Thud!
The enormous bird was covered in purple feathers, their deepest shades already turning azure.
The bird landed steadily on the ground, just managing to catch Raijin as he leaped high.
Meanwhile, the pillar of lightning descending from the sky first gathered on the metal hammer Raijin held aloft.
Then Raijin angled his metal hammer, sending the lightning pillar straight toward the Immortal Duo.
"Lightning Release: Thunder Strike."
As Raijin grew increasingly proficient with the ninjutsu he had created himself, its power and rank had both improved significantly.
Now, Lightning Release: Thunder Strike, when performed by Raijin himself, had reached the level of A-Rank Ninjutsu, and its power could not be underestimated.
His summoned beast, Azure Bird: Thunderclap, had also been rapidly growing and evolving through constant battle.
Their combined strength was already comparable to that of an Early Kage Level expert.
Of course, against a genuine Early Kage Level expert, there was still a clear gap in strength between the two sides.
The Immortal Duo before them was one such example.
Hidan lay on the ground, unable to move, leaving Kakuzu alone to withstand Raijin's attack head-on.
The seemingly terrifying pillar of lightning actually stopped dead as it struck toward Kakuzu.
More precisely, the wind pressure Kakuzu released had blocked the lightning pillar in place.
The five elements of chakra countered one another, and the same held true for Five Elements Ninjutsu.
Kakuzu had released Wind-Style Ninjutsu, and according to the basic principle of the five elements countering one another, even that terrifying lightning pillar could not break through the vortex of wind pressure.
As he released the ninjutsu, a beast mask appeared on Kakuzu's right shoulder, and the visible vortex of wind pressure spewed from that beast mask's mouth.
The secret art Kakuzu possessed was extremely unusual: through