Calm down.
Darui tightened his grip on the blade handle.
The opponent's words indeed proved grating. However, he could not let such obvious provocation disturbing his mind.
Cannot be angered...
Darui's gaze regained focus. Since opponents claimed not proactively attacking, then start probing from most basic taijutsu.
Thought decided, Darui's feet exerted force. Like an arrow leaving the bowstring, he charged out. The giant blade in hand, carrying wind-breaking sounds, directly slashed toward Shuji's shoulder and neck.
"Taijutsu? This is not my specialty."
Before Shuji's words finished, his right hand somehow already reverse-gripped one kunai, diagonally blocking upward.
Clang!
One crisp clashing sound rang out.
Darui's pupils slightly contracted. The rebounding force transmitted from his weapon proved unexpectedly heavy.
Borrowing force transmitted back through weapons, Darui's waist and abdomen exerted power. Following momentum, he twisted his body. Wrist turned, attempting changing slashing to sweeping, launching continuous attacks. However, his movement barely started momentum before completely freezing in place.
Shuji's left hand, somehow already like iron hoops, firmly gripped his blade-wielding wrist, instantly interrupting his subsequent force application.
Immediately after, Darui saw Shuji casually returning the right-hand kunai to ninja tool pouches behind him while releasing the left hand gripping him.
From beginning to end, the opponent's feet steadily remained in place without moving even slightly.
"Strength far surpasses Darui's." Fourth Raikage in observation seats said in low tones.
Xi and Yukai, expressions grave. Even though Darui had not yet learned Lightning Release Chakra Mode, being able to freely wield such width giant blades itself proved he possessed formidable strength exceeding ordinary shinobi.
Such him actually suffered such clean defeat in pure physical strength collision.
Darui inhaled deeply, forcibly suppressing internal shock. He watched Shuji who still stood calmly in place. The opponent seemingly truly planned being only the passive side.
Not advantageous in strength. The reaction speed displayed in that instant also exceeded his. Taijutsu probing seemingly had no need continuing.
He returned the giant blade to his back before leaping backward several steps, pulling distance. Since taijutsu could not probe anything, then use ninjutsu.
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
"Lightning Release: Grateful Wave!"
Surging water sprayed from his mouth. Almost simultaneously, dazzling lightning merged into water flows, forming water waves mixed with glaring electric serpents surging toward Shuji.
On observation seats, Iruka subconsciously held his breath. Uzuki Yūgao and Gekkō Hayate were precisely under this coordinated combination ninjutsu that restricted Konoha-style Kenjutsu performance, thereby rapidly losing.
After Shuji arranged targeted individual training projects, they privately discussed response strategies. The conclusion reached was that if mastering Earth Release ninjutsu, relying on solid Earth-Style Walls to block water flows proved the most stable method.
Because Darui's technique set mainly used water flows carrying lightning's additional damage rather than penetrative Lightning Release.
"Captain Shuji is a ninjutsu expert. Earth-Style Wall proves simple techniques for him," Gekkō Hayate said, unable to help lightly coughing twice.
However, facing the sweeping water-electricity mixed attack, Shuji did not use Earth-Style Wall as predicted.
He merely raised both hands. Seal-forming speed proved so fast it nearly left afterimages.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique."
Next moment, one water dragon far larger than Wild Water Wave with condensed form seemingly possessing life thunderously rose behind him, issuing silent roars before boldly crashing into that lightning-pervaded water wave.
Boom!
Even more powerful, even more violent water flows instantly engulfed and swallowed water and currents Darui released, rebounding back in an unstoppable posture!
Mixed with chakra Shuji injected, this rebounding water wave's power multiplied, instead surging toward Darui himself as the caster!
Darui's expression changed drastically. He immediately interrupted sustained Lightning Release chakra output. Both hands hurriedly formed seals attempting response. However, already too late.
He was struck hard by water waves he released yet the opponent strengthened and controlled, his entire person sent flying backward, heavily crashing against training ground edge walls, producing one muffled sound.
Water flows lost control, spreading arbitrarily. The entire training ground instantly became a vast ocean.
Darui struggled standing from icy water, completely soaked, breathing heavily. Water droplets covered his face. His chest's struck area transmitted waves of dull pain.
Shuji still stood in place. He watched the somewhat disheveled Darui, commenting, "Water Release and Lightning Release prove excellent coordinated combat tactics. Precisely because water's flow proves difficult stopping, lightning's conductivity and area killing power can be maximized."
"However, this premise is one's own Water Release proving sufficiently powerful, capable controlling situations."
Samui frowned slightly. Using such methods crushing Darui's techniques, this guy, though arrogant, possessed arrogance capital.
Strength and chakra were not what current Darui could reach.
