CH33: Land Of Grains (4)

The air was thick with tension, the oppressive presence of the chakra-infused beast suffocating the clearing. Its glowing red eyes scanned the gathered shinobi, and with a guttural roar, it charged toward the jonin.

Kagami and Masaru leaped into action, meeting the beast head-on. Kagami's Sharingan blazed to life, his crimson eyes tracking the beast's every movement. 

Masaru, wielding a tanto, moved with precise efficiency. Together, they formed a coordinated assault, their strikes landing on the beast with calculated precision.

Despite their efforts, the beast's unnatural strength and resilience were apparent. It swiped with claws reinforced by chakra, forcing both jonin to stay on the defensive. 

The ground trembled beneath its movements, its earth-affinity chakra creating jagged spikes that erupted unpredictably.

Meanwhile, chaos erupted as the beast's summoned minions, boars and wolves corrupted by chakra, surged toward the genin teams. The genin instinctively fell into action, fighting to survive the wave of feral creatures.

Chiyori stepped forward and With a grin that betrayed her excitement, she slashed her palm, her blood surging out in tendrils. Her blood mixed with her chakra swirling around her like a living entity, following her command. 

She created spikes out of her blood and used it to kill the first few of the beast pouncing towards her. 

As her blood got mixed with the blood of the fallen creatures, it became a weapon of terrifying efficiency. The tendrils coiled, pierced, and sliced through the charging minions with ease.

Her regeneration was otherworldly. Every scratch and bite healed within moments, the wounds sealing shut as if they had never existed. 

Her movements were relentless, her blood forming a deadly shield that allowed her to advance without hesitation.

Kaede worked from the sidelines, her hands flying through a sequence of seals. She planted tags on the battlefield, creating barriers that locked the creatures in place.

Once trapped, they were easy targets for Chiyori's crimson tendrils.

Ren wielded his whip-like weapon with deadly precision. Each strike created an explosion at its tip, scattering the charging minions and creating openings for his teammates. 

Together, the Uzushiogakure team worked like a well-oiled machine, taking down a majority of the beasts with strategic efficiency.

On the Konoha side, Mio, Sakumo, and Yuichi fought side by side. 

Mio relied on her swift movements, sharingan eyes and precise strikes, using ninja wire and kunai to trap and incapacitate the creatures and in between using jutsu to damage the rest of the herd. 

Sakumo, armed with a short sword, fought with a ferocity that belied his age, his movements fluid and calculated. His sword shined brightly in white color as he used his chakra blade to cut them like butter in a smooth movement.

Yuichi, however, found himself oddly comforted by Chiyori's display of power. Her ability, foreign and bizarre in this world, reminded him of something... something familiar. 

He couldn't quite place the feeling, but it settled in his chest like a fleeting sense of power that he knew from somewhere. Yet, he shook the thought away, focusing on the battle.

As the genin teams began to gain the upper hand, the beast let out a furious roar. It slammed its claws into the ground, sending a ripple of chakra through the earth. Spikes shot up in a deadly wave, forcing the genin to scatter.

It was then that the unthinkable happened. The beast charged at Kagami, and before anyone could react, it swiped at him with immense force. Kagami's body was flung across the clearing, colliding with a tree. He slumped to the ground, unmoving.

Masaru called out in shock, only to meet the same fate moments later. A massive claw struck him down, and he fell in a heap, blood pooling beneath him.

The genins froze. 

For a brief moment, time seemed to stop as they stared at the fallen jonin. Mio's breath hitched, her hands trembling. "Kagami-sensei..." she whispered, her voice breaking.

Sakumo's eyes welled up, but he gritted his teeth, stepping in front of Mio protectively. 

The Uzushiogakure team wasn't faring much better, their confidence shattered by the sight of Masaru's apparent death.

But Yuichi stood firm, his mind calm amidst the chaos, his mind running fast. 

'Something doesn't add up. Kagami wouldn't fall so easily—not to this beast. Is this some kind of a ploy?Maybe a way to test them?' The realization steadied him, and he took a step forward.

The beast, heavily injured by Kagami and Masaru's earlier attacks, turned its attention to the genin. It charged, its movements slower but no less deadly. Yuichi moved first, his body started crackling with lightning chakra.

With a burst of speed, he intercepted the beast, his enhanced lightning strength allowing him to match its blows and outsmart him in agility. 

Sparks flew as his lightning-coated fists struck the beast's hardened hide. He dodged the spikes erupting from the ground, his heightened senses warning him of the earth's subtle shifts.

"Get it together!" Yuichi shouted to the others. His voice cut through the fog of their grief, snapping them back to reality. "This isn't the time to break down!"

His words spurred Chiyori into action. With a determined grin, she joined Yuichi, her blood tendrils wrapping around the beast's legs to hinder its movements. 

Sakumo and Ren too gathered their demeanor and moved to the flank, their weapons finding weak points in its armor.

Mio, still shaken, took a deep breath and began weaving hand signs. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" she called out, releasing a volley of small fireballs that struck the beast from behind, creating openings for the others.

Sakumo striked down from the opening with his chakra blade on the beast, restricted by the blood tendrils he wasn't able to retaliate and received a big cut through Sakumo's blade. But it wasn't enough to end him.

The beast, realizing it was losing, let out a final roar. 

Its chakra surged, creating a field of spikes that shot up in all directions. The genin scrambled to avoid the attack, but Yuichi was already moving.

Sensing the buildup of chakra in the ground with his heightened sense due to lightning enhancement, Yuichi prepared early as he leapt high into the air. 

The lightning chakra that was coursing through his body, he focused it into his right hand, which held his katana. As he descended, the lightning condensed, forming a sharp, black glow around the blade on his right hand.

"Chidori," he muttered, the word carrying both resolve and finality.

With a flash of dark purplish light resembling closeness to the black and the screeching sound of birds, Yuichi struck his katana. 

His blade easily pierced the beast's neck with the movement of stab and the lightning exploding on impact cremating everything it made contact with. 

The creature didn't even get a chance to let out a final roar. Before he could react to the boy that he sensed danger from his death already was on his doors. 

Now with his half of head and torso gone, his head and body fall down in different directions.

The clearing fell silent, save for the labored breathing of the genin. Yuichi straightened, his katana still crackling with residual lightning. The beast twice his size lay dead at his feet, its massive form pierced by his strike.

Behind him, Kagami and Masaru reappeared, their bodies flickering as the illusion of their deaths faded. 

Kagami's expression was one of quiet pride as he stepped forward. "Well done," he said simply.

The genin stared at him in stunned silence, the weight of what they had just experienced slowly settling in.

Yuichi sheathed his blade, his face calm but his heart racing.