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Chapter 74: Facing the Demigod—Black Flash and the Legendary Sannin
"He's actually coming toward us? Could this be misdirection?"
"Did Tsunade and that kid get exposed? They're still not back—what if something happened?!"
At Fire Country's border base command center, Orochimaru and the others received the news immediately.
Since the year began, Hanzo of the Salamander had been the shinobi world's most watched figure. His every move drew attention not just from the three surrounding great nations, but likely even distant Lightning Country and Water Country—separated by ocean—had deployed extensive intelligence networks monitoring this region.
Even burrowing underground couldn't evade the reconnaissance squads and ANBU from various nations, much less such conspicuous behavior.
Orochimaru and Danzo Shimura's first reaction mirrored Chiyo and Onoki's—assuming Hanzo was creating a diversion.
After all, Earth Country had attacked and slaughtered his people. How could he not seek revenge there, instead provoking the shinobi world's strongest nation and village?
Jiraiya's concern focused on Tsunade and Yoru's safety.
Seeing his anxious expression, Orochimaru's brow furrowed slightly as he offered reassurance. "Don't panic. At worst, they've been exposed. If something truly happened to them, Hanzo wouldn't be the one coming."
"They haven't returned yet because something's delayed them."
Knowing what trump cards Yoru kept hidden, Orochimaru remained the calmest person present.
Even someone as formidable as Tokiya the Phantom Rain had died to the Dimensional Slash's first-strike advantage.
Within all of Amegakure, only Hanzo of the Salamander could pressure Yoru.
And Yoru—as cautiously paranoid as Hanzo himself—would never arrogantly challenge the shinobi world's Demigod.
If Hanzo truly cornered him, Yoru would choose mutual destruction over simple death.
Since Hanzo remained unharmed and traveling here, they must be safe.
Jiraiya found Orochimaru's logic sound and relaxed slightly.
"Whether they're exposed or not, whether something happened, whether this is misdirection—we need defensive preparations." Danzo's voice turned cold. "My recommendation mirrors Sunagakure's tactics against Hanzo. Completely disperse combat units, leaving only sensory teams, barrier teams, and Wind Release specialists capable of dispersing poison clouds. One or two commanders guard the border base."
"If Hanzo truly declares war, we abandon the base once protective equipment fails and fall back to defend the nearest towns."
"If he dares penetrate deeper, we counterattack Rain Country and Amegakure directly."
This was Sunagakure's developed strategy—currently the best response method.
Orochimaru and the others couldn't devise anything better.
"You take the combat units and leave. I'll guard the base alone." Jiraiya volunteered.
"I'll stay with you."
Orochimaru couldn't abandon a comrade—though he'd never admit he was somewhat worried about Jiraiya.
"No, you can't stay." Jiraiya suddenly turned firm, providing his reasoning. "Like you said—if something delayed Tsunade and that kid, when they return, they'll teleport to your location like before."
"If Hanzo truly targets us and we're fighting him when Tsunade and the kid suddenly teleport back—what then?"
"That's simple."
Orochimaru retrieved the Flying Thunder God kunai from his equipment pouch, addressing Hatake Sakumo. "Sakumo-senpai, please exchange kunai with me."
Hatake Sakumo didn't agree, instead volunteering himself. "How about I stay? My Lightning Release combined with Wind Release teams makes poisoning me difficult for Hanzo."
"No, neither you nor Danzo-sama are suitable for guarding the base. You both have more important tasks." Orochimaru shook his head, his gaze turning profound. "If we truly fight Hanzo, Earth Country and Wind Country might exploit the opportunity to attack us."
"Normally, the base serves as command headquarters allowing rapid combat unit response."
"With combat and support units now forcibly dispersed, this creates an excellent opportunity for them. If Onoki's true target is us, he absolutely won't miss this chance."
"Wind Country has spent tremendous additional military funds responding to Hanzo—they definitely won't let this go. They've been passively defending because both we and Earth Country hadn't entered the conflict, giving them no openings."
"If Hanzo and Earth Country entangle us, will Wind Country choose revenge on Rain Country or take a bite out of us during the chaos?"
Hatake Sakumo and Danzo's expressions turned grave at Orochimaru's analysis.
"Understood."
