"Last me, that is a great suggestion, but I think Shadow Dragon is enough for now," I said, nodding firmly.
"Ok, everyone, get to work on your respective ideas while I focus on this Shadow Armor," I added.
I joined my hands together, taking a deep breath, and slowly, the shadows from the ground began to rise. They snaked upward, wrapping around my legs, climbing my torso, coating my arms like liquid night. The darkness thickened, molding itself to my body, forming a suit-like layer that clung to me perfectly—like Venom's symbiote merging with Spider-Man.
The surface of the shadow shimmered faintly as it flowed over me, responding instinctively to my movements, tightening around my shoulders and chest. My fingers flexed, and the tips of my shadowed hands formed claws, sharp and deadly, yet elegant.
I moved a hand experimentally, and the armor reacted instantly—stretching, reshaping, forming ridges along my forearms, spikes along my shoulders, and a blade-like edge on my right arm. Every movement felt natural, as though the shadow had a mind of its own, an extension of me.
"Not bad…" I muttered to myself, feeling the power coursing through the suit. "It's like it's alive… like it's anticipating what I want before I even think it."
I took a step forward, and the shadow armor flowed with me, rippling like liquid darkness. The ground beneath my feet seemed to pulse, shadows extending outward like tendrils, ready to react to threats.
I closed my eyes for a moment, focusing, and tested its defensive capabilities. A spike shot out from my forearm toward a nearby tree stump. The shadow curled around it, splitting into smaller, sharper projections, then retracted smoothly, returning to the armor as if nothing had happened.
"Yes… this is going to be perfect," I whispered. My heartbeat quickened with excitement. "Adaptive, strong, and… terrifying."
I flexed my fingers again, watching the suit respond, then smiled. "Now… let's see just how far we can push this thing."
The other clones, busy on their own jutsus, glanced up and nodded, seeing the dark tendrils of my armor ripple and stretch. The training ground was alive with shadows, each one an extension of me, but this—this was my personal masterpiece in the making.
The air thickened with anticipation. The Shadow Armor wasn't just a suit—it was the next step in what we could achieve with the Ten Shadows.
I raised a hand, and the spikes along my arm extended outward fully, sharp as blades. The rest of the suit shimmered ominously in the dimming sunlight.
"Alright," I muttered, "time to test you fully."
I surged forward into the forest, feeling the shadows clinging to me like liquid steel. The moment I moved, I realized the Shadow Armor wasn't just protective—it enhanced me. My speed surged, my legs propelling me faster than ever before. Every step was lighter, more precise.
I leaped over a fallen tree, landing silently, perfectly balanced, as if the shadows themselves were cushioning my impact. My reflexes sharpened—branches snapping underfoot didn't slow me at all; I dodged with instinctive grace.
I swung my arms experimentally and felt my strength amplified. A single punch sent a hollow log tumbling through the air like it weighed nothing. Even the air seemed to move differently around me, parting as the shadows extended subtly, minimizing resistance.
"This… this is insane," I muttered, exhilaration buzzing through my veins. "Not just armor… it's like I've become a shadow myself."
I dashed deeper into the forest, weaving through trees at a blur, testing the limits. My senses sharpened too—the faint rustle of leaves, the whisper of the wind, even the subtle shift of dirt under my feet registered instantly. It felt like I could predict the environment before I even saw it.
Stopping abruptly, I crouched, feeling the Shadow Armor flow around me, coiling like liquid serpents. I flexed my fists, and spikes erupted from my forearms, responding instantly to my thoughts.
"Yeah… this is more than I imagined," I whispered with a grin. "Time to see what else you can do."
I focused, letting the Shadow Armor flow with my intent. From my arms, nine sharp Shadow Kunais materialized, spinning and forming perfect silhouettes of real steel. They weren't just projections—they had weight, balance, and lethality.
I stepped back, took a deep breath, and began target practice. Trees, rocks, and even moving branches became my test points. Each Kunai shot out with precision, the shadows guiding their trajectory almost instinctively.
One Kunai pierced the center of a distant tree trunk, embedding itself deep with a satisfying thunk. Another sliced cleanly through a low-hanging branch. I smiled, watching how the shadows extended slightly beyond my mental command, adjusting mid-flight to hit the target dead-on.
"Not bad… not bad at all," I muttered, summoning more Kunais and experimenting with throwing multiple at once. They whirled through the forest in a deadly dance, all ten hitting their respective targets simultaneously.
Then I tried something new: a rapid-fire sequence. I launched the Shadow Kunais in quick succession, the shadows reshaping them almost instantly after each throw. Even moving targets—a couple of birds startled by the commotion—were barely able to evade a few of the strikes.
"This… this is insane," I breathed, my heart racing. "Speed, precision, strength… all of it amplifies with the armor. I feel unstoppable."
The shadows swirled around me, protective yet flexible, eager to obey my thoughts. I couldn't help but grin.
"Okay… time to push it further. Let's see how far you and I can go, Shadow Armor."
I could feel the raw power surging through the Shadow Armor as I flexed, my four Shadow Tentacles lashing out from my back. They moved like extensions of my own arms, fluid yet unrelenting, stretching out until they slammed into the nearest tree.
CRACK! The wood splintered under the force, the tree shuddering before bursting apart entirely, shards flying in all directions. My hands, clasped together, had embedded into the trunk for balance, and even as I pulled them free, the sensation of raw, destructive power radiated through my arms.
The shadows hummed with energy, wrapping around me like a second skin, amplifying my strength even further. I grinned, letting out a low laugh. "This… this is next-level. The Shadow Armor isn't just protection—it's pure offense too."
I tested the range, whipping the tentacles toward several smaller trees in sequence. Each one shattered on impact, the ground trembling beneath my feet. The forest around me felt alive with the energy of my shadow, and I could sense every movement of the tentacles as if they were part of my body.
"Alright… now we're talking," I muttered.
The shadows writhed, eager for the next command. My mind was already racing with ideas—new weapons, new techniques, even combinations of Kunais and tentacles in a coordinated attack. The possibilities felt limitless.
Then i got a little out of breath
I wiped the sweat from my brow, taking a deep breath as I crouched slightly. "Sigh… damn, I forgot about my chakra reserves," I muttered to myself, chest rising and falling quickly. My body still thrummed with the residual energy from the Shadow Armor and the tentacles, and even though I was exhausted, a grin tugged at my lips.
"But… in the future? Hah, I know I'll be top-tier. Second only to Father and Ashura. Not even Indra will come close to my reserves," I said, flexing my fingers and feeling the shadows twitch around me. "So, Ten Shadows… you're fine for now. We've got some room to grow."
I could feel the shadows undulating around my body, like obedient extensions of my will, ready to react to my next thought. Even drained, the connection with my Kekkei Genkai was exhilarating. Every movement felt sharper, every thought more precise.
"Alright… small steps first. Let's master what we've got before we go creating shadow dragons and venom armor everywhere," I said, shaking my head with a chuckle. My voice carried a mix of exhaustion and excitement—this was only the beginning.
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Can read up to 8 chapters ahead. (For now, don't worry; I will increase the chapter count soon, and you can read chapters of Tensura: True Dragon of Sun as well. It has somewhere around 25 or so chapters ahead, maybe? Yeah, but not less than 25, so go ahead.)