against a weathered pillar.
CLACK.
A heavy, mechanical sound echoed from behind the plaster walls. The sound of a primary discharge valve opening. I froze, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm. A rising hiss followed—the sound of a pressurized line spraying accelerant through hidden channels beneath the floors. The air pressure in the courtyard shifted, a physical tug at my eardrums that made the world tilt.
The vibration hadn't been the wind. It was a clockwork trigger.
"DOWN!" I shrieked.
KRR-WHUMP.
The fuel mist met a hidden pilot light, and the entire structure turned into a roaring furnace in a single flash ignition—fire raced the channels faster than sight—flames rippled through the misted corridors.
"Welcome home, Gantetsu!" Shura's voice boomed from the high balconies, a cruel, greedy sound that vibrated in my teeth. The orange glare of the courtyard fire caught the red markings slashing across his nose and chin, illuminating a merciless, small-eyed grin. "I knew you'd bring the key back to the vault!"
Naruto's world turned red.
The heat hit him like a physical blow—WHOOSH-ROAR—as the barracks transformed into an oven. Scalding air rushed through the high ceilings, and the wide-planked floors groaned and buckled under the sudden fire. The smell of scorched plaster and battery acid filled his nose, stinging his throat so fiercely he had to swallow against a dry, sandpaper rasp.
"Akio!" Todoroki's voice was a frantic, broken sound. He ignored the flames, his dark eyes locked on the reinforced iron bars of the lower level.
Gantetsu stumbled, coughing bloody magenta into his black goatee. His grey eyes narrowed against the stinging smoke, the black hair of his ponytail whipping through the superheated draft. "Behind the hall... the reinforced cells! Go!"
Naruto felt the familiar, hot itch of chakra behind his navel.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
POOF-POOF-POOF-POOF.
Four clones detonated through the swirling smoke. The split tugged at Naruto's gut, a wave of nausea blooming as the heat and lack of oxygen fought his chakra flow. Vision flickered white at the edges. Three of the clones lunged toward the iron bars, their orange jackets a blur as they moved to help Todoroki and the bloodied Gantetsu. One clone'sjacket sparked as he gripped the chilled iron of the bars, the heat turning the metal into a searing brand.
Naruto stood in the center of the burning hall. His boots smoked on the hot wood. He looked at the cell doors. He saw Todoroki clawing at the timber. He saw Gantetsu using his massive frame to shield the swordsman from a falling fir beam that popped like a gunshot.
Naruto took a single, half-step toward them. His fingers brushed the sticky, blood-crusted fabric of his sleeve. Toki's face—pale and shocked—seared across his mind.
He looked up. Through the black plumes, he saw the silhouette of the umbrella atop the tiered balcony. Shura stood there, a greedy shadow watching the house burn.
He'll do it again.
Naruto's nails dug into his palm.
He won't stop.
The choice severed the air in his lungs. Naruto turned away from the rescue. He ignored Sylvie's muffled shout and sprinted toward the steep, narrow wooden staircase. The stairwell acted as a chimney, a wall of blistering heat blasting downward and forcing him to crouch low to find breathable air. The handrail was too hot to grip, the wood blistering and weeping resin that sizzled.
He lunged into the rising heat, eyes locked on the shadow above. He had to stop Shura.
No more.