Nawaki emerged from his reverie and approached the orbs of light, picking them up. Though weightless, they transmitted warmth to his hand.
Before he could examine the two orbs closely, they disappeared before his eyes.
Nawaki blinked, feeling dizzy again.
Did everything have to be so strange? The orbs seemed like some kind of treasure, though he didn't know their value, and they just vanished!
Worse still, at that moment, two black and three white rabbits, each the same size as the one he had just killed, appeared in front of him in the grass, rapidly advancing towards him. There was also a rustling of grass from behind.
Nawaki's face froze as he looked back. Another three rabbits, this time both gray, were approaching him. Eight rabbits in total... Their red eyes glowed fiercely.
'To escape?' He wasn't sure what to do. Though he had easily killed one rabbit before, this was now 1 against 8; he couldn't guarantee an unscathed escape, not knowing the offensive power of these monster bunnies.
"Screw this!" Realizing he was practically surrounded, he aimed at the larger group with a wind release, intending to combat the rest with taijutsu.
"Wind Style: Great Breach!"
"Shout out!"
A strange sound emitted from the rabbits' mouths as he released a gust of wind towards the five rabbits.
Not waiting to check the damage, he quickly turned and prepared to attack with his chakra-encrusted hands.
BOOM!
As he turned, an explosion sounded.
Without looking back, he lunged forward, fist clenched.
Bang!
His blow landed precisely on the head of one of the gray rabbits. Its head split open, scattering brain matter before turning gray and leaving behind two orbs.
"Replacement!"
A log was sent flying in place of a gray rabbit's head.
The other rabbit charged past like a mad bull, quickly turning to locate him.
As the two remaining gray rabbits turned on him, two of the five rabbits survived and hopped towards him at high speed.
'Mmm...' Despite his racing heart, he didn't feel bad.
Having easily killed one of the gray rabbits barehanded, he felt more confident facing the remaining four.
"Die!" He performed a pinwheel-style kick, spinning with his hands on the ground.
He moved so fast that instead of hitting them once each, he struck them twice, keeping all four rabbits at bay.
thud! thud! thud! thud!
Back on his feet, Nawaki went to collect the orbs, hoping some wouldn't disappear...
After catching four and approaching the rabbits that hadn't vanished, he found that only three turned to ash, leaving orbs, while another struggled to stay upright.
Before delivering the final blow, he reached for the other orbs, but they disappeared in his hand. "Damn it!"
Angrily, he ran towards the gray rabbit now on all fours.
Whoosh!
Before he could get close, the sound of wind being sliced, akin to a whip cutting through air, echoed.
Nawaki stopped and touched his neck.
"Blood?" It was a silly question, as his hand came away stained red from his neck.
As he removed his hand, blood gushed out. A sharp pain hit him before his vision plunged into darkness.
- -
In a dimly lit room, Nawaki suddenly opened his eyes and sat up, gasping heavily. The fear was still visible in his eyes as he reached for his neck.
'The cut is gone... What's going on?' His light brown hair and pajamas, which his sister or one of the maids at the complex might have changed him into, were drenched in cold sweat.
Moments later, Nawaki regained his composure, his eyes scanning the familiar surroundings with some confusion.
What was this situation?
He took a deep breath and sighed. Had he just died?
The first time he died hadn't been as painful as now. He hadn't expected to experience death again so soon.
After calming down, he began to think logically. Looking around, he easily guessed where he was.
'I'm back at the Senju complex...'
Noticing the absence of his older sister, he recalled the last memories before his death. 'Was it something made of wind that killed me?'
It had happened too fast for him to see what caused his death, but he had felt the wind slice his neck. 'A wind ninja, perhaps?'
As he pondered, his eyes darkened when he suddenly felt some incoherent thoughts in his brain.
He quickly sat cross-legged, focusing his mind. A moment later, Nawaki found a small three-dimensional space in his mind, with sixteen red spheres floating.
"Aren't these the red orbs from the huge white rabbit?" he mused, staring at the floating orbs in amazement, his confusion growing.
He thought about something, and the small orbs vanished from the dimension and appeared in his hands.
Like in that strange space, they were weightless but warm.
Nawaki looked at the orbs, his eyes sparkling. 'What are these?'
He almost ate the orbs, startled by the urge to bring a handful to his mouth.
Just then, the shared bedroom's bathroom door opened. Startled, Nawaki did what he had intended to avoid: he put all the orbs in his mouth and a swallowing sound echoed.
The faint red light transformed into a hot stream that merged with his body, feeling like flames burning him from within; Nawaki's skin turned red.
Walking out the door, wrapped only in a white towel, Tsunade's eyes showed happiness at seeing Nawaki awake, but she quickly became alert upon noticing his red skin.
"Nawaki!" She ran towards him, disregarding everything else.
"Sis..." Nawaki's voice was barely audible. The energy from the sixteen red orbs was spreading through his body, seeming to burn him from the inside.
"Don't worry, I'll help you!" Tsunade said nervously, yet as composed as she could manage, making Nawaki turn to face her. That's when she placed her hands on his back.
"That... How is that possible?" Tsunade's voice was filled with alarm as she observed the phenomenon occurring in her little brother's body.
She hadn't even noticed when her towel dropped, continuing to channel her chakra into Nawaki's back.
