Chapter 67: SAKKI (2)
The mist was so thick it felt like breathing through a wet cloth. In the center of the arena, Danzō stood perfectly still. He didn't bother trying to see through the white haze; instead, he closed his eyes and let his arms hang loosely at his sides. He looked like a man standing in a quiet garden, not a warrior surrounded by a predator.
Naruto moved through the vapor with the ease of a ghost. He had activated the Silent Shell in tandem with the mist, creating a vacuum of sound around his movements. Every step he took was erased. Every rustle of his clothing was swallowed. He was invisible, inaudible, and faster than most grown men.
He circled Danzō, his eyes tracking the old man's throat and kidneys. He wasn't thinking like a student anymore.... He was thinking like a butcher. He waited for a slight shift in Danzō's weight, then lunged from the fog, aiming a palm strike at the base of the old man's skull.
The strike was perfect: It was silent.
But before Naruto's hand could connect, Danzō tilted his head just an inch to the left. In the same motion, his hand shot back and gripped Naruto's throat with the force of an iron vice. The mist swirled violently around them as Naruto was slammed back into the dirt, his breath escaping in a sharp wheeze.
"You've managed to hide your body," Danzō said, his voice low and grating. "But you haven't hidden your soul."
Danzō didn't let go. He stared into the swirling white void where he knew Naruto's eyes were.
"Technique can mask the sound of your feet, Zero. It can mask the sight of your blade. But the moment you decide to kill or hurt, your heart releases a spark. Your killing intent - your Sakki- is like a flare in a dark room. To a man who has lived his life in the shadows, you are as bright as the sun."
Naruto struggled, his small hands clawing at Danzō's wrist. He flooded his system with chakra, trying to force another Redirection, but Danzō's grip was rooted in a way that made Naruto feel like he was fighting a mountain.
"Again," Danzō commanded, throwing Naruto back into the fog.
Naruto didn't hesitate. He scrambled to his feet, the mist thickening further as he pushed his reserves to the limit. He suppressed his emotions, trying to turn his mind into a void of ice. He attacked from three different angles in a matter of seconds: a low sweep, a thrust to the ribs, and a feint toward the eyes.
Each time, Danzō intercepted him with a casual, almost bored efficiency. A parry here, a shove there. The reality of the power gap began to settle on Naruto like lead. He had the system, he had the silver chakra, and he had the knowledge of a future world, but he was currently fighting a man who had survived three world wars and presided over the darkest corners of the strongest hidden village.
Danzō wasn't just stronger; he was more experienced in the art of the kill.
"You are trying to hide the intent," Danzō called out into the mist. "But you are still 'trying.' As long as there is effort, there is a trail. You must not want to kill me. You must simply kill me, as naturally as you breathe."
Naruto's vision began to blur at the edges. The cost of maintaining the mist, the silent shell, and the ghost layer of chakra over his seals was tearing through his stamina. He felt his lungs burning, the air in the arena getting thinner as the mist consumed the oxygen.
He decided on one last gamble. He gathered every scrap of chakra he had left, channeling it into his legs for a burst of speed that would have rivaled a senior operative. He didn't go for a strike. He went for a tackle, intending to use his low center of gravity to uproot the old man.
He moved. The mist parted in his wake like a wake behind a ship.
Danzō didn't even turn around. He simply stepped back and drove his heel into Naruto's stomach as the boy flew past.
The air left Naruto's lungs in a violent burst. He hit the ground and skidded, his face dragging through the grit until he came to a stop at the edge of the blue-lit sand. The mist began to thin, dissolving into harmless steam as Naruto's concentration shattered.
He tried to push himself up, his fingers digging into the sand. His heart was hammering against the silver buffer he'd built, the strain of the seals and the physical trauma finally reaching the breaking point.
"The mist is a fine shroud for a corpse," Danzō said, walking toward him. The old man wasn't even breathing hard. "But it is useless if the corpse still thinks it is alive."
Naruto looked up, his one good eye unfocused. He saw Danzō's shadow looming over him, and for the first time since he'd arrived in this world, he felt the true weight of his insignificance. He wasn't an architect yet. He was just a boy playing with fire in a room full of gunpowder.
His arms gave out. His forehead hit the cool sand, and the world went black.
Danzō stood over the unconscious child for a long moment. He looked at the bruised, bloodied face and the small, battered hands. He reached out with his foot and poked Naruto's shoulder, confirming the boy was out cold.
"Kinoe," Danzō called out.
The younger man dropped from the gallery, landing silently a few feet away. He looked at Naruto, his jaw tight, his hands clenched at his sides.
"He's done for today," Danzō said, turning his back on them. "The marrow in his bones is strong, but his spirit is still loud. Carry him back to my personal infirmary. Ensure the medics use theSpecial treatment. I want him back in this arena in under forty-eight hours."
Kinoe knelt and carefully gathered Naruto's limp form. The boy felt impossibly light, his golden hair matted with blood and dust.
"Lord Danzō," Kinoe said, his voice a low whisper. "He is only four." All Kinoe could think of was that Danzo was even more ruthless with Naruto than he was with him during their teaching session.
Danzō stopped at the exit, his shadow long and jagged against the wall. He didn't turn around.
"In Root, there is no age. There is only the mission. And he is the most important mission we have ever had."
As Kinoe carried Naruto through the dark corridors, he felt the boy's shallow, ragged breathing against his chest. He didn't see the way Naruto's fingers twitched in his sleep, or the way the faint blue light of the system flickered one last time behind his closed eyelids.
[Status: Critical Exhaustion.]
[Evolution Progress: 12%]
Naruto was down, but the fire Danzō had just lit wasn't the kind that could be easily put out.
******A/N**********
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