For Tsunade, the only way she could conceive of defeating this God was by overwhelming him. As a sannin she never met a foe she felt absolutely hopeless against. With enough time in mind... a strategy would always come to mind.
'Come at me with everything you got~' Still, the cocky face of that Sun God, challenging her after brazenly handing over a handicap, was unacceptable.
He wouldn't use Blazing Springs Ashes, that ridiculous technique that made him untouchable.
"Don't think you can look down on me forever, I'm stronger than I have ever been!"
*BOOOMMM!!!*
With a single fist, the destruction that followed made Tsunade sigh in regret, 'If I had been this strong back then...'
Still, those thoughts couldn't help but appear in her mind, the raw instinct of always looking back into the past, instead of what's in front. The real motive of this fight was thoughts she couldn't abandon and yet, thoughts the enemy in front compelled her to abandon.
"You still dare think about him when I'm here, right in front of you?" Ray growled, the blonde faltered at the implications. She wanted to say that wasn't it, that her mind was firmly placed in the present, but that would be a lie.
Before her mouth could spout any excuses, Ray put his index finger and thumb in a circular shape in front of his mouth, astonishing her. It was a position she knew very well.
He repeated her words, even though he didn't need to.
!!!
*WHOOOOSHHH!!*
He blew air from his lungs and fuelled unparalleled Sun Energy, following the same energetic pattern his eyes had witnessed inside Tsunade's body. Adept as she may be, when it came to using Sun Energy, she couldn't ever hope to compare herself to a Sun God.
More than a fireball, what was produced was a Tsunami of flames that engulfed her.
The sannin groaned, her skin burned but was far from able to do any lasting damage, it did nothing... except charring at least two square miles of forest, destroying all the life within, possibly alerting the camp of the Baharut Empire nearby as they flew for their life with the night turned into a day due to the blazing mountain range.
Tsunade was uncaring, that technique alone told her everything she needed to know. This was not a fight she could win with power alone. Ray's power output severely outstripped hers even with her seal undone.
The next clash did nothing but segment that belief in her mind, coupled with a lot of respect and admiration.
She phased through the flames and prepared to deal a severe blow towards Ray's head as he kept spewing flames.
But Ray stopped and prepared to counter. Tyrannical energy coated his fist in the form of golden plasma, resembling the core of a sun. She was momentarily surprised, a technique he had already used... but it seemed like Ray hadn't fully grasped the extent and power of this technique, until now.
Both fists impacted and it was the apocalypse incarnate, by then... Azrael had already retreated to a safe zone as the mere shockwaves of this battle were already enough to threaten her life. Regardless of worlds, past, present or future... she had never witnessed a fight so devastating.
Much to her absolute shock, not only did Ray not break a sweat, not only he didn't move one inch from his spot as he received her first, but the explosion destroyed her poise completely as she struggled to keep standing amidst the clash.
'I-It is still not enough to counter his Sun Burst?!' her veins burned and blazed with Sun Energy, but it still wasn't enough. Not only that, it wasn't nearly enough!
*BOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!*
Eventually, she couldn't keep the sun from bursting and exploding like a cataclysm, sending her flying into the soil, leaving a trail of destruction in her way and blasting a hole open in the mountain.
The Sun God smiled, "You know... I never thought that attack could be charged~"
Thankfully she didn't hear those words, or Tsunade would spit blood. In any case, she was already spitting blood.
As if that wasn't enough for her, Ray, aware that the explosion was far from finishing her, chased after them like a hyena. Flying at breakneck speeds until he arrived her body covered in debris and regenerating to the naked eye
"Bend down, Tsunade!"
!!!
'In succession!?'
For her, it was like seeing the shinigami. Would the thoughts of the past, the regret of a fallen love, warrant the loss of a new life? Not.
Stupid she was not. Tsunade evaded that attack like her life depended on it, perhaps it did.
*BOOOOOMMMM!!!*
The mountain range couldn't resist stars manifesting and exploding one after the other like they were common-tier spells, but they certainly weren't simple spells. Ray exhaled deeply, just as he had realised that he could charge his Sun Burst, he also realised the ridiculous amount of energy that each of those strikes consumed. His regeneration was fast enough to cope, but releasing an attack that consumed one-third of his power for each use wasn't effective.
During his moment of loss and consideration, Tsunade executed her last plan. Her body was already taxed and to the limit, she'd be happy so long as she could give that arrogant brat a piece of her mind.
Blinking and jumping from side to side she arrived in front of Ray, her clothes completely ragged and fighting half-naked.
He evaded it completely, but the second strike flashed in front of his eyes before he even realised, the kick sliced off a few strands of hair; he evaded the third kick in succession, the fourth, but not the fifth to the stomach.
*BAANGG!!*
The mistress of Taijutsu smirked at the feeling of pride within herself, Ray may have been powerful, but his moves were no different from that of a street kid who had never trained in martial arts. The fact that she was able to land at least one solid blow fuelled up her confidence as she sought a continuation.
Her stone clone caught him and tried to put him on a Nelson lock, Tsunade jumped towards him to not miss even one second but Ray kicked the ground and jumped the clone, fleeing from her grasp.
"Haaa!!"
She wanted to chase, but her body didn't allow her to. Cramps assailed her limbs, her skin smoked and the pain became unbearable beyond maintenance levels. Tsunade fell on her knees, defeated.
Ray approached her and grasped her forehead, "Are you so reluctant that you have to reach this stage, fight me like this..."
She groaned and bit her lips, feeling hopeless. Her energy got sucked away, the tattoos of her body receded and the last thing she did was hold Ray's hand before falling unconscious.
Ray picked her up like a sack of potatoes, his countenance didn't look very happy.
"My lord".
Azrael landed, and her wings unravelled her body, she had been using them for protection and even then, the keen eye would be able to tell she lost a few feathers.
There were questions to ask, praises to say, perhaps even prayers towards her God, but Azrael didn't have the time, she got pulled into a moonlight mist cloud.