289. Fight! Fight! Fight!

A gust of wind swept through, lightly stirring the dust on the ground and carrying with it an indescribable stench of blood. The entire battlefield fell into a deathly silence.

The Cloud ninjas, who had been filled with rage and shouting for Danzo's blood just moments ago, were now reduced to uniformly sliced pieces in an instant, their remains scattered across the ground like worthless scraps of meat.

Crimson blood pooled into a small, foul-smelling stream, and Danzo stood amidst the carnage, his feet planted on the ground, which had been cut into neat squares.

"It seems the effect is quite satisfactory," Danzo remarked, his face showing no emotion despite the massacre.

After all, he had killed far more people than this in his lifetime. Instead, a hint of... satisfaction flickered in his eyes.

This satisfaction stemmed from his mastery over his newfound power.

After successfully acquiring Minato's S-rank space-time talent, Danzo had gained a deeper understanding of the two ocular abilities contained within his eyes.

This time, when he activated his ocular technique, he didn't recklessly obliterate everything within a radius of dozens of meters like he had the first time.

Instead, he precisely controlled the density of the slashes while expanding their range, ensuring that everyone within the area was killed.

The results proved Danzo's decision to be correct.

If he hadn't reduced the density and increased the range, he might not have been able to create such a shocking scene—killing hundreds of elite Cloud ninjas in a single move!

Such a feat was unimaginable, even for the Third Raikage, who had witnessed it firsthand. It left him utterly stunned, his scalp tingling with disbelief.

But after the initial shock, an overwhelming rage surged within him.

Seeing the dismembered limbs and corpses around Danzo, the Third Raikage's anger reached its peak.

Furious lightning chakra surged around his body, its speed increasing rapidly as dazzling arcs of electricity lit up the battlefield.

"Shimura Danzo, you deserve to die!!" the Third Raikage roared with murderous intent. He had trained for so long, all for the sake of avenging his previous defeat.


Yet, before he could even make a move, hundreds of his elite ninjas had been slaughtered by Danzo in an instant.

Who could endure such a thing?

Driven by this intense fury, the Third Raikage entered his full-power state—the upgraded version of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode: the Strongest Lightning Release Armor!

As this state activated, his hair stood on end like a porcupine's spines.

Thunderbolts erupted from his body, piercing the ground and air, spreading out like thick serpents of lightning with crackling sounds.

Facing the enraged Third Raikage, Danzo remained calm.

"If you choose to attack me, you must be prepared for death," he said slowly, his hand gently resting on the hilt of his sword. "Those earlier fools weren't even worthy of drawing my blade. I hope you, the Third Raikage, can give me a bit of a challenge. Don't die too quickly."

Danzo's arrogant words only fueled the Third Raikage's already burning rage. He couldn't hold back any longer.

"Then let me see why you're so arrogant, Danzo!" The Third Raikage's feet sank into the ground as he transformed into a blinding streak of lightning, crossing the entire battlefield in an instant and appearing above Danzo.

"Thunder... Axe!!" he bellowed, lifting a leg wrapped in surging lightning high into the air before bringing it down like a thunderous axe aimed directly at Danzo's head.

Danzo tilted his head slightly, and a massive surge of chakra erupted from his body.

A white skeletal giant quickly enveloped him, its raised arm blocking the Third Raikage's attack.

"Boom!!" An unimaginable collision occurred between the lightning and the skeletal arm.

Under the Third Raikage's full-power strike, even the Susanoo, known as the "Absolute Defense," showed faint cracks.

However, that was as far as it went. Shattering a second-stage Susanoo was still a difficult task.

Seeing this, Danzo had no intention of standing still and taking hits. He drew his sword, and a brilliant pale sword aura shot out from the blade, racing toward the Third Raikage.

Having witnessed Danzo's earlier move of killing hundreds of Cloud ninjas in one strike, the Third Raikage chose not to take this attack head-on. Instead, he kicked off the white skeletal arm of the Susanoo and retreated at incredible speed.

Unfortunately for him, Danzo's Mangekyō Sharingan had already locked onto his landing point.

Most importantly, several dotted lines had appeared in Danzo's vision.

The moment the Third Raikage's feet touched the ground, Danzo activated his ocular technique once more—Shatter Space!!

Several slashes materialized out of thin air, enveloping the Third Raikage like a storm.

Realizing the danger, the Third Raikage had no time to escape. He could only channel more chakra into the lightning armor covering his body. A torrent of lightning chakra flowed over his muscular frame, forming a solid defensive barrier.

But the intensity of Danzo's attack exceeded expectations. This time, Danzo had reduced both the range and the number of slashes, making each one exceptionally sharp!

Even the Third Raikage, known as the "Strongest Shield," couldn't completely defend against them.

The spatial slashes cut through the thick armor covering his body, leaving bloody gashes across his steel-like physique. Strands of blood flew into the air.

However, thanks to his monstrous physical strength and the constant regeneration of his lightning armor, Danzo's slashes only inflicted superficial wounds.

For a seasoned warrior like the Third Raikage, such injuries were nothing.

"Is this some kind of ocular technique from the Mangekyō Sharingan?" the Third Raikage muttered, his tone unusually grave as he looked at his tattered clothes and the bloodied wounds covering his body. "It seems I underestimated you."

During their last encounter, Danzo had only been able to breach his "Strongest Defense" by targeting his weak points.

But now, Danzo's attacks were strong enough to pierce his armor directly... This realization filled the Third Raikage with deep apprehension.

Hearing the Third Raikage's words, Danzo narrowed his eyes. Although he had successfully upgraded to the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, the continuous use of Shatter Space was beginning to strain his right eye.

As for failing to kill the Third Raikage outright, that was to be expected. After all, he was the legendary "Strongest Shield." If he were so easily defeated, the Cloud Village would have been wiped out long ago during the Great Shinobi Wars.

With this in mind, Danzo dispersed the Susanoo around him and raised his sword slightly. "Enough talk. Let your life serve as a test of my current strength," he said coldly.

As he spoke, a dense surge of wind chakra enveloped the blade, and Danzo's entire being radiated a sharp, imposing aura that belied his age. He looked like a freshly polished divine weapon!

Hearing Danzo's audacious claim of using him as a whetstone, the Third Raikage's anger flared even higher. His veins bulged, and his long hair billowed wildly behind him.

"Next, I'll show you what true power is!" he roared.

With a furious shout, the lightning surrounding the Third Raikage's body dimmed, then transformed into a destructive black lightning that crackled with terrifying energy. Against the backdrop of these ominous black bolts, the already imposing Third Raikage looked like a legendary beast...

"Heh, the Black Lightning created by the Third Raikage himself, huh?" Danzo's eyes gleamed with battle intent.

If he remembered correctly, this technique had only been used by Darui in the original story. Even the reanimated Third Raikage had never displayed this form.

"How exciting, A!" Danzo's lips curled into a smirk, and an unruly, domineering aura emanated from him.

Combined with the rapidly spinning Mangekyō Sharingan in his eyes, one might even mistake him for an Uchiha!

But regardless, as the Raikage, A couldn't afford to show even a hint of hesitation at this moment.

"Then come, Danzo!" he bellowed like a wild beast, charging at Danzo amidst the chaotic black lightning like a god of slaughter.

Danzo gripped his sword, the swirling air around it converging into a blade sharp enough to cut through space.

The battle...

Was about to begin!!