Chapter 85 — Hammer, Water, and Fire
The four Akatsuki members faced Gaius, Diana, Naruto, and the Ultramarines. The world felt smaller beneath the weight of the storm, yet the tension rising between both sides made the valley feel like it was shrinking even further, compressing into a single, inevitable clash.
Raindrops fell steadily, hammering the armor, the earth, and the rocks around them. Mud squelched beneath boots, and distant thunder rolled as if echoing the anticipation of battle.
Gaius took one deliberate step forward.
The ground answered with a crunch beneath his armored heel. His massive silhouette stood tall against the rain, steam drifting from the plates of ceramite where droplets sizzled on contact. The faint hiss of vapor mingled with the smell of wet stone.
His voice carried across the field, deep and controlled.
"Maintain formation. Weapons free. Adapt accordingly."
Gaius thought briefly: Abilities in this world are strange, fast, and often unpredictable. I need to give them maximum reaction time, and allow each of us to interpret threats freely.
Titus and the three Bladeguard veterans reacted instantly, as if their bodies moved before the sound finished crossing the distance. They raised their bolters, forming a tight, disciplined firing line. Metaurus, standing at the far right, let his bolter drop to his hip and drew the plasma gun from his mag-clamp. The chamber hum grew louder as he charged it, blue-white energy illuminating the rain around him and casting fleeting reflections on the puddles at his feet.
On the opposite side, Kakuzu's stitched face shifted slightly, the only sign that he recognized the immediate danger.
But he moved first.
Without warning, the Lightning mask on Kakuzu's back crackled and unleashed a serpentine arc of electricity.
The bolt slammed toward the formation.
Gaius did not move.
He simply lifted his hammer, letting the lightning strike the head of the weapon. A shockwave rippled outward. The ground beneath Gaius's feet split, molten lines of burnt stone marking where the energy had dispersed. Sparks danced along his armor plates.
Rain sizzled where it struck him.
He didn't flinch.
The failed attack provoked Kakuzu like a predator whose fangs found no flesh.
All 5 elemental masks reacted together.
Fire roared, curling in streaks that licked the wet ground.
Wind spun into a violent spiral, bending the tall grass.
Lightning snapped again, illuminating the valley in brief, stark flashes.
Earth surged in hardened lumps, tearing up chunks of mud and rock.
Water shot forward in a powerful surge, smashing into the ground and carrying debris with it.
An entire cluster of jutsu bombarded the Ultramarines.
Titus and the Bladeguard watched every motion. Their helmets tracked trajectories, calculating angles and impacts with each precise twitch of Kakuzu's masks. They shifted formation by mere inches, keeping Gaius at the front where he absorbed most of the frontal assault.
But before they could retaliate, another surge of attack tore through the air.
Kisame's grin was sharp, almost shark-like. His hands moved quickly through a series of hand signs, precise and fluid.
A moment later, water surged from the ground, forming a fast-moving wall in front of him. It wasn't an ocean, but the sheer force and volume of it drove forward like a battering ram, carrying debris and mud in its path.
Naruto instinctively jumped back, splashing through the mud.
Diana's eyes widened slightly, a flicker of surprise crossing her face. She had never seen anyone summon such a vast amount of water and wield it so deliberately as a weapon. The sheer control impressed her.
The wave surged forward.
Too large and fast for Naruto to evade.
Too powerful for Titus and the three Bladeguard to move out of its path.
But Gaius was already moving, and Diana readied herself, knowing they could meet it head-on.
He raised his warhammer high, muscles shifting beneath armor as though he prepared to strike down the very sky. The Ultramarines braced behind him, trusting him completely. Rain sprayed in arcs as his hammer moved.
Gaius brought the hammer down.
BOOM
A shockwave burst outward, not of fire or lightning, but sheer, overwhelming physical force. Rain warped in the air. The earth trembled. The tsunami fractured as if struck by a massive, unstoppable force.
A hole tore straight through the center of the incoming wave. Water violently split to both sides, exploding into two massive curtains that crashed harmlessly into the valley walls instead of crushing the formation. Mud, debris, and small stones were carried away in the displaced water.
Diana stared.
She knew Gaius was powerful, but seeing him split such a large wave with one strike…
The extent of his strength felt almost unreal.
But this world was unreal too.
She stepped up beside him, adjusting her stance, feeling the slick mud beneath her boots.
Kisame still held his stance after the biggest jutsu he could muster. He appeared both impressed and irritated, water dripping from his chin and glinting like liquid steel in the rain.
Diana pointed her sword at him.
Her voice was quiet, but the rain carried it clearly.
"Gaius… should I deal with that one?"
Gaius turned his head slightly.
A single nod.
It was all she needed.
Her thoughts sharpened: Our mission is to avenge Naruto's teacher. It's not over yet, and leaving these enemies alive could put others, including Naruto, at risk. I don't seek to kill, but Naruto could be in danger, especially since I'm not from this world. Once this mission is over, I'll leave this world, I can't leave these threats alive for him to deal with. Some threats have to be ended.
Diana raised her blade, muscles tensing, eyes fixed on Kisame.
"I'm sorry… I have to avenge Naruto's teacher."
She vanished from her position, leaving a small wake of displaced water and mud.
In one step she crossed the muddy field, boots splashing through shallow puddles.
Kisame's eyes widened. He barely kept his jutsu active through reflex alone.
He fired a water bullet as thick as a tree trunk.
Diana cut it cleanly in half.
Not slowed even a fraction.
She was already closing the final few meters, her sword angled to strike, rain scattering in shimmering arcs. The steel sang faintly as it cut through droplets.
Kisame realized in that heartbeat that he is in serious Danger.
He braced.
But
A burst of fire sliced between them.
Steam erupted as rain collided with flame. Diana halted, narrowing her eyes through the white hiss. Her reflection shimmered on the wet ground.
She turned.
Itachi stood beside Kisame, his Sharingan spinning with calm precision. Rain dampened his hair, his face unreadable.
He had moved at the exact microsecond needed to save Kisame.
Diana recognized that precision. The Uchiha eyes saw movement before it even happened.
Kisame exhaled sharply, still shaken.
"Damn it… Itachi! That woman almost killed me! She's fast!"
Itachi kept his eyes on Diana.
His voice was even, unaffected by the chaos around them.
"Don't fight her head-on. Even I can't defeat her in this rain. My fire techniques are weakened."
Kisame tensed, but he listened.
He trusted Itachi's judgment more than his pride.
While Diana clashed with Kisame and Itachi, the storm of elemental jutsu hammered the Ultramarines.
Gaius blocked every blast with controlled movements, shifting his stance to intercept lightning, flame, and hardened earth. Each strike displaced water or mud, spraying the area. Titus and the Bladeguard adjusted behind him, firing only when a clear line opened.
By now, they had observed everything.
The mask movements. Their firing patterns. Their timing.
"Target the masks," Titus ordered calmly.
The Bladeguard obeyed.
Four bolters roared at once, their thunder merging with the storm overhead.
Kakuzu tried to dodge. He had seen these weapons tear through Hidan. But the masks across his back were too large, too exposed.
One mask, the Water mask, caught a bolter round.
BOOOOM.
Black tendrils, wet flesh, and mask fragments burst outward in a grisly spray. Kakuzu staggered, his footing slipping in the mud. Four masks remained alive, but one of his hearts was gone, torn apart before he even realized they had targeted it.
His shocked expression twisted into fury.
The battle had only begun, and he had already lost a piece of himself.
End of Chapter 85
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