Hatake Sakumo hesitated no longer, retrieving his Flying Thunder God kunai to exchange with Orochimaru while volunteering: "I'll take squads specializing in taijutsu and kenjutsu toward River Country's buffer zone."
"I'll take squads specializing in sensory techniques and Lightning Release toward Grass Country." Danzo echoed the arrangement.
"Then let's move. Leave reporting to me and Jiraiya."
In this moment, Orochimaru resembled the command center's supreme commander.
Watching him, Danzo saw not just Hiruzen Sarutobi's reflection, but even Tobirama-sensei's shadow.
Indeed... Compared to Hatake Sakumo, Orochimaru was his greatest competitor.
Danzo's wariness of him intensified several degrees.
An even darker thought emerged in Danzo's mind.
If something truly happened to Tsunade and Yoru, how wonderful that would be.
He could blame everything on Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru.
After the war ended, he'd have grounds to impeach this master-disciple pair and force Hiruzen to step down.
Without Orochimaru as his greatest rival, only Hatake Sakumo could compete for the Hokage position—and Danzo possessed more than one method to easily defeat that competitor.
Naturally, no one knew Danzo's thoughts.
As orders transmitted, the border base's combat units mobilized immediately, rapidly splitting into three groups.
One followed Hatake Sakumo, quietly moving toward River Country's direction.
One followed Danzo Shimura, moving toward Grass Country's direction.
The final group lurked at the Rain Country-Fire Country border, awaiting commands to either attack enemy nations or retreat for support.
The vast border base now held only two elite jonin—Orochimaru and Jiraiya—plus several sensory and barrier teams, along with Wind Release teams providing support.
Since they wouldn't fight directly, sensory and barrier team members wore not just gas masks but full protective suits.
Only this provided optimal defense against the salamander's deadly poison gas attacks.
Wind Release teams who needed to perform jutsu wore only gas masks and goggles.
This was Hanzo of the Salamander's strategic deterrence.
Without antidotes, human wave tactics couldn't work against him—just throwing lives away.
Even with antidotes, they only bought five minutes. If unable to repel or kill Hanzo during that time, once the salamander refilled its poison, more antidotes were needed.
To buy more time required not just antidotes but gas masks, goggles, even protective suits—all representing massive additional expenditures.
Fighting Hanzo meant burning money.
Prolonged warfare meant draining national power.
This was why no one in the shinobi world dared provoke Hanzo of the Salamander, earning him the title of Demigod.
The previous individual with the strongest strategic deterrence who could fight entire nations—or even united nations—was called the God of Shinobi... the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.
---
Departing from Amegakure, Hanzo took several hours to reach Fire Country's western border.
As one of the shinobi world's foremost Body Flicker specialists, Hanzo at full speed could enter Fire Country from Rain Country in just over an hour.
The delay occurred because he remained only human—a kunai to vital points would kill him, as would explosive tags.
Reconnaissance squads and ANBU from various nations maintained constant surveillance on Amegakure in rotating shifts. Though unable to confirm whether Hanzo was the real body, both Water Body Flicker merging with rain and underground burrowing would be detected.
Shadow Clone chakra couldn't maintain itself for extended periods.
After confirming Hanzo's real body, Orochimaru naturally wouldn't let him waltz into the border base like returning home.
Combat units couldn't engage him but could deploy various traps along his inevitable path.
The Byakugan's far-sight and x-ray vision provided maximum advantage.
Unlike Sunagakure lacking powerful sensory clans, Konoha's pre-positioned traps based on predicted routes created considerable trouble for Hanzo, consuming some chakra.
However, with military rations pills available, such consumption recovered during travel—merely wasting time.
Initially triggering test traps, Hanzo didn't use standard shinobi hand signals to explain his intentions or show goodwill to reconnaissance squads and ANBU monitoring from kilometers away or via summoning beasts and animals in the sky.
This clearly demonstrated hostile intent—he could be labeled an enemy!
Subsequent traps encountered and triggered multiplied continuously.
When night fell, Hanzo finally reached Fire Country's border outskirts—still technically Rain Country territory, a rocky region where Fire Country's characteristic forests began ahead.
The landscape resembled two different worlds with starkly different geography.
Rain Country's side showed barren rocky terrain full of uneven ground, with light rain falling from clouds and rain curtains obscuring the starry sky.
