---
The signal flare had barely faded from the sky when the chaos erupted.
"Kill them all!" a Sound Ninja roared, ripping off his disguise and leaping toward a group of civilians.
But his kunai never reached its target.
CLANG.
A Konoha Chunin, who had been seemingly idling near the exit, intercepted the blow with a trench knife. There was no panic in his eyes, only grim determination.
"Sector 4 is compromised," the Chunin spoke into his radio headset, casually kicking the Sound Ninja in the chest. "Initiate Protocol B. Civilians, move to the shelters in an orderly fashion!"
All around the stadium, similar scenes played out. The invading forces... Sound and Sand alike... expected screams, stampedes, and easy slaughter. They expected a village caught sleeping.
Instead, they ran into a wall of steel.
"Why aren't they running!?" a Sand Chunin shouted, dodging a fireball from a Konoha defender. "They were supposed to be panicked!"
"We knew you were coming, idiot!" an Izumo Kamizuki shouted, slamming his giant sword down.
In the midst of the fighting, the Genin were the only ones truly confused.
"What is going on!?" Naruto yelled, shaking a sleeping Kiba. "Wake up, dog breath! We're under attack!"
"Genjutsu..." Sakura muttered, forming the release seal. "Release!"
She looked around, her eyes wide. The stands were a battlefield. Anbu were flickering in and out of existence, cutting down enemies with ruthless efficiency. The villagers were being ushered out through pre-cleared routes, shielded by walls of Earth Release created by the Jonin.
"This isn't a surprise attack," Shikamaru noted, feigning sleep but peeking through one eye. "The old men knew. This is a trap... inside a trap."
Sasuke stood on the arena wall, ignoring the fighting above. His eyes were locked on the monstrosity below.
---
Down in the arena, Gaara was hyperventilating. The wound on his shoulder smoked. The monstrous sand arm flailed wildly, crushing the stone floor.
"Not enough... NOT ENOUGH BLOOD!"
The One-Tail's chakra was leaking out, heavy and suffocating. It began to bloat, threatening to transform fully right there in the middle of the stadium. If Shukaku emerged here, the collateral damage would be catastrophic.
High above in the VIP box, separated from the main stand by the newly erected purple barrier, Alaric watched the transformation. He was standing just outside the transparent violet wall of the Four Violet Flames Formation, casually leaning against the barrier's outer pylon.
"That raccoon is going to ruin the architecture," Alaric muttered.
He looked at the screeching Jinchuriki. He didn't weave a hand sign. He didn't chant. He simply extended his right hand, palm open, fingers splayed.
He accessed the Wind Release affinity he had purchased eons ago and amplified it with his massive chakra reserves.
"Go play outside."
FUUUUUUU-BOOM!
A concentrated, invisible cannonball of pressurized air erupted from Alaric's palm. It wasn't a blade; it was a hammer.
It slammed into Gaara with the force of a freight train.
"GAAAAH!"
The Jinchuriki was lifted off his feet. The sheer kinetic force launched him backward, smashing him through the arena wall, through the outer perimeter, and deep into the forest beyond the village gates.
Temari and Kankuro, who had jumped down to retrieve their brother, stared in horror at the hole in the wall.
"Gaara!" Temari screamed. She looked up at the VIP box, catching a glimpse of the crimson coat fluttering in the wind. "Monster..."
She and Kankuro sprinted after their brother.
"Chase them!" Genma shouted to the Genin. "Don't let the Jinchuriki recover!"
Sasuke didn't need to be told twice. He blurred into motion, chasing his prey. Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru... dragged by Pakkun... followed close behind.
---
Haku stood amidst the chaos of the stands. A Sound ninja lunged at him. Haku didn't look; he simply sidestepped and drove a senbon into the man's ear.
He watched the Genin run into the forest.
"I should assist," Haku decided. 'Even that Uchiha won't be able to handle a tailed beast.'
