As the appointed time drew nearer, Koyuki began to feel nervous.
"Koyuki, are you nervous?" Shun's voice sounded from behind her, carrying a faint smile.
He held a dark mask in his hand, intricately carved with simple cloud patterns, perfectly sized to cover an entire face.
He walked over to Koyuki, raised his hand, and condensed Yin-Yang Chakra. Pale purple, luminous white, and brilliant gold hues intertwined in his palm, quickly transforming into an exquisite, multicolored longsword.
The sword was about two feet long, its blade shimmering with a seven-colored radiance, as if a rainbow had been crushed into metal, both magnificent and exuding a heart-pounding pressure.
"This sword…"
Koyuki stood up in surprise, her gaze fixed on the multicolored longsword, clearly sensing the immense power it contained.
Shun handed the longsword to her and said, "When you used to act as 'Princess Gale,' didn't you have scenes where you'd swing a sword to defeat enemies? Just like in the play, a light swing is all it takes to deal with an enemy."
"Really?"
Koyuki gripped the hilt, the cool blade slightly calming her flustered heart.
Shun smiled and ruffled her cheek, his eyes full of encouragement. "You'll know when you try it in a bit."
"Shun, but I… I'm still a little scared."
"Don't worry, I'll be with you every step of the way, and I won't let you get even a scratch."
Shun gently shook Koyuki's hand, and a dark spatial passage instantly opened.
The next second, the two appeared in the plaza at the main gate of the Land of Snow's royal palace.
The soldiers on the palace battlements, seeing the two figures suddenly appear, immediately raised their weapons in alarm, and the sound of a horn instantly pierced the palace sky.
"Who goes there?! How dare you trespass into the Land of Snow's Royal Palace?!"
The soldier on the battlement shouted sternly, his hand on the ninjato at his waist, his sharp eyes fixed on the two.
Shun turned his head to Koyuki and said with a smile, "Koyuki, try swinging the longsword and let them see your power."
Koyuki took a deep breath, gripped the multicolored longsword tightly, and, as Shun instructed, lightly swung it forward.
In an instant, the blade erupted with dazzling multicolored light, and a 1.5 meter wide light blade shot out from the sword's tip, slicing through the palace's black city wall as if cutting tofu.
With a thunderous crash, several meters of the city wall were instantly cut in half, the cross section as smooth as a mirror.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
The guards panicked, frantically sounding the alarm, its sharp wail echoing throughout the entire royal palace.
Not long after, several figures quickly rushed out from deep within the palace. Leading them were Dotō's capable subordinates: Rōga Nadare, Kakuyoku Fubuki, and Fuyukuma Mizore.
"How audacious, to dare destroy my royal palace wall!"
Nadare looked at the broken wall, his face ashen, and quickly formed hand seals.
"Ice Release: One-Horned White Whale!"
As he roared, the accumulated snow on the ground rapidly gathered, forming a giant ice whale several tens of meters long. The whale's sharp horn gleamed with cold light, and it charged towards Koyuki with a whistling cold wind.
"Don't be afraid, swing the sword again." Shun whispered in Koyuki's ear.
Koyuki no longer hesitated, gripping the longsword and swinging it again.
The multicolored light blade surged once more, like a rainbow tearing through the darkness, accurately colliding with the giant ice whale.
Without any obstruction, the ice whale was instantly split in two, scattering into a sky full of ice shards, without even a trace of Chakra residue.
"How is this possible?" Nadare's eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief.
Fubuki and Mizore also had solemn expressions. After exchanging glances, they simultaneously activated their Ninjutsu.
Ice Release: Tearing Dragon Fierce Tiger!
Ice Release: Swallow Snow Storm!
Ice Release: Great Ice Prison!
Three Ice Release Ninjutsu attacked simultaneously, the cold air practically freezing the surrounding atmosphere.
Koyuki's heart instantly quickened, yet she did not panic. She remembered Shun's words, and the responsibility she bore. She gripped the multicolored longsword tightly, and swung three times consecutively in three different directions.
Three multicolored light blades respectively struck the ice tiger, the ice swallow, and the ice prison. With three crisp sounds, the three Ninjutsu were instantly cut down, turning into useless chunks of ice that fell onto the snowy ground.
"How could this be…"
Nadare and the other two turned pale, retreating several steps, their eyes filled with terror.
Just then, the main gate of the royal palace slowly opened, and a figure in black armor walked out—it was the Land of Snow's tyrant, Dotō.
He was tall, his eyes like venomous snakes as he stared at Koyuki. "Niece, I didn't expect you to become so strong after years of exile. What? Have you come to reclaim the Land of Snow's 'secret treasure,' or do you want to take back the throne?"
Koyuki raised her hand and took off the bronze necklace from her neck. "Your so-called secret treasure is not wealth or a weapon at all."
Her clear voice echoed across the entire plaza. "That is the geothermal generator my father, Sosetsu, painstakingly created. Once activated, it can melt the surrounding snow mountains, allowing grass and flowers to grow in the Land of Snow, so that the people no longer suffer from hunger and cold. You, for the sake of power, murdered my father, distorted the truth, and even increased taxes to harm the people. Dotō, your evil deeds end today."
Dotō was stunned for a moment, then his face became even more sinister.
"A geothermal generator? I thought it was some peerless Ninjutsu. But even if you know, what then? Do you think you can overthrow me?"
Immediately after, the sound of hurried footsteps came from a distance.
Sandayū rushed over with more than two hundred resistance fighters. These were all former loyal subordinates of Sosetsu, as well as common people who could no longer bear the oppression.
They held ninja tools and farming equipment in their hands, their eyes filled with anger towards the tyrant.
Sandayu ran to Koyuki's side and shouted excitedly, "Princess! We are here! Today, we will kill Dotō and reclaim the throne!"
Koyuki looked at the resistance fighters behind her, raised the multicolored longsword, and shouted sternly, "Dotō, today I represent the people of the Land of Snow to reclaim the blood debt you owe!"
Nadare and the other two quickly rushed over, intending to stop them.
The multicolored longsword in Koyuki's hand lit up again, and three even more dazzling light blades flew out simultaneously, precisely slashing towards the three.
Nadare and the other two didn't even have time to react before their bodies were split in half by the light blades.
"Useless!"
Seeing this, Dotō panicked. He had never expected Koyuki to become so powerful.
Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and fled.
Koyuki gripped the longsword and fiercely swung it towards Dotō's retreating back. A multicolored light blade shot out like a soul-reaping rope.
With a "swish," Dotō's calf was instantly severed.
"Ah… my leg…"
Dotō no longer had his previous arrogance, crying out in fear, "Koyuki, I was wrong, please spare my life! I'm willing to return the throne to you!"
"Dotō, your crimes are unforgivable. Die!"
A multicolored ray of light flew out, and Dotō's head instantly fell to the ground.