At the same moment that the Thunder Release ninjutsu was unleashed, another of the masked monsters on Kakuzu's back—this one shaped like a demonic bird—let out a furious screech and expelled a massive, blistering fireball.
The oppressive heat warped the air, threatening to incinerate everything in its path. Amplified by the Wind Release technique from another mask, the Fire Release technique instantly expanded its range and destructive power severalfold.
In mere seconds, the battlefield was engulfed in a hellish inferno. Red flames swept forward like a tidal wave, devouring everything and engulfing the road that led toward Konoha.
The scale of the combined ninjutsu was enough to shake the earth. The overwhelming momentum of the three elements—lightning, wind, and fire—sent shockwaves across the entire field.
Even off to the side, where thousands of exchanges had passed between Hidan and Tsunade without a clear victor, both combatants instinctively paused. For a moment, their attention was drawn by the apocalyptic scene unfolding nearby.
"Hahaha! Those junk hearts of Kakuzu—two of them got blown apart!"
Hidan laughed maniacally, his voice filled with twisted glee. "Didn't think I'd see the day he was pushed this far. It's killing me! Serves him right!"
Despite his partner being cornered, Hidan showed no hint of concern. On the contrary, he seemed thoroughly entertained by Kakuzu's misfortune.
"Hmph! Don't laugh too soon. You'll be the next to fall!"
Tsunade's amber eyes narrowed. A glint of battle-hardened pride burned in her gaze. She raised her modified longbow, powered by chakra strings, and released another green arrow infused with medical-grade chakra.
The arrow whooshed toward Hidan with a shrill whistle.
"Tch—damn woman's still at it!"
Hidan hastily brought up his triple-bladed scythe to deflect the arrow. Their earlier clashes had taught him to be wary of her ranged attacks, especially since they were precise, unpredictable, and laced with chakra that disrupted his ability to regenerate.
Unable to draw blood from her despite prolonged combat, his ritual of Jashin was stalled. That alone frustrated him more than anything.
"Damn this cursed bow!" he snarled. "If not for that thing, I'd have already sacrificed your loudmouth to Lord Jashin!"
Tsunade didn't waste breath trading words. With a sharp gesture, she urged Katsuyu forward. The giant slug surged across the scorched earth, and Tsunade, using it as a mount, leapt toward Hidan again.
Their weapons clashed as the battle resumed, locked in a brutal deadlock without a victor in sight.
---
Three ninjutsu—each above B-rank—were unleashed in concert:
The Wind Release: Pressure Damage amplified the flame,
The Fire Release: Searing Migraine became a conflagration,
And the Lightning Release: False Darkness rained down from above like divine wrath.
Each jutsu on its own was enough to kill a standard jonin in an instant. Combined, their power was monstrous.
Kakuzu, drawing upon his multiple chakra natures, released them all at once.
Wind, fire, and lightning converged into a destructive trinity. Their chakras merged in the air, creating a compound technique of devastating scale and lethality.
The battlefield became a field of fire.
The sky crackled with streaking arcs of blue and white lightning, each strike carving craters into the blackened ground.
It was an S-rank composite ninjutsu: "Elemental Chaos – Flame Thunder Cataclysm."
Kakuzu had once used this very technique to kill a renowned Hidden Waterfall village elder—a shinobi with strength on par with a Kage.
Now, he cast it upon Tian Yu without hesitation.
Thunder boomed overhead. Fire roared like a beast unchained. Wind howled across the terrain like death's whisper.
The collision of elements became a twisted symphony, an orchestral masterpiece of destruction that consumed the heavens and earth.
The impact illuminated the world like a second sun.
For a breathless moment, silence fell. No screams. No clash. Only the sheer roar of the elements.
Watching from afar, the five hidden observers—Sunflower, Ao, Haidao, the Konoha reconnaissance shinobi, and Shizune—were dumbstruck.
Only now did they truly understand why Captain Tian Yu had ordered them to stay back.
Under such an overwhelming attack, even elite jonin wouldn't survive a single exchange.
Their minds echoed with a single word: Hell.
Not the metaphorical one.
But the real one. The one found in ancient legends.
Mountains of blades. Oceans of fire. Thunder raining from the skies.
Their hearts trembled.
Especially Ao and Haidao—now realizing the red clouds on black cloaks belonged to the same organization behind the casino incident—began sweating cold bullets.
Their backs froze with fear.
Thank god...
Thank god they didn't meet these two monsters that night in the casino.
Thank god Captain Tian Yu was the one who took over the operation.
They no longer questioned his decisions.
They simply felt relieved to be alive.
---
Breath of Water – Twelfth Form: Eternal Current
Tian Yu stood tall, his Sun Wheel Blade humming faintly. Azure chakra rippled from his body in smooth, gentle waves—like a river flowing around him.
The blade shimmered with moisture, and as he stepped forward, the water breathed with him.
Then, his sword moved.
"Breath of Water – Twelfth Form: Eternal Current!"
The blade danced. Once. Twice. Three times.
Ten. Eleven. Twelve strokes.
Each one traced a crescent arc in the air, not striking, but flowing—like droplets returning to the sea.
His eyes lifted toward the cascading wall of destruction that hurtled toward him.
Fire like lava.
Lightning like divine punishment.
Wind like a blade storm.
Tian Yu smiled.
So what if it's high-level ninjutsu?
You're not the only one who can break the sky.
His sword wasn't made to destroy. It was made to flow, to adapt.
The Twelfth Form—Eternal Current—was the ultimate defensive kata of the Water Breathing style. A technique that even the Ghost Slayer world had yet to perfect.
But Tian Yu had mastered it.
Created it.
And now, as the inferno reached him—
He stood firm.
---
On the charred battlefield,
Kakuzu exhaled hard, his chest heaving. The release of three high-level jutsu in rapid succession had consumed a massive portion of his chakra.
But it was worth it.
No one had ever survived that attack.
Not even Kage-level enemies.
Even this kid, with all his tricks—hammers, chakra gloves, enchanted shields—he couldn't have made it through this unscathed.
Two of Kakuzu's hearts had already been destroyed. He couldn't afford to hold back.
And with this final move, surely—surely—there would be nothing left.
But…
Keng—
A sound, quiet and light. Not an explosion. Not a crash.
Like steel gliding across silk.
If anyone had seen the technique Tian Yu now displayed, they would've been struck speechless.
Sword after sword.
Blue ripples circled around him like floating music notes.
Or like river ribbons wrapping the air.
Spinning. Rotating. Deflecting.
Not flashy.
But incredibly precise.
And with each spiral, the fire weakened.
The lightning fizzled.
The wind faded.
Tian Yu, blade in hand, stood at the center of a perfect storm—
And dismantled it without a sound.
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