Within the trees, there was a blasted-clear area, torn apart by clashing jutsu. The earth was shattered into rough trenches and churned into mud. Trunks were scorched and splintered, raw white heartwood laid bare where massive force had exploded the wood into matchsticks. The trees still standing were peppered with shuriken and kunai—some Konoha’s slender black daggers, some Mist’s savage tooth-edged blades.

Both shinobi were moving at a frenzied pace, blade against blade. Iebara’s sickly-hued blood weapons clashed against Kakashi’s chakra-charged kodachi—he must have lost or broken his kunai. The new blade glowed almost white, looking like a fresh-forged sword still radiant from the furnace. It hissed and steamed in the falling rain, metal ringing against metal again and again, as Kakashi and Iebara drove each other in a perfect, deadly ballet.

Iebara was bleeding from several shallow cuts, but Kakashi looked uninjured. Both men were breathing hard. Neither looked like he was giving ground. Across the combat zone, Genma felt Ryouma’s ANBU spark twinkle as Ryouma got in position. Genma flicked his hands through seals, sent his decoy clone in towards Iebara from Ryouma’s direction, and cloaked himself in shadow.

When Iebara caught sight of the clone, his mouth curled into an evil grin behind the blackened tatters of his charred mask. His fingers whipped through seals, reaching for the blood streaming from the clone’s shoulder. The clone staggered and went down on one knee.

Before Iebara could realize the blood was illusory, Genma cast his jutsu.

It drew chakra like a whirlpool, surging against Genma’s control. His own kunai and shuriken rattled in their holsters as the jutsu tried to rob the nearest sources of iron first, but he forced the energy away from himself, aiming for Iebara. When it latched onto the iron in the blood blades, it settled and strengthened, feeding on the iron-rich blood almost as easily as it did solid steel.

Iebara twitched, turning towards Genma’s concealed position with a furious roar. “You don’t learn do you, Konoha?” He broke away from Kakashi and came at Genma, and Genma ran, trying to get distance between himself and Kakashi. Just a meter or two should be enough. Kakashi was already closing in to take advantage of the distraction Genma’d provided.

Genma threw up an arm to ward off the blow as Iebara caught up to him.

The red blades struck his arm guard and shattered into hundreds of blood-colored shards.

Was Kakashi out of range?

Now. Genma pulsed the signal from his ANBU spark twice, and jumped back out of range himself.

Across the clearing, there was an explosion of chakra as Ryouma stepped out of the trees. His left hand braced his extended right arm. From his right palm, a bolt of red-black chakra raced straight for Iebara’s torso.