Uesugi Sasuke pushed aside the last clump of bushes.
A thick stench of blood mixed with rot hit him in the face.
In a clearing a short distance ahead, a demon had its back to him.
The demon was larger than any he had encountered before, with several bone spurs even protruding from its muscular back.
It crouched on the ground, making teeth-grating chewing noises.
At its feet lay a corpse gnawed beyond recognition. Judging by the clothing, it seemed to be an herbalist who had entered the mountains to gather medicinal herbs.
Sasuke's heart clenched sharply.
Cold sweat seeped into his palms.
Was this what the system called a "weak demon"?
What a joke.
That build, that oppressive presence-it was clearly far stronger than the one that had burst into his home.
He remembered the horrific state of his parents, and an icy hatred overwhelmed his fear.
Kill.
I have to kill it.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
He silently drew a kunai from the Ninja Tool Pouch that came with the system.
Its cold touch steadied his chaotic thoughts considerably.
Lowering his body and using Basic Ninja Footwork, he approached the demon's back step by step, making almost no sound.
Ten meters.
Five meters.
Three meters.
The demon seemed completely absorbed in the pleasure of eating, utterly unaware.
Now!
A cold glint flashed in Sasuke's eyes. He pushed off hard, charging behind the demon in an instant like a pouncing cheetah.
He poured all his strength into his right arm, the kunai in his hand becoming a streak of black lightning as he drove it viciously toward the back of the demon's neck.
Squelch!
The kunai pierced its flesh.
But Sasuke's expression changed.
It had only gone halfway in.
This demon's neck was as hard as stone.
"Roar!"
The intense pain made the demon let out a deafening roar. It spun around, a claw tipped with sharp nails sweeping toward him with a vicious rush of air.
Sasuke's pupils contracted sharply. With no time to pull out the kunai, he could only roll backward in a desperate dodge.
The demon stood up, fixing its cloudy, savage eyes on him.
It grabbed the kunai still lodged in its neck, forcibly pulled it out, and casually tossed it to the ground.
Flesh writhed wildly at the wound, restoring it to its original state in the blink of an eye.
Sasuke's heart sank.
This is trouble.
With the ambush having failed, his chances of winning a head-on fight were extremely low with his current abilities.
The demon gave him no time to think. Dropping to all fours, it charged like a wild beast, moving astonishingly fast.
Sasuke could only rely on the Combat Instinct he had obtained from the system, dodging constantly and using the surrounding trees to keep the demon at bay.
He took several shuriken from his Ninja Tool Pouch and flung them out.
Clang, clang, clang!
The shuriken struck the demon as though hitting an iron plate, throwing off only a few sparks before bouncing away.
Its physical defense is too high.
Sasuke darted through the woods, his mind racing.
Traps.
He remembered the simple traps he had rigged with vines and branches on his way here.
He immediately changed direction, running toward the spot he remembered.
The demon pursued relentlessly behind him. Several attacks that he barely escaped left claw marks in Sasuke's clothes.
At last, he spotted the crooked tree he had used as a marker.
He lunged forward, sliding along the ground and just clearing the trap's trigger area.
The demon following close behind was completely unprepared and stepped into the loop of vines on the ground.
Whoosh!
A large net woven from tough vines dropped from above, instantly engulfing the demon and hoisting it into the air.
"Roar! Roar!"
The demon struggled madly in the net. The taut vines creaked as though they might snap at any moment.
Sasuke knew he had little time.
He sprang up from the ground, his hands rapidly forming hand seals.
This was not a ninjutsu from the system.
It was the most basic application of chakra he had worked out through his knowledge of ninjas.
He gathered chakra in his legs, then pushed off the ground hard.
Bang!
His body leaped high into the air, taking him directly above the suspended demon's head.
Clutching his last kunai, he aimed at the demon's neck, which its struggles had left fully exposed.
"Die!"
With a furious roar, he put his entire weight and strength behind the thrust.
Crack!
This time, the kunai drove through without resistance.
It entered the back of the neck and emerged through the throat.
The demon's roar cut off abruptly.
Sasuke did not stop. Gripping the end of the kunai with both hands and using it as a pivot, he slashed hard with all his strength!
Squelch!
An ugly head went flying amid a gush of black blood.
The headless body hanging in midair convulsed violently a few times, then crumbled to ash just like the head as Sasuke watched.
[Ding!] [Kill successful. Obtained 100 Revenge Points.]
The crisp system notification rang out in his mind.
Sasuke's legs gave way, and he fell straight out of the air, landing in a heap on the ground and gasping for breath.
I won.
He looked at his hands, covered in black blood, then at the pitiful corpse on the ground.
He felt no joy at having survived, only a deeper chill and anger.
This is what demons are.
I have to kill every last one.
He brought up the system panel. The Revenge Points field clearly displayed "100."
He looked at the skill unlock section.
[Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique (requires 100 points to unlock)] [Chidori (requires 300 points to unlock)]
Without the slightest hesitation, Sasuke mentally selected [Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique].
His points instantly dropped to zero.
The next second.
A scorching current appeared within his body out of nowhere. At the same time, a vast torrent of information surged violently into his brain like floodwater bursting through a dam.
Ox, Tiger, Dog, Hare, Monkey...
Twelve intricate hand seals, the paths through which chakra circulated in his meridians, the techniques for compressing flames in his throat...
Everything was seared deep into his memory, as though it were instinct.
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