Chapter 870 : Distorting Space!

Hoka glanced towards East with his Byakugan as he thought, ‘Having a flying summon is very convenient… I should try to get one. It'll be a good and easy way to increase my strength!’

Fujin's earlier words still weighed on Hoka's mind. Since he hadn't been very successful in raising his own strength in recent times, the idea of getting a summon looked increasingly appetizing to him.

In the Hokage office, a Yamanaka ninja arrived and reported, “Lady Tsunade, we sensed a couple of powerful chakra signatures exit our village from the air. We tried looking for it, but even the Hyuga ninjas failed to see them. They are headed East, but we aren't sure about anything else.”

Tsunade muttered, “A couple? I suppose he used his summon.”
Hiruzen nodded, “Yes, though I didn't expect him to head East. Does he plan on visiting the Land of Lightning again?”
Tsunade immediately recalled Fujin's previous mission to the Land of Lightning. She felt a headache as she wondered, ‘Don't tell me he isn't satisfied by his earlier mission there… Shikaku said he missed 4 of their bases. Those bases no longer exist, but I doubt that'll stop him.’
Hiruzen realized his student's troubles and advised, “Don't overthink it. There's no point in being worried. Just keep an eye on news coming from outside. If he makes a big move, we'll know.”
He sighed, “Besides, with Fujin no longer here, we don't have to be worried about his absurd requests.”
Tsunade could only nod and hope she wouldn't regret allowing Fujin to go off alone.

——

“What's the occasion, Fujin? You rarely summon me since you learnt that technique.” Kaito asked as he flew rapidly across the vast skies of the Land of Fire.

Fujin answered, “I'm planning to journey for a bit and explore the world more. So, you'll be stuck with me for a while...”
Fujin smirked and added, “Unless, of course, you don't want to. I'll summon…”

Kaito cut him off and snorted, “Who else knows more about this world than me? They are just battle maniacs. Of course, I'll stick around. Where do you want to explore? Just this continent or…?”

Fujin smiled. He knew very well how much Kaito loved to explore, which was why he summoned him instead of others. Fujin answered, “Beyond as well. I want to explore as much as I can in the next two to three years.”

Fujin's words excited Kaito, who thought, ‘Finally someone to explore with! This will be fun! With Fujin, I can finally explore those dangerous places.’
He asked in a joyous tone, “Do you have a place in mind to start this journey with?”
A grin appeared on Fujin's face as he answered, “Yes. That gigantic whirlpool!”

‘...’

Kaito's speed reduced as he turned his head and stared at Fujin, who was calmly sitting on his back. Kaito assumed Fujin was joking, but his eyes revealed his seriousness. He said, “I thought you said you wanted to explore, not commit suicide…”

Fujin raised an eyebrow and asked, “Do you think I still can't defeat it?”

Kaito answered, “I heard father say that he can't defeat you anymore. I can sense that you're stronger than even what my father said. However, that thing is at a whole different level. There's no chance of victory.”

Fujin wasn't bothered by his answer. Despite his immense strength, Fujin knew several individuals who could force him to run away with ease. Adding another being to that list wasn't demeaning. Fujin said, “That's surprising, but why are you so afraid? Just drop me there and maintain your distance. I'll fight it and teleport to your back if I am in danger.”

Kaito immediately replied, “I wouldn't be so sure about it.”
For the first time, Fujin frowned, “What do you mean?”
Kaito answered, “That thing is so monstrous that space itself is unstable around it. Or perhaps it is one of its abilities, we aren't completely sure. After all, that thing is ancient, even older than our Great Sage!
When Grandfather and his brothers were trapped fighting with it, they couldn't be summoned back to Mount Muteki. The only reason that thing eventually let go was because it sensed that our entire valley was flying there.”

Fujin's eyes widened. He thought, ‘A creature so monstrous that it makes space unstable and interrupts Space-Time Ninjutsu? How can that be? Hmm? Wait a minute!’

Fujin suddenly recalled a memory, where space had been distorted. He thought, ‘Guy's final jutsu. He bent space before landing his final hit on Madara. Could it be something similar?’

Fujin analyzed for a while and had a hunch that the two were similar. Unfortunately, there was no way to confirm. Yet, a smile appeared on his face. He thought, ‘Interesting… Very interesting. A way to disrupt Space-Time jutsus… I know one ninja who'll absolutely hate it. I need to see and copy it!’

