A soft, water-blue radiance shimmered along the blade of the Mikazuki Munechika.
Feeling the dense Water Release chakra surging from it, the Four-Tails' brow furrowed.
As a tailed beast who commanded lava, there was nothing he hated more than water.
The Four-Tails' massive hand flushed crimson and instinctively swung toward Hoshiyomi.
But in this state, there was no way that enormous palm could catch him.
With a sharp stomp, Hoshiyomi burst forward with Shunpo, leaping from the Four-Tails' thigh. His body traced a wide arc through the air, the water-blue light along the Mikazuki Munechika flowing with his movement — from a distance, it looked like a winding mountain stream.
This sweeping turn not only allowed him to evade the Four-Tails' grasp, it also let him use the momentum to carve a shallow slash across the beast's abdomen.
Stepping on the Four-Tails' solid belly, Hoshiyomi didn't wait for the massive hand to strike again. He moved first—spinning once more in the air. With each turn, the water-blue light along Mikazuki Munechika grew denser, more substantial.
This time, his blade struck at the Four-Tails' flank.
Three strikes in succession—not deep enough to truly injure, but enough to enrage.
The brat's attacks didn't hurt much, but they were unbearably annoying.
The muscles in the Four-Tails' hind legs tensed, and with a powerful leap it vaulted high into the air, clearly intending to throw Hoshiyomi off. The jump carried it over a hundred meters, taking the beast clean out of the lava lake.
When the Four-Tails landed, the ground shook violently, leaving a massive crater beneath its feet. The force of the impact was staggering.
If Hoshiyomi had insisted on clinging to its body, he would have been flung off.
But he moved with the agility of a fish darting through deep waters.
The moment the Four-Tails leapt, he had already slipped free, only to reappear at its wrist as it landed.
Scaling the thick arm, he spun three times in quick succession, carving a spiral-shaped wound along its length.
The essence of Constant Flux was simple—use one's own rotation to increase blade speed and cutting power.
With each turn, the Water Release chakra within the Mikazuki Munechika solidified further.
After three consecutive rotations, the once faint water-blue glow had condensed into a tangible stream as thick as a man could wrap both arms around.
The visible stream wound around the Four-Tails' arm like a silk ribbon, moving with the beast's motions—and tightening with each of Hoshiyomi's spins.
But he didn't stop there. After three rotations, his spinning speed had reached a dizzying level. He was now a human-shaped spinning top, winding his way towards the Four-Tails' shoulder
His speed was so great that even the Four-Tails couldn't catch him.
Agility was never the beast's strong suit, and with Hoshiyomi pressed so close, it had no way to shake him off.
The stream of water enveloping its arm had already taken on physical form; any magma it tried to release there was instantly doused.
After five more rotations, Hoshiyomi reached the Four-Tails' shoulder. By then, the water around him had transformed once more.
Even the distant Konoha shinobi could now see it clearly—it wasn't a mere stream of water at all.
It was a water dragon, coiled tightly around the Four-Tails' arm.
With every rotation, the dragon's form became more solid.
After five spins, the stream had fully taken shape—its scales and claws defined, and at the blade's edge a lifelike dragon head glared forward, radiating overwhelming might.
Landing on the Four-Tails' shoulder, Hoshiyomi's eyes blazed with fighting spirit.
In the beast's stunned gaze, he leapt again—this time appearing right in front of it.
Slash!
Without holding back, Hoshiyomi brought the Mikazuki Munechika in his hand down on the Four-Tails' forehead, cutting all the way down to its chest.
The water dragon lashed its tail, crashing into the beast's body with full force.
The sight left everyone present stunned.
To face a tailed beast head-on—and conjure such a massive water dragon—placed Hoshiyomi, in the eyes of the Konoha shinobi, on equal standing with the Third Hokage himself.
This was unmistakably the power of a Kage-level fighter.
The water dragon born from Constant Flux packed considerable destructive force. Though it wasn't enough to cleave a tailed beast in two, it left a deep, bone-revealing wound.
The face and chest were less affected thanks to the skull and ribs, but the wound to the abdomen was more serious.
Even with muscle shielding it, the strike tore it open—if it had cut another thirty or forty centimeters deeper, the Four-Tails might have been gutted on the spot.
Don't underestimate that depth — on a beast over twenty meters tall, it already counted as a serious injury.
To suffer such a blow was infuriating enough, but for the proud Four-Tails, who since Hashirama's time had never endured such humiliation, this was intolerable.
Blinded by rage, the beast abandoned whatever pact it had with Rōshi, casting it aside without a thought. In this moment, all it wanted was the death of the human before it.
Without the slightest hesitation, the Four-Tails opened its jaws wide.
Within, a small black-and-purple sphere began to form.
The moment it appeared, Ōnoki—who had been effortlessly overpowering Jiraiya and Shinku and was about to finish them—turned sharply, froze in shock.
He turned sharply, eyes narrowing as he saw the black-and-purple orb growing in the beast's mouth.
As the Tsuchikage for nearly thirty years, he knew all too well what that was.
It was the ultimate weapon of every tailed beast—
The Tailed Beast Bomb.
If unleashed at full power, its destructive force could wipe out half of Iwagakure.
And not far in front of the Four-Tails stood that infuriating brat. Yet instead of fear, the boy had sheathed his blade—and spread his arms wide, as if ready to meet death head-on.
Where did this brat find the nerve to face a Tailed Beast Bomb without flinching? Was he trying to kill himself?
Then Ōnoki instinctively glanced past Hoshiyomi — and his blood ran cold. Just a few kilometers behind the boy lay the main encampment of Iwa's forces.
Which meant… if the Four-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb struck him, the remaining three thousand Iwa-nin in that camp would be buried alongside him!