Fire Country's opposite side displayed dense forests, a star-studded night sky, and a high-hanging full moon.
Standing atop a boulder resembling ornamental rocks, Hanzo could see across the vast distance to a structure rising from the forest like a central tower.
That was Fire Country's western border base.
The upcoming forest traversal represented the final obstacle.
Traps there would undoubtedly multiply countless times over previous ones. His every move might be captured by invisible sensory barriers.
To Hanzo, this posed no real concern.
His figure vanished from the rocky peak, flying toward the forest.
BOOM—
By pure coincidence, Hanzo triggered another explosive tag trap. A several-meter-high mushroom cloud rose, projectiles shooting from within.
Some distance from the explosion, a puddle's water suddenly defied gravity, rising and coalescing into Hanzo's form.
Water Body Flicker Technique!
This was one of Hanzo's signature skills and a fundamental derivative technique all Amegakure shinobi must master.
This technique allowed the user to instantly liquify and scatter when attacked, then reconstitute at another water source, combining instant movement with escape—dual functionality.
In Rain Country with its year-round rainy season, this was a divine technique.
This was also why Hanzo deployed Exploding Flame Formations throughout Rain Country.
Rain shinobi skilled in Water Body Flicker only needed vigilance to avoid explosive tag traps entirely.
Such traps merely consumed their chakra.
Konoha shinobi clearly understood this, deploying relatively few explosive tags in traps—primarily relying on projectiles.
Unfortunately, Hanzo's Body Flicker speed was too fast, escaping the projectiles' range before tags detonated.
After reconstituting, Hanzo continued rushing toward the border base.
Hiss, hiss...
Passing a boulder, Hanzo's ears suddenly caught the sound of snakes hissing.
Without looking toward the sound's source, Hanzo instinctively drew his blade, coating it with nature transformation before slashing wildly in that direction.
Slash, slash, slash... CLANG!
Fabric-tearing sounds erupted first, then metallic collision echoed across the rocky terrain.
Over a dozen serpents emerged from within the boulder, attempting to bite and constrict Hanzo, only to be cut down.
Then a figure emerged from the rock, his other hand throwing a wind blade that Hanzo's blade also deflected.
The wind blade's transformed gust dispersed the rain curtain, its contained sharp qi resembling countless invisible blades, forcing both combatants to leap backward through the air, landing atop several-meter-high boulders while sizing each other up.
Observing Orochimaru's gas mask and goggles, Hanzo couldn't help but mock: "Earth Release and Underground Fish Projection used so excellently—if I didn't know better, I'd think you were Onoki's student."
"Effectiveness is what matters. After all, even someone as strong as you still uses poison and explosive tags, right?" Orochimaru smiled dismissively.
"Just you alone?"
Hanzo asked knowingly, his hand already forming seals within his sleeve.
"There's also yours truly! Ninja Art: Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
Unlike Orochimaru's silent assassination, this shout carried flamboyant, honorable spirit.
Countless white strands erupted from the ground like steel spikes, their penetrating force instantly shattering the boulder beneath Hanzo's feet, rising like a white net to ensnare him from below.
Hanzo leaped into the air again, rapidly forming seals—not for Summoning Technique to call his partner, but to deploy Water Release.
The white-haired man below was unleashing a pre-charged technique.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
"Water Release: Water Pillar!"
Ground-level Jiraiya and airborne Hanzo simultaneously spewed massive fireballs and water spheres from their mouths like falling meteors.
The collision produced a tremendous explosion, generating vast high-temperature steam that engulfed the surrounding white strands.
Even B-rank techniques containing powerful nature transformation—water and fire colliding to create high-temperature shockwaves—couldn't destroy those steel-hard strands.
The spreading steam fog instead provided cover for these strands, which fired toward Hanzo like ten thousand arrows.
Having failed to use Water Body Flicker to escape in time, now airborne without flight capability, Hanzo had used his one casting opportunity not to summon the salamander but to clash with the Flame Bullet.
He couldn't evade!
Jiraiya's face involuntarily revealed a smile, as if already seeing the shinobi world's Demigod killed or captured.
Stab!
The sound of a blade piercing flesh emerged from the steam.
Before Jiraiya's smile could widen, a balloon-popping sound followed immediately.
Before the steam fog's expansion and envelopment, a figure had already flown clear.
