Chapter 273: Slaying Mōryō
Naruto tightened both hands around Ryūjin Jakka.
Through the smoke and turbulent chakra, an old memory surfaced in his mind.
Tanjiro.
The lessons he had received inside Asuramaru's mental world.
Breathing.
Footwork.
The rhythm of the sword.
Naruto drew in a deep breath.
His aura rose.
Heat gathered around him.
"Hinokami Kagura…"
Ahead, the smoke exploded outward.
More than a dozen Shadow Clones burst through it and charged directly toward Mōryō's regenerating dragon heads.
Mōryō growled.
"What a troublesome little pest!"
Several black heads opened their jaws and lunged at the clones.
The Shadow Clones met them head on.
Some leapt aside.
Others attacked with kunai.
Several deliberately drew the dragon heads away from the center.
Then every clone moved at almost the same moment.
Three pronged kunai flew through the air.
One.
Five.
Ten.
More.
The marked weapons scattered throughout the cavern.
Behind the curtain of dust, the original Naruto remained motionless.
Ryūjin Jakka burned brighter.
The flames did not merely spread across the sword.
They gathered.
Compressed.
Twisted.
A blazing dragon gradually formed around Naruto.
Its fiery body coiled along Ryūjin Jakka and circled him, growing clearer with every breath.
Naruto opened his eyes.
"Dragon Sun Halo Head Dance!"
Flash!
Golden light erupted.
Naruto vanished.
He appeared beside the first three pronged kunai.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Flash!
Flash!
Flash!
Flying Thunder God carried him across the cavern faster than ordinary sight could follow.
The blazing dragon travelled with him.
Each teleportation created another burst of golden light.
Each movement dragged a trail of fire through the darkness.
Mōryō's many eyes widened.
"What is this?!"
The demon reacted immediately.
Dragon heads surged toward Naruto from every direction.
They tried to overwhelm him through sheer numbers.
One descended from above.
Another attacked from the side.
Several more blocked the path ahead.
Naruto did not stop.
Flash!
He appeared beside another kunai.
The flaming dragon swept forward.
The first black head touched the flames.
It disintegrated.
Another followed.
Then another.
Mōryō's attacks collapsed the instant they came into contact with the fire surrounding Naruto.
"What?!"
More dragon heads rushed forward.
They suffered the same fate.
The golden flashes continued.
Naruto passed through the swarm without slowing.
Every obstacle in his path was torn apart by the burning dragon.
Mōryō could do nothing except watch him close the distance.
Then Naruto appeared at the center of the demon's massive body.
His eyes sharpened.
Ryūjin Jakka came down.
The flaming dragon followed.
Slash!
The attack tore through Mōryō.
Fire erupted upward.
Boom!
The entire cavern was illuminated.
A pillar of flame surged toward the ceiling.
Mōryō screamed.
"Aaaaaagh!"
Naruto disappeared before the demon could retaliate.
Flash!
He reappeared near the edge of the battlefield.
The flames gradually faded from Ryūjin Jakka.
Mōryō writhed.
Black chakra poured from the wound.
"My soul…"
His voice trembled with agony.
"My soul!"
The demon roared.
"You damned Shinobi!"
Naruto watched carefully.
It had worked.
Ryūjin Jakka had wounded Mōryō's soul again.
Unfortunately, Mōryō's true body was enormous.
Even a clean direct hit had destroyed only part of it.
The creature still had far too much mass and chakra remaining.
Mōryō's dragon heads regenerated.
Its roar shook the cavern.
"You think that is enough to kill me?!"
Naruto narrowed his eyes.
No.
A sword attack alone would take too long.
Then another technique came to mind.
One he had completed during his three years of training.
A ninjutsu so destructive that even Naruto had to treat it carefully.
He returned Ryūjin Jakka to its sheath.
Two Shadow Clones appeared beside him.
Poof!
All three raised their hands.
A Rasengan formed in each palm.
The spheres spun rapidly.
Then wind nature chakra began pouring into them.
The rotation changed.
Sharper.
More violent.
Thin wind blades emerged around the Rasengan.
The spheres expanded.
A piercing sound filled the cavern.
Mōryō stopped roaring.
Its gaze locked onto Naruto's hand.
For the first time since reclaiming its body, the demon felt unmistakable danger.
Naruto gritted his teeth.
The technique stabilized.
"Wind Release…"
The spinning chakra transformed completely.
"Rasenshuriken!"