He flickered away, moving toward the hole in the wall. But as he reached the edge of the forest, a figure dropped from the trees, blocking his path.
It was a tall man with markings on his face and a veil covering one side. Baki, the elite Jonin of the Sand.
"I won't let you pass," Baki said, his voice gravelly. "You're the ice user. Sorry kid, you're too dangerous to leave alive."
Haku stopped. His demeanor shifted instantly. The polite tournament competitor vanished. The Tool of Zabuza emerged.
"Move," Haku said softly.
"You're fast, kid," Baki scoffed, forming a hand sign. "But I'm a Jonin."
"Wind Release: Blade of Wind!" Baki swiped his hand. An invisible, unblockable blade of wind sliced through the air, aimed directly at Haku's neck. It was a technique that couldn't be parried.
But it could be dodged.
Haku's Ashura no Mon seal flared. He felt the disturbance in the air pressure before the blade was even fully formed.
Zero Friction.
Haku dropped low, his feet sliding on a microscopic layer of ice. The wind blade passed inches above his hair, severing a few strands.
Baki's eyes widened. "He ducked it?"
Haku didn't just duck. He exploded forward from his low stance, using the ground like a launchpad. He was inside Baki's guard in a millisecond.
'Ice Release: Dagger.' An icicle formed in Haku's hand. He thrust it toward Baki's heart.
Baki, reacting with veteran instincts, twisted his body and hardened his shoulder with Earth Release to tank the blow.
CRACK.
The ice shattered against the hardened skin. Baki grinned. "Too weak!"
He swung his other hand for a counter-strike.
But Haku wasn't there.
Baki struck empty air. "What?"
"Behind you."
Baki spun, unleashing another wind blade. Again, it hit nothing but afterimages.
Haku was bouncing off the tree trunks surrounding them, moving so fast he was a blur of teal and grey. He wasn't using mirrors. He didn't need them.
"You rely too much on your eyes," Haku's voice echoed from everywhere.
Baki panicked. He channeled chakra into a wide-area wind scythe to shred the entire clearing. "Wind Release: Great—"
ZIP.
Haku appeared directly in front of Baki, face to face.
"Too slow."
Haku didn't stab. He placed his palm on Baki's chest. 'Ice Release: Flash Freeze!'
Cold, absolute and biting, surged into Baki's lungs. The moisture inside his chest cavity froze instantly. Baki gasped, but no air came. His lungs had turned to solid ice.
His eyes bulged. He clutched his throat, falling to his knees, suffocating from the inside out.
Haku looked down at the dying Jonin. "You fought well. But you fought a war. Try not to shout your jutsus in your next life."
Haku didn't linger. He vanished into the forest to support the others.
---
High above on the tiled roof of the Hokage Tower, the Four Violet Flames barrier hummed with dark energy.
Inside, Orochimaru had finally dropped his disguise. He stood opposite Hiruzen Sarutobi, holding a sword to his old master's throat.
"I told you, Sensei," Orochimaru hissed, his snake-like tongue flicking. "I will be the wind that turns the windmill. I will destroy this village."
Hiruzen looked at his student with sadness, but his resolve was hardening. "You will try, Orochimaru. But you underestimate the Will of Fire."
"Will of Fire?" Orochimaru laughed, a mocking sound. "Look around you! Your village is burning! Your precious peace is shattering!"
Outside the purple barrier, leaning casually against the tile, Alaric finished his cigar. He dropped the butt and crushed it beneath his boot.
He could hear the Anbu fighting the giant snakes below. He could feel the clash of chakra in the forest. He watched Orochimaru posturing inside his purple box.
Alaric cracked his knuckles, rolling his shoulders. The crimson coat fluttered as his chakra... dense and terrifying... began to rise, making the Anbu nearby shudder.
"Well," Alaric muttered, a grin spreading across his face as he looked at the barrier that was supposed to be impenetrable.
"It seems it's my time to shine."
.
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