The Hokage Strikes Back
Blood dripped steadily down Hiruzen's chin, pattering against the cracked earth. His chest ached, his ribs grinding like broken glass, but his eyes—those sharp, unyielding eyes of the Professor—burned with defiance.
Kaito's tanto still pressed against Enma's hardened surface, sparks sizzling between the clash. The crimson chains writhed like hungry serpents, probing for weaknesses.
"Old man," Kaito whispered, his voice eerily calm. "Your body fails you. Why stand still? Just fall."
Hiruzen's lips curled into the faintest smirk despite the blood. "Because I am Sarutobi Hiruzen. And this village… still stands while I breathe."
With a roar, his chakra surged outward, shaking the ground. Enma, still in staff form, elongated with a crack of power, forcing Kaito back.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Bullet!"
Hiruzen exhaled, a torrent of fire erupting from his lungs. The flames took the shape of serpentine dragons, weaving and twisting through the air. Their scales shimmered, their eyes burned like molten gold.
Kaito leapt aside, his chains shielding him from the worst of it. The heat licked across his skin, searing his arm, blistering flesh. He grimaced but refused to falter.
Hiruzen followed, hands blurring into seals.
"Lightning Release: Shadow Clone."
Two copies of Hiruzen appeared, crackling with electricity, their movements nearly indistinguishable from the original. They darted forward, staffs striking in unison.
Kaito blocked one, cut through another—only to be shocked as the clone exploded in a surge of lightning. His muscles spasmed violently, teeth grinding as the current coursed through his body. For a split second, his chains faltered.
The real Hiruzen struck, Enma's staff slamming into Kaito's ribs. Bone cracked. Kaito flew backward, blood spraying from his lips.
For the first time, he was forced to kneel.
The Golden Predator Cornered
Soka's chains tore through another line of shinobi, their screams drowned beneath the chaos. But Konoha was learning.
"Teams! Layer your elements!" barked a commander.
Five shinobi moved in unison—wind, fire, water, earth, lightning. The seals flashed faster than blinking.
Water Dragon Jutsu! A massive serpent of water coiled from the river nearby.
Lightning Strike! Bolts surged into the dragon, its body glowing electric-blue.
Wind Release: Gale Palm! Gusts propelled the dragon forward with blinding speed.
Earth Rampart! Walls rose to funnel the dragon's path.
Fire Release: Great Fireball! Flames licked the edges, cloaking the dragon in steam and fire.
The elemental construct roared forward—a water-dragon cloaked in lightning, its scales ignited by fire, accelerated by wind, guided by stone.
It slammed into Soka.
For an instant, she disappeared in the explosion. The battlefield shook, earth cratering beneath the impact. Shinobi cheered—finally, they had struck her.
But as the smoke cleared, their victory curdled.
Soka stood in the crater, her body charred, her skin blistered and peeling, golden chains impaled into the ground for balance. Blood streamed down her legs. Her breathing was ragged. But her smile—bloodstained, manic—remained.
"You think that's enough?" she rasped, voice cracking with both pain and ecstasy.
Chains burst outward, faster than before, fueled by fury. They skewered the elemental squad, lifting shinobi into the air like grotesque marionettes. Their screams cut short as bodies split apart mid-air. Blood rained across the cheering platoon, silencing them.
Soka staggered, coughing blood, yet still standing. "More," she whispered. "Send me more."
The Hokage's Resolve
Hiruzen did not waste Kaito's brief stumble.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"
The ground beneath Kaito liquefied, turning into a surging river of mud. His footing slipped, crimson chains flailing wildly for purchase.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
A massive dragon's head of stone erupted from the mud, spewing boulders the size of carriages. They crashed into Kaito, forcing him to retreat, his chains smashing stone apart in showers of debris.
Hiruzen pressed harder, lungs burning as he wove another set of seals.
"Combination Jutsu! Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"
A dragon of fire erupted from his mouth—then was amplified by Enma's roar, doubling in size. The inferno slammed into the mud river, creating a boiling torrent of steam and scalding water.
Kaito hissed as the vapor seared his flesh. His skin bubbled, raw patches tearing. He clenched his jaw, blood dripping from his mouth as he forced his chains outward to shield himself.
Hiruzen leapt through the haze, Enma descending in a crushing strike.
BAM!
The staff smashed against Kaito's forearm, bone snapping audibly. The boy cried out, staggering, crimson chains lashing wildly in blind retaliation. One grazed Hiruzen's side, carving a deep gash through his ribs. The old Hokage winced but did not falter.
"You bleed like any man!" Hiruzen growled. "And you will fall like one!"
Mounting Casualties
The battlefield was drowning in red.
Soka's rampage had slaughtered dozens more—Akimichi giants torn in half, Hyūga collapsed with shattered ribs, Uchiha cut down before their Sharingan could predict the chaos of her chains.
But the cost to her was visible. Her right arm trembled uncontrollably from repeated Gentle Fist strikes. Half her face was burned raw, her once-golden hair singed black. Every movement left droplets of blood across the ground.
Kaito too bled freely—arm broken, ribs cracked, burns streaking across his flesh. His breathing was harsh, his chains slower, though no less deadly.
And yet, the devastation they caused was unmatched.
Already, one hundred and fifty shinobi lay dead, their bodies painting the clearing. Medics who tried to rush in were shredded before they could reach the wounded. The screams of dying children and veterans alike echoed through the trees.
For the first time in living memory, Konoha's elite forces—the strongest of the clans—looked uncertain.
A Moment of Dread
Hiruzen's chest rose and fell like a bellows. His robes clung wet with blood, his staff slick with sweat. He stared at Kaito, who knelt amidst the wreckage, breathing ragged, crimson chains swaying weakly.
"You're powerful," the Hokage admitted, his voice hoarse. "Stronger than I could have imagined. But power without wisdom… is destruction."
Kaito lifted his head, his eyes swirling spirals of crimson and silver. They glowed with madness and resolve. "Then destruction is what I was born for."
The chains rose again, trembling but unyielding.
And Hiruzen realized, with a grim weight in his chest, that this battle was far from over.
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I saw that most of the votes were for Kaito to be a villain and to explore the world or form his organization, so I'll do that. I'll see if he will form his organization or not depending on your votes.
If you review or give a Power Stone, I'll give you an extra chapter.
A Power Stone: an extra chapter.
A positive review: an extra chapter.
This would help me a lot and would also attract more people, so I'd make more chapters per day.