Naruto: Starting with Infinite Chakra-Chapter 187: - : The Fierce Battle

The runes imprinted on the sand vanished, and the golden grains began to trickle down, unable to gather together any longer. They now fell like ordinary sand drifting from the sky.

Shukaku's attack had been completely neutralized—his sand could no longer pose any threat to Jiraiya.

The combined assault of Jiraiya and his two companions had shattered Shukaku's strongest technique. Shukaku's power was formidable, but their strength surpassed it.

As the saying goes, "there's always a higher mountain"—and in this case, Jiraiya's might stood above Shukaku's.

Even the strongest sealing technique in Shukaku's arsenal had been thoroughly broken by Jiraiya's sheer power.

"You call this your strength, Shukaku?" Jiraiya sneered. "How disappointing. I was hoping you'd at least land a hit on me before I took you down. But from the looks of it, I clearly overestimated you. Beating you doesn't even require me to pay a price."

Having dismantled Shukaku's strongest technique, Jiraiya deliberately mocked him.

He did so for a reason—he knew that Shukaku had a notoriously short temper. The Tailed Beast was prone to rage, easily losing his composure.

And once someone fell into blind fury, their combat awareness and ability to perceive danger would drastically decline.

This was unavoidable. An enraged opponent couldn't calmly analyze the battlefield or carefully probe for their enemy's weaknesses.

They would attack recklessly, doing everything in their power to destroy their target. But the more they fought in anger, the more openings they left in their defense.

"You little brat! How dare you look down on me?! I'll tear you to pieces!"

Shukaku roared in fury.

Never before had he suffered such ridicule.

Even while sealed in the Land of Wind, everyone—whether it was Bunpuku or other shinobi—always spoke to him with utmost caution, treating him with fear and respect, wary of provoking his wrath.

Yet here was Jiraiya, mocking him without restraint. He had never been treated this way before.

"Tch, are you seriously that unoriginal? Is that all you can say?" Jiraiya scoffed. "I've already heard that line from you a dozen times. Can't you come up with something new?"

"You bastard! I'm going to kill you!"

Shukaku's fury boiled over.

His massive maw opened wide, and a vortex of chakra began rapidly condensing at its center—a deep purple and black sphere, the unmistakable form of a Tailed Beast Ball.

A true Tailed Beast Ball.

This was nothing like the incomplete version fired by Bunpuku in his partial transformation. The difference in scale was overwhelming.

Bunpuku's attack had been a mere imitation, an unstable half-formed attempt.

But the one forming in Shukaku's mouth now—this was the real thing.

The sheer force of the technique carved deep fissures into the ground, shattering the terrain and sending tremors through the battlefield. Dust and debris exploded into the air.

This was the kind of power capable of leveling mountains.

Yet despite the oncoming destruction, Jiraiya remained calm.

He moved his hands swiftly into a series of seals.

"..."

"There's no way Jiraiya can survive that," one shinobi whispered in disbelief.

"Even if he somehow withstands it, he'll be gravely injured," another muttered. "Once Shukaku fires that Tailed Beast Ball, finishing him off will be effortless."

"That level of attack... even the Kazekage himself would have to be extremely cautious."

"Jiraiya's strong, sure, but he hasn't been a Kage-level shinobi for long. He might be above the level of an elite jōnin, but compared to a seasoned Kage, there's still a gap. Against this kind of power, there's no way he can walk away unscathed."

Watching the fully formed Tailed Beast Ball take shape, the shinobi of the Land of Wind felt a surge of hope.

Even standing at a distance, they could feel the sheer force of it pressing against their bodies.

When Bunpuku had used his incomplete version earlier, the difference was clear—back then, they hadn't felt this crushing sense of dread.

"..."

"Little Jiraiya, this is the real test," Fukasaku said gravely. "If we can withstand this level of attack, taking down Shukaku will be much easier."

As he spoke, his hands moved in a blur, forming seals as he prepared his strongest technique.

"Enough with the unnecessary talk," Shima snapped. "We give it everything we've got. And if we can't block it, we'll use the summoning technique to escape."

Like Fukasaku, she was also preparing a powerful jutsu.

Jiraiya grinned. "You two should have more confidence. An attack of this level isn't much of a challenge for us."

He completed his hand seals, then thrust one hand toward the sky.

Jiraiya's chakra surged, transforming into Senjutsu energy. Storm clouds rapidly gathered overhead, darkening the once-clear sky.

Bolts of lightning crackled ominously, flashing through the swirling tempest.

Then, in an instant, massive bolts of lightning, each as thick as a water tower, crashed down toward the incoming Tailed Beast Ball.

The first strike made impact. The sphere's velocity slowed.

Another bolt struck, dispersing some of its chakra.

The sheer force of the lightning bombardment was steadily weakening the Tailed Beast Ball, unraveling its energy bit by bit.

Heaven's Thunderstorm—Jiraiya's strongest Lightning Release Sage Jutsu—was designed to mimic the destructive force of natural lightning.

A technique of this caliber consumed an immense amount of chakra. For most shinobi, unleashing such a jutsu would be nearly impossible, even at the cost of their life.

But Jiraiya—Jiraiya was built different.

For him, this level of chakra expenditure was insignificant. His Sage Mode allowed him to recover energy almost instantly.

Lightning rained down in an unrelenting barrage, and the Tailed Beast Ball's chakra rapidly dwindled.

Within moments, its power had been halved.

"..."

Fukasaku and Shima joined the assault.

A roaring sea of flames erupted from Fukasaku's mouth, instantly engulfing the battlefield. The blazing inferno surged forward, swallowing everything in its path.

At the same time, Shima's jutsu summoned a ferocious storm, winds howling like a raging beast.

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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