Blue Asura

"What... is this?!"

A huge, scale-covered tentacle hung high above Kato Osamu and the others, blotting out the sky. Countless enormous suction cups dripped with mucus, like black-glinting eyes watching everyone below.

"Obito! Rin! Osamu! Get out of the way!"

Minato wanted to take the three of them away, but a man suddenly appeared before him and blocked his path. His entire body flickered with lightning, as swift as electricity and light itself—only a fraction slower than Minato's Flying Thunder God.

"You're Minato Namikaze? Today, all of you will die here..."

A's voice was heavy. He had never expected that merely intercepting Team Minato would cost the Cloud Shinobi such severe casualties. Looking at the wounded and dead scattered across the ground, rage rose within him, but so did his vigilance toward Minato.

Whoosh!

The wind roared as though it had been torn apart, and the enormous tentacle that blotted out the sky crashed down from above.

Like a ten-thousand-ton boulder, like a colossal whip holding up the heavens, it smashed down with a thunderous blow. The earth trembled, and soil and stone split apart.

The huge tentacle carried a bone-chilling, sinister Chakra, as though an invisible killing intent sought to destroy everything.

"Rin! Are you okay...?"

The three quickly retreated. Flying rubble tore a vicious wound across Obito's left arm, leaving flesh and blood mangled. A speeding chunk of rock had ripped away the flesh from his arm, yet he endured the pain and immediately turned to look at Rin beside him.

"Obito! Your arm!"

Rin cast a pleading glance at Kato Osamu standing nearby. Green light appeared in her hand as she pressed it against Obito's injured left arm.

Bang...

Kato Osamu deflected the incoming kunai. He stepped forward and stood in front of Obito and Rin, warily watching the Cloud Shinobi eyeing them from all sides.

However, part of his attention remained fixed on the enormous octopus that towered in the distance.

The gigantic octopus with an ox's head stood between heaven and earth like a monster, utterly terrifying.

Its massive tentacles danced through the air, enough to crush any ordinary ninja into pulp. Like an ancient demon god, it radiated a frightening aura.

"What kind of monster is that?"

The sight of the huge octopus stirred his thoughts into towering waves.

"The Eight-Tails...?"

Minato Namikaze and A stood silently atop nearby trees, watching each other with wary eyes.

After their brief exchange just now, both had gained a rough understanding of how troublesome the other was.

"Obito and the others can't get away..."

Minato's gaze settled on the man before him. With this man clinging to him, there was no way he could safely transfer all three away right under his nose. In an instant, he abandoned that idea.

He was also deeply surprised by the Eight-Tails' sudden appearance. He had not expected the Cloud Shinobi to deploy the Eight-Tails directly on the battlefield simply to intercept him.

"I can only call for help..."

"Summoning Technique!"

Minato Namikaze instantly vanished before A. A's gaze shifted, thunder rumbling around his body. The moment Minato reappeared, he charged after him, sticking close behind.

"That technique..."

A narrowed his eyes as though searching for something. To his senses, Minato Namikaze had simply vanished. This was definitely no ordinary taijutsu.

Then he spotted the kunai on the ground and seemed to realize something. His gaze toward Minato Namikaze grew even colder.

"I've heard that the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju's Flying Thunder God is a forbidden technique that can only be used by someone who has grasped the mysteries of space. I never expected to see this legendary ninjutsu here..."

"No wonder you were able to slaughter an entire camp alone..."

"A genius like you must die here!"

Lightning Chakra quietly flickered in his right hand without making the slightest sound. The muscles in his right arm swelled high, as though they had taken on the cold hardness of metal...

"Gamaken, Gamahiro, Gamabunta, stop that big guy..."

The smoke from the Summoning Technique dispersed, revealing three enormous figures surrounding the Eight-Tails. Creatures nearly equal to the Eight-Tails in size had appeared, and ordinary ninja could only feel despair. This was a battle between monsters.

"The Eight-Tails..."

