"It's Higashino Shinichi!"
"The one who killed B!"
The Third Raikage's gaze abruptly sharpened! The lightning chakra armor surrounding his body instantly became even more violent and berserk, crackling with scalp-numbing explosions of electricity!
The next moment, the strongest spear of Kumogakure suddenly turned around without the slightest hesitation. He completely abandoned his attempt to keep drilling through Konoha's front line, changed direction on the spot, and charged murderously toward the battlefield at Shinichi's flank and rear!
"Raikage-sama?!"
The two hundred elite guards following closely beside him—all core members of Kumogakure's personal guard—were stunned for a moment, completely unable to understand why the Raikage would suddenly abandon the original objective at such a critical point, when a breakthrough was practically within reach.
But they were still Kumogakure elites. After only a brief instant of shock, they immediately turned as well without hesitation, following behind the Third Raikage like a miniature storm of thunder as they swept toward Shinichi's battlefield!
"Hehe…"
At the central command area of Konoha's defensive line, Orochimaru watched the entire scene coldly from beginning to end.
A trace of amusement flashed through his narrow golden pupils as he chuckled softly.
"It seems… our esteemed Third Raikage is absolutely determined to kill Shinichi-kun."
Almost as though speaking to himself, his voice was so low that only the few people nearest to him could vaguely hear it.
"Fair enough. After all, he's a young man with limitless potential—someone who looks unsettling no matter how you view him. Heh… though…"
His tone shifted as he calmly instructed the strategist beside him, Nara Shikaku: "Shikaku, immediately mobilize five battalions of mobile forces. Have them circle from the flanks and find a way to reinforce and extract Shinichi-kun. We can't let him die here just yet."
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama."
Shikaku answered without the slightest hesitation and immediately turned to make arrangements.
After giving the order, Orochimaru's gaze returned to the main battlefield.
There, because of the Third Raikage's sudden change in direction, the pressure on Konoha's front line had sharply decreased—but a new threat had already arrived.
In the distance, a gigantic beast the size of a mountain, with eight octopus-like tails, let out an earth-shaking roar as it began charging violently toward Konoha's camp with heavy, thunderous steps!
"What a troublesome creature."
Orochimaru extended his tongue and slowly licked across his lips, dangerous excitement gleaming in his eyes.
Turning his head slightly, he spoke to the stern-faced Uchiha Fugaku beside him: "Clan Head Fugaku, make your preparations. Come with me and welcome this rampaging beast."
Fugaku gave a slight nod, the three tomoe in his Sharingan slowly spinning.
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama."
…
The Adamantine Staff in Shinichi's hands swept across once more, brutally smashing two Kumogakure shinobi apart—bones shattered, flesh exploding everywhere.
But right at that moment, an overwhelming aura of savagery, courage, and absolute dominance locked onto him completely.
Through the distant snowstorm and smoke, lightning exploded wildly.
A blue-white figure rapidly approached at lightning speed, the air screaming with sharp sonic blasts wherever it passed, while the ground itself trembled faintly!
It felt less like a human being and more like a humanoid thunder beast carrying a natural disaster upon its back—its oppressive presence terrifying to the extreme!
"Kid! Retreat immediately! You are absolutely no match for that old monster!!!"
The anxious voice of the Monkey King rang directly from within the Adamantine Staff.
At the same time, the equally urgent voices of the Inuzuka couple sounded out: "Captain, it's the Third Raikage! He's coming straight for us!"
"Focus on your own tasks! Leave him to me!"
Shinichi issued his orders immediately, then took a deep breath, his eyes fixed firmly on the blue-white figure rapidly closing in, its overwhelming pressure crashing down like tangible thunder itself.
"Enma-senpai, behind me are my comrades! I absolutely cannot retreat!"
It just so happened that this body had inherited the Monkey clan's monstrous strength and indestructible physique.
Although it was still in the process of growing, with the enhancement of Entries like "Sword Master," "Genius," Rending Stone and Splitting Metal, and Copper Skin and Iron Bones, Shinichi estimated that the overall physical ability of this body—especially its strength and defense—was probably already comparable to the Monkey King himself.
Perfect.
This was the ideal chance to test just how powerful the Third Raikage's title of strongest spear and strongest shield truly was.
And even in the absolute worst-case scenario, if his life was genuinely in danger, he could always find an opportunity to escape using the Summoning Technique.
After all, this wasn't even his real body.
As countless thoughts flashed through his mind, Shinichi moved the instant the terrifying pressure of violent Lightning Release closed in upon him!
Not only did he refuse to retreat—he instead stepped forward violently!
The ground beneath his feet exploded apart with a thunderous boom as his figure shot forward like an arrow released from the bow, charging directly toward the unstoppable Third Raikage wrapped in endless lightning!
"Hah!"
With a furious roar, Shinichi gripped the end of the Adamantine Staff tightly with both hands, uniting waist and hips into one explosive motion as he poured both strength and chakra into the weapon.
Then, aiming directly at the berserk figure of lightning rushing toward him—
He thrust forward with a simple, unadorned strike that nevertheless carried overwhelming force behind it!
