The Unsealed Beast and the Collapsing Eyes

What stepped through the shrine's shattered doorway was not the human form they had expected. It did not even have a fixed shape.

It was a mass of pitch-black shadow that constantly twisted, churned, and swelled! Its outline sometimes became a savage beast, sometimes transformed into a blurred, distorted human figure, and sometimes spread out like a boiling, viscous mire. At its core were two scarlet points of light like red-hot coals-its eyes, filled with boundless brutality, hatred, and a desire for destruction. Merely looking at them made the soul tremble.

Evil chakra of the utmost intensity spread outward from it like a freezing tide. The air groaned beneath the strain. The ground cracked and sank around its foothold. The already sickly trees and dark purple fungi nearby withered completely upon contact with that chakra, turning to drifting ash.

"Wh-what kind of monster is this..." Xi's voice trembled uncontrollably. The Uzumaki Clan's keen perception of energy also meant that she sensed the terrifying malice within that shadow, enough to corrupt the soul, more clearly than ordinary people.

"What that ancient seal was suppressing... certainly wasn't anything benign." Fox forced herself to stand straight, her gaze beneath her mask graver than ever. She quickly surveyed the battlefield: the Priest lay off to one side, his fate unknown; the three remaining Root remnant guards seemed stunned by the sudden turn of events and the terrifying presence, momentarily ceasing their movements, but their eyes held more fanaticism than fear; the Erosion Abyss mist was gradually thinning and dispersing without its source; as for the three of them, she herself was badly injured, the extent of the erosion injury to Ling's left shoulder was unknown, and Xi had exhausted her chakra and mental strength...

The disparity between their strength and the enemy's could hardly have been greater. Worse still, this monster that had broken free of its seal clearly would not distinguish friend from foe.

"ROAR-!!!"

The pitch-black shadow let out a deafening roar. Tangible sound waves mixed with evil chakra swept outward like a storm! The nearest remnant guard bore the brunt of it. Before he could even scream, the sound waves and chakra tore him to pieces, and his flesh, blood, and bones were instantly swallowed by the shadow!

Only then did the other two guards snap out of their fanaticism. Their expressions changed drastically, and they turned to flee.

But the shadow was faster! Two tentacles of pure darkness, their edges flowing with dark red energy, shot from its main body like lightning. They instantly pierced the two fleeing guards and dragged them back into the shadow. A few short screams and teeth-grating sounds of chewing and dissolution could faintly be heard.

The shadow seemed to swell slightly. Its scarlet eyes turned toward Ling and the others. The pure malice in that gaze almost took tangible form.

"It's... devouring them... growing..." Xi's voice held despair.

"Spread out! Don't give it a chance to swallow us together!" Fox shouted sharply, her hands rapidly forming hand seals. "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"

Three blazing fire dragons roared toward the pitch-black shadow, attempting to draw its attention.

Yet the shadow merely waved casually-if that constantly changing mass of darkness could be said to "wave"-and a mass of dense dark energy rose before it like a wall. The fire dragons struck the wall of darkness, erupting in fierce flames, but it was like throwing stones into the sea. The darkness rapidly swallowed and extinguished the flames, leaving only a ripple.

Completely ineffective! Or rather, the effect was negligible!

Seemingly enraged by this "provocation," the shadow lunged forward, moving so fast that it trailed a string of afterimages! Its target was none other than Fox, whose chakra fluctuations were most conspicuous after casting her ninjutsu!

"Captain, watch out!" Ignoring the agony and eroding sensation in his left shoulder, Ling burst chakra from his feet and tried to rush to her aid.

But Fox had extensive combat experience. The instant the shadow pounced, she had already used the Substitution Technique, her real body appearing ten meters away. All that remained in her original position was a log, instantly shredded and swallowed by the shadow's tentacles.

Having missed, the shadow turned its scarlet eyes and immediately locked onto Fox's new position. Just then, another wave of ethereal sound with a strange penetrating force descended.

"Secret Art: Soul-Calming Song!"

Azure Phoenix's long-range support had arrived again! This time, the sound waves were no longer purifying. Instead, they carried a strong suppressive and soothing quality, like invisible shackles attempting to bind the shadow's violent, chaotic soul-if it had one.

The shadow visibly faltered. Even the darkness churning over its body slowed somewhat, and it let out an angry howl. The sound waves seemed to have some effect on it!

