86. The Troublesome Flying Thunder God
Namikaze Minato had seen through Sora's strategy and refrained from using the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport to the marked kunai for an attack.
In Sora's view, the Flying Thunder God Technique was indeed troublesome—but that didn't mean it was impossible to counter.
The technique was undeniably fast. Since it required no hand seals, teleportation occurred instantaneously to the marked location, leaving no gap in between.
However, once Minato arrived at his destination, he still had to launch an attack manually.
And in that brief moment—there was an opening.
Of course, exploiting that opening wasn't easy. Reacting quickly enough to block or evade Minato's strike was already difficult. Counterattacking required an even greater reaction speed—one surpassing Minato's.
But there was another way.
Just as Sora had done earlier, one could observe the Flying Thunder God kunai and predict where Minato would appear.
However, this method depended on the number of marked kunai in play.
If only a few kunai were on the battlefield, predictions became feasible. But if too many were scattered around, Minato could teleport freely, rendering any prediction meaningless. Even if one successfully anticipated his movement, he could simply teleport again before being struck.
Minato made his move.
He pulled out several more Flying Thunder God kunai and hurled them toward Sora.
Sora slightly lowered his stance, forming a hand seal—the signature preparation for Thunderbolt Flash.
Minato instantly recognized the stance and guessed Sora planned to activate Thunderbolt Flash the moment he teleported in.
But Minato was confident in his speed.
Even if Sora used his unique technique, combined with Divine Speed, Minato was certain he would still be faster.
This time, Minato activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.
His first teleportation brought him to one of the kunai he had initially embedded in the ground.
Then, without hesitation, he teleported a second time—throwing shuriken in all directions toward Sora as he reappeared.
Sora reacted instantly.
With Observation Haki active, he clearly perceived the trajectory of every incoming shuriken.
Using the bare minimum movement necessary, he weaved between them effortlessly.
The next moment—
Minato teleported again, this time to a kunai still in midair.
Gripping the kunai tightly, he lunged forward, aiming to stab Sora.
But the instant Sora moved to counter, Minato disappeared once more.
He reappeared at another airborne kunai—one that was even closer to Sora—and slashed at him from behind.
The initial stab had been a feint meant to force Sora into using Thunderbolt Dodge.
But this slash—this was the real attack.
Based on Minato's calculations, if Sora had used Thunderbolt Flash in response, his back would now be completely exposed.
However—
Contrary to Minato's expectations, Sora hadn't used Thunderbolt Dodge.
He was still facing Minato head-on.
A sharp clang echoed through the night as Sora's ninja sword clashed against Namikaze Minato's kunai.
Before Sora could follow up with another strike, Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique to instantly distance himself.
Gazing at Sora from a short distance away, Minato sighed.
"Your combat intuition is as sharp as ever. You realized my attack was a feint and stopped Thunderbolt Flash just in time."
Sora gave him a strange look.
"Who told you I was going to use Thunderbolt Flash just now?"
Minato blinked in surprise.
"Huh? You weren't? But your stance—"
Sora didn't bother explaining. Instead, he lowered himself into the same slightly crouched stance once more.
The stance wasn't for Thunderbolt Flash. It simply helped him maximize his reaction speed while using Observation Haki.
Thunderbolt Flash was fast, but its manoeuvrability paled in comparison to the Flying Thunder God Technique. There was no reason to use it in this fight.
Minato resumed his assault, teleporting around the battlefield and launching a flurry of attacks.
Yet, Sora only defended. He never once attempted a counterattack.
Minato quickly realized the problem—he couldn't break through Sora's defences.
No matter where he teleported—whether in front, behind, or at his flank—Sora reacted instantly, either blocking or dodging his strikes.
Sora wasn't relying on speed alone. He was relying entirely on Observation Haki.
The moment Minato reappeared, Sora's heightened perception allowed him to pinpoint his exact position.
With his refined reaction speed, he could avoid or parry Minato's attacks in time.
However, while Sora's reaction speed was incredible, it still wasn't faster than Minato's.
This meant that while he could keep up defensively, he couldn't land a solid counterattack.
Instead of forcing an opening, Sora chose to wait.
He remained patient—watching, analyzing, preparing.
Then, the moment Minato stopped pulling fresh kunai from his pouch, he reached for a Flying Thunder God kunai already embedded in the ground—Soraknew.
His opportunity had come.
"Breath of Thunder: First Form—Thunderbolt Flash: Eight Chains!"
Lightning exploded from Sora's body as he blurred into motion, streaking toward Minato like a bolt of thunder.
Minato's eyes flickered with excitement.
"Finally attacking!"
As Sora charged, Minato rapidly teleported between his scattered Flying Thunder God kunai, dodging with ease.
But Sora adapted on the fly, using the terrain to alter his trajectory.
Each time Minato appeared, Sora instantly shifted his approach, trying to cut him off.
Yet—
Not even once did he touch Minato.
Not even the corner of his cloak.
Eventually, Sora skidded to a halt, standing motionless as he stared at Minato, who was now a short distance away.
Minato was thrilled.
For years, Sora's Breath of Thunder had always been a problem for him. But now—
Now, he could evade it with ease.
He wasn't strong enough to defeat Sora outright, but at least Sora could no longer overwhelm him.
Then—
"18."
Sora's sudden statement made Minato blink.
"Huh? What 18?"
Sora's gaze dropped to the ground.
"You only have 18 Flying Thunder God kunai, right?"
Minato followed his eyes—
Then his expression darkened.
There were 17 Flying Thunder God kunai embedded in the ground.
Including the one in his hand, the total was exactly 18.
His stomach twisted with unease.
Suddenly, he looked up—
And saw it.
A nearly invisible silk thread held between Sora's fingers.
Sora gave a slight tug—
Shhhhhh!
In an instant, all 17 kunai were yanked together into a single pile.
Then—
A Shadow Clone appeared beside Sora, its two scarlet Three Tomoe Sharingan locking onto Minato.
Sora smirked.
"Now, you only have two Flying Thunder God kunai to teleport to."
"In this situation, you can't run freely anymore."
"If you teleport again, all I have to do is watch the kunai in your hand—"
"And the pile on the ground."
Minato's expression turned grim.
Now I understand.
This was why Sora had only defended all this time…
He was waiting for this moment.
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