Wild Dog's Dream (3)

Wild Dog's Dream (3)

Hungry...

The bone-piercing cold wind whipped snowflakes against his face like a blunt knife slicing flesh.

His vision blurred, his legs felt filled with lead, and every step sank deep into snow past his ankles.

His stomach was no longer merely empty; it had become a burning black hole that devoured everything. Under the twin torment of freezing cold and hunger, his consciousness sank into a lightless abyss.

"You're about to die, brat."

A low voice, rough as gravel, pierced through the howling wind and snow. A shadow fell over him, blocking part of the storm. He barely lifted his heavy eyelids and saw only a tall, blurry silhouette, with what seemed to be a blade hanging at its waist.

Hungry...

The instinct to survive overwhelmed his fear. A tuneless whimper escaped his throat, like that of a dying beast.

"Oh? If you want to live that badly..." There seemed to be a hint of amusement in that voice. "Then follow me. If you can make it alive to the next town, I'll let you live."

Hungry...

Beast Soldier Guard... Nether Erosion... my older brother... my mentor...

"Argh—!"

Reality crashed back into Illusion Erosion's mind like shattered glass, and an intense tearing pain rose from the depths of his soul.

The backlash of Wild Dog's Dream had never been so clear—the frenzied hunger and urge for destruction he had inflicted upon his enemy were now rebounding upon himself with multiplied force through that invisible sensory link! It was as if countless invisible starving dogs were gnawing at his nerves!

His fluorescent green pupils were completely overtaken by web-like bloodshot veins, turning murky and clouded.

Clear saliva spilled uncontrollably from the corners of his mouth, stretching into long strands and dripping onto the filthy front of his robe.

Two rows of snow-white teeth clenched tightly together, grinding with a creaking sound. Blood seeped from his gums from the excessive force. Every breath carried a scorching taste of rust.

Kill him! End the link! This is the only release! The howl from the depths of his soul, twisted and magnified by his own secret technique, overwhelmed the last shred of reason.

With immense difficulty, as though dragging a thousand-pound weight, Illusion Erosion took one step after another toward Shuji, who stood frozen in the middle of the street.

With every step, the flagstones beneath his feet groaned under the strain. His body shook violently from the extreme pain and desire, yet he was still driven onward by Wild Dog's Dream and its mad obsession with ending his target.

Out at sea.

Shuji's true body raced across the waves, the sea wind rushing against him.

At the other end of the mental link, the violent torrent of sensations from Wild Dog's Dream endured by his Wood Clone instantly surged deep into his consciousness.

"Ugh!" Shuji let out a muffled groan, and his vision suddenly turned blood-red! The chakra gathered beneath his feet instantly collapsed! His speeding body, like a bird with broken wings, plunged headfirst into the freezing seawater!

"Gurgle, gurgle..." The icy seawater stimulated his nerve endings. Shuji abruptly opened his eyes and kicked hard with both legs!

He burst through the surface, his soaked black hair plastered against his cheeks as droplets rolled continuously down his jaw.

Genjutsu?

A clone... could actually be caught in genjutsu?!

The essence of genjutsu was for the caster to invade the target with their own chakra, distort the five senses, and disrupt the target's chakra flow.

The conventional methods of dispelling it:

First, the victim recognized that they were under genjutsu and forcibly set their chakra flow right with a Release. Against top-tier genjutsu users, this method was often futile.

Second, the most universal method: a third party used their own chakra as a blade to forcibly sever the caster's mental link, helping the victim escape.

For ninja with exceptional mental strength and chakra, there was a third response—clone techniques. Whether Shadow Clones or other secret physical clones, they were extensions created from the caster's mind and chakra. Though they possessed form, they were not truly flesh-and-blood bodies, and did not possess genuine "five senses" or "chakra pathways."

Genjutsu should have affected them like trying to set fire to empty air.

Yet his Wood Clone had truly been caught.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Shuji wiped the seawater from his face, swiftly suppressing his astonishment. He no longer merely received the clone's sensations. Instead, he forcibly reversed the direction of the link—using the will of his true body to replace the clone's consciousness, distorted by genjutsu!

After taking a deep breath of salty sea air, chakra gathered beneath his feet once more. He cut through the waves and continued racing toward Chujie Port.

At the same time, he focused his mind completely, controlling the Wood Clone standing on the distant port street.

On the street.