Seeing that Fujin had quietened down, Kaito teased, “Still want to fight that thing?”
Fujin grinned, “More than ever, but it can wait till I become stronger. For now, let's find another beast. I have been itching for a battle for a while!”

Kaito grinned, “Alright. I know just the opponent who'll make you pull out all of your hair!”

He flapped his wings, increasing his speed once again. The two flew over the Land of Fire, Land of Hot Water and the entire Land of Water before reaching the endless ocean. Kaito flew for a few more hours before finally reaching his target.

As Kaito hovered in the sky, Fujin's eyes glowed and he muttered, “Let me see what target you've chosen for me.”

In an unfamiliar terrain, Fujin didn't activate his chakra field to avoid alarming every powerful being in the vicinity. Instead, he focused chakra in his eyes. To his surprise, his eyes couldn't see a single living being. There wasn't a single chakra fluctuation in the water. The vast ocean looked completely devoid of life!

A grin appeared on Fujin's face as he muttered, “Interesting! Very interesting! To think I can't see this being at all. Yet, it is causing such a massive disturbance in my Space Time field! What is that thing?”

Kaito replied, “A hunter so terrifying that nothing else dares to live around it. Why don't you find out more yourself? A fair warning, don't underestimate it. Competing with these monsters underwater raises the difficulty by several levels, especially if you can't control water.”

Kaito flapped his wings again, rising even higher in the sky. He had no intention of being anywhere near the surface of the ocean. Fujin jumped off his back while releasing a massive amount of chakra, which instantly transformed into winds and formed a cloak around him.

Kaito glanced at Fujin and thought, ‘So, he can fly freely now? Interesting. The battle might not be one-sided after all.’

Fujin glanced below and pointed towards the ocean, thinking, ‘Let me see what my new sparring partner looks like…’

Winds gathered at the tip of his finger and a small bullet was fired into the water. It pierced into the ocean and travelled for forty meters before hitting something. The bullet immediately exploded, releasing winds in every direction. However, the winds weren't sharp. Instead, they forced the water away, creating several tides moving outwards from that point and creating a forty-meter-deep crater on the ocean's surface!

As the oceans moved, Fujin finally caught a glimpse of his new ‘sparring partner’. It was simply colossal, larger than Ryu, Gamabunta or any summon Fujin ever laid eyes on. Perhaps, only Katsuyu's full body was larger. A pair of red, glowing eyes suddenly opened up, locking on Fujin and giving him an unfamiliar feeling. That creature looked at Fujin like he was the prey!

“Hehehehe! I don't remember the last time someone looked down on me to this extent.” The unfamiliar feeling immediately riled up Fujin's fighting spirit, especially, as he saw the creature's true form.

The massive creature towered over the ocean, its shell made of jagged stone-like armor, its thick, muscular legs as large as a ship and its enormous pincers, sharper than any sword, hung in the air, unfazed by the force of the winds Fujin had stirred. Even the air around it seemed to warp with its raw, primal power, giving an unmistakable sense of ancient, dominating strength.

Its eyes watched unflinchingly as a large amount of chakra exited Fujin's body, transformed into winds and formed a massive domain around him. This was the strongest Wind Domain ever created by Fujin!

Looking at the beast, Fujin thought, ‘After eating so many crabs, to think I'd be looked at as a prey by one… What an irony! Anyway, what the hell is up with its body?’

Fujin didn't particularly care about the beast's appearance or identity. What intrigued him was its energy. Fujin had never sensed such a dense concentration of nature energy before. It was almost as if that beast's chakra consisted only of nature energy!

Fujin analyzed, ‘What a fearsome aura… Even Ryu's aura doesn't come anywhere close. Yet, not a single bit of it is leaking. It's almost as if it has become one with nature. If it weren't looking at me murderously, I wouldn't be able to differentiate its presence from the water that surrounds it. No wonder I couldn't see him earlier…’

Suddenly, without giving any signs, the crab moved. Its massive pincer extended towards Fujin as if it wanted to pluck him from the skies. Despite its massive size, its movement was so quick that Fujin's view was completely occupied by its pincer in the blink of an eye.

“Hehehe, this should be fun!” Fujin chuckled as a massive wind blade appeared in front of him and flew down to intercept the massive pincer!

In a place, thousands of kilometers away from the elemental nations, Fujin and an ancient crab clashed! Their opening clash created waves that travelled for several kilometers! With only one witness, an epic duel was about to take place!

[A/N: End of Volume 6!]
[A/N: I will be taking a break starting tomorrow. More details in the next post.]