Magma Hell

The sky was dyed red by flames. The enormous flame giant stood over ten meters tall, and everyone in Konoha, a mile away, saw it.

"Damn, the plan failed, and we've alerted Lord Hokage. This kid is really strong. Let's see if we can kill him. With our teammates who caught up, we should be able to take him out, right? We'll have to try. Otherwise, Lord Danzo won't be happy if we go back like this," the dog-mask ninja sighed.

"What? Another monster? Last time it was the Nine-Tails. What monster is it this time...?" The villagers screamed when they saw the flame giant in the sky. It seemed the Nine-Tails incident had left a deep psychological scar on many people.

All the Chunin and higher-ranking ninja mobilized, and the Third hurried to the Konoha Gate.

"What's going on? What has the Reconnaissance Team found? Who's causing this?" the Third asked gravely.

"Lord Third, according to our observations, this isn't a monster. It's a flame giant formed from flames made solid. A mile outside the village, a group of five unidentified ninja are fighting a child. The child created that flame giant. He has one of Konoha's Forehead Protectors on his head. Our intelligence confirms that he should be the Genin Issui Kanna, who left the village on a mission to escort a merchant caravan to the Land of Rivers. But there's an Anbu among the group attacking him!!!" Beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down the forehead of a Jonin from the Reconnaissance Team. What on earth was going on? The Anbu had been dispatched, yet Lord Hokage knew nothing about it.

Danzo, your ambition is too great. Sigh, I've been too tolerant of you. You actually sent the Anbu to attack a Genin. But this kid's strength has improved again. What a powerful bloodline. The Third thought to himself, then waved Kakashi and Guy over and signaled for them to check on the situation.

"You'd better get out of my way. Your attacks are useless against me as I am now. You've alerted all of Konoha. Even if you kill me, Danzo will choose to kill you to smooth things over when you get back. If the ninja who are coming catch you, there'll be no turning back for you. I advise you to stop. Don't keep doing something so futile. We're all Konoha ninja. Must we really kill each other?!!!" Issui, enveloped by the flame giant, said to the five ninja before him. The anger in his voice had built up to the point of exploding.

"It seems you know who wants to capture you. Then we can't let you go back. Although Lord Danzo said he wanted you alive, we'll probably die if we don't fight with the resolve to kill you. Besides, that technique of yours can't last much longer, can it? And in your current state, every attack must consume a huge amount of Chakra. I can tell you plainly that we lost all sense of what life means long ago. We exist only as tools for Lord Danzo to realize his dream. Even death can't stop us from moving forward.

"So!!! In the current situation, we're gambling our lives against yours. If you can hold out until the rescue ninja arrive, we're finished. If not, you'll become our prey," the dog-mask man said coldly.

Danzo must have placed Cursed Seals on all of them. Damn it, do I have to use that move? It looks like I have no choice.

"You're wrong. You don't stand a chance. If I wipe you all out, even if I use too much Chakra and fall unconscious, the rescue ninja will save me soon enough. Are you ready to face the fury of the world in the depths of hell? Then, let the feast of death begin!!!

"Summon-Magma Hell!!!" Issui sneered as he unleashed the most powerful mass-killing secret technique of Flame Demon Descent. A huge amount of Chakra and spiritual energy was immediately drained from him, and a large quantity of life energy was also stripped from his body.

Magma roared again and again beneath the earth. The ground within a hundred meters of the flame giant rapidly split open, and the five assassins present panicked.

The next moment, surging magma burst from underground. Several assassins were instantly reduced to bloody liquid, which evaporated until nothing remained. Even the people far away in Konoha could feel the faint heat of its temperature, over 2,000 degrees Celsius, on the breeze. All the flowers, grass, and trees near the magma were scorched to charcoal.

While he could still move, Issui slowly walked out of the magma zone. If the flame giant disappeared while he was still inside, he was done for. Even after advancing to the second stage and gaining the passive secret technique Flame Mastery, which granted him immunity to fifty percent of Fire Style damage, he would have had difficulty surviving in the magma. For Issui as he was now, this secret technique harmed him as well as his enemies.

As soon as he stepped out of the magma zone, Issui collapsed. His mind, body, and Chakra energy had all been severely depleted. By forcing himself to use the secret technique Magma Hell, Issui had exhausted all his energy, and unrefined cellular energy had also been forcibly drawn from his body. Issui probably wouldn't be able to train for some time, let alone use Ninjutsu. That was simply impossible!!!

Not long after Issui fell unconscious, Kakashi and Guy arrived in a hurry. They were shocked by the world of magma before them. Still bubbling, the magma rolled endlessly toward the sky, displaying its extraordinary, immense power to mortals.

