Ōnoki's Predicament
One punch.
Mud Golem punched the Four-Tails fox hard in the nose.
It's like winning the lottery!
Tailed Beast mimic the forms of living beings, and thus possess the reactions of living beings. The nose is one of the weaknesses of most living beings, and monkeys are no exception.
The Four-Tails creature was so dizzy from the attack that it swayed and spun around like a top, unable to steady itself.
"Earth Release: Iron Sand Bullet"
The principle of "strike while the iron is hot" applies everywhere.
The Mud Golem opened its abyss-like, black mouth, and a vast amount of Chakra gathered. Huge rock projectiles were fired rapidly, accompanied by a shrill whistling sound, and slammed wildly at the Four-Tails.
More than ten rock-carrying shells were fired in succession, all hitting the target.
This time, the Four-Tails was truly badly beaten. It suffered severe injuries all over its body, half of its monkey face was twisted and mangled, and it looked like a ferocious ghost. Its aura was extremely weak and depleted.
The chaotic Chakra fluctuations even made it difficult to maintain the current form.
Just then--
A soft white light shone in the sky.
In an instant, a vast amount of Chakra surged in mid-air.
The cube-shaped white light barrier expanded like lightning and projected onto the earth below. The giant Mud Golem stretched out its right arm, and the solid rock arm was instantly swallowed up by the white barrier, as if it had been weathered and decayed for thousands of years, waiting only for a gentle breeze to blow it into dust.
This is the true meaning of the Dust Release.
Any matter will turn into dust and scatter under the attack of Dust Release.
The Mud Golem's body was as hard as steel, but in the blink of an eye, it was completely engulfed by the white light, leaving not a trace. Even the ground beneath its feet was left with a large, square crater.
"... Is he dead?" Within the cloud, Ōnoki warily scanned his surroundings.
Deep down, the old man hoped that his attack would be successful, but his instincts, honed by years of battle, told him to think of the worst-case scenario. A good result would bring joy, but if something went wrong, he wouldn't panic.
The air in the clouds was humid, but the old man didn't like the feeling. He was more used to the desolate, dry air of the north, where the rough air mixed with dust made him feel more comfortable.
On the ground, the Five-Tails and the Wood Golem were locked in a fierce battle. The commotion was astonishing, and the two seemed evenly matched, with neither able to gain the upper hand for the time being.
Further away, the Stone Ninja and Konoha Ninja were like ants, so small that they were barely visible, just a dense mass of dark shadows.
"·····"
Ōnoki's pupils contracted sharply, and then a silver lightning bolt parted the clouds, like a silver python swallowing the old man's thin, withered body whole, shattering it into dust in the dazzling light.
"Earth Clone? That's fast..."
The familiar sound of thunder once again resounded across the sky.
"Too bad you won't get far this time."
The sound of metal clashing was incessant, intertwining with thunder. Golden chains extended from behind Katsuki, stretching out almost infinitely, like golden snakes darting through the clouds, chasing after Ōnoki's figure.
He didn't hesitate to use himself as bait to lure Ōnoki into making a move.
During the fight with the Four-Tails, he had already laid a trap. What remained on the Mud Golem's head was only a Shadow Clone of himself, while his true self was hidden in the Mud Golem's ankle using Barrier Ninjutsu.
When the Dust Release struck—
Taking advantage of the situation Katsuki dived underground, going fifty or sixty meters deep to avoid the Dust Release attack. Meanwhile, a clone was already hiding in another place, using Mind's Eye of the Kagura to monitor the dozen or so Chakra fluctuations of Ōnoki in the sea of clouds above the sky. He successfully seized the opportunity to capture the location of Onoki's main body.
"You can't escape, Tsuchikage. I've already sealed off the surrounding space with Barrier Ninjutsu."
What Katsuki stood on was not Thunderclap Chariot, but a rectangular golden barrier.
"Hey!"
Rows of rectangular golden barriers stretched out like roads into the depths of the clouds. Like Katsuki, one could walk unhurriedly along these golden barriers.
"Dust Release, Boundary Severing Technique."
In the clouds and mist.
The white light flashed again, and the golden chains shattered with a crack, along with the barrier beneath Katsuki's feet.
"Hey, Tsuchikage, why get angry? You're already so old, haven't you lived enough? Why not just die here?"
The golden rectangular barrier reappeared, and Katsuki walked over, a smile on her face. Golden chains shot out from behind her once more, flashing with brilliant light and ringing with a clear, tinkling sound that echoed through the clouds.
"A clone!?"
As Ōnoki's figure rapidly flew backward through the clouds, he sank down. That brat from the Uzumaki Clan had used another strange technique, actually walking on the barrier, and these were all clones.
The Four-Tails was badly beaten and will be unable to do anything for a while. Besides, that brainless thing can't be expected to cooperate at all. In the previous battles, it was just cooperating with the Four-Tails.
A battle fought alone.
The art of flight is now only mastered by Ōnoki in the entire Iwagakure, while the Four-Tails, who was able to intervene in the battle, was badly beaten and unable to do anything for the time being, which instantly worsened Onoki's situation.
Having fought this far with his aging body, he was nearing his limit. He had used the Dust Release nearly ten times, his Chakra was almost depleted, and he had even consumed a handful of Ration Pills.
His current physical condition cannot withstand the backlash from the Ration Pills.
"What... what on earth are you doing?"
Ōnoki suddenly let out a heavy sigh, feeling utterly exhausted. He was so tired that at this point, the physical pain was nothing compared to the confusion in his mind that made him feel even worse.
Feeling lost, disappointed, and even a little... indifferent!
"Konoha... Konoha... I really envy you!" The old man's smile was bitter, his face deeply wrinkled, like ravines, bearing witness to countless years of hardship.
The bitter smile gradually faded into indifference. At this moment, the stubbornness to compete with Konoha was gone, and he had come to terms with it.
He couldn't help but feel some regret about his hasty southward journey. The Cloud Ninja sitting on the sidelines watching the tigers fight, while the Stone Ninja became bait to test Konoha. Moreover, Konoha's strength was something he hadn't anticipated.
However, this moment of regret was fleeting, and his stubborn heart tightened again; he was not about to accept his fate!
"This is..." Ōnoki stared in astonishment at the emerald green barrier before him, "It actually sealed off the surroundings... The Uzumaki Clan's Barrier Ninjutsu..."
The clanging of chains came from behind, the golden chains following closely like long snakes.
"Dust Release, Boundary Severing Technique."
Without hesitation, a white light burst forth from his hand, easily creating a hole in the emerald green light barrier, and Ōnoki flew out with the force of the attack. (To be continued)