A Close Match

Chapter 120 A Close Match

Yang Xiang stood on the wooden wall, looking down at the dark-skinned, burly man on the mountainside.

He could feel the oppressive aura of chakra—completely different from Chiyo's, and unlike any opponent he had ever encountered before.

That was pure power.

Extreme speed, extreme attack, extreme defense.

There are no fancy techniques, only the simplest and most direct methods—

Numerical value.

Yang Xiang's lips curled up slightly.

He hadn't encountered such an opponent in a long time.

He released his grip and placed the boy he was carrying on the ground.

Rope Tree's face was pale and he was covered in sweat.

"Yang—Yang Xiang—I tried my best—"

"Well done," Yang Xiang said. "Step back."

Rope Tree nodded, plopped down on the ground, and gasped for breath.

The Flying Thunder God technique teleports people over a thousand kilometers, almost draining him dry.

Luckily, I made it in time.

But now, nobody cares about him.

All eyes were on the two people between the mountainside and the summit.

Ai took a step.

The rocks beneath their feet shattered, and lightning flashed everywhere.

"Senju Yosho." His voice was like muffled thunder. "I've heard of you."

Yang Xiang did not speak.

He simply jumped down from the wooden wall and walked step by step toward the mountainside.

With each step he took, the trees beneath his feet grew automatically, supporting his steps.

With each step he took, his aura grew stronger.

Ai's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

It's excitement.

It is the hunter's excitement when he encounters his prey.

"Very good," he said. "Very good!"

He suddenly rushed out, his whole body turning into a bolt of lightning, heading straight for Yang Xiang!

In that instant, the air was torn apart, a sonic boom erupted, and the entire mountainside trembled.

Yang Xiang stopped in his tracks.

He raised his hand.

Green chakra condensed in his palm, transforming into a solid fist blade.

Then he rushed out as well.

Two beams of light collided violently on the mountainside!

boom!!!

The shockwave spread outwards, uprooting the surrounding trees and shattering the rocks into dust.

Guangyi lay on the ground, clinging tightly to a rock, which prevented him from being thrown away.

He looked up at the two intertwined figures, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Is this even human?

They're like superheroes.

Lightning and green light intertwined, and each collision created a shockwave.

Ai's fists crackled with lightning, each strike capable of shattering a small mountain.

Yang Xiang's fist blades were wrapped in chakra, and each strike was enough to tear steel apart.

Fist against fist.

Leg to leg.

Lightning Release Body Protection against Chakra Cloak.

There are no tricks, no frills.

Only the purest power.

Waaaaaaah!

"Hahahaha!" Ai laughed wildly, his punches getting faster and faster. "Good! Very good! It's been a long time since I've met someone who can exchange punches with me!"

Yang Xiang did not speak.

But a fighting spirit also ignited in his eyes.

This was the first time in this world that he had encountered an opponent who could directly rival him in strength.

Raikage.

Sure enough.

The two of them took a step back at the same time, and two large craters were blown open in the ground beneath their feet.

Ai shook his hands and stretched his shoulders.

There was a shallow bloodstain on his fist.

The blade of Yang Xiang's fist also bore charred marks.

"The Senju," A said. "Although I've never fought Hashirama Senju, I acknowledge his strength."

Yang Xiang looked at him.

He said, "You're not bad either."

The two looked at each other.

The mountain wind howled, scattering the smoke and dust.

Ai took a deep breath, and the lightning around him surged once more.

Yang Xiang did not speak.

He simply raised his hands and clasped them together.

In that instant, the entire mountain trembled.

Countless trees burst forth from the ground, blocking out the sun and shrouding the entire mountainside in shadow.

Ai's pupils contracted slightly.

"That's more like it," he said.

Then he rushed out.

Lightning and forest collided with a deafening roar on the mountainside.

The real battle has only just begun.

boom!!!

The two figures collided for the third time on the mountainside.

Lightning and green light exploded, creating a visible shockwave that shattered the rocks beneath their feet and uprooted the surrounding trees. Amidst the flying sand and stones, the entire mountainside trembled.

Ai took three steps back, each step leaving deep cracks in the ground.

He shook his numb fist and looked down—the bloodstain on his fist had deepened, with blood beads seeping from the charred edges.

interesting.

He looked up at the boy opposite him.

Yang Xiang also retreated five steps, two steps more than Ai.

His chakra cloak was torn in several places by lightning, and a corner of the fist blade on his arm was missing, which was slowly repairing itself.

In a pure contest of strength, he was slightly inferior.

But that's exactly what he wanted.

"Good!" Ai laughed wildly, his body crackling with lightning once more. "Again!"

He didn't give Yang Xiang a chance to catch his breath, and his whole body turned into a bolt of lightning, rushing straight over.

The Raikage's fighting style has always been one of overwhelming domination.

There was no probing, no roundabout approach, only the most direct and violent frontal assault.

This is the style of the Hidden Cloud Village—overcoming skill with brute force and slowness with speed.

Yang Xiang did not retreat but advanced.

He didn't use Wood Release or sword energy; he simply wrapped his entire body in a chakra cloak and clashed head-on with A.

Fist against fist.

Leg to leg.

Elbow to elbow.

Each collision created a shockwave, and each impact shook the mountainside.

The spectators on the mountainside were completely stunned.

