Chapter 108: The End Times Crisis, Akatsuki Attacks Kumogakure

Chapter 108: The End Times Crisis, Akatsuki Attacks Kumogakure

Beeeeep—

As Izayoi and Hinata Hyuga admired the meteor shower, an alarm blared across Kumogakure, its piercing wail echoing from kilometers away.

It was just past nine in the evening. Most villagers hadn’t gone to bed yet, and even those who had dozed off were still in the hazy twilight between wakefulness and dreams.

The moment the alarm sounded, however, the villagers—accustomed to evacuation drills—rushed out of their homes in a frenzy.

“What… what is that?!”

“A meteor? No, that’s Celestial Flame Rain! Run for your lives!”

“Is this the end of the world?!”

The moment they stumbled outside, they saw the source of the alarm.

Heads tilted skyward, they stared at the orange-red flames cascading from above—gigantic fireballs streaking through the heavens. These blazing meteors, hurtling down at breakneck speed, ignited the atmosphere into a searing inferno as they descended.

From a distance, the spectacle might have seemed beautiful, even magical—perhaps enough to inspire prayers or wishes. But for Kumogakure, it was an apocalyptic nightmare.

One man, recognizing the phenomenon, collapsed to his knees, paralyzed with terror.

Suddenly, shadowy figures darted through the village like streaks of lightning.

One such figure halted—a muscular, dark-skinned man in a flak vest. He barked at the stunned villagers, “What are you idiots standing there for?! Follow the safety manual! Head to the shelters with the evacuation teams—now!”

Snapped back to reality, the villagers stampeded toward the shelters.

Meanwhile, atop the Raikage’s tower, Fourth Raikage glared at the fiery sky, his face carved from stone.

Behind him, Mabui—her dark complexion pale under her short white hair—spoke urgently, “Raikage-sama, the Perception Squad estimates the Celestial Flame Rain will strike the village in under three minutes. You must evacuate immediately!”

“Don’t be absurd!” Fourth Raikage snapped, his voice thunderous. “I am the Raikage! I won’t abandon my post in a crisis! But tell me—do we have time to get the villagers to the shelters?”

“The timeframe is too short,” Mabui replied, her voice tight. “Only those on the outskirts might make it. And even then… we can’t guarantee the shelters’ barriers will hold against the impact.”

Fourth Raikage’s jaw clenched. “Issue orders—have the evacuation teams gather the villagers. The Barrier Team will form protective shields. If one barrier isn’t enough, layer them! Even if the village is destroyed, we will save the people!”

He slammed his palm against the railing, snapping it clean off. Gritting his teeth, he growled, “Damn it! This came out of nowhere… I shouldn’t have sent B to the Cloud-Splitting Gorge. If he were here, with his Eight-Tails chakra and my strength, we might’ve activated the Four Violet Flames Formation to stop this attack!”

“Killer B’s supply team has already contacted him,” Mabui interjected. “He should be assisting us from a distance. The Lightning and Earth Release Teams are also in position. Once the meteors descend far enough, they’ll launch counterattacks and dual-layer defenses to minimize the damage. We’ll protect this mountain at all costs.”

The Raikage’s stormy gaze lightened slightly. “Has the Perception Squad identified the enemy?”

“Not yet,” Mabui admitted, her face grim. “But we’re certain they’re hiding somewhere on this mountain. The Celestial Flame Rain is aimed directly at Kumogakure. If this is a human technique, there must be an anchor point. Otherwise… this means someone can summon Celestial Flame Rain anywhere in the ninja world, at any time.”

“Such a technique… only the Six Paths Sage from myth could achieve that.”

Fourth Raikage’s eyes flashed with cold fury. “So it’s Akatsuki’s retaliation?”

“It’s still unconfirmed,” Mabui said carefully. “But the odds are higher than any other village. No known bloodline limits, secret techniques—even forbidden arts—can summon meteors, let alone an entire storm of them. Not even the Wood Release of the Hidden Leaf’s legendary shinobi could do this.”

She hesitated, her voice trembling. “But if the Six Paths Sage and the Rinnegan’s myths are real… this might be their power. After all, the moon itself was said to be the Six Paths Sage’s creation.”

Above them, the fiery meteors loomed larger, their glow painting the sky. Mabui’s face paled.

If this theory was true, it meant a being of unimaginable power had targeted them.

Compared to this, the Wood Release shinobi of Konoha were a trivial threat. Even the “God of Shinobi” who ended the Warring States era paled in comparison.

This was a madman willing to unleash strategic annihilation without hesitation.

Kumogakure could be rebuilt, only to be obliterated again in an instant.

One of the Five Great Nations might soon be reduced to a hollow shell.

This was Kumogakure’s apocalypse.

“Four Violet Flames Formation!”

Shouts erupted across the village as the technique activated.

In the darkened sky, violet-transparent barriers—some layered multiple times—rose like rectangular beacons. Within them, at least a dozen shinobi channeled chakra to shield hundreds of villagers. Even the Raikage’s tower was encased in protective layers.

Fourth Raikage stood motionless, his eyes reflecting the fiery heavens, his gaze burning with a crimson, almost tangible fury.

Mabui vanished into the shadows, her mission unknown.

