A Fight to the Death

"Careful!" Uchiha Arashi grabbed Sato Yu and Akiyama Rei and yanked them sharply to the right.

Boom!

Shibuki slammed hard into the spot where they had just been standing. The ground was instantly smashed into a huge pit by the explosive tags Shibuki had summoned, sending shattered stones flying everywhere!

"Not bad speed, but still not enough!" Uchiha Arashi snorted coldly, drove power into his feet, and prepared to counterattack.

Just then, Kushimaru Kuriarare moved.

His figure shuttled through the mist like a ghost. The slender Nuibari was like a venomous snake's fang, silently stabbing toward Akiyama Rei's back!

Akiyama Rei was only a sensory and support-type ninja. Against an opponent like this in close combat, her ability was practically nonexistent!

"Rei!" Sato Yu roared. Without even thinking, he threw himself over and used his own body to block in front of Akiyama Rei.

Pfft!

Nuibari easily pierced Sato Yu's shoulder, and blood instantly gushed out.

"Sato!" Akiyama Rei let out a short cry of alarm, and her tears finally spilled over.

"Annoying pest!" Kushimaru Kuriarare flicked his wrist, and Nuibari whipped out like a long lash, flinging Sato Yu away.

Uchiha Arashi's eyes sharpened. So fast!

He had no time to think. A scorching mass of energy instantly condensed in his palm. "Saiyan Fire Release: Ki Blast Barrage!"

Several fiery-red ki blasts shot toward Kushimaru Kuriarare, forcing him to retreat for the moment.

"Tch, quick reflexes." Kushimaru Kuriarare licked the blood on his blade, and the corner of his mouth beneath the bandages curled into a cruel smile.

"You two, come at me together!" Uchiha Arashi pulled Akiyama Rei behind him and shouted angrily at Kushimaru Kuriarare and Munashi Jinpachi.

He knew he had to buy time, or find an opening in the enemy.

Otherwise, all three of them would die here today!

Akiyama Rei bit her lip hard. Tears swam in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to make a sound.

She knew she could not help, and could only do her best not to drag them down.

Sato Yu struggled up from the ground. Agony radiated from the wound in his shoulder, but he still tightened his grip on his kunai and looked at the enemy with a determined gaze. Since fear would only make him die faster, he might as well calm down and look for a chance.

"Aren't you... aren't you afraid of starting a war between the Land of Water and the Land of Fire?" Sato Yu's voice trembled somewhat from pain and fear, but he still mustered his courage and shouted.

"War?" Kushimaru Kuriarare seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world and gave a sneering laugh. "As long as we kill you and destroy the scene, who would know we did it?"

Munashi Jinpachi said nothing. He merely raised Shibuki again, and this time, his target was Uchiha Arashi!

The heavy Shibuki came smashing down again with terrifying wind pressure!

The mist seemed to thin a little, and the figures of Kushimaru Kuriarare and Munashi Jinpachi became clearer.

Sato Yu and Akiyama Rei looked at the two ninja swords radiating an ominous aura, trembling all over, their faces deathly pale.

But they still forced themselves to stay calm, gripping the weapons in their hands tightly.

"Arashi... what do we do?" Akiyama Rei's voice carried a sob, yet she tried hard to keep steady.

Uchiha Arashi's gaze was as sharp as a blade, his mind racing.

Meeting them head-on definitely would not work. These two were far too strong.

He had to think of a way!

He glanced at the badly wounded Sato Yu and Akiyama Rei, who had little combat strength, then gritted his teeth and made his decision.

"You two, find a way to hold down Munashi Jinpachi!" Uchiha Arashi said quickly. "Use binding jutsu, or anything else you can think of, to restrict his Shibuki! I'll deal with the one holding the long sword!"

Sato Yu and Akiyama Rei looked at each other, and both saw resolve in the other's eyes.

"Okay!" Sato Yu gritted his teeth and nodded.

"We'll do our best!" Akiyama Rei also nodded hard.

Uchiha Arashi took a deep breath, and a trace of madness flashed through his eyes.

He knew this was a huge gamble. He had to attempt to trigger the fourth gate of the Eight Gates Released Formation without any prior practice, even if there was a chance he would be left crippled afterward. This was his only chance to win.

Might Duy-sensei, sorry. He recited silently in his heart. Now is the moment I have to burn my life!

"Eight Gates Released Formation, fourth gate—Gate of Pain! Open!"

Boom!

A power far more violent than when the Gate of Life had opened erupted from within Uchiha Arashi!

Intense pain instantly swept through his entire body, as if every inch of muscle was being torn apart, and every bone was wailing!

But at the same time, his strength, speed, and reactions, compared to when he had opened the third gate, skyrocketed by several times over!

The Saiyan Chakra around him had already taken physical form, rising like burning flames and crackling with sharp pops.

His hair moved without wind, and his Double Tomoe Sharingan grew even more scarlet from the extreme power and pain.

"Flying Technique!"

Uchiha Arashi's body suddenly hovered in the air. The dizziness brought by the violent consumption of chakra made his vision go black, but he endured the discomfort and looked coldly at Kushimaru Kuriarare below. The killing intent in his eyes had already solidified into something tangible:

"Hmph. Let me show you what real speed is!"

Kushimaru Kuriarare clearly had not expected Uchiha Arashi to be able to fly. Surprise flashed through his eyes, but it was immediately replaced by dense killing intent.

"Cheap tricks!" he roared, swinging Nuibari as he slashed over.

The blade sliced through the air with a shrill whistle, so fast it left afterimages behind.

But in Uchiha Arashi's eyes, with the Gate of Pain open and the Flying Technique active, that speed was too slow!

Clang! Clang! Clang! The crisp sounds of metal colliding came from below. From the corner of his eye, Uchiha Arashi glimpsed Sato Yu barely using his kunai to block Munashi Jinpachi's heavy, forceful blunt sword, Kabutowari, while Akiyama Rei seized the chance to form hand seals. "Water Release: Water Binding Rope!" A rope of water tried to coil around Jinpachi's body.

Hold on! Rei, Yu! I'll come help you right away! Uchiha Arashi was anxious, but his gaze became even more focused on the enemy before him.

In Uchiha Arashi's eyes, with the Gate of Pain open and the Flying Technique active, Kushimaru Kuriarare's attack speed was fast, but the trajectory was clearly visible!

"Too slow!"

"Too slow!"

Uchiha Arashi's figure dodged nimbly through the air like a ghost, easily evading Kushimaru Kuriarare's attacks.

Nuibari's blade brushed past the corner of his clothes again and again, yet could not even touch a single hair on his head.

"How is that possible!" Kushimaru Kuriarare was both shocked and furious. He had not expected this brat's speed to be this fast!

"Is buzzing around like a fly all you can do?" Uchiha Arashi sneered from the air, constantly provoking Kushimaru Kuriarare with his words. "If you've got the guts, come hit me, trash!"

"Kushimaru, ignore this brat for now. Let's kill these two weaklings first, then deal with this brat together. He won't be able to stir up any trouble then."

However, Kushimaru Kuriarare had already been thoroughly enraged by Arashi, and had completely lost any thought of cooperating with Munashi Jinpachi.

"They're just two chunin. You can't handle them? I'm killing this brat right now!"