An opening!

"Xi! Use sealing jutsu! Disrupt it!" Fox shouted as she moved rapidly, dodging the shadow's renewed tentacle attacks.

Xi reacted as well. Against a monster almost immune to physical attacks and conventional ninjutsu, perhaps sealing jutsu and attacks on the soul were the key. She formed hand seals again. This time, rather than the area-wide Purifying Erosion Ring, she gathered all her remaining chakra into a solid pale red beam and fired it at the shadow's core-between those two scarlet eyes!

"Sealing Jutsu: Evil-Breaking Arrow!"

Like a real arrow, the pale red beam pierced the churning outer darkness and struck the shadow's head precisely!

Hiss-!

Like red-hot iron dropped into ice water, the shadow let out an even more piercing roar! At the point of impact, the darkness boiled violently and evaporated, exposing a deeper dark core beneath that seemed to lead into nothingness. That blow seemed to have truly injured it!

But it also thoroughly enraged the ferocious beast that had broken free of its seal!

The shadow abandoned its pursuit of Fox and abruptly swung its enormous body around. Countless dark tentacles, like a raging forest of thorns, stabbed at Xi from every direction! At the same time, soul pressure and a mental assault far more terrifying than before crashed directly into Xi's mind like a tsunami!

Xi reeled as though struck hard. Her face instantly turned paper-white, the chakra she had just gathered scattered completely, and her body swayed, her gaze losing focus. She could not withstand a soul attack on this level!

"Xi!" Ling's eyes strained wide. He was closest to Xi, and almost instinctively rushed over, placing himself between her and the skyful of dark tentacles!

His Sharingan spun furiously, predicting every tentacle's trajectory. But there were too many, and they were too fast! In his current condition, he could not possibly dodge or block them all!

Was he going to die here?

No! Never!

The cold and numbness from the Erosion Abyss energy eating into his left shoulder, the complicated throbbing from the Fragment against his chest that both craved and rejected the shadow's energy, and the Purifying Erosion Power deep in his eyes, suppressed by the seal yet battering wildly against it at this moment of life and death... All these sensations mingled like a catalyst, igniting something deep within Ling's soul.

Not for power, not to grow stronger, but simply to... protect the companion behind him who trusted him!

"Just... STOP!!!"

A furious cry seemed to erupt from the depths of his soul!

Ling formed no hand seals and used no known ninjutsu. He simply jerked his head up and stared fixedly at the endless darkness rushing toward him!

Hum-!!!

It was as though a sturdy barrier had been forcibly shattered!

At that moment, Ling's fierce will and the potential unleashed in desperation forced a tiny opening in the powerful Sealing Jutsu Formula Tsunade had placed in his eyes!

It had not been fully undone. Rather, like a breach opening in a dam, the raging flood had found an outlet!

The power of the Eye of Purification and Erosion, mingled with the Fragment's ancient Yin Release aura, erupted like a long-suppressed volcano, guided for the first time by Ling's conscious, all-out effort!

It was no longer the tiny sliver passively triggered or subtly guided before, but... almost all of it!

Two kinds of light instantly filled Ling's eyes. In his left was a pinwheel spinning at its limit, black patterns of Purifying Erosion Power flowing across a scarlet background, deep and cold, as though capable of devouring all energy; his right was filled entirely with a strange crystalline radiance, clear and translucent, as though capable of reflecting the essence of all things and seeing through every illusion. The two lights were not distinctly separate. They intertwined and merged, forming an indescribable, heart-stopping visual spectacle.

And in the deepest recesses of both pupils, a dim point of starlight seemingly from before time quietly lit up.

In Ling's eyes, the world changed completely.

It was no longer merely chakra flows or the outlines of objects. What he "saw" was the essence of energy, the lines of rules, the radiance of souls, and... the "structure of existence" of the pitch-black shadow before him!

It was not an indescribable, incomprehensible monster. In the vision of the fully manifested Eye of Purification and Erosion, it was a twisted "aggregate" formed from countless broken, distorted soul fragments filled with pain and hatred, forcibly blended with vast amounts of filthy Yin Release Chakra through an extremely evil method, then fixed in place by some ancient, forbidden "ritual" or "curse." Its core consisted of over a hundred madly wailing soul nodes and an even deeper "anchor" that seemed connected to some distant source of darkness.

