The Konoha shinobi who had been forced back by Kumogakure's pressure all raised their heads at almost the same time.
Many of them recognized the figure standing in the air above them, hands still tucked into his pockets, and something in their eyes changed.
"Yagami-sama…"
"He's here."
Even Jiraiya, who had been planning how many seconds Gamabunta could buy him, let out a breath and grinned.
"So you're that Yagami. Took you long enough."
Yagami glanced down at him with a smile. "Oh? This should be our first time meeting, Jiraiya-san. I've heard a lot about you, though right now, you look like you were having fun."
"Does this look like fun to you?!"
Gamabunta snorted smoke from his nostrils, his blade still raised as he watched the Third Raikage with clear wariness. "Jiraiya, that guy in the sky is one of yours, right?"
"Yeah." Jiraiya wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "His timing couldn't have been better."
On the other side, Orochimaru looked up from where he stood near the Two-Tails. The blue flames reflected in his golden eyes, and the thin smile on his lips deepened. "As expected… he really came."
Yagami slowly descended, golden particles trailing around his body like drifting dust. He did not land near Jiraiya, Orochimaru, or Minato. Instead, he stopped in the center of the battlefield, between all three combat zones, as if he had placed himself directly at the heart of Kumogakure's offensive.
His gaze moved from the Third Raikage to A, then to Killer Bee, and finally toward the Two-Tails. "One Raikage, one future Raikage, the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki, and the Two-Tails…" Yagami's smile became faintly amused. "Kumogakure really came prepared."
Then his body exploded into light, and another Yagami appeared beside him.
But it was no ordinary clone.
The clone nodded once at him, then raised a finger.
Golden light flashed from its fingertip.
The thin beam, moving at the speed of light, struck the ground between Bee's feet.
Boom!
The explosion threw Bee's rhythm off by a hair.
The clone's body blurred into light. It passed through the gap between Bee's blades, appeared above him, and lightly pressed one foot against Bee's shoulder. "Your swordplay is interesting."
Bee's pupils shifted beneath his glasses. "Not bad—!"
Before he could finish, Yagami kicked downward.
Bee crashed into the earth. The red chakra cloak absorbed most of the blow, but the ground beneath him still collapsed into a wide crater.
A rushed back in the next instant.
His speed was even higher than before. The Lightning Release Chakra Mode around his body had grown denser, and his expression was no longer angry. It was focused.
Yagami saw him coming.
This time, he did not dodge immediately.
A's fist tore straight toward his face.
Yagami raised one hand from his pocket and caught it.
The collision sent a shockwave across the battlefield. The earth beneath Yagami's feet shattered outward in a circle, dust and broken stones flying back as nearby Konoha and Kumo shinobi were forced to cover their faces.
A's eyes widened slightly.
He had felt the impact clearly. His lightning-cloaked fist had struck Yagami's palm, but Yagami's hand did not tremble.
Yagami looked at the crackling lightning crawling over his fingers. "Not bad. But lightning doesn't affect me, you see… We're a bad matchup."
A clenched his teeth. "Don't mock me!"
His other fist drove forward.
Yagami's body turned into light before it landed. A's punch passed through golden particles, and Yagami appeared several meters away, looking as relaxed as before.
Bee rose from the crater, rolling his shoulder once. The red cloak around him repaired itself, and a third tail began to form behind him. "Brother, this one's tricky… I can't believe this is just a clone."
"I know, Bee! No need to tell me that!"
A did not take his eyes off Yagami.
The Third Raikage had naturally witnessed everything. At first, he had not thought much of Yagami's clone, but after seeing it handle both Bee and A at the same time, his expression darkened.
His massive presence shifted as he walked past Jiraiya and Gamabunta without fully turning his back, his eyes fixed on Yagami.
Jiraiya's expression changed. "Oi, don't tell me you're switching opponents just like that."
The Third Raikage spoke quietly. "Jiraiya of the Sannin, you are strong. But you are not my priority at the moment."
