But the Rasengan was already right in front of him, and Lin Mu had no time to think.
As though acting on combat instinct, he burned through the chakra in his body.
Then he crouched and pressed both hands to the ground.
"Wood Style: Tree Barrier!"
A wall of hard ironwood rose from the ground, sheltering Lin Mu within.
Facing the sturdy Tree World Wall, Naruto Uzumaki did not hesitate. He kept forming his Rasengan and charged straight ahead.
"Rasengan!"
The gleaming sapphire-blue Rasengan slammed straight into Lin Mu's ironwood wall.
Bzzzt!
What followed was not a boom, but the sound of intense friction.
Bzzzt, bzzzt, bzzzt...
The grinding continued. Lin Mu's expression grew grave as he poured even more chakra into the Tree World Wall.
"Aaaaaah!"
Naruto Uzumaki was giving it everything he had too, holding the Rasengan in his right hand and pressing it hard against the Tree World Wall.
Yet he reached his left hand back toward a shadow clone behind him.
The shadow clone naturally shared a mental connection with the original and instantly understood Naruto Uzumaki's intent.
The clone moved closer to Naruto Uzumaki, chakra surging through both hands.
It began forming another Rasengan in Naruto Uzumaki's left hand.
This Rasengan was noticeably different from the first. It was larger and contained more concentrated chakra, which meant its power far surpassed the previous one.
Lin Mu's expression shifted rapidly. He could sense the power of the chakra in Naruto Uzumaki's left hand too.
Even he would probably suffer serious injuries if he took that attack head-on.
Just then, a hint of resolve appeared in Lin Mu's eyes.
"I've been looking at this the wrong way..."
He smiled self-mockingly. Naruto Uzumaki had taken this fight seriously from the start, giving it everything he had.
But Lin