"That makes sense!"
Jiraiya is a ninja with exceptionally strong overall abilities.
When facing Ao, Jiraiya could use all his techniques effectively.
But against Kisame, at least Jiraiya's ninjutsu is ineffective.
In other words, Kisame doesn't feel as much pressure facing Jiraiya as Ao or Fuguki does.
Additionally, Ao knew that he could only use that kind of attack once.
Jiraiya can defend himself with his giant summon beast.
But Orochimaru has yet to summon another giant beast of Manda's level.
This means that Orochimaru is very likely unable to withstand such an attack.
Swapping opponents is definitely not a loss and might even be a big gain.
Ao and Fuguki exchanged glances.
On Fuguki's side, there was also a Mist Ninja.
"Which direction is Kisame in?"
"That way!"
"Then let's retreat in that direction!"
Before Ao and Fuguki could act, other Mist Ninjas had already moved towards the direction where Kisame was located and informed him of the plan.
Both sides quickly began to act.
At first, Jiraiya and Orochimaru did not think much of it.
After all, the Mist Ninjas were at a disadvantage, so retreating was normal.
Previously, the Mist Ninjas had been fighting while retreating.
Otherwise, the battlefield wouldn't have shifted from the Land of Fire to here.
When Jiraiya and Orochimaru saw their opponents, they realized what the Mist Ninjas were planning.
"Trying to swap opponents?"
"Not so easy!"
"Do you think you can just swap if you want to?"
Jiraiya and Orochimaru exchanged glances and formulated a counterplan.
Even though Orochimaru was dissatisfied with Hiruzen and Jiraiya, he knew that the Hidden Mist Village must have a reason for wanting to swap opponents, and he was highly likely to be the losing side.
In this regard, Jiraiya and Orochimaru's thoughts were the same.
They would not let the Hidden Mist Village's plan succeed so easily.
"They've noticed!"
"We must stop them!"
"Create opportunities for Ao-sama and the others!"
Some ordinary Mist Ninjas noticed Jiraiya and Orochimaru's actions.
Without hesitation, they charged forward.
Even though they knew their strength was no match for Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
Even if it meant risking their lives, they might not be able to hold them off for long.
However, at this moment, they would rather sacrifice their own lives to stop Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
The current situation is too dire for the Hidden Mist Village.
Even with support from their village ninjas, Konoha still holds a significant advantage.
Moreover, all Konoha ninjas are determined to crush the Mist Ninjas.
The Hidden Mist Village can lose this war, but it cannot be a complete rout; it can suffer losses, but not too many.
If the Hidden Mist Village suffers a complete defeat and loses several top ninjas in this war, it would be no different from a disaster.
For a long time, the Hidden Mist Village would be unable to recover.
But as long as the Hidden Mist Village can hold out for now, Konoha will have to send the large number of suddenly deployed ninjas back to deal with the pressure from the Hidden Rock Village and Hidden Cloud Village.
That will be the opportunity for the Hidden Mist Village to counterattack.
What is lost this time can be recovered by the Hidden Mist Village in the future.
A single word makes the difference between hope and despair.
For this reason, these ordinary Mist Ninjas are willing to give up their lives.
They use their blood and lives to stop Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
They aim to prevent the Hidden Mist Village from being crushed.
One by one, Mist Ninjas fall, blood spraying in arcs, their cries of agony, shouts, and roars intertwining, red eyes following in succession, ignoring life and death.
The sea was stained red.
The air became somewhat sticky.
The Konoha Ninjas opposite were shocked.
"I have to say, the courage of these Mist Ninjas is still worthy of respect."
"But this is war."
"It's either you die or I die!"
"We Konoha must win."
"And our time is running out."
The Mist Ninjas do not want to be defeated.
Konoha Ninjas are also aware that this mission feels somewhat like a "last-ditch effort" for them.
If the expected effect is not achieved, the Hidden Mist Village will hold them back.
The Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Rock Village will undoubtedly seize this opportunity.
Afterward, they will deliver a heavy blow to Konoha.
At that time, Konoha will still have to face a counterattack from the Hidden Mist Village.
Fuguki, Ao, and Kisame's eyes all turned red.
These ordinary ninjas, though not very strong, gave everything for this war and for their village.
However, their strength was ultimately too weak.
Despite their best efforts, they only managed to hold off a little bit.
They couldn't completely block Jiraiya and Orochimaru.
