The Third Raikage's Stand
The Third Raikage understood the brutal truth: with Uchiha Byakuya's monstrous strength and mastery over both the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan and Wood Release, a full retreat without sacrifice was impossible.
As Raikage, his duty wasn't just to lead—it was to protect. That's why he made the decision: he would stay behind and delay Byakuya, buying time for his subordinates to escape.
But the Cloud Ninjas, especially his elite Raikage Guard—led by Dodai—were not ready to abandon him so easily.
"W-What are you doing, Lord Raikage!?" Dodai shouted.
With a sharp gaze and an authoritative tone, the Third Raikage silenced them.
"Have you forgotten I am the Raikage?"
"I order you—return to Kumogakure immediately. Protect the village. That's an order."
Dodai clenched his fists. "But—!"
"No buts," the Raikage interrupted coldly. "If I fall here, then my son… shall become the Fourth Raikage."
"Now go! I will hold Uchiha Byakuya back myself!"
Lightning surged violently around the Raikage's muscular frame as he activated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, his battle aura radiating raw power.
"Hell Stab—One-Fingered Assault!"
With a boom, the Raikage launched himself at Byakuya's monstrous Susanoo-wood fusion construct, the Susaki Dragon.
"Master Dodai, what now!?" a young jōnin asked, fear and resolve in his voice.
"We have to help the Raikage!"
"Yes, we can't leave him alone!"
The Kumo-nin were ready to follow their leader into certain death, but Dodai stepped forward, his expression twisted with pain.
"Stand down! All of you!" he bellowed.
"We retreat! That's the Raikage's order!"
"Retreat?! But the Raikage—"
"You fools! Do you think you can defeat Byakuya with sheer numbers!?" Dodai barked.
"His power… it's beyond anything we've ever seen. He crushed Iwagakure's army with a forest alone!"
His words silenced them. Reality hit hard—Byakuya was no ordinary shinobi. Even Ōnoki's Dust Release had failed to halt him.
Dodai's voice softened, but carried the weight of conviction:
"We must live. For Kumogakure. For the future the Raikage is buying with his life."
"…Damn it…"
"Retreat!"
"Fall back to the village!"
Despite the anguish on their faces, the Kumo-nin turned and began their withdrawal. It was the only way to honor their Raikage's sacrifice.
Byakuya, still atop the head of his Susaki Dragon, watched the scene unfold.
"Heh… Raikage, you reckless fool. You didn't even try to run."
Crackling with thunder, the Raikage looked up at him, undaunted.
"I'm the Raikage. I don't retreat from threats to my village!"
"Uchiha Byakuya—show me the power that destroyed an army!"
With a battle cry, the Raikage charged forward again, his body a blur of speed and lightning. He struck with his Hell Stab, but the Susaki Dragon's hardened wood and chakra armor deflected it with ease.
"You're brave, I'll give you that," Byakuya said coldly.
"Far braver than that cowardly old dwarf, Ōnoki…"
But admiration faded into inevitability.
"Unfortunately, courage means nothing before absolute power."
The Susaki Dragon's tail lashed out with devastating force.
"Boom!!"
The Raikage's vaunted defense—the shield said to be the strongest in the shinobi world—shattered under the tail strike. He was sent crashing into the ground, carving a crater in the scorched earth.
Coughing blood, the Raikage staggered to his feet again, eyes blazing with defiance. Despite the pain, despite the odds—he wasn't finished yet.
Countless trees burst from the ground, transforming into sharp wooden thorns that shot toward the Third Raikage with murderous intent.
"Not good!…"
Realizing the danger, the Raikage attempted to leap away. But just as he moved, several thick roots coiled around his legs like iron chains, locking him in place.
"Puff! Puff! Puff!"
The wooden spikes pierced his body with brutal precision, breaching even his famed durability. Blood spurted into the air as the Third Raikage—known for his unmatched defense and stamina—was overwhelmed by the ferocity of true Wood Release.
His eyes widened in disbelief, and then dulled. The man hailed as the "Strongest Shield of the Shinobi World" had fallen… at the hands of Uchiha Byakuya.
Byakuya's expression remained cold and unmoved. With the Third Raikage dead, he turned his gaze toward the retreating Iwagakure forces.
Why not pursue the remaining Cloud Ninjas?
Simple. Iwagakure had far greater numbers—and Byakuya wasn't done harvesting despair.
"Wood Release: Great Forest Technique!"
The ground trembled again as Byakuya formed a single seal. In an instant, a vast forest erupted from the barren soil, trees growing at an unnatural pace, racing like wild predators toward the fleeing Rock Ninjas.
"W-What?! He's coming again!"
"Run! Run!!"
"Don't let him catch up!"
"Damn it, the trees are too fast!"
The panic spread like wildfire. Iwagakure's organized formation had dissolved entirely—now reduced to a chaotic mass of terrified shinobi scattering in all directions.
They knew what would happen if the forest caught them.
Death. Certain and immediate.
In their desperation, many wished they'd been born with more than two legs. But no matter how fast they ran, the Wood Release surged forward faster still, tearing across the battlefield with ruthless momentum.
BOOM!
With a thunderous roar, trees erupted in all directions, the forest overtaking the stragglers. Screams were heard—then abruptly silenced.
Just as the front lines of Iwagakure forces were about to be swallowed by the roots of the advancing forest—
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
A white cube of light expanded from the sky and detonated forward in a blinding flash. The massive wave of trees ahead was instantly disintegrated into fine particles.
Floating in the air above the devastation was Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage, panting but resolute.
He had exposed himself.
Byakuya's Mangekyō Sharingan locked onto him.
"Onoki?" Byakuya's voice was cold and low. "You dare show yourself before me again…"
He raised his hand.
SHHHHHH…
The sound of wood twisting and growing echoed through the sky. Countless branches shot up, launching into the air to drag the Tsuchikage down from the sky.
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