Uchiha Shisui and Killer Bee stood facing each other, their Ninja shoes grinding against the abrasive ground of the cave, their eyes locked, as if the entire narrow cave had fallen silent.
Everyone present held their breath, staring at each other.
Until a certain moment, a subtle gust of wind suddenly swept through the cave, stirring up tiny dust particles on the cave floor illuminated by the glowing moss.
A sudden change occurred.
Uchiha Shisui's feet pushed off the ground like a fierce tiger, his masterful 'Shave' technique seamlessly integrated into his Body Flicker, his entire being sweeping across the ground like a gale, roaring as he charged towards the large dark figure opposite him.
The Chakra flames erupting behind him almost flattened the air, yet the entire process was silent, so fast that not a single tremor was stirred.
A silver light, streaking across the air, outlined a dazzling arc, its blade tip pointed directly at Killer Bee's thigh.
The pitch-black eyes in his pupils had, unnoticed, transformed into a pair of crimson Sharingan adorned with three tomoe, now spinning like windmills.
"Clang!"
"Shing——"
Piercing metallic ringing was mixed with sparks.
Killer Bee, whose Taijutsu was equally fast, held a sword in both hands, one slashing downwards, while the other, seizing the opening created by parrying, thrust horizontally towards Shisui, his movements fluid and graceful.
However, even at such extreme speed, Shisui's reaction was still astonishingly fast; the blade in his hand rose horizontally along the direction of his slash, grazing the tip of the second blade.
The extremely high inertia from their mutual charge caused the two to cross paths almost uncontrollably, leaving only scattered sparks in the air.
Almost the instant they crossed, Asuma, behind Shisui, had already completed his hand seals.
"Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning!"
A billowing cloud of smoke spewed from the young man's mouth, and the dark ash instantly obscured everyone's vision.
No.
Not everyone!
"Four o'clock direction!"
Hyuga Tokuma's eyes were wide, a network of hideous veins spread across his temples; everything obscured by the ash mist held no secrets from him.
At the same time as he spoke, he had already charged towards the well-developed blonde girl opposite him.
His guidance was for Asuma.
Asuma did not hesitate for an instant after receiving Tokuma's instructions.
The two women behind Killer Bee, upon hearing the Ninjutsu's name, instinctively made evasive movements for a Fire Release, and in that instant, they had already charged directly towards the four o'clock position, the Kunai held in their hands already covered in a faint glow of Chakra.
"Chakra Blade!"
A sudden burst of wild wind, in an instant, enveloped the young man's body, propelling him forward rapidly.
At the same time, Uchiha Shisui, the moment the gray smoke billowed behind him, seized a brief opportunity.
His feet, sliding along the abrasive ground with inertia, suddenly stomped, and his three-tomoe Sharingan swept to his side with his peripheral vision, then he abruptly thrust his sword straight out.
"Clang!"
Sparks flew.
In this narrow area, piled high with large amounts of swirling dust, even a tiny spark was enough to create terrifying power.
"Boom—!!!"
Explosive flames filled the entire field of vision, roaring like a two-headed fire dragon and erupting with a terrifying boom.
The sudden burst of fire, even for a physical genius like Killer Bee, was something he would never dare to withstand with his protein-based body.
The moment he parried the blade, he had already rolled to the ground, following the force brought by the opponent's blade.
His eyes beneath his sunglasses widened involuntarily, staring intently at the young man engulfed in flames, and he cursed angrily:
"Lunatic!"
However, just as his entire vision was covered by the light, a tearing pain suddenly arose in his waist and abdomen.
When the flames dissipated, Killer Bee, who had retreated several tens of meters, stared in astonishment at the young Uchiha standing unharmed on the dark ground.
And the faintly glowing 'armor' on his body?
Uchiha Shisui stood in place, still maintaining the Jodan Tori-gama stance with his sword.
On his wrists and ankles, there were seemingly inconspicuous binding straps.
However, at this moment, these four binding straps ignited a dim Chakra flame under the explosion of fire.
The overall bone-like armor, based on these four binding straps, covered most of Uchiha Shisui's body, making him appear as if he was under the protection of a miniature, first-stage Susanoo.
Faintly, one could see that the heat rising from the flames was entirely blocked by this layer of 'armor' from reaching his body.
'Fortunately, I opened the special backpack in advance.'
Uchiha Shisui felt a faint sense of relief in his heart.