Hanzo, using a Shadow Clone to escape the predicament.
Upon landing, Hanzo immediately sensed something wrong.
His feet sank into a swamp.
The surrounding ground had transformed almost instantaneously from hard rocky terrain into marshland.
Everywhere—even underground—had turned to swamp.
"ROAR..."
A soul-shaking roar erupted as an earth dragon emerged from the swamp, its massive jaws gaping to swallow Hanzo whole.
However, the reason Hanzo was called the shinobi world's Demigod wasn't just his strategic deterrence being the era's strongest—his ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu all reached the shinobi world's pinnacle.
Otherwise, the one called the shinobi world's Demigod would be the salamander, not Hanzo himself.
This combination technique came quickly, but Hanzo's reaction was faster.
Still one-handed seals, and only four seals, before Hanzo called out a technique name.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
Rain curtains and atmospheric moisture all converged, forming faster than the earth dragon—coalescing into a water dragon even larger, which collided with its counterpart.
Seizing this opportunity, Hanzo used Water Body Flicker to easily escape.
"Damn it! I finally coordinated tactics with you and it gets resolved so easily!"
"Normal. If we'd succeeded, Sunagakure wouldn't be so passive."
When Hanzo's figure landed atop another boulder, the standoff tableau repeated itself.
Watching Orochimaru and Jiraiya both wearing gas masks and goggles, Hanzo's eyes flashed with appreciation and regret.
Such excellent young shinobi—Amegakure might not produce one in ten years.
Yet the Five Great Villages could develop one, even several, every few years.
This was the gap between small and great nations!
If he had such excellent successors, he wouldn't be fighting alone, unable to share the salamander's summoning scroll.
Remembering his declaration of war's purpose, Hanzo quickly collected his thoughts.
He chose to declare war on great nations precisely to break the situation where small nations could only face oppression without talent surges.
So Hanzo spoke proactively. "Just you two? Where's Tsunade-hime and that Flying Thunder God user?"
Orochimaru and Jiraiya's hearts tensed slightly.
So they were exposed after all.
Simultaneously, they felt relief.
Hanzo asking this meant they'd escaped successfully. Their delayed return truly was due to circumstances.
The eloquent Orochimaru deliberately ignored Hanzo's question, instead advising: "Hanzo-dono, I don't know what you're talking about. Konoha has no intention of entering this war. This obstruction is purely defensive—please don't cross the border."
"Hmph, doing but not admitting?" Hanzo's cold laugh turned provocative. "I've crossed. What will you do about it?"
"Then we'll just have to—"
Orochimaru secretly signaled retreat to Jiraiya, about to say the final words "run away."
The next second, two figures suddenly materialized from thin air, appearing without warning beside Orochimaru.
Seeing these two, Orochimaru's eyes lit up. He instantly abandoned the original plan, addressing Hanzo: "Experience the power of the shinobi world's Demigod!"
Jiraiya's face filled with joy. "Tsunade! Kid! Thank god you're both alright!"
This statement lit a powder keg. Tsunade shouted back loudly: "Obviously! Who do you think I am? How could something happen to me?!"
Jiraiya didn't understand why Tsunade was so temperamental, instantly stunned by the rebuke.
Looking carefully revealed Tsunade also wore a gas mask and goggles.
Yoru wore the same.
"Orochimaru-sensei, Jiraiya-sama, here are antidotes." Yoru retrieved two vials, handing them to Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
Orochimaru's eyes brightened again. "You succeeded?"
"Don't know—we stopped by Sakumo-senpai's location first. Haven't checked yet." Tsunade replied.
Orochimaru glanced at Yoru. A single eye contact conveyed understanding about the delay.
CRACK!
Without giving them time to continue conversing, the ground suddenly fractured.
Sensing something, the Legendary Sannin's expressions changed drastically, all leaping into the air and scattering.
Yoru did the same.
"ROAR..."
A massive salamander's head emerged from the ground, jaws releasing vast purple poison gas.
The gas spread at terrifying speed. Even the four airborne shinobi, much less if they'd used Body Flicker on the ground, couldn't evade.
This poison fog wasn't targeting them specifically but spreading in all directions from this position as the center.
While forming seals, Orochimaru looked toward Yoru, who looked back.
