Rise Again

The war had completely ended, or at least, that was how it appeared for now.

Not long after, Jiraiya also left the village. He said he wanted to write books and travel the world.

The battlefield no longer required large numbers of ninja soldiers, so Konoha's higher-ups adjusted the curriculum. They changed the old method of rapidly training ninjas, extended the Ninja Academy's term of study, and sought to improve every aspect of the students through elite training.

With Yizhe's abilities, he could actually have graduated from the Ninja Academy already.

But his shut-in tendencies flared up. Having grown accustomed to the leisurely life at school, the lazy Yizhe suddenly did not want to graduate.

So he kept his grades at an above-average level, intending to spend the full six years at school.

The night was cool as water beneath the heavenly steps. Huo Jian and his son sat in the courtyard, chatting idly.

"How is your research into 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven' coming along?" Huo Jian suddenly brought up the secret technique, curious about how far his son had progressed.

"Spinning at high speed is easy; it just takes more practice. The problem is the technique of instantly releasing chakra from the acupoints all over the body. That still needs research, although I have already gained a preliminary grasp of the locations of all the body's acupoints."

"But I still cannot meet the requirement of releasing chakra from all of them at the same instant. Every time I try to use 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven,' I lose my balance and fail. The amount of chakra released from each acupoint differs, and so does the timing, which causes the body to lose its balance!" Yizhe laid out every problem he had encountered in training.

"The reason Father's 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven' is incomplete must be because you did not open all the acupoints in your body. You only selectively released chakra from certain acupoints to achieve balance and use 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven,' right?" At last, he understood why his father had called his technique incomplete.

"Ha, ha, ha!" Huo Jian laughed heartily, deeply gratified. He said gently, "That's right! That is also why I was unwilling to teach you my training method!"

"Even an incomplete 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven' has decent defensive power, but its flaws are obvious! Selectively opening acupoints causes the chakra released throughout the body to be unevenly distributed! In other words, it creates weak points in the defense!"

"Such flaws can be fatal in the eyes of the strong! I was afraid you would be satisfied with an incomplete 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven' and stop there, which was why I refused to pass my training method on to you!" Huo Jian stared sternly at his son and solemnly warned, "Either give up and find another means of defense, or study it thoroughly and master the complete 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven.' I will never allow you to end up with a defective version like mine!"

"All right, all right! Our son is still young! He has plenty of time to study it, so what are you in such a hurry for?" Hezi walked over carrying a plate of watermelon, somewhat dissatisfied with her husband's harsh demands.

"Here, you must be thirsty. Have some watermelon!" She picked up a slice and handed it to Yizhe.

"Thank you, Mother!"

"An indulgent mother spoils her son!" Huo Jian shook his head helplessly.

Ever since he had been idling at home and guiding his son's training, Hezi would interject from time to time. She always thought his demands were too harsh.

To be fair, Huo Jian had discovered that because his son matured early, Yizhe learned and absorbed knowledge more easily than children his age. Naturally, he had gradually raised his standards in every area.

But he meant well. He hoped his son would become a powerful ninja one day.

"Come to think of it, this is rather strange!" Yizhe muttered as he held a slice of watermelon and gnawed on it.

"What is?" Huo Jian casually accepted the watermelon his wife handed him, surprised by his son's muttering.

"Father, don't you think tonight is especially quiet?" Yizhe swallowed the watermelon in his mouth and wiped his lips with his sleeve.

"Aren't nights always this quiet?" Hezi asked, puzzled.

"No! Our son has a point!" Huo Jian frowned and pricked up his ears to listen.

"What do you mean?" Hezi was even more confused, unable to understand the riddle the father and son were speaking in.

"Tonight is too quiet! So quiet that there isn't even the sound of insects!" Yizhe rose to his feet and looked around.

Roar—

A beast's furious roar shattered the night's silence.

"Huo Jian, what was that sound?" Even from so far away, its powerful penetrating force made Hezi's scalp tingle.

"Byakugan!" "Byakugan!"

"What is that thing?"

What entered Yizhe's sight was a red fox-like figure with nine long tails standing upright behind it. Even at such a great distance, he could sense the powerful, evil chakra aura radiating from its body.

"Not good! It's the Nine-Tails! Run!" Huo Jian, who had also seen the red fox-like figure, went pale with terror.

There was no time to explain. He grabbed his son's hand, called to his wife, and prepared to flee.

Wooo—

The moment the Nine-Tails appeared, the village's evacuation alarm sounded.

The alarmed citizens rushed out of their homes and immediately saw the crimson figure towering like a mountain. They easily recognized the Nine-Tails, known as a weapon of war. Their faces turned pale as they fled in panic.

Roar—

The Nine-Tails unleashed terrifying sound waves that directly brought down tall buildings. With one sweep of its tail, it flattened structures across dozens of miles, its unrivaled strength running rampant through Konoha.

A hundred-mile radius became a hell of slaughter!

The many ninjas rushing into battle were like flies, sent flying by the fox's tails. A scrape meant death, a hit meant injury.

For a time, no one could get within a foot of it!

"Non-combat personnel, evacuate east immediately!" Combat ninjas guided the civilians toward the safe zone.

"Father, what is the Nine-Tails?" As Yizhe fled amid the chaos, he looked back at the rampaging red figure and asked Huo Jian beside him.

"Legend says it is one of the nine Tailed Beasts left behind by the Sage of Six Paths, possessing limitless chakra. Limitless chakra—do you know what that means?" As he raced onward, Huo Jian explained what he knew about the Tailed Beasts.

"Limitless chakra! Doesn't that mean it can unleash energy attacks without limit?" Yizhe could not help clicking his tongue.

"Tailed Beasts differ from ordinary ninja beasts and summoned beasts. They are better at controlling chakra for attacks because they themselves are physical embodiments of chakra! The destruction they can cause far exceeds your imagination!" Huo Jian did his best to suppress the fear in his heart as he described the Tailed Beasts' terror.

"But how could it appear here without a sound?" Hezi's face was tense, filled with fear.

"Not good!" A violent, evil aura appeared above them.

It was a fox tail glowing with an enchanting crimson light, crashing down with thunderous force.

"Gentle Fist! Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven!"

"Protect our son!" With no time for further thought, Huo Jian raised one arm and transformed into a pale blue sphere of light as he charged upward.

Huo Jian's 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven' had been incomplete to begin with, and now he was missing an arm, reducing its power even further. The pale blue sphere surged forward with tremendous force and actually halted the fox tail for a moment.

Sadly, that was all! The blue sphere was like a bubble, smashed directly to pieces by the fox tail! A figure shot backward from within the sphere and was blasted into the ground, his fate unknown.

"Father—" Yizhe's eyes nearly split apart at the sight, his heart twisting like a knife.

The situation had changed too quickly. Before he could even react, he saw his father blasted into the ground. The enchanting fox tail grew larger and larger in his pupils, and its overwhelming evil aura left him unable to muster even the slightest desire to resist.

At that moment, Yizhe felt the Death God drawing near. He was so helpless and despairing!

"Watch out!" A familiar figure blocked his view.

Bang!

The fox tail slammed down along with the figure standing before him.

The instant he hit the ground, Yizhe seemed to smell the scent of the earth. From that moment on, his world sank into darkness, and all sound vanished.