One Night (11)

Before Yuhi Kurenai and Ueno Kei appeared countless hideous monsters, their bodies slightly hunched, heads crowned with two horns, resembling a mix of ox and tiger. Their massive heads and fur-covered bodies were terrifying, and their wide-open maws revealed rows of sharp, jagged teeth.

Ueno Kei's pupils constricted slightly. His entire body tensed, his hand gripping the Lingyu Blade tightly as he watched the horde of monsters with a guarded expression.

At this moment, Ueno Kei did not doubt for a second that the young girl was a monster in human form. Furthermore, with the appearance of these creatures, the buildings that had been there before had long since vanished.

What remained was a desolate, bleak scene; aside from the few living people present, there were only hundreds of those hideous, snarling faces.

However, perhaps due to some unknown reason, the monsters' eyes were blood-red and they looked ravenous, yet they merely stayed in place, roaring incessantly toward Yuhi Kurenai and Ueno Kei without charging.

Even so, the mere sound of their roaring buzzing in Ueno Kei's ears made his head feel as if it were about to explode.

The headache was excruciating.

Meanwhile, Kurama Yakumo stood upon a high platform. With a light flick of her paintbrush across her canvas, two chains manifested, tightly binding the Kurama Yeqiong brothers who lay sprawled on the ground.

She hoisted them high into the air. After finishing this, Kurama Yakumo turned her gaze toward Yuhi Kurenai, staring at her with cold, temperatureless eyes. What brought Ueno Kei a slight sense of relief was that Kurama Yakumo's eyes seemed to ignore his existence entirely. This allowed him to breathe a small sigh of relief; if the opponent wasn't focusing her primary attention on him, his chances of survival might be higher—or so he hoped.

Ueno Kei's mouth twitched as he watched hundreds more monsters suddenly appear, casting his last shred of wishful thinking to the winds. He made a rough estimate of the number of monsters on the field; the count had now reached over a thousand. Even if these things weren't particularly strong, Ueno Kei knew that if even a fraction of them swarmed him, he would sooner or later be buried in this sea of people.

No, a sea of monsters.

Moreover, Ueno Kei glanced at Kurama Yakumo standing on the high platform. These bizarre creatures had appeared suddenly, but just before they manifested, Ueno Kei had clearly noticed Kurama Yakumo's movements on her canvas. Even if Yuhi Kurenai's previous explanation of Kurama Yakumo's abilities had been vague, Ueno Kei could conclude that the appearance of these monsters was definitely closely related to her power.

Heaven only knew if, even after wiping out this batch, that seemingly harmless girl could conjure up another. Even if Ueno Kei suspected that Kurama Yakumo couldn't use her abilities without limit or side effects, he preferred to prepare for the worst. If Kurama Yakumo could still churn out ten thousand more, Ueno Kei figured that dying of exhaustion would be the best-case scenario.

The most terrifying part was that, even now, Ueno Kei didn't know the extent of Kurama Yakumo's background, her true strength, or how many special abilities she possessed.

I can only take it one step at a time, sigh, Ueno Kei muttered to himself.

Running away? That was a foolish choice. Not to mention that it would draw Kurama Yakumo's attention, if he left the range of Yuhi Kurenai's protection, Ueno Kei believed he might die even faster.

Therefore, Ueno Kei had only one choice. He slowly channeled the chakra within his body, his eyes fixed sharply on Kurama Yakumo atop the platform.

The Lingyu Blade vibrated slightly. Once the battle began, Ueno Kei had only one target: Kurama Yakumo.

Capture and kill that girl!

On the platform, Kurama Yakumo had no interest in understanding the thoughts racing through Ueno Kei's mind. Even if she knew his intentions, she wouldn't care. To Kurama Yakumo, Ueno Kei was merely an insignificant character; the strength he displayed was not even worth her notice.

Her only thought at the moment was to erase her former mentor.

"Kurenai-sensei, today, I will avenge my parents! Starting with you!" Kurama Yakumo's tone was devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

As her words fell, Ueno Kei's entire body tightened.

Suddenly, countless iron chains erupted from the ground, instantly binding Yuhi Kurenai and Ueno Kei.

Yuhi Kurenai proved worthy of being a Jonin; her hands moved in a rapid seal, and the space around Ueno Kei and her distorted.

Clang! It sounded as if something had collided; the chains shattered into countless fragments and vanished. Before Ueno Kei could even catch his breath, "They're coming, Kei! Protect yourself!" Yuhi Kurenai's solemn voice reached his ears. As soon as Kurama Yakumo finished speaking, the thousand monsters roared and charged. Seeing their bloodthirsty demeanor, Ueno Kei had no doubt that if he fell into their midst, he would be torn to shreds.

Sigh, why am I so unlucky? After all this effort, after finally... Ueno Kei felt a deep sense of frustration at this moment. Survive? Ueno Kei let out a bitter laugh. He had done what he could and now left it to fate. It would be a lie to say he held no resentment toward Yuhi Kurenai, but things had reached this point, and there was no use complaining. They were grasshoppers on the same string; he could only hope for a miracle.

In truth, Yuhi Kurenai was also filled with regret at this moment. Her previous assessment of her beloved student, Yakumo, had been a failure. Otherwise, she would have definitely sent Ueno Kei out of this space first. She just hadn't expected Yakumo's strength to have increased so terrifically in these short two years.

Ultimately, Yuhi Kurenai was the kind of ninja with a kind heart, especially toward those from her own village, let alone a student like Ueno Kei who was still studying at the Ninja Academy. Looking at Ueno Kei's youthful, immature face, which showed a bitter expression amidst his determination, how could Yuhi Kurenai not understand?

Yuhi Kurenai felt a heavy sense of apology toward Ueno Kei at that moment.

"Kei-kun, I'm sorry. I should have sent you out of this space first. I thought I could protect you, but I've dragged you into this," Yuhi Kurenai said in a bitter tone.

Ueno Kei was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected this female ninja to have such a personality, which immediately dispelled the ill will he had harbored toward her. After all, Ueno Kei wasn't a malicious person; he had simply been prioritizing his own interests, as was natural. His values were normal, and his previous resentment toward the Anbu and Yuhi Kurenai for dragging him into such a dangerous situation was just human nature, as they were, after all, strangers to him.

However, Yuhi Kurenai's self-reproach lessened the resentment in Ueno Kei's heart. Besides, his life had been saved by the Third Hokage; in a way, he owed a debt to Konoha.

Just consider it repaid to Konoha. At least I've lived three or four years longer than I should have, Ueno Kei consoled himself with a self-deprecating thought.

"Kurenai-sensei, if everything is fated, then I will not blame anyone. You don't need to blame yourself, either."

Before the two were submerged by the monsters, Ueno Kei turned his head abruptly and said in a joking tone.

Yuhi Kurenai was taken aback. Looking at the boy's back—not broad, yet appearing incredibly sturdy—a faint smile touched the corners of her lips, a sense of comfort washing over her.