Chapter 106: Black Lightning Genjutsu Defense
"Damn it…"
Sensing the summoned beast eagle unhesitatingly flying toward his position, Li Yao cursed again internally.
Boom!
He withdrew the chakra from the clone flying in the other direction, created a new clone, and summoned another Black Iron Giant Eagle, once again splitting into two paths.
Having lost nearly a quarter of his chakra, Li Yao could no longer afford to create more clones.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have enough chakra to use Vajra Chains for defense if he were hit by the Third Raikage's Black Lightning.
Both the Black Iron Chains and Vajra Chains were sealing techniques that required massive amounts of chakra.
If it weren't for Li Yao's ability to infuse his consciousness into chakra and maintain absolute control over it—making the use of these techniques incredibly efficient—he would have long since run dry.
Losing a quarter of his chakra in one go was a heavy blow.
Now he could only afford two clones at most, ensuring he had enough left to form a Black Iron Giant Eagle and still defend with Vajra Chains or the Black Iron Feather Cloak.
"Which direction?"
Li Yao's split made Damaokelisi hesitate again. Two paths, 50/50 odds.
"Right," the Third Raikage said casually. He couldn't tell which Li Yao was the real one, but it didn't matter. They were close enough now that once he blew up one Li Yao, the other would have to be the real one—Li Yao wouldn't escape.
If he happened to chase the real one first, even better.
The fact that Li Yao could now only split into two directions meant his chakra was running low.
If they could force him to expend more, he'd eventually be unable to create clones to divert pursuit.
Meanwhile, Li Yao had his own plan.
"Now it all depends on whether the Sensory Deprivation Technique works."
This time, his real body was flying to the left. The Third Raikage chose wrong—but that didn't mean the danger had passed.
Given the speed of the summoned eagle, they would soon catch up to the clone, and the Third Raikage would once again leap 500 meters in an instant like before. If the clone couldn't hold him off, Li Yao's position would be exposed.
Then he'd be chased again by that incredibly fast eagle.
At that point, he would need to split again to confuse the Third Raikage and gain distance.
But there was a risk.
If the Black Iron Eagle were destroyed again by the Raikage, he'd lose that chakra—his reserves would plummet.
If they dropped too low, he'd truly be trapped.
So the best solution was to eliminate the Third Raikage.
If he could put the Raikage into a vegetative state, the other four Kumogakure ninja—worried for his safety—wouldn't dare to pursue.
He could even kill them all.
But that hinged on whether the Sensory Deprivation Technique would work on the Raikage.
900 meters.
800 meters.
700 meters.
The Raikage's group, chasing the Li Yao clone to the right, drew closer. At 500 meters, the Raikage made his move.
Zzzap!
Like a flash of lightning, he crossed the distance instantly, appearing in midair before Li Yao.
But this time, Li Yao was ready. The Black Iron Eagle had already been dismissed, and his entire body was wrapped tightly like a cocoon in layers of Black Iron Chains.
At the same time—
The genjutsu chakra for the Sensory Deprivation Technique was already prepared.
Crack!
As expected, the Black Iron Chains couldn't block the Raikage's Two-Fingered Spear attack in Lightning Chakra Mode—they shattered instantly.
But—Crack!—another Black Iron Chain intercepted his path.
This time, Li Yao had learned. Each chain wrapped around him was independent.
Destroying one wouldn't collapse the others.
They still couldn't stop the Raikage, but it bought him a moment.
And that moment was enough for Li Yao to direct the genjutsu chakra into the Raikage's head, aiming to cut off his physical senses and trap his consciousness in a mental prison.
That was the goal—if the chakra could actually enter his mind.
Szzzz!
Before the genjutsu chakra could penetrate, the Raikage's body—still in Lightning Chakra Mode—suddenly burst with black lightning.
In that instant, Li Yao's chakra, like cotton meeting open flame, was instantly obliterated—without even a ripple.
"What the…"
BOOM!
While Li Yao's clone was still stunned by the annihilation of the genjutsu chakra, it was smashed into oblivion.
