Chapter 143: Thunderous Onslaught
"You've made enemies of Konoha and Suna, and now you dare to trespass in my village?" the Raikage's voice was a low, dangerous growl. "Where is Yugito Nii? What have you done with her?"
"Yugito? The Two-Tails Jinchuriki?" Ren replied coolly. "It seems she couldn't handle her own power. A pity."
The implication was clear. The Raikage's composure shattered. A torrent of blue chakra erupted from him, more violent than before. Arcs of lightning crackled around his body, causing his short hair to stand on end. The air itself hummed with his fury.
"Boss..." Darui warned, sensing the Raikage's explosive rage.
Suigetsu and Jūgo tensed, feeling the overwhelming pressure. Jūgo's body reacted instinctively, the curse mark spreading across his skin as he shifted into a defensive stance.
"Hmph. Focus on your own survival. The Raikage is mine," Ren commanded, his eyes shifting into the sinister pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"The Sharingan? Don't even think about using your tricks!" C, the sensor-nin, snarled. His hands flew through seals. "Raiton: Raitō no Jutsu!" (Lightning Style: Lightning Flash)
A blinding, sun-bright flash of light erupted from C's body, designed to overwhelm the vision of anyone looking his way. Suigetsu and Jūgo cried out, shielding their eyes.
*Now!* C thought.
In that moment of sensory deprivation, the Raikage became a bolt of lightning. He closed the distance in an instant, his fist aimed to crush Ren's skull.
"Ren, look out!" Jūgo yelled, his vision clearing just in time to see the attack land.
**CRACK!**
The Raikage's fist connected—but not with flesh. It slammed into the stony ground, creating a small crater. Ren was gone.
"An illusion?!" the Raikage grunted, pulling his fist back.
"Jūgo, don't panic. It was just a genjutsu," Ren's calm voice came from his original position. He hadn't moved an inch. The Raikage's initial charge had been a phantom projected by the Sharingan.
"Tch. The Sharingan is troublesome," C admitted, his flash technique rendered useless. "But seeing through it won't save you! Boss, Darui, now!"
This time, it was no illusion. The Raikage and Darui moved in perfect sync, blurring forward. The Raikage aimed another devastating punch, while Darui drew his sword, the blade humming with latent lightning, aiming a horizontal slash at Ren's torso.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Suigetsu roared, intercepting Darui. The Kubikiribōchō met Darui's sword in a shower of sparks. Simultaneously, Jūgo lunged in front of Ren, his cursed arm transforming into a massive, shield-like appendage to block the Raikage's fist.
**BOOM! THUD!**
The impacts echoed. Suigetsu held his ground against Darui, while Jūgo's shield-arm shuddered under the Raikage's blow but held firm.
Ren didn't need the protection. In the same instant, the Ryūkō Seiun was in his hand. A flash of its red-hot blade forced both the Raikage and Darui to leap back, creating distance.
"Protect yourselves. I do not require your aid," Ren stated flatly, though a flicker of something—perhaps acknowledgment—passed through his eyes.
"Tch. Some thanks we get," Suigetsu muttered, but he was grinning. The fight was on.
"C," Darui said, his eyes never leaving Suigetsu. "Scan the area. They might have an accomplice holding Yugito. We can't let anyone escape."
"I already have," C replied, his face grim. "There are only three chakra signatures present. Yugito's... it's gone. I can't sense it at all."
"Damn it!" Darui's usual lazy demeanor was gone, replaced by cold anger. "Then we capture them. We'll make them talk." The humiliation of a Jinchuriki being taken from within their own village was unacceptable.
Jūgo's attention, however, was fixed on C. "The one in the back... the sensor," he growled, his voice deepening. "He's the priority. He must be eliminated." The curse mark completed its spread, engulfing him entirely. His body swelled, his features distorting into a monstrous visage. His power skyrocketed, pushing into the realm of a Kage-level threat. His gentle nature was submerged, replaced by the arrogant, bloodthirsty personality of his cursed state.
"Ahahaha! Annihilation! Total annihilation!" Jūgo laughed, a terrifying sound.
"Be careful! His chakra has become monstrous!" C warned, taking a step back.
"Heh. Jūgo's killer instinct is awake. Does he even remember we're on his side?" Suigetsu quipped, though his grip on his sword tightened.
The Raikage had seen enough. "Brat! I'll show you the true meaning of power!" He tore the remains of his cloak away, revealing a torso of corded muscle. Lightning sheathed his entire body as he launched himself not at Ren, but at the transformed Jūgo.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, old man!" Ren's voice cut through the air. A cloak of crackling lightning chakra—his own Lightning Style armor—flared to life around him. He intercepted the Raikage's charge, their fists meeting once more in a concussive blast of force and electricity. "Your fight is with me! Let's see if the leader of the Clouds is worthy of his title!"
As the two titans clashed, Jūgo, enraged by the thwarted attack, focused his fury on Darui and C. With a bestial roar, he charged.
"Darui, he's coming! Water Style, now!" C instructed.
"On it!" Darui's hands formed seals. "Suiton: Suijinheki!" (Water Style: Water Formation Wall) A powerful surge of water erupted from his mouth, forming a wide barrier that slammed into Jūgo, halting his advance and drenching him.
But Darui wasn't finished. His hands moved again. "Raiton: Kangekiha!" (Lightning Style: Wave of Gratitude)
A powerful electrical discharge surged from his body, channeling directly into the water surrounding Jūgo. Water is a perfect conductor. A agonized roar tore from Jūgo's throat as thousands of volts coursed through his body.
"You bastard! Quit ignoring me!" Suigetsu's voice came from above. He had used the distraction to leap high into the air, the Kubikiribōchō held high above his head, ready to cleave Darui in two.
The battle had fractured into three separate, desperate duels under the stormy skies of Lightning Country.
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