Exoskeleton: Experiment Type 3, Codename: Unit-01.
According to the description in the user manual, it should be a sealed exoskeleton protective film constructed by Lord Orochimaru based on Uchiha Megumi's Susanoo.
Its power source is the user's own Chakra, consuming a huge amount, and it is still an experimental product.
However, despite this, this layer of exoskeleton is sufficient to withstand most Ninja tools and B-rank Ninjutsu—this is enough to give a Taijutsu-type Ninja like him a great advantage in combat.
Just like now.
The clear blue miniature Susanoo flashed and quickly disappeared into Uchiha Shisui's body, the immense consumption making his breathing a bit rapid.
However, looking at Killer Bee, who was still standing tall despite being stabbed in the waist, a hint of doubt flashed in his Sharingan.
As if noticing this subtle change in his emotions, Killer Bee's dark face broke into a smile.
He reached out and tore off his outer clothing, revealing the fitted gray vest underneath.
"Konoha bastards!"
"Don't think you're the only ones doing research!"
However, after this exclamation, Killer Bee had already shed his initial slight underestimation, and with a serious expression, he successively drew the blades from his back, gripping them in various positions on his body.
He stood on one leg, like a hedgehog covered in blades.
Seven Swords Style: Wild Rapier Lightning Blade.
And
"Lightning Release Chakra Mode!"
Upon hearing this, Uchiha Shisui's eyes suddenly narrowed.
The dark-skinned giant in front of him instantly burst forth with astonishing lightning, illuminating the entire dimly lit cave passage and making his eyes flash.
Just this momentary lapse.
Killer Bee's figure suddenly rushed out at a speed several times faster than before, his entire body spinning like a top, countless blade shadows whirling, all striking at Shisui's vital points.
'So fast!'
Shisui only had time for this thought to flash through his mind before his body had already rushed to the side.
His ultra-high-speed Body Flicker made him appear like a phantom, evading the direct frontal charge in an instant.
In the vision of his Sharingan, spinning like a windmill, the trajectory of the lightning had already been reflected, so light as if completely unbound by gravity and inertia.
His footsteps were extremely fast; he suddenly stepped in mid-air, using the 'Moonwalk' technique to ascend and flip his body, his feet adhering to the soil on the cave ceiling, the blade in his hand stained with a touch of crimson.
"Sword Leap Flame: Flying Wheel!"
As the spreading fire stream shot forth, it was entirely blocked by the surging Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and a Ninja sword less than a meter long directly collided with three or four short blades falling simultaneously.
"Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang—!!"
Intense collision sounds resonated countless times within the narrow space between the two.
The heavy force and incredibly fast speed made Shisui's hands go numb almost the instant he collided head-on with the opponent, and even the 'Exoskeleton' flickered twice in a row—this meant that his vital points had been struck at least twice.
No matter how fast his Sharingan reacted, it was useless if his body couldn't keep up.
The moment he realized this, Uchiha Shisui's body immediately retreated half a step, releasing his Ninja sword with a crisp 'clang'.
The Ninja sword spun and flew into the air.
However, Uchiha Shisui had already completed his hand seals.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
The dragon-shaped flames not only carried high temperatures but also formed a huge impact force based on their Chakra structure.
Under the onslaught of this explosive fire, Killer Bee's figure was uncontrollably pushed back several steps, faintly feeling the scorching heat on his hair, and even the few short blades clamped between his neck, elbows, and legs were sent flying by the impact of this violent flame.
The Third Raikage earned the title of 'Strongest Shield' not because this Ninjutsu was truly that strong, but because of his own rigorous training—and clearly, Killer Bee had not yet reached that level.
He was even far from his adopted brother, the Fourth Raikage.
What's more, he focused more on 'speed' than 'hardness'.
With just this brief observation, Uchiha Shisui realized that the opponent was far from invincible like the Third Raikage, and he immediately threw out his hands, which were pressing on the Ninja tool pouch behind him.
Following that, there was a continuous spray of flames.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique: Crimson Claws!"
The soaring flames wrapped around Kunai and shuriken, sweeping out in an arc towards Killer Bee.
At the same time, Uchiha Shisui stepped forward, grabbed the Ninja sword falling from mid-air, and charged forward, enveloped in Wind Release.
"Shing!"
Dense collision sounds erupted in a series in front of Killer Bee, as the spreading, weak Fire Release collided with the solid wall of Lightning Release, scattering sparks like fireworks.
