Blood dripped from the tip of the Executioner's Blade.
It was a fraction of a flesh carved from Naruto's body. Had he not been saved, he would have been cut in two for certain.
"Good to see you… Jada…"
She ignored Arthur, jumping toward the other two. His eyes merely followed her, trying to understand the who, what, when, where, and how.
Calmly, Jada laid Naruto's body down and urged Sakura to heal him if she still had chakra left.
"I-ugh-Yeah, I will!" she obliged.
Jada placed a hand over Naruto's forehead, confirming that he wasn't dead.
"Sasuke," she said. "When Sakura's done, head back to the Leaf Village immediately."
"I appreciate the help," Sasuke responded, "but I don't think you're a match for him."
"No… I'll handle Arthur alone."
"Oh…" Arthur mused.
Before he continued, he considered how she managed to arrive here so quickly. There was only one explanation after he finally confirmed what was on and around Team 7—flying raijin marks!
Arthur hadn't seen them before. They were hidden almost too methodically. Naruto's was inside his flesh, something he couldn't fathom how she got the main character to accept this. Sasuke's and Sakura's were on a piece of scroll inside their bags.
Now he understood why this team was left alone to roam the world. No matter where Team 7 went, no matter what they did, Jada was always watching them from a safe distance.
"So you learned the flying raijin?" Arthur pointed out, unimpressed.
How could he be surprised? These players were Naruto fanatics who understood every method of obtaining only the best techniques in the world.
Had Arthur's plot never been revealed in the Chūnin Exam stadium, and had he not released his transformation technique, Jada might have never taken such measures.
She calmed herself before choosing to face him. Stepping forward, she met his cold gaze.
He could tell that she hadn't changed much. Her jet-black hair was a few inches longer, but her youthful appearance remained surreal, a beauty that could leave other men speechless.
The scene became a dramatic confrontation. The two stared at each other, neither one of them showing any emotions.
Jada being here was not a good thing. Players like her were troubling to deal with in times like these. And of all the players who had a vendetta against him, she had to have been the biggest one.
There were a lot of reasons why Arthur didn't want to fight a player.
For instance, Jada was claimed to have used her Sharingan to copy techniques from characters like Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake. That already gave her an edge in taijutsu, genjutsu, and ninjutsu.
Not only was she an Uchiha, her character had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. That meant her special traits were at play already.
Arthur was quite keen on remembering these things.
For Jada's character to have advanced her Sharingan also meant that she had automatically unlocked the Susanoo plus another technique between either the Tsukiyomi or the Amaterasu—both of which were not something to be taken lightly.
Then there was the more troubling factor: she was granted a unique Mangekyō Sharingan ability based on her personality. Who knows what this custom technique was?
And as far as Arthur knew, she was a quiet, timid girl, often shy to speak up when others took the stage. Being in this world undoubtedly brought something out of her, so who's to say that her personality hadn't changed since?
"Arthur," she finally began, "that sword… That's Zabuza's sword. And the ice on the ground… You killed them, didn't you?"
He could tell by her mellowed-out tone that this wasn't the question she wanted an answer for. What she truly sought to ask was why he was acting this way.
"I'll tell you," he said, holstering the weapon up and resting it over his shoulder. "I won't allow anyone to play with my life… Tell me this, Jada, do you really think you're in the world of Naruto?" She remained silent. "If you're so bent on playing hero and want me gone, beg Elysium to log me out."
Her eyes widened in disbelief as she whispered his name: "Arthur…"
"We've been trapped here for months, Jada. Think of the state our bodies are in outside of this simulation."
That statement struck her nerve. Frustrated, she lashed out, saying, "It's just an experiment, Arthur! And you're taking things too far!"
Sasuke could only listen in, unsure of what the two were discussing.
Arthur's voice remained steady as he asked, "Why don't you join me then?"
Suddenly, she activated her Sharingan and said in a leveled tone, "I'm done with that… With you trying to think you're some type of villain. If you would have joined us in the Leaf, we wouldn't be here; if we had worked together honestly, things wouldn't be the way that they were!"
The tension continued to grow.
Arthur could only continue in a low and intense voice, saying, "You have no idea the lie that you're living."
"Lie?!" she repeated. With swiftness, she drew out a small, earthenware saké jar and pointed the tip at him. The lid burst open, causing a spectral fire to blaze out until it formed a long blade.
He recognized this weapon. It was the Totsuka Blade!
"Oh…" Arthur said, unmoved by its sudden formation.
This was still a shock, however.
The Totsuka Blade was written to be a legendary weapon, a component of Itachi Uchiha's Susanoo. It was unlikely that a player like Jada would have gotten it.
Unlike conventional swords, its blade is formed from a liquid contained within a saké jar. This ethereal weapon also possesses the unique ability to seal away anything it pierces, trapping its victims in an eternal dreamlike state.
It was first used to extract and seal Orochimaru from Sasuke's body, and again to seal a reanimated Nagato Uzumaki in his prime state.
Beyond its sealing capabilities, it's an incredibly potent weapon, capable of cutting through virtually anything.