The three toads looked at the Eight-Tails before them. A bead of cold sweat seemed to slide down their foreheads as their eyes subtly glanced toward Minato Namikaze.

"Minato, you really think highly of us three toad brothers..."

Gamabunta, who carried a long sword on his back, was the eldest of the three brothers and the leader of the younger generation of Mount Myoboku's toad clan. Even he was momentarily stunned and solemn.

"I'm counting on you..."

Minato scratched his head, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"The toads of Mount Myoboku..."

As one of the Three Legendary Sannin renowned throughout the Shinobi World, Jiraiya's public information was no secret among the Five Great Nations. A recognized these toads at a glance.

"No wonder you're such a genius. So you're Jiraiya's disciple... Fine. Before I defeat Jiraiya, I'll defeat his disciple first..."

At the mention of Jiraiya, A's fighting spirit rose. He had long wanted to witness the strength of one of the Three Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya. Now, he could start with Jiraiya's disciple.

Violent Chakra instantly surged from all around his body.

"Lightning Release: Lightning Oppression Horizontal!"

A moved at incredible speed, arriving before Minato in an instant. Lightning armor covered his body, flashing with electric light. His right hand was like an ancient bronze spear, viciously and ferociously thrusting straight toward Minato's chest with overwhelming force.

"Flying Thunder God!"

A golden flash flickered, and Minato vanished. The enormous rock behind him was shattered by A's blow, collapsing into fragments as rubble shot through the air and dust rose everywhere.

"Rasengan!"

The vanished Minato instantly appeared behind A, one hand raised with a blue sphere of light that seemed to have already touched A's body, only for A to evade it in that split second.

Blue lightning and golden light crossed through the air as the two figures vanished again.

"Lightning Release: Guillotine Drop!"

A sudden roar rang out. A and Minato Namikaze appeared at the same time, and the violent impact of Guillotine Drop seized Minato's throat as though it would tear his neck from beneath his head and send it flying.

Bang!

But the figure suddenly turned into smoke and vanished.

"A Shadow Clone?"

A watched his surroundings vigilantly. Rumbles continued to echo across the battlefield, but Minato was nowhere to be seen. He stomped the ground fiercely, splitting the earth open, yet there was still no sign of him.

Whoosh...

Four specially made kunai surrounded A from four directions. He focused his senses and held his breath as Minato Namikaze appeared behind him with a Rasengan raised in hand.

"Found you! You golden little rat who keeps scurrying around..."

"Heavy Lariat!"

With extreme speed and a fierce elbow strike, he charged toward Minato Namikaze beneath blue lightning, as though he would destroy everything in his path.

"One flash..."

As the kunai drew near, Minato Namikaze's figure flickered in midair and changed direction. Together with the Shadow Clones on both sides restricting A's movements, three Rasengan attacked A at once from behind and from both flanks.

"What?"

A had not expected Minato Namikaze to change position in midair. The figures behind and beside him seemed poised to surround and kill him.

They had left one opening in a three-sided encirclement. It seemed to be his only path to survival, yet A did not choose to evade. His feet rooted themselves into the earth as he shouted.

"Lightning Release: Strongest Armor!"

The young A was at the height of his vigor. He had absolute confidence in his ninjutsu and refused to bow to anyone.

Blazing electricity shot endlessly from A's body, instantly turning the two Shadow Clones into smoke. Enduring the final backlash of the Lightning Release armor, Minato Namikaze slammed the Rasengan heavily into A's back.

Blue lightning and the Rasengan continued to clash, radiating a terrifying presence as they canceled each other out.

The heavens and earth seemed to change color beneath the violent shockwave.

The Rasengan broke through the Chakra armor and struck A heavily, blasting him into the forest.

Tree after tree was destroyed. A fell into the dust and vanished from sight.

"Big Brother!"

Through the Eight-Tails' senses, Killer B also detected A's defeat. The Eight-Tails began attacking indiscriminately, its eight tentacles whipping through the air at extreme speed and instantly wrapping around Gamaken before rapidly tightening.

