Chapter 144

[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! For $5][www.p@treon.com/zaelum] [Thank You For Your Support!]

[2 New Fanfics Added!!]

[Hogwarts: I Really Am a Model Wizard]

[Marvel: I Summon Heroes from Various Worlds]

[This two, plus [Starting as a Class Five Mutant] are the three choices of what to pick for translation, in a few days I will put the poll, by aware that the poll will only last 24 hours, and one vote per person, so to make it more safe, the poll will be made in P@treon.]

[The poll is FREE, only log in and you can vote]

A war of attrition is something Kyōmu is not afraid of.

Not to mention the various weapon and equipment enhancements, the new passive skill enhancements, or even just relying on Kyōmu's current physical condition and combat power, he could take on a group alone.

Boom.

Kyōmu shot up into the sky.

Lightning Release: Eight Gates, Gate of Wonder, open!

Boom.

While still in midair, electrical arcs circled around him, creating waves of patterns, and the spectacle was immense.

Due to the electrical current, Kyōmu's hair stood on end. After his body cells were greatly activated, his muscles became solid, both aesthetically pleasing and explosive.

Holding Yoei's handle above his head, Kyōmu's body sprang back like a spring. When diving down, he pulled back sharply, and the explosive power from his core abdominal muscles rapidly transferred to his arms, finally concentrating on Yoei.

With a powerful motion, Kyōmu executed a mountain-splitting slash, and Yoei's blade swiftly descended.

At the same moment, the positive attribute chakra within his body was simply mobilized. Learning from Tsunade's Super Strength Punch, Kyōmu modified it slightly, applying its unique explosive power to his slashing.

The speed of Yoei's descent increased, and a solid blade light instantly condensed.

Boom!

A blade light a hundred meters long and nearly ten meters wide fell, smashing into the center of the Sand Shinobi army.

Dust filled the air, and where the blade light struck, the earth rolled to both sides, the ground collapsing in that instant. The terrifying shockwave spread rapidly from the center of the blade light to both sides.

"Victory is ours!"

Behind the walls, numerous Leaf Shinobi raised their arms and shouted. With this one strike, Kyōmu nearly cleaved through the entire formation of Sand Shinobi.

The dust hadn't settled yet, and the dead Sand Shinobi couldn't scream in pain, but those severely injured under this strike wailed miserably.

It was the same terrifying Kyōmu from memory!

The more people there were, the more space Kyōmu had to perform.

Was this the end?

Kyōmu's attacks were continuous; he wouldn't pause in one spot for one or two seconds after a move, or even longer.

In the blink of an eye, Kyōmu flipped his wrist, swept forward with one hand, and simultaneously formed the 'Horse' seal with his left hand. Chakra surged within him once again.

Behind the walls, a Hyūga branch family ninja showed a look of shock.

"Lord Kyōmu's chakra level... it's almost catching up to Shukaku now!"

With great power comes miraculous results. Kyōmu now went all out, performing a wide-range Fire Release that normally would require the combined strength of hundreds.

Fire Release: Grand Fire Annihilation Technique!

Whoosh...

A sweeping blaze rolled forward, the faces of the Sand Shinobi filled with terror, their expressions twisted grotesquely.

Eyes wide, mouths agape, drool dripping. After a brief silence, the Sand Shinobi erupted in hysterical screams.

Driven by extreme fear, the human body's adrenaline surged, pushing physical strength and potential to their limits.

Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!

Hundreds of Sand Shinobi simultaneously slapped the ground, and a massive wall erupted from the earth, fiercely blocking the scorching wave emitted by Kyōmu.

But was it really so?

Perhaps the Sand Shinobi forgot that Kyōmu had also swung his sword just before.

Boom!

The sturdy wall, mixed into the flames from the blade light's impact, shook and nearly collapsed. The flames that followed became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

The wall crashed down, and the sweeping flames rolled over everything in front of them like a wheel, leaving behind only charred ground and darkness.

"Aragami Kyōmu!"

With one strike killing and injuring hundreds of Sand Shinobi, Kyōmu went berserk, and so did Chiyo.

White Secret Technique: Three Treasures Absorption!

Three white puppets formed a '品' shape, a unique sealing technique activated, and the continuing towering flames were suppressed, absorbed, and finally dispersed.

But Kyōmu didn't care about Chiyo's shouts; his only thought now was to kill, to continue killing without pause, without interruption!

Boom.

Tapping the ground with his toe, Kyōmu transformed into a ground-hugging missile, vanishing from his spot in an instant.

What followed were slashes of wind blades and sword lights, as well as Sand Shinobi being thrown into the air, killed, and falling like dumplings from the sky.

