"Bastard!"
Aburame Kenpei let out a furious roar, beyond enraged.
Letting Uchiha Chiyu rampage into the prison before—killing a fair number of his subordinates—could be chalked up to his own absence at the time. But now, right under his nose…
Not only had the criminals he'd deliberately arranged been wiped out, even his own men had…
In a flash, four more had been cut down!
Unbearable!
He had no idea how Uchiha Chiyu had broken out of the sealing. But that hardly mattered at this point. He had only one thought left:
Kill.
He had to kill Uchiha Chiyu!
Otherwise, never mind avenging his fallen subordinates—he himself would never get out of this unscathed. Even ignoring whether Chiyu might kill him, he had already promised Hokage-sama that Chiyu wouldn't survive to see the next sunrise. If he failed, not only had the Anbu lost people—he would have brought shame on the Hokage. The punishment for that would be far worse than death.
Thus…
Kenpei instantly unleashed his chakra.
"Secret Technique: Insect Sphere!"
Buzz!
Buzz-buzz-buzz!
A sharp, humming noise shattered the dark silence like a gathering storm, bearing an ominously unsettling presence.
"That—that's the captain's…"
"The Parasitic Insects jutsu?!"
"Be careful! The captain's secret technique can be terrifying—uncontrollable even. It won't distinguish friend from foe. We could be killed too!"
"Retreat!"
Immediately, the other Anbu wardens scattered in all directions.
Of the criminals Chiyu had been fighting, only one remained alive, by some fluke. Yet Chiyu didn't kill him straightaway—he turned instead toward Kenpei's direction.
"Ah. So this is one of the Aburame clan's secret techniques, huh?"
"And it's not just normal parasitic insects, either… They're invisible to the naked eye."
Even so, the triple-tomoe of Chiyu's Sharingan flared crimson. Insects feeding on chakra—even if they were extremely small and hidden—were perfectly visible to his eyes, glowing like fireflies in a pitch-black cave.
But he remained cautious. If Kenpei was high-ranking enough to oversee the entire Anbu prison, he wouldn't be weak.
Gathering chakra in a flash, Chiyu unleashed a powerful Fire Release:
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"
A colossal dragon of flame roared forward, scorching the air until it crackled, reducing huge swaths of near-invisible insects to ash. But many still spread out, encircling Chiyu from all directions.
"Hmph, worthy of the Aburame clan," Chiyu remarked. "Quite interesting."
At that, instead of retreating, he let the remaining insects swarm right over him.
Kenpei was taken aback, then gave a sinister smile.
"Fine. If you want to die, I'll oblige.
Secret Technique: Bug Infestation!"
Instantly, the invisible insects attacked Chiyu's chakra and flesh all at once, devouring them. Of course, they also targeted that last criminal—coating him in layer upon layer, ravenously feeding.
"Aaaargh!"
The criminal—unable to see anything—could feel the excruciating pain. His screams of agony tore through the prison.
Kenpei gave a harsh laugh. "All the better—this way they all end up dead, saving me from cleaning up afterward."
But suddenly…
In the cold, dark, damp recesses of the prison…
A humanoid flash of lightning erupted!
Zzz-zzzzz!
Humm—
A violent brilliance, like thunder and lightning ripping through the darkness, abruptly lit up the entire cell block.
"What—what is that?!"
Kenpei and every Anbu guard stood transfixed, disbelieving. Their wide eyes took in a person-shaped radiance of electricity around Chiyu.
This was…
Chiyu's newly awakened ability:
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
By channeling lightning chakra throughout his entire body, he could surpass normal limits in offense, defense, speed, and damage mitigation. For now, he merely tapped its fundamental level—diffusing the Lightning Release evenly over every cell, releasing it with precise control.
Boom!
A thunderous roar echoed. All the tiny bugs covering Chiyu's body were instantly blasted into dust, completely annihilated—like a few melting snowflakes. An effortless move for him.
Kenpei recoiled, horror seizing him.
"That—that power… Could it be…?"
Chiyu ignored him, glancing back at the final criminal thrashing in pain.
He wore a derisive smirk.
"You really think I'd let someone else kill you?"
Reversing his grip, he used Blade of False Darkness on the rusty kunai once more, channeling a crackling bolt of lightning that skewered the last criminal's chest. With another electric burst, a giant, bloody cavity formed—destroying half his torso and dropping him to the floor, lifeless.
All the criminals—
Wiped out!
Ding!
[You've successfully helped a criminal renounce evil, blessed indeed! +60 Virtue Points!]
"Hmm?" Chiyu muttered. "Only sixty points this time?"
From experience, he knew the system's Goodness Points varied with the criminal's strength, sins, status—complex factors. Presumably, this one had fewer "evil" credentials.
Kenpei stared wide-eyed. He recognized the gravity of this situation—that it was spiraling out of control. Pale-faced, heart pounding, he forced himself to remain steady.
"Hurry, report this at once to Lord Hokage!"
"And the new Anbu captain!"
"Yes!"
Chiyu's eyes flickered. New Anbu captain?
Sarutobi Shinnosuke was dead, so who would it be? In the original timeline, it might have been Hatake Kakashi, but everything had changed now. Even he couldn't fully predict the flow of events.
He made no move to stop the messenger—he actually welcomed it.
He turned his gaze back on Kenpei, who clutched his fists tightly.
"Aren't you going to run?"
Kenpei, dripping cold sweat, answered stonily, "I am head warden of the Anbu prison.
"I won't abandon my responsibilities or my men…"
Chiyu nodded calmly. "Indeed, you're loyal to your duty. Pity…"
"…It's loyalty put to evil ends.
Aburame Kenpei—abusing your power, colluding with enemy spies, conspiring against a Konoha shinobi, working hand-in-hand with those criminals to kill me. Your sins cannot be forgiven.
By law, you deserve to die!"
With those words, Lightning Release Chakra Mode flared to life around Chiyu again, turning him into a living streak of lightning, surging forward at unimaginable speed!
Kenpei's instincts screamed danger.
"W-watch out!" someone shouted.
But it was too late. Chiyu whirled, the Sharingan analyzing all possible flaws and blind spots. In a razor-sharp instant, the Blade of False Darkness punched through Kenpei's heart.
Sharingan, Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Blade of False Darkness—in triple combination, Chiyu was slaughter incarnate.
~~~
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