The moon was high. The forest was quiet.
Too quiet.
CRICKETS
Gone. No birds. No wind. Just silence and my footsteps.
CRUNCH CRUNCH
I stopped.
Something was wrong. The air smelled different. Not like pine or dirt. Like old graves. Like rot.
Kurama stirred.
Death.
I know.
A figure stepped onto the path. Fifty meters ahead.
Tall. Wearing a torn uniform. Brown. Mud stains. Blood stains.
His head hung low. His arms swung loose.
DRAG
His feet. Dragging. Not walking.
I pulled a kunai.
Who are you?
The figure stopped. His head lifted.
CRACK
His neck. Twisting. Wrong.
His eyes were white. No pupils. No life.
His mouth opened.
Shin... Anaro...
My blood went cold.
Who sent you?
The Collector... sends... his regards...
The dead ninja raised his hand. A sword appeared. Rusted. Chipped. But glowing purple.
SWISH
He moved. Faster than a corpse should.
I jumped back. The sword cut the air where my neck had been.
WHOOSH
The Third Gate. Opened.
The world slowed. I saw his face. Young. Maybe twenty. A headband on his forehead. Hidden Stone.
He was someone's son.
Not anymore.
I threw the kunai. Aimed at his chest.
THUNK
It hit. Stuck in his heart.
He did not fall.
HAHAHA
A laugh. From his dead throat. Dry. Cracked.
I am already dead, ghost. Your knife cannot kill me.
He pulled the kunai out. Tossed it on the ground.
CLATTER
Then he charged.
CLANG CLANG CLANG
Our weapons met. Sparks in the dark.
He was strong. Not human strong. Dead strong.
My arms ached. My knuckles bled.
CRACK
His sword hit my shoulder. Not deep. But bleeding.
AAH
I bit my lip. Swallowed the pain.
The Second Gate. Opened.
My body healed faster. The wound closed.
The dead ninja tilted his head.
You steal power. I was given power. We are the same.
No. We are not.
Why?
Because you are a slave. I am free.
HAHAHA
His laugh echoed through the trees.
Free? You run from your friends. You hide in the dark. You are more dead than me.
My chest tightened.
He is lying. Kurama's voice. Angry.
I know.
The dead ninja charged again. His sword glowed brighter.
I ducked. Rolled. Came up behind him.
My hand touched his back.
Extraction.
The system hummed. Then screamed.
ERROR. Target is already dead. No techniques to extract.
THUMP
His elbow hit my face. Blood from my nose.
CRACK
I fell back. The world spun.
He stood over me. His sword raised.
The Collector will take your system. Then he will take your friends. Then he will take the world.
He smiled. His dead lips cracked.
And you... will watch.
NO.
Kurama's chakra exploded from my chest. Red. Hot. Hungry.
GRRRR
The dead ninja stepped back. His white eyes widened.
What...
I stood. My hands were claws. My eyes were red. Not Sharingan. Fox eyes.
You want the Collector? Take him a message.
I grabbed the dead ninja's face. Squeezed.
CRACK
His skull. Cracking.
Tell him... the ghost is coming.
I ripped his head off.
CRUNCH
Blood. Black. Old. Not real blood. Resurrection blood.
His body fell.
THUD
Then turned to dust.
WHOOSH
Gone.
I stood alone. Breathing hard. Kurama's chakra faded.
HAH HAH HAH
My hands were shaking. My heart was pounding.
THUMP THUMP THUMP
I looked at the dust on my fingers. Grey. Cold.
He was someone's son.
Yes.
And you killed him.
He was already dead.
But you killed him again.
I closed my eyes.
The forest was still quiet. No crickets. No birds.
Just me and the moon.
I sat on a rock. Stared at my hands.
Kurama spoke. Soft.
You did what you had to.
I know.
Then why do you look like you lost?
Because I am tired. Of killing. Of running. Of being the monster.
You are not a monster.
Then what am I?
You are what you choose to be.
Hah.
A small laugh.
I stood. Brushed the dust off my pants.
The road was still east. The Collector was still waiting.
But now. The dead knew I was coming.
No more hiding.
No more running.
CRUNCH
My footstep. Loud in the silence.
I walked into the dark.
The ghost had become a hunter.
And the hunter was hungry.