The fire from the katana reciprocated with Kazutaka's breathing. When he inhaled, its intensity decreased and increased when he exhaled.
Finally! Kagero's face beamed with excitement as he watched the Sage get serious.
Even Asuka and Kagemaru ceased fighting for and marveled in astonishment.
"With this fire... I shall send you to hell." Kazutaka roared, shortening the distance between them in an instant.
Unable to dodge, Kagero blocked with his rods. The shadow sticks were cut like bamboo trunks with a sharp blade. His haori ignited and he tossed it away before jumping backwards. He rolled on the soil and got up when the flames had been extinguished. As he stood bare chested, his muscular torso showed a few burns. "Tch..." he said, dusting himself off. "Is that all you've got?"
A steady-flowing yellow aura engulfed Kazutaka's body as he made the Agni mudra. "Kajin Dainimaku: Onibi (Kajin's Second Act: Demon Fire)!"
The gentle crackling exploded into a violent sizzling. Kazutaka's breathing ceased resonating with the fire as it turned into a constant inferno–even hotter than before.
Kagero wore his menacing grin. "Those flames are quite majestic. But not as majestic as Natsuhi." He saw the Sage sprinting towards him and chuckled. Baka!
When Kazutaka got in close range, Kagero threw dust at the former's face. "Kagemaru!" he said, panting as he raced towards his weapon. "Fix mine too!"
No response.
"I haven't got all day, you imbecile!" Kagero paused to catch a breath. "Don't make me use that!" Afterwards, he saw Kagemaru freezing for a moment. Right, he thought, noticing his staff renewed seconds later.
At that time, Kazutaka had also regained sight. Kagero dared not break his staff again lest he further shorten the distance between them. Using the fortified shadow stick, he blocked and avoided most of the fire attacks. The fight continued for another fifteen minutes, each warrior not allowing the other get the better of him.
"Oh, you should've seen them..." Kagero cackled, veering off to avoid a fiery swing. "Especially the daimyo-kun, how he begged me to spare their lives."
Kazutaka ignored Kagero's words and kept attacking from all directions.
☯
Meanwhile, a bloodied Hideo knelt next to several body parts and entrails on the ground. He wiped his face and worry filled it soon afterwards. We've already lost a number of our comrades to just six of these guys... facing against an army of them would be suicide. He got up and checked his pockets. I'm almost all out...
After collecting his kunai, he left the scene in search of enemy shinobi. Hideo ran for a while until he reached one of his underclassmen standing beside two corpses.
Natsumi saw Hideo approaching and raised a hand. "Senpai (Upperclassman)," she said, sniffling as she broke into tears. "Th–They killed her–"
Hideo saw Ichika's body and rushed towards Natsumi. "I'm so sorry, Natsu-san..." he said, embracing her in a gentle hug. "Ichika-san's death won't be in vain."
"Yeah..." Natsumi wiped her eyes. "I managed to get two of them."
"Make it three... which means we're left with another three."
"That can't be all of them. There's gotta be more."
"I thought so too..." Hideo fixed his spectacles. "The group that infiltrated Kaen was around twenty. Which means others might be waiting outside the wall."
"Why go in with only six? Do they really underestimate us like that?"
Hideo grabbed his chin. "They got ten of our Battalion Corp, and that's no easy feat."
"So, what's the plan?"
"I suggest we regroup with our comrades and come up with a strategy."
"Cool... right behind you, senpai."
They left the scene and ran to where other Battalion shinobi were. Along the way, they encountered Shin also heading in the same direction. The S-class shinobi had a few cuts and his attire was torn. He did not need to tell them that he had fought an assassin. The trio continued running in silence until they arrived at their destination.
When they reached the rendezvous point near the village's business district, they restocked on weapons whilst others got aid from a few Medical Corp shinobi. All those who sustained severe injuries and could no longer battle were to remain behind in the care of the medics.
"Natsu-san," said Hideo, drinking water from a bamboo bottle. "Gather everyone who can still fight, we're going to the main entrance."
"Understood!" said Natsumi with a nod.
"We'll bring the fight to them..."
[
Some minutes passed and Kagero noticed the flames weaken in intensity. However, he still maintained a safe distance from them thanks to the long staff. They should've been here by now... unless? He thought, blocking another attack. "Huh–" The fire sword rushed towards his face and he leapt into a backflip, landing a safe distance away. He turned to his son and said, "Kagemaru! Now!"
Kagemaru tossed a black sphere upwards and it soared above the tall buildings. He switched his Prana mudra, placing the thumb inside curled fingers–the Adi (Sanskrit: First) mudra. Bakuhatsu (Blast), he mouthed and the ball exploded into a dark cloud.
☯
Hideo, Shin, Natsumi and the rest of the Lightning force were approaching the main gate when they saw it–more than two dozens of Shadow shinobi atop the wall.
Shit! Natsumi took out her bow and armed it with four arrows. "Don't let them get beyond this point!" she said, stretching the string before firing. "Archers... loose!"
A torrent of arrows flew towards the shadows, reducing the number of foot ninjas by a bit. In retaliation, Shadow assassins cut down as many Battalion Corp shinobi as they could. The fight quickly became a battle of the elites.
Hideo drew six bombs–three in each hand and tossed them at the shadows. Four more foot ninjas got caught in the huge explosion and all manner of entrails were sent flying everywhere. Suddenly, he spun around and veered away from a chokutō.
The blade had managed to knick Hideo's arm and the pain was excruciating. These assassins are the real problem! He held the Prithvi mudra behind his back and flung two shuriken. He advanced with raised fists, evading a few slashes before breaking the man's elbow and stabbing him with his own chokutō.
☯
"Are you sure you're the strongest this region has to offer?" said Kagero, cackling as he slowed his speed on purpose. He saw the Sage advancing with a side cut and prepared to counter. At the last moment, he ducked and used his rod to slice through Kazutaka's left arm from the elbow. "Your moves are getting rusty, Taka-kun."
Kazutaka jumped backwards, feeling an intense pain. He quickly used his fire sword to cauterize the wound, preventing further blood loss. I have to end this quickly... He glanced at Kajin's blade and saw the flame dwindling. I'm almost out of prana.