A searing pain tore across Hoshiyomi's back, so intense it forced a cry from his throat.
Kiru's delighted laughter rang out at the sound of Hoshiyomi's scream.
"Yes, that's it! You feel it, don't you? I'll make sure the rest of your life is steeped in this sa agony. Even in death, I'll make sure you suffer—this is Lord Evil God's punishnt upon you!"
"Curse Art: Terrifying Death Limit."
As his final words fell, Kiru's body rapidly withered. Every drop of his blood was drawn out by an unseen force, coalescing into a blood orb the size of a human head.
The blood orb spun once in the air before flying straight toward Hoshiyomi's back.
Despite the searing pain, Hoshiyomi managed to hurl a kunai in its path. But the blade passed right through the orb like it was mist—no resistance, no effect. The orb rippled, then reford like nothing had touched it.
The blood orb slamd into Hoshiyomi's back.
Instantly, it felt as though his entire back had been torn open. The sheer agony drove a scream from his lungs before everything went black.
Neither Kiru's now-mummified corpse nor the unconscious Hoshiyomi witnessed what happened next: the orb of blood rged with the eerie blue chakra flas still flickering on Hoshiyomi's body.
The flas and blood fused, leaving behind a massive, spectral-blue skull sigil scorched across Hoshiyomi's back.
The remaining chakra condensed within the sigil's eye sockets, forming flickering blue ghostfire.
When Hoshiyomi awoke, he found his head resting on soone's lap. Looking up, he saw Tsunade, eyes red and teary, softly murmuring to herself while holding his hand.
His hearing was still muffled; he couldn't make out what she was saying.
"What… did you say?" he asked hoarsely.
"Ah!" Tsunade gasped, then bead with joy. "You're finally awake! You scared half to death when we found you. Never mind that—here, drink so water."
She offered him a canteen. Hoshiyomi took a few sips. His throat didn't feel particularly dry—it seed Tsunade had taken good care of him while he was unconscious.
He slowly sat up from her lap and changed posture.
"Has everyone regrouped?" he asked. "How's the scroll collection going?"
Tsunade looked slightly embarrassed as she adjusted her clothes and rubbed her thigh—clearly, having soone sleep on her lap for that long had been uncomfortable.
As she massaged her legs, she began explaining what had happened while he was unconscious.
She and Lobo followed the scent from the incense pouch to find Sakumo, who had been under siege by another team at the ti. After a tough battle, they managed to regroup—but Lobo couldn't catch Hoshiyomi's scent.
Looking back, that made sense. Hoshiyomi had ended up far from their starting point, and the battlefield had been drenched in blood. With all the interference, it was no wonder Lobo couldn't track him.
They searched for a long ti before finally finding Hoshiyomi. He had been seriously injured and completely unresponsive.
Left with no choice, Sakumo carried him as they pushed forward. Fortunately, things went smoothly after that. They encountered few enemies, and Lobo soon picked up Jiraiya and the others' scent.
There wasn't much more to tell—Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Shinku took Lobo to help track down scrolls while Tsunade and Sakumo stayed at the temporary camp to care for Hoshiyomi.
It was now just before dinner. Sakumo had gone out to forage for food, leaving Tsunade alone with Hoshiyomi.
Just as he was about to tell her what had happened to him, Tsunade suddenly drew a kunai and signaled for silence.
A mont later, voices erged from the trees.
"Well, well, caught already?" a voice drawled. "In that case, guess we'll just kill you directly."
Three shinobi stepped out under the moonlight, all wearing Kumogakure forehead protectors. Their eyes glead with hostility as they eyed the pair.
Hoshiyomi's instincts scread that sothing was wrong, but there was no ti to think it through. He drew Mikazuki Munechika and stood back to back with Tsunade.
The lead Kumo ninja sneered, "That guy looks injured. I'll take him. You two handle the girl."
"Understood," the others replied, moving toward Tsunade while their leader drew a sword of his own.
"A swordsman, huh? Haven't had a good fight like this in a while. Impress , and maybe I'll spare your life."
Hoshiyomi tightened his grip on Mikazuki Munechika. A sense of unease gnawed at him. Sothing was off. He couldn't pinpoint it, but his body… didn't feel right.
The Kumo shinobi charged.
Hoshiyomi's eyes flashed with disdain. At his current level—mid-level swordsmanship—he could instantly read his opponent's footwork and form. The man's technique was crude at best, barely entry-level. Not even close to Sakumo's caliber—let alone his own.
He t the strike with a diagonal slash, redirecting the opponent's blade. Then, with a swift uppercut, he aid for the man's sword hand.
The Kumo ninja recoiled in shock. Too fast—he hadn't even seen Hoshiyomi's blade move before it was already on him.
Panicked, he let go of his weapon and pulled his hand back just in ti to avoid losing fingers.
But the instant he did, he knew he'd made a fatal mistake. In close combat, losing one's blade ant death.
His opponent's next move would end it.
And that's exactly what Hoshiyomi intended. As the man dropped his weapon, Hoshiyomi flared his chakra, planning to finish him in one lightning-fast strike.
But the mont his chakra surged—
Sothing went wrong.
The searing pain in his back reignited. Ghostly blue chakra flas burst from his shoulders, spreading rapidly across his body.
Hoshiyomi let out a pained cry and dropped to one knee. Even gripping Mikazuki Munechika beca impossible.
In that instant, he finally realized what had been wrong all along.
His chakra was gone.
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