Chapter 352: All-Out Melee

Chapter 352: Chapter 352: All-Out Melee

After casually snapping the neck of a Kumo ANBU who had advanced ahead to scout, Hiruko—his entire body wrapped in bandages—curled the corner of his lips into a sinister smile.

Combined with the crimson three-tomoe Sharingan gleaming in his eye sockets, the sight gave him an indescribably eerie appearance.

Holding the dead Kumo ANBU’s corpse in one hand, Hiruko slowly walked toward the main Kumo force, laughing mockingly as he went.

"Tsk, tsk. Are you really that eager to come knocking on death’s door?"

The hot-tempered Fourth Raikage immediately roared, "You damn bastard!"

Thud...

Hiruko casually tossed the corpse aside as though throwing away a piece of trash, then chuckled.

"Heh. Looks like my collection is about to gain the head of a Raikage."

The surrounding Kumo shinobi immediately erupted into furious curses, yet not a single one recklessly rushed forward.

There was no doubt that as time passed, Hiruko had grown increasingly proficient at wielding the five Kekkei Genkai fused into his body.

And naturally, that growing mastery had brought with it tremendous confidence—as well as the imposing presence born from that confidence.

Looking at Hiruko standing alone in the path of the entire Kumogakure force, Killer B wore a rare expression of seriousness. Leaning closer to the Fourth Raikage, he lowered his voice and said,

"There are still a few minutes before the scheduled time for the surprise attack. What do we do now?"

Killing intent radiating from his entire body, the Fourth Raikage glared furiously at Hiruko and instructed Killer B, "The Akatsuki are already prepared for us. We can’t afford to delay any longer. Launch the attack immediately! You lead the main force into Amegakure first. Once I kill this Konoha rogue ninja, I’ll join up with you right away!"

Killer B nodded, then ordered the Kumo ANBU beside him, "Begin!"

Receiving Killer B’s command, the Kumo ANBU immediately took out a signal flare and fired it into the sky.

Whoosh...

Boom...

In an instant, a brilliant burst of fire appeared against the gloomy skies of the Land of Rain.

This signal flare was the designated signal for the surprise attack to officially begin. The moment it was fired, it meant that the Kumo’s assault had formally commenced!

After firing the signal flare to notify Konoha and Sunagakure, Killer B immediately led the main Kumo force around Hiruko and charged toward Amegakure, which lay not far ahead.

Watching the Kumo shinobi stream past him, Hiruko merely wore a faint smile.

Whoosh...

Suddenly, accompanied by an ear-piercing shriek of displaced air, a dazzling streak of blue lightning flashed directly in front of Hiruko.

"Die!"

That lightning-fast streak of blue was naturally the hot-tempered Fourth Raikage.

After activating his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, he roared and launched himself at Hiruko.

In the blink of an eye, the Raikage’s fist, crackling with brilliant lightning, slammed directly into Hiruko!

However, the expected sight of flesh and blood exploding apart never came.

The Raikage’s body suddenly froze. Whipping his head around, he discovered that what his fist had struck was nothing more than an insubstantial afterimage.

At that moment, Hiruko’s figure appeared where the Raikage had previously been standing, the smile on his face growing even wider.

"Not bad speed. Your perception is a little lacking, though."

The Raikage’s expression darkened.

"Swift Release!?"

Since Swift Release had no stable shinobi clan through which it was consistently inherited and only appeared occasionally throughout the shinobi world, even someone as experienced as the Raikage had merely heard of it and had never actually fought against a user before.

"That’s right. This is Swift Release—the fastest Kekkei Genkai in the shinobi world!" Hiruko smiled before continuing mockingly, "Your Lightning Release Chakra Mode isn’t slow either. Unfortunately, you’re missing a pair of Sharingan. In a contest between speeds at this level, can those ordinary eyes of yours even keep track of me?"

The Raikage roared furiously, "Arrogant bastard! Looks like it’s time I taught you the difference between a shinobi who bears the title of Kage and small fry like you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the lightning surrounding the Raikage became even more violent.