With such an insane weapon as that in Jada's hands, it made her an instrument of fate. Mix that with the fact that she knew how to use the flying raijin; she had to be the deadliest player out of the other six!
"Every move," she said, her face almost contorting in anger, "every plan, it was all you from the beginning, using us as pawns!"
"You must be referring to Orochimaru giving Sasuke the curse mark…"
When Sasuke heard that, he reached for his neck, his eyes narrowing at Arthur's figure.
The air blew past both of their hairs, making the tension even stronger.
"There's a lot of things I dislike, Jada, and being lied to is one of them," Arthur said, denoting Elysium's entrapment. "Wake up already and stop playing pretend in this godless world."
"You," she retorted, her voice rising. "I won't let you ruin things here just because you're delusional…"
He countered, "And you're projecting. The only delusional person I see here is you."
The confrontation between the two escalated. It was a clear declaration from Jada that Arthur's very existence was something she was trying to erase from this world.
"Why?" she asked. "Just why are you trying to destroy things?"
"It's the only way," he declared in a hardened voice. "The ninja world and all of its programmed flaws have to come to an end."
She shook her head, disbelief and anger warring within her as she said, "No! you're insane. I know your kind. You'd betray everyone in your path, and I'm not gonna let your sick, twisted dream be realized!"
His tone raised to meet hers, saying, "Then you're just as lost as those on earth… I'd like to know: who was it that gave you that weapon, and how did you learn the flying raijin?"
Jada's expression turned grim as she got into a battle stance and shouted in anger, "Nothing that happens now is any of your concern! Your very character needs to be erased… I'll protect everyone! Arthur!"
'Now…'
He turned and sprinted towards the hill, dematerializing his weapon in the process. Jada was on his heels, not letting him escape.
Her Sharingan allowed her to predict his movements as her body was moving at great speeds. The chase was on.
Arthur, who'd honed himself to perfection, dodged obstacles left and right, his movements never ceasing. He leaped over fallen logs, dodged low-hanging vines, and squeezed through narrow passages without breaking stride.
Jada, however, was no less impressive. She matched his speed; her movements were equally fluid. The Totsuka Blade was a blur of light in her hand.
The ground broke underneath their feet, the cracks forming seconds after they passed by. And the wind whipped through the air, carrying the sound of their epic chase across the area.
Arthur reached the edge of the forest, where the land transformed into a canyon of water and trees.
As he controlled his breathing, his heart was pounding in his chest. He had no choice but to continue running.
Jada roared, "Earth style: mud wall!"
A giant slab of rock suddenly pillared the sky, blocking his path. With a quick breath, he launched himself over it, his body arcing through the air as he performed a double acrobatic flip, landing on the other side.
The instant he took off, the giant rock formation crumbled to pieces, Jada slicing through it like it was never there. She emerged out of the debris, running even faster than before and with a face of resentment.
Arthur's mind raced. Apart from where he was headed, all he could think about was that last technique she used. Her natural affinity was water, yet she had performed an earth style technique.
How much training could she had possibly accomplished in this little time?!
Arthur continued to bolt, the canyon walls blurring into a pale vortex around him. Pebbles snapped and dust scattered in his wake. His lungs burned; his heart pounded like a drum, but adrenaline propelled him forward.
Behind him, he could both hear and see the relentless pursuit of Jada's figure, her speed matching his own.
Her Sharingan was no joke. It wasn't just anticipating his movements; it was giving her an almost precognitive awareness to predict which direction he was most likely headed.
Then there was her Totsuka Blade, a constant threat that could end his existence for real, much like she wanted.
Suddenly, she made one hop over a small hill, and her figure couldn't be seen. When she reappeared, she was running directly next to him. He didn't at all look her way, but she was eyeing him down like a true predator.
"Lightning beast running jutsu!"
Electricity covered her palm as she swiped the air, sending a wolf made of pure lighting in his direction. The technique hit him, electrocuting his body. But in that split second, a smouldering rock was in his place.
The substitution jutsu was executed right on time, giving him a better lead.
He was now considering her last attack as he continued running. The Lightning Beast Running technique was from Kakashi, and it could only be used after learning the Lightning Blade. That also meant Jada had acquired earth style, water style, and lightning style!
The canyon walls closed in around them. The air was getting thick with the scent of pine needles and damp earth.
Arthur knew he had to turn to the wilderness, so he darted left and reached a steep cliff face that he began running up at.
"You're not getting away!" she screamed while climbing with the same agility as him. "Water style: water shark bomb jutsu!"
A cascade of water roared in front of her, transforming into a ten-foot shark. Arthur recognized the technique. To think she would have learned one of Kisame's moves.
The shark swam in the air faster than the two could run, meeting him quickly. He dodged left just as it crashed into the wall, causing the earth to explode outward in a concussive wave while taking Arthur with it.
Fueled by an indomitable spirit, he hopped from one falling rock to the next until he returned right back on the cliff without at all losing his balance.
It was an impressive feat, to say the least, but Jada was relentless. Her Sharingan spun violently as she skid across the wall and swiped her weapon left and right, clearing the falling debris.
Arthur, seeing this, could only comment one thing: "Pathetic…"