Suddenly.
A massive bolt of lightning, like a spear thrown with force, appeared between Jiraiya and Orochimaru.
"Lightning Wave!"
A figure arrived.
With a raised long spear, he forcibly separated the two battlefields, cutting off Jiraiya and Orochimaru's plans.
"It's Raiga-sama!"
"That was close; Jiraiya and Orochimaru almost swapped the battlefields back."
"If Raiga-sama is here, does that mean Shimura Danzo has been completely defeated?"
"It's still Raiga-sama!"
Hearing these comments, Raiga smiled.
"At crucial moments, it's still up to me, Kurosuki Raiga."
Jiraiya sighed, his expression becoming serious.
"They succeeded."
He then looked ahead at Kisame and the Sword of Wisdom.
"A Zanpakuto that absorbs all Ninjutsu…"
"That's indeed a troublesome ability."
"Compared to Ao and Fuguki, Kisame does have a certain level of restraint against me."
But Jiraiya did not believe he would lose.
Aside from Ninjutsu, he was also not inferior in Taijutsu and Genjutsu.
Orochimaru could win by using Summoning Jutsu to besiege Kisame, and Jiraiya could do the same.
It wouldn't be easy for Kisame to block the attacks of the toad summons.
However, Jiraiya's goal wasn't just to avoid losing.
He needed a decisive victory.
A minor victory wouldn't suffice.
But right now, Jiraiya couldn't think of any way to achieve a major victory.
"If only I had accumulated Senjutsu Chakra earlier, it might have been possible."
"But now, in a short period of time, it's very difficult."
"There really isn't much time left."
Jiraiya kept looking back.
"It was only due to Kurosuki Raiga's sudden intervention that Orochimaru and I were separated."
"Danzo-san couldn't even hold back Kurosuki Raiga… And he even wanted to compete with Sarutobi-sensei for the position of Hokage. Where did he get the courage?"
"If Danzo-san were Hokage, Konoha would probably have collapsed by now."
Kisame looked at Jiraiya and the toad summons opposite him and took a deep breath.
"Kid, what are you afraid of?"
Dragon Slayer reassured Kisame.
"I'm here; there's no need to worry."
"That old white-haired man can't do anything to us."
Jiraiya's eye twitched.
"Old white-haired man?"
"I heard before that the Sword of Wisdom had a foul mouth, and it seems it's true."
At that moment, an even louder voice, which almost attracted the attention of everyone present, spoke. Not only was the volume high, but the content was also quite embarrassing.
Ao raised the Sword of the Darkness Flame and glanced at Orochimaru.
"Explode, reality, shatter, spirit, with my flames, destroy everything!"
Orochimaru: "???"
As the words fell.
"Boom!"
A ball of flames ignited on the sword, alternating between white and red, with parts turning golden, and it gathered at the tip of the sword, forming a fireball.
The fireball expanded instantly.
A fire python emerged.
As it emerged, its appearance changed.
With four limbs, five claws.
Long horns, and a mane.
An astonishing aura surrounded the fire dragon.
The air around it deformed and twisted.
"Go!"
Ao pointed at Orochimaru.
Suddenly, the fire dragon surged forward.
It seemed to carry immense force.
Orochimaru's pupils contracted as he quickly performed hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu, Triple Rashomon!"
Three massive gates appeared out of nowhere, blocking Orochimaru's path.
The fire dragon crashed into them.
"Boom!"
The first gate shattered instantly.
The second gate held for a moment.
The third gate barely held for a breath.
Soon, all three gates were shattered.
The fire dragon reached Orochimaru.
"Summoning Jutsu, Great Serpent!"
With Manda unable to be summoned, Orochimaru could only summon an ordinary giant snake.
But if even Bunta found the flames hard to withstand, how could an ordinary giant snake possibly block them?
Accompanied by a sharp scream, the giant snake turned into white smoke and vanished.
"Boom!"
Orochimaru was struck and sent flying.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
It wasn't until after a hundred meters that he fell to the ground.
But he didn't stop.
Instead, he continued to roll, bounce, fall, and bounce again…
By the time he stopped, Orochimaru was in a terrible state, his body covered in blood, with most of him burned.
"What immense power!"
"Is Ao's attack really this strong?"
"Jiraiya-sama didn't look this disheveled before."
"Orochimaru-sama is too weak."
"Danzo-sama as well."
