Dark clouds churned across the sky, punctuated by distant rumbles of thunder.
Yet the shinobi locked in combat on this vast snowy plain refused to yield, each determined to cut down their foes.
In that instant, Kakashi—his body propelled by the blistering speed granted from channeling Lightning Release through his cells—appeared directly beneath the Tailed Beast Ball still forming in the jaws of the Two-Tails jinchuriki. His cold stare sent a shiver down the jinchuriki's spine.
The Tailed Beast Ball wasn't fully charged yet. If this kid struck now... an incomplete Tailed Beast Ball would only hinder the Two-Tails' movements, leaving it with no way to pin down a high-speed shinobi like Kakashi!
The Two-Tails jinchuriki could no longer afford to underestimate the boy; he now regarded him as a true equal!
And just as feared, Kakashi spun the White Fang blade in his grip and leaped forward. Under the Two-Tails' wide-eyed shock, a ten-meter-long flaming katana slashed toward the unfinished Tailed Beast Ball!
The strike unleashed a crimson arc of blade light, like a cascading curtain, and the Tailed Beast Ball was cleaved clean in two right before everyone's eyes!
That pitch-black sphere crumbled like dry earth under the single blow!
Exactly!
Kakashi's eyes narrowed. In the original story, during Naruto's training in Nine-Tails Chakra Mode at the Turtle Island waterfall, he had forcibly disrupted the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball. One that wasn't fully charged posed no real threat!
"You brat!"
The Tailed Beast Ball had been interrupted by force. While this neutralized its danger, it also freed the Two-Tails from the orb's restraining hold!
The Two-Tails reared up on its hind legs like a human, swinging its remaining front paw down at Kakashi!
But Kakashi, having expended his momentum without yet building new force, met the attack as if oblivious to it. Instead, he swiftly adjusted his descent, priming for the follow-up.
Just as that mountain-crushing paw was about to smash into him, a black blur streaked through the air and struck the Two-Tails square on the cheek!
Even with its massive frame, the blow sent the Two-Tails crashing to the ground!
It was the training weight Might Guy had ripped from his leg and hurled with all his might!
"Yugito!"
The Raikage tried to shake off Jiraiya to rush to the Two-Tails jinchuriki's aid, but the Sannin was a veteran master with far more experience. Even at full power, the Raikage couldn't break free in time.
"Watch closely, Raikage. The old era is over; this is the age of the new generation."
"You'll pay the price for your greed."
Jiraiya, having tanked a Lightning Release Lariat with his Needle Jizo, stared down the raging, burly man with icy calm.
"What a joke!"
"This world belongs to the strong in the end!"
"And I am the strong!"
At the Raikage's words, Jiraiya sneered. A Rasengan swirled to life in his palm as he replied in a chilling tone:
"If we follow your warped logic—that the world is ruled by the strong—then you should be bowing at Konoha's feet right now."
"And you call yourself the strong?"
"You're nothing but an arrogant fool!"
With that, he slammed the Rasengan into the Raikage's chest!
"What did you—!"
The Raikage roared in fury, ready to snap back, but the Rasengan cut him off. It spun him away like a ragdoll, echoing the way Minato Namikaze had once done!
"Kakashi!"
Might Guy tore the weight from his other leg and rocketed toward the Two-Tails with explosive force!
Under the sheer power of the Gate of Opening, the weight ignited from air friction, blazing with brilliant, ferocious flames!
The Two-Tails scrambled to rise, but its enormous feline head took another direct hit to the forehead. The impact nearly rolled its Byakugan white!
In that brief window, Kakashi had already woven the seals for his next jutsu!
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
The ground shuddered beneath him as a massive square stone pillar erupted upward, its four sides etched with vivid dog-head carvings. It hoisted Kakashi dozens of meters into the air!
Kakashi glanced skyward.
Thick clouds brooded, thunderheads roiling.
It was time!
The S-rank Lightning Release technique: Kirin.
The conditions to unleash it were stringent. It demanded heating the air with massive Fire Release in battle to generate powerful updrafts, forming cumulonimbus clouds and natural lightning. Then, channeling it through Chidori or Lightning Blade shaped the bolt into a precise Lightning Release form.
In the Land of Frost, pulling off Kirin was no easy feat.
But who could have predicted the enemy tailed beast would be the Two-Tails, a master of flames?
Kakashi's earlier trio of flame blades, amplified by his Wind Release combo, plus the inferno breathed by the Two-Tails itself—it was enough to conjure this phenomenon even here.
"You Konoha brat!"
The Two-Tails shook its head, Instantaneous Body Chakra flames surging as it pounced toward Kakashi atop the pillar!
But... "Youth won't let me back down here!!"
"Dynamic Entry!"
Might Guy's body ignited with green Chakra flames. He shattered the earth with a kick and charged the Two-Tails head-on!
Fierce fire erupted across his fists!
"Morning Peacock!"
A single punch's wind shear exploded into flames, hammering the Two-Tails!
"You idiot brat!"
The Two-Tails swiped a paw to bat Might Guy away!
But... one punch, two, three, four, five!
"Ora ora ora ora ora ora ora ora!"
A barrage of fists turned to fireballs, raining down on the Two-Tails!
With Might Guy buying time against the beast, Kakashi's White Fang blade crackled with blinding lightning!
He raised it high, drawing every bolt from the thunderclouds above!
Countless strikes wove a vast net across the heavens!
The spectacle forced nearly everyone on the field to look up in awe!
"What is that?!"
"A jutsu that commands sky lightning!"
"Unbelievable..."
"This scale of Lightning Release..."
Drowning out the frantic system alerts in his head, Kakashi swung his blade. The lightning converged behind him in an overwhelming, terrifying surge that swept the battlefield!
Guided by Kakashi, the sea of electricity shaped itself into a savage beast—like a divine predator!
"Roar!"
The lightning beast prowled the skies, its thunderous cry shaking the earth, crimson eyes locked on the Two-Tails!
Might Guy glanced up, meeting Kakashi's gaze in perfect sync. He flipped backward several times, landing squarely on one of the Earth-Style Wall's dog-head carvings.
"You Konoha brat!"
Battered from the full Morning Peacock, the Two-Tails was far from peak form—but it still had fight left!
But... "Vanish in the thunder."
"Kirin."
The words, amplified by chakra, rang right in the Two-Tails' ear, raising its fur on end!
The next instant—No!
In the blink of an eye, the lightning beast plummeted at a velocity no human or tailed beast could match, jaws clamping down on the Two-Tails' neck!
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