Under the surge of immense Lightning Release chakra—an amount no weaker than that of a Tailed Beast—even his hair stood straight on end.

"Liger Bomb!"

With a furious roar, the Raikage charged at Hiruko once again.

Only this time—

his body arrived first.

The sound of his roar followed afterward.

BOOM!

The Raikage’s sudden burst of speed caught Hiruko completely off guard. Amid an explosive thunderclap and a violent shockwave, Hiruko was brutally blasted away!

The Raikage couldn’t even be bothered to step forward and check on him. With a cold snort, he deactivated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode.

Even with the Fourth Raikage’s extraordinary physique, maintaining the Lightning Release Chakra Mode for an extended period placed an enormous burden on his body.

Besides, he would soon have to face the leader of the Akatsuki—the terrifying shinobi rumored to possess the Rinnegan.

Naturally, he needed to conserve as much chakra as possible.

As for Hiruko, the Raikage was absolutely convinced that the man had to be dead.

After all, no one had ever taken his Liger Bomb head-on and survived.

Not once!

Just as the Raikage turned around and prepared to catch up with the Kumogakure force ahead, he suddenly felt a sharp stab of pain in his lower back!

Immediately afterward, Hiruko’s furious voice came from behind him.

"I’m not dead yet! Where the hell do you think you’re going, bastard!?"

The Raikage spun around and threw a punch, forcing the ambushing Hiruko back.

He then glanced down at the wound on his waist. Although it wasn’t large, the bleeding refused to stop, and the blood flowing from it had taken on an unnatural grayish-black color.

Realizing that Hiruko had used poison during his sneak attack, the Raikage reactivated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode while pulling a bottle of antidote from his ninja pouch.

Across from him, Hiruko was breathing heavily.

At this moment, a large section of his chest had caved inward, making it clear just how much damage the Raikage’s earlier Liger Bomb had inflicted upon him.

However, as the muscles beneath his bandages gradually contracted and bulged, the caved-in portion of his chest slowly returned to normal.

"Peh..."

Spitting out a mouthful of bloody saliva, Hiruko snarled viciously,

"I’ve changed my mind. I’m going to turn your entire body into a specimen!"

After drinking the antidote, the Raikage said, "You’re the first person who’s ever survived one of my Liger Bombs. Looks like you really aren’t human anymore!"

With his calm and composed facade torn away, Hiruko finally revealed the madness at his core.

He growled,

"You insects could never understand! What I possess is a true immortal body!"

With both powerful shinobi’s fighting spirits blazing, the two quickly collided once again in a furious battle.

In an instant, amid the curtain of rain, two unbelievably fast blurs—one blue and one gray—became entangled in a furious clash.

Wherever they passed, thunderous explosions erupted and the earth itself trembled!

In terms of pure speed, Swift Release and the Lightning Release Chakra Mode were roughly evenly matched.

However, the Raikage’s Lightning Release Chakra Mode didn’t merely enhance his speed—it also comprehensively increased his defensive capabilities. While in Lightning Release Chakra Mode, the vast majority of taijutsu, ninjutsu, and even genjutsu were virtually ineffective against him.

The Third Raikage had once relied on his overwhelming Lightning Release Chakra Mode to single-handedly hold off an army of nearly ten thousand Iwa shinobi, successfully covering the retreat of the Kumo forces.

Although the Third Raikage ultimately died from exhaustion, that feat alone was enough to demonstrate just how formidable the Lightning Release Chakra Mode truly was.

But this time, the Raikage’s opponent possessed far more than just Swift Release.

Hiruko also possessed the immensely defensive Steel Release, along with the Sharingan and its extraordinary powers of perception.

On top of that, he had Dark Release, which could absorb chakra, as well as Storm Release, whose chakra nature transformation stood above ordinary Lightning Release.

With all of these abilities combined, Hiruko was more than capable of confronting the Raikage’s Lightning Release Chakra Mode head-on!

......