Driven by Shinichi's will, the dark golden staff suddenly expanded at explosive speed, instantly extending from just over two meters to more than twenty meters long. Carrying a fierce momentum capable of piercing through anything in its path, it shot straight toward the Third Raikage's chest!
Good brat!
Not only are you not running—you actually dare strike back at me?!
A trace of surprise flashed through the Third Raikage's eyes.
Facing the gigantic Adamantine Staff hurtling toward him hard enough to punch through a hill, he did not even entertain the thought of dodging. Instead, he drove his lightning-wreathed right fist forward with the purest and most violent straight punch imaginable, smashing directly into the incoming tip of the staff!
BOOM!!!
A deafening explosion, like two mountains colliding head-on, instantly drowned out every other sound on the battlefield!
At the exact point where fist and staff collided, a destructive vortex of tangible shockwaves and countless berserk electric arcs erupted outward violently!
The ground was gouged open into a massive crater.
The surrounding snow, shattered rocks, and even the corpses scattered farther away were blown apart and crushed by the terrifying aftershock of the collision!
Step! Step! Step!
The overwhelming force rebounded through the staff, forcing Shinichi several steps backward. Both his arms went numb, while his blood and chakra churned violently inside him.
Yet the Third Raikage on the opposite side did not move even the slightest bit, as though that mountain-splitting punch had merely been a casual swing to him.
"Hmph! Brat, not bad!"
The Third Raikage snorted coldly.
Then his right fist suddenly exerted force once again—twisting and driving forward!
A terrifyingly overbearing surge of power, like a raging tidal wave, transmitted violently through the body of the Adamantine Staff!
In that instant, Shinichi felt an unstoppable force crashing into him like monstrous surf battering a cliffside. He could no longer stabilize his footing and was forcibly shoved backward, sliding violently across the ground.
The Third Raikage pressed the advantage mercilessly. The moment he blasted Shinichi backward, the lightning around his body exploded again as he prepared to pursue immediately.
But right then—
Swish!
A golden figure suddenly appeared beside and slightly behind the Third Raikage without the slightest warning!
Holding a gigantic Rasengan, he came roaring toward him!
The Third Raikage's reaction speed was equally monstrous.
His right hand shifted instantly from a fist into an open palm, transforming into a true blade of lightning as he slashed backward toward Namikaze Minato's neck in one fluid motion!
However, the instant his lightning hand-blade cut through the air—
There was already nothing there.
Just like when he had appeared, Minato's figure vanished once again at the exact moment before the attack landed!
Damn Namikaze Minato! Damn Flying Thunder God Technique!
The Third Raikage let out a cold snort and directly crushed the Flying Thunder God kunai beneath his foot.
But that brief delay alone was enough for him to miss the best opportunity to continue pursuing Shinichi and expand his advantage.
'As expected of the man who could physically wrestle the Eight-Tails head-on and even suppress it. That kind of power really is absurdly domineering!'
Shinichi retracted the Adamantine Staff and slammed it against the ground to stabilize himself, silently thinking as he stared at the Third Raikage in the distance.
Yet at this moment, an unprecedented excitement and burning heat instead surged within him!
The blood coursing through his body boiled like molten magma. A torrential sense of power flowed endlessly through every limb and bone, as though a volcano storing limitless energy was awakening inside him, impatient to erupt with enough force to shake the heavens themselves!
The Adamantine Staff spun in his hands.
Countless crimson patterns suddenly lit up across the staff's surface, winding and flowing like veins of molten lava!
Terrifying heat surged outward, distorting even the surrounding air. Snowflakes evaporated before they could even draw near!
At that moment, Troy became the first to arrive beside the Third Raikage.
"Keep your eyes locked on the surroundings! Do not let that damned Namikaze Minato throw another kunai anywhere near here and interfere with my hunt!"
The moment the words fell—
Boom!
The ground beneath the Third Raikage exploded apart.
His entire body transformed once more into a terrifying bolt of berserk lightning as he shot toward Shinichi again!
"Come!"
A sharp light flashed through Shinichi's eyes.
Not only did he refuse to retreat—he charged forward as well!
His foot slammed into the ground as his body transformed into a crimson meteor of molten lava, crashing directly toward the incoming thunderbolt!
One blue-white.
One crimson-red.
Two figures radiating completely different colors, yet equally terrifying power and speed, charged toward one another like two stars falling in opposite directions.
Upon the snowy battlefield at the center of the war zone, the most primal, savage, and breathtaking collision imaginable was about to unfold!
BOOM!!!
A catastrophic roar erupted once more, like two mountains colliding at supersonic speed!
The surrounding air itself seemed to explode apart and shatter, blasting outward in all directions in a spherical shockwave that instantly cleared everything within several hundred meters!
The snow was completely vaporized.
The frozen earth was overturned and ripped apart, exposing the black rock beneath!
The Third Raikage's charging body abruptly halted for a moment as he stared in surprise at the young man wielding the long staff in the distance.
This brat's strength actually became even greater than before?!
The thought flashed through the Third Raikage's mind for only an instant before being replaced by even more overwhelming killing intent!
"Hmph!"
