At that moment, Gyuki squeezed its eyes shut and violently shook its massive head, swinging its huge horns forward.
At the same time, the four octopus tentacles beneath it suddenly let out a series of sharp tearing sounds as they snapped off without warning.
Clearly, this was an extreme survival tactic, just like an octopus sacrificing part of its body to buy itself a chance to live.
Just then, Kyokotsu gripped his bone blade and swung it with all his strength, the razor-sharp strike aimed straight at Gyuki's enormous horns.
Clang!
Sparks flew everywhere. But Gyuki's strength was overwhelming, and the impact sent Kyokotsu flying back, straight into the dense forest of bone spears nearby.
Meanwhile, the area covered by the Dance of the Clematis: Bracken continued expanding. Thunderous rumbles echoed nonstop, shaking the entire battlefield.
Yet, to everyone's surprise, Kyokotsu shot out once again from a bone spear beside Darui, moving as fast as lightning and catching him completely off guard.
Darui didn't dare hesitate. He took a deep breath and suddenly opened his mouth.
"Storm Release: Black Spot Gale!"
In an instant, an immense surge of energy burst from his mouth. Accompanied by a deafening explosion, a violent shockwave shot forward like a beast.
But Kyokotsu didn't even blink in the face of the powerful Storm Release attack.
Without the slightest hesitation, he swung his bone blade again, turning it into a flash of cold light aimed directly at Darui's throat.
The sudden attack terrified Darui.
'My Storm Release didn't work at all? If that hits, I'm dead!'
Everything around him seemed to slow down, as though time itself had become sluggish.
His eyes sharpened, and his hands snapped together.
"Lightning-Fire Body Flicker Technique!"
Boom!
The Tailed Beast Cloak crackling with lightning and flames around Darui suddenly exploded out.
The tremendous force launched him away like an arrow leaving the bow. His figure instantly blurred into a string of afterimages as he escaped his original position at incredible speed.
At the same time, he retreated rapidly toward the edge of the Dance of the Clematis: Bracken.
As he moved, Darui made a hand signal toward his teammate with the special ability.
BANG!
The hawk disappeared as its summoning was released.
On the other side, Killer B was already growing anxious.
He frantically gathered chakra in his mouth as an enormous Tailed Beast Bomb gradually took shape.
Finally, Killer B opened his mouth wide and fired the Tailed Beast Bomb, packed with terrifying power, straight at Yagura, who was in Isobu's form.
Yagura had no time to react before the immense force struck him head-on.
BOOM!
His body was blasted away like a kite with its string cut, flying backward before crashing heavily onto the ground in the distance.
Seeing this, Rengoku quickly beat his wings and retreated at high speed.
In the blink of an eye, he landed beside Yagura and stood guard at his side.
Meanwhile, Kyokotsu continued moving through the tangled bone forest as if nothing had changed.
As long as there was a bone spear near his target, he could emerge from it at any time and launch a deadly attack.
In the next instant, Darui swung an arm, curling his fingers slightly as razor-sharp steel claws extended from his hand.
"Cat Claw Slash!"
Facing the charging Kyokotsu and his gleaming bone blade, Darui showed no fear and met him head-on.
Clang! Clang!
Two sharp collisions rang out in succession as sparks scattered everywhere.
Darui's steel claws were cut apart and sent flying.
At that moment, Killer B made his move.
One of his thick octopus tentacles shot out like a giant python, sweeping toward Kyokotsu.
As it whipped through the air, it stirred up a faint whistling sound.
"Heh..."
The corner of Kyokotsu's mouth lifted in a sneer.
Holding the bone blade in one hand, he gave his wrist a light flick. The blade split apart, turning from one into two, which he gripped firmly in both hands.
He spun around and dodged the tentacles like a nimble leopard.
His arms blurred like spinning windmills as the twin bone blades flashed with cold light, hacking relentlessly into the tentacle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Kyokotsu's hands moved so fast that no one could follow them. All they could see was a blur of dark flashes.
Slice! Slice! Slice!
With a string of crisp sounds, several holes were carved through the tentacle in an instant.
Thick dark green fluid poured from the wounds, dripping onto the ground.
Gyuki let out a shrill, miserable scream.
Its body trembled violently as it staggered backward, each step leaving a deep footprint in the ground.
Kyokotsu naturally wasn't about to let such a perfect opportunity slip away.
He pressed the attack immediately.
With a light tap of his foot, his body seemed to melt into the bone spear beneath him as naturally as water sinking into a lake.
Gyuki no longer dared to underestimate him.
Its eyes were filled with vigilance as it suddenly exerted force with its remaining three tentacles, sweeping them out like three enormous whips.
It knew it had to clear out a large enough area to fight. Otherwise, it would only become more and more passive.
Every sweep of the tentacles sent clouds of dust billowing into the air like a small storm.
But on the other side, Darui's situation seemed dire.
He had just forced himself to use the Body Flicker Technique he had only recently developed. Powerful as it was, the strain on his body was immense.
Now, one of his feet appeared to have suffered a minor injury. Blood slowly seeped from the wound, staining a patch of earth beneath him red.
His steps had clearly grown heavier, and his movements had slowed considerably. Every step was unsteady.
On a battlefield filled with danger, his situation looked extremely dangerous, as though he could be swallowed by the enemy's attacks at any moment.
At this point, the balance of victory had begun tipping toward Rengoku's side.