The combined enhancement of four elemental chakra natures should have been overwhelming, but before the pure, unrestrained violence of Daytime Tiger, that perfect synergy was forcefully shattered.
Most of the roaring energy vanished as the colliding forces devoured each other.
Daytime Tiger was powerful, yet even it could not fully neutralize Kakuzu's four-nature composite jutsu.
A thin but concentrated streak of lightning, accelerated by Wind Release and knocked off its intended path by the exploding earth, sliced past Guy's left calf like the fangs of a venomous serpent. A sharp crackle rang out as it tore across his leg.
A rush of burning pain and intense numbness shot through him. Blood streamed from a wound so deep the bone could almost be seen.
The shredded but still-searing air mixed with the aftershock of the storm, striking Guy's body again and again like an invisible hammer.
His upper garments had already burst apart when he opened the Gate of Shock. The bare, powerful muscles of his torso were scorched and lacerated, and the violent winds nearly knocked him off balance. Only by driving his feet deep into the ground could he remain standing.
He exhaled sharply, struggling to maintain his stance. His body trembled beneath the thick aura of blazing blue vapor, every breath heavy and ragged.
The earlier exchange against Kakuzu's attacks and the injuries he had accumulated had drained a tremendous amount of stamina.
The pain of the opened Gate, combined with these new wounds, made even Guy's iron body shudder. Blood trickled uncontrollably from his mouth and nose, and his vision wavered.
It was not that Guy's physical strength was inferior to Naruto's. Their battles were simply different in scale.
Every technique Kakuzu released was a high-power composite jutsu. Trading blows with him consumed far more stamina than Naruto's earlier exchange with Tsunade.
Even with his injuries, Guy's eyes remained fixed on the billowing smoke at the center of the explosion.
Kakuzu slowly emerged from the swirling dust, coughing lightly.
His cloak was even more tattered than before, but he himself showed little sign of major injury. It was clear that in a battle of jutsu versus raw strength, he held the advantage.
Such was the difference between a ninjutsu specialist and a taijutsu master.
Ninjutsu users spent chakra. Taijutsu users spent their bodies.
And Kakuzu, this ancient monster, had chakra to spare.
Kakuzu ripped off the rest of his ruined cloak and tossed it aside, revealing a surprisingly robust body for someone his age.
"Impressive work, Blue Beast of the Leaf."
His voice carried a faint weight, a rare hint of genuine acknowledgment. His cold green eyes locked on Guy's blood-soaked, steam-shrouded figure.
"To disperse my four-nature technique with taijutsu alone. I may have spoken too soon. When it comes to pure physical technique, you are indeed the strongest I have ever fought."
"Damn it. Even Daytime Tiger couldn't put him down?" Guy tightened his fists, glaring fiercely at Kakuzu.
At this rate, the only option remaining was to open the Eighth Gate to end him completely.
"Guy!" Asuma and Kurenai landed beside him.
"You fought well. Let us handle the rest together," Asuma said, gripping his chakra blades with a hardened expression.
Kurenai raised a kunai, her gaze locked on Kakuzu.
They had seen the devastation of the battlefield. They knew exactly how dangerous this fight was.
Seeing them arrive, Guy released a breath of relief, letting go of his last resort. The opening of the Gate of Death would no longer be necessary. Not yet.
"You two being here means you dealt with Hidan?" Kakuzu asked calmly, as if his partner's death meant nothing at all.
"Hmph. That lunatic? I chopped his head off myself," Asuma said coldly, twirling his blades as if challenging Kakuzu.
He hoped to shake Kakuzu's composure.
"Is that so? Serves him right," Kakuzu replied with a mocking chuckle.
"You… you don't care at all?" A chill crawled up Asuma's spine. Even the death of a long-term partner meant nothing to him.
Truly terrifying.
"Since all three of you are here, come at me together."
The battle ignited instantly.
"Now!" Kurenai commanded, forming hand seals with practiced speed.
As one of the Leaf's finest genjutsu users, she fully believed her illusions would not be dismissed as easily as they had been by someone like Itachi. Not everyone possessed a Sharingan.
"Demonic Illusion: Tree Bind!" Invisible waves of illusion crashed toward Kakuzu's senses while spectral branches coiled around his body.
Kakuzu merely tilted his head, a faint sneer flashing in his green eyes.
"Genjutsu? A trivial trick."
He had lived too long and survived too many battles to be easily trapped. His mental fortitude was nearly unbreakable.
Even if Kurenai's illusion was refined, it could not completely bind a monster of his caliber, and the interference it created was minimal.
Besides, he was never alone.
One of the masked hearts beside him pulsed violently, injecting chakra into him and shattering the illusion instantly.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!" Asuma seized that tiny moment of distraction, drawing a deep breath before launching a compressed sphere of cutting wind.
"Fire Release: Cranium Blaze!" The left mask unleashed a sea of fire.
"Wind Release: Pressure Burst!" The right mask released a violent wind ball.
Wind empowered fire, fire fueled wind.
A raging wall of flame roared forward, slamming into Asuma's attack and shredding it apart before barreling toward him.
At the same time, Guy shouted, "Youth burns forever. Morning Peacock!" Despite his injured left leg, he burst forward, enduring the pain as he unleashed blistering speed.
Compressed air ignited into waves of scorching heat, scattering like flaming peacock feathers as they shot toward Kakuzu.
"Not happening." Kakuzu slammed both palms to the ground. "Earth Release: Multi-Layer Earth Wall!" Thick walls of solid earth rose one after another.
They cracked under Guy's assault, but they held long enough to block his approach.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!" Kakuzu countered instantly, firing a bolt of lightning toward the charging Guy.
Asuma tried to assist, but Kakuzu's main body created a field of spear-like earth spikes with Earth Release to cut off his angle.
Guy dodged the incoming lightning with rapid footwork, but each evasive move pulled him farther from close range.
Kakuzu was right. A taijutsu fighter who could not get close was unable to use his greatest strength.
Surrounded by three masked hearts, Kakuzu coordinated long-range, mid-range, and defensive maneuvers with flawless precision.
Kurenai attempted a stronger illusion, but Kakuzu's heightened alertness made it impossible. Her genjutsu could no longer take hold.
Although the three Leaf shinobi fought with admirable synergy, Kakuzu's vast experience and diverse techniques let him dismantle their strategies with ease.
If this continued, they would eventually tire. And if they tried to retreat, Kakuzu would lose a heart for nothing.
He would not allow that.
He had to kill at least one of them.
His eyes drifted toward the direction of Hidan's corpse.
He had already chosen a target.