Naruto: I Have Cursed Spirits!

The sound of metal clashing exploded beside Shiratori.

Mudō's wound had not yet fully healed.

Shiratori did not release the hand pressing against Mudō's injury. His gaze turned behind him.

Tetsuma stood behind him like an unmovable boulder. In his hand, he held a wide, scar-covered black metal umbrella. He and the umbrella firmly shielded Shiratori, blocking the enemy from advancing.

The opened umbrella spun rapidly in his hand.

White light traced circles along the umbrella's edge as it rotated through the air.

A low humming rang in Shiratori's ears.

Throwing knives flew constantly toward Tetsuma, striking the umbrella's metal surface and letting out piercing scraping sounds.

The muscles in his arms bulged with force as he scanned coldly toward the direction of the attack. Fine steel needles suddenly shot out from the umbrella's edge.

Dense.

So dense, they nearly blended into the curtain of rain.

Impossible to distinguish.

The sound of them tearing through the air was sharp. Through the wind and rain came cries of agony. A faint scent of blood drifted over.

Shiratori turned to his left.

In the middle of the downpour, Shiyu stood beside him. His figure seemed to dissolve into the rain, a blur to the eye.

The kunai in his hand ruthlessly reaped the lives of enemies.

A light mist swirled around him, enveloping his body. Like a ghost, he slipped silently between enemies, taking their lives without a sound. The pile of corpses before them grew ever higher.

"It's done."

Shiratori withdrew his hand.

Mudō's wound on his waist had already healed. His face was pale from blood loss, but his body had completely recovered. He couldn't feel a trace of pain. The wound on his waist felt as though it had never existed.

"Pfft!"

A kunai stabbed into Mizukusa's shoulder. She clenched her teeth tightly, not allowing the Suna ninja before her to approach Shiratori.

Murder gleamed in the Suna ninja's eyes as he drew a kunai and stabbed toward Mizukusa's neck.

However, even injured, she reacted swiftly. Her body twisted like a fish in water, evading the Suna ninja's strike.

The Suna ninja suddenly let out a short, sharp scream.

Mizukusa's short blade had pierced through the back of his neck. She pulled the blade out from the Suna ninja's throat, bringing with it a string of blood droplets.

Suddenly, a searing pain struck from behind.

She looked down to see a long blade piercing through her chest.

Her gaze turned to Shiratori. She opened her mouth, trying to reassure him: It's okay, I was destined to die anyway.

But no sound came out.

"Rika!"

Shiratori gently brushed the ring, ice forming in his eyes.

With a shriek that seemed to rupture eardrums, Rika's massive form appeared before Shiratori.

One hand grabbed Mizukusa, and with the other, she struck down at the shocked Suna ninja behind her.

Boom.

A mist of blood scattered in the air.

Rika placed Mizukusa in front of Shiratori, who calmly pulled the blade from Mizukusa's chest. Cursed energy surged into the wound.

"You'll be okay!"

He assured her.

Mizukusa's pale lips twitched. Before she could smile, the pain came first, causing her brow to furrow.

The wound on her chest began to heal rapidly.

"You are not allowed to hurt Yuta!"

The approaching Suna ninjas completely enraged Rika. A feral shriek tore across the battlefield. Her massive claws came crashing down toward the Suna ninjas.

The Suna ninja near Shiratori was flattened like he had been slammed into a hydraulic press.

Splurt.

A muffled squelch rang out.

The Suna ninja was compressed like a pancake in an instant. What remained was nothing but a mist of blood drifting through the air. Within the blood mist were fragments of a shattered forehead protector and bits of broken gear.

The other Suna ninjas witnessed this terrifying scene with their own eyes. The one closest panicked and tried to activate a substitution jutsu.

Cold sweat soaked his entire body.

The terrifying monster had already reached for him. Unfortunately, he was only halfway through forming the hand signs.

Thud.

His lifeless body hit the ground with a heavy thump, his head nowhere in sight.

Rika opened her hand, and a burst of blood exploded from her palm. Her massive, twisted form loomed over Shiratori, sheltering him in her shadow.

Her brutality brought a dead silence to the battlefield.

"Yuta..."

"Protect Yuta..."

A guttural sound, filled with love, gurgled from her throat. She stretched out her blood-soaked claws. Even the slightest movement toward Shiratori would provoke her into a violent rampage.

[Killing intent detected: Multiple sources]

[... +1000 points]

[... +1000 points]

[... +1000 points]

[Processing additional inputs...]

Shiratori listened to the constant notifications ringing in his head. He opened his mouth slightly and muttered in his mind:

Christmas came early... So festive!

He had actually gained so much killing intent points.

Even now, the points were still rising. The sounds kept ringing without pause.

"Kill him!"

"No matter what, we have to kill him!"

Shouts came from all directions.

He looked up. The battlefield before him had changed. Surrounding him were countless Ame ninjas. He was the center of a circle, with Ame ninjas forming a protective ring around him.

Beyond that circle, Suna ninjas had surrounded them in a much larger formation.

He didn't see Hanzō or Chiba anywhere, likely they were fighting on another front.

"He can heal dying ninjas and even command monsters!"

"We can't let him live!"

The Suna ninjas glared at him with bloodshot eyes, their hatred nearly palpable.

Shiratori hadn't expected to be hated this much.

[Emotional energy detected: Fear +2000 points]

[Insufficient threshold for cursed spirit activation]

[Energy stored for future use]

[Emotional energy detected: Rage +3000 points]

[Insufficient threshold for cursed spirit activation]

[Energy stored for future use]

[Emotional energy detected: Hatred +3000 points]

[Insufficient threshold for cursed spirit activation]

[Energy stored for future use]

[Killing Intent accumulated: 21,000 points]

[Energy transferred to Sukuna]

[Development progress: 51.1%]

Shiratori suppressed the smirk tugging at the corners of his lips.

What a profitable day!

[System Alert: Emotional energy collection optimized]

He looked at the Ame ninjas surrounding him.

They were all wounded to varying degrees.

Kuroi turned around and laid a severely injured ninja from his back onto the ground.

"You focus on healing. Leave the rest to us."

He looked seriously at Shiratori, and gave a reassuring smile.

"We'll protect you."

With that, he stood up and turned his back to Shiratori. His gaze toward the Suna ninjas turned ice-cold as he drew the curved blade at his waist.

Shiratori's gaze pierced through the Ame ninjas around him and landed on the encroaching Suna ninjas.