The Kaguya clan was one of the most battle-loving ninja clans in the entire shinobi world. Their obsession with the thrill of battle—and their inability to think straight—surpassed even the Uchiha. The more unbeatable an opponent seemed, the more they wanted to recklessly charge straight at them.
At this moment, Kaguya Ryūga's eyes were bloodshot. All that remained in his gaze was a crazed fighting spirit and complete indifference toward death. The battle and everything he had just witnessed had thoroughly ignited his ferocity.
"Hah… hah… As expected of Konoha's 'White Reaper.' Interesting! You really are an opponent who gets my blood boiling!"
Kaguya Ryūga panted heavily and suddenly straightened his body. A hair-raising series of grinding and growing sounds came from his bones.
Pop, pop, pop, pop—!
More bone spikes—thicker and sharper than before—violently burst from the joints all over his body, his spine, and even his forehead!
At that moment, Kaguya Ryūga's body seemed to transform into a hideous humanoid hedgehog, gleaming with a cold white light.
Immediately afterward,
he performed an action that made everyone's scalp go numb.
Reaching behind himself, he forcibly pulled a nearly one-meter-long, barbed bone sword shaped like a section of spine from the middle of his back!
Blood poured down his back, but he did not care in the slightest.
"Kill!!"
"…He's gone insane!"
Fuguki Suikazan gripped Samehada tightly with both hands, as if he could already see how this battle would end.
Under everyone's gaze, Kaguya Ryūga released a beast-like roar. His entire body transformed into a white storm of bone blades, carrying the tragic momentum of someone determined to die alongside his enemy.
Without the slightest fear of death, he charged straight toward Yuu, who had just killed Hōzuki Mutsuki, and attempted to cleave into his back!
"Dead Bone Pulse: Dance of the Larch!"
"Come at me!"
Yuu had not yet withdrawn from the Overload Pulse state. Every part of his body remained highly active.
Seeing Kaguya Ryūga's suicidal charge, he did not retreat. Instead, he stepped forward to meet the storm of bone blades head-on!
The Sword of the Thunder God once again erupted with dazzling blue light. Lightning snakes wrapped around the blade, producing explosive crackles.
Combined with Yuu's sudden use of Super Strength, the sword descended toward Kaguya Ryūga with indescribable speed and explosive force!
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang—!
A dense series of piercing metallic collisions rang out as sparks scattered everywhere.
Kaguya Ryūga's strength had indeed risen considerably in his explosive state. He had even surpassed Fuguki Suikazan.
His ferocious assault came like crashing ocean waves, with every strike carrying enough force to tear everything apart.
But Yuu's sword was faster, more accurate, and heavier!
His figure shifted and twisted through the storm of bone blades. Every swing of his sword struck precisely at the weakest point of the bone weapon.
Kaguya Ryūga's seemingly indestructible bone spikes and spinal sword—both of which were powerful enough to pierce solid rock—gradually began groaning under the burden.
Bone fragments continuously scattered like white powder!
Within only a dozen breaths, the two sides had already exchanged dozens of direct blows.
Although Kaguya Ryūga's bone spikes were still moving normally, barely noticeable white marks had appeared across their surfaces. The sight was deeply alarming.
Suddenly,
a faint crack was heard.
The sound was neither loud nor obvious.
However, Kaguya Ryūga's expression changed slightly.
Soon came a second crack, then a third…
Finally,
at a certain moment, an especially clear breaking sound rang out.
The bone sword forged from Kaguya Ryūga's own spine had developed a massive fracture across its middle after enduring the Sword of the Thunder God's continuous, violent impacts!
Immediately afterward, it snapped completely in two!
"!!!"
Kaguya Ryūga's movements froze for an instant, and his violent momentum abruptly faltered.
For the first time, the shadow of death was clearly reflected in his bloodshot eyes.
Yuu gave him no opportunity to recover.
The instant the bone sword broke, Yuu flicked his wrist. The Sword of the Thunder God extended to nearly two meters long and thrust forward like a venomous snake leaving its den—or a sudden bolt of lightning!
"Ahhh!!!"
The bone spikes across Kaguya Ryūga's chest closed together, forming a crisscrossing suit of bone armor in a final attempt at defense.
However…
he was still slightly too slow.
In the next instant, the Sword of the Thunder God stabbed forward.
