Chapter 999: Chapter Fourteen: Beating Down

Am leapt down from above.

Boom!

The ground cracked into a circular pit, its surface riddled with spiderweb-like fissures; after entering combat mode, Am’s eyes turned blood-red, his muscles bulged tightly, and wisps of cold mist drifted from the two horns pointing skyward.

At this moment, Am no longer looked like his usual simple self—he stood there like a steel war chariot, as if nothing could stop him.

Am’s appearance did not surprise Raijin and the other two; among them, He was a perception-type ninja.

“Is this a weapon bred by Akatsuki?”

Darui spoke lazily, raising his gaze toward Su Xiao high above.

“The one up there must be Akatsuki member Baiye; they say he attacked Konoha, but he doesn’t look impressive.”

Darui smiled.

“Don’t underestimate him—I can smell the blood on him even from dozens of meters away. Surviving the attack on Konoha? He’s no ordinary man.”

He formed hand seals, sensing the surroundings.

“He, according to intelligence, there should be another perception-type woman. Find her first. I’ll handle Uchiha Sasuke and his accomplices. Darui, you hold off that ox and Akatsuki member Baiye.”

“Understood.”

“Hmm.”

He and Darui moved into action; He remained in place, while Darui advanced toward Am.

Raijin sensed the situation was dire—he couldn’t be sure if Su Xiao up high would intervene, so he stomped the ground, his Thunder Shield armor visibly expanding outward, his spiked hair standing rigid like a porcupine’s quills.

Normally, Raijin activated his body to only 10%–20%; now, he activated it directly to 60%.

Whoosh~

A piercing sonic boom echoed as Raijin vanished from his spot.

“Sasuke!”

Jugo roared and immediately stepped in front of Sasuke.

Thud!

Blood sprayed everywhere; Jugo’s upper body was flung backward, spewing a mouthful of blood.

Mid-air, Jugo was still dazed—Raijin was simply too fast, so fast he couldn’t even comprehend what had happened. How could a two-meter-tall man explode with such speed? What nonsense.

Thump. Jugo’s upper body landed among shattered rocks; he turned his head toward Raijin, who still held the sideways punch pose—this single punch had split Jugo’s body in two. The Lightning attribute granted Raijin terrifying speed and immense cutting power to his sideways strikes.

“Cough… cough…”

Jugo spat out more blood, his gaze drifting to several samurai corpses nearby.

Leaving aside Jugo nearly being one-punched to death, Raijin now fixed his eyes on Sasuke.

“Where is my brother Bee.”

Arcs of electricity flickered in Raijin’s pupils; Sasuke’s pupils had shrunk to pinpoints.

“Dead.”

Though stunned by Raijin’s speed, Sasuke uttered words that enraged him beyond reason.

“Dead?”

Raijin froze, then regained composure.

“I see.”

For some reason, Raijin calmed from his fury; his body began rapid activation, reaching 70%. Remember, once activation exceeds 90%, his cells would exceed their tolerance and collapse.

Raijin was truly furious—he’d been told Sasuke had captured Bee, and now he received word of Bee’s death.

Sasuke lied about Bee’s death because he believed Jugo might already be dead at Raijin’s hands; he wanted Raijin to grieve, hoping to create an opening in battle.

But fate defied him—Raijin instantly accepted Bee’s death and turned grief into rage.

“Chidori Stream.”

Lightning arcs spread from Sasuke’s feet; he gripped his long blade between both hands, rapidly forming hand seals.

“Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.”

Sasuke spat out a small fireball; it roared as it grew, instantly swelling into a five-meter-wide inferno—his most commonly used Fire Release.

The Great Fireball surged toward Raijin, who vanished again—reappearing behind Sasuke.

Whether speed, strength, combat experience, or chakra reserves, Raijin utterly crushed Sasuke.

Sasuke’s black hair whipped by Raijin’s rushing wind—he sensed Raijin behind him, but the punch came too fast.

In that instant, a dark purple energy surged through Sasuke’s mind, flooding into his eyes; his three-tomoe Sharingan changed—the three tomoe spun, forming a six-pointed star pattern.

Sasuke had long awakened his Mangekyo Sharingan, but he used it inconsistently—sometimes active, sometimes dormant. In this life-or-death moment, he fully activated it.

Boom!

Raijin swung his fist downward; Sasuke flew off with a faint crack of breaking bones.

Another thunderous crash—Sasuke was slammed into a wall, leaving a crater several meters deep.

Sasuke rose to his feet, unharmed—a dark purple skeletal frame formed of energy wrapped around him: only a torso and both arms.

“Susanoo…”

Above, Tobi grew interested—Sasuke’s growth rate was beyond imagination. Hatred was a powerful motivator.

“Baiye, aren’t you going to intervene?”

Tobi didn’t want Sasuke to die here.

“I already intervened.”

Su Xiao pointed down at Am, who stood motionless, staring straight at Darui.

Tobi seemed speechless. He hesitated—whether to use his leader’s authority to command Su Xiao. But his leadership was an open secret; even if he claimed to be Uchiha Madara, he had no proof. Kisame, Deidara, and others didn’t truly believe his identity.

Akatsuki had evolved into a semi-loose organization. Nagato’s Rinnegan was genuine, but Tobi’s claim as Uchiha Madara was merely his own self-proclamation.

“Our mission this time is to assassinate the Kage.”

Tobi didn’t invoke his leader’s authority—he feared Su Xiao, this reckless man, might outright defect from Akatsuki.

“Of course, after Uchiha Sasuke dies, I’ll handle Raijin. How long has it been since you joined an Akatsuki mission? I don’t know how other teams operate, but in Sasori’s team, our style was: when one dies, the next steps up.”

Tobi had nothing to say—this was indeed Sasori’s team’s style.

“Sasori is dead.”

“So what? Neither I nor Deidara are dead.”

Su Xiao lit a cigarette and watched the battle with interest. His mention of “Sasori’s team” was purely to placate Tobi. Clearly, after Sasuke awakened his Mangekyo and could use Susanoo, his value in Tobi’s eyes had risen—from a disposable pawn to a promising asset.

Tobi wanted Su Xiao to protect Sasuke. Raijin was now at full power; the newly awakened Mangekyo user Sasuke might die in his hands.

Below, black flames burned fiercely. After activating Susanoo and Amaterasu, Sasuke was now holding his own against Raijin—Amaterasu’s destructive power was too terrifying for Raijin to endure head-on.

Su Xiao’s meaning was clear: Tobi expects him to fight Raijin without offering anything? Don’t make me laugh.