A Man Like a God

[Rewards being distributed...]

As the system's electronic chime rang out, Senju Kyogawa was deep in slumber. Hearing the sound, which felt jarringly noisy in the quiet of the night, Senju Kyogawa couldn't help but toss and turn, frowning as he waved a hand in an attempt to shoo the noise away.

Unexpectedly, this wave of his hand landed a solid slap directly onto the face of the sleeping Senju Hashirama.

Smack.

Senju Hashirama was jolted awake by the crisp, resounding slap.

He opened his sleepy eyes in a daze, unable to process what had happened even after a moment of reflection. He gently rubbed his stinging cheek, then continued to pull Senju Kyogawa into his arms and drift back into his dreams.

Ever since he returned, Senju Kyogawa had been clinging to Senju Hashirama every night to sleep, claiming it was because he missed his big brother, Senju Hashirama, but in reality, it was to farm his Cuddle Points as quickly as possible.

Thus, Senju Hashirama had become the direct victim of that slap.

Meanwhile, Senju Kyogawa, who had unconsciously slapped Senju Hashirama, was pulled into an even deeper dream state by the system's reward distribution.

Senju Kyogawa had a bizarre dream this time.

He dreamt of a man wearing a red haori. He had long, dark red hair tied into a ponytail behind him, and his eyes were a reddish-brown. His appearance was incredibly handsome, and he wore hanafuda earrings shaped like the rising sun.

Beyond that, what left a particularly deep impression on Senju Kyogawa was the large birthmark on the man's face. It was red, stretching from his forehead down to below his left ear, the flame-like pattern looking so vivid it seemed as if it could come to life at any moment.

His right hand gripped a sword tightly; it looked exactly like the Nichirin Sword Senju Kyogawa had bought previously, with a long blade colored in black and red.

Standing before the man with the red markings was a young man with black hair. The youth was tall and slender, his skin as pale as paper, with a pair of plum-red eyes.

Even though both of their eyes leaned toward red, Senju Kyogawa felt that the plum-red eyes of the black-haired youth carried an ominous aura.

Those plum-red eyes were viscous and sticky, carrying a cold, damp sensation, as if they were eyes that could only belong to a cold-blooded creature that had never seen the light of day.

Senju Kyogawa couldn't help but shiver after looking at them for only a few seconds.

Those eyes were too terrifying, making Senju Kyogawa feel as if he were being stared at by a venomous snake, about to have a chunk of flesh viciously bitten off.

The two men seemed to be in a standoff.

The next second, the man with the red markings suddenly raised the Nichirin Sword in his hand and slashed toward the youth with the plum-red eyes.

[Sun Breathing: First Form: Waltz]

[Sun Breathing: Second Form: Clear Blue Sky]

[Sun Breathing: Third Form: Raging Sun]

[Sun Breathing: Fourth Form: Fake Rainbow]

[Sun Breathing: Fifth Form: Fire Wheel]

[Sun Breathing: Sixth Form: Burning Bones, Summer Sun]

[Sun Breathing: Seventh Form: Beneficent Radiance]

[Sun Breathing: Twelfth Form: Flame Dance]

[Sun Breathing: Thirteenth Form...]

The man with the red markings was like a god descended to earth. Every move, every gesture was incredibly graceful; it was as if a dancer were performing, or a singer were lamenting.

The thirteen forms of Sun Breathing were executed naturally and fluidly by him. The Nichirin Sword was as obedient as a child in his hands, and his every movement felt divinely inspired. The flames on the blade danced around the man as if they were alive.

When the man swung his Nichirin Sword, even the sun in the sky seemed to become his backdrop.

He was the most dazzling morning sun in this world!

Through the blinding sunlight, Senju Kyogawa lost his focus. He held his breath, his pupils dilated slightly, his fingertips trembled, and his blood surged within him as a wave of heat gradually rose in his heart.

The man was strong—incredibly strong!

This was the only thought in Senju Kyogawa's mind.

Lost in the man's movements, Senju Kyogawa was awakened by a scream from the youth with the plum-red eyes. He looked closely and realized that the youth was not human.

Under the man's relentless barrage of attacks, the youth with the plum-red eyes had actually split himself into countless small pieces.

The man with the markings was not flustered, remaining perfectly composed. The sword in his hand pierced and shattered the chunks of flesh with speed, precision, and ruthlessness, giving the Evil Demon no chance to escape.

Immediately after, Senju Kyogawa felt a blur before his eyes.

He woke up.

Awakened, Senju Kyogawa still felt unsatisfied. He continued to savor the thirteen sword techniques of Sun Breathing in his mind, feeling deeply stirred.

Whenever he thought of that man with the red markings, who resembled a god, Senju Kyogawa felt his blood boil.

He was simply too strong.

So strong that when Senju Kyogawa stood before him, he couldn't even muster the thought of resistance, because he knew that the current Senju Kyogawa could not defeat such a person.

Senju Kyogawa couldn't help but fantasize: if one day he could also master the thirteen forms of Sun Breathing, would he be as strong as that man?

Just as Senju Kyogawa was lost in thought, he was shaken awake by Senju Hashirama.

"Kyogawa, Kyogawa, why are you spacing out?" Senju Hashirama shook Kyogawa, shoving his face right in front of him.

Coming back to his senses, Senju Kyogawa was startled to see a giant bowl-cut head right in front of him, and reflexively swung his fist forward.

"Bang!"

Senju Kyogawa's punch carried no small amount of force, instantly leaving Senju Hashirama's face bright red and causing two streams of crimson blood to pour from his nose.

The handprint already reddening on Senju Hashirama's face was now joined by the impact of Senju Kyogawa's heavy blow.

Senju Hashirama clutched his struck nose, aggrieved, and whimpered that he was going to be disfigured.

"Wuwuwu... Kyogawa, how could you be so heartless, hitting me so hard all of a sudden..." Senju Hashirama felt incredibly wronged; he was certain his nasal bone was about to snap. "Wuwuwu... I'm not sleeping with you again, Kyogawa..."

Coming to his senses, Senju Kyogawa immediately placed his hand over Senju Hashirama's nose and cast a Healing Jutsu.

In less than a second, the bleeding from Senju Hashirama's nose stopped.

While wiping away the remaining blood with a tissue, Senju Kyogawa shouted "Sumimasen" at the top of his lungs to apologize to Senju Hashirama.

"Brother Hashirama, why did you suddenly appear? You scared the life out of me..."

"I've been here the whole time... It's you, Kyogawa. You looked so dazed when you first woke up that I got close because I was worried about you. Who knew you would actually..." The more Senju Hashirama thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt.

Senju Kyogawa comforted Senju Hashirama for quite a while longer before he finally calmed down.

Senju Hashirama stopped whimpering and pointed toward an object on the table nearby, asking:

"Kyogawa, what is this? Is it yours?"

Senju Kyogawa looked toward the table in confusion...

A Nichirin Sword!