Chapter 171 : Three Tails Appeared, Facing The Tailed Beast For The First Time
The speed was too fast—so fast that the friction in the air ignited into flame.
A surge of fire roared toward Riku.
Samui and Hinata tensed instinctively.
"Can Riku stop it?" Hinata whispered, worry clouding her pale eyes.
But Riku simply raised his head, frowned, and began weaving hand seals at high speed.
"Lightning Style: Thunderbird!"
Boom!
A violent surge of lightning erupted from his body.
Crackle—Zzzzt!
Countless bolts of lightning arced and danced around him, electrifying the air. Within a dozen meters of his body, the very atmosphere shimmered and sparked as thick, snaking bolts of lightning surrounded him, forming a dense electrical storm.
Zzzzt—Zzzzt—!
In a burst of raw power, the lightning coalesced into a massive avian shape.
The colossal Thunderbird—over ten meters tall—crackled with golden light in its eyes. Its sharp beak shimmered with electric energy, lightning rippling across its wings like living plasma.
"Go!"
Riku waved his hand.
The giant Thunderbird, wreathed in thunder, launched like a beam of pure destruction toward Akita.
BOOM!
The monstrous bird struck in an instant, piercing straight through Akita.
In the next heartbeat, the cascading bolts of lightning exploded, and Akita’s body was reduced to ash.
The Thunderbird let out a deafening screech as it shot high into the sky—soaring for thousands of meters before dissipating into the atmosphere.
Crack—BOOM!
The heavens seemed to split with thunder. The rain stopped.
Samui stood frozen in disbelief.
"W-What level is that jutsu? A-rank? No... Is that even ninjutsu anymore? Can a human really unleash something like that?"
Even though she had witnessed the Fourth Raikage activate his Lightning Chakra Mode—seen the devastation it could bring—she knew deep down that this... this was something else entirely. Something far beyond.
The sheer power and speed of the Thunderbird dwarfed anything the Raikage had ever shown. No ordinary shinobi could manifest a jutsu of this magnitude. It wasn’t just the effect—it had altered the climate across the region.
In truth, Samui had never witnessed the likes of Uchiha Madara—who could summon meteorites from the sky. But even by that standard...
Riku’s Thunderbird was a super S-rank jutsu—its destructive force exceeding even Sasuke Uchiha’s Kirin.
In fact, if the two clashed, the Thunderbird might well crush even a meteor summoned by Madara.
And yet, this wasn’t even Riku’s strongest technique.
He had two more—each more devastating than the Thunderbird.
But even just casting the Thunderbird once consumed an amount of chakra equal to that of a Kage-level shinobi.
The cost was staggering.
If it weren’t for Riku possessing more chakra than even a fully empowered Nine Tails, releasing such a technique would have been impossible.
After unleashing the Thunderbird, Riku turned and approached Samui and the others.
Before she could speak, Riku frowned.
"The Three Tails has been disturbed. You all need to find a place to hide—quickly."
Samui was stunned, then her expression grew grim.
"Then... what about you?"
She knew she couldn’t possibly face a tailed beast like the Three Tails. Even with Riku, the odds seemed dire.
But Riku only glanced toward the cave where Akita had emerged and replied,
"Take everyone into hiding. I’ll try to defeat it."
In truth, controlling the Three Tails would be easy for him—if he activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
But doing so would reveal his secret.
So far, no one besides Tsunade knew he possessed the Sharingan. And he intended to keep it that way.
But as soon as he said that, Samui stepped in front of him.
"No. I’m fighting with you. This mission—we’re in it together."
Though she spoke of duty, her tone made it clear: she couldn’t let him face this alone. Not when there was a chance he might not come back.
Hinata and Ino quickly followed.
"Riku—we’re fighting by your side!" they declared in unison.
Even Karui, Omoi, and Shino—silent until now—stepped forward in solidarity.
Riku let out a small sigh.
"You’re all just going to make this harder for me..." he muttered, exasperated.
"Fine. Hinata, you stay in the cave with the others. I’ll take Samui with me. That’s the best compromise."
He knew they wouldn’t agree to be left behind completely, so he made a tactical call—taking only Samui, a Jonin, would make it easier to manage. He couldn’t protect everyone.
Samui could at least handle herself—and had the speed to escape if needed.
Hinata and the others looked like they wanted to protest, but Riku’s tone suddenly shifted.
"I’m the team leader here. You follow my orders. Hide in the cave, and don’t come out unless the fighting outside has stopped. Got it? You’ll only get in the way out here. Samui and I are both Jonin. Understand?"
Samui gave a firm nod to Karui and Omoi, backing Riku’s authority.
Hinata and the rest exchanged hesitant glances, then finally nodded.
"Okay..."
They could feel it too—the battle ahead wasn’t one they were ready for.
Even Samui’s presence outside was risky. This was a tailed beast—no ordinary opponent. Even a Kage might fall before it.
Riku, seeing their reluctant expressions, swiftly formed a hand seal.
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
A copy of himself appeared beside him.
He pointed at the clone.
"Watch over them. Make sure none of them come out."
The clone nodded.
As it herded the five into the cave, a feral roar echoed from outside.
"Rrraaaaghhhhhh—!"
Riku’s eyes narrowed.
"It’s here."
He turned in the direction of the sound. Though he couldn’t yet see the beast through the thick fog, he could feel it.
That chakra—undeniable.
The mist swirling around them was no natural phenomenon. It was a Kirigakure-style genjutsu barrier—set up by Akita before his death.
"Come on. To the beach."
Samui hesitated for a heartbeat, then nodded.
"Right."
She drew her short sword and followed Riku down the forested path toward the shoreline.
When they reached the beach, Riku wasted no time. Forming another set of seals, he pressed his hands together.
"Barrier Release!"
The surrounding fog shimmered and then shattered like glass—instantly dispelled by Riku’s advanced mastery of Uzumaki clan sealing techniques.
To him, this level of barrier was child’s play.
With the fog barrier down, Riku formed another seal.
"Wind Style: Super Hurricane!"
As the final seal clicked into place, a massive wind burst forward. Howling gusts surged outward, ripping through the remaining mist.
The super hurricane towered over a hundred meters in height, sweeping the fog away in all directions.
WHOOOOOOOOOSH!
Without the barrier’s obstruction, the entire shoreline and sea beyond came into view.
Samui looked at Riku in disbelief.
After everything—after unleashing that colossal Thunderbird—he still had chakra left to cast a B-rank jutsu of this scale?
She didn’t know how or why—but standing beside him, she felt an overwhelming sense of safety.
Then her eyes caught movement on the horizon.
A hundred meters away, a monstrous turtle-like creature, easily tens of meters in size, swam toward them.
"That’s the Three Tails," Riku said quietly.
Samui’s eyes widened.
"It’s not as big as the Island Turtle back in Kumogakure," she whispered, "but the chakra... it’s far stronger."
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