In the blink of an eye, Kyōmu, relying solely on his own power, slashed from the front to the back of the Sand Shinobi formation, leaving a deep furrow in his wake.

This was the trace of a high-speed sprint on the ground, with faint traces of Lightning Release chakra lingering above it, the crackling of electricity reluctant to dissipate.

"Everyone, attack Kikyō Castle, leave Kyōmu to me!"

Chiyo had no choice but to abandon the previously planned strategy of attrition.

Kyōmu moved through the enemy ranks as if in a realm of no one, single-handedly breaking through the Sand Shinobi line. If this continued a few more times, the Sand Shinobi would inevitably collapse.

But could Chiyo, with her speed, really stop him?

Clang, clang, clang.

Sparks flew as Kyōmu, surrounded by eight white puppets, moved as swiftly as a startled swan, elegantly blocking and counterattacking. Chiyo could do nothing to him.

Not just that, the chakra threads connected to Chiyo's puppet brigade were severed by several of Kyōmu's slashes.

Without the chakra threads, Chiyo's puppet brigade was reduced to mere decoration, and her attack frequency suffered a brief gap.

Although Chiyo could quickly reestablish control over the disconnected puppet brigade, this "quickly" was torturously slow in Kyōmu's eyes.

With full speed, Kyōmu became a streak of lightning, breaking out of the puppet encirclement controlled by Chiyo and heading towards the large group of Sand Shinobi attacking Kikyō Castle's defenses.

"Hold on, Lord Kyōmu is coming to support us!"

Behind the collapsed wall defenses, the remaining Leaf Shinobi, as if injected with adrenaline, continued their relentless attacks, managing to hold off the initial charge of thousands of Sand Shinobi with just five hundred men.

But despite their resistance, the disparity in numbers was vast, and death was not far from them.

Some still fell.

Kyōmu's expression grew colder, his movements faster and more urgent. In a flash, his sword light created a vacuum in the battlefield.

Blood flowed like rivers!

Chiyo's eyes were about to split open, and the puppet brigade attacked again, and besides them, a gallant figure also stood in front of Kyōmu.

It was Pakura.

Scorch Release: Superheated Steam Kill!

Upon meeting, Pakura released her powerful technique, the concentrated Scorch Release chakra bringing high temperatures that swept across the area, excessively large in scale.

"Retreat!!!"

Kyōmu roared, slamming one hand to the ground as he formed seals.

Water Release: Water Formation Wall!

A thick wall of water formed, but in an instant, it was steamed into mist.

His comrades behind him were mostly unharmed, but not all were lucky—some were caught by Pakura's attack and lost their lives.

"I want you dead!"

Kyōmu felt a surge in his own strength as all attributes affecting his combat ability increased to 150%; his side's casualties had already exceeded 10%.

As the scorching air wave passed, Kyōmu swung his sword in a counterattack.

Blue Flame: Horizon Line!

A narrow, rapid sword light flashed, the temperature surpassing even Pakura's 'Superheated Steam Kill'. The only difference was that Pakura's attack was broad, while Kyōmu's was a line.

Boom!

Eight puppets from the puppet brigade lined up, using their sturdy bodies to block the attack. Though they were thrown back, they blocked it nonetheless. Behind them, except for some Sand Shinobi who were scorched or burned to death at the front, the rest were largely unthreatened.

"Charge! Kill the other Leaf Shinobi!"

The remaining Sand Shinobi had no intention of engaging Kyōmu. They even took a large detour, attacking Kikyō defended by just over four hundred people.

Kyōmu wanted to go to their aid but was again stopped by Elder Chiyo and Pakura. Though he quickly broke free and rushed to his comrades' aid, the vast disparity in numbers still caused significant casualties to the Leaf side in that brief moment.

Leaping into the air, Kyōmu threw Yoei above his head, his hands dancing to create afterimages.

Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!

A huge water orb burst forth, its force so immense that it would undoubtedly create a large artificial lake upon landing.

At the same moment, Pakura fell in front of Kyōmu.

With a coordinated motion of his foot, he elegantly and violently kicked the katana handle, channeling the Lightning Release chakra from his foot into the blade of Yoei.

The heavily arced Yoei dove downward, plunging into the massive water orb just as it hit the ground, and the Lightning Release chakra erupted instantly.

Sizzle!

Electricity crackled, and the waterflow became its best conductor. What was once a clear artificial lake turned into a turbulent pool of indigo, a vast pool of electric shock blocking the path of the Sand Shinobi charge.

Not daring to step over, that was the scenario described.