The Tsuchigumo clan members slumped to the ground, while the young Uchiha clan members trembled as they gripped their kunai.

They couldn't even withstand a single exchange with the Raikage.

And now, that boy, who is only a few years older than them, is facing off against the Raikage.

Rope Tree sat on the ground, panting heavily, but his eyes never left the battlefield. He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.

Is this the difference?

He knew Yang Xiang was strong; he'd known since the first day of special training. But he never imagined Yang Xiang had reached this level of strength.

No, it should be said—

He keeps getting stronger, so fast that no one can keep up.

boom!!!

Another collision.

This time, both of them took seven steps back simultaneously.

Several fine cracks appeared on Ai's Lightning Release protective barrier, and Yang Xiang's Chakra Cloak was also mostly shattered.

The two looked at each other from a distance of more than ten meters, both panting.

"You brat from the Senju family." Ai wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, but the fighting spirit in his eyes intensified. "You're strong. I take back what I said before; you're not some hyped-up genius, you really are capable."

Yang Xiang moved his wrist, and the chakra cloak slowly repaired itself.

"You're not bad either," he said. "You're the first person who's ever fought me to this extent."

Ai paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Interesting! Really interesting!" He patted his chest. "Thirteen years old, and you can fight me to this extent. Give you a few more years, and you'll be unstoppable!"

Yang Xiang did not speak.

Because Ai is right.

With his current early Foundation Establishment cultivation level, combined with the Senju's chakra burst mode, he is still slightly inferior to the Raikage in terms of power.

But that's not a problem.

He still has a trump card up his sleeve.

"However—" Ai's voice suddenly turned cold, "if this is all you've got, then it ends here."

He took a deep breath, and the lightning around him began to change.

It was no longer a violent arc of electricity, but rather a solidified, almost liquid, jet of lightning that covered the body like a flowing layer of armor.

Lightning Release Chakra Mode - Full Activation.

This is the Raikage's ultimate form, where Lightning Release chakra is compressed to its limit, covering the entire body, and speed, strength, and defense all surge to their maximum.

The signature technique of the successive Raikage of Kumogakure, only he can achieve this level.

"I originally intended to save this move for that old bastard Onoki," Ai's voice came from within the lightning, "but today, I'm making an exception."

He suddenly disappeared.

It's not the Instantaneous Movement Technique, nor the Flying Thunder God Technique; it's simply pure, extreme speed.

Yang Xiang's pupils contracted slightly.

His divine sense detected Ai's trajectory, but his body—

Can't keep up.

boom!!

A punch landed squarely on Yang Xiang's chest.

The chakra cloak shattered instantly, and Yang Xiang was sent flying backward, crashing through three rocks before finally embedding himself in the mountain wall, with rubble scattering all over the ground.

"Yang Xiang!!" Nawaki suddenly stood up, but collapsed back down due to exhaustion of chakra.

On the mountainside, everyone's hearts were in their throats.

The smoke and dust cleared.

Yang Xiang emerged from the mountain wall, a charred fist mark on his chest, and a large part of his armor was shattered.

He looked down, then looked up.

"That punch was powerful."

Ai's expression changed slightly.

It wasn't because he could still stand up—but because the way he stood up was so calm.

There was no anger, no fear, not even pain.

Just like that punch, it only tickled him.

"you----"

"It's my turn," Yang Xiang interrupted him.

He raised his hands and clasped them together.

In that instant, the entire mountain trembled.

Countless trees burst forth from the ground, but instead of the overwhelming forest of the past, they coalesced into a giant wooden hand, reaching out from the mountainside and grabbing directly at Ai.

Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!

Ai's pupils contracted, and he unleashed his full power of Lightning Release, transforming into a bolt of lightning to narrowly avoid the giant hand.

The wooden hand grasped at nothing and slammed into the ground, creating a crater more than ten meters deep.

Ai Luo stood on a distant rock, looking at the wooden hand reaching out from the mountain wall, and for the first time, fear appeared in her eyes.

"This is... Wood Release?"

Yang Xiang did not answer.

He raised his hand, the wooden hand slowly rising, its five fingers spread, aiming at Ai.

"Raikage," he said, "didn't you want to see what I'm capable of?"

Chakra began to gather in the palm of the wooden hand.

That's another way of using Wood Release: compressing natural energy to its limit and then releasing it.

It's not ninjutsu, it's not taijutsu.

It is pure Wood Release power.

Ai's pupils contracted to their maximum size.

He could sense the terror of that chakra—not a matter of quantity, but a matter of quality.

It was an energy he had never felt before, purer and more ancient than any chakra he had ever seen.

Just like—

Just like this land itself.

"Interesting." Ai took a deep breath, and the lightning around him surged once more. "Truly interesting!"

He crossed his arms, and lightning chakra condensed into two thick lightning spears on his arms.

This is his strongest attack, Hell Thrust - Four-Handed Strike.

Four fingers, each strong enough to pierce any defense.

When he concentrates his power into a single finger, that becomes the strongest spear in the ninja world.

"Come on!" A roared, "Let's see if your Wood Release is harder, or my Lightning Release is faster!"

The two moved at the same time.

The wooden hand descended from the sky, carrying the weight of the entire mountain.

The lightning spear shot out, carrying a sharp edge that could tear everything apart.

boom!!!

The mountains collapsed and the earth cracked.