Boom!
Raizen vanished into the spinning chaos of Revolving Heaven, swallowed by smoke and shadow. Hyuga Tennin froze, eyes wide, relying on Byakugan to track his foe—but the boy was gone.
Before Tennin could even locate him, the earth beneath his feet trembled. A black shadow shot up from the soil like a bullet. Too fast to react, Tennin felt a crushing punch slam against his chin, launching him backward with bone-jarring force.
"Damn it!" Tennin hissed, tasting blood, jaw throbbing, body hitting the ground with a crash. He tried to rise, but a strange kunai blinked into existence at his temple. And then—hands appeared out of nowhere, guiding the weapon's deadly precision. In the next instant, the kunai pressed against his neck.
Impossible… Tennin's body froze. Byakugan flared, white eyes narrowing on the figure before him. It wasn't Raizen.
"Lost!" the intruder's voice rang sharp as ice.
A burst of rage flared through Tennin, mingled with the sting of defeat. He had poured everything into the battle and still lost—no excuses, no blaming his body. When you lose, you lose.
Raizen studied the boy in silence, only to feel an even heavier pressure pressing down from behind. Like a gust of winter wind cutting through bone, it swept over him. A tingling spread down his spine. No way… that kind of presence shouldn't exist behind two elite Jōnin!
His gut clenched. Raizen had assumed the other Hyuga were just strong Jōnin—but one of them wasn't. One of them was a shadow-level powerhouse.
"Let go of my young master!" A Hyuga shinobi stepped forward, voice deep and commanding.
Raizen exhaled sharply. No choice. He had to sheath the Flying Thunder God Kunai in his hand, but he didn't retreat from Tennin. Pull away, and a shadow-level killer could strike without hesitation.
"The strength… impressive. But pity we weren't born into the Hyuga," the second ninja said, eyes flickering with admiration and regret.
Before Raizen could react further, Ueshi Tokusaka and five Chūnin appeared, surrounding him. A trap was closing. They weren't letting him leave.
"Eight Trigrams—Palm Storm!"
The shadow-level Hyuga roared, thrusting his palm forward. A violent chakra storm surged outward. Raizen's eyes widened—this wasn't a simple attack; it was controlled, precise, and terrifying. He barely managed to retreat in time, the swirling energy tearing at the earth.
But then, the storm dispersed midair, fading into nothingness. Raizen caught the flicker of surprise in the Hyuga's eyes. Even the most powerful chakra could be manipulated if you understood the flow. He moved, disappearing into shadows again.
"Kill him!"
The shadow-level Hyuga advanced toward Tennin, seizing him and muttering instructions to the other ninjas. Ueshi Tokusaka's grin widened, a predator confident in his trap. His massive frame lunged at Raizen, while the five surrounding shinobi sealed off all escape routes.
"Of course… of course there's a movie-class powerhouse in front of me," Raizen muttered under his breath, muscles tensing. He had expected resistance, but facing a truly overwhelming enemy brought a mix of excitement and pressure.
Even if he had beaten Tennin, survival wasn't guaranteed. He was cornered—and now, the real fight began.