A Fight to the Death

"Terumi Mei, we have to finish this quickly. That guy is terrifying. I need to go help Shinji right away."

Rin, fighting alongside Terumi Mei against the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans, looked anxiously into the distance at Might Duy, whose body was engulfed in surging crimson energy and who looked like a demon descended from the heavens.

Terumi Mei nodded gravely. An enemy like that was beyond any ninja's ability to handle alone. Even the Mizukage wouldn't stand a chance.

Across from Terumi Mei and Rin, Nara Suzaku, Akimichi Tōshi, and Yamanaka Santen were all covered in wounds. Their strength was nearly spent, and they seemed to have little power left to fight back.

Akimichi Tōshi took a long, narrow glass case from his clothes. It had three compartments. Two were empty; the third held a red pill.

Nara Suzaku and Yamanaka Santen both paled at the sight. Yamanaka Santen was especially anxious. "Tōshi, don't do anything rash!"

The pill Akimichi Tōshi had taken out was called the Red Chili Pill. It sounded like a seasoning, but it was actually a secret medicine passed down only within the Akimichi Clan. Combined with their secret technique, it could multiply the user's strength.

Once an Akimichi activated the clan's secret technique, their originally heavyset body would rapidly slim down as the fat within them burned and turned into energy. To keep that tremendous energy from tearing their body apart, two vents would open in their back to release it, taking on a shape like butterfly wings. It was like emerging from a cocoon as a butterfly.

That was also why the Akimichi were known as the "Butterfly" among the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans.

But great power usually came with terrible backlash. Once an Akimichi took the Red Chili Pill and activated Butterfly Mode, there was over a ninety percent chance they would die after the technique wore off!

Akimichi Tōshi didn't know where Might Duy's current power came from, but he could guess what price Duy would pay for it—just as he himself would for the technique he was about to use.

A carefree smile spread across his honest face. Akimichi Tōshi spoke with determination. "This is the most crucial moment of the battle. Even Duy, a mere Genin, has risked his life. How can I fall here?!"

He didn't wait for his teammates to try to stop him. He crushed the glass case and tossed the Red Chili Pill into his mouth.

Nara Suzaku and Yamanaka Santen exchanged a look. They sighed, but the sorrow on their faces soon vanished, replaced by a blazing fighting spirit.

"Then let's fight to the very end!"

Just as the battle between Terumi Mei, Rin, and Konoha's Ino-Shika-Cho entered its fiercest phase, Might Duy was finally about to make his move.

"Konoha Genin, Might Duy!" Might Duy said seriously as he looked at Uesugi Shinji.

Uesugi Shinji was stunned. He couldn't believe the man before him was only a Genin. But Duy had introduced himself of his own accord, which at least showed how seriously he took the fight.

"Kirigakure Jonin, Uesugi Shinji," Uesugi Shinji replied.

The moment the words left his mouth, Might Duy vanished. Fortunately, the Light Brain gave him powerful dynamic vision that could track every movement before him. Otherwise, he wouldn't even have known which direction Duy was attacking from.

He clapped his hands together, and powerful Ice Release chakra surged from within him, instantly forming a wall of ice crystals to his right.

Besides its formidable defensive strength, the wall radiated a bone-chilling cold that could freeze anyone who came near. It was a powerful Ice Release defensive technique.

Unfortunately, a defense of this level couldn't stop Might Duy's attack.

In an instant, the ice wall shattered. The cold it released couldn't even reach Duy before the searing energy around his body melted it away.

If the ice wall had served any purpose at all, it was to give Uesugi Shinji a moment to brace himself before getting hit!

With a thunderous crash, Might Duy's fist smashed through the ice wall without slowing and struck Uesugi Shinji, sending him flying backward.

Uesugi Shinji spat out a mouthful of blood. Though he was now at an overwhelming disadvantage in strength, there was no fear or tension in his eyes. In fact, he looked calmer than usual.

A series of sharp cracks rang out as chunks of ice fell away from Uesugi Shinji's body. He had known his ice wall could only weaken Might Duy's attack. His second line of defense was Ice Armor, formed across his skin with his strongest Ice Release chakra.

Even so, Uesugi Shinji had suffered some internal injuries. He wasn't being sent flying because he couldn't steady himself. He was using the momentum to cushion the blow and reduce its impact as much as possible.

Might Duy charged at him again, the skin on his face cracking and peeling away. Uesugi Shinji knew time was on his side. As long as he could endure Duy's fiercest attacks, he would still be the one to win!

