Getsuga Tenshō!

The weapon Shunren had created with Yin Release: Projection was none other than Ichigo Kurosaki's Zanpakuto from Bleach, Zangetsu!

This great cleaver looked utterly ordinary, even crude and simple, but it had one ability, its only and strongest one: at the moment of a slash, it absorbed its wielder's Spiritual Pressure... Here, however, Shunren had created it with Yin Release, so what Zangetsu absorbed was naturally the Chakra in his body. As the blade swung, it unleashed a crescent-shaped, high-density shock wave forward—Getsuga Tensho!

Yin Release: Projection was Shunren's only ability, so he had devoted a great deal of effort to training it. Besides Kanshou and Bakuya, he had tried projecting other weapons. Among his extensive knowledge of two-dimensional works, there were powerful weapons such as the Zanpakuto from Bleach, the Noble Phantasms from Fate, the magical treasures from Zhu Xian, and the equipment from Sword Art Online. The Projection process had presented problems to varying degrees.

This was the first time Shunren had actually used a Zanpakuto from Bleach. But he had no other choice. Facing the six Root Anbu ninja before him, all he could do was stake everything on it.

But it seemed the goddess of fate had not abandoned him entirely. At the moment he found himself trapped between life and death, he had successfully projected the Zanpakuto, Zangetsu!

However, his Yin Release could only maintain it for one second. Shunren had anticipated this, since it was his first time projecting it, and it was a powerful Zanpakuto at that. If it had been any other weapon, one second would have left him helpless. But Zangetsu alone was different: all he needed to do was swing the blade, and that was enough.

One second to turn heaven and earth around!

Getsuga Tensho!

A pale blue, crescent-shaped slash.

The six people charging toward him were caught off guard and utterly horrified.

But as members of the Root Anbu, they possessed a strength of will ordinary people could scarcely imagine. Even when faced with the sudden, terrifying slash, they reacted swiftly.

One of the objectives of this operation was to annihilate the Uchiha unit, so the members were all ninja skilled in Water Release. Without any apparent communication, the six of them cast the same defensive Ninjutsu in perfect accord.

"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

Six layers of flowing water surrounded them, forming a thick, sturdy protective wall.

The next second, the pale blue crescent slash crashed into the wall of water!

Silence. An eerie silence.

The crescent was like a solid, translucent blade, cutting fiercely into the Water Formation Wall as though it were a blue cake. Their violent collision made not the slightest rumble; only ripples spread ceaselessly through the water.

"Crack." Zangetsu shattered in his hand and slowly dissolved into smoke and dust. With Shunren's control over Yin Release, he could not maintain Zangetsu's form for even one more second.

Projecting Zangetsu had exhausted all of Shunren's mental energy, while Getsuga Tensho had drained every last bit of Chakra from his body. He was now truly spent in body and mind.

He opened his mouth, but could not get a single word out. His vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

But just after Shunren fell, a tremendous roar resounded across the entire mountaintop!

From below the mountain, a marvelous sight could be seen: vast amounts of water were flung into the sky, and, strangely, a faint blood-colored mist was clearly visible amid the spray!

Back on the mountain, only Kurenai and Shizune remained standing in the devastated camp. Both wore expressions of indescribable shock and stupefaction. Young as they were, and encountering a ninja battle for the first time, they had seen far too much in a single day!

All six Root Anbu had fallen as well, blood in their mouths, their fates unknown!

After the great battle, the mountaintop camp was silent. The Uchiha flag, stained with blood, fluttered in the wind.

"Shunren!" After a long while, Kurenai and Shizune finally came to their senses.

"Shizune!"

"I... I'll give him a cardiac stimulant first!" Shizune panicked and took a syringe from her pocket, but her hands were trembling so badly that she could not line it up with Shunren's vein.

Seeing Shunren's breathing grow ever weaker, Shizune could not help thinking that he was the same age as her, yet had still taken up a blade to fight enemies whose numbers and strength were both enough to inspire despair. Shizune's heart jolted. She opened her mouth and bit down hard on her lip; the sharp pain stopped her fear and brought her instantly to her senses.

With a faint prick, the needle pierced a vein in Shunren's arm precisely, injecting the medicine into his body. It strengthened the contractions of the heart muscle, increasing the amount of blood pumped by the heart and accelerating circulation. Given Shizune's current knowledge of pharmacology, being able to prepare an emergency treatment like this was already quite an achievement.

"Whew..." The unconscious Shunren's breathing became a little steadier.

Shizune leaned over Shunren's chest and listened to his heartbeat, then breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness! At last... at least his life is safe! Honestly, his heart almost stopped beating. Shunren, how could you be so reckless!"

Kurenai looked at Shunren with mixed feelings. Always fiercely competitive, she could not help being moved by his tenacity. "If Shunren hadn't risked his life on that attack, we'd be the ones dead. Besides, they're Anbu, and Shunren actually managed to... Hm?!"

A faint sound came from not far away.

Kurenai and Shizune instantly froze.

"Cough, cough!" A second sound followed!

Fear appeared on both their faces as they turned their heads with difficulty.

Two of the Root Anbu who had fallen had gotten back up. They first checked the injuries of their companions beside them.

"His liver was shattered by the impact. He can't be saved."

"Same here. One more is still breathing, but that slash caught him. The wound is too big, and he's lost too much blood. He probably won't last long."

Of the six Root Anbu, three had died on the spot from Shunren's attack, one was mortally wounded, and the remaining two were covered in injuries.

Yet they seemed to feel no sorrow over their companions' deaths. They merely knew about them.

"Astonishing. This is an excellent ability. Lord Danzo will surely be interested."

The two Root Anbu stood up and turned their icy gazes toward them.

The killing intent their opponents released pressed down on Kurenai until she could barely breathe. But after witnessing Shunren's desperate fight with her own eyes, she would not retreat again!

Shizune, too, pinched several Senbon between her slender fingers.

"Do you want to die?"