Chapter 620: Unlucky Bunta
Tobi felt absolutely no tension from being surrounded. He just kept pestering Iruka, "How did you know I wasn't Yamato?"
Iruka hesitated, then explained, "You imitated Captain Yamato's every word and action, but you couldn't imitate his instincts as a ninja. That's something we hone through relentless, daily training. It includes everything—his gaze, his footing, the precise distance he keeps from his weapon. You've never had that training. You're not a ninja at all."
He went on and on, rattling off points like he was back lecturing at the Academy.
Tobi scratched his head. Is that so?
What Iruka was too polite to say was that the imposter also stank. In the confined space of the ramen shop, the odor had been overwhelming, impossible to ignore.
Minato Namikaze faced the figure, or rather, the son slung over his shoulder. "Who are you? Are you an accomplice of Madara, or a member of the Akatsuki?"
Seeming to realize he'd made a huge blunder, Tobi scratched his head in embarrassment, his whole demeanor turning goofy. "Awww, how embarrassing! Boo-hoo! You ask who I am? I'm just a newbie! My idols are Itachi-senpai and Sasori-senpai!"
Minato's voice was cold and hard. "Itachi Uchiha is a Konoha ninja."
Earlier, while saving Ayame, he had managed to slap a Flying Thunder God (Hiraishin) seal on Tobi's back. He now tried to activate it, intending to teleport the kidnapper outside the village for capture. But as he gathered his chakra... he found the seal was gone.
What?
Tobi, still holding Naruto, put one hand on his hip, puffing his chest out. "Can't find your little seal, can you? Hahahaha! Well then, I guess it's my turn! You should be very familiar with this jutsu. Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!"
An uncountable mass of plants converged on his position. Seeds, catalyzed by Yang Release chakra, grew at an explosive rate. Dense vines twisted together, obliterating the Ichiraku Ramen shop and a dozen surrounding buildings, crushing them into the earth. In their place, a colossal statue with hundreds of arms rose to the sky.
The statue's main hands were clasped in prayer. Tobi stood atop its head, and just below his feet, on the statue's "forehead," were five smaller, wooden-carved heads.
The Konoha shinobi were frozen in shock. The First Hokage's True Several Thousand Hands?!
Minato had seen Ino's "Sansāra Buddha" before, so he had some understanding of top-tier Wood Release. He quickly rallied his troops: "His chakra is insufficient! It looks like the True Several Thousand Hands, but its foundation is just the Wood Golem Technique. It's a far cry from the real thing!"
Tobi cackled. "Whether it's the real thing or not, you're about to find out!"
He formed a quick seal. The five smaller wooden heads on the statue's brow all opened their mouths.
Water, Fire, Wind, Lightning, and Earth. The five basic chakra natures swirled in their maws, charged for two seconds, and then unleashed a cataclysmic, combined torrent from the heavens.
The attack's range was enormous. If it wasn't stopped, the entire bustling commercial district would be instantly pulverized.
Minato was an assassin-type ninja; he didn't rely on high-level elemental ninjutsu. He had affinities for Wind, Fire, and Lightning, and they weren't weak, but he rarely used them.
He had no choice now. He slammed his hand on the ground. "Earth Style: Mud Wall!" The wall rose to meet the blast, but the sturdy defense didn't last even one second before the Lightning Release in the torrent blasted it to pieces.
"Summoning Jutsu!" He summoned Gamabunta. "Chief Bunta, help me! Three o'clock, Water Bullet!"
Bunta appeared, his giant pipe clenched in his mouth, his face shrouded in smoke. He didn't even see the enemy; he just instinctively followed the order, spewing a "Water Release: Water Bullet" at the oncoming torrent. At the same time, Minato formed seals for "Wind Release: Great Vacuum Sphere."
The jet of water and the blast of wind combined, managing to neutralize the vast majority of the chakra in the five-element assault.
"Minato, is this Konoha? Wha—!?" Bunta turned his head, saw the massive statue, and was so shocked his pipe fell straight out of his mouth.
Are you kidding me? Is this an enemy I can actually fight?
At that moment, he missed Jiraiya dearly. Jiraiya would never summon him to fight an opponent this powerful. They were summons, yes, but they were also living, intelligent beings. If they were killed while summoned, they were just... dead.
The sight of the True Several Thousand Hands nearly made him reverse-summon straight back to Mount Myoboku. But as he looked closer, he realized this one was small—only a bit taller than himself. It wasn't the heaven-piercing colossus Hashirama had used. He calmed down... slightly.
"Chief Bunta, that thing grabbed Naruto. I need your help to get him back," Minato said calmly.
"Naruto? Well, he's kinda my henchman... I'll help you!" Bunta thought it over. He had no reason to refuse. He looked at the battlefield. "Can't you transport it out of here? The damage... fighting in the village is too much."
Minato replied, "I put a Hiraishin mark on him, but it vanished for some reason."
"Must be his constitution. He probably has a body that automatically negates seals and cursed marks," Bunta reasoned with his vast experience.
Minato nodded, agreeing.
He can erase the mark, but it's not instantaneous. If I can get two or three seconds, I can move him. Besides... you can erase a mark on your body, but what about this giant statue? Can you erase a mark I sneak onto that?
He needed Bunta to close the distance, draw its attention, attract its fire, and tank the damage. He was, in essence, using his summon as a pack mule.
"Chief Bunta, go!" Minato crouched slightly, calculating the angles and distances for his Hiraishin.
Bunta truly didn't want to do this, but Minato was the Hokage, and Mount Myoboku needed to maintain good relations with Konoha, especially with the Child of Prophecy's time drawing near. If he angered Konoha, the Elder Toads would have his hide when he got back.
No choice but to suck it up!
Gamabunta let out a deafening roar, swung his forty-meter-long tanto, and used his powerful legs to launch himself straight at the statue.
He was met by hundreds upon hundreds of giant wooden fists.
Two fists can't block four hands, let alone a thousand.
"Left hook!" Tobi shouted gleefully, striking a boxing pose from atop the statue's head, shadowboxing in the air.
The statue shifted its weight slightly, and five hundred left fists rained down like meteors—PAPAPAPA!—smashing directly into Bunta's right cheek.
________________________________________
If you want more chapters, please consider supporting my page on Patreon. with 50 advanced chapters available on Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/GirlsLove1