Chapter 140: Earth and Lightning 7
Logaro's departure had shaken the morale of the Hidden Stone shinobi, but it didn't cause major consequences. While the demolition unit was important, it wasn't irreplaceable.
If it were an ordinary tunnel, the high-speed and destructive battle between Kakashi and the Third Raikage would definitely cause a collapse. Fortunately, Hidden Stone shinobi were continuously using chakra to reinforce the tunnel. Even so, the simple tunnel partitions were no different from tofu.
With dust rising, and the tunnel already dark, visibility became even lower. Most of the time, Uchiha Shisui could only discern where his captain and the enemy were fighting by sound, occasionally catching a glimpse of two shadows flashing and disappearing in the dust.
His Mangekyo Sharingan wasn't of much use either, so the Uchiha youth simply deactivated his dojutsu to conserve eye power.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A summoning circle appeared in the air, and a crow flew to Shisui's shoulder. Shisui placed two standby genjutsu on it, and the crow flew deeper into the tunnel, observing the intense battle for him.
A small lightning dragon, over three meters long, coiled around Kakashi's body with a dragon's roar, enhancing his Lightning Release Armor's defense and attack power. This was a method he had just conceived: the diversified application of Swift Dragon Sound Kill, allowing sound-based genjutsu to begin affecting the Third Raikage.
The lightning dragon, trained to perfection, was indistinguishable from a true living creature, apart from lacking its own thought processes. Especially its eyes, which flickered with ball lightning, caused a slight stinging sensation just by looking directly at them.
Long ago, Kakashi had pondered why almost all ninjutsu liked to mimic the appearance of dragons, even though he had never seen such creatures in the shinobi world. Mimicking tigers or leopards, however, he could understand.
Later, when he used it himself, he understood. It was a very mystical thing, impossible to explain scientifically. The dragon-like shape transformation indeed increased the power of ninjutsu; the more precise, the stronger the power.
Conversely, simply releasing raw chakra was the least lethal.
In terms of chakra efficiency alone, a ninjutsu like the Tailed Beast Bomb, which directly compresses chakra, was certainly not the first choice. No wonder the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, refined it into the Rasengan, which ordinary shinobi could use.
His five fingers firmly pressed into a nearby earth wall, the silver-haired youth made a sharp turn, unleashing a Chidori, intending to strike the Third Raikage's chest. But the latter evaded it mid-air. It wasn't just dynamic vision; Kakashi felt he evaded it purely due to battle instinct.
His physique was like a monster, his chakra like a monster, and even his instincts were like a monster's.
A fist the size of a cooking pot rapidly enlarged before the youth. Kakashi, taking a direct hit to the forehead, felt his head spin. He flew backward for dozens of meters, embedding himself in the earth wall, creating a circular impact crater.
No chance to breathe, the Third Raikage pressed his advantage. A knee strike made Kakashi spit out several mouthfuls of blood. His Lightning Release Armor flickered several times, almost deactivating. The lightning dragon coiled around the Raikage's neck, opening its large mouth to bite his head.
"Hiss!"
Tearing the lightning dragon in half starting from its mouth, this monster did not waste a second due to the interference. He had fully entered his zone and would make no superfluous moves or show any mercy.
His right hand transformed into three fingers, about to unleash the Hell Stab to end the Lightning Release youth's life.
"Warning, warning, host is under life threat!"
"Warning, warning."
The system's voice called Kakashi's consciousness back. He abruptly ducked, dodging the Strongest Spear, then kicked the Third Raikage, who was still pressing him, away, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.
In his perception, a tiny chakra signature carrying Shisui's chakra was circling nearby.
Looking in that direction, he indeed saw a crow flapping its wings.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Fang!"
A shape transformation of Chidori. Lightning concentrates in the palm, creating a "dog"-shaped lightning, allowing the user to freely control the "dog's" attack target.
The lightning hound transformed into a beam of lightning, biting the Third Raikage's right leg.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Tracking Fang Jutsu!"
The single lightning hound split into six more, biting the Third Raikage's limbs, restraining his movement.
As a fellow Lightning Release user, the Raikage didn't quickly break free from these seven lightning hounds. Kakashi then rushed into a dead end, and when he returned, he had a crow in his hand.
Upon seeing the Raikage, the crow immediately released the genjutsu hidden within its body.
"Nightmare Binding Jutsu!" "Kotoamatsukami!"
The former caused the monster to fall into his past fears, while the latter's suggestion was immediate suicide.
"Really, if only it were that simple."
Kakashi complained to Uchiha Shisui, who had arrived beside him through the crow summon.
The Third Raikage seemed to have fallen under genjutsu, but his Lightning Release Armor did not dissipate. He raised his right hand to stab his heart according to the genjutsu's command, but without using the Hell Stab, his ordinary attack couldn't break through his own defense.
The so-called suicide attempt was thus effortlessly thwarted.
"How many more times can you use Kotoamatsukami from your right eye?"
"Not even once more."
Shisui shook his head, dashing Kakashi's hopes.
"That's bad news."
Sighing, nearly 15 minutes of high-speed confrontation had depleted half of Kakashi's chakra. He estimated he had about 13 calories left in his body. If such a duel continued for a few more minutes, he would be defeated due to chakra exhaustion.
Let alone surviving to face the Third Tsuchikage outside.
"This guy is far stronger than I imagined."
The time for chatter ended. The Third Raikage opened his eyes, which had been closed due to the genjutsu. There was no fear whatsoever in them, nothing like someone who had just had a nightmare.
"Thank you for letting me recall those past scenes again."
"You consider nightmares fond memories?"
The Third Raikage didn't reply, continuing his assault to make the two understand how foolish it was not to seize the opportunity to break his defense earlier.
"Particle Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, finally couldn't resist making his move. Following the coordinates provided by the sensory ninja, he launched indiscriminate bombardment on the ground below.
One disappearing block of earth after another formed new ravines. Those two Hidden Rain shinobi, if they couldn't complete their mission, should just die here. Anyway, it could be publicly announced that they died alongside the Third Raikage.
Onoki's Particle Release was incredibly powerful, but after several blasts, he still didn't feel like he had hit his target.
"Are the coordinates you reported correct?"
"Their movement speed is simply too fast, Tsuchikage-sama. I'd just report one coordinate, and they'd already be at the next, and their movements are completely irregular."
"I don't want to wait anymore. Keep reporting."
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