As the Celestial Flame Rain’s orange glow swelled, threatening to engulf Kumogakure like a tidal wave, the barriers’ tops suddenly split open.

Lightning surged skyward in countless pillars.

“Lightning Release!”

“Lightning Release!”

The air crackled with energy.

From the horizon, a colossal purplish-black sphere hurtled toward the flames.

Boom—

The tailed beast ball detonated with a thunderous roar, followed by a chain reaction that deafened all within range.

The countless villagers shielded by barriers clutched their ears in agony, their faces twisted in pain. Even many of the Cloud ninja wore the same tortured expressions.

Blazing bursts of multicolored light erupted across the sky like fireworks, engulfing Kumogakure in a storm of flame. Terrifying shockwaves roared through the air like a hurricane’s wrath. The mountains surrounding Kumogakure trembled violently, their rocky faces splitting open with deafening cracks. By daylight, one could have seen the massive mountain housing Kumogakure slowly fracturing before their eyes.

Amidst the ear-splitting explosion reverberating through the valleys—its soundwave rippling outward for kilometers—faint cries still pierced the chaos.

"Ninjutsu… Heavenly Send Technique!"

"Earth Release, block it!!!"

"…"

As if stepping on landmines, the mountains encircling Kumogakure erupted in secondary explosions, amplifying the tremors, sonic blasts, and hurricane-force winds.

Even on a distant mountaintop kilometers away, Hinata Hyuga leaned against Izayoi’s chest, watching meteors streak overhead. The glowing blooms of destruction in the far-off mountains captivated her.

Unaware this was the Lightning Country, she mistook the scene for uninhabited wilderness and gasped in awe: "Is this what a meteor shower looks like at night? It’s so beautiful… even more stunning than the ones in River Country!"

"Like it? This little surprise is for you. Glad you’re enjoying it", Izayoi said, kissing her forehead.

"Mm-hmm…" Hinata nodded eagerly, her face lighting up with joy as she boldly kissed his cheek. Snuggling into his arms, she sighed, "This is the happiest birthday I’ve ever had. I’ll never forget it."

"Same here." Izayoi lifted her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her as they continued watching the celestial display.

While Hinata basked in joy, Kumogakure descended into hell. The hurricane of explosions and shockwaves raged endlessly before finally subsiding. Towering mushroom clouds billowed into the sky, shrouding the mountainous region in thick, suffocating dust. Even the area’s relentless high-altitude winds couldn’t disperse the vast, poisoned haze for hours.

Suddenly, a tiny figure cloaked in crimson particles materialized above the dust-choked wasteland. His black cloak embroidered with crimson clouds, orange hair, facial piercings, and purple-ringed eyes left no doubt—this was Pain (Deva Path).

Or rather, Izayoi’s Wood Clone transformed into Pain.

Like Wood Clones being second only to White Zetsu Clones, this wooden transformation surpassed even basic Transformation Techniques. Ordinary transformations crumbled under the slightest impact without precise chakra control. Only someone with Izayoi’s golden-tier chakra mastery could maintain a transformation while healing others. Even then, a direct hit would still shatter the illusion.

That’s why Izayoi’s Shadow Clones never played ninja games with Gaara. But Wood Clones had no such limits. Even if destroyed, the transformation persisted until Izayoi willed it otherwise. Absorbing foreign chakra could even grant temporary Mimicry Technique perfection.

Floating in the air, Izayoi’s vision pierced the dust, analyzing Kumogakure’s devastation while relaying real-time updates to his original body.

Back on the mountaintop, the real Izayoi—still cradling Hinata—narrowed his eyes slightly. “Expected them to survive the welcome gift, but not this many. Guess the Cloud’s reputation as the strongest, most united village isn’t exaggerated. Still good news… at least they haven’t built a Chakra Cannon yet.”

In a world with sealing scrolls, he couldn’t rule out Kumogakure developing such a weapon. So he’d deployed multiple Wood Clones with Rinnegan’s Gravity Release to hurl meteors from space—a Celestial Flame Rain to test the village’s strength.

Now confirmed: no Chakra Cannon.

He transmitted new orders. The Wood Clone dissolved into red particles, vanishing. Moments later, Wind Release jutsu swept through the dust-choked mountains, clearing the haze.

Kumogakure emerged—a shattered ruin. Only a tenth of its buildings remained standing, most reduced to rubble. The ground cratered with meteor impacts, strewn with debris burying countless corpses. Shockwaves had fractured the mountains like earthquake faults, leaving them teetering on collapse.

Translucent, barrier-encased shelters—like glass structures—dotting the ruins housed groaning villagers and fallen Cloud ninja, some already dead. Without those barriers, casualties would’ve been absolute.

As the Celestial Flame Rain faded, exhausted ninja dropped their barriers, swallowing soldier pills to restore chakra and stamina. Medical ninja rushed to treat the wounded.

But their relief was fleeting.

A storm of red particles erupted from nowhere. Figures in crimson-clouded black cloaks—Akatsuki—emerged from the ruins, their elongated blades slicing through the weary ninja.

"Enemy attack!!!"

"It’s Akatsuki! Sound the alarm!"

"No panic! Barrier and Medical Teams protect civilians! The rest—fight back!"

Shouts and piercing whistles shattered the night’s silence.

Kumogakure’s nightmare had just begun.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end