Jiraiya clicked his tongue, feeling greatly underestimated. "Don't look down on me, you walking fortress. I wasn't going all out either."
Gamabunta's mouth curled downward. "Jiraiya, now is not the time to be sensitive."
"Whose side are you on?"
Lightning erupted around the Third Raikage's body. In the next instant, he vanished from where he stood.
The ground beneath his feet shattered, and his figure turned into a streak of violent lightning that crossed the battlefield in an instant. His speed was terrifying. Unlike A's sharp, rushing movement, the Third Raikage's charge felt like a thunderbolt given human form.
He appeared in front of Yagami with his fist clenched, driving it forward to pierce straight through Yagami's chest. Yet after contact, there was not even the sensation of flesh being struck.
The Third Raikage felt his fist pass through Yagami's body as if it had only touched light.
Yagami did not even lower his hands from his pockets.
The Third Raikage's eyes sharpened. "What—"
Before he could pull his arm back, Yagami's body reformed behind him in a stream of golden particles.
A heel dropped into the Third Raikage's back.
The impact was powerful and merciless.
The Third Raikage's expression twisted as monstrous pain tore through his body, sharp enough to make every strand of his hair seem to stand on end.
"Argh!"
Boom!
His massive body slammed into the ground. The entire battlefield shook as a huge explosion burst outward from the point of impact. Dust, shattered rock, and waves of pressure spread in every direction, forcing even the Kumo forces to stop their advance.
"Raikage-sama!"
"No way…"
"He was hit?"
The Kumogakure shinobi stared at the cloud of smoke with shaken faces.
The Third Raikage was their shield. Their strongest spear. A man who could fight tailed beasts head-on and walk away from battles that would kill anyone else. And now, he had been driven into the ground by a single attack.
Inside the dust, a heavy cough sounded.
"Cough… cough…"
The smoke shifted.
The Third Raikage slowly pushed himself up from the crater. His armor of lightning still roared around his body, but there was a visible mark across his back where Yagami's strike had landed.
His face was grim. "Damn it…" He looked up through the dust. "What was that just now? I'm sure I hit you."
Yagami hovered above the crater, looking down at him with an expression that was almost pitying. "Didn't you read the reports? Things like that don't work on me."
"Don't screw with me…!"
The Third Raikage's chakra surged, and the lightning around him grew even more violent, crawling up his arms and shoulders until his hair lifted under the pressure. His gaze became fierce, and the fingers of his right hand straightened.
Jiraiya's expression changed. "That stance…"
The Third Raikage shot forward again.
"Hell Stab!"
His fingers became a spear of lightning, tearing through the air with killing force. The speed of the thrust was terrifying. It was not just a punch, nor just a jutsu. It was the Third Raikage's entire body converted into a single piercing strike.
The attack drove straight through Yagami's chest, but just like before, only light scattered instead of the blood he expected.
"You're too stubborn, old man. Don't you get it?" Yagami's voice came from behind him. "You can't do anything against me."
The Third Raikage's pupils tightened.
A fist slammed into the back of his head.
The blow was not large or flashy, but the force behind it was absurd. The Third Raikage's face was smashed downward, and his body crashed into the ground again with a thunderous impact.
Boom!
The crater deepened. Cracks spread across the battlefield like a spiderweb.
This time, even Jiraiya stood frozen for a moment, his mouth slowly opening in comical disbelief.
"Close your mouth. You look stupid."
Jiraiya shut his mouth, then immediately opened it again as he pointed at the crater. "Don't act calm! That was the Third Raikage! The Third Raikage! I was over here risking my life, and this guy is treating him like a training dummy!"
Above the crater, Yagami remained floating in the air, his hands once again tucked into his pockets. His expression had not changed from the beginning.
Below him, the Third Raikage slowly raised his head, expression completely annoyed.
Yagami looked down at him and smiled faintly. "Now then… are you done testing it, or do you want to try hitting the light a few more times?"
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