Ai, surrounded by crackling thunder, finally arrived.
Lightning surged around his body, illuminating his pale yellow hair.
He could sense something familiar from Kushina—her chakra signature resembled that of the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki, Killer Bee.
As for the man holding her and whatever they were doing just now, Ai neither knew nor cared.
The only thing that mattered was taking the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki back to the Land of Lightning!
With a powerful stomp, the branches beneath Ai's feet shattered. His Lightning Style chakra crackled violently as he charged toward Simu at full speed.
Even in Simu's arms, Kushina could feel his anger rising.
This overwhelming resentment—she had only ever sensed something this terrifying from the Nine-Tails inside her.
"It's working."
Ai stretched out his palm, lightning surging around it, and reached for Kushina.
He was confident—at this distance, no one in the world could stop him except for the Third Raikage himself!
Just as he was about to grab Kushina, a flash of golden light flickered before his eyes.
Simu raised his foot at an unbelievable speed, slamming it down toward Ai with immense force.
BOOM!
Golden light and raging lightning exploded upon contact.
Ai's eyes widened in surprise.
"I underestimated you, brat."
He clenched his fist and struck upward, clashing with Simu's descending foot.
"So, you're Ai, the future Raikage of the Cloud Shinobi Village."
Simu smirked. "Scary guy…"
Still holding Kushina, Simu pressed down with even more force.
Ai, who had never once backed down in his life, refused to retreat now.
His sheer determination was legendary—his iron will unshakable.
The lightning around his body intensified, becoming so wild and untamed that even he struggled to control it.
Bolts of electricity shot outward, splitting a massive tree clean in half.
Simu, however, had no intention of backing down either.
He had just reached a critical moment, only to be interrupted by Ai.
Even if he wanted to keep up his usual lazy persona, this was something he couldn't tolerate.
Dark Armament Haki spread across his leg as he raised his foot again—this time stomping down with full force!
Ai gritted his teeth, his Lightning Style chakra raging even more fiercely.
Simu's golden glow grew even brighter, as if the sun itself had descended.
Finally, the ground beneath them could no longer withstand their combined power.
A web of cracks spread outward, stretching for dozens of meters.
And then—
The earth collapsed beneath them!
The overwhelming force between Simu and Ai erupted at once!
Blinding golden light and violent blue lightning clashed, forming an unimaginably massive shockwave.
At the epicenter of the clash, the destructive force expanded outward unstoppably!
The sheer intensity of the energy formed a luminous sphere, obliterating everything within its radius.
When the dust settled, it was as if a meteorite had struck the battlefield.
A colossal crater—dozens of meters wide—had formed.
At the edges of this massive pit stood the two warriors: Simu and Ai.
Kushina, still in Simu's arms, buried her face against his chest. Even then, she still felt lightheaded from the sheer force of the clash.
The lingering smoke made it hard to breathe.
"As expected of the future Raikage... You're really scary."
Simu exaggerated his expression, putting on a mocking look of fear.
"I almost died just now. Almost."
"Tch…"
Ai slowly rose to his feet, the lightning around him even more intense than before.
Though Simu acted carefree, Ai knew better.
In terms of both speed and raw strength, this man wasn't inferior to him at all.
Ai had built his reputation on two things—his unparalleled speed and overwhelming physical power.
Plenty of shinobi had greater physical strength, but none could match his insane speed.
Others could keep up with his speed, but none had his monstrous strength.
It was this perfect balance that had made him a dominant force in the Second Shinobi World War.
And it was this same combination that had made him the undeniable successor to the Third Raikage.
He was the man most likely to lead the Land of Lightning to become the supreme power of the ninja world.
Yet today, he had encountered someone unexpected.
A boy who could not only match his speed but also match his strength and durability.
"Kid, what's your name?"
Simu's lips curled into a smirk.
"Kizaru of Konoha—Hanyu Simu."
Ai frowned slightly. "Kizaru of Konoha? Hmph. 'Golden Flash' seems more fitting for your fighting style."
Simu's expression remained firm.
"Correction. My nickname is Kizaru."
He was surprisingly persistent—because his imitation value depended on it.
"Whatever. It doesn't matter." Ai's voice turned cold. "Because I'll be burying you here today. Remember my name—Ai!"
Simu, however, remained calm.
Because his Observation Haki had already told him—
Reinforcements were coming.
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