Chapter 164: 163. Game Changer

"RAAAHHHH!!!!!"

"FIGHT!!"

In little over ten minutes, the former serene, grassy plains separating the two opposing forces transformed into a scene of carnage. Various Ninjutsu thrown back and forth, blades clinging, consistent explosions, and blood spreading everywhere as the casualties continued to grow

In spite of these horrific factors, there was still something even worse...

"RRRGGHHH!!!"

"Tch!"

"Push them back, we cannot let them get past this line!!"

The strange "Lift" pill consumed by the inmates threw them into a mad frenzy, causing any circumstance outside the fight to be seen as irrelevant in their now berserk minds. Regardless of wounds received, deaths on their side, nor the force of Kumogakure's shinobi, they cared naught for it

If anything, the more death there was throughout the battlegrounds, the worse things seemed to be...

WOOOO!!!

"That strange aura around them is only increasing in power. What kind of chakra is that?!"

"F! Look out!"

"Eh?!"

"AAHHH!!"

A particular location on the field, the Jonin F had struggled to hold his ground. The inmates seemed to target the strongest of shinobi first, going in the order of Jonin to lower ranking Chunin

One of said berserkers managed to get the drop of F prior to the screaming warning from one of his comrades

"...Crap!"

"Kanashibari no Jutsu1Temporary Paralysis Jutsu!"

"RRRGHH!! AAAHHH!!"

"Wha?! Who did that just now-?!" yelled F as glanced around  

To his surprise, the individual responsible for stopping the attacker in his place was none other Musai, son of the now deceased Osoi who had perished alongside Jiton no Toroi2Toroi of the Magnet Style

{Of course, I'd almost forgotten how skilled Musai was with paralysis jutsu!} "Thanks Musai!"

"If you wanna thank me--urgh! Hurry up and finish that guy off! He's ridiculously strong, I can't hold him forever!" Musai warned

"Way ahead of you!"

SLICE! THUD!

Not wasting Musai's good will, F swung the blade in his hand with all his might, slitting the man's throat. Once the enemy bled out in front of him, he gathered the still living comrades present and regrouped with Musai

"Alright, we vastly outnumber them but, I'm sure you've all noticed..."

"Huff...huff...yeah. The more we kill..."

"Yeah..."

"We need to spread the word. The way to beat them is sticking to group attacks. Never engage them one on one, it's not so different than fighting a member of the Uchiha Clan"

"Understood" everyone responded in unison

"You lot, spread the word down our defensive line. Musai, you're with me!"

"Alright F, lead the way"

♦♦♦

"Oh...OH!!"

"..."

Not too far from the battle, the Company members who were at the center of this heinous plan, Red and Balance, moved in for a closer look. Red became elated at the results of her "work"

She was practically bouncing in joy, but Balance sat on the ground sluggishly, clearly unamused at the sight 

"Wonderful. Wonderful! This is even better than I'd anticipated!"

"Uh-huh. Fan-friggin-tastic..."

"Sorry, am I boring you Balance?" Red asked with an irritable tone

Though never one to show much emotion, Red held great pride in her skills. The development of the "Lift" was solely her design, albeit with some assistance from a former colleague

She expected a modicum of appreciation from Balance at least, but the latter remained disinterested

"I've gotten used to your crazy, so you're boring most of the time. However, that's not what's bothering me now"

"Then please share, what exactly do you find so dissatisfying about this?"

RUSTLE!

Balance got up, walked right past her, and gestured towards the battlefield

"It's this. This! All of this time, prep, and work. Everything, all the bullshit I've had to put up with for the last five years was just so you could make a mere performance enhancer? Are you f**king with me?!"

"Disappointing Balance. I knew your idiot brother lacked vision, but I never imagined you, the spymaster did as well"

"Don't get smart with me little girl, I will drag you to hell" His voice went completely cold

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"..."

