Reversal

Boom!

A wave over ten meters high rose sharply and quickly submerged the ground, uprooting small trees with its immense force and dragging them far away.

Fortunately, Souya had the ability to fly; he stood on a Gold Cloud, avoiding the impact of the water surge.

He turned his head to look at Sasori's position, where a wall-like earthen mountain had risen—clearly Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!

Sasori and several of his puppets stood atop the mountain, their expressions grim but still appearing confident.

Meanwhile, Suikazan Fuguki had already submerged beneath the surface, lying in wait to strike, with only a deep blue shadow faintly visible under the water.

Seeing this, Souya knew Sasori could handle himself, so he focused his attention on his own enemy.

Most of the Lightning Dragon that Raiga Kurosuki had conjured was now submerged by the water, but Raiga made a move that caught Souya off guard.

With a low shout from Raiga, the Lightning Dragon began to spin in place, faster and faster, churning up a massive whirlpool.

The water at the bottom of the whirlpool slowly merged into the Lightning Dragon, creating a spectacular sight like a dragon drinking water.

Crackle!

The now-stopped Lightning Dragon's body had turned a shimmering blue, its surface currents softer and more restrained.

With a toss of its claw, Raiga's figure was thrown down; he stood on the water, looking up at Souya in midair, his eyes full of provocative battle intent.

As he swung his long-handled Thunder Blades, the Lightning Dragon tore a huge gash in the Gold Dragon made of gold dust, its claws shimmering with crystalline light, faint electric currents visible flowing within.

The power of this dual water-and-lightning-attributed dragon claw was evident!

Souya frowned, and the Gold Cloud beneath him flew into the distance, as if trying to flee.

"Hahaha!"

"What's this? Running away with your tail between your legs like last time?"

Raiga let out a wild, strange laugh, but this time he clearly wouldn't let Souya escape again.

Under his command, the Lightning Dragon tore the Gold Dragon to shreds in a few moves, then spat out a Lightning Ball, blasting the Gold Dragon into a pile of scorched gold dust that fell from midair into the water.

The Lightning Dragon pressed its advantage, slithering like a water snake across the surface, closely pursuing Souya, occasionally spitting out Lightning Balls at him as he dodged in the air.

Thus, the two chased and fled, quickly leaving the battlefield.

Before long, Souya arrived beside an earthen mountain.

The ground here was dry soil, far from the area affected by the great waterfall's currents.

The Lightning Dragon suddenly lunged up, opening its mouth to bite at Souya in the air, but the Gold Cloud under his control was incredibly agile, shifting directions in the air with lightning speed; it plummeted sharply, dodging the dragon's gaping maw.

However, the Lightning Dragon's thick tail suddenly whipped around like a bolt of lightning.

Smack!

Souya couldn't dodge in time; the Gold Cloud was directly scattered, turning into fine gold dust that fell from the sky.

And Souya's figure flew off at an angle, crashing with a bang into the earthen mountain beside him.

"Haha!"

"Where do you think you're running now, you flying brat?"

"This is your grave!"

Raiga seemed tired of this chase; seeing Souya finally knocked from the air, he decided not to hold back—killing him here was the best option.

He had the Lightning Dragon lower its head, then leaped up, landing directly on the dragon's head.

He swung the Thunder Blades with both hands, stirring up streaks of silver-white lightning afterimages.

Then Raiga plunged the Thunder Blades into the dragon's head, and torrents of electricity poured endlessly from the blades into the Lightning Dragon. Before long, Raiga's aura began to wane.

Roar!

The Lightning Dragon, infused with massive amounts of electricity, seemed to gain sentience; scales on its silver-blue body were clearly visible, its fierce horns lifelike, and its crimson eyes full of savagery.

The dragon raised its head in a silent roar, but it sent out huge waves of sound, a terrifying spectacle!

"Cough! Cough! Still hurts a bit..."

Souya, embedded in the mountainside, coughed up a few mouthfuls of blood, feeling much better in his chest and throat. Though covered in dust and looking quite disheveled, his eyes burned as he stared at the Lightning Dragon and Raiga atop its head.

"But! The one to be buried here is not me, but you!"

After muttering softly, Souya's deep eyes seemed to ignite with blazing fire. His hands suddenly formed hand seals, and the Chakra within him poured out without reserve.

The dust at Souya's feet swirled up from the gust of wind, and then the tens-of-meters-tall earthen mountain began to rumble and shake, as if an earthquake had struck.

Boom!

The entire mountain burst apart, and what surged out from within was gleaming gold dust!

It turned out that when Souya and Sasori planned this ambush, Souya had prepared a massive amount of gold dust stored here, disguised as an ordinary earthen mountain with Earth Style.

"Gold Dust Prison Flow!"

The ground beneath the Lightning Dragon instantly caved in, turning into a flowing river of gold dust that began to spin, forming a massive sand whirlpool!

The earth mound... no, it had now become a mountain of gold dust, pouring forth like a flash flood, intent on burying the Thunder Dragon completely.

Boom! Boom!

Thick bolts of lightning shot out from the Thunder Dragon's body, exploding on contact with the gold dust, constantly fending off its assault.

But the sand vortex beneath the Thunder Dragon spun faster and faster, and thick arms of gold dust reached out from within, trying to drag the dragon down.

Raiga Kurosuki's face now showed a flicker of shock. Clearly, having thought victory was in his grasp, the sudden reversal of fortune left a jumble of chaotic thoughts flooding his mind.

The Thunder Dragon writhed violently, its claws tearing apart the gold dust that coiled around it.

Souya pressed his palms together and slowly lifted them upward, as if struggling to raise a small mountain.

Whoosh!

The surging gold dust vortex seemed to churn up a towering golden wave, rising in a ring and crashing toward the Thunder Dragon.

Boom!

A blinding flash of lightning shot into the sky, then spread outward, instantly vaporizing a huge swath of the onrushing gold dust, leaving only a thin layer behind!

A smell like sulfur wafted through the air, and faint arcs of electricity crackled here and there.

But the Thunder Dragon, now trapped deep within the massive gold dust vortex, could not escape.

The gold dust in the sand vortex surged up again, its thickness nearly matching the previous wave, but the Thunder Dragon's body, having just released its lightning, had grown much thinner. Clearly, even with the aid of the Thunder Blades, Raiga Kurosuki's Chakra was not limitless.