It would probably take more than ten days for this magma to dissipate. The forces of nature would have to neutralize its heat bit by bit. Without energy from underground to sustain it, the magma would have difficulty lasting indefinitely.

"Kakashi, this is beyond imagination. This kid really is a terrifying monster. If he could use this whenever he wanted, it wouldn't matter how many Kage Level experts came after him," Guy said in amazement.

"Impossible. Look, this child's life force is nearly gone. All his Chakra and spiritual energy have been exhausted. If he doesn't recuperate properly, I doubt he'll ever be a ninja again. Even if he recovers, he won't be able to live a normal ninja life for six months to a year, let alone train. I wonder what kind of enemy he ran into to make him use a forbidden technique like this," Kakashi said with a sigh.

"Was it a ninja from the village? This kid shouldn't have done anything wrong, so why would someone from the Anbu get involved? And it looks like Lord Third didn't know about it either. How strange." Guy's senses had always been *, and he didn't give matters like this much deeper thought.

"It might have been Root. After all, that kid Itachi was also 'invited' to stay with Root back then," Kakashi said in an extremely faint voice, then picked Issui up.

Kakashi and Might Guy brought the unconscious Issui back to the village gate.

When the Third saw Issui, his expression said he had expected as much. He briefly asked Kakashi about the situation, then told him to take Issui to Konoha Hospital.

The Third then ordered the Anbu to seal off the entire magma zone and let no one near it. He also summoned all the village's leading figures to a conference room.

"Lord Third, I need an explanation. The medical staff say they don't know when Issui will wake up. This has already provoked the Hyuga Clan's anger. Our clan has always made great contributions to the village, yet this is how we're treated!!" Hiashi voiced his protest in front of everyone.

"Hiashi, don't get worked up. We haven't established the facts yet. Besides, the attackers were killed by the magma, and only one unconscious attacker remains. The Interrogation Department is checking the facts now," Mitokado Homura said comfortingly. Danzo, Danzo, can't you just stop for a while?

"Hiashi, I'm extremely angry about this too. Some people in the village like to play petty tricks. Danzo, what do you think about this?" the Third asked the unperturbed Danzo.

"I think Issui Kanna is an extremely dangerous person. A seal should be placed on him, or he should be executed outright. An unruly force we can't control needs to be eliminated," Danzo said calmly.

What? Everyone thought Danzo was making a fuss over nothing. He was clearly just coveting this Kekkei Genkai, yet he was still making such a specious argument.

"I can say for certain that this child won't harm Konoha. Besides, Inoichi examined his memories when he came to Konoha. He can be trusted completely. What's more, he's a member of the Hyuga Clan now. Don't casually suspect others at every turn. If you suspected everyone, wouldn't you have to kill everyone? Danzo, you've disappointed me greatly. And you casually sent an Anbu squad to attack a Genin. Don't you think you made yourself too conspicuous? Besides, if you had doubts, why not wait until he returned to the village instead of ambushing him outside it? You really don't have much regard for me as the Third." The Third's anger erupted.

"Sarutobi, don't get so worked up. It's bad for your health. Danzo was only confused for a moment. Danzo, hurry up and apologize to the Hyuga clan head. Let's put this matter behind us. We're all members of Konoha. Why do something that hurts those close to us and brings hatred upon our enemies?" Utatane Koharu said, trying to smooth things over.

"Hmph!?" Danzo walked out of the conference room without another word. Everyone's expression turned ugly.

"That's just Danzo's temper, Sarutobi. Don't hold it against him too much," Koharu could only say to Sarutobi.

"The Anbu's power is no longer suitable for Danzo. Take his Anbu away and leave him only Root. I've already shown him the utmost leniency. From now on, the Anbu will be entirely under the Hokage's control," the Third said, taking a drag on his cigarette.

"All right, let's leave it at that. Hiashi, don't worry too much either. Sarutobi has already had the medical corps keep constant watch over Issui's condition. He's improved, but he's still unconscious," Homura said.

Hiashi had no choice but to agree. In truth, he also knew this would have little effect on Danzo's power. This time, they were merely telling Danzo not to go too far. Besides, Issui had clearly survived and would be unable to train for half a year at most. The sight of that terrifying magma pool outside Konoha made Hiashi very happy. He hadn't expected Issui to have gained such strength. Although he had paid a huge price, it was also a deterrent—a deterrent for the Hyuga Clan.

The Third was also very satisfied. Having taken the Anbu from Danzo, his own faction had grown considerably stronger. Danzo would be unable to make any major moves in the future, and the two advisers were gradually becoming neutral.