Chapter 163 – Lightning Meets Steel

Chapter 163 – Lightning Meets Steel

The roar of battle still shook the streets of Kumogakure. Stone was broken, flames licked at torn buildings, and shinobi lay scattered across the ground, many moaning, some silent forever. The clang of steel and the sound of armored fists crushing through defenses filled the air.

At the center of it all, the Raikage stepped forward. His massive frame trembled as lightning surged around him, his muscles swelling with power. The ground beneath his feet cracked, spiderweb lines shooting outward from the force of his chakra. Sparks danced over his broad shoulders and arms like chains of blue fire.

“You think you can walk into my village and take it?” the Raikage bellowed, his voice carrying over the clash. “I’ll show you what a real Raikage is, not like those weaklings in Kirigakure!”

A cry rose from the remaining Kumogakure shinobi. Even the injured lifted their heads at the sound of their leader’s rage, shouting his name with desperate pride. To them, the Raikage was a wall of thunder, unyielding, unbeatable.

The Fourth Raikage was known as one of the fastest shinobi alive. By covering his body in Lightning Armor, he increased his speed, strength, and reflexes to a level few could match. His punches could break through almost any defense, and his movements were so quick they were nearly impossible to follow. Only the Flying Thunder God Technique was faster, but that relied on teleportation, while the Raikage’s speed was his own.

Hajime did not move. He stood tall in his Grey armor, blue psychic light glowing from his eyes behind the helm. His armored hands rested calmly at his sides, his voice low and steady.

“Come then.”

The Raikage didn’t wait. His body blurred, lightning exploding from his skin as he vanished in a streak of light. To normal eyes, he was gone. To Hajime’s mind, he was clear, each twitch, each intention laid bare by the ability brought by the Golden Halo, Bullet time, strengthening his perception to almost precognitive levels and his powerful eyesight.

The Raikage appeared before him in less than a breath, his fist already drawn back, wrapped in blinding chakra. The punch tore through the air with enough force to split stone. Any other man would have been pulverized.

But Hajime moved. His head tilted, just enough for the fist to pass his cheek with a blast of wind. His glowing eyes locked onto the Raikage’s, calm and unshaken.

At the same moment, Hajime’s armored fist shot forward. Steel knuckles gleamed as they cut through the space the Raikage had thought safe. For the first time in years, the Raikage felt surprise mid-swing.

He jerked back, lightning flaring around his shoulders as he slipped sideways. His speed saved him from a direct blow, but Hajime was already moving again. The Raikage lashed out with a backhand strike, lightning burning along his arm, aiming for Hajime’s ribs.

Hajime shifted smoothly, as if the strike had been predicted before it even began. His body flowed out of the way, and his counter came instantly, an armored fist slamming into the Raikage’s side.

The sound was brutal. Steel met flesh, thunder cracked, and the Raikage was launched off his feet. His body ripped through the air like a cannonball, sparks scattering across the torn street as stone shattered under his skidding frame.

Shouts of shock rang from Kumogakure shinobi. Their invincible Raikage, thrown like a ragdoll.

Not far away, another figure stirred. Killer B groaned, pressing a hand to his head as he forced himself upright. He had been knocked cold earlier by Hajime’s raw strike, and now his eyes widened at the sight before him.

The battlefield was chaos, his village crushed under armored giants. Tsunade moved like a storm, her slim but heavy armor shining with each strike. Every punch she threw shattered bone and broke weapons, her golden hair whipping behind her helm as shinobi crumbled before her blows.

Beside her, Sakura fought with the same brutal style, her own armored frame gleaming in the firelight. Each swing of her fists tore through squads of shinobi, her strikes so heavy that walls broke under the shock. Together, the two women tore through Kumogakure’s finest like wolves in a sheepfold.

B’s heart pounded. His first instinct was to charge, to unleash the Eight-Tails and cut a path through these armored devils. But then he saw it—his brother, the Raikage, sent flying like a child’s toy.

“Bro!” Killer B shouted, his voice booming across the square.

Without hesitation, he leapt. His massive frame cut through the smoke, moving with the grace of a predator. He caught sight of his brother tumbling through the air, blood spraying from his mouth, lightning sputtering in wild sparks across his body.

B threw out his arms. The Raikage slammed into him with bone-rattling force, the impact sending them both crashing back. Their combined weight tore grooves into the stone as B heels dug in, the ground splitting under their struggle. B gritted his teeth, muscles bulging as he strained to stop the slide.

“Damn, bro, you’re heavy even when flying!” B growled, planting his feet deep into the ground. Sparks exploded from his own body as he braced, and finally, the two brothers came to a grinding halt.

The air went still for a moment. Dust hung in the broken street, glowing faintly with scattered sparks.

At the center of the battlefield, Hajime stood unmoving. His armored frame was a black tower against the ruin, his right fist still clenched, faintly smoking from the impact. Blue light burned from his eyes like ghost-fire, watching the brothers without a flicker of doubt.

The Raikage staggered to his feet, leaning on his brother for a moment. His chest heaved, but his eyes still burned with rage. Killer B stood at his side, both of them staring down the armored warrior who had dared to step into their home.

Around them, the shinobi of Kumogakure still fighting the other two Steel Monsters. Their strongest men now stood together, shoulder to shoulder, against Hajime who had already broken their lines. Hope and fear warred in their hearts.

Hajime tilted his head slightly. His voice rolled out deep from within his helm, each word sharp and cold.

“If this is your strongest…” His fist lowered to his side, slow and steady. “…then Kumogakure will fall.”