Following a tiny opening revealed by Heart-Blade Domain, the sharp blade pierced through the densely interwoven white bones covering Kaguya Ryūga's chest and accurately entered his heart!
Puchi!
"Ugh…"
Kaguya Ryūga's movements came to an abrupt halt.
He lowered his head and stared at the lightning blade buried in his chest. The madness faded from his eyes, leaving only confusion and lifeless gray.
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but all that emerged was a large mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs.
Yuu pulled the sword free.
The Kaguya clansman staggered, then slowly collapsed face-first onto the ground, sending up a spray of dust and blood.
"…"
For a brief moment, the battlefield fell silent.
More precisely, because of the Hidden Mist Technique, most people could not actually see Yuu.
Only Fuguki Suikazan, Jūzō Biwa, and several nearby, unnamed Kiri ninja had personally witnessed everything.
Fuguki Suikazan's pupils had almost contracted into thin lines.
He had now completely confirmed that the strength of this Konoha brat was far beyond that of an ordinary jōnin.
Yuu had probably already approached the level of a Kage.
Hōzuki Mutsuki's instant death could still be explained by an elemental disadvantage. But Kaguya Ryūga was an elite of the Kaguya clan, yet even he had failed to endure for long.
If they continued fighting…
both Fuguki and Jūzō would probably die here!
"…No!"
As the commander of Kirigakure's advance force, he absolutely could not die—especially not here!
Once that thought appeared, Fuguki Suikazan immediately made his decision.
"Retreat!"
As he spoke,
he ignored the rest of his comrades and smashed Samehada against the ground, using the force to launch himself backward.
His obese body erupted with agility completely inconsistent with his appearance.
"Water Body Flicker Technique!"
Splash!
Fuguki Suikazan's body transformed into a puddle of water and merged into the ground.
In the next instant, he had already appeared dozens of meters away. Without even looking back, he fled desperately toward the depths of the forest.
Mission, dignity…
None of it mattered before his life!
Only survival was real.
"…Lord Fuguki?!"
Jūzō Biwa stared in disbelief.
He had never expected Fuguki, their captain, to flee so cleanly and decisively without even considering what effect such a display would have on the other Kiri ninja.
That moment of astonishment also caused Jūzō Biwa to miss his best opportunity to escape.
Because…
Yuu had already arrived.
Speaking of which, Yuu had originally intended to kill Fuguki Suikazan first, primarily because he wanted to seize Samehada and see whether he could use it as a chakra battery.
Yuu's current chakra reserves were already considerable.
Through the galgame system, he had accumulated roughly fifty additional points of constitution. His chakra pool was now equivalent to around four or five Kakashis, which was no longer inferior to descendants of kekkei genkai clans.
However, he was still some distance from reaching a tailed beast's level.
Perhaps Samehada could help bridge that gap.
Unfortunately, Fuguki fled too quickly. Yuu could only settle for the next best option and turn his attention toward Jūzō Biwa.
Incidentally, in the original story, when the Seven Ninja Swordsmen encountered Might Dai using the Eight Gates, Fuguki Suikazan seemed to be one of the three survivors.
Despite possessing a body as massive as a bear, he had managed to avoid dying on the spot.
It seemed he truly possessed a talent for running away.
All of this happened in an instant.
Yuu appeared in front of Jūzō Biwa, his cold voice ringing out as a fierce lightning-coated blade descended toward his head!
"You offended Konoha, and you still think you can leave?"
"…"
At that moment, Jūzō Biwa felt as though his scalp were about to explode.
Before the Sword of the Thunder God even reached him, its sharp killing intent and the scorched smell of electrically ionized air had already made every hair on his body stand on end.
However, Jūzō Biwa was still a ruthless fighter who had carved his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Although he already knew he would probably die, he did not surrender.
Instead, he suddenly gritted his teeth and gripped the Kubikiribōchō tightly with both hands.
He poured every last trace of chakra and strength into the blade before swinging it with all his might!
"Bastard! Don't underestimate the ninja of Kirigakure!!!"
The blade tore through the air with an explosive roar!
Considering the unstoppable determination Jūzō Biwa displayed at that moment, Yuu did not use Heart-Blade Domain to attack his weakness.
Instead, as a show of respect, he delivered an upright, direct slash from the front.
Clang—crack!!!
This collision was fiercer than any that had come before.
Dazzling sparks and lightning exploded simultaneously!