"Tailed Beast Eight Twists!"

With terrifying howls of wind, the Eight-Tails churned the entire battlefield upside down, as though it would twist heaven and earth into a single mass. The bodies of Cloud Shinobi that had not been gathered in time were smashed into bloody pulp and broken bones, scattering into the hills and forest. The entire battlefield became a sea of blood.

Caught within the vortex, Gamaken was gravely wounded and near death. He turned into smoke and returned to Mount Myoboku. Gamahiro leaped forward and struck one of the Eight-Tails' tentacles with a heavy blow, but the tentacle smashed him away. The enormous cracking sound was like a sonic boom as Gamahiro was sent flying and turned into smoke.

Gamabunta's heart sank. He kicked off forcefully with both feet, and his powerful leap sent him high into the air, temporarily evading the dangerous attack.

Standing atop a mountain ridge, he stared coldly at the rapidly spinning Eight-Tails, frowning as he considered his options, yet he seemed helpless.

"This is...?"

A special Chakra fluctuation suddenly spread out. His eyes immediately turned toward the forest, and the solemnity in them gradually became shock.

"Damn it! This is all because of you!"

The broken corpses of Cloud Shinobi turned into rotten flesh and crushed pulp, splattering all around and making the remaining Cloud Shinobi's eyes turn bloodshot.

They had no way to interfere in the battle between monsters in the distance, so they fixed all their attention on Kato Osamu and the other two.

"Water Release: Waterfall Technique!"

"Lightning Release: Earth Walk!"

Ninja skilled in Lightning Release and Water Release turned the battlefield around the three into a vast marshland. Lightning Release combined with Water Release was immensely powerful.

Dozens of ninja slowly closed in with cruel expressions, surrounding the three from every side.

"Obito... Rin... this is already a dead end...

We have to do something. Only by holding on until Jonin Minato comes to rescue us will we have a chance to escape this place... and survive..."

Kato Osamu knocked away a Cloud Shinobi's shuriken, then abruptly turned back, his eyes fixed on the battered Obito and Rin.

After Rin's treatment, the wound on Obito's left arm had barely closed, but his face was terribly pale, like gold paper. Kato Osamu's heart sank.

"Osamu! I'll stake my life on it! What do you need me to do?"

Rin said nothing, but like Obito, she looked at Kato Osamu with unwavering determination.

Though their faces still carried the immaturity of youth, the twelve- and thirteen-year-olds now looked as though they were ready to face death without hesitation.

That look in their eyes—that they could sacrifice their lives to do anything the very next moment—reassured Kato Osamu somewhat and strengthened his resolve.

"I'm going to use a secret technique. My body... will need you to protect it..."

"Obito... Rin... can I trust you?"

"Unless I'm dead, no one will get near your body..."

"Me too..."

With their backs pressed tightly together, Kato Osamu could feel Obito and Rin trembling. It was fear of death, as well as the utter madness that came before it.

Their bodies had instinctively produced massive amounts of adrenaline, making Obito and Rin feel as though they were burning.

"Good!"

Kato Osamu looked deeply at Obito and Rin, then suddenly brought his hands together and shouted.

"Spirit Transformation: Spirit Body Descent!"

A massive pale-blue phantom suddenly emerged from Kato Osamu's small body. The spirit body, over a hundred meters tall, appeared fully in the Shinobi World for the first time.

It gripped a pitch-black longsword and stood between heaven and earth, looking down upon all beneath it. Two faint blue lights seemed to shine from its eyes.

Centered on Kato Osamu's body, intense fluctuations spread outward in rings of soul ripples that shook the heart, covering the entire battlefield.

As though they had encountered a natural predator, everyone was suddenly seized by an indescribable terror. The hairs on their bodies stood on end as they raised their heads in horror to stare at the terrifying pale-blue phantom that blotted out the sky.

"What... is that?!!"

Every Cloud Shinobi in the forest froze. Looking at the giant that resembled a blue asura, they were terrified beyond measure.

