With A's furious roar, the chakra around him changed.
Up to now, A had always used the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, a terrifying technique originally pioneered by the Second Raikage, then perfected and made famous by the Third Raikage.
Once upon a time, it was renowned throughout the shinobi world.
Especially the Third Raikage, whose Lightning Release Chakra Mode earned him the moniker among the populace as the shinobi wielding the strongest spear and the strongest shield.
Hence, one can imagine how formidable the Lightning Release Chakra Mode was.
If not for Hui appearing like a comet across the sky, this technique's reputation would only be more illustrious, its achievements only more impressive.
Now, A had inherited it, and he had developed it to a not-insignificant level.
However, this era was vastly different from the Third Raikage's.
In this new age, the strong were far, far mightier than those of the old.
A person like Konan, if placed in the old days of the Third Raikage, would have undoubtedly been an apex-level combatant.
Therefore, the ordinary Lightning Release Chakra Mode was not enough to threaten Konan.
Without an additional trump card, A would have had to conclude the fight here.
Yet A, who had to win, decided to use the unfinished trump card in his arsenal.
All at once, the chakra around his body changed.
That previously bright-blue aura took on a deep-blue hue, blue so dark it was almost black.
Konan instantly realized that it was Senjutsu chakra!
In other words, A's unfinished trump card was Lightning Release Senjutsu Chakra Mode!
Under normal circumstances, a technique cast with Senjutsu chakra rather than standard chakra yields a power increase by several times, possibly up to dozens of times.
So the gap between Lightning Release Chakra Mode and Lightning Release Senjutsu Chakra Mode was bound to be immense.
Moreover, because Lightning Release Chakra Mode was already extremely powerful to begin with, amplifying it further was that much more difficult.
Thus, developing Lightning Release Senjutsu Chakra Mode was an extremely difficult process.
Even four years had not been enough for A to perfect this form, especially since he was not someone with a knack for inventive jutsu creation.
Currently, his Lightning Release Senjutsu Chakra Mode remained a prototype, only half-finished, and carried severe aftereffects.
Under normal circumstances, whenever A worked on this technique, he was extremely cautious and never let down his guard.
More so, he would never even consider using this incomplete jutsu in real combat.
But A had a reason why he had to win this match.
Even at the cost of his life, he wanted to give it his all.
Because only by winning this match…
Only by continuing to win…
Only by winning continuously and gaining the recognition of the entire world, and most importantly the acknowledgement of Hui himself can he obtain that reward.
That reward which, at the time of its announcement, everyone had found utterly unbelievable, shocking beyond all reason.
The reward to… resurrect a person!
Yes, the notion was so unbelievable as to defy logic.
Reviving someone…how astonishing of a feat was that? Yet it was being offered up as a prize.
If it were anyone else offering such a reward and proclaiming it to others, people would have scoffed, dismissing it as nonsense.
But the one who set this reward was Mochizuki Hui.
He was the master of the Sage Shinobi World, the ruler of the Sage Shinobi Nation, the Sage of the Hidden Sage Village, the terminator of the old era and the initiator of the new, Mochizuki Hui, who seemed almost divine!
Whatever Hui declared, would come true.
That was the universal consensus of everyone in this world.
Hence, this reward was undeniably real!
In other words, so long as one could make it onto the Outstanding Youth Ranking during this First Sage Shinobi World Elite Youth Tournament, gain the recognition of the world, and earn Hui's personal approval, that person would receive this reward, a single opportunity to resurrect another individual.
That was A's reason for having to win.
Although falling into the losers bracket might still offer a slim chance to make it into the Outstanding Youth Ranking, how could one truly earn the world's admiration, and Hui's acknowledgment, after entering the losers bracket?
Only by winning incessantly, and performing extraordinarily well, was there even the faintest hope of attaining that reward.
Only then could A resurrect his father.
For the sake of reviving his father, A no longer cared about the consequences to himself.
He would use his half-finished Lightning Release Senjutsu Chakra Mode to defeat Konan and seize victory in this match.
As for the next round of battles…
He could no longer concern himself with such matters. Even if it cost him everything, even his own life, A was determined to resurrect his father.
Boom!!!
Neither A nor Konan made any overt move, nor was there any visible explosion. Rather, this deafening roar simply erupted from A's own aura.
Standing there without moving, the ground beneath his feet cracked open, and gravel began to float up from the earth as though by invisible force.
A formless wave surrounded A, produced by the energy leaking from his body.
"Hisss~!"
Someone in the audience couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath. Even from a great distance, they could feel how powerful A had become, standing on the battlefield like some sort of demonic deity.
"Terrifying… I never imagined he still had such a powerful technique hidden up his sleeve!"
"I never expected one twist after another, and then yet another twist. Who on earth will be the final winner in this battle?!
"It looks like A has laid all his cards on the table. Now it's Konan, the Angel's turn. I wonder what she's been setting up all this time?"
Everyone discussed it fervently, completely transfixed by this showdown.
Even the contestants in the other eight arenas who had not yet finished their matches stopped what they were doing to watch this fight.
"That kid's being reckless,"
Madara commented. As a Sixth-tier Sage, he had deep insight into Senjutsu chakra and instantly recognized that there was something wrong with A's.
Right now, A's Senjutsu chakra was excessively violent, unstable and liable to erupt at any moment.
And once it did, it would inevitably injure A's body, leaving damaging aftereffects.
"Hmm. A half-finished technique. If he were to complete it, it might become quite impressive,"
Hui commented with keen interest.
He knew perfectly well that A was about to lose this fight.
By recklessly employing power beyond his control, A risked triggering precisely the outcome he feared most.
Not only would he lose this match, but he would also suffer severe repercussions.
Yet Hui did not intervene. In fact, he was curious to see the exact nature of these aftereffects.
It wasn't that he had no sympathy for A. Rather, Hui was supremely confident in his ability to heal.
After all, he thought, isn't it just aftereffects? As long as it isn't instant death or his body completely exploding, everything else can be fixed.
His willingness to set virtually no limits on this competition stemmed from that confidence: the certainty that he could ensure every participant emerged unscathed in the end.
"Aah!!!!"
On the field, veins bulged on A's forehead as he let out a furious shout, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished.
A moment later, he appeared directly in front of Konan, fist surging toward her in a fierce attack…