Chapter 198 : Sage Mode On
Riku didn’t mind killing people—but if someone was so cruel that their victims couldn’t even find peace in the afterlife, he truly couldn’t accept that.
There was no humanity in such actions.
Very few shinobi in the world committed such atrocities.
But the Ghost Clan... every shinobi in their bloodline did it. They not only devoured the souls of enemies, but even those of their own kin. It was nothing short of monstrous.
The surrounding skeletons were immobilized by Riku’s Sage Chakra, their spiritual energy tightly suppressed.
Ryūchi Cave’s senjutsu was naturally infused with strong illusory qualities, and when Riku entered Sage Mode, the fear emanating from his chakra made the spirits of the Ghost Clan’s ten clans tremble uncontrollably.
As the transformation took hold, Kurenai Yuhi and Anko Mitarashi stared at Riku in shock.
Although Anko already knew Riku had mastered Sage Mode, she had never seen him activate it before.
Now, wrapped in the flow of Sage Chakra, she could fully sense its terrifying presence. For the first time, she felt a true, visceral power that made her heart race.
Kurenai was utterly stunned. "This... this is Riku’s Sage Mode? What terrifying chakra..."
At that moment, she realized Riku’s chakra wasn’t just vast—it was immense beyond comprehension. It felt infinite.
She couldn’t even gauge its actual volume, and the surrounding natural energy was still pouring into him like a tide.
The moment Riku entered Sage Mode, it was as though natural energy had found a gateway, surging into him like an ocean bursting through a dam.
The ghostly figure before him also sensed the terrifying transformation.
The ghost let out a furious roar. "Brat! You had this kind of trump card?! Even if you have this strange power, I’ll still kill you here!"
With that, the apparition vanished from Riku’s sight, disappearing into the air.
Riku calmly patted Kurenai and Anko on their shoulders.
Instantly, Sage Chakra surged into their bodies like a tidal wave.
Because the chakra had already been harmonized with nature inside Riku’s body, it posed no danger to the two women.
What would have been dangerous was pure, unrefined natural energy—but this had already been converted into safe Sage Chakra.
As Riku’s palm touched their shoulders, both women felt something shift inside them—an entirely new reservoir of power had opened up, far surpassing their original chakra pools.
"These skeletons are yours," Riku said evenly. "That guy’s mine."
Kurenai and Anko, empowered by the surge of chakra, nodded firmly. "Right. Don’t worry."
Without hesitation, they charged toward the skeletal army.
Anko guarded Kurenai’s flank while she cast Genjutsu over the oncoming skeletons.
Suddenly, Riku turned sharply toward a distant corner of the cavern.
His eyes narrowed, and a snake-shaped bolt of violet-gold lightning burst from him like a whip.
BOOM—!
The target zone exploded, and the ghost’s form reappeared, coughing up blood.
He looked at Riku in disbelief. "Impossible! I’m in spirit form! How can you still hit me?!"
"Sage Chakra can do that," Riku said calmly. "Looks like you don’t know much about senjutsu."
Indeed, not everyone could learn the Sage Techniques from the Three Great Holy Lands. Many had tried, but few succeeded.
Realizing he was vulnerable, the ghost immediately changed tactics.
He withdrew into his physical body, which had been hidden behind a massive stone throne.
The ghost—now fully corporeal—stepped out, cracking his knuckles ominously.
His chakra flared violently, and behind him appeared a phantom image of the Shinigami itself.
"Our Ghost Clan doesn’t rely only on spirit techniques," he growled. "We also wield all Shinigami-related ninjutsu!"
The looming death god behind him raised its arm—and passed its short sword to the ghost.
Riku stared hard at the entity. After a moment, he said evenly, "So... it’s just a phantom."
"But that blade... might be interesting."
When the ghost grasped the short sword, he slashed through the air—and a rift opened.
From it, a flood of ghostly ash poured out.
Riku narrowed his eyes.
"Looks like that blade is similar to the one used in the Reaper Death Seal. It can sever souls."
But he didn’t flinch.
That kind of weapon held no fear for him.
With a flick of his wrist, Riku summoned his own short sword into his hand.
"If this blade is infused with Sage Chakra... I can hurt you just the same."
The next moment, both fighters became blurs of light—clashing atop a massive boulder surrounded by magma.
BOOM—!
The shockwave of their collision blasted everything within dozens of meters. Rocks shattered and splintered, and countless skeletons were sent flying.
Many plunged into the magma below, their bones quickly melting into the molten rock.
Even though their bones were as hard as steel, it only took a short while for the magma to consume them.
Neither Riku nor the ghost paid the skeletons any mind.
Instead, the melted souls of the fallen skeletons flowed into the ghost’s body, bolstering his power.
Now, as he clashed with Riku—blade against blade—he was able to withstand the force of Riku’s strikes only because of this newly absorbed soul energy. Without it, he would’ve been blown away by the sheer force of Riku’s weapon.
Riku immediately noticed the change.
He could feel the ghost’s soul power growing exponentially.
However, the barrier around them prevented any surge of chakra from leaking out—limiting both of them.
Yet this restriction meant little to the Ghost Clan, who relied primarily on soul energy in combat.
That was their strength.
And now, the ghost was fighting with everything he had.
After several clashes, he began to feel the pressure mounting.
Riku, empowered by Sage Mode, was completely overpowering him.
The ghost had no room to attack—he was forced purely into defense.
And that was despite being at peak Kage-level.
Originally, the ghost had no intention of revealing himself so soon.
But once he learned about Riku, he realized Riku would make the perfect sacrifice. If Riku’s soul was used, the ritual’s success would be guaranteed.
That was why he didn’t hesitate to massacre several villages, personally killing hundreds of shinobi.
All to activate the Reaper Barrier—a dark technique that required the soul energy of 270 ninja.
Now, the requirement had been met. All that remained was the offering.
And if the ritual succeeded...
He would surpass the Kage-level entirely—reaching the mythical realm of Super Kage-level.
At that point, ordinary shinobi and conventional methods would be meaningless.
The Ghost Clan’s secret technique was undeniably cruel—but it was one of the very few paths to godlike power.
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