Their fight continued with neither side backing down.
Kimimaro managed to close the distance while Arthur remained unnaturally calm, ready to strike.
"Larch Dance…!"
Just as Arthur lunged to attack, he halted mid-motion. Bone erupted from every angle of Kimimaro's body. They shot forth like spears, causing Arthur to leap back, landing gracefully several feet away.
Kimimaro couldn't help but grin at his opponent's sudden response.
"What's the matter?" he taunted, flaunting the bone that arched menacingly from his back. "You're more on the defensive side."
Arthur's expression remained unchanged, his eyes first on the bone spur, then returning to meet Kimimaro's. He didn't respond.
That silence only fueled Kimimaro's resolve to continue taking the fight to Arthur. The curse mark on his pulse with dark chakra, amplifying his senses and instincts.
"For you to have pushed me this far," he said as a part of his torso became covered, "means I underestimated you… That won't happen again."
Arthur remained the same, knowing full well the effects of what the curse mark granted its user. Instead, he raised his arm to his chest and placed his hand vertically.
"Kimimaro, I urge you not to hold back…"
The instant Kimimaro took a step; without warning, Arthur shot his jutsu: 'Water style: surface slice…"
Kimimaro stopped, not having even seen Arthur form a hand sign.
A torrent of water surged forward like a ten-foot blade as it sliced through the ground towards Kimimaro. But he was a step ahead. He leaped high into the air, twisting and flipping over the wave of sharp water.
Midair, he then fired five bone bullets from his fingertips. Arthur didn't even flinch. Slightly leaning to the side was all it took to evade the sharp projectiles.
'Water style: surface slice…'
This time, two torrents of sharp slices of water shot forth where his opponent was going to land.
The Sound ninja's instincts kicked in as he used his momentum to dodge before landing, narrowly avoiding the deadly streams. But the moment he dodged them, already there was another one coming his way.
He used all his force and managed to dodge it again. As the next torrent of water approached, he felt the pressure build in his chest; he wouldn't allow Arthur to dictate his movements; he would face the incoming water instead.
Channeling the chakra of the curse mark, he raised his bone sword to carve through the technique. But the instant he attempted to intercept the water, it sliced through his defenses, tearing into his shoulder and sending a jolt of pain through his body.
Blood sprayed from the wound as he staggered back, gritting his teeth against the searing ache across his skin.
He looked down, watching blood seep through his clothes.
"But how?!" he asked himself furiously. He of all shinobi understood how dense his bones were. Could his opponent's water style technique be that much more potent? "Enough games then!
Ignoring the blood trickling from his wound, he raised his arms. Just then, another Surface Slice technique shot toward him. Kimimaro felt an overwhelming instinct to dodge. However, Arthur's next move caught him completely off guard.
Arthur suddenly emerged from the water just before it reached him and simultaneously extended his hand while performing another technique: 'Water style: prison jutsu…'
In an instant, an orb of water encased Kimimaro, trapping him within its swirling confines. The only sensation left was a tightness around him, the pressure of the water restricting his movements.
Trying to stay calm, he thrashed against the liquid walls, attempting to break free.
Arthur wasn't even finished. While casually turning around, he performed three swift Surface Slices. Blades of water shot through the prison, each one cutting through Kimimaro's body as they caused the prison to explode on impact!
For a moment, everything became a haze of red and blue for the Sound shinobi.
As the last drop of chakra fled from him, he fell to the floor.
One can only imagine how much pain he was in. Each strike had landed efficiently, carving critical wounds across his torso and arms. The stinging sensation was most certainly like wildfire spreading through his veins as blood poured from his body, pooling at his feet and mixing with the clear water that surrounded him.
The once-quiet battlefield faded into heavy rain, leaving him at the mercy of Arthur!
Kimimaro couldn't remember the last time he felt so exposed. He lay there, panting heavily against the ground with ragged breaths, unable to look away from the figure silhouetted against the light.
Arthur just stood there, unimpressed and calm, unrattled by what he believed to be a simple combo.
It was the first time he'd unleashed his ninjutsu like that without basic training. While the lack of hand signs was apparent, the amount of chakra being placed into his attacks was greater than he had expected.
"How does it feel?" he asked in a tone as if merely having a friendly discussion. "I urged you not to hold back, yet you lie there after just one technique…? Pathetic."
With visible effort, Kimimaro pulled himself upright. He didn't like being spoken to like that.
The remnants of the curse mark pulsed even greater than before. Lines of darkened chakra swirled around his body, marking his skin like tattoos. His version one form had fully manifested.
"Without this layer underneath my skin," he rasped, "I would have been dead for sure."
Those were the same lines the Sound shinobi uttered in the original story, as Arthur recalled it. Not even needing his Tamashii, he could see just how much of a drastic change his opponent's chakra signature underwent.
Kimimaro was truly special, far stronger than the other Sound Four.
"I'll admit," Kimimaro revealed. "You're only the third strongest shinobi I've faced."
