Chapter 226: Confronting the Fourth Raikage
"Retreat!" Tsunade shouted without hesitation the moment she saw the Fourth Raikage. His appearance meant that Kumogakure's reinforcements were not far behind. If they didn't leave now, they would be hard-pressed to escape once surrounded.
Moreover, they had already achieved a great victory. In their surprise attack, Kumogakure had lost more than half of its force, with hundreds of casualties. This was arguably the biggest gain for Konoha and Sunagakure in the past two months.
"Retreat?" The Fourth Raikage sneered. "Stay right here!"
His chakra erupted fiercely, lightning surging around him, and he instantly flashed in front of Hoshikawa. Although he didn't know the outcome of Hoshikawa's conversation with Samui, any amount of intelligence was secondary to Hoshikawa himself. If Hoshikawa refused to return, he would force him back.
Water Release: Water Flash Technique!
Hoshikawa reacted extremely quickly. The instant the punch was about to land, he transformed into a puddle of water. The Fourth Raikage was too fast, his punch missed, and his body naturally lunged forward.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!
Hoshikawa reverted to his original form and formed hand seals. A water dragon roared out. The Fourth Raikage turned and punched, brilliant lightning covering his fist. The water dragon was instantly shattered, splashing into droplets.
Just as the Fourth Raikage prepared to close the distance, he sensed a dangerous aura.
Composite Ninjutsu: Earth Dragon Flame Flow!
At Hoshikawa's feet, the ground swelled, and a giant dragon head emerged. Both he and the dragon opened their mouths simultaneously; mud pellets flew out and merged with fire.
The Fourth Raikage's expression hardened; he didn't dare underestimate the attack.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
Layers of lightning suddenly erupted from his body, like electric snakes weaving, instantly covering his entire body. The Fourth Raikage moved.
A streak of speeding lightning flashed through the air, accompanied by crackling thunder. Amidst the lightning and thunder, the Fourth Raikage dodged the flaming mud pellets and charged toward Hoshikawa.
"Watch out!" Tsunade turned back, her heart tightening. Although they were retreating, the large number of Kumogakure ninja engaging them meant the withdrawal would take some time. During this time, Hoshikawa absolutely had to hold back the Fourth Raikage.
Lava Release: Rasengan!
Hoshikawa gripped his right hand, and a scorching aura surged out, forming a spinning magma ball. He slammed it toward the Fourth Raikage.
What kind of Rasengan is this? The Fourth Raikage instinctively clenched his fist, and dazzling lightning emerged.
Lariat: Horizontal Chop!
Instead of advancing, he retreated, his hand like a sharp knife slashing toward the Lava Release: Rasengan.
Boom!
A terrifying, hot blast of air erupted. The lightning tore through the magma, and the resulting shockwave spread outward. Samui and others quickly retreated, avoiding the lightning and magma.
"That's Lava Release combined with Rasengan!" Dodai couldn't help but exclaim. He possessed Lava Release himself, and although different from Rōshi's version, he recognized it. As for the Rasengan, since Minato Namikaze used it frequently, it had become his signature jutsu and was quite famous.
"Did you learn Lava Release yourself?" the Fourth Raikage asked upon hearing the exchange.
"Yes," Hoshikawa admitted.
"Truly a rare genius in the ninja world." The Fourth Raikage felt the same regret as his father, the Third Raikage. That person who sent Hoshikawa to be a spy truly deserves to die!
If Tsunade and the others weren't present, he would have directly demanded that Hoshikawa return to Kumogakure.
Samui gritted her teeth. Just by self-learning Lava Release, Hoshikawa's talent already surpassed hers and the current generation of Kumogakure geniuses, including Yugito Nii. Only Darui, with his Storm Release, could barely come close.
"Master, you all go first," Hoshikawa said without turning his head.
"It won't be that easy!" After witnessing Hoshikawa's talent, the Fourth Raikage was even less willing to let him return to Konoha. He was an overbearing man who always believed in forcefully obtaining what he wanted. In the original story, he frequently stole secret jutsu or talented individuals from other villages. Even Konoha had suffered when Kumogakure attempted to kidnap Kushina Uzumaki and Hinata Hyūga.
A massive amount of chakra transformed into lightning, surging across the Fourth Raikage's body.
Hoshikawa narrowed his eyes. He understood the Lightning Release Chakra Mode intimately. He knew the Fourth Raikage was activating his body to enhance his strength, speed, and reaction time.
This is troublesome. Hoshikawa wouldn't fear this if he could use the Lightning Release Chakra Mode himself. But with Tsunade and the others present, he dared not use it for fear of being exposed and unable to explain himself.
