Uchiha Shūichi vs. Fourth Raikage

"Such fast reflexes—to think he could react even in my Lightning Release Chakra Mode!"

The flames slowly dispersed as the knocked-back Fourth Raikage strode through them, his expression turning somewhat grave as he looked at Uchiha Shūichi.

"So it's the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan? What's your name, Uchiha ninja?"

Though he had seemed battered a moment ago, the Lightning Release Armor had left the Fourth Raikage completely unscathed—the Great Dragon Fire Technique hadn't even singed a single hair on him.

A fierce aura, carried by the Fourth Raikage's immense chakra, saturated the air. Uchiha Shūichi and Yamanaka Fū, hardened by Root training, remained unfazed, but Hyuga Homura and Yūhi Kurenai found their legs trembling.

Such was the oppressive pressure of a peak powerhouse. Chakra itself is the fusion of Mental Power and physical energy, and what people call "aura" is the mental force within chakra bearing down on an enemy—a genuine form of mental attack.

But this only truly worked when the gap in strength was vast. A mere Special Jonin facing a Kage-level peak like the Fourth Raikage was little more than a slightly tougher elite grunt.

"I am Uchiha Shūichi. I never imagined that mere intelligence on the Rinnegan would draw the Fourth Raikage himself here in person!"

Shūichi spoke calmly. He truly hadn't expected that, based on nothing but unverified intel, the Fourth Raikage would bring the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki along. It just showed how thoroughly the Raikage and his brutes committed to action.

"Shūichi, Special Jonin—Kumogakure's reinforcements will be here soon!"

At that moment, Hyuga Homura hurriedly interjected. The Fourth Raikage hadn't come alone; besides the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B, he had brought four elite Kumogakure ninja.

After sensing the Sunagakure and Konoha squads, the A and B combination had split up, each taking two ninja to hunt. In other words, aside from the Fourth Raikage, two more Kumogakure ninja were rushing to this spot.

Because the Fourth Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode was so fast, the groups had become separated. The Raikage alone was already a nightmare; if those two Kumogakure ninja arrived, the situation would only worsen.

Even Uchiha Shūichi, trying to keep his abilities hidden, found the current circumstances troublesome.

"Forget it. If real danger comes, I'll just have to use Susanoo and Kotoamatsukami. For now, let's test this guy's mettle!"

With a flicker, Shūichi split into several clones, charging at the Fourth Raikage. The Raikage, clad in his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, showed no fear and surged forward like a bolt of lightning.

With a sharp shing, two of Shūichi's clones were instantly shattered. The Fourth Raikage burst through, then turned to see the clones reforming, frowning slightly.

"Body Flicker Shisui! No—I've seen Uchiha Shisui's intel. You're not him!"

"As I said, I'm Uchiha Shūichi. I just picked up a bit of Shisui's Body Flicker Technique."

Shūichi replied calmly. Uchiha Shisui had earned the title "Body Flicker Shisui" not just for his mastery of the Body Flicker Technique, but because he fused it with his genjutsu, making it impossible for others to distinguish clones from the real body.

In truth, it was just a basic D-rank Clone Technique, but infused with genjutsu, it became uncanny and unpredictable, blurring the line between original and copy.

Now that Shūichi had transplanted Shisui's Kotoamatsukami Mangekyo, even his ordinary genjutsu was close to Shisui's level. Replicating his signature move was effortless.

"Konoha truly is a cradle of geniuses—especially your Uchiha Clan, every one of you overflowing with talent. And that's exactly why I can't let you live!"

"Lightning Release—Raikiri!"

At an unimaginable speed, the Fourth Raikage smashed through illusion after illusion. He chose a seemingly crude, brute-force method to counter Shūichi's Body Flicker Technique—hit every single clone and illusion until he found the real body.

And with the Raikage's speed, that was no challenge at all!

With a loud bang, the Fourth Raikage's face lit up as he felt his attack connect with what seemed to be Shūichi's real body.

Watching Shūichi fly backward, his arm bent at a grotesque angle, the Fourth Raikage pursued without hesitation, aiming to finish him off in one blow!

But the next second, the Shūichi before him vanished into thin air. The Raikage's strike hit nothing, throwing his balance slightly off. Then, a chill crept up from behind.

"Genjutsu! When did I fall for it?"

A flicker of alarm crossed his mind. The Fourth Raikage didn't rely on his Lightning Release Chakra Mode to tank the incoming attack; instead, he twisted his body to keep the blow from hitting a vital spot.

With a thud, the Raikage felt a sharp weapon pierce his back. But after penetrating the Lightning Release Chakra Armor, ninety-nine percent of the force was spent—it only broke the skin before losing momentum.

The weapon also carried a powerful electric charge, searing the wound shut as it cut through, saving the Raikage the trouble of stopping the bleeding.

"Such incredible lightning resistance. Are you even human? Feels like you could tank ordinary C-rank Lightning Release techniques with your bare body!"

Shūichi stared at the Fourth Raikage, the blade of his longsword crackling with lightning, a hint of surprise in his voice.

"Kumogakure's Lightning Release Chakra Mode requires a ninja to have strong lightning resistance. That move of yours—it's a bit like that Konoha ninja Hatake Kakashi's Chidori!"

Shūichi gave his chakra blade a shake, the lightning on its edge flaring into a sword of electric light.

"This is actually a variant of Kakashi's Chidori—condensing the lightning that normally gathers in the palm onto a weapon. I call it Chidori Blade."

Just as Shūichi had borrowed Shisui's Body Flicker Technique, this Chidori Blade was copied from Kakashi and, later, Sasuke.

The Uchiha Clan's Sharingan gave every Uchiha astonishing learning ability. As long as a technique suited their conditions, they could replicate it after seeing it once.

But even the same technique varied wildly in power depending on the user's mastery of chakra nature and shape transformation, as well as their depth of study.

Shūichi himself had both lightning and fire affinities. In fire release, he followed the orthodox Uchiha path; in lightning release, he largely mimicked Kakashi and the future Uchiha Sasuke. Thanks to dedicated refinement, his Chidori Blade was far more potent than a casually copied technique.