"Hokage, this is our first time meeting. I didn't expect you to be so young."
Torifu chuckled. "This is also my first time meeting you. I didn't expect you to be so different from the legend. I'm quite disappointed."
"Hmph! Enough idle chatter! Prepare to die!"
Hanzō forcefully threw the scythe in his hand! It flew rapidly toward Torifu! If he were hit by this, his entire side would likely be cut in half. However, an attack of this level was nothing to Torifu, and Hanzō was only testing him.
After dodging it with a sidestep, Torifu condensed sixteen cloud swords around himself! Following Torifu's movements, the sixteen swords shot out in a sequence! Hanzō had never fought Torifu before and had only heard rumors of his abilities. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond and could only keep dodging. But for the last sword, Torifu predicted his position based on his movements. By the time Hanzō noticed, it was too late, and he couldn't dodge it. In a fit of rage, he used his scythe to slice the cloud sword in half.
The shattered cloud sword turned into two wisps of cloud vapor that drilled into Hanzō's respirator, but nothing happened.
"Could it be? Was it purified by his respirator?" A cloud is formed from tiny water vapor particles, so it was possible for it to be filtered out by a respirator. With that, Torifu couldn't use his tactic of freezing Hanzō's internal organs to disrupt his movements. But even without that, Torifu was not the least bit afraid!
He lunged forward! The Crane Cry Sword appeared in his hand! A single swing of the sword created a resounding cry of a crane!
Hanzō used his scythe to block, but the hardness and quality of the scythe were far inferior to that of the Crane Cry Sword. It was easily cut, leaving a gash. Without his weapon, a large part of his strength would be diminished. Hanzō immediately retreated, wanting to dissipate the force of the blow. Torifu let him have his way and didn't stop him. Instead, he condensed a crystal spike where Hanzō was about to land! If he accidentally stepped on it, he would be in excruciating pain.
This kind of obvious attack was only meant to embarrass Hanzō, and Hanzō naturally saw through it, but he couldn't do anything about it. He could only slightly shift his position in midair, losing his balance and falling. After rolling on the ground once, he immediately stood back up.
"You're a great kid. Your skill and intelligence are truly exceptional. No wonder you're the new God of Shinobi! But I, Hanzō, am no weakling!"
He swung the scythe in his hand again! This time, its speed was so fast that it left afterimages! By the time Torifu reacted, his body was already bound tightly by a chain. Then, the hammer at the end of the chain slammed down with great force. At the critical moment, Torifu turned into several cloud cranes and flew away, successfully escaping the bind. They then merged back together, reforming his body.
"Crystal Release: One-Arrow Lotus!"
A crystal flower bud shot toward Hanzō. He had just been at a disadvantage because of this Crystal Release jutsu, so Hanzō was extra cautious. When the flower bud reached his attack range, he immediately moved! He cut it in two with one slash.
But the bud did not shatter. Instead, it suddenly bloomed, and its two halves shot countless tiny crystal needles into the air! Hanzō's pupils contracted! He immediately spun his scythe to block the attacks that were barely visible to the naked eye.
"You resort to such a dirty trick? Is this all the Hokage knows?"
Torifu wasn't angered by Hanzō's taunts. He just said calmly, "You call yourself a Half-God, but we've been fighting for a while now, and you don't seem to have used any special moves. Are you here to perform a circus act by just throwing your scythe?"
"Unfortunately, I didn't buy a ticket for this!"
Torifu clapped his hands! Countless crystals shot up from the ground! The area also began to expand! Wherever Hanzō ran, the crystals followed.
Throughout the entire battle, Hanzō had been completely suppressed by Torifu. The difference in their ranks was clear. Hanzō was only barely at the edge of the Kage-level pinnacle, while Torifu was a Kage-level pinnacle ninja who was one step away from breaking through to Six Paths-level! The difference in strength could not be made up for with any weapon or scheme. Torifu had never even considered Hanzō as a true opponent. His goal was always the person behind Hanzō. He wanted to kill her and bring her body back to Konoha to see if they could learn anything from it.
Hanzō grew more and more resentful. He couldn't accept such a clear difference in strength, and his desire to kill Torifu reached its peak. If he could just defeat this person, the Land of Lightning's resources would be his! If he could defeat this person, he would become the true God of Shinobi!
"Summoning Jutsu!"
With a roar from Hanzō, the ground cracked open, and a huge fissure appeared! A purple mist rose from it and began to spread across the ground. "Watch out! It's the salamander's poison gas. Stay away!"
With that, Torifu erected a crystal wall between himself and the fighting ninja, covering the outside with a layer of cloud vapor. This way, the poison gas could not infiltrate and affect the ninja.
Then, a small, dark-brown, chubby hand emerged from the fissure, followed by a huge head! Its eyes had degenerated and become very small. Purple mucus constantly dripped from its giant mouth, and its body was slimy. This was Hanzō's Summoning Animal, or rather, his trump card, the salamander.
"It's not easy for a salamander to grow this big. You must have put a lot of effort into training him."
Hanzō looked at Torifu with a gloomy expression. "Ibuse is my strongest partner. We grew up together and have a perfect, unrivaled synergy. Today, you will also become his food, and he will reach a higher level of strength."
Torifu laughed. "You're getting ahead of yourself. You, his master, can't even beat me. Do you really expect a Summoning Animal to turn the tide for you? How ridiculous!"
Torifu swung his sword! A silvery-white sword aura flew rapidly toward the salamander! Its massive body couldn't dodge at all. The rest of its body hadn't even emerged from the ground yet, but its head was already cut open. Fortunately, its healing speed was very fast. In the blink of an eye, it was almost completely healed.
"What an amazing healing speed. I need to capture it and study it properly."
Hanzō was furious upon hearing Torifu's words. Its master was right here, and he was talking about capturing his Summoning Animal right to his face! This was unbearable!
"Ibuse! Use your poison!"
The salamander's body crawled out, then it opened its large mouth and spewed out a poisonous mist! The purple poison gas poured out of its mouth like a stream! In an instant, it completely engulfed Torifu! It even showed signs of spreading over the crystal wall and seeping to the other side!