Susanoo

"I'm sorry I'm late."

Just as the two great generals on the battlefield held their breaths, focused every nerve, and gathered their chakra and strength for a decisive clash, a golden figure suddenly appeared all across the battlefield. Like a death god who was everywhere at once, he took the lives of Cloud shinobi one after another.

"You little brat, if you'd come a moment later, all you'd have been able to do was attend your master's funeral."

Jiraiya was pale, coughing blood as he slumped atop Gamabunta's head and gasped for breath.

His body, badly injured by the Raikage's Hell Stab, still hadn't fully recovered. This time, facing the Fourth Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, he had managed to hold on only through his wealth of experience and help from his partner. Even so, he was already at the end of his rope, his Jonin vest nearly dyed red with blood.

"Taking advantage of someone when they're down might seem dishonorable, but this is war."

Lightning Release Chakra burst around the Fourth Raikage. He decisively threw a punch at the weakened Jiraiya, hoping to eliminate this troublesome enemy first.

But he was fast. Namikaze Minato was faster.

The punch struck only empty air.

A great cloud of smoke billowed up. The giant toad, which had fought for so long, was also released from Summoning and returned to Mount Myoboku.

"Where's Kushina?"

"At the camp. Root has taken over watching her, but that's still safer than leaving her outside the battlefield."

Supporting his master as he retreated, Minato reached the rear. The medical ninjas, who had been standing by, immediately came forward and took the blood-soaked Jiraiya from him.

"Be careful. You may be faster than that brat, but he has a Jinchuriki helping him."

Jiraiya knew his own condition and didn't insist on fighting. He had battled the Cloud shinobi of the Land of Lightning on this front for nearly three years and knew his opponents well.

The Third Raikage was formidable, one of the strongest in the Shinobi World and almost unbeatable in a one-on-one fight.

The Third Raikage's partner, Ransui Bi, possessed the Storm Release Kekkei Genkai and was known throughout the Shinobi World as a shadow of Danzo, both in strength and reputation. Unfortunately, he wasn't cautious enough. During the Third Shinobi World War, he died at Ōnoki's hands, reduced to dust.

Next came the Fourth Raikage and the AB Duo. Tempered by the battlefield, A—who was the same generation as Jiraiya—already possessed six or seven tenths of the Raikage's strength. Killer B was still young, but as the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, once he unleashed his full power, no one on the battlefield could stop him.

The rest were the Raikage's Shadow Guard. Unfortunately, though all three were renowned throughout the Shinobi World, none had yet reached Kage Level. Heitai, the strongest among them, had been cut down by Danzo in a single exchange.

"Don't worry, Master. I'm going to become Hokage. I absolutely won't fall on this battlefield."

Before Minato could finish speaking, he had already vanished from Jiraiya's sight. Within moments of his departure, the AB Duo had slaughtered more than ten Konoha Jonin.

"B, I'll handle him. You clear the battlefield and give our comrades a chance."

A speed-type ninja could only be countered by another of the same kind. The instant A saw the Yellow Flash, every hair on his body stood on end. His Lightning Release Chakra Mode shifted to its "God Speed" state as he charged toward Minato.

"Leave it to me, big brother!"

Both sides wanted to eliminate the enemy's fighting strength as quickly as possible, so they could go support their generals.

On the battlefield, lives were lost every moment. Emotions, reason, anger, helplessness—all of them were insignificant now.

Everyone had only one thought: kill the enemy and survive!

"So this is... war."

At the rear base, atop a hill used as a temporary camp, a black-haired child of four or five watched the tragedies unfolding before his eyes. For the first time, he began to think about peace.

"Itachi, watch closely. This is the Uchiha's strongest power."

A young man in a Jonin vest, with pronounced lines around his mouth, stared at the translucent, emerald-green ribs surrounding Danzo. He nearly lost his cool expression. He had thought he was the only one with this power.

But wasn't the Mangekyō Sharingan in both eyes required to awaken Susanoo?

"The Uchiha's strongest power?"

Seeing the confusion on his son's face, Fugaku wore a proud expression.

"The Mangekyō Sharingan, the Uchiha's supreme power, grants two forbidden Dojutsu. Susanoo, meanwhile, is the Third Power, unlocked only after both Dojutsu have fully awakened and matured. It's called the power of the gods—a power with an absolute defense and the terrifying ability to destroy everything."

After hearing his father's words, young Itachi set aside his thoughts about war and peace for a moment and looked admiringly at Danzo, who had unleashed the power of the gods.

He wasn't the only one. As the most attention-grabbing sight on the battlefield, the clash between the two generals displayed a level of power that overturned the ninjas' understanding of the world's limits.

"Four-Finger Nukite!"

The Raikage acted decisively. Seeing that the battle was no longer going as overwhelmingly in his favor as before, and knowing how strong Susanoo's defenses were, he immediately entered his strongest state.

He pressed his right thumb against his palm and held the other four fingers together like a blade. The immense Lightning Release Chakra within him, almost on par with a Tailed Beast's, gathered at his fingertips and formed an unstoppable drill. It slammed into Guo Wang's pale green ribs.

Crack!

At the crisp sound of shattering, transparent bone fragments broke away. Young Itachi felt an emotion called "deception" and stared blankly at his father.

"Impossible! He actually broke through Susanoo's defense!"

He wasn't the only one. Even Uchiha Fugaku couldn't maintain his cool expression.

The clan's records clearly stated that only Wood Release could break this absolute defense. Yet now, a mere Nintaijutsu had created a breach.

"Excellent. That takes me back. My right eye is starting to ache again."

As the crack in the translucent ribs before him continued to widen, the Mangekyō pattern in Guo Wang's right eye began to spin wildly. It had been this very move that had cost him his right eye when the Raikage destroyed it.

No defense could withstand this move.

Hell Stab was known as the Shinobi World's Strongest Spear.

In the span of a few breaths, Guo Wang completed dozens of hand seals. Danzo's strongest Wind Release surged forth in an instant.

"Vacuum Blade!"

Wind Release Chakra condensed to an extreme degree along the Spiral Sword that had appeared in Susanoo's right hand. Amid a pale, clear radiance, the skeletal arm swung a colossal blade seven or eight meters long, bringing it down toward the Third Raikage before him.

"An attack this slow won't touch me."

As the Spiral Sword came slashing down at an angle, lightning flashed around the Raikage. He was about to use the Body Flicker Technique to evade when he suddenly found his body stiffening, unable to move.

"What is this...?"

Black sealing symbols, like tadpoles, surged out of the ground and crawled up from the Raikage's feet, covering half his body.

"Self-Exerting Curse Binding Seal."

Boom!

Using the Fuinjutsu he had laid in advance around his feet, Guo Wang seized the moment the Raikage's body stiffened. The Vacuum Blade, wielded by Susanoo, struck with tremendous force and buried itself in his opponent's neck.