Two consecutive attacks. Taijutsu easily blocked. Proud combination ninjutsu frontally crushed. Watching opponents' composed posture, probably genuine tactics had not even begun employing.
Darui's blade-holding hand slightly trembled, not from fear but from gradually rising powerlessness internally. The gap proved even larger than imagined.
Black Lightning? If using Black Lightning representing higher stage Lightning Release nature transformation, could opponents' defenses be broken? Or... Storm Release?
He still hesitated, thoughts chaotic.
"Bang!"
One loud sound interrupted his thoughts. On observation seats, Fourth Raikage's punch shattered the nearby stone stairs. Crushed stones pulverized and scattered.
He stood abruptly, roaring like thunder echoing through training grounds. "Don't dawdle there, Darui!"
"At such times, still considering so much for what! Fight with full power! Let me see your caliber!"
Like being doused with cold water, Darui fiercely shook his head, throwing all distracting thoughts away. Boss specially came observing. Certainly not to watch his timid disgraceful display!
No longer hesitating, black lightning gathered in Darui's palms, transforming into lightning beasts.
"Lightning Release: Black Panther!"
Black lightning beasts left his hands, tearing air, directly rushing toward Shuji.
Facing this representing another Lightning Release chakra nature transformation, Shuji's eyes flashed with interested expression.
At this time, using Lightning Release head-on proved unsuitable. After all, his Lightning Release also merely proved regular level.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Rampart."
He pressed one hand toward the ground beneath water surfaces.
Rumble rumble—
Accompanied by low rumbling, beneath Shuji's feet plus large areas ahead, entire ground sections suddenly lifted! One massive, thick earthen wall rose from the ground, not merely defending one point but directly changing local terrain!
Black Panther representing higher-stage Lightning Release nature transformation fiercely struck the suddenly rising Earth-Style Rampart. Dazzling black lightning scattered. Earth and stone flew. A scorched deep crater remained on the heavy wall.
Even though Lightning Release restrained Earth Release, facing such large-scale terrain changes, attacks targeting one point ultimately could not shake this massive whole.
Black lightning beasts, after exhausting energy, unwillingly flickered several times before finally dissipating in air.
Darui breathed slightly heavily, watching that majestically standing rampart plus the unharmed figure standing atop it.
Taijutsu, regular ninjutsu combinations, Black Lightning. Besides Storm Release, all methods had been used yet could not even make opponents move one step.
The gap proved too large.
He slowly lowered seal-forming hands, picking up the fallen blade, re-mounting it on his back.
Darui raised his head, looking up toward Shuji above, shouting with full strength. "Shuji-san! Please attack! Let me see how more powerful shinobi actually attack!"
Shuji watched the flames not yet extinguished in his eyes, slightly nodding.
"You used Water and Lightning Release techniques," he calmly stated, "My Water Release and Lightning Release also cannot produce more novelty."
"Therefore, can only use the third Release technique, mixing in slight changes."
His hands formed seals again. One shadow clone appeared beside him.
"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"
From the clone's mouth, water jets more concentrated and stronger impacting than previous Wild Water Wave sprayed out, shooting straight toward Darui below.
Almost simultaneously, Shuji's main body also completed seals.
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
What he exhaled was not violent tornadoes but highly compressed, rapidly rotating powerful airstreams merging into water jets.
Water flows, under wind's tearing and acceleration, abruptly changed form. Originally thick water jets formed one massive, thunderously roaring water tornado.
Simultaneously, countless densely packed water needles and water threads sliced by wind blades pervaded large spaces between both.
This was not yet complete.
Lightning bloomed on Shuji's body, merging into countless water droplets in every inch of space ahead.
Zzzzt—!
Each tiny water droplet driven by wind, moving at high speeds, currently became lightning's most perfect carrier.
One incomparably massive, intricate, interwoven terrifying electric net with dazzling blue-white electric light instantly shrouded all space within Darui's vision, as if the entire training ground transformed into thunderstorm's core.
Nowhere to hide, nowhere to escape.
That thick, lightning-wrapped water tornado roared toward Darui's standing position.
On observation seats, lightning suddenly flashed on A's body. Muscles tensed.
However, just before that violent composite ninjutsu was about to swallow Darui, at the very instant—
Wind abruptly ceased.
Water vanished from thin air.
Only occasionally leaping, ultimately annihilating minute blue electric light in air proved that terrifying scene just now was no illusion.
Shuji stopped all techniques, calmly watching below. Darui still stood in place, merely face somewhat pale, chest heaving violently, staring blankly at the empty venue ahead as if not yet recovering from that disaster-like ninjutsu just now.
"Like this, does instructional completion count?"
Just woke up, finished writing...
Chapters in advance there: patreon.com/Thaniel_a_goodchild