The hills around the ruined shrine had become silent.
Not peaceful.
Silent in the way a forest became silent before a predator moved through it.
Broken trees lay across the slopes. Stones rolled slowly down the cracked earth. Crimson light still bled from the massive wound where the underground shrine had burst open, illuminating the dust that hung in the air.
At the center of it all stood the Kijin.
Its body towered above the trees.
Four arms hung at its sides, its claws long enough to tear through stone. Red ritual chains coiled around its chest, throat, and limbs, glowing with the power of Norihiro's blood and the shrine's ancient symbols. The chains held it in place.
For now.
But the creature's presence did not feel restrained at all.
It felt like standing before a mountain that had been tied down with thread.
One of the shinobi behind Genzo stared at the Kijin with a pale face.
His lips trembled in fear.
"A monster," he muttered.
