Before anyone could so much as twitch, Xero was a whirlwind of motion. The air itself seemed to distort around him as he moved, a blur of speed that defied the limitations of the human eye. His hand, a steel vice, gripped the hilt of his bde, a silent promise of violence. In a single, impossibly fluid motion, the katana was drawn, a sliver of moonlight refleg off its polished surface. It desded in a r arot a slice, but a brutal, urained cleave that tore through the air with a deafening WHOOSH. The sound alone was enough to send shivers down the spines of onlookers.The Sound ninja, his eyes widening in terror, barely mao leap back, his body t in a desperate attempt to escape the path of the deadly steel. He stumbled, nding awkwardly, his breath ing in ragged gasps. Xero’s attack, a mere graze by the width of a hair, was enough to split the ninja’s sleeve from shoulder to cuff, the fabric fluttering to the ground like a discarded butterfly wing. A thin red line appeared on the ninja's arm where the bde had kissed his skin.
Xero’s face, previously ral, was now torted into a wide, predatrin. It wasn't a smile of amusement or joy, but a savage, bloodthirsty expression that mirrored the raw power radiating from him. His eyes, usually a calm, dark grey, burned with an almost manitensity, pupils dited, refleg the flickering torchlight like twin embers. They held the same unhinged glee, the same insatiable hunger for battle, that defihe legendary Kenpachi Zaraki. “Finally…” he rumbled, his voice a low growl that resonated deep in his chest, each word ced with a palpable bloodlust. “…Something… iing.” The words were drawn out, savored, as if the very act of speaking them was a delicious indulgence. He spuana ohe bde whistling through the air, catg the light and throwing off fshes that danced across the faces of those watg. The motion wasn’t practiced or elegant; it was a raw dispy of power, a casual flick of the wrist that spoke volumes about the lethal potential of the on in his hand. “You’ve got guts… charging in like that…” he tinued, his gaze fixed orembling ninja. “…Let’s see if you’ve got the skill to match…” The st word at out like venom, a challenge, a taunt, a promise of pain.
The Sound ninja, his face pale and slick with cold sweat, his eyes dartiween Xero’s fad the gleaming bde, narrowed his eyes, trying to mask his fear with a veneer of posure. His stance shifted, his hands f quick seals, preparing some ninjutsu. “I… I don’t o waste words on someone who won’t survive this exam…” he stammered, his voice crag slightly, betraying his iurmoil.
As the tension in the air thied to a suffog degree, Kurhtened, his posture radiating an almal air of detat. His eyes, however, were locked on Xero, a subtle smirk pying on his lips. It wasn't a cruel or mog smirk, but one of quiet satisfa, of a master his prized student. “As expected…” he murmured, his voice barely audible, a low rumble that only Reika, standing beside him, could hear. “…From someone who has ied the very spirit of Kenpachi Zaraki…” His tone was a mixture of amusement, pride, and a hint of something darker, something that hi the terrifying potential that y dormant within Xero.
Reika, her brow furrowed with , g Kuro, then back at Xero, whose eyes were now narrowed, his gaze fixed on his oppo like a predator stalking its prey. “You’re just going to… let him go all out in here?” she whispered, her voice ced with worry. “He could tear this whole pce apart! He could kill someone!”
Kuro didn’t even g her. His eyes remained fixed on the unfolding frontation, a strange light flickering in their depths. “Let them have their… moment,” he replied, his voice low and steady, as if he were watg a py unfold. “Besides…” he added, a hint of dark amusement creeping into his voice. “…It’s not every day you get to see Xero… py with his food…”Xero darted forward, his sword arg with lethal precision. The motion was a blur of speed, almost too fast for the eye to follow, but the Sound ninja was ready. He raised his wrist traption to block the strike, and sparks flew as metal cshed against metal. The force of the blow reverberated through the air, but the ninja held his ground, his muscles straining against the pressure.
Xero’s grin widened, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. He didn’t back off, his body a blur as he shifted his weight, twisting and turning with fluid, wild abandon. He was fighting like a man who had no care for his own safety, throwing everything into every strike, just to see how far he could push himself.
The room was captivated, all eyes locked owo batants. Even Sasuke, who rarely showed i in others, watched with a faint glimmer of intrigue. Xero’s chaotid uable style was something Sasuke couldn’t ig was the raw, untamed power that left a trail of destru wherever it went.
“You’ve got det reflexes,” Xero said, his voice low but dripping with a mixture of amusement and challenge. His bde pressed against the Sound ninja’s traption, the metal scraping loudly as he put more weight behind it. “But that toy won’t save you.”
The Sound ninja growled, the sound deep and frustrated. He pushed back, creating space between them with a swift movement, his feet sliding against the floor as he recovered. He quickly formed a series of seals, his hands moving with precision as he prepared his jutsu. “Let’s see how cocky you are after this!”
A high-pitched sound filled the room, grating on the ears like nails on a chalkboard. The sharp, ear-splitting noise reverberated through the walls, and several petitors wiheir faces t in disfort as they covered their ears. It was the kind of sound that felt like it was drilling into the very core of your mind, trying to break you from the i.
Reika frowned, her lips curling in irritation. “A sound-based jutsu? Annoying,” she muttered under her breath, her brow furrowing as she ehe attack. She could sehe effects it was having on those around her, and it made her unfortable to think what it could do to someone less prepared.
