The Fourth Raikage arrived on the battlefield like a thunderbolt.
The moment he saw Killer Bee collapsed from chakra exhaustion and slung over Kisame's shoulder, rage exploded inside him.
He did not speak.
Lightning Chakra Mode surged across his body with a violent crackle, blue arcs snapping like living serpents. The Raikage shot forward, a streak of blinding azure light.
His intent was simple: kill Kisame instantly and take Bee back.
Kisame sensed the killing intent and raised Samehada in defense, but speed and raw strength were the Raikage's domain.
His strike came down like a hammer forged from thunder itself.
Samehada eagerly devoured the chakra coating the Raikage's arm, but the physical force behind the attack could not be absorbed. The blade screamed like an injured beast, scales bristling, as Kisame skidded backwards, carving a long scar across the earth.
"What terrifying power…" Kisame's grip trembled. One blow nearly tore Samehada out of his hands.
"Put Bee down!" The Raikage roared, flashing behind Kisame in an instant.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
A torrent of water surged up, but the Raikage vanished from in front of him, reappearing from another angle like lightning splitting the night.
"Elbow Drop: Heavy Flow!"
Chakra gathered at his elbow, aiming straight for Kisame's skull.
Kisame had no way to outpace him.
But he did have cunning. He tilted slightly, positioning Bee's unconscious body between them.
If the Raikage struck, he would hit his own brother first.
The Raikage's strike halted just inches from Bee.
Kisame grinned triumphantly.
But in the next heartbeat, a vicious side-kick slammed into his ribs. Kisame flew across the battlefield like a rag doll, smashing into a distant mountainside.
Blood filled his throat. It felt like a train had run through his internal organs. Samehada vibrated anxiously, channeling chakra into him to repair the damage.
"Liger Bomb: Thunder Axe!"
The Raikage appeared above him, voice a thunderclap.
Kisame could not move. One hit would kill him.
The strike fell like the wrath of a storm.
The ground split open with a deafening crash. Dust burst skyward. The impact carved a deep ravine into the battlefield.
But Kisame was gone.
"What?!"
The Raikage spun, lightning crackling wildly across his body.
Only shattered rock remained.
Bee was gone too.
Obito's voice echoed behind him.
"I told you. We came for the Eight-Tails, and we will take him today."
The Raikage glared, killing intent almost visible.
"Oh, and since your subordinates stalled me, I took them as payment. No need to thank me. I am a generous guy."
A vortex swallowed him whole, and he disappeared.
The Raikage trembled with fury, fists clenched so tightly bone creaked. Lightning overflowed uncontrollably around him.
"I will chase you to the ends of the world and kill you myself!"
His roar ripped through the sky, but it could not change reality.
Bee was gone. Samui and Darui, captured.
There was only helpless rage.
Meanwhile, inside the rain-filled pipes of Amegakure…
The toad's croaking echoed through the tunnel walls.
Three Pains pursued Jiraiya, unaware of what the sound signaled. Confident in the Rinnegan's authority, they ignored the warning.
"Fire Style: Giant Flame Bomb!"
Jiraiya appeared in a flare of orange light, launching a massive fireball.
Preta Path leapt in front, palms open to absorb the ninjutsu.
Just as Jiraiya expected.
That one absorbs ninjutsu. The other summons creatures.
Each body possesses only one ability.
He fired another Great Flame Bomb from a clone.
Two Pains vaulted upward, dodging the inferno, but as Human Path landed on a pipe overhead, his legs sank into the surface.
"Swamp of the Underworld!"
A trap.
Jiraiya charged, striking Animal Path hard, sending him flying.
The toad duo—Fukasaku and Shima—completed their preparation at that exact moment.
The Frog Song began.
The eerie melody slithered through the battlefield like a dream.
Rinnegan eyes twitched unnaturally. Even Nagato at the true body felt the genjutsu pulling him under.
In a distant chamber, Konan sighed softly.
She dispelled the illusion from Nagato, her expression unreadable.
Back on the battlefield, Jiraiya impaled the three immobilized Pains with three great swords, ending them swiftly.
He finally exhaled.
He had won the first round.
But then—
A voice behind him whispered:
"Do not let your guard down, Jiraiya-sensei.
You taught me that."
Jiraiya's pupils shrank.
The wall behind him exploded. He was sent tumbling across the lake.
Blood poured from the stump where his left arm had been torn off.
"Your arm!" Shima cried.
"I know." Jiraiya gritted his teeth, glaring at the broken wall.
Fukasaku looked grim.
"This isn't over. Why are there more of them?"
Footsteps echoed.
Six silhouettes emerged from the shadows.
Together they declared: