Chapter 524: The Mysterious Power of the Rinnegan
"Number one, Nagato, versus number three, Shibi Aburame!"
The referee's shout marked the start of the second round. Nagato and Shibi quickly stepped into the arena and prepared to fight.
Kakashi stopped talking with his teammates and fixed his eyes on the battlefield, his expression serious.
As absurd as it sounded, Konoha's biggest obstacles to taking first place were not the geniuses from the other great ninja villages, but Nagato and Hashori.
"Begin!"
The moment the referee gave the signal, Shibi immediately poured a large amount of chakra into the huge gourd on his back, which contained countless kikaichu.
A swarm of insects burst through the stopper like a black tide, splitting into five dark clouds that pressed toward Nagato.
Facing someone as dangerous as Nagato, Shibi did not dare hold back at all. He went all out from the very start.
"Fire Release: Head Hardship!"
Nagato calmly formed a hand seal and spat a compressed fireball, only the size of a fist, toward the ground.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The instant it touched down, all the compressed flames erupted. Towering fire surged upward and spread into a sea of flames, sealing off the space between Nagato and Shibi.
"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
Immediately after, Nagato formed another hand seal and released a compressed sphere of wind.
A fierce storm exploded across the field, and the wind fed the fire. Even though Shibi deliberately directed his insects higher into the air, they were still swallowed by the flaming gale. At the same time, Shibi had no choice but to retreat quickly to avoid the advancing flames.
"Secret Technique: Insect Clone!"
After a brief moment of thought, Shibi split off two clones made of parasitic insects. He and the clones began running along the edge of the arena, closing in on Nagato.
He had to get close. Otherwise, the battle would become a gamble over whether Nagato's chakra or his insects would run out first.
"Fire Release: Head Hardship!"
Seeing Shibi push forward again, Nagato spat out another fireball, preparing to create a second sea of fire to block the approach.
"Secret Technique: Insect Deception!"
This time, Shibi did not retreat.
He first controlled the insects to hurl the two insect clones toward Nagato, then wrapped his own body in chakra and released as many parasitic insects as possible to cover himself.
Layer upon layer of black insects swallowed him, forming a massive black sphere that rolled straight through the sea of fire.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Crack! Crack!
Boom!
Under the scorching heat, insect shells gave off faint cracking sounds. The roaring flames and the rolling thunder of the insect ball intertwined into a strange rhythm that somehow stirred courage in the heart.
The ninja in the waiting room stared at the arena in surprise. Even the other Konoha ninja had not expected their quiet companion to fight so fiercely.
Nagato was also slightly surprised. If those insects failed to endure the flames, then even if he had no intention of killing him, Shibi might burn to death in the sea of fire.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
Nagato temporarily ignored the black sphere rolling through the flames. He formed hand seals again and spat out a sharp lightning spear at the incoming insect clones.
Since they had no footing in the air, neither clone could dodge in time. Both were split in half by the lightning.
But the bisected clones did not vanish.
The dead insects struck by the lightning fell to the ground, while the surviving insects regrouped into dark clouds and continued charging Nagato.
Nagato's eyes flickered with surprise. This was his first time fighting an Aburame clan ninja, and he had not expected their clone technique to work like this.
At that moment, the large black sphere, carrying a burnt smell, rolled out of the sea of fire and closed to a relatively short distance from him.
In the next instant, it rapidly collapsed. The surviving insects surged toward Nagato, revealing Shibi beneath them, his face red and damp with sweat.
Shibi was gasping hard, but he did not dare stop even for a moment. While controlling the insects to attack, he also kept squeezing out his chakra to accelerate the hatching of the insects within his body.
"Bansho Tenin!"
Nagato did not hesitate at all.
He immediately activated a Rinnegan ability. A terrifying suction force burst from his right hand and yanked Shibi straight toward him.
Shibi did not even understand what had happened. By the time he realized it, he was already right in front of Nagato. He tried to draw a kunai and counterattack, but it was too late.
Bang!
Nagato flooded his body with chakra and slammed Shibi hard into the ground, sending yellow dust bursting into the air.
Shibi was already in poor condition, and after taking such a heavy blow, he fainted on the spot. The uncontrolled insects dispersed immediately.
"What just happened?"
The sudden reversal left some of the ninja in the waiting room completely stunned.
A moment ago, Shibi had forced his way through a sea of fire to close with Nagato. How had he suddenly been dropped in an instant?
"How did this Nagato even train? It's insane. He has Wind, Fire, and Earth Release, and his Lightning Release is this strong too."
Some ninja were more shocked by Nagato's nature transformations and Ninjutsu training.
From the elimination rounds until now, Nagato had already used Ninjutsu from four chakra natures, and every one of them was a powerful high level technique.
"What was that last move? Some kind of no hand sign Ninjutsu?" Kakashi frowned.
Compared to the new Lightning Release Nagato had shown, Kakashi cared more about the final moment.
Shibi clearly would not willingly fly into Nagato's hands. He had been forcibly pulled in. But Kakashi could not immediately identify what kind of power could cause that effect.
He searched his memory and could not think of any Ninjutsu that matched it.
"I'll have to wait for the quarterfinals and see whether Hashori can force him to use it again," Kakashi decided, setting the question aside for now.
"Nagato wins!"
After confirming Shibi had lost the ability to continue fighting, the referee declared the result. Once Nagato left the field, he immediately called the next match.
"Number six, Iwagaki, versus number eight, Hashori!"
Sasori stood up with an indifferent expression and walked toward the arena, not even glancing at Kakashi on the way.
His heart was full of killing intent, but until he found a real chance to strike, showing hatred in front of Kakashi would be meaningless.
Once the match started, the ninja in the waiting room all watched closely.
After four rounds of preliminaries and one round of eliminations, the remaining contestants were all at least competent, even if some had benefited from luck.
But Iwagaki seemed to be one of those who had gotten farther with a bit of luck.
He could not force Sasori to use four puppets like Yahiko had. Sasori only needed two puppets to defeat him quickly.
Kakashi was not too bothered by that. In fact, he hoped Hashori was stronger, because he wanted someone to push Nagato past ordinary high power Ninjutsu.
"Number nine, Kisame Hoshigaki, versus number eleven, Might Guy!"
The moment his name was called, Guy shot to his feet, flashed himself a thumbs up, and strode into the arena with a confident grin. Kisame followed right behind him.
Looking at the man who had handed him a painful defeat in his memories, Kisame's shark like face turned serious.
Although his strength had increased greatly through long and brutal training, the monstrous punch Guy threw in their first battle had made one thing clear to Kisame. He was not the only one improving. Guy had improved too, and perhaps even more.
"Bisami Jogikage, we meet again! This time, I will win again!" Guy laughed loudly with both hands on his hips, declaring victory before the match even began.
Kisame Hoshigaki: ?
Kisame was speechless. He was doing it again. He was trying to provoke him with that same trick, wasn't he? The referee had literally just read out his full name, and he still got it wrong.
"Kisame Hoshigaki. That is my name," Kisame corrected him with emphasis.
Ordinarily, Kisame would not care about this kind of thing.
But Guy had not once said his name correctly, and some stubborn part of Kisame still wanted to hear him get it right just once.
"Did I remember it wrong? No, impossible. I'm pretty sure I called you that last time too." Guy stroked his chin with a thoughtful look.
Kisame fell silent again.
Was there any chance he got it wrong last time too?
"Contestants, prepare for battle. The match is about to begin!" the Shinobi Sect referee reminded them.
A little banter was fine, but not forever.
Kisame had no choice but to temporarily give up on correcting him and assume his stance.
Guy also put aside all distractions and focused completely on the battle ahead.
"Begin!"
"Eight Gates, Gate of Opening, open! Gate of Healing, open! Gate of Life, open! Gate of Pain, open!"
Guy immediately opened four of the Eight Gates in succession, releasing the restraints on his body as wild chakra surged out.
"Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
Kisame leaped backward at once. The massive chakra gathering in his throat transformed rapidly into Water Release chakra, and he unleashed it in a single breath. A terrifying tidal wave of water flooded the arena.
"That move again."
Guy decisively opened the fifth gate and continued regulating his breathing, taking in a deep breath as he entered Rock Breathing Chakra Mode.
At that instant, an incomparably powerful aura erupted from him.
Back during the Chunin Exams, Guy had only narrowly beaten Kisame through this kind of battlefield. He had no intention of underestimating him now and went all out from the start.
At the same time, the enormous torrent from Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave swept through the entire arena, forming a gigantic flattened spherical water prison.
"This kind of huge range Ninjutsu is basically cheating when the battlefield is limited," Obito could not help complaining.
Kisame's technique covered the whole arena. No matter how fast you were, there was nowhere to dodge.
At that moment, Obito could only be glad his draw had been good. If he had run into Kisame, it would have been a complete loss. There was no way he could beat Kisame in water.
The audience also became more animated. A battle that opened this big was clearly not ordinary.
"Water Release: Hundred Feeding Sharks!"
Kisame's chakra surged again, and he created one hundred shark shaped water bullets in one breath, all lunging at Guy.
Kisame understood his own strengths very clearly.
His chakra reserves were naturally outstanding. For others, these large scale Water Release techniques would be exhausting. For him, they were routine.
All he had to do now was keep attacking inside the water prison, wear down Guy's stamina, and take the win.
"Now this is what I call a battle!" Guy grinned, eyes burning with excitement.
His fight against Iwagaki had been too easy. After watching so many intense matches, his hands had been itching for a real fight.
Guy's muscles tightened, veins bulged, and his whole body looked like a coiled tiger about to pounce. He poured all his strength into his fists and unleashed a barrage of ultra high speed punches at a single point in front of him, so fast that ordinary eyes could barely follow them.
Daytime Tiger was originally an advanced Taijutsu that could only be used after opening the seventh gate of the Eight Gates. But with the enhancement of Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, Guy at the fifth gate could barely meet the requirements.
As his fists hammered forward, the air was compressed again and again, and ripples spread through the surrounding water under that terrifying force.
"Daytime Tiger!"
In an instant, Guy changed from fists to palms and clapped his hands together with explosive force.
The air, compressed to its limit, detonated.
A savage wave of air burst forward, taking the shape of a raging tiger as it charged into the shark swarm. Wherever it passed, shark water bullets shattered one after another.
The sheer power made the massive water prison fluctuate violently, like a water filled balloon kicked with full force, making some ordinary spectators worry that if it burst, everyone in the arena would be soaked like drowned rats.
Almost instantly, all one hundred shark water bullets Kisame had created were obliterated by the air tiger released from Daytime Tiger.
Roar!
The fierce air tiger seemed like a true king of beasts, roaring as it advanced. Kisame hastily created more shark water bullets to weaken its momentum.
Kisame knew Guy had become stronger, but he had not imagined it was to this degree, enough to erase one hundred shark bullets in an instant.
At that moment, he could only feel grateful he had immediately used Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave and kept his distance. Otherwise, he might have been killed outright by Guy's Taijutsu.
"Water Release: Great Shark Bullet Technique!"
Kisame swam to the edge of the water prison and rapidly condensed chakra, creating a massive and ferocious shark water bullet lined with sharp teeth.
This was one of Kisame's greatest gains from training. The shark created by Great Shark Bullet Technique could absorb chakra, and if it collided with a chakra based air attack, it could not only stop it but grow even stronger.
Bang!
The brutal water shark and the raging air tiger crashed together at blinding speed, and waves rippled violently through the water prison.
But to Kisame's disbelief, the air tiger tore straight through the water shark and slammed into him without slowing.
Guy's Daytime Tiger contained no chakra at all.
"Cough, cough... so there's actually a Taijutsu like this." Kisame coughed, feeling pain surge through his body as he carved the name Daytime Tiger into his memory.
Part of Daytime Tiger's force had already been spent earlier, and Kisame himself had a sturdy physique, so he barely withstood the blow.
"Ninja from the great villages truly cannot be underestimated. These two are both very strong." Nagato's expression shifted slightly.
Without Mugetsu's guidance, and without awakening the abilities of the Rinnegan, he would not have been a match for either of them.
"Haha! As expected of an opponent whose name I remember. You are worthy of witnessing my strongest Taijutsu!" Guy laughed when he saw Kisame was still conscious.
He had only wanted to test his newly learned Taijutsu. Next, he would not give Kisame another chance.
Guy released most of his chakra. The terrifying aura around him was so intense that even the surrounding water was pushed back, creating a partial empty space.
Then he drove his breathing to the limit and poured all the enhancement from Rock Breathing Chakra Mode into the index and middle fingers of his right hand.
Guy drew his right hand back near his waist and bent his left leg slightly.
The power of the Eight Gates, the power of Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, and the power of his body forged through relentless training all erupted together, surging through his frame as he swung his arm and unleashed a slash.
Kisame had already felt danger the moment Guy laughed.
He condensed a huge amount of chakra, converted it into Water Release, and sent water sharks at Guy. It was the only thing he could do now.
Injured as he was, there was no way he could clash with Guy in close range.
"Golden Skyline!"
A brilliant golden line flashed across the blue world.
Wherever the golden light passed, the water itself split apart. In an instant, the enormous oval water prison looked as if it had been cut in two.
Bang bang bang!
All of the water sharks Kisame created exploded on contact.
Kisame unleashed all the chakra in his body, trying to defend.
Boom! Boom!
His figure flew backward at terrifying speed and slammed heavily into the thick wall at the edge of the arena. The gigantic water prison collapsed and burst apart, turning the battlefield into a small lake.
"This Taijutsu ninja, Might Guy, is actually this strong?" Hanzo was genuinely startled by the terrifying force of Golden Skyline.
It was hard for him to imagine such monstrous Taijutsu coming from an eleven year old boy.
In Hanzo's view, Taijutsu was a skill that depended heavily on age. To truly excel, one usually needed years of training and a body at its physical peak, generally in the twenties or thirties.
For Guy to possess this level of Taijutsu at eleven, Hanzo had never seen or heard of such a thing.
"Sosuke, I wonder how you'll feel if your highly anticipated Nagato does not make it to the finals." Hanzo could not help gloating inwardly.
Against a monster like Might Guy, Nagato might not win for certain.
Hanzo had rarely gloated like this in his heart before. As a demigod, he had his pride and bearing.
But Sosuke was different.
Hanzo was only sitting here because Sosuke had forced him to come, so if Sosuke suffered a setback, Hanzo was naturally delighted to imagine it.
"Might Guy wins!" The referee skillfully pried Kisame out of the wall and announced the result.
"That was a truly exhilarating battle, Kisame Hoshigaki. I will continue to remember your name!"
Guy exited the Eight Gates and Rock Breathing Chakra Mode, let out a long breath, and flashed Kisame a bright thumbs up smile.
Even in the entire Youth Martial Arts Tournament, Kisame was not weak at all. Falling in the second round was only because he had run into Guy.
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 10–50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]
[One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, Soul Land, NBA, and more — all in one place.]