The massive shuriken shaped sphere screamed in Naruto's hand.
Mōryō recoiled.
"What is that?"
Too late.
Naruto disappeared.
Flash!
He appeared directly before Mōryō.
The demon's dragon heads rushed to intercept him.
Naruto drove the technique forward.
"Die, Mōryō!"
The Rasenshuriken slammed into the demon's body.
Then Naruto vanished again.
Flash!
He reappeared far outside the blast radius.
The Rasenshuriken began spinning inside Mōryō.
The demon froze.
Then the technique expanded.
Boom!
A massive sphere of wind chakra erupted.
Countless microscopic wind blades spread through Mōryō's body.
They cut.
Shredded.
Destroyed.
Every fragment of chakra they touched was torn apart from within.
Mōryō screamed.
"What…"
Its body convulsed violently.
"How is this possible?!"
The Rasenshuriken continued expanding.
Its internal structure collapsed.
Dragon heads disappeared.
Black chakra was carved apart faster than it could regenerate.
Mōryō tried to pull itself together.
It could not.
The storm of wind blades reached every part of its enormous body.
"No!"
The demon's voice became distorted.
Its form began dissolving from the inside outward.
"No!"
The cavern trembled.
Then the remaining mass of black chakra was swallowed completely by the Rasenshuriken.
Mōryō vanished.
Silence returned.
Inside Ryūjin Jakka, the system notification sounded.
[Ding! Intense negative emotions detected from Kage level otherworldly demon Mōryō at the moment of death.]
[Gained 90000 emotion points.]
[Gained 45000 Demon Power.]
[Fifty percent of the Demon Power will be returned to the Sword Master.]
Power flooded Naruto.
His chakra surged.
His body strengthened.
His spiritual energy rose.
The increase was large enough that Naruto felt it immediately.
Inside the sword, Asuramaru examined the result.
Then he frowned.
"Most of that went into his chakra again."
The system responded.
[Ding! Different worlds possess different dominant cultivation systems.]
[The primary power system of this world is chakra.]
[Therefore, Demon Power feedback will naturally prioritize chakra enhancement.]
Asuramaru stared ahead.
Then sighed.
"Fine."
He could not be bothered arguing further.
Outside, Naruto flexed his fingers.
His chakra reserves had increased again.
Normally, that would have been worth celebrating.
But another matter was more important.
"Asuramaru."
"What?"
"The person watching us."
Naruto glanced toward the volcanic wall.
"Is he still there?"
Asuramaru checked.
"No."
Naruto's eyes narrowed.
"He left?"
"A while ago."
Naruto finally relaxed slightly.
Whoever had been observing the battle had apparently decided not to interfere.
For now.
Naruto turned away from the ruined cavern.
Mōryō was dead.
The mission was over.
He headed back the way he had come.
When Naruto emerged from the Shrine of Seals, the battle outside had already ended.
Several familiar figures were waiting.
Sakura.
Neji.
Lee.
Shion.
Tariho.
And farther behind them were Kakashi, Might Guy, and the others who had arrived after dealing with the Immortal Army.
Sakura was the first to move.
"Naruto!"
She hurried toward him.
Her eyes swept across his body.
No blood.
No visible wounds.
No missing limbs.
She relaxed.
Then she asked,
"What happened?"
"Did you defeat Mōryō?"
Everyone looked toward Naruto.
Naruto nodded.
"Mōryō is dead."
The tension around the group disappeared almost immediately.
Naruto placed one hand against Ryūjin Jakka.
"But I could not have done it alone."
His smile softened.
"Asuramaru helped me."
No one reacted with much surprise.
By now, most of the people close to Naruto had at least heard something about Asuramaru.
Some knew more than others.
But the existence of the mysterious being connected to Naruto's sword was no longer completely unbelievable.
Lee stepped forward excitedly.
"I knew it!"
His smile widened.
"I knew you would break the prophecy, Naruto!"
Naruto laughed.
"Thanks, Lee."
Neji remained quiet.
But when he saw Naruto standing there unharmed, the tension in his shoulders finally eased.
For someone who had once believed so strongly in fate, seeing Naruto return alive after being told his death was certain carried a strange significance.
The darkness of night was fading.
Beyond the mountains, the first sunlight appeared.
Dawn.
Soft golden light spread across the ruined battlefield.
Then Shion stepped out from among the others.
Naruto noticed her.
He smiled.
"See?"
Shion stopped before him.
Naruto spread his hands.