Illusion Erosion had already approached. His murky, bloodshot green eyes stared fixedly at the motionless Shuji. He breathed heavily like a bellows, saliva dripping from his mouth. Trembling, he raised his right hand and let a Kunai slide from his sleeve. The movement was slow and stiff, as though he were fighting invisible shackles, yet it carried a chilling, unquestionable resolve.

"Hah... die..." Hoarse, tuneless syllables squeezed through his clenched teeth.

The Kunai's tip, carrying icy killing intent, moved inch by inch toward Shuji's Wood Clone's throat. Then, slowly and firmly, it stabbed in!

Crack!

An extremely faint yet exceptionally clear sound rang out. The sensation was wrong!

There was none of the resistance of piercing flesh, bone, and sinew. Instead, it felt like stabbing into dry, densely packed old tree roots!

Deep within the Wood Clone's eyes, originally filled with primitive madness from Wild Dog's Dream, beneath the restless surface belonging to the clone and distorted by genjutsu, a cold, sharp gleam suddenly flashed through like mist being swept aside!

Within that gleam was a clear trace of admiration from Shuji's true body!

"So that's how it is..." Shuji's voice rang out, calm without a ripple, as though the Kunai piercing his throat did not exist.

"A two-way sensory link? You forcibly impose your own state onto the target." He slowly raised his eyelids. "Even a rogue ninja must never be underestimated."

As he spoke, the simulated traces of "flesh" around the place where the Kunai had entered the Wood Clone's neck swiftly faded and vanished like a receding tide, revealing the dense, smooth essence beneath, marked by distinct wood grain!

"Wha...?!" Illusion Erosion's pupils abruptly shrank to pinpoints!

How is that possible?! My senses clearly detected his chakra flow and life force!

A Substitution Technique? No! Under the continuous erosion of Wild Dog's Dream, I should have instantly sensed any abnormal chakra movement!

This material... a puppet? No! A puppet couldn't possibly have such realistic chakra reactions and a link of will!

Almost instinctively, Illusion Erosion tried to sever the link of Wild Dog's Dream and leap backward!

But it was too late!

Squelch!

A hand covered in wood grain silently shot forth with lightning speed, instantly piercing through his defenseless chest!

Cold, hard, and carrying the unique resilience of plant life, it replaced the warmth of flesh and blood that should have been there.

"Urgh—!" Illusion Erosion's body suddenly arched, the searing pain plunging his vision into darkness.

From the wooden arm piercing through his chest, countless hair-thin yet incredibly tough wooden fibers erupted like living creatures!

They burrowed wildly through the gaps between blood vessels, chakra pathways, and muscles, spreading and taking root within his body! The icy sensation of foreign matter, accompanied by the weakness of life being forcibly drained away, instantly swept through his entire body!

"You did well, Illusion Erosion." The Wood Clone's voice was close at hand, cold without the slightest warmth, like a sentence being pronounced. "Your companion, the ninja chasing me across the sea, also tried very hard."

"First Erosion... is dead?!" Illusion Erosion jerked his head up. Unbelievable despair and madness erupted in his murky green eyes!

Whether it was this brutal news or the extreme pain caused by the wooden fibers ravaging his body, a dying beast's rasping sound escaped his throat.

So he really was one of the Black Erosion Corps! Shuji's gaze sharpened far out at sea.

First Erosion and Illusion Erosion... two of them had already been dealt with.

Was Beast Soldier Guard one of them as well? Regardless, judging solely by the bizarre secret techniques and strength displayed by these two, the rest would certainly be no ordinary opponents.

However, this Wood Clone carrying his will had already reached its limit after forcibly enduring the genjutsu's backlash, launching its counterattack, and activating Wood Release.

Shuji's Wood Clone watched the light in Illusion Erosion's eyes rapidly fade, feeling the final pulse of life transmitted through the wooden fibers at his fingertips.

He slowly withdrew his arm, bringing out a cloud of dark red Blood Mist mixed with fine wooden fibers.

Illusion Erosion's body collapsed to its knees as though its spine had been removed, then pitched forward onto the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dust. The bell engraved with the character "Food" on his wrist rolled to one side with a dull clink, falling completely silent.

The Wood Clone lowered its head and looked at its palm. Fine cracks began at its fingertips and rapidly spread upward like a spiderweb.

It looks like I can't rely on a clone to support the Wasabi Family...