Nearly a year together had taught not just Yoru and Kushina eye contact communication, but also Orochimaru and Yoru as master and disciple.
Seeing Orochimaru's first seal representing its attribute, Yoru immediately understood and nodded.
His figure vanished without warning from midair, appearing successively beside Tsunade and Jiraiya, teleporting both to Orochimaru's side via Flying Thunder God.
At that moment, Orochimaru had just completed his seals, exhaling an air current from his mouth.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
Unlike the Great Breakthrough that required massive chakra consumption to enhance wind force, this air current contained powerful nature transformation—barely expanding before possessing natural disaster-level destructive power, instantly dispersing the encroaching poison fog.
Invisible blades hidden in the gale even tore the ground and severed boulders in the wind's path.
Orochimaru's target wasn't the poison fog but the salamander itself.
Naturally, the salamander that troubled all nations—considered even harder to handle than tailed beasts and jinchuriki—couldn't be harmed by such techniques.
Cautious like its partner, the salamander heard the wind and immediately burrowed to escape.
CLANG!
Before landing, the Legendary Sannin's ears caught metallic collision sounds.
Just like Orochimaru and Jiraiya's earlier coordination, while their attention focused on the poison fog and salamander—
The rainwater behind the four suddenly coalesced into Hanzo's form, blade slashing forth.
Had the poison fog engulfed them, this strike would have been extremely lethal—easily achieving first-strike kills like Flying Thunder God.
This was Hanzo's favorite assassination technique. Tsunade had fallen to it.
Even having suffered once before, Tsunade still couldn't react in time.
Orochimaru, whose attention was on the salamander, was the same.
Only Yoru with his powerful neural reaction speed and Jiraiya responded.
The latter was about to use Needle Jizo for protection when he saw Yoru wielding something, shooting a golden beam that blocked Hanzo's slash.
Hearing the weapon collision, Tsunade finally reacted, using Yoru's arms for leverage to kick toward Hanzo midair.
"Don't!"
Yoru and Jiraiya seemed to notice something, shouting in unison.
The former directly embraced Tsunade and teleported away.
The latter deployed Needle Jizo, encasing himself and Orochimaru.
BOOM—a massive explosion. The assassination-failed Hanzo had self-destructed on the spot, transforming into tremendous firelight.
A Shadow Clone explosion!
Powerful shockwaves blasted the white hedgehog to the ground, unable to penetrate the defense—showing how hard Jiraiya's hair truly was.
After landing, the hedgehog reverted to normal. Yoru and Tsunade materialized from thin air.
Tsunade's face had paled slightly. Orochimaru calmly reassured: "Don't blame yourself. Even Byakugan can't distinguish Shadow Clone authenticity. Not just you—even I didn't react in time."
"Right, that guy's the shinobi world's foremost assassin." Jiraiya echoed. "Without you and the kid arriving, me and Orochimaru planned to just run."
Tsunade rolled her eyes. "I'm not as fragile as you think. Just annoyed I fell for the same trick twice—"
Her tone suddenly paused. Her expression turned vicious, warning Orochimaru and Jiraiya: "I said nothing just now. You heard nothing!"
Orochimaru turned his head away. Jiraiya looked enlightened, then under Tsunade's murderous gaze, laughed awkwardly while nodding repeatedly.
Yoru, standing silently nearby maintaining seal positions, suddenly spoke: "Here it comes again!"
The Legendary Sannin's expressions changed.
Orochimaru said: "Use Shadow Clone Technique."
The three instantly understood, creating several Shadow Clones each, real bodies mixing among them to scatter.
While playing hide-and-seek with Hanzo, they discussed tactics.
Orochimaru asked: "Yoru, how's your chakra consumption?"
"Manageable. Whatever plan you have, Orochimaru-sensei, just say it." Yoru's smile radiated confidence.
Since Space-Time chakra possessed inherent higher-dimensional screening, even Mito Uzumaki's Mind's Eye of the Kagura level could barely detect it.
Currently, only Katsuyu the Slug Sage—whose divided bodies were also main bodies—could instantly sense Yoru's anomaly.
Without Mito Uzumaki or the Three Great Sage Regions' sages' sensory level, no one could detect the Space-Time chakra within Yoru.