The Third Raikage let out a cold snort as the lightning around his body exploded once again. He charged forward violently, instantly appearing before Shinichi before unleashing a devastating downward whip kick!
Hell Stab: Heavy Storm Thunder Axe!
I saw it!
At the critical moment between life and death, countless streams of glass-like radiance rapidly flickered deep within Shinichi's eyes.
Just as the whip kick wrapped in berserk lightning was about to strike him—
Whoosh!
Shinichi's body shifted with an incredibly subtle sidestep, a movement refined to the absolute peak of precision, narrowly avoiding the fatal kick by the slimmest margin possible!
Then—
Plant his foot!
Raise his arm!
The Adamantine Staff, now resembling crimson molten lava, abruptly expanded again at the front end as Shinichi lifted his arm!
This time, it extended even faster than before.
At the same time, the entire staff began rotating at an extremely high speed, so rapid the motion was almost impossible to perceive with the naked eye. Carrying explosive heat and spiraling penetrating force, it shot forward like a crimson meteor capable of drilling through every obstacle in existence, striking with perfect precision toward the Third Raikage's chest and abdomen—the momentary opening created after his kick missed its target!
Bang!
At the point of impact, the layer of Lightning Armor covering the Third Raikage's body—hailed as the "strongest shield"—suddenly spread with dense blue cracks resembling a spiderweb!
"Mm?!"
The Third Raikage let out a muffled grunt.
Under the tremendous impact, even his mountain-like body was blasted backward more than twenty meters by that strike. His feet carved two deep trenches across the ground before he finally stabilized himself!
He lowered his head and glanced at the cracks rapidly disappearing from the armor over his chest.
Then he looked back up toward Shinichi, who stood in the distance gripping his staff, his momentum soaring sky-high.
The killing intent in the Third Raikage's eyes instantly climbed to its absolute peak!
"Shinichi!"
At that moment, Minato flashed beside Shinichi and spoke immediately: "The mission's already complete. I'll take you out of here."
Although Minato and Shinichi had different tactical objectives, the strategic core of their plan had always been the same:
Keep the Third Raikage—the "strongest spear"—pinned down so he could not continuously assault Konoha's defensive line at full force.
Now that the Third Raikage had been completely enraged by Shinichi and redirected all his efforts toward hunting him down, their strategic goal had already been achieved.
It was time to withdraw successfully.
Yet Shinichi slowly shook his head.
"Minato-senpai, you can take me away alone—but you can't take everyone else with us."
He looked directly at the battlefield and continued calmly: "Now that all of his attention is focused entirely on me, this is the perfect opportunity. You and my squad should use this chance to eliminate as many Kumogakure forces as possible—especially the elite troops that followed him here. If the timing is right, then find an opportunity to support me afterward."
"This…"
Minato's words caught in his throat as he instantly understood Shinichi's intention.
Using himself as bait.
Completely pinning down the Third Raikage.
Creating the perfect opportunity for the other forces to inflict massive casualties on Kumogakure's elites and weaken this core assault force to the greatest extent possible!
But that also meant placing himself in what was essentially a hopeless situation.
"…Understood. Take care."
Minato hesitated internally, but hearing the young man's calm yet unwavering tone, he ultimately nodded.
Shinichi still possessed one of his Flying Thunder God kunai.
If real danger truly arose, Minato could instantly remove him from the battlefield.
Thinking this, Minato's hands transformed into a blur of afterimages.
Dozens of specially made Flying Thunder God kunai scattered from his hands like a heavenly maiden scattering flowers, flying toward every corner of the battlefield—especially the areas where Kumogakure troops were most concentrated.
He intended to establish another network of markers in preparation for future battlefield sweeps and possible emergency support.
"Don't even think about it!"
Almost simultaneously, the fully vigilant Troy shouted sharply.
His hands rapidly formed seals as his powerful Magnet Release field expanded to full force once more!
Invisible magnetic lines spread across the air like a gigantic web, instantly covering a huge portion of the battlefield.
The Flying Thunder God kunai that had only just left Minato's hands suddenly slowed as though trapped in mud. Their flight trajectories became chaotic and distorted before they were forcibly drawn together, colliding against one another midair!
And during this brief moment in which Minato and Troy resumed their clash of markers versus anti-markers—
The Third Raikage ignored everyone else entirely.
Lightning exploded beneath his feet as his entire body transformed into a bolt of thunder even more condensed and violent than before, charging toward Shinichi once again while disregarding every obstacle in his path!
"Come!"
Shinichi's eyes turned razor-sharp.
The Adamantine Staff in his hands swept outward with overwhelming force, carrying deep rumbling winds and thunder as he attempted to block the Raikage's path of advance and force him either to collide head-on or evade.
However, the current Third Raikage clearly had no intention of meeting the attack directly.
Facing the massive incoming shadow of the staff, his charging body displayed unbelievable agility despite moving at such extreme speed.
He simply lowered his head sharply—
And the gigantic Adamantine Staff swept past just millimeters above him, carrying scorching heat in its wake!
At the same time, his long-prepared right hand shot out like lightning itself.
His five fingers curled like claws as he seized the middle section of the staff with absolute precision!
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