Then, as if knowing that level one wouldn't be enough, his chakra surged upward, propelling him to greater heights. He was activating level two.
Fur rippled across his skin as bones twisted and elongated, forming a terrifying dinosaur-like appearance complete with a swishing tail. Two sharp, dark bones also protruded from his back.
This time, he bore distinctive features—two dark, black markings curved under his eyes, accentuating his predatory look. Even his earlier injuries had been completely healed.
As the last vestiges of his transformation unfolded, he released a primal roar that shook the ground beneath them.
The fight was far from over, and now, with his newly gained power, he lunged forward at astonishing speed.
"Galium Spurium Dance!"
With two weaponized bone swords, he dove towards Arthur, poised to strike. The Sound shinobi slashed twice, but his cunning opponent evaded both attacks with a sidestep, moving with an agility that reflected his earlier demeanor.
Not deterred, Kimimaro pressed on. He began a flurry of strikes, each one intended to break Arthur's defenses. Slashes streaked through the air.
Though pushed back with each attack, Arthur managed to remain unharmed and untouched. But Kimimaro didn't relent. He executed a rapid pivot, then charged behind Arthur, unleashing a pulse of bone spikes that erupted from his body.
The spikes shot forth with explosive force, thick and sharp enough to pierce the ground below.
Arthur, however, had felt the move. He sprang off one of the protruding bones just in time and landed lithely with an unchanged expression, even as Kimimaro roared in frustration.
"I've never seen that move before," Arthur commented.
How could he when he'd never played the video games before? Even without seeing it, he was still able to effectively dodge it as if he had!
"You rely heavily on tricks and dodging," Kimimaro shot back, retracting the spikes as he savagely stared at his opponent. "If that's all you can do, you're nothing compared to lord Orochimaru."
Rather than respond with words, Arthur's eyes glowed red.
Kimimaro continued to try and taught, "He would crush you like the insect you are."
Arthur remained silent, his expression unfazed. Whatever the reason for it, Kimimaro couldn't bear the insolence any longer.
"Fine then…" he growled.
In that instant, the dinosaur-like figure changed his stance, tail whipping down to smash against the ground. Raising his arm, he concentrated his chakra to cause a sharp, deadly spear to blossom over his limb.
Its length further extended to a lethal point. With a battle cry, he charged at Arthur, ready to unleash a devastating blow.
Arthur didn't flinch; instead, he raised his palm, which made Kimimaro's blood boil.
"Clematis Dance: Flower!" he shouted as he closed the distance.
In one sweeping motion, he lunged back, poised to drive the weapon directly into Arthur's outstretched palm.
An ear-piercing sound filled the air as the spear met flesh against bone, resounding with a boom that echoed through the silent forest.
Dust erupted around them, forming a thick cloud that obscured the view of the confrontation; it enveloped Kimimaro, his senses acutely aware of every shift around him. And as the dust began to settle, he was in utter shock.
Standing there, unfazed and steady, was Arthur—palms firmly gripping the tip of Kimimaro's bone spear as though it were nothing more than a dull blade. He had caught the spear barehanded, only gliding a few feet back from his original spot.
"H… how?!" Kimimaro wondered with a dumbfounded face.
"You failed to understand," Arthur said in a steady tone. With a slow motion, he began to crush the tip of the bone spear, the sound of grinding echoing in the silence as the pristine bone shattered before splintering into fragments that slowly fell around them. "I could have done that any time I pleased…"
Could it be? All those previous encounters, all those moments when Arthur had sidestepped his attacks—he wasn't dodging for show; he was holding back his true potential the entire time?
Now, standing there with the remnants of Kimimaro's bone spear splattered around his feet, he felt the full weight of the situation: Arthur was, without a doubt, in a league far above his own.
His opponent stood resolute, taking a step back as he slowly crushed the remnants of the shattered bone in his hand into a fine, powdery dust. The motion was almost too casual, yet each grain represented a threat that had been dispelled—one more reminder of Kimimaro's limitations.
Arthur then opened his palms to allow the dust to scatter in the wind while saying, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12."
For Kimimaro, it was nothing short of surreal; the sight before him was that of an otherworldly quality, a sacrifice of his power rendered impotent. No one had ever done this, and the notion destroyed his earlier confidence.
Heart racing, he began forming his bones again, focused on activating his Clematis Dance technique, desperate to reclaim the momentum of the battle. But as his chakra spiked, there came a violent crack—his very bones morphing and then shattering into fragments.
The confusion on his face was evident as his transformation receded and he stumbled, struggling to comprehend the rapid unraveling of his abilities.
Then came the coughing. It was sharp, sudden, and overwhelming, forcing him to double over as blood sprayed from his mouth. He then dropped to his knees, unable to control his coughing.
What was happening to him? He didn't understand.
"I did say I was the one who healed you." Arthur stated while walking past Kimimaro. He didn't even glance back at the agony radiating from the fallen shinobi. "But I never said I cured you…"