He burst out of the building caught in the explosion.
Covered in dust and grime, Dodai looked at the panicked villagers all around him and the ninjas racing about like headless flies. Anger and anxiety welled up inside him.
"Dodai, leave this place to me. Go up ahead!" The elder of Kumogakure was remarkably calm. Spotting Kizaru flying in the distance, he called out.
The elder's words gave Dodai a clear goal and eased his anxiety. He nodded. "I'll leave this to you!"
With that, Dodai sprinted toward the area beneath Kizaru.
By the time Dodai reached the battlefield, Kizaru had just unleashed Yasakani no Magatama. He hovered in the air, looking down at the ground below like a heavenly ruler.
The massive area of effect from Yasakani no Magatama had inflicted heavy losses on the Kumogakure ninjas caught off guard by the attack. Everyone was wounded, and most had fallen to the ground, no longer able to fight—or even stay alive.
That guy! That bastard! This is unforgivable!
Fury surged through Dodai as he looked up at Kizaru and launched his attack.
Unable to fly, Dodai faced Kizaru in the sky and formed Hand Seals. He spat out a mass of fluid that looked like rubber or modeling clay.
The fluid formed into a gigantic hand and reached up toward Kizaru.
"A Kekkei Genkai?" Kizaru looked down at the fluid reaching for him. He stayed in place, continuously turning into light to keep himself aloft.
The giant hand shot upward. Under the hopeful gazes of the Kumogakure ninjas, it reached Kizaru, wrapped around him, then clenched into a fist.
At the sight, many ninjas looked pleased. Some even cheered.
Unlike those around him, Dodai—who was using Lava Release to control the fluid hand—didn't let his guard down. If anything, he became even more vigilant.
He refused to believe that a powerful ninja who dared to sneak into the village alone and cause such massive destruction could be caught so easily.
A flash of golden light appeared above the giant fluid hand in the sky. Kizaru had evaded Dodai's attack by turning into light, and now he reappeared, standing on top of the hand.
"You're quite a monster!" Kizaru looked down at Dodai and praised him sincerely.
A question mark seemed to pop up over Dodai's head. He wanted to shout, Which one of us is the monster?
"Why did you attack our village?" Dodai shouted up at Kizaru.
"Maybe it was on a whim!" Kizaru replied with a smile.
On a whim?
Hearing his answer and seeing his comrades' injuries all around him, Dodai felt utterly furious.
"The enemy may be using Genjutsu! Everyone, use ninjutsu—area attacks!" Having never faced Kizaru before and knowing nothing about him, Dodai could only issue an order based on what he'd observed in their brief exchange.
At Dodai's command, the ninjas still able to move began forming Hand Seals. Most prepared Lightning Release Ninjutsu.
The crackle of lightning rang out again and again. Kizaru looked down at the ninjas and didn't give them a chance to attack. He struck first.
Turning into a streak of golden light, he appeared before Dodai as if by teleportation. His body blazed with light, blinding the enemies around him.
"Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?" As he spoke, Kizaru had already swung his right leg.
Unlike when he'd sparred with people in Konoha, Kizaru kicked with all his strength this time. His right foot, shining with golden light, struck Dodai in the neck in an instant.
There was a crack, and Dodai went flying.
After his Light Speed Kick, Kizaru showed no mercy. He pointed his right foot in the direction Dodai had flown and fired a massive laser that engulfed him.
BOOM!
Dodai's body slammed into the building behind him, triggering a massive explosion that left nothing of him behind.
By the time Kizaru had finished killing him in one blow, the enemies around them still hadn't recovered from being blinded.
Only a few Kumogakure ninjas standing farther away had seen what happened clearly.
"Lord Dodai!"
The ninjas cried out in grief and rage, charging at Kizaru like a squad of suicide troops.
As the enemies closed in, Kizaru took a step forward and charged at them.
His right hand was covered in black, metallic-looking Armament Haki. He punched the enemy in front of him.
Under the force of the blow, the enemy exploded into a cloud of blood.
The Kumogakure ninjas following close behind weren't scared off. They gritted their teeth and glared fiercely at Kizaru, Kunai in hand and lightning crackling around them, as they continued their charge.
Landing on the ground, Kizaru watched his enemies leap into the air and charge at him from several directions. His right foot lit up, and he unleashed a crescent-shaped Flying Slash, killing several of them at once.
The bodies, cut in two, fell to the ground. Kizaru's clothes were soaked with blood.
"What a hassle!" Kizaru glanced at the blood on his shoulder and complained with distaste.
Then, wearing his faint smile, he slid his left hand down the back of his right hand. A light sword appeared in his grasp.
Kizaru unleashed his second signature technique: Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi.
He surveyed the area and saw Kumogakure ninjas rushing in from every direction to reinforce their comrades. He swung toward the front. A golden Flying Slash, accompanied by a terrifying pressure, cut through everything in its path.
Many of the reinforcements couldn't dodge in time and were cut down or killed.
After one swing, Kizaru didn't stop. Instead, he kept slashing in every direction, sending out more than a dozen golden blades in quick succession.
The golden slashes reaped the enemies' lives and destroyed the surrounding buildings.
By the time the slashes faded, the area around Kizaru had been flattened. Almost no one in sight remained standing in one piece.
The continuous slashes had drained much of Kizaru's stamina. He put away Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi, turned into golden light, and flew back into the sky.
Looking at the ruins below, Kizaru was fairly satisfied with the results. Rather than linger, he flew to the other side of Kumogakure.
The recent battle hadn't reached this area, and the buildings were still mostly intact.
Looking down at the ninjas hurling ninja tools at him, Kizaru raised both hands again.
He unleashed Yasakani no Magatama once more. Countless light orbs rained down from the sky, causing a chain of explosions that reduced the ninjas and buildings below to ruins.
After the attack, Kizaru landed on the highest point of a pile of rubble. He put his hands in his pockets, a smile still on his face.
"You demon!"
"You bastard! I'll cut you down!"
The wounded ninjas struggled to their feet, weapons in hand, and stared at Kizaru with hatred and fury.
If their gazes could turn into arrows, Kizaru would have been pierced by a thousand of them by now.
The enemy's curses were their weakest weapon. Kizaru, still smiling, paid them no mind.
After two consecutive assassination attempts by Kumogakure, Kizaru had put the village on his list. He felt neither mercy nor guilt.
When facing an enemy, Kizaru had only one response: eliminate them, body and mind, utterly and completely.
"Ohoho, what frightening curses!" Kizaru replied with a laugh.
As he spoke, he raised his right hand.
He extended his index finger. A flash of golden light shot out and passed straight through the head of the ninja cursing the loudest.
One flash of golden light, one enemy down. Kizaru's repeatedly glowing index finger was like the scythe of a Grim Reaper, reaping lives with precision and elegance.
When the first flash of golden light appeared, the enemy's curses grew louder. But by the tenth, they were gradually dying away.
At last, as Kizaru's index finger continued to sway, the battlefield fell completely silent!