Fortunately... Hoshikawa was not without advantages. His strength was slightly superior, though his speed lagged behind. Crucially, he didn't need to defeat the Fourth Raikage, only stall for time, which was entirely manageable.
Whoosh!
The Fourth Raikage, like a bolt of lightning, instantly teleported toward him.
Earth Release: Moving Earth Core!
Hoshikawa released a prepared jutsu. A gigantic square block of earth in front of him suddenly lifted toward the sky. Just as the Fourth Raikage prepared to punch, his body swayed, forcing him to divert chakra to his legs to maintain stability. The earth block rose to its highest point, creating a gap of about four or five meters between the two.
Composite Ninjutsu: Lightning Water Dragon Bullet!
Hoshikawa formed hand seals and spat out a water dragon. The water dragon vibrated in the air, with a massive amount of lightning surging within it.
Lariat: Righteous Thunderbolt Axe!
The Fourth Raikage leaped up, his right leg raised high, then dropped down. His entire body descended like a savage axe. The lightning-water dragon was split vertically in two.
The Fourth Raikage again unleashed terrifying speed, charging toward Hoshikawa.
Earth Release: Rock Arm!
Hoshikawa clapped his hands. A giant rock-formed hand blocked his path.
"So, it's Ōnoki's Earth Release," the Fourth Raikage noted, not slowing down, and crashed directly into the giant rock hand. In an instant, the rock was shattered.
But Hoshikawa was already gone.
The Fourth Raikage stood still, frowning. Just then, the ground swelled, and a pair of hands reached out. However, the moment they grabbed the Fourth Raikage's feet, they abruptly grabbed empty air.
"Underground!" The Fourth Raikage leaped up and stomped his foot down. Lightning focused on his foot, delivering terrifying destructive power. The ground cracked, revealing a deep pit.
But Hoshikawa then transformed into a rock. This was the Earth Release: Rock Clone .
"So annoying." The Fourth Raikage looked around, feeling extremely irritable. This guy was utterly bothersome. His strength was clearly superior to Hoshikawa's, yet he couldn't pin him down.
The air whizzed. The Fourth Raikage subconsciously turned and saw Hoshikawa.
Wind Release: Vacuum Consecutive Waves!
Hoshikawa opened his mouth and spat out dozens of spinning wind blades. The wind instantly became the sharpest blades, forming a large-scale blade formation.
The Fourth Raikage felt threatened. He couldn't take this head-on. Although his Lightning Release Chakra Mode offered decent defense, it couldn't withstand so many wind blades.
Without thinking, the Fourth Raikage transformed into a flash of lightning, streaking to the left and quickly moving out of the range of the wind blades.
Hoshikawa's heart stirred. He had been focusing on Earth and Water Releases lately, forgetting that Wind Release was a natural counter to Lightning Release. While it wasn't a complete counter to the Fourth Raikage, it still offered a certain advantage.
Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!
Hoshikawa inhaled, then exhaled, launching chakra like bullets. He felt like a Peashooter, continuously spitting out wind energy spheres. This Wind Release jutsu was Danzō Shimura's signature technique.
The Fourth Raikage dodged again. Knowing he couldn't let this continue, he suddenly accelerated, closing the distance to Hoshikawa. His speed was as fast as lightning, almost impossible to catch with the naked eye. In fact, in the original story, the Fourth Raikage's full speed was undetectable even to the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Hoshikawa became visibly wary. Clearly, the Fourth Raikage had dropped all contempt and entered serious mode. This meant the coming fight would be even more difficult.
Wind Release: Violent Wind Palm!
Hoshikawa clapped his hands, and a powerful wind enveloped his entire body.
Body Flicker Technique!
His body narrowly avoided the Fourth Raikage's punch.
Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!
An earthen wall rose in front of Hoshikawa. Although the Fourth Raikage smashed it with one punch, it successfully blocked him for a fraction of a second.
Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!
Just as the Fourth Raikage prepared to advance, Hoshikawa spat out an endless surge of water, forming a monstrous wave that rushed toward him.
"Retreat!" Dodai quickly shouted. So much water wouldn't affect the Fourth Raikage, but it would be catastrophic for many of the Chūnin and Genin.
"Hoshikawa!" Just then, Tsunade's voice rang out from a distance.
"Damn it!" The Fourth Raikage looked defeated. Now that Tsunade and Hizashi Hyūga had retreated, Hoshikawa would naturally flee as well. And he couldn't stop Hoshikawa in a short time. This meant that today's battle was a devastating loss for Kumogakure.
Lariat: Horizontal Chop, Thousand Dance!