"Only Jiraiya-sama is reliable."
Hearing such remarks, Orochimaru, already in a bad mood, became even more upset.
Orochimaru glared in Ao's direction with a dark expression.
"Sword of the Darkness Flame!"
"After breaking through Triple Rashomon and my Summoning giant snake, there's still such powerful impact."
"This flame is extraordinary."
"But… your opponent is me."
Orochimaru's situation looked dire to others.
But in reality, Orochimaru didn't care much.
Orochimaru's approach was different from Jiraiya's.
Orochimaru excelled in survival and recovery.
Though the injuries looked severe, as long as they weren't fatal, they didn't pose a real threat to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru could heal his wounds at a fast pace.
If he couldn't recover completely, he could always use the Giant Serpent Substitution Jutsu.
A trace of resentment appeared in Orochimaru's eyes.
Having lost the position of Hokage and being "assigned" to the front lines, Orochimaru had originally gained an absolute advantage against Kisame. However, the sudden switch of opponents caught him off guard.
Orochimaru suffered a significant setback.
This made Orochimaru very angry.
He was eager to regain control of the situation.
Additionally, Orochimaru had developed a strong interest in the Sword of the Darkness Flame that Ao held.
"Ao!"
"Since you've injured me to this extent, I'll repay you by taking your life and your Zanpakuto."
Orochimaru advanced step by step.
His injuries were visibly healing at a rapid pace.
He had indeed been seriously injured.
But Orochimaru had already noticed that Ao's condition was not good; the attack just now was likely something he couldn't use again.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru could recover.
In his mind, Orochimaru thought of a hundred ways to kill Ao.
At that moment.
A Konoha Ninja approached the battlefield at high speed.
Their gaze quickly swept across the battlefield.
Orochimaru, heavily injured, was walking back step by step, preparing to take revenge on Ao.
Shimura Danzo, who was defeated."
Kakashi, who was engaged in a fierce battle with Hoshigaki Ryukame.
And Jiraiya, flanking Kisame with the toad summons
Overall, Hidden Mist Village was still at a disadvantage.
Even though Hidden Mist Village had dispatched many Ninja for support.
Ao, Hoshigaki Ryukame, Terumi Mei…
However, the previous sudden attack by Konoha had caused significant losses to the Mist forces.
Additionally, in terms of top-tier Ninjas, Hidden Mist Village was indeed lacking.
Even with the exchange of opponents.
Jiraiya, facing Kisame, refrained from using Ninjutsu due to the fear of the Sword of Wisdom, but Jiraiya's Taijutsu and the toad summons' tool attacks were still formidable.
Kisame's advantage was that he had no restrictions on using Ninjutsu.
However, the massive size of the toad summon was causing significant trouble for him.
Each strike was astonishingly powerful.
Kisame dared not resist head-on.
To use Water Release techniques that could pose a substantial threat to the toad summon required a considerable amount of Chakra.
Kisame had already expended a lot of Chakra in his previous battle with Orochimaru.
The Sword of Wisdom had not yet absorbed enough Chakra.
Orochimaru had suffered a major setback just now, but it was not fatal to him.
...
Compared to before, the overall situation for Hidden Mist Village had indeed improved significantly.
Ao had a hard time achieving the same results against Jiraiya as he did against Orochimaru.
Kisame was still at a disadvantage, but Jiraiya was not performing as strongly against Kisame as he did against Ao and Fuguki.
Moreover, Fuguki had been freed.
Water Release abilities were countered by Jiraiya, but they were effective against others.
Even against Orochimaru.
The strategy of exchanging opponents succeeded and yielded good results.
The strategy of reducing Jiraiya's effectiveness, enhancing Ao's performance, and freeing Fuguki had worked.
If the Mist forces were previously on the brink of collapse, they had now managed to stabilize their disadvantage.
For Hidden Mist Village, that was enough.
Time was on Hidden Mist Village's side.
Konoha could not keep all its main force Ninjas constantly focused on fighting the Mist Ninjas.
Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Rock Village would pose even greater threats.
"There really isn't much time left!"
"Danzo-san is unreliable!"
"Orochimaru doesn't seem to be doing well either."
"It's up to me to find a breakthrough."
"But my Chakra is also running low."
Jiraiya gritted his teeth.
"It won't do, but it has to be done."
Jiraiya formed hand signs again.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Gamagoro!"
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