As soon as Kakashi finished speaking, faint rustling came from the forest again.
This time, it wasn't a lone kunai—several much stronger chakra signatures were rapidly closing in.
"They're here!"
Yamanaka Kaede's voice sharpened with tension.
"Two chakra sources—very powerful, Jonin level! Approaching fast from both directions!"
"Everyone, battle stations!"
Kakashi's tone dropped instantly. He gripped his special kunai in reverse, the laziness in his visible eye completely gone.
Tenzo stood silently in place, the vines that had just rampaged now stirring restlessly once more, ready to strike.
Akashi Sora quietly took two steps back, positioning himself in the safest spot in the team, while pushing his new sunglasses up slightly.
Inside, he felt no trace of nervousness—only a surge of barely suppressed excitement.
Jonin?
Kumogakure's Lightning Release Jonin?
These were far more valuable than those ordinary ninjutsu discs that were only good for burning as firewood!
Come on, come on—let me see if your "Lightning Release Chakra Mode" is worthy of being recorded!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two black shadows burst from the trees—one left, one right—charging toward the wooden house with overwhelming pressure.
They wore Kumogakure's standard white flak jackets, muscles bulging, radiating ferocious killing intent.
The taller Kumogakure ninja on the left was already covered in crackling blue arcs of electricity. Every step he took made the ground tremble slightly.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
"Konoha insects—your movements have been under our watch the whole time!"
The ninja on the right was even faster, leaving a trail of afterimages as he moved. His tachi traced a cold arc in the moonlight, aiming straight for Yamanaka Kaede on the team's flank!
"Kaede, fall back!"
Kakashi barked, flashing in front of her.
"Lightning Blade!"
The piercing chirp of a thousand birds filled the night sky as white lightning gathered in his palm, meeting the enemy's tachi without hesitation.
Clang!
A violent clash of metal rang out, accompanied by scattering electric sparks.
On the other side, Tenzo moved.
He pressed his palms together, facing the burly man wrapped in lightning. His voice beneath the mask was flat.
"Wood Release: Tree Bind Flourishing Burial!"
The ground erupted as dozens of even thicker, tougher trees burst forth, coiling like living pythons from all directions toward the Lightning ninja.
"Petty tricks!"
The Lightning ninja roared, his electric glow exploding outward. He actually shattered the incoming trees inch by inch!
Under the boost of Lightning Release Chakra Mode, his strength and defense had reached a terrifying level.
For a moment, the battle stalemated.
Kakashi and Tenzo—two of Konoha's top elites—were completely tied down by the two Kumogakure Jonin.
As a sensory ninja, Yamanaka Kaede lacked strong direct combat power and could only look for openings from the rear, her face grave.
Akashi Sora continued playing his role as the "flustered junior."
He pulled several shuriken from his pouch and hurled them forward with force—only for them to miss even the enemy's clothing, deflected by the surging chakra currents.
"Damn it! They're too fast!"
He complained anxiously aloud, but his amber eyes behind the sunglasses shone brilliantly.
Record! Record!
High-quality lightning-nature source energy detected…
Analyzing "Lightning Release Chakra Mode" concept code…
Sora could sense that although the enemy had activated Lightning Mode, he wasn't going all out yet.
He needed stronger stimulation!
Just then, the tide shifted!
The burly Lightning ninja fighting Tenzo seemed to lose patience. He threw his head back and roared, gathering all his lightning into his right fist.
"Lightning Release: Thunder Bomb!"
A highly compressed ball of lightning formed on his fist, radiating destructive power as he punched forward!
BOOM!
The defensive wall Tenzo hastily erected with Wood Release shattered under the savage blow, splinters flying everywhere!
Tenzo himself was forced back several steps by the massive impact, his breathing disrupted.
Perfect opportunity!
Seizing the gap, the Lightning ninja abandoned his tangle with the Wood Release and charged toward the team's apparent weakest links—Akashi Sora and Yamanaka Kaede!
His intent was clear: eliminate the support and dead weight first!
"Not good!"
Kaede's face paled as she instinctively tried to retreat.
"Sora! Get out of the way!"
Her scream cut sharply through the chaotic battlefield.
The Kumogakure burly man, wrapped in blue lightning, charged like a maddened rhino.
His target: Akashi Sora.
Facing this destructive lightning assault, Sora's face showed no ripple. His muscles tensed instantly, neural reflexes pushed to their limit.
With a precise sidestep, he evaded the fatal strike.
BOOM!
The Lightning ninja's iron fist smashed into where Sora had stood, cracking the hard ground and blasting a half-meter-deep crater, debris flying.
The punch missed, surprising the burly man, but he didn't pause. Grinning viciously, he turned and lunged again at the Konoha boy.
"Not bad reflexes for a Konoha brat! But this ends now!"
His speed left only a blue afterimage.
Kakashi's heart sank.
Tenzo's Wood Release was occupied, and he himself was locked down by the other tough opponent—no time to rescue.
That always-cheerful boy was now facing certain death.
Yet.
The expected scene of blood and gore never came.
At the instant the Lightning ninja's fist was about to touch Sora's face, the boy's figure flickered strangely.
And vanished.
The next moment, he reappeared five meters behind the burly man—stance steady, breathing even.
The Lightning ninja froze.
Not just him—even Kakashi in the midst of fierce combat, and the ever-stoic Yamanaka Kaede, momentarily lost focus.
What was that?
