The midday sun scorched overhead, but in the skies above Sarutobi Academy, all warmth had been devoured by the storm of combat. The shadow blade clashed with the frost blade, again and again, unleashing waves of destruction that cracked the walls of nearby towers and scattered the trainees below like leaves in a whirlwind.
Xzavier's Shadow Blade screamed with raw, pulsating dark energy, releasing arcs of black lightning with each slash. Hageshi's Frost Blade answered with jagged surges of chilling mist that hissed and curled around his body, freezing the air with every motion. Both of them had already unleashed multiple Legendary Arts, the kind of techniques that seasoned warriors feared invoking even once in a lifetime.
"Legendary Art: Shadow Cross Severance!" Xzavier roared, spinning into a spiraling strike, sending a black X-shaped wave hurtling through the air.
"Legendary Art: Winter Wail Guillotine!" Hageshi retaliated, conjuring an enormous blade of solid frost above him that came down like a glacier.
The attacks collided, creating a thunderous blast that carved a crater into the academy's sparring field and sent both of them reeling—only for them to catch themselves mid-air and charge again without hesitation.
Then, Hageshi did something unexpected.
He smirked.
And slowly, deliberately, raised his right hand to the bundle of hair that covered his left eye.
Xzavier narrowed his visible eye. "What the hell are you doing?"
"You're not the only one with secrets," Hageshi said coolly. He brushed the hair aside.
What lay beneath froze the breath in Xzavier's lungs.
The Aku no Eye.
Pitch black with a glowing red slit through the center. A cursed eye of absolute hatred, said to be a remnant of Gimori Aku no's influence. Its presence made the air itself feel heavier.
"Where… did you get that?" Xzavier demanded, voice sharp with disbelief.
Hageshi's smirk deepened.
"I spent the past few weeks farming wraiths in the giant mountain that once sealed Gimori for 200 years," he said, tone unnervingly casual. "It was supposed to be dormant… But it wasn't. The place was alive with death."
Xzavier clenched his jaw.
Hageshi continued, slowly walking forward, each step cracking the stone underfoot with residual frost. "I almost died facing a Brute Wraith. Thing tore through two of my ribs and shattered my leg. I thought that was it… I was bleeding out under a mountain of corpses."
He stopped, now only a few feet from Xzavier.
"I thought I heard the light. Thought the gates had opened for me… but I was wrong. So wrong."
He raised his chin, letting the Aku no Eye gleam under the sun. "A voice called to me. It wasn't light. It was pure shadow. The voice said, 'Your time here isn't up yet.' And then… I woke up."
Hageshi grinned wide.
"Woke up with this."
A pulse of malevolent energy erupted from him.
BOOM!
A shockwave blasted out from his body, splitting the earth beneath and hurling Xzavier back into the sky like a meteor.
Hageshi followed, teleporting mid-air, and their aerial battle began.
They clashed high above the trees—blades sparking, hands striking, energy bursting. Mist collided with darkness in massive pulses, each impact scattering clouds and shattering the air itself.
"Legendary Art: Black Spiral Tempest!" shouted Xzavier, twisting his blade in a cyclone of black energy.
"Legendary Art: Glacial Torrent Rise!" Hageshi countered, summoning an upward geyser of frost that exploded into the sky.
Their blades met, and the shockwave ripped the clouds apart.
They both crashed into the great lake of Eidolon, a legendary and spiritual landmark long considered sacred. As their bodies slammed into the water, it surged like a tsunami—until they landed on a tiny, isolated platform of sand at the center.
Gasping slightly, Xzavier pushed himself up, only to hear the fabric of his eyepatch tear.
A sharp breeze blew across the lake.
The eyepatch fluttered off—and the Sacred Eye was revealed.
It glowed like a burning galaxy—an ever-shifting swirl of gold and white, etched with ancient runes no one had seen in centuries. The moment it was unveiled, the lake stilled, the wind froze, and the entire forest around them went silent.
Hageshi stared in awe.
"…So that's what you've been hiding," he said, stunned for the first time.
Xzavier turned away slightly, gripping his blade tighter. "…None of your business."
"That's not a normal Sacred Eye… That's something else entirely. That's divine. Where did you get it?"
"I said it's none of your business."
The two glared at each other.
Silence.
Then—without warning—they charged.
The blades clashed once more, and this time, the lake itself screamed. Waves erupted in all directions. Trees along the shore shook violently. Birds fled from miles around.
"Legendary Art: Abyss Bloom Flash!" Hageshi shouted, swinging his frost blade in a wide arc. The attack split into a thousand icy petals, each one razor-sharp, all hurtling toward Xzavier like guided daggers.
Xzavier's Sacred Eye pulsed.
"Legendary Art: Sacred Black Nova!"
A sphere of divine darkness expanded around him, devouring every icy petal before exploding in a radiant burst of black and white light.
The entire platform they fought on was obliterated, the lake beneath them boiling for a moment before rapidly freezing again from the residual frost.
The two warriors hovered over the lake, floating on opposite ends now, exhausted… but far from finished.
"I never thought it'd come to this," Hageshi admitted, chest heaving. "But it looks like the only person who can keep up with me… is you."
Xzavier gave a tired smirk, his Sacred Eye flickering.
"Don't flatter yourself. I'm still holding back."
They both laughed—briefly.
But the weight of their rivalry was heavier now. More personal. More dangerous.
Whatever came next, it wouldn't be a friendly competition anymore.
This… was war.