Konoha Force.

Looking at the fiery signal flare shining in the distant sky, a Konoha ANBU reported to the Third Hokage,

"Lord Hokage, Kumogakure has begun their surprise attack!"

The Third Hokage frowned.

The agreed-upon time for the attack had not yet arrived, yet the Kumo had already fired their signal flare ahead of schedule.

Without a doubt, something unexpected had happened on their side.

"As expected, the Akatsuki were prepared!"

After thinking this, the Third Hokage turned his gaze toward Sunagakure’s position.

At the moment, there was no movement whatsoever from the Suna.

He couldn’t tell whether they had yet to reach their assigned position, or whether they were already in place and simply waiting for the agreed-upon time to launch the attack.

After weighing the situation for a moment, the Third Hokage ordered the ANBU beside him,

"Fire the signal flare. Begin the surprise attack!"

"Yes!"

After responding without hesitation, the ANBU pulled out a signal flare.

But at that very moment, a distorted vortex suddenly appeared behind him and yanked the ANBU—who had been just about to fire the signal flare—straight into it!

"Stop!"

"Enemy attack!"

"Watch out!"

The sudden assault immediately sent cries of alarm through the Konoha force.

The Third Hokage reacted the fastest, instantly hurling several shuriken at the attacker.

However, having completed his ambush, Obito simply turned himself intangible, allowing the shuriken to pass harmlessly through the phantom-like image of his body.

The Third Hokage’s gaze sharpened.

"It’s you!? You’re the one who kidnapped Naruto before, aren’t you?"

Obito’s ability to turn himself intangible was simply too distinctive to forget.

After the previous incident, Team 11 had given the Third Hokage a detailed report on what had happened. Thus, with just a single glance, the Third Hokage recognized Obito as the mysterious man who had previously abducted Naruto.

Standing calmly in the middle of the Konoha force, Obito showed not the slightest trace of nervousness despite being completely surrounded.

He said indifferently,

"Lord Hokage, you’re already so old. Why don’t you obediently stay in the village and enjoy your retirement?"

The Third Hokage smiled.

"How could an old man like me retire in peace before dealing with ambitious schemers like you who lurk in the shadows?"

Obito’s tone grew even colder.

"Your era ended long ago. No one can stop the transformation that is about to sweep across the shinobi world!"

"The transformation you’re talking about—is that what you call repeatedly attacking Konoha?"

The Third Hokage’s expression darkened, his face turning solemn.

"As Hokage, I will never allow anyone to threaten Konoha!"

Obito shrugged.

"Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can stop."

The Third Hokage bit his finger and shouted,

"Summoning Technique: Monkey King Enma!"

Poof...

After a burst of white smoke, an old ape appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Enma glanced at Obito, who was completely surrounded by Konoha ANBU, and asked,

"Hiruzen, is this kid in the one-eyed mask the enemy?"

The Third Hokage nodded solemnly.

"He possesses an extremely strange space-time ninjutsu. He’s difficult to deal with!"

"What the hell is happening to the shinobi world lately? Why do monsters keep popping up one after another?"

After muttering under his breath, Enma transformed into the Adamantine Staff and flew into the Third Hokage’s hands.

Looking at the Third Hokage wielding the Adamantine Staff, the expression beneath Obito’s mask grew slightly more cautious.

But only slightly.

Within Konoha, there had only ever been one person Obito was truly wary of—

the Fourth Hokage.

That was precisely why he had gone to such lengths to eliminate the Fourth, even taking advantage of Kushina’s weakest moment to do so.

As for Konoha’s other shinobi, Obito didn’t particularly care about any of them.

Even the Third Hokage, whose reputation far surpassed that of the Fourth, wasn’t someone Obito considered much of a threat.

After all, only space-time ninjutsu could effectively counter space-time ninjutsu, and the Third Hokage wasn’t proficient in that field. Thus, the threat he posed to Obito was limited.

Not to mention that the Third was already old, and his combat strength had long since fallen from its peak.

......

"Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique!"

Accompanied by a thunderous shout, an overwhelming torrent of water surged toward the Sunagakure force as they raced through the pouring rain!

At the very front of the formation, the Fourth Kazekage immediately came to a halt and slammed both hands onto the ground.

A mass of gold dust erupted from the earth, forming a massive wall of sand that shielded the entire Sunagakure force behind it.

Once the torrent had receded, the Kazekage lowered the sand wall and stared at the four Kirigakure shinobi standing opposite them.

"What exactly is Kirigakure trying to do? This is a joint operation between Sunagakure, Konohagakure, and Kumogakure. Does Kirigakure intend to declare war on all three villages at once?"

Fuguki Suikazan rested Samehada across his shoulder and replied,

"My apologies. We’ve simply been hired by Amegakure to help them repel foreign invaders!"

"Foreign invaders!?" The Kazekage sneered. "Hanzo has been dead for years. Amegakure was taken over by the Akatsuki long ago. This operation is aimed at the Akatsuki!"

Fuguki Suikazan couldn’t be bothered arguing with the Kazekage. He simply swung Samehada horizontally in front of him.

"I don’t know anything about the Akatsuki. I only know the mission we were hired to complete. No one is allowed to pass through here!"

A Suna ANBU shouted angrily,

"Watch who you’re talking to! How dare you speak to Lord Kazekage like that! Such arrogance!"

Zabuza snorted coldly.

"Sunagakure is nothing but Konoha’s lapdog!"

Anger flashed across the Kazekage’s face. He glanced at Chiyo and Pakura beside him, considered the situation for a moment, then ordered,

"Elder Chiyo, you lead the force and continue forward. I’ll deal with these Kiri shinobi myself."

Neither Chiyo, as a puppet master, nor Pakura, with her Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai, was particularly suited to dealing with a Kiri squad that included the Six-Tails’ jinchūriki.

Thus, the Kazekage had no choice but to personally handle them.

Chiyo nodded.

The surprise attack was about to begin, and every second mattered. Having the entire Suna force waste time here fighting a handful of Kiri shinobi would clearly be unwise.

So Chiyo led the Suna force around the Kiri squad and continued advancing toward Amegakure.

Seeing this, Fuguki Suikazan instructed Kisame and Zabuza beside him,

"You two go hold up the Sunagakure force. Utakata and I are more than enough to deal with the Kazekage!"

Zabuza grinned and immediately broke away from the squad, chasing after the Suna force.

Kisame glanced at the Kazekage opposite them but said nothing. He simply followed after Zabuza.

On Sunagakure’s side, Chiyo frowned when she saw two members of the Kiri squad pursuing them.

Just as Chiyo was considering how to respond, Pakura, captain of the Suna ANBU, said,

"I’ll deal with them!"

There was no better candidate, so Chiyo could only nod.

"All right. But judging by their appearance, they’re both Water Style users. Be careful. Water Release has an especially strong advantage over your Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai."

Pakura acknowledged her warning, then took a small squad and separated from the main Sunagakure force, moving to intercept the pursuing Zabuza and Kisame.

After splitting their forces twice in succession, the Suna’s overall combat strength had already been severely weakened.

But Chiyo did not stop advancing.

After all, Konoha and Kumogakure were also participating in this surprise attack. Even if only for the sake of Sunagakure’s pride, she had to lead her forces in launching their assault on Amegakure according to schedule.

Otherwise, if the entire Suna force were held back by just a handful of Kiri shinobi and ended up missing the timing of the surprise attack, Sunagakure would truly become a laughingstock throughout the shinobi world.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

But at that moment, two figures descended from the sky and landed directly in front of the Suna force.

Both wore the Akatsuki’s black cloaks patterned with red clouds.

One of them was none other than Chiyo’s grandson—

Sasori.

And the other was the rogue ninja from Takigakure mentioned in their intelligence—

Kakuzu.

With one hand resting on his hip, Sasori said,

"Granny, you shouldn’t have come here!"