"Such fast Body Flicker…"
"You little…"
The Lightning ninja slowly turned, his bloodshot eyes locked on Akashi Sora, showing gravity for the first time.
Sora didn't reply. He silently drew three kunai from his pouch, assuming an attack stance. His sunglass-covered face hid his true intentions.
Deep inside, updates flashed rapidly.
[Target "Lightning Release Chakra Mode" in progress…]
[Weakness analysis: Lightning armor thickness at joints, back of neck, and heart is only 60% of torso.]
[Optimal theoretical solution: Use speed advantage for high-frequency harassment, continuously drain chakra, probe for openings.]
"Analysis complete. Execute 'kite' plan."
"Hah!"
The Lightning ninja roared again, becoming a bolt of blue lightning—this time even faster than before!
Sora offered no words. His figure flickered once more.
This time, everyone saw clearly.
It wasn't coincidence or luck.
It was Body Flicker Technique!
But a kind they had never witnessed—no hand seals, no violent chakra surge. It was as if his silhouette simply performed a brief, illogical jump through the air.
Sora's form darted left and right through the trees, evading the Lightning ninja's furious assaults by hair's breadths each time.
He was like a leaf fluttering in the wind, while the Kumogakure Jonin was a clumsy bear swinging futile fists.
The scene turned bizarre.
A Konoha Anbu boy was toying with a Kumogakure Jonin in full Lightning Release Chakra Mode?
While parrying his opponent's tachi, Kakashi watched Sora from the corner of his eye. Deep in his dead-fish eye, waves of shock surged.
When did this kid's Body Flicker get this good?
In the Anbu files, he was rated only "average"!
"Bastard! Fight me fair if you dare!"
The Lightning ninja was thoroughly enraged. He halted, arms spread wide as violent lightning gathered around him.
"If I can't catch you, I'll blast you and this whole forest to ashes!"
"Lightning Release: Thunder Abuse Level!"
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
A massive net of pure lightning spread outward indiscriminately from his center!
Sora didn't cry out. His figure flickered again—this time sidestepping instead of retreating, hands rapidly forming seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"
Shwick-shwick-shwick!
Dozens of crescent-shaped wind blades erupted from his mouth, meeting the giant net head-on.
This should have been a one-sided clash.
A C-rank Wind Release against an A-rank area Lightning technique?
Yet the outcome once again defied expectations.
The seemingly fragile wind blades, upon contact, weren't destroyed—instead, like the sharpest scalpels, they effortlessly sliced the raging lightning into fragments!
The net was torn open with a massive breach. The remaining blades continued unabated, whistling toward the Lightning ninja himself.
"What?!"
The burly man's eyes widened in shock. He hastily crossed his lightning-armored arms to guard.
Clang-clang-clang!
A rapid series of metallic rings sounded.
The wind blades slashed his arms, leaving bloody gashes!
The massive impact forced him back repeatedly, numbness spreading through his limbs.
He stared at his arms in disbelief.
How could this brat's Wind Release have such terrifying cutting power?!
Sora calmly reviewed internally.
"[Vacuum Serial Waves] power exceeds estimates. Shimura Danzo's understanding of Wind Release truly is top-tier."
"Lightning armor defense data recorded. Frontal penetration impossible."
"Continue kiting."
"Sora! Nice work!" Kakashi's voice rang out, laced with uncontainable approval.
Seizing the opening created by his opponent's distraction, Kakashi drove a Lightning Blade straight through the enemy's shoulder.
The balance of battle, thanks to the unexpected variable Akashi Sora, began tilting toward Konoha.
"Damn it!"
The Lightning ninja roared and charged again.
Sora resumed his kiting tactic.
Dodge, create distance, release Wind Release.
Dodge again, create distance again, release Wind Release again.
His chakra seemed inexhaustible—each Vacuum Serial Waves maintained full power, with angles growing ever more insidious.
Sometimes targeting the legs, sometimes harassing the flanks, sometimes aiming for the face.
The Lightning ninja had raw power in spades but couldn't touch that elusive "leaf." Instead, he was carved into a sorry state by the unpredictable wind blades, his lightning armor growing dimmer.
Yamanaka Kaede was utterly stunned.
The chatty, lively boy from the journey displayed a calm efficiency on the battlefield completely at odds with his usual persona.
For the first time, she began doubting whether her prized sensory abilities had failed her.
"Show's over."
Sora's inner voice signaled the finale.
Dragging it out further would only introduce unnecessary risks.
After dodging another charge, Sora's figure paused for the tiniest fraction.
His landing placed him closer to the enemy than any previous time.
And instead of immediately pulling away, he showed a brief rigidity—as if overuse of Body Flicker had caused momentary stiffness.
"I've got you!"
Mad joy exploded in the Lightning ninja's eyes. This was a killing blow!
He poured his remaining chakra into his right leg, whipping a thunderous lightning kick with air-tearing force toward Sora's undefended waist!
This strike could snap steel!
Facing certain death, Sora finally stopped "dodging."
He merely turned his body slightly.
Then, in the instant before the lightning reached him, he opened his mouth.
[Replicate and play: Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves]
This time, it wasn't dozens of scattered blades.
All the blades were compressed to the limit—into a single one!
A line so thin it was nearly invisible, yet embodying the ultimate concept of sharpness—a line of death!
Shwick!
No sound, no flash.
Only an imperceptible white streak that flashed and vanished.
The Lightning ninja's movement halted abruptly.
He froze in his kicking pose, the mad joy still on his face.
A thin line of blood slowly appeared across his neck.