Nawaki emerged from his reverie and approached the orbs of light, picking them up. Though weightless, they transmitted warmth to his hand.
Before he could examine the two orbs closely, they disappeared before his eyes.
Nawaki blinked, feeling dizzy again.
Did everything have to be so strange? The orbs seemed like some kind of treasure, though he didn't know their value, and they just vanished!
Worse still, at that moment, two black and three white rabbits, each the same size as the one he had just killed, appeared in front of him in the grass, rapidly advancing towards him. There was also a rustling of grass from behind.
Nawaki's face froze as he looked back. Another three rabbits, this time both gray, were approaching him. Eight rabbits in total... Their red eyes glowed fiercely.
'To escape?' He wasn't sure what to do. Though he had easily killed one rabbit before, this was now 1 against 8; he couldn't guarantee an unscathed escape, not knowing the offensive power of these monster bunnies.
"Screw this!" Realizing he was practically surrounded, he aimed at the larger group with a wind release, intending to combat the rest with taijutsu.
"Wind Style: Great Breach!"
"Shout out!"
A strange sound emitted from the rabbits' mouths as he released a gust of wind towards the five rabbits.
Not waiting to check the damage, he quickly turned and prepared to attack with his chakra-encrusted hands.
BOOM!
As he turned, an explosion sounded.
Without looking back, he lunged forward, fist clenched.
Bang!
His blow landed precisely on the head of one of the gray rabbits. Its head split open, scattering brain matter before turning gray and leaving behind two orbs.
"Replacement!"
A log was sent flying in place of a gray rabbit's head.
The other rabbit charged past like a mad bull, quickly turning to locate him.
As the two remaining gray rabbits turned on him, two of the five rabbits survived and hopped towards him at high speed.
'Mmm...' Despite his racing heart, he didn't feel bad.
Having easily killed one of the gray rabbits barehanded, he felt more confident facing the remaining four.
"Die!" He performed a pinwheel-style kick, spinning with his hands on the ground.
He moved so fast that instead of hitting them once each, he struck them twice, keeping all four rabbits at bay.
thud! thud! thud! thud!
Back on his feet, Nawaki went to collect the orbs, hoping some wouldn't disappear...
After catching four and approaching the rabbits that hadn't vanished, he found that only three turned to ash, leaving orbs, while another struggled to stay upright.
Before delivering the final blow, he reached for the other orbs, but they disappeared in his hand. "Damn it!"
Angrily, he ran towards the gray rabbit now on all fours.
Whoosh!
Before he could get close, the sound of wind being sliced, akin to a whip cutting through air, echoed.
Nawaki stopped and touched his neck.
"Blood?" It was a silly question, as his hand came away stained red from his neck.
As he removed his hand, blood gushed out. A sharp pain hit him before his vision plunged into darkness.
- -
In a dimly lit room, Nawaki suddenly opened his eyes and sat up, gasping heavily. The fear was still visible in his eyes as he reached for his neck.
'The cut is gone... What's going on?' His light brown hair and pajamas, which his sister or one of the maids at the complex might have changed him into, were drenched in cold sweat.
Moments later, Nawaki regained his composure, his eyes scanning the familiar surroundings with some confusion.
What was this situation?
He took a deep breath and sighed. Had he just died?
The first time he died hadn't been as painful as now. He hadn't expected to experience death again so soon.
After calming down, he began to think logically. Looking around, he easily guessed where he was.
'I'm back at the Senju complex...'
Noticing the absence of his older sister, he recalled the last memories before his death. 'Was it something made of wind that killed me?'
It had happened too fast for him to see what caused his death, but he had felt the wind slice his neck. 'A wind ninja, perhaps?'
As he pondered, his eyes darkened when he suddenly felt some incoherent thoughts in his brain.
He quickly sat cross-legged, focusing his mind. A moment later, Nawaki found a small three-dimensional space in his mind, with sixteen red spheres floating.
"Aren't these the red orbs from the huge white rabbit?" he mused, staring at the floating orbs in amazement, his confusion growing.
He thought about something, and the small orbs vanished from the dimension and appeared in his hands.
Like in that strange space, they were weightless but warm.
Nawaki looked at the orbs, his eyes sparkling. 'What are these?'
He almost ate the orbs, startled by the urge to bring a handful to his mouth.
Just then, the shared bedroom's bathroom door opened. Startled, Nawaki did what he had intended to avoid: he put all the orbs in his mouth and a swallowing sound echoed.
The faint red light transformed into a hot stream that merged with his body, feeling like flames burning him from within; Nawaki's skin turned red.
Walking out the door, wrapped only in a white towel, Tsunade's eyes showed happiness at seeing Nawaki awake, but she quickly became alert upon noticing his red skin.
"Nawaki!" She ran towards him, disregarding everything else.
"Sis..." Nawaki's voice was barely audible. The energy from the sixteen red orbs was spreading through his body, seeming to burn him from the inside.
"Don't worry, I'll help you!" Tsunade said nervously, yet as composed as she could manage, making Nawaki turn to face her. That's when she placed her hands on his back.
"That... How is that possible?" Tsunade's voice was filled with alarm as she observed the phenomenon occurring in her little brother's body.
She hadn't even noticed when her towel dropped, continuing to channel her chakra into Nawaki's back.
