"Young man, you've really impressed me!"
Seeing Kazama stand unscathed after being hit by his Nibontsume (Two-Finger Piercing Hand), the Third Raikage couldn't help but feel deep admiration.
"But if you think you can defeat me, regular attacks won't cut it. You'd need Ippontsume (One-Finger Piercing Hand), but that's impossible. Even my son, the Fourth Raikage, couldn't master that technique!"
"*Jigoku Tsuki: Ippontsume!*"
"What?!"
Right after the Third Raikage spoke, he saw Kazama focus all his chakra into his index finger.
"You've even mastered Ippontsume?!"
The Third Raikage was utterly shocked, his eyes wide with disbelief.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Raikage, watching from behind, collapsed to the ground, paralyzed by the sight of Kazama's technique. He had trained for decades and still hadn't grasped Ippontsume. Yet here was Kazama, performing it with ease. Though the Fourth Raikage had long known Kazama was extraordinary, he couldn't help but marvel in awe.
"No offense!"
BOOM!
With a single strike, Kazama's Ippontsume pierced straight through the Third Raikage, whose body was said to rival a Tailed Beast in durability.
"As expected of the so-called Strongest Spear, Ippontsume is incredible!"
Seeing Kazama's victory, the Fourth Raikage let out a sigh of relief. But the next moment, his jaw dropped again.
The Third Raikage, who had been split in two by Kazama's attack, miraculously reformed.
"Haha! Edo Tensei ninja are immortal! No matter how strong you are, you can't kill him!"
Yakushi Kabuto smirked, glancing at Kazama through the Third Raikage's eyes. He was hoping to see a look of frustration on Kazama's face.
But to his surprise, Kazama showed no trace of annoyance. Instead, a smile slowly spread across his face.
"You little punk, still grinning when you're about to die? I may not be able to kill you, but I'll wear you down! My Edo Tensei ninja are endless. Let's see how long you can last—wait, what?!"
Just as Kabuto prepared to control the Third Raikage to attack Kazama again, he suddenly realized the Third Raikage had slipped out of his control.
"This is impossible! My Edo Tensei technique is nearly perfect. There's no way I'd make such a basic mistake!"
Panicking, Kabuto ordered the Second Tsuchikage, Second Mizukage, and Fourth Kazekage to retrieve the Third Raikage and reapply the sealing talisman.
What he didn't know was that the Third Raikage's rebellion wasn't due to a flaw in his Edo Tensei. It was because Kazama had used Betsutenshin (Other Heavenly God) to take control of him.
Kazama hadn't used Betsutenshin right away because he wanted to absorb the Third Raikage's abilities first. He waited until he had mastered the Third Raikage's ultimate technique before turning him into an ally.
Though Kabuto knew Kazama could use Betsutenshin, he had always believed it couldn't affect his Edo Tensei ninja. After all, he had implanted Black Zetsu's cells into them, thinking it would block Kazama's technique.
What he didn't realize was that Kazama's Betsutenshin could control even those with Black Zetsu's cells. And Black Zetsu himself had deliberately withheld this information from Kabuto.
Why? Because Black Zetsu was using Kabuto's Edo Tensei army to buy time for capturing the Tailed Beasts.
"Another powerful enemy is coming!"