Chapter 70: The Severely Wounded Fourth Raikage
On the other side—
Sasuke was still playing cat and mouse with Killer Bee.
Seeing that Sasuke was about to turn the next corner, Killer Bee threw a knife straight ahead.
It landed in front of Sasuke, nailing itself to the ground.
Sasuke was forced to stop.
The knife, wrapped in Lightning Style Chakra, slashed straight at him.
Sasuke stomped his feet instinctively, then did two backflips in a row, narrowly dodging Killer Bee's strike.
"You've got nowhere to run this time, stupid bastard!"
The voice came from behind him.
"Really?"
A smile curved Sasuke's lips. Under Killer Bee's gaze, he aimed his pistol at his own head.
Seeing this, Killer Bee froze.
"Are you planning to commit suicide to avoid leaking information?"
"Who said I was killing myself?"
"Huh?"
If it wasn't suicide, then what was he doing? Killer Bee couldn't understand.
Seeing his confusion, Sasuke chuckled. "Time's about to speed up."
With that, he pulled the trigger.
Bang!
One shot.
The target hit by the bullet would accelerate through time—or even teleport.
The reason Sasuke had been able to dodge Killer Bee's attack earlier was because of this effect.
And one shot could be stacked.
Using a second bullet after the first made the effect even stronger—though the cost was higher.
"Dud?"
Killer Bee frowned at the smoking gun, then looked at Sasuke, who was unharmed.
Of course, Sasuke didn't answer.
He simply raised the pistol again—this time aiming at Killer Bee.
Bang!
As he pulled the trigger, a surge of energy entered the bullet and fired.
Two bullets.
The second bullet had the opposite effect of the first—it slowed down time for the target it struck.
The bullet sped toward Killer Bee.
As an experienced fighter, Killer Bee reacted before Sasuke even finished pulling the trigger. He dodged to the side.
Although he'd seen Sasuke shoot himself without harm, Killer Bee wasn't foolish enough to test it on himself.
Whoosh!
The bullet hit the ground where he'd just stood.
It missed.
"Figures—it wouldn't be that easy to hit you," Sasuke muttered.
Still, it wasn't unexpected. No harm in trying.
Killer Bee, having dodged the bullet, exploded forward at an even faster speed. He raised his blade and brought it down—splitting Sasuke clean in half.
But there was no feeling of hitting flesh.
When he looked closely, he realized he'd only cut through an afterimage.
He turned his head and saw Sasuke standing on a nearby rooftop, looking down at him.
"Is that all you've got, Eight Tails Jinchūriki?"
"You talk too much," Killer Bee growled.
This speed—faster than before.
He hadn't gone all out earlier?
As impossible as it seemed, the truth was right in front of him.
"I get it. That's why you've been so calm all along. But this ends now, fool, ya fool!"
Killer Bee's aura shifted violently.
Four giant octopus tentacles erupted from his back.
Two blocked the sky above and the ground below. The other two lashed out at Sasuke.
Since Sasuke's speed was his biggest advantage, Killer Bee's plan was simple—block every escape route.
"So that's the Eight Tails' power…"
Feeling the wind pressure against his face, Sasuke immediately accelerated time again to dodge.
Emperor Keke's ability was powerful—but not meant for direct confrontation.
And Sasuke's mission wasn't to win—it was to stall for time.
With the upper and lower spaces sealed and tentacles attacking from all sides, his room to maneuver was shrinking fast.
Without the acceleration of the "One Shot," he'd already be dead.
Under double acceleration, Sasuke managed to weave through the attacks—like the bullet-time effect in a video game.
He could even see the ripples in the air as the tentacles sliced past.
"Eight Tails Jinchūriki—you really think you can kill me like this?"
Even while dodging, Sasuke couldn't resist taunting.
But Killer Bee ignored the provocation.
"Four tentacles aren't enough? Then I'll use all eight!"
All eight massive tentacles whipped out at once.
Now, there was barely any ground left to stand on.
Boom!
The surrounding buildings were obliterated, but Killer Bee didn't care. He only focused on crushing Sasuke.
For a while, Sasuke managed to hold on.
But then—
A tentacle pierced his body. Blood sprayed through the air as Sasuke's form dropped lifelessly to the ground.
"Finally dead," Killer Bee muttered, retracting his tentacles.
He turned to rush toward his brother—
But then froze.
From the ground ahead of him, Sasuke's shadow rippled, and his figure rose from it.
"You didn't really think you could kill me, did you?"
