"So," Arthur casually asked, "you still have some fighting spirit left, do you?"
"Some?" William defied, adopting a fighting stance. "I'm brimming with it now!" At that moment, William summoned two more clones. "Get ready, Hoshikaze!"
Arthur watched him conjure up the Rasengan. His two clones then began to weave their hands around it.
Arthur knew what this was, a technique so spectacular that it was designed specifically to obliterate all those who stood before it: "Wind Style: Rasenshuriken."
Naruto had been the first to develop it, having first used it years from now against the Akatsuki member, Kakuzu.
The formation required three elements: chakra channeled, held tightly, then enhanced with the wind element all into the Rasengan. If someone was skilled enough, they could do it without clones.
Arthur watched as William's Rasengan transformed into a large shuriken-like concentration of pure chakra with four protruding points extending from the core.
The wind howled across Arthur's hair and past the barrier as many spectators held onto their hats.
"These winds," he said, "I remain... unimpressed."
"Shut up already!" William screamed, raising the technique up.
"Stay focused, cuz!" shouted Naruto.
The boy was right to help. Right now, William was in the midst of forming one of the most deadly techniques in the ninja world. The last thing he needed was to let Arthur's words deride him.
The Rasenshuriken still wasn't finished forming as Neji looked onto the officials. They weren't doing anything, making him wonder why they would allow such a high-ranking technique.
"I hope that barrier holds up!" he commented over the winds.
"Hoshikaze might not survive!" Lee added.
Out of all of them in the group, Jada was more interested in Arthur's posture. He wasn't at all moving, as if waiting for William's technique to completely form.
What was there to substitute with? The blast radius would consume just about everything, including the arena floor. So why was Arthur so calm?
Just then, the clones finally dispersed. The technique was ready.
William rushed forward with a primal scream. "Aaaaagh!" And the instant he closed the distance, he pressed the attack square in Arthur's chest. "Rasenshuriken!"
Then, ka-plow! the technique shot with Arthur toward the barrier walls, where, boom! it detonated in an explosion of air and energy that broke through and sent gusts flailing through the crowd.
Winds howled like a tempest pulling at the spectators' clothing and lifting some from their seats. The barrier team scrambled frantically to repair the damage still being done. But instead of trying to contain the blast radius of the Rasenshuriken, they were busy trying to keep the whole arena from collapsing!
Elsewhere. At the same time.
Swoosh!
Blades of grass brushed aside as a man stood in the center of a field.
It was Arthur, and he was now in the Water Country, far removed from the arena. His shirt lay in tatters, and he bore several scratches upon his skin due to the amount of chakra that had just exploded around him.
He looked at his arm. There was no other damage. That meant he had done it: he had evaded the destruction of the 'almighty' Rasenshuriken.
His escape was nothing short of miraculous. Right when the Rasenshuriken was about to detonate, he had used the Flying raijin just in the nick of time, teleporting to a remote place in case the explosion was carried with him.
Had he executed the technique any sooner, the spectators would have seen his escape. And if he delayed it, he would have been rendered to nothing but ripped-up flesh and bone.
It was safe to use the Flying raijin due to the high chakra fluctuations of the Rasenshuriken drowning out any sensory perceptions in the arena. On top of that, he had enshrouded the entire arena with that genjutsu, ensuring that his movements would go unnoticed.
Before the fight, he had calculated every step and taken every measure to maintain his control should William dare to use the Rasenshuriken.
And to be fair, Arthur needed him to use; he needed William to show him the power of the Uzumakis.
After Arthur finished taking a breath, he focused on a Flying raijin mark embedded inside William's body. The final remnants of the Rasenshuriken's glow was fading, and everyone was focused on the barrier team restoring things.
Now was the time to return.
'Flying raijin...'
Just moments before the glow of William's attack extinguished entirely, Arthur appeared right in the center of the dying light.
No one could tell he had vanished moments ago. This was good.
"Quick!" an official urged. "Get that barrier back up and make sure the spectators aren't harmed!"
"They're good!" a sealing expert assured. "They're all good!" Sweat covered his face. "Gosh dang it. Who's idea was it to let a technique like that in this fight?!"
As the aftermath began to settle, the onlookers were stunned to see the spectacle before them: Arthur emerging from dust unharmed!
The disbelief in everyone's voices was loud. Not a single one of them understood what sort of trick he had pulled to escape that devastating technique. And though he had seemingly tanked it, none of them could fathom how anyone with little more than superficial wounds could.
"Is he even human?" someone asked in bewilderment.
The Mizukage herself was once again beyond herself, astonished that such a ninja existed. William's technique was one thing, but Arthur's resilience against it surpassed any expectations placed upon him.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer's voice boomed, unable to hide his awe. "This fight isn't over yet, and to think I almost didn't get out of bed this morning!"
William remained at a standstill. That was one of his strongest techniques. Just how? How could anyone have withstood it?
Then Arthur saw it: a somber look in William's eyes.
"No!" William cried. Although flabbergasted, he was not ready to concede. Not when he still had so much chakra left. "I'm not finished!"
With a sudden movement, he crossed his legs, sat on the ground, and closed his eyes to do exactly what the others knew he'd try: to enter Toad Sage Mode.
Arthur might have let William use the Rasenshuriken, but Sage Mode? He was never going to let that go.
Like a predator, he raced toward William's vulnerable form.
"Multi-shadow clones jutsu!"
Two clones burst into existence in a desperate bid to hinder Arthur's advance. But without even batting an eye, he easily evaded both and closed the distance, fist cocked back.
Boom!
The punch connected, sending William crashing into the barrier's walls!
Bouncing off the barrier like a ragdoll, he barely had time to recover as Arthur spun around and unleashed a kick that sent him smashing back into it. The clones tried to help until Arthur grabbed them both by the neck and smashed their heads together.
Poof-poof!
Now William was alone again.
"Get up, boy…" Arthur demanded, seizing William by the hair. He then lifted him by the hair as their gazes met. William's bloodied face looked pathetic. "Didn't I warn you to withdraw from this match?"
Then, after Arthur released him, letting him slowly fall, Arthur followed up with a roundhouse kick, sending William spiraling toward the barrier with a thud.
The crowd tried cheering, but Naruto's pleas for William not to give up overshadowed their excitement.
"That's right," William whispered, slowly using his arms to stand. "I... I know you warned me, but..."
The crowd was amazed as he began getting right back up, and as Naruto started chanting his name, they followed suit: "William! William! William!"
"Unlike you," he said, their voices filling his ear, "I came with people who always have my back!"
Now he was fully standing with a small yet defiant smile on his face.
Just as he lifted his arms, bang! Arthur had blurred forward, breaking that uplifting moment with a bunch directly to his guts!
The crowd gasped as their eyes widened in awe. Then, crash! a stomp was delivered right to his chest.
Arthur wasn't finished.
"Water style: surface slice." With a flick of his wrist, he sent multiple sharp waves down, causing William to scream as wounds lacerated his hands. Without his hands, he couldn't perform any more techniques. "No more clones for you..."
Arthur lifted him up by the neck and performed a three-hit combo that all landed with echoing thuds.
Naruto could no longer watch as he shielded his eyes.
William plopped to the floor, and the moment Arthur saw a sign of him still trying to rise, he leapt up, aiming his foot down.
Naruto shielded his eyes.
Bang!
When he finally looked, it was over; William was knocked unconscious into the ground.
"That's it, that's it!" the announcer boomed. "Ladies and gents, we have our undeniable winner—the shinobi who surpassed them all! Give it up for Hoshikage!"