Jūzō Biwa's slash had genuinely exceeded his normal limits.
After gambling his life and the honor of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen on that single attack, the quality of his strike had far surpassed an ordinary jōnin's and nearly matched Yuu's.
However…
the quality of the Kubikiribōchō was far inferior to the Sword of the Thunder God created by Senju Tobirama.
Or rather, among the Seven Ninja Swords, the Kubikiribōchō was probably the most ordinary in terms of performance.
Aside from using human blood to repair its blade, it possessed practically no other special effects.
And after enduring the earlier battles, the weapon had already reached the limit of what it could bear.
Thus…
Crack—!
Accompanied by an ear-piercing metallic wail, the enormous Kubikiribōchō broke completely in half!
The heavy front portion spun through the air and embedded itself deeply into a distant tree trunk.
The rear portion remained in Jūzō Biwa's hands, while the impact violently shook his arms and tore open the webbing between his fingers.
"…It's over."
Yuu's figure flickered and appeared beside Jūzō Biwa.
Before the latter could turn his head and make another move, Yuu brought his fingers together like a blade and struck the back of his neck with a hand chop.
"Ugh!"
Jūzō Biwa's vision went black.
All consciousness was severed, and his tall body collapsed limply onto the ground.
"Haa…"
Yuu released a long breath and deactivated Overload Pulse.
He had stopped at almost exactly forty seconds.
The theoretical maximum duration of the first-stage Overload Pulse was forty-five seconds. Exceeding that limit would place an enormous burden on his body.
Forty seconds was also somewhat exhausting, but still generally manageable.
With Jūzō Biwa defeated,
Yuu summoned the three weasel brothers. Together, they used Wind Release to disperse the dense fog across the battlefield, revealing the full scene.
At this moment,
the remaining Kiri ninja and Kakashi's group in the distance finally saw what had happened—especially the people lying on the ground.
Everyone's eyes widened as the battlefield fell into an eerie silence.
Most of the Kirigakure ninja became deathly pale.
There had been more than forty Kiri ninja participating in the ambush.
The four strongest among them had surrounded and attacked Yuu.
Two were dead, one was wounded and captured, and one had escaped.
Rounded up, that was practically complete annihilation.
Yet Yuu was merely somewhat tired and almost completely unharmed.
How were they supposed to continue fighting?
Fear spread through the hearts of the Kiri ninja like a plague.
"We've lost! We've lost… Run!"
No one knew who shouted first, but it was like a spark igniting a barrel of explosives.
The surviving Kiri ninja completely collapsed.
They no longer cared about their mission or their honor. Only one thought remained in their minds—
Escape!
It did not matter where they ran. They only needed to get as far away from the "White Reaper" as possible!
Aside from the few who were too injured to move, the remaining Kiri ninja turned and scattered like frightened rabbits, using the lingering fog and dense forest as cover.
"…Obito, you and Shisui stay behind to handle the prisoners. I'll chase those guys!"
Kakashi spoke rapidly.
"Why? I want to chase them too!"
Obito complained unhappily.
He was currently somewhat jealous of Yuu for taking all the glory.
The only remaining opportunity to show off was capturing the fleeing enemies, so Obito desperately wanted to perform well.
Regardless,
the battle had basically reached its conclusion.
The remaining defeated soldiers were no longer a serious threat. If they could catch them, they would capture and imprison them at the border stronghold.
If they failed to catch some, it did not matter.
They were only minor figures, so allowing a few to escape would have little impact.
Therefore, Yuu did not concern himself with pursuing the enemy. He handed that job directly to Kakashi and Obito, then looked around.
At this moment, sunlight once again poured down and illuminated the valley.
Everywhere he looked, there were broken trees, scorched earth, shattered rocks…
as well as corpses scattered across the ground and wounded people groaning in pain.
Most of the injured were from Kirigakure, though there were also a few from Konoha.
The air was filled with a thick, lingering stench of blood.
Rin led another ninja who had studied medical ninjutsu and began inspecting the wounded. They cleaned the injuries of both their comrades and the prisoners and provided emergency treatment.
Meanwhile, Shisui took responsibility for cleaning the battlefield.
Standing beside the corpses of Hōzuki Mutsuki and Kaguya Ryūga with Inabi, he could not help clicking his tongue in amazement.
"Yuu-senpai's strength… is far too outrageous."