The serene atmosphere of the floating islands seemed to intensify as Lady Momo began flapping her wings, gracefully lifting herself into the air.
Unlike what Renjiro had grown accustomed to with other eagles, her wings didn't produce the usual gusts of wind. Instead, there was a strange and almost eerie sound, like something slicing cleanly through the air.
It wasn't the whoosh of wind or the beat of wings but a sharper, more refined sound, one that hinted at something more mystical.
Renjiro's eyes followed her movements carefully, his senses on alert.
Suddenly, he heard a sound around him.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
Four large wooden poles, each at least ten feet tall, landed on the ground, surrounding Renjiro at the four cardinal points—north, south, east, and west. The ground trembled slightly under the impact.
Renjiro sharp gaze took in their size and the intricate patterns carved into the wood, their surface rough yet shimmering faintly with latent power.
'Is that wood style?' Renjiro thought as he observed the poles.
The idea of wood-style jutsu was rare, almost mythical, a technique that harkened back to the era of the First Hokage. But before he could contemplate it further, his attention snapped to Lady Momo as her eyes began to glow with an intense, otherworldly purple light.
As Renjiro watched, that same purple glow spread from Momo's eyes to the four wooden poles. The glowing intensified, casting a surreal hue across the floating island, and then, to Renjiro's astonishment, the space between him and the two eagles began to stretch and widen.
What had been only a few meters of distance between them quickly expanded, until Renjiro found himself nearly a kilometer away, surrounded by nothing but empty space and the looming wooden poles.
'What? How is this happening?' Renjiro muttered, feeling the reality around him begin to warp.
Instinctively, he activated his Sharingan, hoping to make sense of what was happening. His eyes glowed red with the iconic three tomoe spinning in his irises, searching for whatever signs he could recognize.
His first thought was that this might be some kind of Genjutsu, but that was impossible. Renjiro's Chakra Seinou made him immune to Genjutsu, and his enhanced senses told him that this was no illusion.
There was no subtle manipulation of his mind, no chakra-based trickery. Everything around him was real, and whatever was happening was beyond his immediate understanding.
His brow furrowed as he focused on the wooden poles again. The purple light surrounding them intensified even more, and slowly, thin strands of shimmering paper began to materialize, hanging from the poles like ancient streamers.
These were no ordinary decorations, though—they were shide, sacred paper streamers often used in rituals. The air around Renjiro hummed with a strange, foreboding energy, and he couldn't shake the growing feeling that he was in the middle of some ancient rite.
Renjiro's awe quickly shifted to alarm as his senses began to scream at him, his instincts flaring with danger. The air around him felt charged with a massive build-up of energy, as if the very fabric of the atmosphere was bristling with electricity.
He could feel it—the wooden poles were gathering energy, focusing it inward toward him. The purple glow around the poles became blinding, and before Renjiro could react, he felt his feet leave the ground. He was being lifted into the air, his body weightless and suspended in the middle of the glowing poles.
The sensation of floating was soon replaced by something much more terrifying. The air cracked and hissed, and in an instant, purple lightning exploded from the four poles, converging on Renjiro.
"CRACK!" The sound was deafening.
Renjiro had only a split second to brace himself before the purple lightning struck him, coursing through his entire body.
"Aargh!" he groaned, the pain immediate and overwhelming.
It was unlike anything he had ever felt before. His muscles spasmed uncontrollably, his skin felt like it was burning from the inside out, and his bones rattled under the force of the energy ripping through him. Every nerve in his body screamed in agony.
Renjiro was no stranger to pain. His training as a shinobi had exposed him to physical and mental torment, but this... this was different.
This was a searing, white-hot pain that felt as though it was tearing him apart from the inside. His mind struggled to comprehend the intensity of it, like molten lava surging through his veins, or as though his very chakra network was being torn to shreds by the raw, untamed power of the purple lightning.
Unbeknownst to him, his body responded instinctively. From every possible place in his body, adamantine chains began to manifest, their silvery, metallic surfaces glinting in the purple lightning.
The chains burst from his body like a swarm of snakes, wrapping themselves protectively around him. But the chains didn't stop there.
They lashed out violently, smashing into the ground and anything within their reach. Renjiro's control over them had slipped—his mind was too consumed by the pain to regulate his chakra.
The chains were a blur of motion, writhing and snapping as they created a barrier around Renjiro, shielding him from further harm. They coiled tightly around him, acting on pure instinct, protecting him from the continued assault of the purple lightning.
But they weren't just defensive—they were also rampaging. They lashed out wildly, slamming into the ground, uprooting trees, and cracking the earth beneath them. Anything within their radius was obliterated by their sheer force.
Renjiro barely registered what was happening. His mind was clouded, on the verge of losing consciousness as the pain threatened to overwhelm him completely.
Lady Momo, observing the scene from a distance, grew alarmed. Her sharp eyes narrowed as she watched the adamantine chains encircle Renjiro, wreaking havoc.
"Are they trying to stop the process?" she wondered aloud, her voice tense.
This was her first time since this type of ability, and from what she could tell, the chains were certainly not behaving normally—they were reacting to the immense energy of the ritual, and Momo knew that if something wasn't done soon, the entire process could fail.
The chains continued to rampage, smashing into everything around them, and creating a chaotic maelstrom of destruction. They whipped through the air, tearing into the ground with ferocious strength, creating craters in their wake.
Lady Momo glanced at Tenjin, her eyes filled with urgency. "Do it!" she commanded.
Tenjin wasted no time. His massive frame tensed, and his pupils dilated, shifting into a complex pattern. With a swift and decisive motion, he stamped his talon onto the ground.
The impact sent a shockwave rippling through the earth, but it wasn't just a physical force—it was something far more potent. An invisible wave of energy travelled from Tenjin's talon to the barrier of chains surrounding Renjiro.
In an instant, the shockwave collided with the chains, and the effect was immediate. The chains, which had been thrashing violently, stilled. The barrier they had formed around Renjiro began to dissolve, and one by one, the chains retracted, slithering back into Renjiro's body like snakes returning to their den. Leaving the lighting to continue striking Renjiro's body.
After a few moments, the lightning subsided. Renjiro's body, now limp and suspended in the air, gently floated back to the ground. The purple glow from the wooden poles faded, as the wooden poles and paper streemers disappeared. The energy that had filled the air dissipated, leaving behind a tense, eerie silence.
For a moment, everything was still. Then, Renjiro stirred, his body aching from the ordeal. He groaned softly as his eyes fluttered open, his vision blurred.
He felt weak, his limbs heavy, but the pain had subsided, leaving only a dull throb in its wake. His head spun as he tried to piece together what had just happened.
Lady Momo approached him, her gaze calm yet probing. "How are you feeling?" she asked, her voice soft but filled with concern.
Renjiro blinked, struggling to find his voice. "I... I'm okay, I think," he muttered, though he didn't sound entirely convinced. His body still felt like it had been through a grinder, but at least the pain had lessened.
Momo's eyes narrowed slightly, her next question catching him off guard. "Tell me, Renjiro—how close are you to the Nine-Tails?" she asked, her tone both curious and cautious.
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