The Fourth Raikage's eyes narrowed. He leaped into the air. While avoiding the giant wave, he dove down, his right hand shaped like a blade, shimmering with terrifying power. In the original story, the Fourth Raikage used this Taijutsu/Ninjutsu blend to slice off the Eight-Tails' right horn and even destroy Madara Uchiha's initial Susanoo form, indicating its immense power.
Chidori Stream!
Lightning erupted across Hoshikawa's entire body.
Earth Release: Rock Fist Technique!
Hoshikawa's right arm turned to rock.
Monster Strength!
Hoshikawa threw a punch, colliding with the Fourth Raikage's hand blade. In an instant, cracks appeared in the rock, but it did not shatter. A tremendous force struck. The Fourth Raikage swayed and took half a step back.
But Hoshikawa was sent flying backward.
"As expected of the Raikage-sama!" Dodai breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the Fourth Raikage gain the advantage.
"Hoshikawa did that on purpose," Samui suddenly said, her eyes narrowed.
Hoshikawa adjusted his body in mid-air and quickly vanished without a trace. Dodai's expression immediately froze.
"That guy…" The Fourth Raikage felt a sense of heaviness. While he had the overall advantage, he was utterly unable to stop Hoshikawa. If even he struggled this much, others would fare much worse. He could now confirm that Hoshikawa possessed the strength comparable to a Kage of the Five Great Villages. Killing the Third Mizukage was indeed no fluke.
"What a pity." The Fourth Raikage showed regret. Such a powerhouse should have belonged to Kumogakure, but now Konoha reaped the benefits.
"What are the casualties?" the Fourth Raikage asked Dodai.
"Over five hundred ninja were killed, and the surviving ninja are all more or less wounded," Dodai said with a heavy expression. The attacking Konoha forces were mostly Jōnin. Their surprise attack caused massive damage instantly, and the subsequent confrontation was a complete disaster.
"Don't blame yourselves," the Fourth Raikage shook his head and then asked, "Did you talk to Hoshikawa?"
"Yes," Samui replied.
"We'll discuss this once Mabui and the others arrive," the Fourth Raikage said after a moment's thought.
Half an hour later, Kumogakure reinforcements led by Mabui finally arrived.
In a hastily erected tent, the four individuals who knew Hoshikawa's identity gathered. Samui recounted her conversation with Hoshikawa.
"First, send people to investigate his and Tsunade's situation," the Fourth Raikage said thoughtfully. "If it's true, it has some credibility."
"Even if it's true, it doesn't mean much," Mabui said gravely. "The key is what intelligence he provides."
"Are we just going to wait?" Dodai asked impatiently.
"Aside from waiting, we have no other option," Mabui sighed.
"..." Dodai was speechless. Since even the Fourth Raikage couldn't capture him, they truly had no choice.
"We'll wait for a period," the Fourth Raikage said decisively. "If he doesn't provide intelligence, we will immediately expose his identity!"
"Yes!" Mabui and the others responded in unison.
Samui sighed inwardly, hoping they wouldn't reach that point.
Several kilometers away, the Konoha forces stopped when they realized Kumogakure wasn't pursuing them.
"What a massive victory!" Shibi Aburame said with some excitement. "My remaining Destruction Bugs tallied over five hundred Kumogakure ninja killed."
Everyone was immediately uplifted. This was indeed a huge accomplishment. Although tens of thousands of ninja from the three sides were gathered in the Land of Frost, battles rarely resulted in such a high single-incident casualty count among ninja, as most were small-scale skirmishes.
"We owe a lot to Hoshikawa this time," Hizashi Hyūga said, having witnessed the entire process with his Byakugan. "Without him holding back the Raikage, we wouldn't have escaped so easily."
"Indeed," the Konoha ninja nodded in agreement. "As expected of Tsunade-sama's student!"
Hoshikawa's string of impressive victories over the past few years had completely changed their perception of him. In their minds, he was no longer just a talented individual; he could now contend with the Fourth Raikage. Barring any accidents, Hoshikawa was destined to become a Konoha Elder like Tsunade, wielding terrifying influence.
"Alright, now is not the time for this. Let's hurry back to headquarters," Tsunade said, though she couldn't help but smile, clearly in high spirits.
The group returned to the headquarters.
"You all did well," Orochimaru said after hearing the report. "I will report this truthfully."
As the Commander, he needed to be fair and impartial to ensure his subordinates followed orders. Only Danzō Shimura was left grinding his teeth, but he was helpless. Hoshikawa's performance today validated Orochimaru's earlier statement that only he and Tsunade could truly contend with the Fourth Raikage and Killer B.