Third Raikage A stood atop a high slope several miles from Thundercloud Canyon.
The cold metal rim of the binoculars nearly warped beneath his steel-like fingers. In his view, the mighty fortress that had once belonged to the Land of Lightning and guarded its eastern gateway had become utterly unrecognizable.
Pitch-black Mystic Crystal covered every inch of the fortress like living armor, fitted together without the slightest seam.
The once sharply angular Thunder-pattern Stone structures now displayed smooth, cold, unnatural geometric contours. Beneath the gloomy sky, they gleamed with a dark luster, like an ancient Mystic Crystal beast lying in wait.
At the fortress's summit, the glaring Konoha banner snapped violently in the canyon's frigid wind, like a resounding slap across the faces of the Raikage and every Cloud Shinobi.
The cliffs on both sides of the canyon had also been reinforced over vast stretches with the same Mystic Crystal, forming steep, smooth walls that were impossible to scale. What made his pupils constrict even further was that the thick thunderclouds that had dispersed after being destroyed were now gathering again above the canyon!
They were larger in scale and darker in color. Thick blue-violet bolts flickered in and out of sight amid the churning clouds, radiating an even more violent and oppressive heavenly pressure than before! An invisible force field shrouded the entire canyon, making even the air seem thick and heavy.
"Neji... that Konoha brat..." A low roar rolled from the Raikage's throat, every word like icy shards forced through clenched teeth. He suddenly lowered the binoculars, and his iron-like fist slammed into the temporary command table beside him!
Boom!
The heavy solid-wood table shattered into pieces as though it had been struck by a cannonball!
Splintered wood shot in every direction like arrows, embedding deeply into the