Chapter 378: Chapter 378: Fire Mouse Jade
Chapter 378: Fire Mouse Jade
Soon, the Raikage understood that the boy across from him was just trying to distract him.
Regardless of whether there were people lurking nearby, Uzumaki Naruto was an enemy of the Hidden Cloud Village.
Even if things might change temporarily due to the presence of an external enemy, Hidden Leaf Village had already swallowed nearly two-thirds of the Ninja World; how could they possibly let the Hidden Cloud Village go?
With that, the Raikage stopped overthinking it.
The opponent was already very strong, and the girl beside him was clearly an Uchiha.
Although he didn’t know what that technique was, it looked dangerous at a glance.
If the opponent was willing to drag out the time, then he would drag it out too; once Killer Bee and Yugito returned, the outcome would still be unknown.
"Bee, that guy isn’t careful at all, getting hit so easily. I thought it was just his octopus tentacle that got burned, but could it really be his actual hand?"
Thinking this, the Raikage looked at the charred mark on the ground.
That charred mess didn’t look like an octopus tentacle at all.
The grudge had already been formed; no matter what, the Hidden Cloud Village would have to fight Uzumaki Naruto today. It was better to have the other Ninjas of the Village stay alert, while he focused on fighting the Hokage in front of him.
With this thought in mind, the Raikage began to refine Chakra while remaining on guard.
During this time, someone even brought him food.
The Raikage also had people send some food to Naruto’s side, but Naruto politely declined.
Waiting... It was about time.
A wooden sword condensed in Naruto’s hand.
With his current power and Hidden Leaf Village’s foundation, defeating any Ninja Village head-on was just a matter of time and cost.
The real trouble was that "marching" took time; no matter how fast Ninjas were, the logistics of a cross-border expedition were a huge drain.
It was that "governing" took time; after conquering a place, how to manage it, and how to make the originally hostile Ninjas and civilians accept a new order?
It was even more so that "reconstruction" took time; the destruction brought by war needed to be repaired, new systems needed to be established, and the rift in people’s hearts needed a long time to heal.
Of course, there was also the most realistic factor... funds.
War was the most expensive game.
Military expenses, reconstruction costs... every single one was an astronomical figure.
Even for Hidden Leaf Village, which had now annexed Hidden Stone Village and Hidden Sand Village and had greatly abundant resources, they still had to be frugal.
Therefore, like today, directly "decapitating" the enemy’s supreme leader, forcing them to surrender or collapse with the minimum cost and the fastest speed, was the most "efficient" and "economical" way.
Thoughts flashed like lightning as Naruto cast his gaze back to A opposite him.
However, the one who first broke this final standoff was not either of them.
"Fire Mouse Jade!"
A clear, sharp shout filled with determined Battle Intent came from a high ground inside the Hidden Cloud Village, near the gate.
Immediately following that, an energy projectile shaped like a mouse, composed entirely of eerie blue flames, shot toward Naruto’s position at an astonishing speed!
The one who unleashed this move was none other than Yugito, who had already handed Killer Bee over to the Medical Unit and returned.
Behind her was a blue flame tail.
This "Fire Mouse Jade" was like the signal from a starting pistol!
It signaled the Hidden Cloud Village’s official counterattack against the invaders after evacuating the civilians.
It also signaled that this battle, which concerned the survival of the Hidden Cloud Village, had officially begun!
Almost at the same time the "Fire Mouse Jade" was shot out.
"Hrah!"
The Fourth Raikage A let out a thunderous roar, and the already violent Lightning Release Chakra around his body suddenly erupted, as if boiling oil had been thrown onto a roaring fire!
Blue lightning crackled wildly, wrapping his entire body in blinding lightning.
His short, thick hair stood on end due to the static electricity, like the mane of a furious lion.
The strongest Lightning Release Armor, the Raikage’s signature Ninjutsu-Taijutsu, activated his Lightning Release Chakra to the limit, granting him unparalleled defense, speed, and attack power.
"Lightning Release: Lariat!"
A did not hold back with any probing; the moment he attacked, it was one of his most powerful and fastest Taijutsu techniques.
His thoughts were clear: he absolutely could not let Uzumaki Naruto, this perfect Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki, have the chance to enter the full Tailed Beast state.
Once the opponent transformed into that massive Nine-Tailed Demon Fox and started a war at the entrance of the Hidden Cloud Village, the destruction caused to the Village would be devastating.
Moreover, the scale and uncertainty of the battle would also greatly increase.
Therefore, he had to finish the battle quickly; while the opponent was still in "human" form, he had to use his strongest strike to severely injure or even kill him.
A’s Body Flicker Technique, bolstered by the strongest Lightning Release Armor, had an explosive speed in short distances that could almost rival the Flying Thunder God Technique.
A flash of blue lightning streaked by, and A’s figure had already vanished from where he stood.
In the next instant, he had already appeared directly in front of Naruto, his thick arm wrapped in destructive lightning, like a giant lightning guillotine, slashing fiercely toward Naruto’s neck.
No warning, no probing, full-power eruption, catching him off guard.
This was A’s tactic!
However, facing this sudden, lightning-fast, and fatal strike, Naruto did not even raise the wooden sword in his hand.
He merely opened his previously narrowed eyes; they were a pair of Byakugan.
Like the purest jade, or the first snow of deep winter, there were no pupils, no distinction between iris and sclera, only a patch of indifferent and profound white.
Within this whiteness, faint, fine meridian-like patterns extended from the corners of his eyes toward his temples.
Byakugan!
A’s eyes widened in that instant, and a stormy sea surged in his heart.
How could this guy have the Byakugan?!
Was this kid really so ruthless that he would attack people from his own Village, even his girlfriend’s family?
"Are you still daring to be distracted while fighting me?"
Before the words had even faded.
Naruto’s hands had already raised like phantoms.
However, his palms were currently covered in Wind Release Chakra.
The violent Lightning Release Chakra on A’s "Lariat", the moment it touched the pale cyan Wind Release layer on Naruto’s hands, was easily dispersed as if it had encountered its nemesis.
The lightning scattered, revealing A’s muscular, bronze-colored arm.
A flash of incredulous horror crossed A’s eyes; he had never seen anyone neutralize his Lariat so casually.
He certainly knew the principle of Wind Release suppressing Lightning Release, but to achieve such precise and efficient suppression required what kind of terrifying Chakra control and understanding of attribute changes?
Before A could recover from his shock.
"Bang!"
A muffled, thunderous sound.
Naruto’s right leg kicked solidly into A’s abdomen.
A only felt an unimaginable force hitting him, as if he had been struck head-on by a high-speed moving mountain.
"Ugh!"
A let out a grunt, his massive body flying backward like a cannonball, at a faster speed than when he had charged over.
He slammed hard into the ground in the distance, plowing a deep trench and kicking up dust into the sky.
And that "Fire Mouse Jade" shot by Yugito was intercepted at the moment it was about to hit Naruto by Uchiha Hikari, who was wielding the Yaso Magatsukiri.
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