However, before he could clearly see the situation ahead, his ears had already caught a violent buzzing sound.
"Hmm?!"
The Lightning Release on his body suddenly surged, raising his physical abilities even further from their previous level, but at the same time bringing a heavier burden on his body.
Without hesitation, he stacked and slashed the two most stable short blades in his hands towards the direction of the sound.
"Clang!"
"Ch ch ch—!"
The instantaneous speed, heightened to its extreme by the enveloping Wind Release, made the power of Shisui's forward thrust unprecedentedly strong; he managed to scrape forward a section, pushing against the precise block of the two blades.
Sparks from the high-speed friction between the blade edge and the blade body filled both their visions, interspersed with fine iron filings that were flung off.
Even the Wind Release and Lightning Release wrapped around their bodies were squeezed together, bursting with soft sounds like popping bubbles.
"Hey!"
However, just as the two were in a life-or-death crisis, Killer Bee's smile suddenly deepened.
"Can your sword still hold up?"
The moment he heard this relaxed question, Shisui's gaze suddenly sharpened.
The next moment.
"Lightning Release: Super Sonic Vibrating Thunder Blade!"
The Lightning Release Chakra, suddenly extending to the surface of the two short blades, solidified into a visible white light.
The two short blades, which were not particularly sturdy to begin with, vibrated at a high speed completely imperceptible to the naked eye in this extremely short period, making a tearing sound like a chainsaw cutting steel at the point of contact with the Ninja sword.
"Clang!"
The two short blades, sweeping out, magnetized and distorted.
In contrast, the blade in Uchiha Shisui's hand was broken into two pieces.
The upward-curling blade tip spun and fell to the ground.
Before Shisui could retrieve a new sword from his capsule, Killer Bee took the short blade he was biting out of his mouth.
"Rip!"
The lightning-emitting short blade collided with the flickering 'Exoskeleton', and ripples like water waves even appeared between the Chakra and Chakra.
The immature 'Exoskeleton' surface, under the extreme consumption of Chakra, appeared to be fading into nothingness, as if it would give out at any moment.
Just as Killer Bee felt certain of victory.
His eyes beneath his sunglasses suddenly met a pair of indifferent crimson eyes.
"Demonic Illusion: Sharingan."
His movements suddenly froze for an instant.
For a Jinchuriki from the original timeline, after Killer Bee lost the immense assistance of the Eight-Tails, the actual gap in both Taijutsu and Ninjutsu would not be very large—those were his inherent strengths.
Only Genjutsu was not affected by physical abilities.
"Snap!"
This momentary pause caused the 'Exoskeleton', which was almost unable to hold on, to suddenly break free from his 'Vibrating Blade', which was already at its limit in his hand.
A layer of extremely fine Wind Release Chakra suddenly appeared on the surface of the broken sword in Uchiha Shisui's hand.
Wind counters Lightning.
Coincidentally, the only Wind Release nature transformation he had mastered was 'sharpness'.
Who said a broken blade couldn't kill?
"Hiss!"
The Wind Release Chakra, compressed to its extreme sharpness, pierced through the thin protective layer of Lightning Release Chakra with lightning speed, and under Shisui's youthful roar, it was forcibly pressed into Killer Bee's drab protective suit, his entire body almost squeezed into his embrace.
Until a muffled sound of piercing flesh was heard.
However, before a hint of Shisui's desperate smile could appear on his face.
His wrist was suddenly gripped tightly by a pair of giant hands, each as large as his own head.
Shisui's expression involuntarily froze.
Killer Bee, awakened from the Genjutsu by the excruciating pain of his organs being churned, had an unprecedentedly ferocious expression.
While tightly gripping the opponent's wrist, the Chakra within his body also exploded like flames, all pouring into his body.
"Die! Konoha bastard!!"
His eyes beneath his sunglasses were riddled with crimson blood vessels.
Within those dark red, vein-like tendrils, lay the shame of defeat in the last great war, the visible desolation after countless economic suppressions, the hatred for parents who died on the battlefield, and... intense self-esteem.
"Lightning Release—"
"Chakra Mode!"
The might of thunder illuminated the dim cave.
With a brilliance that mortals could not directly look upon, it engulfed the ground within a ten-meter radius.
Along with this mutually destructive thunderous roar, a muffled growl, like that of a true beast, echoed from the distant girl:
"Bastard—!"