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He was the captain of the Fire Daimyo's personal guard. A warrior whose strength rivaled that of a Kage.
And yet—
"Damn it. This brat is actually this strong?"
Chiriku growled under his breath, all arrogance gone.
His duty was simple: protect the Daimyo of the Land of Fire at all costs. If anything happened to his lord, death would be the least of his punishments.
And judging from the power Akira had just displayed… he wasn't winning this.
Grinding his teeth, Chiriku tore a scroll from his waist.
"Fire Release: Great Flame Bullet!"
A blazing sphere of molten fire roared toward Akira, radiating blistering heat as it tore through the air.
"Child's play."
Akira flicked his hand casually. Black flames surged from his fingertips, colliding head-on with the incoming magma.
Sizzle.
The molten sphere vanished the instant it touched the black fire, erased as if it had never existed.
Akira didn't stop. The dark flames surged forward, rushing straight for Chiriku.
Seeing his jutsu dismantled so effortlessly, rage flooded Chiriku's chest.
"Earth Release: Rock Stream!"
A torrent of stone flowed like a river, surging along the path of the black flames toward Akira.
Still, Akira didn't even flinch.
The next second, the black flames and the rock torrent fused together, spiraling into a massive, roaring tornado that turned and barreled straight at Chiriku.
"What?!"
His pupils shrank. His face went pale.
The sheer pressure from that vortex was suffocating. It felt like a single touch would grind him into dust.
"Damn Uchiha brat…"
Without hesitation, he activated his Body Flicker Technique and vanished from the spot.
But he was too slow.
The instant his teleportation completed, a shadow flashed before him like lightning.
A brutal elbow smashed into his shoulder.
Crack. Crack. Crack.
His left arm shattered. His face twisted in agony as he hit the ground.
"Ahhh! I'll take you down with me!"
Roaring, Chiriku drew a short blade from his waist and stabbed it straight into his own abdomen without hesitation.
Akira raised an eyebrow.
He hadn't expected that level of resolve.
Still, the man had made his choice.
Akira stepped forward and seized Chiriku's right wrist.
Slash.
A blade pierced clean through Chiriku's stomach and pinned him to the wall behind.
"Heh… cough…"
Blood trickled from the corner of Chiriku's mouth. His body trembled violently, yet his eyes remained locked onto Akira, filled with fury and unwillingness.
He was a warrior whose strength rivaled the Kage. A master in the capital of fire.
And he had fallen to a child.
Staring into Akira's cold, indifferent eyes, he knew he wouldn't survive.
But he didn't fear death.
"Hahaha… Uchiha brat, today I lost. But remember this—the Daimyo has a true swordmaster by his side. Our great lord will never let you go!"
He bared his teeth in a final snarl. "Just wait!"
Then his head slumped forward. Lifeless.
Akira didn't spare his words a second thought. He calmly withdrew the blade and sheathed it.
The Daimyo?
Just a common man.
And he dared move against the Uchiha clan?
Suicidal.
Not far from Konohagakure, deep within a forest, three figures hid in the shadows, watching the distant village.
"We can't find that brat anywhere. Where the hell did he go?" one muttered.
"Who's playing tricks out there?"
A voice cut through the darkness.
"What—"
Swish.
A kunai pierced straight through his throat. He didn't even get to scream before collapsing stiffly to the ground.
"How is that possible?!"
The remaining two froze.
Clap. Clap.
Applause echoed through the trees.
Akira stepped out slowly, a teasing smile tugging at his lips.
The two men's expressions changed instantly. They drew their blades and charged.
Akira met them with nothing more than a kunai.
Every movement was precise. Every strike perfectly measured. They couldn't get close.
"Bastard…"
Their faces grew grim. Fear crept into their eyes.
Akira's strength was overwhelming.
Still, they refused to wait for death. They unleashed everything they had.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Explosions ripped through the forest. Branches snapped. Dust and debris filled the air.
Akira deflected every slash with ease.
Then he stepped forward in a blur, appeared behind one of them, and drove a kick into his back.