Thus neither the Legendary Sannin nor Hanzo could discover that beneath Yoru's clothing at his chest, a black tattoo had appeared.
Within his body, the blue energy that originally dominated had been overtaken by black energy.
Yoru had released... the Space-Time Yin Seal.
Orochimaru suddenly posed a question that shocked Jiraiya and Tsunade: "If we provide cover, do you have confidence in killing Hanzo or that salamander?"
Jiraiya's eyes widened in disbelief.
If not knowing Orochimaru never boasted or acted without certainty, he'd truly suspect his friend's brain was damaged.
Sunagakure—one of the Five Great Villages—and their own Konoha's combat units all had to avoid Hanzo.
The three elite jonin together nearly died to Hanzo's tricks, yet Orochimaru asked a genin if he could kill Hanzo or his summoning beast?
Was Flying Thunder God that powerful?
Jiraiya suddenly thought of Minato Namikaze. His student's Body Flicker speed was similarly impressive, neural reaction speed even more extraordinary—sometimes even Jiraiya couldn't keep up.
Did that talent qualify for learning Flying Thunder God?
Maybe after the war ended, he should approach Sarutobi-sensei to exchange for the technique and let Minato try?
After her shock passed, Tsunade scrutinized the master-disciple pair with meaningful eyes, her curiosity about Yoru surging again.
She remembered Katsuyu's evaluation.
"A new shinobi world miracle"—what kind of ability deserved being called a "miracle"?
"New"... then who was the previous shinobi world miracle?
Besides her grandfather, Tsunade couldn't think of anyone more suitable for that evaluation.
And her grandfather possessed the Wood Release that pacified the chaotic era.
Could Yoru's hidden ability be Wood Release?
But his chakra reserves, even with Wood Release, couldn't unleash significant power.
He wasn't Uchiha either.
Aside from Madara Uchiha's Sharingan, what ability in the shinobi world could rival Wood Release?
What power would give a genin confidence in killing an existence at the shinobi world's pinnacle?
Moreover, from Orochimaru's demeanor, he seemed to know Yoru's hidden ability.
If circumstances permitted, Tsunade truly wanted to interrupt this conversation and dig out Yoru's greatest secret.
No one knew Jiraiya and Tsunade's thoughts.
Yoru sensed the Space-Time chakra within, giving an uncertain response: "Don't know, but worth trying."
"Good, let's try." Orochimaru didn't pressure Yoru, speaking quietly: "We'll provide cover. Find opportunities to strike. If you lack confidence in killing them, find chances to leave Flying Thunder God seals on the salamander."
"Understood." Yoru nodded.
The four exchanged glances, then the Legendary Sannin simultaneously dispersed into smoke.
So did their Shadow Clones scattered elsewhere.
After receiving this feedback, their real bodies' eyes sharpened, no longer fleeing.
"Summoning Technique!"
The Legendary Sannin formed seals together, summoning the not-yet-complete Manda, Gamabunta, and a divided Katsuyu.
Yoru transmitted the Sword of Thunder God to Orochimaru, then retrieved his chakra blade, using Earth Body Flicker to dive underground before using intangibility to hide his presence.
---
Hanzo's attention wasn't on the Legendary Sannin but constantly tracking Yoru, the Flying Thunder God user.
When he sensed Yoru's chakra diving underground then vanishing, alarm bells rang in his mind.
Even his sensory abilities couldn't detect this—clearly not ordinary Earth Body Flicker, nor a combination of Earth Body Flicker and Underground Fish Projection.
This brat possessed not just Flying Thunder God but an even more formidable Body Flicker and stealth technique derivative.
Cautious by nature, Hanzo instinctively wanted to retreat.
This brief exchange sufficed.
Yoru had used Flying Thunder God multiple times. Various nations' reconnaissance squads and ANBU had certainly collected this intelligence through special means.
Just returning and publicizing that Yoru was a Flying Thunder God user would rapidly spread the news throughout the shinobi world.
But retreating now meant not learning about that ability.
If this was a powerful capability, once Konoha also developed the antidote formula, he might become passive.
Retreat or continue fighting?
Hanzo's mind raced, quickly deciding.
"Partner, I'm counting on you."
Hanzo addressed the salamander beneath his feet.
The salamander, almost telepathically connected with Hanzo, voiced its agreement with a salamander's cry.
