The Thunderbeast roared, its cry splitting the heavens like a skyborne leviathan calling down judgment. A shockwave of sound and raw power rippled through the valley, sending tremors through the ground. Ash barely had time to react before the creature lunged—its massive claws raking deep, jagged furrows into the rock where he had stood a moment before. Stone exploded into the air, shards of shattered terrain spinning past his face as he twisted midair, landing smoothly. Lightning pulsed through the beast''s bioluminescent veins, illuminating the storm-drenched battlefield with veins of electric gold. A storm-borne colossus, alive with power, charging its next strike.


    Rin''s voice crackled in his earpiece, calm despite the chaos. "The Thunderbeast is preparing a high-voltage discharge. If you''re caught in the blast radius—"


    "I know," Ash muttered, already moving.


    With a flick of his wrist, he activated his Kage Nu Jutsu—Fourth Veil shadows curling around him like living tendrils. The storm winds carried his flickering form, dissolving him into ephemeral blurs, a phantom dancing between worlds. The Thunderbeast''s golden eyes tracked him, its perception sharp, but its movements were a fraction too slow.


    Ash lunged. His blade carved through the storm, slicing toward the beast''s exposed flank. Sparks erupted as steel met its hardened hide—a sound like metal grating against a mountain. The creature howled in fury, its serpentine body twisting with unnatural agility, whipping its tail through the air. A split-second warning crackled through the charged atmosphere before arcs of volatile energy detonated in its wake.


    Ash barely evaded, flipping backward onto a jagged outcrop, landing in a crouch. His breath was steady, his pulse a controlled rhythm despite the fury of the battle. The Thunderbeast was formidable. But it wasn''t his only enemy here.


    A low whistle cut through the storm.


    From the mist, six figures emerged, clad in the storm-forged armor of the Raijū Hunters. Their armor bore the sigils of the hunter caste, glowing faintly with the charge of the storm. Their weapons—some wielding curved stormblades crackling with residual energy, others gripping long-range electro-spears humming with stored lightning—gleamed in the flickering glow of the tempest.


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    The leader stepped forward, his presence like a rolling thunderhead, helm adorned with a crest of lightning insignias. He studied Ash for a moment, then smiled beneath his helm. "Impressive," he called over the storm. "You move well, outsider. But the hunt was never yours alone."


    Ash exhaled, rolling his shoulders, adjusting his grip on his blade. "If you want the beast, you''ll have to take it from me."


    The hunter chuckled. "That is exactly what we intend to do."


    Without further warning, the Raijū Hunters struck.


    A spear streaked through the air, its impact detonating the rock where Ash had stood, forcing him to vault sideways. Another hunter surged forward, sword slicing in a precise arc. Ash met the strike with his own, the clash sending a spray of sparks through the storm. He twisted, deflecting another incoming blow, his blade a streak of dark steel against the flickering glow of lightning.


    The battle became a deadly dance—Ash weaving between the hunters, each movement calculated, each counter a razor-thin breath from death. But the Thunderbeast, enraged by the intrusion, refused to be ignored.


    A crackling surge of power built in its core before the beast unleashed a devastating bolt of lightning, striking the earth in a chain of explosive bursts. The valley trembled under the assault. Wind howled. Rain slashed like knives. The air itself thrummed with barely contained power.


    Rin''s voice cut through the cacophony. "Probability of survival decreases significantly if engaged on both fronts."


    Ash gritted his teeth. He needed an opening—a way to shift the battlefield in his favor. His eyes flickered to the Thunderbeast''s pulsing veins, the unstable charge rippling beneath its hide.


    That was it.


    He moved, diving through the storm, narrowly dodging another spear. The Thunderbeast reared back, its next attack building. Ash surged forward, pushing through the storm''s fury, shadows trailing in his wake. The moment stretched, the crackling tension in the air palpable as he reached the beast''s massive form.


    And then he struck—not at the beast itself, but at the weakened ground beneath its massive claws.


    Cracks spiderwebbed through the rock as the force of his blade sent tremors racing through the terrain. The Thunderbeast reared, its roar lost to the splitting stone. With a final, powerful slash, the earth beneath it collapsed.


    The beast let out a deafening bellow as it plummeted into the chasm below, its bioluminescent veins flickering like dying embers as it vanished into the darkness.


    The battlefield shifted in an instant. The hunters scattered, their formation momentarily broken as they scrambled for footing.


    Ash wasted no time.


    Shadows swallowed him whole as he vanished into the storm.


    The hunt was far from over.


    And he would not be the prey.