Its strength lay in its chaotic nature and its ability to grow by devouring. But its weaknesses were just as obvious-the soul nodes serving as its "adhesive" and "driving force," and that fragile "anchor"!

Information flooded his brain, accompanied by pain from his eyes so intense that his head felt about to burst! Blood seeped from the corners of Ling's eyes, his nostrils, and his ears, but he was utterly unaware.

Facing the countless dark tentacles already stabbing toward his face, Ling merely raised his still-mobile right hand slowly.

No hand seals, no angry shout.

Facing that raging darkness, he softly uttered a single word:

"Disperse."

His words became law.

It was not the power of his voice. As he uttered that word, an invisible force of "purification" and "decomposition," seemingly originating from the level of rules themselves, spread outward like spilled mercury, carried by the crystalline radiance of his right eye!

Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss-!

Every dark tentacle that touched that invisible power stiffened instantly like snow and ice beneath the sun, then rapidly disintegrated and dispersed from the tip onward! They were not crushed or devoured. It was as though their very "existence" had been denied, "purified" back into the most primitive particles of energy. Even the soul fragments within seemed to find release, giving off faint, sigh-like fluctuations before vanishing completely.

That invisible power continued spreading. Wherever it passed, the churning darkness around the shadow's perimeter rapidly receded and faded like a pencil drawing rubbed away by an eraser!

The shadow's main body released an unprecedented shriek mingling pain, fear, and fury! It sensed a lethal threat! Its scarlet eyes fixed on Ling, especially those eyes flowing with strange-colored light. Within them, there actually flickered a trace of... instinctive wariness?

"Eyes... take... them..."

A chaotic, greedy thought slammed directly into Ling's mind. The shadow abandoned its attack on Xi and temporarily ignored Fox and Azure Phoenix's harassment, concentrating all its strength and malice on Ling! Its enormous body abruptly contracted and condensed into a more solid, faster pitch-black arrow radiating destructive fluctuations, shooting toward Ling's heart! This was an all-out strike containing all the energy and malice it had devoured since breaking free of the seal!

At the same time, that terrifying mental assault rose to its peak, stabbing viciously into Ling's soul like countless red-hot steel needles!

"Ling!" Fox and Xi cried out simultaneously. They tried to help, but there was simply no time!

Ling stood where he was. Facing a strike capable of erasing him completely, his face held no fear, only an almost icy calm. Within the vision of the fully manifested Eye of Purification and Erosion, the pitch-black arrow's trajectory, energy composition, the frequency of its soul assault... everything was broken down and analyzed.

The scarlet pinwheel in his left eye turned slightly, locking onto the few most active and crucial soul nodes at the arrow's core. The crystalline radiance in his right eye deepened, reflecting the phantom "anchor" connected to that distant source of darkness.

He slowly raised his right hand, spread his fingers, and aimed his palm at the dark arrow shooting toward him.

This time, he did not say "disperse."

Because what he "saw" was not merely filth that needed purification, but also... energy he could "use" and "guide."

"Reverse."

His cold voice rang out.

The crystalline radiance in his right eye suddenly blazed! This time, what spread outward was no longer pure purifying power, but something stranger-it did not directly attack the dark arrow. Instead, like invisible hands, it precisely seized the "rules" governing the arrow's internal energy flow and the "frequencies" of those crucial soul nodes, then... forcibly "reversed" them!

It was like forcibly reversing a river's current.

Less than half a meter from Ling's palm, the menacing dark arrow containing terrifying power abruptly shuddered! Its stable internal energy structure instantly fell into chaos and conflict with itself! Its forward momentum stopped dead. Instead, it began collapsing inward and curling back!

"NO-!!!" The shadow's main body let out a despairing shriek. It felt its control over the strike being forcibly stripped away, and even... used by its opponent!

Ling laboriously raised his injured left hand as well. Faint chakra imitating the Fragment's aura flickered at his fingertips as he lightly touched the dark mass of energy rendered wildly unstable by the reversal.

"Back to you."

Bang-!!!

The dark energy collapsing inward and curling back, mingled with the trace of a catalyst Ling had added, shot back along its original path faster and more violently than it had come! Under the "processing" of the Eye of Purification and Erosion, the reflected energy even acquired a trace of "analysis" and "disintegration" targeting the shadow's own soul structure!

