Over here, Tobirama was still flashing around to evade the brothers' attacks, but he still found time to glance toward the Gedō Mazō.
"She actually used Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) to teleport explosive tags, and she detonated one hundred million at once. That little girl did well," Tobirama could not help praising.
"Of course she did! Tenten has always been outstanding!" Tsunade, who was covering the flank nearby, said smugly.
When it came to Tenten, Tsunade was naturally very satisfied.
It could be said that among Konoha's top fifteen female shinobi, Tenten's strength stood out the most. Only then came Yakumo and Megumi.
Especially after learning that Tenten had the Six Paths Tools, Tsunade felt even more at ease. She even used Tenten as a trump card more than once, and Tenten never let her down, repeatedly earning merit in battle.
This time was the same. The only person who would dare to use one hundred million explosive tags to bomb the Gedō Mazō was Tenten!
"If she could learn the Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags Technique I created, that would be even better. As long as you find the right spot, and you have enough explosive tags, you can blast the Gedō Mazō to death," Tobirama added.
"Oh, you mean that, Second Grandpa? Tenten already learned it," Tsunade said again, dropping another bombshell.
"Huh? Seriously?"
"Of course it's true! Natsuki traded me a chakra battery specifically for the chance to learn that forbidden technique, mainly for Tenten."
"Incredible. The younger generation is unbelievable," Tobirama sighed. Then he casually threw out a Suiton — Suishōha (Water Release — Water Shockwave), forcing the brothers back.
Not being able to land a single hit on Tobirama for so long made both A and Bee visibly irritated.
On Natsuki's side, the fight was just as spectacular.
Natsuki used Hatake Kenjutsu. His Raiton Shunshin (Lightning Body Flicker) was not much slower than Ran Shunshin (Storm Body Flicker), and his blade work was fast and exquisitely precise, forcing a head-on exchange of slashes with Hashirama.
Hashirama's real strength was his Wood Release. In terms of taijutsu, he was not actually that much above Natsuki.
And because Hashirama was distracted by the violent explosion over there, once he learned what had happened, he could not help praising, "That little girl did well! She's your girlfriend, right?"
"Yes. Tenten is my girlfriend. She has been since we were seven," Natsuki said, sweeping his blade through.
"Seven? You locked it in that early? That really is good judgment. Compared to that, little Tsuna just—"
"…"
Natsuki did not respond. That was an already-dead old man worrying about his granddaughter's love life. It was not Natsuki's place to say anything. He only answered with heavier attacks.
At present, the overall situation had not deviated from Natsuki's expectations.
He knew Hashirama was the strongest, so he proactively took on the job of containing Hashirama and handed the task of destroying the Gedō Mazō to everyone else.
Even without his participation, even without him giving a single instruction, they would still fight on their own.
Just look at this—blowing off the Gedō Mazō's last leg was a brilliant operation. Tenten, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Konan, and Sasuke were all highly active.
As for the others, even if they could not defeat their opponents, at least they could keep them pinned.
The battlefield situation was clearly leaning in the Alliance's favor.
And with the new Jinchūriki joining, the balance might tilt even further toward the Alliance. Hopefully, this time they could destroy the Gedō Mazō and Obito—ideally kill Black Zetsu as well. Then this calamity would be over.
Just then, near Orochimaru, Minato flashed back with Black Zetsu in tow.
"Obito, Minato has already left a Flying Thunder God formula on the Island Turtle. Let's hurry over—" Black Zetsu could hardly wait.
"No need," Obito said, pointing at Naruto and Sasuke, who were charging this way. "The Alliance knows our plan, so they had Natsuki bring the Jinchūriki over instead. Now all the Jinchūriki are here."
Black Zetsu went blank. "Then wasn't all my work for nothing?"
Obito said, "It wasn't for nothing. The Jinchūriki were forced out by you. Now that they're here, it's perfect. We go all out!"
Hearing that, Black Zetsu nodded, then reflexively turned to look at the Gedō Mazō. With just one glance, his eyes went wide. He thought his vision was playing tricks on him, and he even rubbed his eyes.
His voice trembled with disbelief. "Obito, what happened while I was gone? Why is the Gedō Mazō's leg broken again?!"
Obito's voice was flat. "Why are you yelling? It just got its leg blown off by Tenten's one hundred million explosive tags. Once it absorbs Bijū, it can attach it back. What matters now is stopping Tenten from using the Six Paths Tools on the Gedō Mazō. The Gedō Mazō's Kotodama has already been forced out. If the Kotodama gets cut by the Shichiseiken (Seven Stars Sword), and the Kotodama curse succeeds, the Gedō Mazō will get sealed just like Madara. And then it's over."
Black Zetsu's expression changed. His wariness of Tenten surged to its absolute peak.
He could already imagine it: with the Gedō Mazō's level of intelligence, it would definitely blurt out some habitual phrase unconsciously. Humans might not understand it, but the Six Paths Tools definitely would.
After all, he had even heard that Samehada got sucked in. If the Gedō Mazō was a living being, it would not escape either!
"Fine! You handle blocking Tenten. I'll go check the Gedō Mazō!" Black Zetsu said, thinking he might be able to reconnect the severed leg.
He hurried to the broken-leg area. He had barely begun to examine anything when his heart suddenly chilled.
…
He decisively dodged sideways, but his arm was still severed by a Senbon cut.
"Nice, Samui!" Darui praised, then immediately used his technique. "Ranton — Laser Circus!"
Black Zetsu jumped in alarm and threw up Mokuton defenses, but several beams still punched holes through his body. Luckily, whether it was the severed arm or the laser wounds, they all hit the white portion. The black portion was fine.
Black Zetsu was essentially possessing White Zetsu. Damage to White Zetsu had little to do with Black Zetsu himself.
Even if White Zetsu died, Black Zetsu could switch to another host. Even if his combat power was not that strong, his survival ability was not inferior to Orochimaru's.
Otherwise, how could he have lived all the way from Kaguya's era to the present?
At this time, Atsui and Akatsuchi also pounced in, both looking murderous.
This was the assassination unit Darui had assembled on the spot, created specifically to kill Black Zetsu.
Earlier, Black Zetsu had followed the Fourth Hokage away. Darui's group could not find a target, but they stayed hidden anyway, because they knew Black Zetsu would come back.
And just as expected, Black Zetsu not only returned, he was alone.
It was the perfect moment to strike.
But in the next second, a yellow flash appeared, blocking in front of Black Zetsu. "My apologies, everyone. I've been ordered to protect Black Zetsu."
Darui's brows knit hard. He naturally knew how strong Minato was. His speed was so extreme that even A and Bee could barely match him. Darui's Storm Release likely could not keep up with that.
Looks like killing Black Zetsu was going to be very difficult.
(End of Chapter)
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