He didn't turn his head?
No, he couldn't dare look back.
From battlefield to mission, from service to defection, after surviving hundreds of battles large and small, Kaimon Asuka had long since learned a simple truth: in this moment, turning back meant death.
If he hesitated for even a second, the only fate waiting for him was…
To be consumed by fire.
But just as panic threatened to override instinct, Kaimon seized upon one final, desperate option.
Take Veigar Koshima hostage, and use him to force Shōgetsu and Tenkaku to stand down.
With a powerful thrust of his legs, Kaimon surged forward, narrowly dodging Shōgetsu's searing Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu. Flames roared past, close enough to singe.
He darted toward Veigar, who was still recovering from a tumble.
Behind him, Shōgetsu's eyes widened. Kaimon had evaded his jutsu without even looking back, and now he was rushing straight for Veigar.
"Veigar, watch out!" Shōgetsu shouted in panic.
In his desperation, he forgot protocol, forgot that Veigar was supposed to be addressed by his ANBU codename. He blurted Veigar's real name, voice laced with urgency.
"Damn it... we're too late."
At that moment, Tenkaku, who had stayed behind to guard the fallen Yuma Doto, realized what Kaimon was attempting. He moved to intercept.
But no matter how fast Tenkaku sprinted, he couldn't match Kaimon's speed.
"I've got him…!"
Just as Veigar's body finally stilled, face down on the ground, Kaimon reached him with blinding speed. His massive hand lashed out to seize Veigar's head.
A triumphant, predatory grin split Kaimon's face.
From behind, Shōgetsu and Tenkaku both shouted at once:
"No!"
"Akuto!"
In that very instant, just as Kaimon's hand touched Veigar's head, what had seemed like a motionless, injured body suddenly surged with violent chakra.
"Rasengan: Revolving Heaven!"
Unstable, spiraling chakra burst from within Veigar's core. It spun wildly, erratically, but with lethal intensity. In that moment, Kaimon might as well have slammed himself headfirst into a high-speed turbine.
Not only was his hand instantly repelled, his entire body was launched into the air.
"AAARGH!"
Kaimon screamed as he flew backward, struggling midair to regain control of his body. But it was already too late.
Because the instant he was flung away, Veigar hurled his ninjatō with precision and fury.
The blade pierced straight through Kaimon's heart.
THUD.
His lifeless body crashed to the ground.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
"Akuto, are you alright?" Tenkaku finally reached Veigar's side. He knelt, concern etched deep across his face as he looked at the masked figure still gasping for breath.
"I'm fine," Veigar replied between breaths. "Just… chakra overuse. I'll be okay in a bit."
Pushing himself up, he staggered to his feet, hand still rubbing his bruised chest.
He had deliberately exposed a weakness, all to give Shōgetsu the perfect opening. In the process, he'd taken a brutal kick from Kaimon and suffered more damage than he let on.
Now standing over Kaimon's corpse, Veigar knelt and yanked his ninjatō from the lifeless body. Then, without hesitation, he drained the man's Life Essence.
A warmth flooded Veigar's body. A deep, comforting bliss he had never experienced before.
"Mmm… ahh…" he sighed, a shiver running through him.
Shōgetsu stood behind him, three long sweat-drop lines forming on his forehead.
"Akuto… uh… are you sure you're okay?"
Veigar exhaled hard, forcibly clearing the lingering euphoria from his system.
"I'm fine. Don't worry."
He cast one last glance at Kaimon's corpse before turning to Tenkaku.
"Captain. It's time to withdraw."
Tenkaku nodded. "Withdraw."
Without delay, Tenkaku slung the unconscious Yuma Doto over his shoulder. Shōgetsu picked up Kaimon's body. The trio vanished swiftly from Wilderness District.
Moments later, a unit of Rain-nin wearing their distinctive forehead protectors arrived at the now-abandoned battlefield.
...
An hour later, inside a hidden cave near the border…
Veigar sat cross-legged in meditation, eyes closed, slowly recovering the vast chakra he'd spent.
Beside him, Yuma Doto lay bound and unconscious.
Closer to the cave entrance, Shōgetsu and Tenkaku rummaged through Kaimon Asuka's belongings.
"Huh… What's this?"
Shōgetsu unrolled a scroll he had found hidden on Kaimon's body. His brows rose in surprise.
"What is it?" Tenkaku asked, briefly pausing as he prepared to seal Kaimon's corpse for transport back to Konoha.
Veigar, hearing the surprise in Shōgetsu's voice, opened his eyes.
Shōgetsu glanced between them both before steadying his tone.
"Captain. Akuto."
"This scroll contains documentation of an A-rank forbidden technique, it's called the Shadow Concealment Jutsu."
Veigar immediately stood, fatigue forgotten.
"Let me see it."
"Here." Shōgetsu handed it over without hesitation.
Veigar unrolled it and read silently, eyes narrowing as the knowledge took root.
After a moment, he looked up.
"This must be the secret technique Kaimon Asuka was hiding, the source of his reputation as the Shadow Ghost."
He turned to Shōgetsu, who had just finished sealing the body.
"This technique… will make us stronger."
As the words left his mouth, Shōgetsu and Tenkaku looked at him in astonishment.
Shōgetsu even looked worried. "But… doesn't this jutsu require water-nature chakra to master?"
-------
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]