The pitch-black arrow shot back and slammed into the core of the shadow's main body!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a muffled sound as though something had been completely shredded from within.

The shadow's enormous body twisted and convulsed violently, releasing one final wail filled with resentment and venom. The darkness on its surface rapidly dispersed like an ebbing tide, exposing the more insubstantial essence beneath. Those hundred-odd madly wailing soul nodes went out one after another, finding release. Finally, the phantom "anchor" connected to that distant source of darkness gave a faint crack and shattered like an illusory reflection, disappearing.

Like a punctured soap bubble, the enormous shadow dispersed completely into the air, leaving only cold, inactive dark energy residue scattered across the ground, and a faint sense of peace left by souls finding release.

Dead silence fell before the shrine.

There was only the wind's moan through the ruins and their uneven, heavy breathing.

Ling still held his hand raised, but the strange-colored light in his eyes rapidly ebbed away. Agony, weakness, and the terrifying backlash from forcibly breaching the seal and using an unknown power swept over him like a tsunami. His vision went black. Blood poured from his eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth. His body swayed, and he fell backward.

"Mr. Ling!" Xi rushed over and caught him before he hit the ground.

Fox hurried over as well and checked Ling's condition, her expression beneath her mask extremely grim. "His chakra is completely depleted, his chakra pathways are torn in multiple places, and his eyes... his ocular power is severely overdrawn. The seal... seems to have been partially breached. We must return to the village immediately!"

She immediately contacted them through her communicator. "Azure Phoenix, emergency! Crow is severely injured, his ocular power is overdrawn, and his seal may be damaged. Xi's chakra is exhausted. I have minor injuries. The target monster has been eliminated, the Priest is unconscious, and the remnants are all dead. Requesting the highest level of medical support and emergency transport! Coordinates..."

"Understood! Support is on its way! Hold on!" Azure Phoenix's voice also carried unprecedented tension.

Soon, an enormous Reverse Summoning array lit up the valley. Several of Konoha's finest medical ninja and members of the Sealing Squad appeared at the scene, led by Tsunade's shadow clone-she herself had to remain in Konoha.

Tsunade's shadow clone glanced at Ling's miserable condition and his eyes, which seemed to retain an unusual sheen even while he was unconscious, blood seeping from their corners. Her brows knitted tightly, but her movements never paused.

"Begin stabilization treatment immediately! Sealing Squad, check the seals on his eyes and attempt to reinforce them! Everyone else, clear the site and recover everything of value, especially that Priest and the remnants' bodies, along with anything remaining in the shrine!"

Efficient rescue and cleanup work quickly began. Ling and Xi were carefully placed in portable medical capsules, where life-support treatment and stabilization began immediately. The Priest was confirmed alive, though his soul seemed severely damaged, and was taken away in heavily sealed shackles. The shattered shrine was also thoroughly searched, yielding some ancient, incomplete records engraved on stone tablets and several empty altars of a bizarre design.

When Ling regained a little awareness, he was already in the familiar highest-level Isolation Ward of Konoha Hospital. His entire body was tightly wrapped, particularly his head and eyes, which were closely monitored with special sealing bandages and instruments. Pain was everywhere, especially in his eyes, as though countless red-hot needles were stirring inside them.

He could feel that Tsunade's seal had not been completely destroyed, but enormous cracks had appeared. The power of the Eye of Purification and Erosion and the Fragment's energy had become more active, and harder to control. Forcing their use this time also seemed to have caused deeper changes in those eyes. Something more fundamental that he did not yet understand was on the verge of awakening.

Outside the ward, he faintly heard Tsunade, Jiraiya, and the others arguing in lowered voices.

"...Far too reckless! Forcing the seal open in that condition!"

"But the result was good. They stopped a possible disaster and captured a key figure."

"And the price? His eyes are like a ticking time bomb now! That power... isn't something he can control as he is! He was lucky this time. What about next time?"

"That's why we must speed up the research! We have to find a way to control that power safely! That Priest, and the things found in the shrine, might provide clues..."

Their voices gradually blurred.

Ling's consciousness sank into darkness again. But within that deep darkness, he seemed to "see" some blurred, fantastical fragments of images-an endless starry sky, shattered earth, a towering temple, and a pair of... indifferent eyes that seemed capable of containing the entire universe.

The storm was far from over.

And his eyes seemed only just beginning to truly "open."