Monsters Collide
The battlefield trembled under the pressure of two overwhelming forces.
Smoke drifted through the crater where Kyro had landed.
Lightning crackled across the ground like living serpents as A stepped forward, his massive frame surrounded by a roaring cloak of lightning chakra.
Kyro wiped a streak of blood from the corner of his mouth.
Then he smiled.
"…Alright."
The air suddenly grew heavier.
His body began to change.
Black-red scales erupted across his skin like living armor.
His muscles expanded as draconic power surged through every fiber of his body.
Four jagged horns curved backward from his head, and his long studded tail unfurled behind him with a heavy thud against the ground.
His eyes burned like molten embers.
Full Dreadbringer Hybrid Form.
The temperature around him rose instantly as the Dragon Furnace roared to life within his chest.
Above the battlefield, Dreadbringer himself rumbled in approval.
Minato's eyes widened from the forest ridge.
"…He's transforming."
Kyro vanished.
Void Step.
He reappeared directly in front of the Raikage, claws slashing downward with enough force to cleave steel.
The Raikage didn't move.
BOOM.
His forearm blocked the strike.
The impact shattered the ground beneath them.
Lightning exploded outward as the Raikage grinned.
"Good."
Then he punched.
Kyro tried to step aside
Too slow.
BOOOOM.
The fist smashed into Kyro's ribs like a cannon.
Kyro flew across the battlefield, tearing through three massive boulders before crashing into the ground.
Before he could even stand
The Raikage was already there.
Another punch.
Another explosion.
Kyro's body slammed into the earth again.
The Raikage grabbed Kyro by the throat and hurled him skyward like a ragdoll.
The dragon hybrid spun through the air.
Lightning spears from the elite jonin flashed toward him.
Kyro twisted mid-air, tail whipping out and shattering several attacks.
But the Raikage jumped.
The ground exploded beneath his takeoff.
He caught Kyro in mid-air
Then drove him straight back into the battlefield.
CRAAAAASH.
The crater doubled in size.
At the tree line...
Minato stared in stunned silence.
"…Incredible."
He had heard the Raikage was powerful.
But seeing him fight like this
It was something else entirely.
Even the dragon warrior was being overwhelmed.
Kyro slowly pushed himself up.
His ribs had clearly been crushed earlier.
But as the Raikage watched
They snapped back into place.
Cracks in his scales sealed themselves.
Muscle fibers regenerated.
Kyro rolled his shoulder casually.
"…Okay."
He grinned wider.
"That's new."
The Raikage raised an eyebrow.
"You heal fast."
Kyro stretched his neck slightly.
"Dragon perks."
His tail smashed into the ground as he stood fully.
Despite the brutal beating
His body was already repairing itself.
The Raikage studied him carefully now.
No more grin.
No more amusement.
Just calculation.
Finally he spoke.
His voice low.
Serious.
Cold.
"…I see."
Lightning began roaring louder around his body.
The ground beneath him started cracking from the pressure of his chakra.
The Raikage slowly raised one finger.
His ultimate spear technique.
Then he said the words that made even the observing shinobi freeze.
"I'm going to take this seriously now."
Kyro didn't look worried.
Instead
He laughed.
A deep, excited laugh.
"Good, I'll also get serious... ."
He raised one clawed hand toward the sky.
Far above
Dreadbringer's massive eyes flared like burning suns.
The dragon's power surged through their bond.
More.
More.
More.
Kyro's body began absorbing it.
The scales darkened.
His horns grew longer.
His tail spines extended.
His aura exploded outward in a storm of crimson dragon fire.
The Dragon Furnace roared like a star igniting.
Even the elite Cloud jonin stepped back instinctively.
Kyro's voice came out deeper now.
More draconic.
"…Let's see which monster breaks first."
Minato stared at the two titans preparing to clash again.
He whispered under his breath.
"…This fight could destroy the entire battlefield."
For the first time since arriving
Minato reached for one of his special kunai.
Because if these two monsters truly went all out…
Even he might have to intervene.
Back to the intense battle....
The battlefield had become a war zone within a war.
Cracked earth stretched for hundreds of meters.
Lightning scars carved through the terrain where A had moved, while massive claw gouges and molten craters marked Dreadbringer's attacks.
In the center of it all
Kyro stood, barely holding his ground.
Even with the power of the Dragon Furnace surging through his veins and the borrowed strength of his dragon bond, the Raikage's relentless assault had pushed him to his limits.
His scales were cracked.
Lightning burns ran across his shoulder and chest.
But his body was already repairing itself, muscles knitting together as draconic regeneration worked relentlessly.
Across the battlefield, the Raikage stepped forward slowly.
Lightning armor roaring around him like a thunderstorm.
His single raised finger glowed with terrifying concentration.
The legendary Hell Stab technique.
Even the elite shinobi of Kumogakure watching from behind him held their breath.
If that strike landed clean
It could pierce almost anything.
Then the sky darkened.
A massive shadow swept across the battlefield.
Minato's eyes shot upward.
"…The dragon."
Dreadbringer descended like a falling mountain.
His wings spread wide enough to blot out the sun as his enormous maw opened.
Deep inside his throat
Crimson fire began to gather.
The Raikage sensed it a split second too late.
A thunderous roar erupted from the dragon.
A RED FLAME BEAM ERUPTED FROM THE SKY.
The blast slammed directly into the Raikage.
The explosion flattened the ground in every direction.
The beam carved a burning trench across the battlefield as it pushed the Raikage nearly 400 meters across the terrain, tearing apart stone and soil like paper.
The shockwave knocked elite Cloud shinobi off their feet.
Even Minato had to brace himself against a tree.
When the flames finally faded
A massive smoking trench stretched across the battlefield.
At the far end of it stood the Raikage.
His lightning armor flickered violently.
Smoke rose from his body.
But he was still standing.
Still smiling.
Back near the crater
Kyro took a deep breath.
The delay had given him exactly what he needed.
His ribs had fully regenerated.
Cracked scales sealed themselves.
Burns faded rapidly.
The Dragon Furnace pulsed like a miniature sun within his chest.
He looked up at Dreadbringer.
"…Thanks."
The dragon rumbled approvingly.
Kyro then turned toward the distant Raikage.
His expression sharpened.
Both hands rose slowly.
The air around him began to distort.
Crimson energy gathered between his jaws as he leaned forward slightly.
The Dragon Furnace roared louder.
Mana condensed.
Heat built rapidly.
The ground beneath him started melting.
Minato's eyes widened again.
"…That's a breath attack."
But this one felt different.
Darker.
Heavier.
More destructive.
Kyro inhaled deeply.
Then spoke quietly.
"Let's see you tank this."
The crimson energy condensed further.
The pressure alone started cracking the earth beneath his feet.
This was not a normal dragon breath.
This was the full output of the Dragon Furnace.
Breath of Dread.
Across The Battlefield
The Raikage slowly stepped out of the burning trench.
His lightning cloak flared even brighter.
He looked directly at Kyro charging the attack.
Then he laughed.
A deep, fearless laugh.
"…Good boy... Now show me what you are made of.. ."
Lightning surged violently around his arm as he raised his finger again.
The strongest spear of A.
The technique that could pierce almost anything.
Hell Stab.
Both monsters prepared to unleash their ultimate attacks.
Watching from a distance...
Minato felt the sheer pressure building between them.
The air vibrated.
Birds fled the forest.
Even the war-hardened shinobi around him felt the danger.
Minato whispered quietly.
"…If those attacks collide…"
His grip tightened on his special kunai.
"…this entire battlefield might disappear."