Looking ahead, the indigo artificial lake resembled a galaxy fallen to earth, lying in front of Kikyō. The jumping currents were like death warrants—if touched, one would either be paralyzed and lose control of their body, or worse, fall into the water and suffocate.

Huff, huff, huff!

Kyōmu panted heavily, his recent exertions not insignificant. Although the Reverse Scale Mail soon replenished his expended chakra, the physical toll still required a moment to recover.

Scorch Release: Flame Wave!

Pakura acted at that moment.

Placing his hands in the 'Horse' seal before his chest, the concentrated Scorch Release chakra formed a massive wave of flame, carrying intense heat forward, fiercely steaming away much of the artificial lake Kyōmu had created.

The remaining Sand Shinobi weren't idle either, using combined battlefield Ninjutsu along with Pakura's Scorch Release, they evaporated the artificial lake completely.

In less than a minute, Kyōmu's defensive barrier was declared dissolved.

But the vast amount of steam generated, and the frequent rises in ground temperature, still pushed the weather towards the direction Kyōmu hoped for.

The sky gradually darkened.

Whoosh.

Kyōmu plummeted to the ground, grabbing Yoei's handle and dashing forward with a tap of his toe.

Swish, swish, swish.

The sword light flickered as Kyōmu once again sliced from the front to the rear of the Sand Shinobi formation. This was his second time single-handedly breaking through the Sand Shinobi line.

Clang, clang, clang.

Chiyo stopped Kyōmu again, joined by Pakura.

One controlled puppets for a long-range assault, and the other engaged Kyōmu in close combat, their coordination seamless.

This time, Kyōmu was held back.

When he tried to cut Chiyo's chakra threads, Pakura always intervened up close, and when Kyōmu aimed to kill Pakura first, Chiyo's controlled puppet brigade always managed to block for Pakura in time.

Normally, Kyōmu could keep his form and play with them slowly, but now, every second he was held back, a Leaf Shinobi on the Kikyō Mountain defenses fell, or more.

His strength suddenly increased to 200%!

The surviving Leaf Shinobi on the Kikyō Mountain defenses felt much stronger, their recovery rate was twice the usual.

But no one pondered why; their minds held only two words: fight!

For what?

"For Lord Kyōmu, to hold this place!"

"For Lord Kyōmu!"

"Kill them!"

The enhancement aura was in effect, and the remaining three hundred Leaf Shinobi, though fewer, surged in spirit, fighting even more fiercely.

Meanwhile.

"Pakura, retreat!"

Chiyo spat out a chakra thread, sticking it to Pakura's beautiful back and pulling her back sharply.

Pfft.

She wasn't dead, and with Chiyo's help, Pakura dodged Kyōmu's lethal strike but lost an arm forever.

Blood sprayed, a severed arm spinning in the air.

Before it hit the ground, Kyōmu's figure flashed, and in less than a blink of an eye, he caught up with Pakura being pulled back by Chiyo, thrusting Yoei forward fiercely.

Pfft.

The blade pierced through the chest, and Chiyo still couldn't save Pakura.

Smack.

Pakura's remaining hand suddenly grabbed Kyōmu's wrist, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth in a tragically beautiful smile.

"I don't know why you have Scorch Release, but thank you for inspiring me," Pakura thought, her smile even more beautiful. "Kyōmu, let's die together!"

Chiyo retreated explosively, and Kyōmu kicked Pakura away with a swift motion, retreating himself as well.

At the same time, a sphere of purple flames appeared at the center of Pakura's chest, combining all her life force and Scorch Release chakra. In an instant, it expanded rapidly and shattered.

Scorch Release: Violet!

A huge, violet-colored heat wave mushroom cloud exploded, resembling the petals of a violet flower. The area covered wasn't vast, but it was enough to envelop Kyōmu.

Although Pakura died, she lived up to her capabilities as a fire sprite, with her Violet move displaying all her splendor.

The wave of heat, comparable to the surface temperature of the sun, swept over the area. After a brief delay, the explosive roar echoed through heaven and earth, making the world seem as if it had been stripped of color, leaving only the raw contrast of black and white.

Time seemed to stand still.

"Pakura!"

"Lord Kyōmu!"

Different cries echoed from different camps, and at that moment, the world returned to its usual state.

"Cough, cough..." A soft cough sounded, "This darn girl, playing with explosions like she's a starfish, almost made it a deadly trade with me."

Kyōmu emerged from a pile of ashes, covered in dirt and soot, and that pile of ashes, no matter how one looked at it, resembled a giant snake.

(End of Chapter)