At that moment, Sasuke had swapped places with a shadow clone stored in the void of his shadow dimension.
Simply put—the one who'd died was the clone. The real Sasuke was unharmed.
"What the…?"
Killer Bee glanced between the corpse on the ground and the smirking Sasuke before him.
Clone Technique?
But what kind of clone could die and not disappear?
The uncertainty made Killer Bee hesitate.
He'd clearly seen Sasuke impaled—but here he was, alive again.
Something wasn't right.
Even as he attacked again—killing Sasuke once more—he watched in disbelief as the Uchiha re-emerged from the shadows, unscathed.
"Eight Tails Jinchūriki, haven't you eaten yet? You'll have to try harder!"
"Impossible…"
Killer Bee's frown deepened.
Now that he'd cooled down and analyzed the situation, something clicked.
This opponent wasn't trying to win.
He was trying to waste time.
And the direction Sasuke had led him—
—was the opposite of the Raikage's office.
There was only one conclusion.
"Damn it! He's stalling! Their real target is Big Brother!"
The realization struck hard.
Before, Killer Bee hadn't considered the possibility because he believed his brother was invincible—no one could defeat the Fourth Raikage.
But now, after seeing Sasuke's bizarre speed and revival ability, he couldn't be so sure.
If even a "Genin" could do this—then the older man might really be in danger.
Without hesitation, Killer Bee turned and sprinted toward the Raikage's building.
"Noticed already, huh…" Sasuke muttered, sinking back into the shadows.
In the Raikage's office—
Seeing Hyuga Hiashi's stance, the Fourth Raikage immediately understood the man was going all out. He didn't dare be careless and gathered a massive surge of Lightning Style Chakra in his hand.
Lightning crackled wildly, radiating a sharp, destructive edge.
Lateral Bolt of Pain: Chop!
This technique wasn't complex—it wasn't even about chakra form manipulation.
Just a simple C-rank jutsu.
But that simplicity made it perfect for the Raikage.
He didn't need fancy techniques.
His body—honed through years of brutal training—was his ultimate weapon.
"Lateral Bolt of Pain: Chop!!"
Thunder surged.
Facing the Raikage's lightning-charged strike, Hyuga Hiashi didn't flinch.
Flames surged around his palms.
"Iron Mountain Palm!"
Compared to the Raikage's massive, muscular frame, Hiashi looked frail.
Yet when palm met blade—
Boom!!
Flames and lightning collided mid-air, shaking the heavens.
The explosion woke every Cloud Shinobi in the village.
Terrified eyes turned toward the Raikage's office.
"What's going on?!"
"He's stronger than before…!"
The Raikage's eyes widened in disbelief.
It had been years since anyone had matched him in close combat.
Even the Eight Tails couldn't overpower him.
But now—
Hyuga Hiashi's strength exceeded his own.
A torrent of scorching fire tore through the Raikage's lightning armor and slammed into his body.
What was this power?!
The next instant—
The Raikage was sent flying like a baseball, crashing through walls before embedding into the ground outside, leaving a massive crater.
Hiashi followed immediately, his body a blazing red blur.
Whoosh!
He landed beside the crater.
The Raikage struggled, his arm charred and smoking.
Though not fatally injured, it had been years since he'd been struck like that.
Rage burned hotter than lightning.
But before he could rise—
Hiashi dropped from above.
"Fire Fist!"
"Iron Claw!"
Each impact blasted the Raikage deeper into the earth.
The mountain itself trembled, collapsing under the shockwave.
When the dust settled, the Raikage lay buried in shattered rock.
"It's over," Hiashi murmured.
He could feel the toll—the flames burned not only his enemy, but himself. His body couldn't endure much longer.
He gathered the last of his strength into his hands.
"Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"
Terrified, the Raikage tried to resist—but Hiashi's power had surged again.
The fusion of Gentle Fist and flame had increased his strength by nearly thirty percent!
The Raikage's lightning armor shattered. Fiery chakra poured directly into his body.
Then—
A roar split the sky.
"Tailed Beast Bomb!!"
Before anyone could react, a massive sphere of energy blasted toward Hiashi.
Killer Bee had arrived—fully transformed.
"Senior! Time to go!"
Sasuke appeared from the shadows, grabbed Hiashi, and pulled him into the darkness.
In the next moment, both vanished.
Killer Bee canceled his transformation, rushing to his brother's side.
The Fourth Raikage was covered in burns and bruises, but—thankfully—still breathing.
Killer Bee carried him to the hospital immediately, alert for another possible ambush.