"Mere Susanoo!"
Even though his Heavy Current Blast had been completely blocked by Senju Haruto's towering Susanoo, the Raikage — A — still didn't take the technique seriously.
Even during that clash in the Land of Iron, A had never once thought himself weaker than Haruto.
The truth was, he had simply lacked intel on Haruto. He hadn't expected Haruto to use a technique so similar to his own Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
And even when he had taken Haruto's full-force strike head-on back then, all it had done was knock him unconscious — not injure him.
If he hadn't blacked out… or if he had woken up just a little sooner…
Who would have won and who would have lost might still be in question.
Above all else, A was a man full of confidence. Not arrogant, not blindly stubborn — just utterly sure of himself.
The fact that he hadn't immediately started a war after returning to Kumogakure was proof enough.
Instead, to ensure the flawless capture of Konohagakure, the moment he returned to the village, he sent envoys to Kirigakure's Mizukage, securing an alliance.
And during this time, he had trained in new jutsu as well.
In other words… this time, A had long anticipated a clash with Senju Haruto.
He was… fully prepared.
"AAAAAH!"
Locking eyes with Haruto's Susanoo, A roared like a beast, pulling his elbow back sharply while extending four fingers forward.
Haruto was mildly surprised at the sight.
Not because he didn't know this jutsu — but because he knew it all too well.
"The Third Raikage's technique, huh…"
He recognized it at a glance.
Hell Stab.
The fewer the fingers, the greater the piercing power — the very reason the Third Raikage was called the Strongest Spear.
He hadn't expected A to suddenly pull this one out.
Still, Haruto's surprise was only mild.
From any perspective, Hell Stab was an extremely powerful technique — but its training difficulty was only B-rank, a grade below Kakashi's Lightning Cutter.
What Haruto found strange was that such a devastating yet relatively easy technique was one A had never used before.
So seeing him now with four fingers extended was unexpected… yet made perfect sense.
"Hell Stab – Four-Finger Thrust!"
Without hesitation, A focused the full might of his Lightning Release Chakra Mode into a single point — and exploded forward.
BOOOOM!
The deafening thunderclap between them sent shockwaves tearing through the battlefield, flinging Kumogakure's shinobi off their feet.
Seeing this, Yamato mustered the last of his strength, releasing Wood Release to form a sturdy wall in an attempt to block the blast.
But the strain forced another mouthful of blood from him, and even then, the wall quivered, threatening to collapse.
Kakashi quickly added an Earth-Style Wall to reinforce it, barely holding back the residual force of the clash.
Hyūga Hizashi and Aburame Torune swallowed hard, finally understanding the meaning of Kakashi's earlier warning.
With their level of strength, charging in recklessly would only drag Haruto down.
This battle… was simply on a level they couldn't touch.
"No matter which one wins… they're both monsters," Torune muttered, fists clenching.
Haruto's Susanoo was terrifying enough, but the Raikage's raw destructive power was equally shocking.
And from the look on A's face… he still had plenty of strength left.
In truth, Haruto knew this too.
Hell Stab's power scaled with fewer fingers — and right now, A was either testing him or building up gradually.
So he can't just start at full power… he has to ramp it up? Haruto thought. It made sense.
Otherwise, A would have already unleashed the One-Finger Thrust instead of starting with four.
Of course, that assumed A had fully mastered the technique.
Still, while the Four-Finger Thrust packed power, it was just shy of piercing Haruto's Susanoo.
"Didn't break it?!"
A's eyes went wide, staring at the point where his thrust had landed.
Completely blocked by Susanoo.
"It seems my defense outweighs your offense," Haruto said lightly, arms folded, not even looking like he was trying.
In Haruto's mind, during the Fourth Shinobi World War, the Raikage had been one of the strongest among the Five Kage.
And now, having learned Hell Stab, A was stronger than even that version of himself.
But… without Ōnoki's support, the Raikage's power alone could never break through Madara Uchiha's Susanoo.
Even a Four-Finger Thrust wouldn't make up that gap.
And Haruto certainly didn't believe his own Susanoo was weaker than Madara's.
So, against an opponent far weaker than himself, there was no reason to take things seriously.
A took deep breaths, calming his emotions.
Haruto's defense was incredible — but he still hadn't used his true strength.
"Hell Stab – Three-Finger Thrust!"
With a sharp shout, A curled in his pinky, boosting the jutsu's power another level and driving the lightning-coated spear-hand straight into Haruto's Susanoo.
CRAAAAACK!
Lightning exploded between them, and fractures began to spiderweb across Susanoo's skeletal frame. A's fingers punched a quarter of their length past the chakra armor, piercing into the vapor-like defense within.
The resulting shockwave was several times greater than before, instantly shattering the combined defenses of Yamato and Kakashi, slamming both of them into the ground.
"This power…"
Hizashi's mind was a storm. Through his Byakugan, he had never witnessed chakra in such sheer volume — nor such raw, overwhelming force.
Without Susanoo, any shinobi would be killed outright by the Three-Finger Thrust.
"Susanoo… it's breaking?"
Torune's voice trembled.
He knew well that even during Uchiha Itachi's final battle with Danzō, the latter hadn't managed to crack Itachi's Susanoo.
"I get it now…"
Hizashi's eyes lit with realization. He shouted toward Haruto:
"Raikage's technique grows stronger the fewer fingers he uses! Haruto — be careful! His next attack could shatter your Susanoo!"
"What?!"
Kakashi and Yamato's expressions tightened. Looking closely, they too saw that A's hand now had one fewer finger extended.
And in the next instant… it became just two.
A didn't care that his secret was out. At this range, he was certain Haruto couldn't escape his attack radius.
When it came to speed, his confidence was absolute.
"Hell Stab – Two-Finger Thrust!"