The man smashed through a tree trunk and tumbled into the distance, unconscious.
The last one seized the opportunity and fled.
Akira didn't chase.
His physical abilities were monstrous, and his taijutsu more than enough to crush weaklings. But against truly formidable opponents, even he couldn't guarantee a flawless victory.
These men were nothing more than bait.
Akira tilted his head toward the sky.
"Orochimaru…?"
He had felt it earlier. That unmistakable, nauseating snake-like aura.
Deeper in the forest, the sole survivor ran desperately for his life.
"Damn it! How is that kid so fast?!"
No matter how hard he pushed himself, he couldn't shake Akira.
Rage and humiliation burned in his chest.
"No matter what, that brat must die!"
He glanced around and spotted a massive boulder ahead.
A cold smirk spread across his face.
"Let's show that little punk what real power looks like."
He hurled a kunai.
Whoosh—
The blade sliced through the air and embedded itself into the stone.
The next second, an explosion thundered. The boulder was pierced clean through.
A figure appeared.
At that very moment, Akira caught up and struck the fleeing man down with a single palm.
Watching from afar, Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.
"So it is him…"
A blur—
Akira appeared on the scene.
He scanned the area, confusion flickering across his gaze.
He could feel it.
A strange chakra fluctuation.
Unnatural. Dangerous.
But Orochimaru was nowhere in sight.
"Strange. Where did he go?"
Akira frowned. Killing intent surged within him.
Boom!
A massive green python lunged from the side.
"Hmph. Pathetic."
Akira flicked his wrist. His kunai gleamed sharply.
He sidestepped with a swift shift of his body and drove the blade straight into the python's skull.
"Hisssss!!"
Green blood sprayed as the creature shrieked.
Akira followed with another strike, slicing the massive serpent clean in half.
Thud.
The giant snake collapsed.
He calmly carved it apart and tossed the remains aside, scanning the surroundings once more.
"There's only one path here…"
Something felt off.
He replayed his recent clashes with Orochimaru in his mind.
"Orochimaru didn't use any special techniques. And speed was never his strength."
"Then how did he disappear?"
Akira's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Was he trying to lure me into a trap?"
"Tch. That old snake…"
Without hesitation, he moved deeper into the forest along the only path available.
The trees rustled violently around him.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
The moment he stepped into the forest, his body jolted.
In the next instant, a razor-sharp assault tore through the air.
Akira's pupils shrank. "That fast?!"
He twisted aside on instinct, kunai snapping up in a tight block.
Bang!
The impact thundered through the trees. Akira was forced back several steps, boots grinding into the dirt. His attacker finally revealed himself.
"Orochimaru?!"
Shock flashed across Akira's face as he stared at the man before him.
Dressed in pitch-black clothing, tall and broad-shouldered, the figure looked far more rugged than before. Yet the aura clinging to him was twisted and sinister, like something that had crawled out of the deepest pit of hell.
Akira's expression hardened. "Looks like you've… evolved."
"Oh? You know quite a bit for a brat." Orochimaru smiled coldly and shot forward, fingers clawing straight for Akira's throat.
Akira's eyes sharpened. Chakra surged through his veins as he slipped aside and countered, kunai slicing toward his opponent.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Steel rang against steel in rapid bursts. Sparks scattered as the two clashed fiercely, neither willing to yield. The fight locked into a dead heat.
Even as he traded blows, Akira kept part of his focus on the surroundings.
In a shadowed corner of the battlefield, a dark figure stood watching.
The man's lips parted slightly as he muttered, "The kid's chakra reserves aren't bad, but…"
"Too slow."
Without warning, he leapt. His body shot forward like a cannonball, streaking straight at Akira.
"What the—?!"
Akira's eyes widened. He raised his kunai to intercept.
Clang!
Metal collided.
Akira froze for a split second.
Before him stood a man cloaked entirely in black robes. A skull mask covered his face, revealing only the faint outline of a male jaw beneath.
Akira couldn't tell his age, but one thing was clear—his strength was no less than Orochimaru's.