"Still alive."
For a moment, Shion simply looked at him.
Naruto continued.
"Your prophecy was wrong this time."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"So maybe the future is not as fixed as you thought."
Shion's expression softened.
Naruto looked toward the rising sun.
"And with Mōryō gone…"
He looked back at her.
"I guess your work as a priestess is finally over too."
Shion was silent.
Then, unexpectedly, she smiled.
It was a rare expression for her.
Gentle.
Unburdened.
"You are right about one thing."
Naruto tilted his head.
"Mōryō is dead."
Shion looked toward the horizon.
"But I still want to remain a priestess."
Naruto blinked.
"Why?"
Shion folded her hands before herself.
"Mōryō did not appear from nothing."
Her expression became serious.
"Human hatred."
"Greed."
"Fear."
"The darkness in people's hearts helped create something like him."
She looked toward Naruto again.
"No one can guarantee that another Mōryō will never appear."
"Maybe not tomorrow."
"Maybe not in my lifetime."
"But someday, something similar could return."
Her eyes were clearer now.
"If that happens, someone must be ready."
Shion smiled.
"That is the duty of the priestess."
Then she asked softly,
"Right, Naruto?"
Naruto studied her for a moment.
The frightened girl who had believed herself cursed by fate seemed different now.
She had found her own answer.
Naruto smiled.
"Yeah."
"If that is the path you choose, then I think it suits you."
Shion's smile grew slightly.
Then she continued.
"There is one more thing."
"What?"
"I want this duty to continue after me."
Naruto nodded.
"That makes sense."
Shion looked directly at him.
"So…"
She paused.
"I will need another priestess to inherit it someday."
Naruto waited.
Then Shion asked,
"Naruto."
"Yes?"
"Will you help me?"
Silence.
Behind them, several expressions changed at once.
Sakura froze.
Her cheeks turned red almost immediately.
Kakashi's visible eye shifted toward Naruto.
Lee blinked.
Neji looked away.
Even Tariho seemed to become unusually interested in the ground.
Naruto, however, only smiled.
"Of course."
Shion stared at him.
Naruto nodded confidently.
"If you need help, just ask."
Sakura's face became even redder.
Inside Ryūjin Jakka, Asuramaru covered his face with one hand.
Unbelievable.
He had watched Naruto master Flying Thunder God.
He had watched him reach Kage level strength.
He had watched him learn techniques that ordinary Shinobi could spend lifetimes pursuing.
Yet somehow, this simple conversation had completely defeated him.
"He really is hopeless when it comes to women."
Asuramaru sighed.
Still, he had no intention of explaining.
The Shinobi World already had enough problems.
Naruto could figure out romance himself.
Far away from the Land of Swamps, something moved beneath the earth.
White Zetsu travelled rapidly through the ground using the Mayfly Technique.
Forests.
Mountains.
Borders.
All passed above him unnoticed.
Eventually, he entered the Land of Rain.
Rain fell endlessly over the dark country.
Deep beneath the surface, White Zetsu entered a hidden chamber.
Two figures were waiting.
The first wore the black cloak patterned with red clouds of the Akatsuki.
His body was split into two colors.
Black on one side.
White on the other.
A large plant like structure surrounded his head.
Zetsu.
Beside him stood another man wearing the same Akatsuki cloak.
An orange spiral mask concealed his face.
Only one eye was visible through the opening.
Uchiha Obito.
White Zetsu emerged.
Obito turned toward him.
"You are back."
His voice was low.
"What did you learn?"
Zetsu also looked over.
White Zetsu answered immediately.
"I followed Uzumaki Naruto to the Shrine of Seals in the Land of Swamps."
Obito remained silent.
White Zetsu continued.
"I personally watched him kill Mōryō."
The visible Sharingan beneath Obito's mask narrowed.
"How?"
White Zetsu began recounting everything he had witnessed.
Naruto's speed.
Flying Thunder God.
The Shadow Clones.
The strange fire techniques.
The Rasenshuriken.
And the mysterious sword in his possession.
"He used a sword called Asuramaru."
Obito's posture changed slightly.
White Zetsu continued his report, leaving out nothing he had observed.
When he finished, the hidden chamber became quiet.
Obito slowly turned toward Zetsu.
The scarlet Three Tomoe Sharingan visible beneath his orange mask focused on him.
"Zetsu."
Zetsu looked back.
Obito's voice became more serious.
"Have you still not uncovered the true nature of that sword?"
....
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