"What kind of ninjutsu is this?!"

The utterly shocking sight seemed to shatter the Cloud Shinobi's understanding of the world.

"Quick! Everyone, use ninjutsu!"

The trembling Cloud Shinobi formed hand seals. Countless bolts of lightning, flames, and torrential dragons surged toward the spirit body, but they passed through it as though it were empty air and exploded violently in the sky.

"Why... isn't it working?!"

Some Cloud Shinobi came to their senses and immediately shouted, "Those three brats! Kill them, and this thing will disappear!"

Obito and Rin stood ready, blocking all the thrown kunai. Cloud Shinobi charged forward, and Obito met them like he was fighting with his life on the line.

His entire body was covered in wounds, blood flowing down his arms. His vision was filled with red.

A long wound had also opened across Rin's back, exposing torn flesh as blood gushed out like a spring.

Kato Osamu's body was already covered in crimson, but it was all Obito and Rin's blood. He remained completely unharmed.

"Osamu... is it done? I... I might... not make it much longer..."

Obito's voice had weakened. Already injured, he had long since consumed all the Soldier Pills he carried. Now, he was at the end of his strength...

"Obito, Rin... if we survive, then we'll be friends..."

Kato Osamu's voice echoed in Obito and Rin's minds.

In the next instant, the spirit body, brimming with fighting spirit and killing intent that shook the heavens, surged with blue energy. Waves of power rolled from it, and its eyes were as chilling and intimidating as cold lightning.

It turned its head, and an aura like death swept across everyone's bodies, making them tremble all over.

Slash.

Terrifying deathly intent surged like a tide. The incomparable pressure made everyone unable to breathe.

The spirit body that overlooked the entire battlefield moved. Its black longsword swept out like an autumn wind scattering fallen leaves.

Its terrifying force seemed capable of splitting mountains and rivers and severing the sky, yet it carried the mercy of a Buddha and harmed not a single thing.

The sword swept past without damaging a blade of grass or a tree, but the Cloud Shinobi nearby who failed to evade it stood frozen, as though they had lost consciousness.

Thud...

Thud...

In the next moment, one Cloud Shinobi after another fell straight to the ground as though they had lost all their bones, crashing into the water or tumbling down from trees.

"What happened to you guys?!!"

The few remaining Cloud Shinobi watched their companions collapse one after another. A bizarre and terrifying atmosphere instantly swept over them.

They all raised their heads toward the giant above them, their throats bobbing.

"Blue... as... asura..."

"An asura that steals souls!!!"

Some Cloud Shinobi Jonin possessed secret techniques and could barely sense traces of soul fluctuations. Upon examining them closely, they immediately realized what had happened—their souls had been taken away in an instant!

Terror appeared on his face as he looked at the spirit body standing between heaven and earth, as though he were looking at an asura Shinigami from hell. When a god struck, mortals were mere ants, powerless to change their fate.

"Obito! Rin! Run while you can! I can't attack a second time!"

A gap had been torn open in the Cloud Shinobi encirclement. Of the several dozen Cloud Shinobi, only seven or eight remained, but those left were all skilled fighters—elites among the Jonin. Obito and Rin were no match for them.

Kato Osamu's voice rang in Obito's ears, snapping him out of his shock. He hoisted Kato Osamu onto his back, dragged his badly wounded body along, supported Rin, and darted into the forest.

"K-Kato Osamu... Th-this... I..."

Obito did not slow his pace, yet he seemed too stunned to speak.

"I'm recalling my spirit body. Hide yourselves, quickly!"

Kato Osamu's strike had completely exhausted the soul energy he had accumulated during this time, and barely any Chakra remained. Although he had absorbed dozens of souls, unconverted souls could not yet become his own strength.

All the soul energy he had converted during this time had gone toward increasing the maximum amount of soul energy his spirit body could hold. Only recently had Kato Osamu vaguely sensed that the spirit body could launch a single attack.

He needed more souls.