Balance had been worked to the bone in recent years, largely in part to this little project. Forced to sacrifice resources, people, and his precious time. Absurd requests from the Company were hurled at him left and right, all the while annoyed at the sight of Red having the time of her life as she continued her favored research

The years had been work for him, but nothing short of a vacation for the twisted scientist of the Company. Even when she wore a mask, Balance could tell she'd been full of smiles for the past five years

"I believe I told you there would be a reckoning if the end result didn't satisfy me, did I not?"

"Calm down Balance. You really think Sage would've set me up with Orochimaru himself to make a simple Tailed Beast Drug? That idea has been reused consistently ever since the discovery of the nine beasts"

"...What are you hinting at?"

"Tell me, what do those pretty eyes of yours see?" Red said as she pointed towards the field, the enhanced inmates in particular

"Hmph!"

Balance glanced at the battle, still unimpressed

"Now that Ituski and his Oni Garrison have left, all I see is a gathering of fools. Enhanced fools with no thoughts, no sense of self, just a lust for carnage. Hardly an impressive feat"

"You're still looking at the surface, look deeper Balance"

"Hmm...huh? Wait, are they getting even...stronger? That weird red aura around them is increasing..."

"But that can't be all? What's causing their power to increase even more? What are you not seeing?" Red coyly stated while smiling

"..."

"Come on, you can do it"

"Don't patronize me, I'll kill yo-oh! Huh. So that's the answer is it? With each death, the living are..."

"Brilliant right?"

Balance finally realized, with the death of every inmate, the others still alive would get stronger, and more ferocious. Red went on the clarify what made this pill so amazing was that once taken, it linked the chakras of every other user present

When one died, the deceased's chakra would be split and shared amongst the rest, increasing their power

"How does that even work?"

"The idea initially came from Flow. During his tenure inside Kumo, he'd come to discover that project of the Raikage's. Experimenting on the effects chakra signals and whatnot. You know, the one called the Network or something, but that's irrelevant. What's key is that each set of pills I concoct are unique, meaning, we're the only ones who can make it"

"And this batch has linked the inmates together. The more Kumogakure kills, the harder it becomes to defeat them?"

"Correct. As for the boost in power itself, all the credit goes to Orochimaru. That guy has always been obsessed with the 1st Hokage and the Tailed Beasts. We needed his knowhow in order form its foundation"

"All the specimens you've had the Board gather for you all this time..."

"The pill itself is comprised of materials collected from all nine beasts. In different percentages however, the two-tails taking most of it"

{Everything you've had us steal in the past decade...it was for this} Balance instantly realized

"Only Orochimaru could manufacture a binding agent capable of holding all of it together. My job was to ensure it wouldn't kill the user immediately. The only ones known to have survived such powers were Kumo's Futatsu no Hikari3Two Lights"

In order to remain discreet, the Company only issued certain orders and requests. Maintaining strict confidentiality in order to preserve the secrecy of the organization. This extended to the top "Board" members, including Balance

Hence, the reason he lacked so much information on the "Lift". What he'd already learned about it was acquired by his own means, being the authority on spying, intel was his currency

But even Balance couldn't hide his shock as Red continued to share the intricate details of this abnormal drug's creation

"So? What do you think? Not so boring now is it?"

"..."

"What? Are you still feeling...unsatisfied?" teased Red

Balance turned around and faced her

"No. But I have one more question"

"By all means, shoot"

"What happens to the shared chakra when all of them have perished?"

"!"

"You said the chakra is linked, with set destinations. And what if they don't all die? I know this drug doesn't last forever. When it wears out...where exactly does said chakra go?"

"..."

Red went silent, the smug smirk on her face disappeared as she stared back at Balance. No trace of emotion could be seen as she hesitated to answer

Balance attentively studied her facial expressions and body language, attempting to uncover what she was hiding

"Well?"

"Apologies Balance. That answer...I can't give it to you yet. Not until the Company is ready to begin its true purpose"

"..."

"This is all I can say"

"...That's fine"

"Thank you for your understanding. Let's continue our observation, I still wish to gather more data"

"Right"

{Even if you don't tell, I'll figure it out on my own. In the end, it's every man for himself}

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