The real Li Yao was utterly shocked.
He had considered various ways the Raikage might resist—
Exploding chakra to disrupt the neural block, brute-forcing through with mental fortitude—
But none of his predictions came close to what had just happened.
That was chakra from the Dark Walk Technique—a genjutsu specifically developed to counter the Sharingan.
And yet it couldn't even infiltrate the Raikage's chakra.
BOOM!
Without hesitation, Li Yao created another clone.
He glanced at the unconscious Ash Earth beauty. His eyes flickered.
With a thought, a Vajra Chain shot into her body, instantly draining her chakra.
"I hope you bring me luck."
He groped her ample chest once, then tossed her to the clone—hoping her presence might confuse the Raikage.
Boom... The Black Iron Eagle flapped its wings, and Li Yao split into two paths once more.
"Left."
Standing atop his summoned eagle, the Raikage pointed.
The left was closer. They'd check there first for the real Li Yao, then go after the one on the right.
WHOOOSH... The wind roared like drums. The summoning eagle's speed was terrifying as it closed in on the left-flying Li Yao.
The Raikage suddenly turned to Damaokelisi and the others and warned, "Be careful of Li Yao's genjutsu. It's powerful."
Despite how easily he'd just erased it—
It had still been the first genjutsu capable of triggering his Black Lightning's automatic defense.
That alone proved how dangerous it was.
"Yes, boss. We'll be cautious."
Damaokelisi and the others nodded gravely.
The Raikage looked at the rapidly approaching Li Yao ahead of them. His gaze grew more wary, his curiosity about Li Yao's origins deepening.
Powerful sealing techniques.
Devastating ninjutsu.
Now even genjutsu that dangerous?!
This guy's talent was absurd.
Especially in genjutsu—
The Raikage knew better than anyone how terrifying strong genjutsu could be. He had experienced firsthand the despair of being caught in it.
He was now fifty-eight years old, more than a decade older than the Third Hokage.
Back during Konoha's founding, he was already a powerful Kumogakure jōnin, and had mastered Lightning Chakra Mode.
When he had accompanied the First Raikage to Konoha for alliance talks, he'd confidently challenged Uchiha Madara.
But Madara had looked at him like he was an insect—and trapped him in genjutsu with a single glance. His full power had been rendered useless.
From that day forward, the Raikage had studied ways to resist genjutsu.
He understood that without strong genjutsu resistance, even the best taijutsu or ninjutsu meant nothing.
So he began with Lightning Chakra Mode—
Enhancing the body with lightning chakra, stimulating the nervous system, and raising the body's chakra sensitivity to foreign genjutsu.
After ten years of research and refinement, he succeeded.
His Lightning Chakra Mode reached a peak, physically tough enough to brawl with tailed beasts and with senses sharp enough to detect foreign chakra.
From then on, ordinary genjutsu never worked on him.
But he still feared Madara's Mangekyō genjutsu.
So, while already wielding the strongest offensive "spear," he continued refining the chakra properties—
To heighten Black Lightning's sensitivity to genjutsu.
After another ten years, he finally created Lightning Release: Black Lightning—a technique as powerful as fused elemental natures.
Everyone knew its offensive power.
But they didn't know its greatest strength—detecting and neutralizing genjutsu chakra.
Unfortunately, by the time he completed it, Madara had already been killed by the First Hokage.
The Raikage was deeply disappointed. He had wanted to test whether Black Lightning could resist the Mangekyō Sharingan's illusions.
Without Madara, no other genjutsu had ever triggered Black Lightning's defenses—until now.
And so, the Raikage had never mentioned this hidden feature of Black Lightning.
He believed that no one else could ever trigger it again.
He never imagined that Li Yao's genjutsu would.
Truthfully, it had shocked even him.
That's why he had warned his men.
(END CHAPTER)
Friends, if you enjoyed the novel, you can subscribe to my Patreon channel.
Until November 30st, get 40% off both your subscription and the purchase of your novel. Thank you for your support.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Kira1997