The valley lay in ruin. Broken stone, scorched earth, and the iron scent of blood clung to the air. For a long moment, no one spoke. Only the ragged sound of breathing—theirs, and Kai's—echoed in the silence.
Ayaka lowered her blade slowly, crimson dripping from its edge. Her gaze lingered on the fallen chūnin, then shifted toward Kai.
"Kai." Her voice was sharp, but beneath it, something softer stirred. "Stay awake."
He blinked against the darkness tugging at the edges of his vision. Every breath burned, every muscle screamed. But still, he lifted his head. "I… I'm fine," he croaked, though the blood staining his lips betrayed the lie.
Renji darted forward despite Ayaka's earlier command, kneeling by Kai's side. His hands hovered uselessly, trembling. "He would've killed us. All of us… but you…"
Kai tried to answer, but his throat locked. The memory of fire crashing down, of his own walls splintering under the weight of power greater than his own, still burned inside him.
He wasn't sure what scared him more—that he had stood and survived, or that he had come so close to breaking completely.
The squad gathered what they could and moved quickly, carrying Kai between them as the stone valley faded behind. The walk back to Iwagakure was long, the silence heavy. Ayaka led, eyes scanning the horizon, but her thoughts kept flickering back to the boy who had dared to face down a rogue chūnin head-on.
Back in the village, the medics worked furiously. Bandages wrapped Kai from shoulder to ribs, chakra-infused salves cooling the burns across his arms. When at last he woke, it was to the pale glow of lanterns in the infirmary.
Ayaka stood at his bedside, arms crossed, her expression unreadable.
"You almost got yourself killed," she said quietly.
Kai's lips curled in a tired grin. "Almost."
She studied him, then shook her head. "Reckless. But… you didn't run. You stood. That matters more than you realize."
Her eyes softened for just a moment, a rare crack in the iron façade. "Rest. You've earned it. But remember, Kai—surviving is only the beginning. Now you have to learn why you fight."
That night, when the infirmary fell quiet, Kai stared at the ceiling. His body was broken, but inside him, something new stirred. The memory of standing against overwhelming fire, of refusing to fall even when everything screamed at him to give in…
The storm within him rumbled, faint but steady. He was still weak, but his resolve was no longer a flicker. It was a spark waiting to ignite.
And deep in the shadows of Iwagakure, word of the genin who had survived against a rogue chūnin began to spread.