A brutal uppercut smashed into its jaw, launching it through the ceiling and into the moonlit sky.
Hiruzen Sarutobi saw a familiar figure with pure white wings hovering where Moryo had stood.
"Ryoma?" he whispered.
Ryoma glanced at Hiruzen Sarutobi's injuries, then spoke calmly. "Sorry, Hiruzen Sarutobi. I'm late. Please wait here."
He looked up, Pure Byakugan locked onto the enemy.
"I'll be right back."
With a thunderous boom, he vanished.
Moryo steadied itself in the air just as Ryoma appeared before it at terrifying speed. Another punch smashed it back into the altar like a meteor.
The ground collapsed again as Ryoma followed, driving it deeper into the pit.
Five figures arrived using Body Flicker; Kakashi, Two-Tails Jinchuriki, Fourth Mei Terumi, and Kurotsuchi were among them.
They saw the devastation and rushed to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Dust cleared.
Moryo knelt in the crater, gripping Ryoma's ankle. Its mask was cracked and filthy.
"Bug," it snarled. "You're asking to die."
Power surged as it punched Ryoma's abdomen.
The blow landed.
But Ryoma did not move.
Blue light spread across his body, markings glowing as a vast power awakened.
"Is stolen power useful?" he said softly. "I have it too."
He twisted free and kicked.
The blow struck the cracked bone mask.
The impact roared through the underground space.
A heavy kick slammed into the side of Moryo's face.
Its head was knocked sharply to one side by the force, and it let go of Ryoma's ankle without thinking. Its whole body lost balance and staggered backward.
But almost at once, it twisted its head back and fixed a vicious stare on Ryoma.
"Human!"
Being beaten back again and again finally drove Moryo into full savagery. It let out a roar that did not sound human at all, packed with hatred and raw violence.
It raised one hand toward him, and the space around its body rippled once more, as if countless deadly dark purple tentacles were about to burst out in the next instant. Those tentacles were once its own limbs, stored away in Other Space after it rebuilt its body with the structure of Crimson giant.
That was its strongest and most familiar power beyond this physical shell.
However, just as the ripples were about to turn into a real attack, Ryoma slowly lifted his hand. The ordinary-looking bell on his wrist swayed gently.
Dingling.
An invisible yet strange vibration spread out with the clear, hollow chime of the bell. The space ripples that were about to release the tentacles were smoothed away and vanished as if brushed flat.
"What?"
Moryo froze, shock filling its eyes, and its voice turned hoarse. "That is… the Miko's…"
Before it could finish, Ryoma's figure flashed forward like a ghost and appeared right in front of it. The distance was so close they were nearly face to face.
He lowered his center of gravity, his right hand clenched into a fist, his arm pulled back like a fully drawn bowstring. His breathing burned hot, and beneath his plain clothes, his heart pounded hard as power surged through his veins.
Ryoma's current state was built on the power of the Miko, combined with Sage Mode and the principles of Shinigami's world, Jingxue Zhuang and Dongxue Zhuang. By injecting the spiritual energy within the Hogyoku into his body, his strength, defense, speed, and healing were all enhanced at once.
He called this state Xuezhuang Mode. It was powerful, but this was his first time using it, and there were still parts that needed adjustment.
"So," he said.
Ryoma's voice was low, carrying an undeniable excitement. "The only thing you can do now is trade punches with me, so I can get used to this body's strength and speed."
The moment the words fell, his fist blasted out like a fired cannon.
Moryo's combat instinct flared to its peak, and it roared at the same time, swinging its own fist forward. Their fists collided solidly in midair.
Boom!
Inhuman, violent power erupted without restraint. A visible ring of chakra energy exploded outward from the two of them, sweeping up dust like a crashing wave.
kacha!
With a bone-aching crack, Moryo's arm twisted at a strange angle, and its body was hurled backward, spinning through the air at high speed. It forced itself to stabilize, carving two deep trenches in the ground with its feet before stopping near the rock wall and shedding most of the force.
The injured arm shook once at its side and snapped back to normal. Ryoma was also thrown back several meters by the recoil, landing steadily, while the fist that had clashed with Moryo was torn open and bleeding.
But almost immediately, the savage wound healed at a visible speed. Flesh writhed, closed, and returned to normal.
"Damn it!"
Seeing this, Moryo's Wrath finally hit its limit. It smashed a fist into the rock wall behind it, blasting out a deep crater as Gravel rained down.
This could not continue.
Without any more hesitation, the black bat wings on its back spread fully, and a stronger presence poured out from its body. It slowly lifted into the air, stretching out as a layer of black, insect-like exoskeleton rapidly covered its surface, making it even more hideous.
Its fingers grew longer and sharper, turning into cold, gleaming claws.
"Now that's more like it."
Watching Moryo fully turn into a Guai thing, excitement appeared in Ryoma's eyes. "A Guai thing should look like a Guai thing."
As he spoke, the veins around his eyes bulged, his center of gravity dipped slightly, and his right hand gripped the hilt of the Ring-Pommel Saber at his waist in a reverse-draw stance. In the next moment, the clean white wings behind him beat hard.
Boom!
His figure vanished from the spot, like a spring compressed to the limit and suddenly released. The burst of speed crushed the ground where he stood, cracks spreading like spiderwebs as dust was thrown up by the violent wind.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others kept their eyes locked on the fight while tending their wounds. The instant Ryoma drew his blade, the cold flash from the unsheathed edge stung their eyes.
At almost the same time, Moryo's bat wings flapped hard, and it turned into a streak of black light that charged straight at Ryoma with brutal force. When Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others blinked without thinking, the two had already become blurred afterimages in the air.
Their hair was pulled tight by the oncoming wind, one white and one black figure like two whipping ribbons, impossible to tell apart in speed or order. Only two terrifying howls cut through the air, tearing apart anything in their path.
In the next instant, the dust between them was split by a sharp flash of light. The blade and claw finally met.
Clang!
A piercing metallic crash echoed through the entire underground space. Sparks burst like shattered silver, scattering between them and flashing under the dim moonlight.
The shockwave of sound and wind swept across the area. Several people around them groaned and clutched their ears, a clear ringing buzzing inside their heads as if their brains were shaking.
The ground beneath Ryoma and Moryo could not withstand the pressure and collapsed instantly.
"Come on!"
Ryoma grinned, lightning surging across his body as blue arcs wrapped around him. In the distance, another Ryoma, supporting Darui, narrowed his eyes in shock.
Chakra Mode?!
"Roar!"
Moryo howled in rage and forced power through its crossed claws, scraping them hard along the blade. Sparks poured down with a harsh screech.