Though the ninja world is not without powerful psychic beasts like those of the three sacred lands, unfortunately, Akimichi Choza had never seen them, and the contrast with Mahoraga was too stark.
After all, the psychic beasts of the ninja world are all larger in size. Who would have thought that Mahoraga, a psychic monster only slightly larger than an ordinary person, would nearly crush the Third Raikage with a single blow?
At this moment—whether it was Akimichi Choza watching the battle, the victim Third Raikage A, or Locke hiding in the shadows—all were shocked by Mahoraga.
Whether based on his own impression or the memories of Megumi Fushiguro, the current Mahoraga was at least 30% stronger than the original.
Locke was certain he had absolutely no chance to strengthen Mahoraga, so the only explanation was the adaptation happening right now—
Mahoraga was adapting to chakra.
After a brief stalemate, Mahoraga delivered a powerful horizontal kick, sending the Third Raikage A flying.
The lightning around him was scattered and shattered by this immense force. His entire body hurtled backward four to five hundred meters like a shell fired from a chamber. All the dense, giant trees along the way were struck and broken, shattered and flying horizontally. Rough stones were smashed to pieces, gravel exploding, leaving a trail of dirty impact marks.
A twisted his body in mid-air to stabilize his figure, barely adjusting his posture. The wound left by the Shadow Secret suddenly flared with sharp pain—a strong secondary backlash.
At this moment, he couldn't understand why these seemingly soft blows could inflict damage on him, who was known as the strongest shield.
Before he could land and stand firm, Mahoraga had already burst through the smoke and dust in the sky, charging toward him, wrapped in destructive wind.
The bloodthirsty nature of the Third Raikage fully ignited. Fiery rage blazed in his eyes. Three fingers clenched with blue electric light, and he roared at the oncoming opponent:
"Hell Stab: Three-Pronged Assault!!"
Lightning tore through his fingertips, hissing thunder ripping through the air. A deafening roar echoed through the forest. A transformed into a sharp bolt of lightning and immediately crashed down, colliding with Mahoraga!
The thunderous noise shook the entire mountain and forest. Shockwaves uprooted the surrounding grass and trees. Smoke and dust rose into the sky, instantly completely obscuring the entire forest. Even the sky was fully hidden.
The wind, wrapped in dust, scattered. Akimichi Choza raised a hand to shield his face for a moment until the smoke fully cleared. He looked at the battlefield again, only to see Mahoraga pierced through the heart by A's absolute spear, while A was also pierced through by Mahoraga's left palm.
Logically, this blow would have been enough to kill an ordinary person, but unfortunately, Mahoraga was a shikigami and had no heart. A quickly noticed this as well. After pulling out his right hand, his left hand endured the sharp pain, grabbed Mahoraga's demon-sealing sword, and delivered another attack.
"Hell Stab: Two-Pronged Assault!!"
With this blow, A aimed directly at Mahoraga's head. But unfortunately, the speed of an uncharged strike was not as fast as before, and Mahoraga dodged and countered with a strike.
After being knocked back another dozen meters, the Third Raikage A spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with teeth, wiped the blood from his forehead, his eyes full of admiration.
After this exchange, A fully understood the source of the sharp pain caused by Locke's previous blow.
In addition to physical pain, the more obvious was the mental damage, affecting his spirit, causing his body and chakra flow to stagnate, preventing him from exerting his full strength.
Looking at Mahoraga slowly moving in the distance, the Third Raikage A quickly made a hand seal too fast for the naked eye to track, then aimed at the penetrating wound on his left palm and performed a ninjutsu.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Strike."
Scorching lightning quickly helped him stop the bleeding. The familiar pain rapidly replaced the rotting pain in his heart. He overloaded his lightning-release chakra once again, determined to mask the rotting pain caused by the Shadow Secret with familiar pain.
Taking a deep breath, A cast aside all distracting thoughts in his mind and began to analyze his current situation.
Though he had started poorly, he had already tested the true strength of the monster named Mahoraga before him.
Although it seemed very fast at first, it was still far behind him at full speed. If it weren't for trying to use the power of its attacks, it wouldn't have been able to hit him.
And now, it seemed the previous blow hadn't caused him serious damage. The most important thing was the blade in its right hand—if he dodged a bit, he wouldn't be afraid of it at all.
However, seeing the healed wound on the right side of Mahoraga's heart, A furrowed his brow again, secretly adding to his heart the vitality that couldn't be underestimated.
His breathing steady, the Third Raikage A looked at the scorched black blood crusts clenched between his palms, his knuckles slightly tightening. He stepped toward Mahoraga, his deep voice slowly echoing through the forest, his words firm:
"You are indeed very strong. But I am the Third Raikage. I carry the hopes of the entire Kumogakure village. I promised them I would reclaim everything that belongs to us in this war."
His words paused. The surrounding air suddenly compressed. Mahoraga and A both lowered and raised their steps simultaneously. Their bodies suddenly accelerated, two figures charging toward each other. A's eyes filled with a determined fighting spirit that burned everything. He roared, his voice shaking the mountains and forests:
"So what... I will engrave here the name of the Third Raikage, A! Engrave the name of the strongest!"
In the next instant, the thunder shaking the heavens suddenly tore through the sky, and the world plunged into darkness.
Mahoraga's massive body crashed to the ground with a thunderous boom, tearing a horrific hundred-meter-long trench. Smoke, dust, gravel, and wood debris rose endlessly.
And A, at full power, gave it no chance to catch its breath. His figure instantly turned into a lightning afterimage, appearing behind it in an instant and sending it flying with a heavy fist.
Thunder in the forest intertwined into a dense net. Lightning afterimages flashed one after another. Mahoraga was like a leather ball, repeatedly struck by A's swift fists and feet, unable to break free.
A teleported with tremendous lightning speed. Every time he appeared, he delivered a thunderous blow. At an incredible speed, he continuously knocked Mahoraga into the air, preventing it from landing. His offense was flawless, crushing and suppressing throughout.
But he paid no attention to his own body, which was being wounded one after another. Though his wounds deepened, red droplets of blood soaking his pale skin, Mahoraga's body was quietly transforming.
Its body slowly expanded, its muscles becoming harder like iron. Even its outlines gradually took on a streamlined form suited to airflow. The impact force of each blow became nourishment for its growth.
The Third Raikage A, having pushed past his own limits, stepped on the ground and charged at full speed. Looking at Mahoraga about to crash to the ground, he shouted loudly:
"Final blow! End you!"
"Hell Stab: One-Pronged Assault!!"
All the lightning-release chakra around him condensed into a single finger. The ultimate destructive power, annihilating the world with the smallest contact area—this was the famous technique of the so-called "strongest spear" of A, now showing its edge without reservation.
The raging lightning, wrapped in world-shaking inertia, was about to touch Mahoraga when the wheel of dharma above its head quietly hummed at that moment, silently rotating half a turn.
Click~
Locke, hiding in the shadows, also smiled at this moment because he knew.
Mahoraga's adaptation was complete.