"So there was someone else lying in wait…" Akira muttered, tension settling into his shoulders.
Worse, this one might even be stronger.
He had to be careful.
Meanwhile, far from their clash, the real Orochimaru slowly came to a stop.
"That brat's strength is truly terrifying…"
"Powerful taijutsu, formidable ninjutsu, and swordsmanship that refined…"
"If it weren't for my poison techniques, I might not be his match at all…"
Orochimaru murmured to himself, wariness flickering in his eyes.
His gaze darkened. "I need to return to my peak as soon as possible…"
A twisted grin stretched across his face.
"Heh… As expected of that freak from the Uchiha clan. Not ordinary at all. But…"
"Once I've fully recovered, it'll be his time to die."
His laughter echoed softly as his figure gradually faded, disappearing from the spot entirely.
…
Back on the battlefield, Akira dodged relentlessly. The skull-masked opponent clung to him like a rabid hound, refusing to let up.
They had already exchanged blows several times.
Each clash confirmed it—this man possessed terrifying raw power.
After a brief round of probing, Akira reached a conclusion.
A clone.
Only one person lurking in the shadows possessed cloning technology like this—Isshiki Otsutsuki.
Clones were always a nuisance.
As he evaded another strike, calculations raced through Akira's mind.
He decided not to meet brute force with brute force.
His foot shifted. He retreated swiftly.
"Hm?"
In the next instant, Orochimaru appeared again.
His eyes flickered as he accelerated in pursuit, attacks growing denser and more vicious.
Yet Akira's speed didn't falter.
Then suddenly—
He stopped.
Orochimaru blinked. "Why'd you stop running?"
Akira's gaze turned solemn.
In his left hand, he gripped a scroll.
A sealing scroll—the one he'd obtained from the system.
Buzz—
The scroll burst into dazzling light.
A vast, oppressive force poured out, blanketing the area.
In an instant, Orochimaru seemed locked in place. His movements slowed dramatically.
His expression darkened. "A sealing scroll…!"
Akira's eyes flashed.
"Lightning Release: Chidori!"
Boom!
Violent chakra erupted outward in a roaring surge, blasting Orochimaru off his feet.
Blood sprayed through the air as his chest and abdomen were torn apart.
He struggled to lift his head, staring at the boy shrouded in crackling lightning and mist, his face pale.
Killing intent burned in Akira's eyes.
"You're not Orochimaru. Why are you targeting me?!"
"Hahahaha!"
The man threw his head back and howled.
"Because this place was always mine!"
"Yours?" Akira's expression shifted. "Who the hell are you?"
A frenzied grin spread across the man's face. "You'll find out soon enough!"
He vanished abruptly.
The next moment, he reappeared behind Akira, fist clenched, smashing down toward his back.
Akira's body jolted violently. He nearly got sent flying, his face darkening with anger.
"Whoever you are… if you dare come after me…"
"You're dead."
Boom!
The opponent's aura surged again as his palm chopped toward the back of Akira's head.
Akira slipped aside with fluid precision and drove his own palm into the man's skull.
The masked figure staggered, visibly dazed.
A flicker of excitement crossed Akira's eyes.
"He's seriously wounded. His strength's dropped a lot…"
Cold light gathered in his gaze as he swung his kunai again.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sparks flew in a dazzling spray.
Akira's movements grew faster and faster. His foundation was solid, his secret techniques and weapons exceptional. Under these conditions, his attack speed surged to a level the enemy couldn't keep up with.
Boom!
Orochimaru was sent flying by a heavy punch, crashing through a wall in a spray of debris.
Akira's eyes were icy. "Time to send you on your way."
He kicked off the ground and shot forward.
Slash—
The blade severed half an arm. Blood splattered across the ruins.
Orochimaru gritted his teeth. "Damn it…"
"I warned you," Akira said coldly. "You'll regret provoking me."
His voice dropped lower, colder.
"I'll tear you apart and make you taste the cruelest punishments this world has to offer."
Before the words had fully faded, he lunged in for the next strike…
"..."
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