"Nice one!"
On the edge of the canyon, the spectating Jiraiya couldn't help but praise them. "Minato placed Flying Thunder God formulas on both Nawaki and Fugaku beforehand. He perfectly seized the moment when Nawaki clashed with Kaito to bring Fugaku to Kaito's side and land a successful blow."
"With teammates, Minato's effectiveness is multiplied by more than ten. His offensive options no longer rely solely on the Rasengan."
"Yes, indeed," Tsunade nodded in agreement.
But she was curious about the black chakra covering Fugaku. "What's that giant of Fugaku's? Is it a Sharingan ability?"
Jiraiya didn't know, but Orochimaru answered her question. "I've seen a similar description in the Second Hokage's writings. It's the ultimate ability of the Mangekyō Sharingan, which evolves from the normal Sharingan—the Susanoo. From the looks of it now, it is indeed extraordinary. The Sharingan is truly a peculiar thing."
An expression of extreme interest appeared on Orochimaru's face. He stuck out his long tongue and licked the corner of his mouth, as if he had just seen an extremely delicious meal.
"Mangekyō Sharingan?" Jiraiya and Tsunade both marveled. "The Uchiha clan is truly formidable."
While they were talking, the situation on the field changed again.
"Minato, Fugaku, you guys did great!"
Nawaki had already deactivated his Sage Mode. Rubbing his sore arm, he walked over to Minato's side. "Did we succeed?"
Minato gave a wry smile. "If only it were that simple..."
"Be careful. His presence hasn't weakened at all. It seems my attack didn't hit him," Fugaku said in a low voice.
"Right. I need to re-enter Sage Mode. Buy me some time," Nawaki said, closing his eyes and beginning to absorb natural energy.
"Got it!" Minato and Fugaku nodded.
Protected within the Susanoo, which served as both offense and defense, Fugaku stood at the forefront without hesitation, warily watching the dust-covered area ahead.
The next second, the dust was pierced by hundreds of Aura Spheres and dissipated completely, revealing Kaito's excited face.
"You actually used the Susanoo? Fugaku Uchiha, you've really given me a big surprise. As a return gift, let me give you a surprise as well."
Kaito raised his hands, controlling the Aura Spheres to fly rapidly in all directions, and laughed loudly. "Shatter, Aura Spheres!"
"Not good, there are too many of them! I can't teleport them all away." Seeing the incoming Aura Spheres, Minato made a decisive call. "Fugaku, let's retreat first!"
"Right!" Fugaku deactivated his Susanoo, and he and Nawaki were grabbed by the arm by Minato, who used the Flying Thunder God Technique to dodge.
At the start of the match, he had already distributed his marked kunai to various locations in the canyon.
After they left, the Aura Spheres landed on the ground one after another, creating huge explosions, but they didn't harm them in the slightest.
The others were not so lucky. This wave of attacks cleared out more than half of the remaining contestants. Those who were fortunate enough not to die were rescued by the Third Hokage and Tsunade, but they had also lost their eligibility to compete.
The Third Raikage shattered an incoming Aura Sphere with a single punch; the resulting explosion couldn't break through the Lightning Release Armor on his body.
He looked at Kaito, who was laughing in the middle of the field, and said to the Cloud Village elites gathered around him, "It's our turn. Take him down!"
With that, he took the lead and charged out.
"Yes, sir!"
A's body also lit up with the glow of Lightning Release Armor, and he followed his father. The still-young Killer B followed close behind.
Then came the Eight-Tails jinchuriki, Killer B's predecessor, covered in a thick layer of Tailed Beast chakra. He had already lost his human form, his original appearance unrecognizable, but his consciousness was still clear.
The four of them, carrying an immense presence, charged towards Kaito, who nodded in excitement. "I've been waiting for you."
Kaito clenched his fists, and golden lightning erupted from his entire body. He, too, donned a suit of lightning armor, but the patterns on this armor were much clearer than the Third Raikage's, as if it were real armor.
"Let's see whose lightning is stronger."
"Good, then bring it on!" The Third Raikage felt no fear in his heart. His confidence came from years of victorious campaigns.
"I am the strongest in the shinobi world!"
Blue lightning and golden lightning collided, erupting in an even more intense current.
The blinding light made the spectators instinctively close their eyes.
CRACK-BOOM!
As if because of them, a clap of thunder suddenly rang out from the clear sky.
The golden lightning spread to the Third Raikage's body, making a crackling sound. His Lightning Release Armor dimmed considerably, and his presence suddenly dropped to a low point.
The Third Raikage had charged in fast, but he retreated even faster, a look of disbelief on his face. "Impossible! I actually lost!"
"Hmph. Is that all you've got?" Kaito said with disdain.
At that moment, A attacked from the side, shouting, "Killer B!"
"Here!" Killer B responded from the other side.
The two of them, accelerated by their Lightning Release, bent their elbows and charged violently towards Kaito. "Taste our Double Lariat!"
However, the move that had been invincible in the Great Ninja War tasted failure.
Kaito's hands were like iron clamps, grabbing A's and Killer B's arms respectively.
Under their disbelieving gazes, Kaito sneered, "Your speed and power are a complete mess."
With that, he brought his hands together, smashing A and Killer B into each other.
Then he let go, his fists shooting out like bullets, creating sharp sonic booms. "Mach Punch!"
The Lightning Release Armor shattered on impact. The two of them spat out large mouthfuls of blood and were sent flying into the distance.
"A! Killer B!" With the two of them buying him time, the Third Raikage regrouped and charged forward again.
He no longer cared about his sons' safety. The primary goal now was to defeat Kaito!
The Eight-Tails jinchuriki attacked at the same time. From the rear, he formed a massive Tailed Beast Bomb.
The moment the Third Raikage was knocked back again, he unhesitatingly fired the Tailed Beast Bomb.
In an instant, the sky changed color.
A massive sphere of Tailed Beast chakra energy shot through the canyon, arriving before Kaito.
Wherever it passed, the ground crumbled like tofu.
Faced with this terrifying attack, Kaito's expression turned a little more serious.
He mobilized the power of his plates, overlapped his hands to form the shape of a tiger's mouth, aimed at the Tailed Beast Bomb, and forcefully pushed his hands forward. "Aura Blast: Ultimate Tiger Fang!"
He blasted out a huge shockwave, condensing all his energy. On its way, it took the form of a fierce tiger, which opened its mouth wide and bit down on the incoming Tailed Beast Bomb.
BOOM!
The two powerful moves collided, pressing against each other before exploding violently, kicking up an endless shockwave.
In the midst of the blast, Kaito, instead of retreating, advanced. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the Eight-Tails jinchuriki and brought his fist down.