Chapter 90: Chapter 89 – “The Storm Remembers Blood”
Chapter 89 – The Storm Remembers Blood
The borderlands were quiet again.
Rain drizzled over broken trees and blackened ground. The signs of battle were everywhere, shattered kunai, scorched leaves, and deep slashes in the soil. The fight was over. Everyone was gone.
Except for one.
A single Kumogakure ninja stumbled through the forest. His name was Renta, and he had barely survived. His left arm was burned and useless, and he could hardly hold onto his weapon. His flak jacket was torn, and he limped badly. Blood ran down his side.
Still, he kept walking.
He had to tell someone what happened.
After what felt like forever, he reached a hidden Kumo outpost buried in the rocks. It had a special chakra-sealed door meant only for his team. When his blood touched the stone, it opened with a hiss.
A surprised chūnin on duty ran over.
"Renta?! Where's Toroi-sama? Where's the rest of the squad?!"
Renta collapsed onto a cot. His breath came in gasps.
"They're gone… all of them…"
The chūnin gave him a soldier pill and patched his wounds as fast as he could. It took two hours before Renta could speak clearly. When he did, everyone in the room went silent to listen.
"We were supposed to destroy a Konoha outpost," Renta said. "Just hit it and retreat. Make them scramble."
He closed his eyes for a second.
"But then it showed up. Something in full armor. Not a puppet… something alive."
The chūnin looked confused. "A puppet?"
"No," Renta said. "It talked. And it had a weapon… some kind of cannon on its arm. It fired a blue light and... everything was just gone."
He swallowed hard. "We didn't even fight. We were wiped out."
...
The report reached the Raikage early the next morning.
It was sealed with four layers of chakra encryption and marked urgent. It arrived by hawk and was brought straight to the Raikage's private war room.
He sat at the head of the long table, surrounded by his most trusted people Mabui, Cee, Darui, and a few other advisors.
Cee opened the scroll and read out loud.
"Team Toroi confirmed dead."
"Magnetic Release user killed."
"Attacker described as over 2.3 meters tall, full metal armor, no chakra signature detected until battle."
"Right arm fired a blast of blue light, possibly chakra cannon or bloodline limit."
The room fell quiet.
The Raikage gripped the edge of the table tightly.
"Toroi," he muttered. "Dead."
Darui looked down. "He was one of our few magnetic release users. We haven't seen another born with that bloodline in ten years."
The Raikage's face grew dark with anger.
"Slaughtered like a rookie… by a walking tank."
Cee raised his hand carefully. "Raikage-sama… maybe this was just a weapon Konoha used. Not a direct attack. It might not be war."
"Don't try to calm me," the Raikage snapped. "They killed a bloodline user and wiped out two squads. That's war, no matter how they dress it."
He stood up, towering over the room like a mountain.
"This 'apprentice' of Tsunade," he said slowly. "The one who killed Danzō. The one who wears armor like a god of war."
Darui frowned. "We don't have much info. Just rumors. Someone strong killed Danzō and his Root agents, and now this... armored shinobi destroys a full Kumo squad."
The Raikage slammed his hand onto the war map.
The table cracked down the middle, right over the symbol for the Land of Fire.
"They think we'll let this go? That we'll accept it quietly? That we're weak?"
He turned to the others, his voice growing louder.
"This is not the time to stay silent."
He pointed to the map.
"Cee, spread rumors across the other villages. Let them hear how unstable Konoha has become. Say their Hokage is desperate. Say her new enforcer is uncontrollable. Shake their trust."
Cee nodded. "Yes, Raikage-sama."
"Darui, ready our elite troops. I want our fastest and strongest prepared for deployment. And dig into Konoha's records, find out who this armored ninja is."
Darui gave a sharp bow. "Understood."
The Raikage stepped forward, staring at the cracked table.
"They killed our bloodline. Took Toroi. They showed us no respect."
He raised his voice so all could hear.
"Konoha forgot the strength of thunder. But we will remind them."
Outside, storm clouds gathered over the tallest mountain in the Land of Lightning. Wind howled between the peaks.
Kumogakure was waking up.
And war might not be far behind.
End of Chapter 89 – "The Storm Remembers Blood"