Immediately, the salamander charged the three opposing giant beasts.
The three beasts instantly lost their entrance momentum.
"You bastard Jiraiya, are you trying to kill me?!" Gamabunta drew his short blade while cursing. "That's a salamander! You want me fighting that poisonous thing?!"
"Don't toads have poison too? You afraid of poison?" Jiraiya's expression showed confusion.
"That's ordinary poison?!" Gamabunta shouted. "Ask that stinking snake beside us if he's scared!"
"Hmph, I'm no waste toad." Manda sneered mockingly. "Mere salamander poison—sleep it off."
"Tsunade-sama, I'm so glad you're safe." Katsuyu said. "But this divided body can't last long."
"No problem, just help us stall the salamander briefly."
Orochimaru instructed: "Manda, find a way to drive it underground."
"I can help, but I want compensation afterward." Manda stated his terms. "Raw meat—preferably live animals."
"Agreed." Orochimaru accepted readily.
At that moment, the salamander had already charged forward, jaws releasing a massive poison cloud engulfing itself and the three giant beasts.
Hanzo and the Legendary Sannin were naturally included.
Unable to evade this time, the Legendary Sannin had no intention of trying.
Wearing gas masks and goggles with all five senses blocked, the salamander poison couldn't penetrate their bodies so easily.
Thus four humans and four beasts erupted into chaotic combat.
The giant beasts' movement alone shook the earth.
When four colossal creatures fought, the land instantly became devastated.
Though containing "fish" in its name, the salamander was genuinely a four-legged beast with shocking speed and personality matching Hanzo—cautious and careful.
After releasing poison fog, it didn't foolishly engage in close combat—after all, that toad carried a blade.
Opening jaws capable of swallowing a same-sized giant beast whole, it continuously devoured boulders, chewing and spitting them like a barrage toward the three beasts.
The three beasts somehow temporarily resisted the salamander poison.
Katsuyu spewed sulfuric acid-like mucus, blocking portions of the barrage.
Manda's tail sweep, steel-like, easily shattered those stones.
Gamabunta drew his blade and leaped, dodging attacks while simultaneously attacking the salamander.
Lightning-fast Manda followed. Katsuyu moved unhurriedly.
Their contractors had somehow descended from atop heads, fighting on poison fog-filled ground.
Taijutsu specialist Tsunade charged forward, each punch and kick tremendously powerful but with obvious telegraphing.
Body Flicker specialist Hanzo easily dodged every time.
Like how Hatake Sakumo was puppetry's nemesis and nightmare, Hanzo-type fighters were Tsunade's least desired opponents.
In one-on-one combat, Tsunade might already be injured.
But with Jiraiya and Orochimaru providing support, Tsunade didn't need strategy—just blind aggression.
The Senju clan's massive chakra reserves made every punch and kick shatter earth and raise tremendous gusts dispersing surrounding poison fog.
Whenever Hanzo used Body Flicker to evade and prepare side or rear attacks, Orochimaru's Hidden Shadow Snake Hands and Jiraiya's hair would strike.
When distance opened, both instantly deployed long-range techniques—even without communication, creating composite jutsu that forced Hanzo to either use Body Flicker to evade or counter with techniques.
This level of taijutsu, this level of ninjutsu, this level of summoning beasts and coordination—
Hanzo saw the Ino-Shika-Cho trio's reflection in them.
Those three clans also used secret technique coordination to create despair for same-level opponents, even enabling challenging stronger enemies without being casually dismissed.
These three before him were even more excellent than the secret technique-dependent Ino-Shika-Cho.
Remembering that beyond these three, Konoha also had the earlier-renowned White Fang Hatake Sakumo, plus that junior who mastered Flying Thunder God, Hanzo's heart suddenly filled with jealous fury.
Last generation, this generation, and the next... Konoha had banner-carriers for decades ahead!
Amegakure only had him—this old man who'd carried the banner for decades.
When he aged further and his deterrence weakened, what would Rain Country—junction of three great nations—do?
Thinking this, Hanzo's gaze toward the Legendary Sannin no longer held appreciation for juniors but boiling killing intent.
"Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!"
Hanzo formed one-handed seals, deploying Kirigakure's extremely proficient D-rank Water Release, creating vast chakra-infused fog that even wind couldn't disperse.
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