"Teacher…"
Having narrowly escaped death, Jun stared wide-eyed, trembling with awe.
"That was… amazing…"
She bit her lip.
Her teacher—
so powerful, so cool—
So… so attractive…
Pakura ignored the fear-stricken ANBU around her.
Her chest rose and fell sharply as she lifted her hand and stared at the short blade she held.
In her mind flashed scenes of that man toying with her body on the bed—
The way he held her wrist…
The way he guided her movements…
So he really was teaching me everything…
"P—!"
Pakura spat lightly, suddenly flustered.
A faint blush crept onto her cheeks.
She twirled the short blade, the steel humming.
"Come again!"
For the first time, she realized—
A blade was far more practical than ninjutsu.
No hand seals.
No buildup.
No delay.
Just fast, deadly results.
Perfect for cutting down enemies while they're still weaving signs.
"Kill her!"
The ANBU roared and attacked again.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Bullet!"
"Konoha-ryū Sword Style: Crescent Moon Dance!"
Pakura gritted her teeth.
She could only push through it.
BOOM—!
But a human body had limits.
And Pakura was fighting while protecting Jun, who could barely stand.
Before long, Pakura's knife hand began to tremble.
Yet she didn't retreat a single step.
Corpses lay scattered at her feet.
Gulp.
One ANBU swallowed hard.
"What kind of joke is this? She's only one person…"
They looked around.
More than ten ANBU had pursued Pakura.
Now only seven remained.
Less than half.
"Damn it! What is Konoha's intel division doing?!"
One ANBU cursed.
"They said she couldn't use swordsmanship!"
"What the hell is this style?! She suppressed Konoha-ryū completely!"
Another shouted, "Stop engaging her in close combat! Use long-range ninjutsu! Exhaust her to death!"
They instantly widened the distance and formed seals.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Missile!"
Pakura watched chakra swell in their bodies.
The power building in the jutsu made her throat dry.
She was at the end.
"Teacher, please… just run!"
Jun had broken down completely, crying as she clung to Pakura's back.
Pakura didn't answer.
She only shook her head.
Her weary eyes dimmed slightly.
So it ends here.
I'm really sick… I'm about to die, and I still… want to see that bastard one more time.
RUMBLE!
The combined jutsu roared toward her—
fire like an avalanche, water like a tsunami, earth like a crushing mountain.
There was nowhere to run.
Pakura gave a bitter smile.
"Jun… I'm sorry. We're dying here today."
Jun said nothing.
She only stared at her teacher's slender silhouette through tear-blurred eyes.
The ANBU wore twisted grins.
"Let's see you dodge this!"
"Finally got her!"
"No matter how strong her swordplay is, she can't cut through ninjutsu."
"That's right. Sword skills can't break this."
Pakura tried to summon her remaining chakra—
Nothing.
She whispered to herself, "Bastard… looks like I can't kill you anymore."
Then she stopped trying to dodge.
If she couldn't escape—
She'd die with dignity.
"Hah. Giving up already?"
A gentle voice whispered at her ear.
Pakura's entire body trembled.
An illusion?
I must really be losing it… wanting to hear his voice before dying…
Then—
Her hand holding the short blade
was suddenly wrapped by a strong, warm hand.
The realness of the touch snapped her back.
She instinctively leaned away—
and bumped into a warm chest behind her.
Before she could speak, that familiar voice murmured again:
"The sword is made for killing.
A single blade can break all things."
Her hand—and the blade—were raised gently.
Large fingers covered her small hand.
Small hand covered the hilt.
"Mere ninjutsu—one sword is enough."
And Evan swung.
HUMMMMM—
A soaring sword aura burst forth—
cutting through the night
and meeting the storm of jutsu head-on.
Jun watched, jaw dropping wide open.
She saw him appear from nothing—
saw him draw a sword arc straight into the oncoming hurricane—
And then—
Fire split apart.
Water split apart.
Earth split apart.
The world itself seemed cut open.
Her heart squeezed—
He can cleave ninjutsu… with a sword…
The blazing sword light tore across the sky.
The devastating jutsu crumbled like brittle paper.
"What—?!"
"The flames were cut—??"
"That's impossible! Nothing cuts fire!"
"A sword—?!"
Terror overtook every ANBU as chills crawled down their spines.
They stared at the gap in their shattered ninjutsu—
and saw the girl they thought had already died…
Nestled in the arms of a man in a demonic mask.
The broken short blade in their hands had already shattered from the force—
unable to bear his power.
The mask.
The sword.
The aura of carnage.
The dark iron sand from earlier still haunted their memory.
Their pupils shrank violently.
It's him.
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