Uesugi Shinji took out three more scrolls and activated them all at once. As they unfurled, torrents of water poured out.

"Water Release: Water Vortex Tornado!"

Water surged from the three scrolls and circled around Uesugi Shinji. In the blink of an eye, a massive tornado formed, a hundred meters tall and nearly ten meters across, composed of swirling water.

Standing at the center of the tornado, Uesugi Shinji stared intently at Might Duy as he closed in. Countless complex numbers raced through his mind. Thanks to the Light Brain's powerful simulation and calculation abilities, he had precisely quantified both his technique's defensive capacity and the strength of Duy's previous attack.

I can withstand it!

That conclusion only strengthened Uesugi Shinji's resolve. He clapped his hands together, and Ice Release chakra surged from within him into the water tornado around him.

The moment Uesugi Shinji finished, Might Duy plunged into the tornado. With a roar, he raised his fist and attacked again.

Every time Might Duy threw a punch, torrents of water surged out of the tornado to shield Uesugi Shinji. The water not only used its spinning force to weaken Duy's punches, but also rapidly froze under the influence of Uesugi Shinji's Ice Release chakra, weakening each attack a second time.

By the time Duy's fist broke through this layer of defense, Uesugi Shinji had gained precious time to dodge. Even when he couldn't move in time and took a direct hit, the damage was greatly reduced. With the Ice Armor coating his body as well, his injuries stayed just within what he could bear.

The enormous water tornado surrounded Uesugi Shinji and Might Duy, so no one else on the battlefield could see what was happening inside.

Inside the tornado, however, the battle was completely one-sided. Might Duy had total control, darting around Uesugi Shinji and landing a powerful attack every time he changed position.

Uesugi Shinji was entirely on the defensive. Might Duy kept smashing through the protection formed by the water tornado, while the Ice Armor covering Uesugi Shinji shattered and reformed, only to shatter again. He looked utterly battered.

Before long, though, Might Duy realized that no matter how hard he attacked, he still couldn't inflict a fatal wound. Uesugi Shinji looked more and more injured, but showed no sign of collapsing.

"Haah!"

Might Duy threw a heavy punch. The impact shattered the Ice Armor covering Uesugi Shinji once more, and he spat out another mouthful of blood. But despite the blood, Uesugi Shinji staggered, then immediately controlled the water and ice crystals to protect his sides. He was clearly determined to drag things out for as long as he could.

The two passed each other, their eyes meeting for an instant. Might Duy saw Uesugi Shinji's utterly calm gaze, while Uesugi Shinji saw the anxiety in Duy's eyes.

Might Duy, who had been attacking without pause, suddenly stopped. He knew he couldn't keep this up. He had hoped to conserve some strength so he could help Konoha's forces eliminate the remaining Kirigakure ninja after defeating Uesugi Shinji. But now, he was no longer able to do that.

"Looks like you don't have much time left," Uesugi Shinji said calmly.

Though he hadn't been hit even once, Might Duy suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a large mouthful of blood. Before it could reach the ground, the scorching chakra mixed into it vaporized it.

"Yeah. It's only at a time like this that people realize how precious life is!"

Might Duy suddenly smiled with relief. Then a violent aura burst from within him, and blazing, flame-like energy poured out of his body. The energy was now streaked with dark red, unlike the energy that had surrounded him before. The color came from his evaporating blood.

The skin that had already begun to crack and peel away was now burned to ash. He looked like a demon crawling out of a lake of molten rock.

"But it's precisely because people dare to sacrifice their precious lives to protect everything they love that they can unleash this unmatched power!"

In that moment, Konoha appeared in Might Duy's eyes, along with scene after scene of him living among its people. The final image to come into focus was the fighting smile of his son, Guy.

The crimson energy around Might Duy gathered rapidly, forming an enormous dark-red dragon head behind him. Its eyes snapped open, and pupils wreathed in golden flames fixed on Uesugi Shinji, whose expression had grown grave.

"Eight Inner Gates: Night Dragon!"

With a furious roar, Might Duy leapt high into the air and kicked fiercely toward his opponent. The enormous dark-red dragon head let out a roar like a dragon's bellow and lunged toward Uesugi Shinji with overwhelming force!

(Note: Morning Peacock, Daytime Tiger, and Evening Elephant are all named after an animal and a time of day. Guy's final kick against Six Paths Madara, which produced a red dragon of energy, was called "Night Guy." The author has renamed the technique "Night Dragon" here because Might Duy is using it instead.)