"Boom!"
The ground trembled; a terrifying shockwave rolled through.
The moment the Four-Tails hit the ground, the whole battlefield seemed to suffer an earthquake.
Falling from several thousand meters up, the Four-Tails could originally have adjusted its body midair and landed steadily.
Unfortunately, how could Gekko Chizan let things go his way? A crystal dragon had already been prepared in midair, and it descended on the Four-Tails like a divine weapon sent from the heavens.
The end result was the dragon shattered — and the great monkey also fell, losing balance and landing on the ground on its side.
The battlefield, once full of fierce fighting, instantly went deathly quiet.
"Damn Konoha ghost!"
"Ugh—cough, cough!"
Even with Son Gokū's formidable physique, that fall hurt like hell; his whole body ached.
Roshi and Sun Gokū had already started exchanging shouts at each other.
"You bastard Roshi! Look what you did! You've got me hurting!"
"We could've landed fine, and you had to mess with that damn dragon — are you stupid or what?!"
A full tailed-beast transformation uses the tail-beast's own body, and Sun Gokū didn't have body control to begin with — after that fall he was grimacing in pain.
Roshi, on the other hand, was fine; only the high-altitude fall had left a little psychological burden.
[Ding! Detected host sent the Four-Tails to high altitude, causing it to be launched high and fall hard; this led to an exchange of insults between Four-Tails Sun Gokū and the jinchūriki Roshi. Very effective. Bonus awarded: tailed-beast transformation synchronized chakra consumption reduced by 10%. Note: total reduced by 20% so far.]
Gekko Chizan, who had already moved to a safe position, watched the show and accepted the reward — secretly pleased.
Chōmei was stuffing bugs into his mouth, crunching as he watched Sun Gokū tumble and fall, laughing uncontrollably.
"Chizan, when do you think Kokuō will fall?"
"If she falls, do you think she'll land on that Sun Gokū fellow?"
"If that's the case, I'd die laughing."
"Better if she lands horn-first! Let that Sun Gokū keep bragging — it'd be good to teach him a lesson!"
Gekko Chizan almost glitched; his tone was full of speechless exasperation as he began to lecture Chōmei.
"Horn-first? Why don't you say just let them fight directly?"
"Kokuō isn't stupid — she knows Sun Gokū is down below. Do you think she'd land horn-first? Hmm? Is she an idiot?"
Chōmei couldn't help but chuckle foolishly.
Indeed, as long as Kokuō wasn't foolish she'd land on all fours — but Gekko Chizan definitely wouldn't let her do that; otherwise tossing her into the sky would be pointless.
Unexpectedly, Gekko Chizan did make a move — but not toward Kokuō in the sky. He moved toward the Four-Tails Sun Gokū, who was sprawled in the pit.
He had received a message from Jinlin.
"Stay put. I still have to keep fighting."
"But where did Han and the Five-Tails go?"
Roshi slowly stood up. Though he'd taken a tumble, tailed beasts are thick-skinned and he wasn't severely hurt. Rising to his feet, he began searching for his comrades.
As his gaze swept around, he didn't see Han or the Five-Tails; instead, he spotted someone who made him furious.
It was Gekko Chizan.
"Damn Konoha ghost!"
"How dare you throw me into the sky! I'll smash you to pieces!"
A huge fist swung at Gekko Chizan. Chizan's blast kunai had already been thrown, and using Flying Thunder God he flashed to the Four-Tails' front.
That rotten-to-the-core smile bloomed again on his face.
Seeing that smile, Roshi and Sun Gokū both felt a chill spread from their hearts.
Roshi: I have a bad feeling.
Sun Gokū: Me too — and it's strong.
Flying Thunder God triggered again — and the Four-Tails' huge body vanished.
"Monkey, go dig yourself a nice hole underground!"
"Huh? What's this feeling? Shit, something's off — dodge!"
Still grinning, Gekko Chizan felt a light tremor under his feet and hurried to dodge.
"Boom!"
Another explosion erupted — this time right where Gekko Chizan had just been standing.
Flames leapt up; countless rocks scattered.
"Did you miss...?"
"I thought if I caught that gap I could blast you to bits."
"Not bad for a Konoha ghost — that reaction speed is impressive."
A cold voice slowly reached Gekko Chizan, making him frown.
Looking toward the sound, a middle-aged man was there with two squads, surrounding him.
The man still had one hand planted on the ground; it was obvious the recent explosion had come from him.
"Iwagakure's Explosion Corps?"
"Hmph. You've tried to ambush me twice. Isn't your Explosion Corps meant for breaching? Since when did you become as dirty as the Anbu?"
The middle-aged man's expression darkened, though his voice remained cold,
"We're just carrying out our mission. As long as it kills the enemy, the means don't matter."
Gekko Chizan sneered. He wasn't a saint; anyone who dared ambush him deserved payback.
"That depends on whether you actually have the skill to do it."
"By the way, your face looks a bit familiar — are you the captain of the Explosion Corps?"
"If I'm not mistaken, you're called Iwapō?"
As he spoke, he formed hand seals quickly; a chakra fluctuation spread outward from him.
The Iwagakure people immediately raised their guard; the two squads scattered to find cover and prepared to counterattack.
Iwapō shouted, "Everyone be careful. Based on intel, the Konoha ghost Gekko Chizan is not only skilled with Flying Thunder God, his ninjutsu is also potent."
But Gekko Chizan suddenly stopped making seals and instead pulled an apple from his pocket, taking a bite in front of everyone.
"Heh heh heh — fooled you. I was just thirsty and wanted an apple."
"What? You want some?"
Gekko Chizan munched and smiled, which infuriated the others.
"Take him out!"
Iwapō gave the command, but the next second Gekko Chizan disappeared again, leaving only one line behind.
"Have fun on your own. Whether you live or not, I won't promise."
"Look up."
When his words fell, everyone — Iwapō included — looked up.
A white colossal shape filled their vision.
"Damn, that's the Five-Tails."
"He threw the Five-Tails into the sky too?"
"Everyone! Retreat!"
They came fast and they were gone even faster — they had to be. If the Five-Tails fell down, they would be crushed.
Even if they weren't smashed to death, the shock of the Five-Tails' landing would bury them.
They had all witnessed how much noise the Four-Tails made when it fell.
So forget killing the enemy for now — saving their own lives was the priority.