"Kazuyama! I'll give you my chakra!"
"But I told you to punch the Eight-Tails, not the big black guy!"
Chōmei frantically injected his chakra into Kazuyama's body.
Kazuyama snapped back, "Do I want to fight him? This jerk won't leave me alone!"
"I don't care! Chōmei, I'm going to beat him up this time! Support me with chakra!"
A thick cloud of white smoke burst forth—the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, an advanced variation of the standard Shadow Clone Technique.
An A-rank ninjutsu created by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, this technique utilizes a massive amount of chakra to produce an overwhelming number of clones, even reaching thousands at once. Due to its extreme chakra consumption, Tobirama deemed it too dangerous for those without vast reserves, classifying it as a forbidden technique and sealing it away in the Scroll of Seals.
Kazuyama had learned this technique purely out of admiration for Naruto Uzumaki, but he rarely used it due to its high chakra demands. However, this time, he had no choice. Against A, the son of the Raikage, his options were limited.
His reaction speed wasn't on par with Minato Namikaze, and a mistake with the Flying Thunder God Technique could put him in serious danger. The only viable strategy was to overwhelm his opponent with sheer numbers.
With Chōmei's chakra supporting him, Kazuyama instantly multiplied—500 clones of himself appeared in an instant!
"You want to fight?"
"I'll gladly oblige!"
Kazuyama was already irritated by A's provocations, and now, his patience had run out.
In perfect synchronization, 500 Kazuyama Gekkōs surged forward, their right fists raised, ready to strike.
Meanwhile, A was already engaged, tangled in the coils of Kinrin, a massive golden snake infused with Senjutsu. Yet, relying on his blinding speed and overwhelming strength, A fought back ferociously, showing no signs of struggle.
If Kinrin had been any ordinary large snake, A would have already torn it apart. But this was no ordinary snake—it had Senjutsu-enhanced durability, making it far more resilient.
"You bastard! You're the one who ambushed Dodai!"
Recognizing the serpent, A's rage flared even hotter. Old grudges combined with new ones, leaving only one option—
Fight!
"So what if it was me!"
"Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
"Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes!"
Kazuyama didn't know the Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes, and even if Orochimaru taught it to him, he wouldn't learn it—he would never spit a snake out of his mouth.
But with the advantage of 500 clones, he forcibly upgraded Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands into something close to the Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes.
One after another, the clones leaped onto Kinrin's massive body and began unleashing their jutsu.
Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands could summon over ten long snakes per user. With 500 clones, that meant more than 5,000 snakes—rounding up, 10,000!
Orochimaru: ...My apprentice, we need to work on your math skills. Ugh...
The forest was instantly flooded with a swarm of snakes, all slithering toward the same target—A, the Raikage's son, standing in front of Kinrin.
"Damn it! What kind of ninjutsu is this?!"
A watched the wave of serpents surge toward him and, for the first time, felt a chill run down his spine. His claustrophobia kicked in.
And he wasn't the only one unsettled.
"Oh, scary! Scary!"
"So many snakes! Brother, retreat!"
Killer Bee, who had been watching from a distance, was already stunned when Kinrin appeared. Now, seeing the swarm of snakes rolling in like a tide, he felt sick.
He stopped fighting Tsunade and immediately bolted toward A.
Seeing this, Tsunade wasn't about to let him escape.
"You want to run? Keep dreaming!"
"Stay right there!"
She slammed her fist into the ground, shattering it with raw strength. Then, picking up a massive boulder, she hurled it straight at Killer Bee.
He barely dodged by leaping sideways.
"Damn it!"
Killer Bee looked a little rattled after being blocked, but Tsunade gave him no chance to recover. Her fist, packed with monstrous strength, came swinging toward him again.
He had no choice but to defend, over and over.
While keeping Killer Bee on the defensive, Tsunade glanced at Kazuyama. She couldn't help but feel a little puzzled. His strength right now seemed excessive.
Multiple Shadow Clone Technique?
When did he learn that?
And how was his chakra even sustaining it?
Meanwhile, Tsume and Hizashi remained unfazed by Kazuyama's actions. The two continued fighting in sync, steadily suppressing their opponents.
Back in front of A, the horde of snakes finally reached him.
With no other choice, he activated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode to resist. His fist crackled with lightning as he struck out, shredding the incoming serpents with raw power.
But they just kept coming.
There was no end in sight.
And he couldn't afford to retreat. If he did, the wave of snakes would crash down on Killer Bee and the others behind him.
"You're pretty good at fighting, aren't you!"
"I'll let you have a good fight!"
Kazuyama felt the endless chakra surging through his body and activated Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands once again.
Chōmei had been working with him for so long that transferring chakra between them had become second nature. The chakra flow remained steady, saturating Kazuyama's body without triggering the Tailed Beast's outer layer.
The level of synchronization between man and insect was almost eerie.
"Damn it! Bastard!"
"Have the guts to fight me head-on!"
"Aaahhh!"
A, overwhelmed by the relentless wave of snakes, had completely lost his mind.
Lightning Release exploded from his body, making him look like a humanoid Tyrannosaurus rex crackling with electricity. Every punch and kick shredded the long snakes in front of him.
But no matter how many he destroyed, more kept coming, an endless tide.
"Fight you face to face? Okay!"
"Take this—One Thousand Years of Death Rasengan! Rasengan Ascension!"
As A struggled to tear through the snakes, a cold voice whispered in his ear.
Even with his peak reflexes, a chill ran down his spine.
The next second, a sharp pain shot through his back.
Even with Lightning Release protecting his body, he felt it.
"Ah! Asshole!"
In that instant, he understood exactly why Dodai had ended up in such a miserable state.
This brat was shameless.
"Lightning Blast!"
Enduring the pain, he allowed the snakes to coil around him. Raising his arms high, he gathered a massive amount of chakra between his hands.
"Damn it, I'm out!"
Kazuyama, seeing the imminent danger, didn't even care about his four broken fingers. He activated the Flying Thunder God Technique and vanished from the ground.
"Boom!"
"Crack!"
As A's arms slammed down, his attack detonated instantly.
Originally meant to grab and slam his opponent into the ground, the move instead erupted in place, fueled by his fully charged chakra.
Lightning roared, and the devastating chakra explosion obliterated all the surrounding snakes. Even Kazuyama's 500 clones were caught in the blast.
Kinrin, the golden-scaled serpent, suffered severe injuries from the sudden explosion, its body writhing in pain.
"Roar!"
With an unwilling cry, Kinrin vanished into white smoke.
The clones disappeared with it.
"Bee! Retreat!"
A huge amount of chakra had been expended, and his body was wounded. Though A was unwilling to admit it, there was no other choice—he gave the order to fall back.
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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