Chidori Blooms!

"Sakura, do it!"

Inside the Rock Forest, Sasuke caught a glimpse of Iwayano gathering chakra and shouted urgently.

"Understood!"

Knowing she had to buy time for Sasuke's attack, Haruno Sakura swung both arms and immediately hurled a dozen shuriken at Iwayano.

"Useless!"

With a dismissive smirk, Iwayano watched the shuriken spin toward him and dodged every attack with a few casual movements.

"Don't get too happy just yet!"

Seeing the smug look on Iwayano's face, Sasuke suddenly pulled a massive Fuma Shuriken from his back and hurled it with maximum speed.

The Fuma Shuriken tore through the air with a thunderous roar, slicing across the horizon as it charged toward Iwayano.

They're using that move again! I hope it works!

Trapped in the Water Prison, Kakashi recognized the familiar Fuma Shuriken and instantly recalled the perfect coordination Sasuke and the others had displayed during their trial.

"This kid has some skill; he can actually spin a Fuma Shuriken!"

Watching the Fuma Shuriken draw near, Iwayano couldn't help but exclaim.

"Heh, but he's still a bit green!"

Narrowing his eyes, Iwayano crouched down and let out a sinister chuckle.

Relying on his combat experience, Iwayano judged that the angle of Sasuke's throw was slightly too high, giving him a chance to dodge; had it been any lower, he would have been helpless.

But what Iwayano didn't know was that the very angle he thought he could exploit was exactly what Sasuke had intentionally left open.

"Whoosh!"

The Fuma Shuriken grazed dangerously over his head, and Iwayano stood back up.

"Brats, it's about time you hit the road!"

Clasping his hands together, Iwayano prepared to unleash a ninjutsu to finish off Sasuke and the others.

"Heh, you're celebrating too early!"

However, no sooner had Iwayano finished speaking than a dull thud sounded behind him. The Fuma Shuriken that had flown past stopped in mid-air and instantly transformed into the shape of Naruto.

"Success!"

At that moment, Kakashi, Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura all exclaimed in excitement.

Naruto's maneuver had the potential to turn their disadvantageous situation around.

"What?"

"This... how is this possible?"

Iwayano turned his head to find Naruto standing behind him, utterly shocked.

Iwayano never imagined that Naruto would use the Transformation Technique to disguise himself as a Fuma Shuriken to deceive him.

"Multi Shadow Clone Technique!"

In the brief moment he remained suspended in the air, Naruto didn't dare to be careless. He immediately manifested six shadow clones and commanded them to pounce on Iwayano together.

"Damn it!"

Before Iwayano could react, he was seized by Naruto's shadow clones, rendering his body immobile.

Although Iwayano's raw strength far exceeded Naruto's, the sheer number of shadow clones gave Naruto a clear advantage.

"Sasuke, it's up to you!"

After the shadow clones restrained Iwayano, Naruto landed on the ground and shouted immediately.

"Chidori!"

Even without Naruto's reminder, Sasuke knew what to do. As he completed the hand seals, silver lightning instantly crackled across his right hand.

The lightning coiled around him, its brilliant hue blindingly bright, enveloping his entire body as an exceptionally violent surge of energy radiated outward.

"So he really did use Chidori!"

Staring at the dazzling lightning on Sasuke's hand, Kakashi muttered to himself.

The moment Sasuke began his hand seals, Kakashi knew he was going to use the Chidori. Although he had previously insisted that Sasuke must activate his Sharingan to use this technique, Kakashi understood the necessity of the situation.

"Sasuke is so amazing!"

Watching Sasuke as he flickered within the lightning, Haruno Sakura whispered with a smile.

"When did Sasuke learn such a flashy ninjutsu? I'll have to make Kakashi-sensei teach me next time!"

Staring dumbfounded at Sasuke as he unleashed the Chidori, Naruto laughed with a hint of jealousy.

"Hey, Iwayano, watch out!"

Though he was some distance away, Sanli could still sense the extreme danger of the lightning on Sasuke's hand and shouted a warning.

"This kid can actually use Lightning Style?"

Iwayano watched the lightning gathering in Sasuke's hand with a grave expression, his eyes surging with nervousness.

Iwayano was an Earth-style ninja, but lightning countered earth; even if Iwayano used chakra to petrify his body, he would not be able to block this move from Sasuke.

"You must pay the price for hurting my comrade!"

Muttering a low sentence, Sasuke's figure surged forward, carrying an extremely domineering and sharp lightning glow as he rushed madly toward Iwayano.

Wherever the lightning in Sasuke's hand passed, the ground beneath was carved with a deep, raw trench.

The lightning light rapidly magnified in Iwayano's pupils, but bound by Naruto's Shadow Clone, he could not dodge and could only stare grimly at Sasuke's figure.

"There is no other way, I must use that move!"

However, Iwayano did not sit and wait for death; his hands began to form seals, preparing to respond.

"Go to hell!"

Sasuke arrived in the blink of an eye. Looking at the sealing Iwayano, his arm suddenly shook, and the lightning on his right hand, shimmering with destructive and sharp energy, slammed toward Iwayano's heart.

Yet, just as Sasuke was about to strike Iwayano, Iwayano's body suddenly underwent a massive change; he rapidly turned black, eventually transforming into a mud figure.

The sudden turn of events caused a look of shock to appear in Sasuke's eyes, but before he could recover, the Chidori in his hand had already slammed fiercely into the mud figure!

"Zzzzt!"

A low, rumbling sound of lightning suddenly echoed throughout this Rock Forest, and the mud figure was completely torn apart by the power of the lightning.

"Bang, bang, bang..."

At the same time, the terrifying power of the lightning also destroyed Naruto's Shadow Clone, which instantly vanished into white mist.

"Damn it! He escaped!"

Looking at the shattered soil on the ground, Sasuke's pupils constricted violently, and his heart slowly sank.

"Sigh, he used an Earth Clone; Iwayano's strength is simply too great!"

Seeing Sasuke's Chidori go to waste, Kakashi, inside the Water Prison, let out a soft sigh.

Through his left Sharingan, Kakashi had been able to clearly see Iwayano use the Earth Clone to escape in that split second.

At this moment, Sanli also smiled slightly, then swept his gaze over Sasuke and chuckled: "This brat actually managed to force Iwayano to the point of using an Earth Clone; it's the first time I've seen such a thing in all these years."

"Sasuke, where did that guy go?"

Realizing that Iwayano had used some kind of ninjutsu to slip away, Naruto raised his head, looked around, and asked.

Sasuke, standing nearby, ignored Naruto; he was currently searching carefully for Iwayano's figure, knowing that if he were careless, he would surely be ambushed.

"Ah!"

Just as Sasuke was searching, Naruto suddenly let out a miserable cry, and immediately after, an invisible force blasted his body backward, causing him to slam heavily into a rock in the distance.