Hanzō concealed himself in the depths of the lake, merging seamlessly with the water.
Gazing at the massive crater created by Nagato's repulsive force, Hanzō let out an irritated bubble in the water. He patted the massive head of the salamander beside him, feeling the urge to escape.
"Ibusu, that red-haired kid is truly a troublesome opponent. The jutsu he uses are unlike anything I've ever seen before. Why is it that even after I've hidden myself away in these remote mountains, people are still seeking me out?"
"It seems my title as the 'Demi-God' hasn't been forgotten by the shinobi world just yet. Hah..."
Ibusu gave Hanzō a sideways glance, its massive head rubbing against him like a giant cat.
"Let's wait and see," Hanzō muttered. "These two didn't come looking for me by chance. They have an objective, and I don't know who's supporting them from behind. If the opportunity arises, I should eliminate them… I don't want my peaceful life disturbed."
A flicker of cold light passed through Hanzō's eyes as he moved towards the shore.
This place of seclusion had been chosen with great care. Nestled deep within the mountains, it was nearly impossible for outsiders to find. The scenery was beautiful, making it the perfect retirement sanctuary.
As a veteran shinobi and former leader who had fought for most of his life, Hanzō was tired.
During the Second Great Shinobi War, Minato's diversionary tactic had actually worked. Abandoning his confrontation with Orochimaru to return to Amegakure, Hanzō had walked straight into a devastating explosion—one so cataclysmic it could only be described as apocalyptic.
But Hanzō was still Hanzō. With his wealth of combat experience, he acted on instinct—summoning his salamander, which swallowed him whole, shielding him just enough to survive.
His body might have escaped death, but his spirit did not.
Crawling out of his salamander's belly, Hanzō bore witness to the total annihilation of the village he had devoted his life to. Decades of blood and sweat were reduced to nothing but ashes. In that moment, his spirit shattered.
He had thought about revenge. But the mere thought of Fuma, with his body immune to all poisons and as unyielding as iron, made him realize there was no conceivable way to kill that monstrous shinobi.
And Hanzō understood well—war was a game of victors and vanquished. Even if he somehow succeeded in taking revenge, it would only be the pitiful wailing of a defeated man. He would never accomplish anything significant again.
So, he simply gave up.
He immersed himself in the tranquility of nature—fishing, strolling with his salamander, and indulging in the serenity of his secluded paradise. He detached himself from the conflicts of the shinobi world, choosing to completely remove himself from its bloody chaos.
To his surprise, after decades of relentless shinobi life, he realized just how monotonous and joyless it had been. He had been treating himself as nothing more than a tool.
Gradually, he embraced this new way of life, relishing in its peaceful simplicity, intending to live out the rest of his days this way.
But today, that peace was shattered.
Hanzō halted his movement, his gaze locking onto the black sphere rising into the sky. A strange sense of unease stirred within him.
He had already been surprised when Nagato avoided his explosive silverfish trap, realizing then that the boy was no ordinary shinobi.
Although Nagato had carelessly tucked the silverfish into his sleeve, evading an explosion at such close range—one that should have been impossible to escape—was an ability rare even among elite shinobi.
Moreover, Hanzō's method of detonating explosive tags was unconventional, making it significantly faster than standard activation. Even seasoned Jōnin would have struggled to react in time.
Hanzō glanced at Ibusu, forming a series of hand signs. He planned to summon a swarm of salamanders to release a deadly mist, ensuring Nagato and Kana's deaths.
Meanwhile, the black sphere continued to ascend until it reached a critical altitude, its gravitational field expanding to encompass the entire valley.
Then, Nagato shouted, "Chibaku Tensei!"
A blinding purple-black light burst forth from the sphere, followed by an overwhelming surge of chakra.
An apocalyptic force erupted.
The earth itself trembled as vast swaths of soil, towering cliffs, and even the lake's waters were violently pulled toward the sky, drawn inexorably toward the black sphere.
For a moment, it was as if doomsday had arrived.
"What… what kind of jutsu is this?!"
Hanzō's eyes widened in shock as he struggled against the overwhelming gravitational force, his entire body being dragged toward the lake's surface.
'This is bad. If I get caught in that pull, I won't even have a chance to fight back!'
Suppressing his panic, Hanzō studied the "Chibaku Tensei" carefully. His gaze lingered on Nagato, and suddenly, he smiled.
"It's been a long time since I've felt this blood boiling. Other than that monster from Konoha, I never expected to see such a genius from my own Amegakure."
Nagato's face, in Hanzō's eyes, overlapped with someone he once knew—his trusted physician, Ise. Nagato's father.
"If you're a descendant of Amegakure, I can't let you look down on me. After all, I was once the man who sought to become 'Amekage'—Hanzō of the Salamander!"
A fiery determination surged within Hanzō. His fingers danced rapidly, gathering all the surrounding water and shaping it into massive dragons that roared toward Chibaku Tensei.
"Suiton: Multi-Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
But under the crushing force of the gravity field, the water dragons were caught before they could even reach the growing sphere, merging helplessly into its mass.
Nagato smirked coldly, increasing his chakra output. "It's useless. This is the power of a god. Accept your fate."
But Hanzō merely smiled. He continuously manipulated the water, unleashing an unrelenting barrage of dragon bullets. With an endless water source at his disposal, his immense chakra reserves barely felt the strain.
'I've figured it out. This technique is powerful, but its gravitational field is uniform—it lacks focused control. As the sphere grows, its pull weakens. If that's the case… then allow me to have you seal all this water instead!:
After several rounds of exchange, Nagato's expression shifted. He had assumed his Rinnegan's ability would make quick work of Hanzō, yet the veteran shinobi had effectively neutralized Chibaku Tensei with conventional Water Release techniques.
Instead of lifting Hanzō out of the lake, the gravitational force had only created a colossal sphere of water in the sky.
Nagato let out a sigh as he gazed at the enormous floating mass—several dozen kilometers in diameter.
Even with his power, flipping the entire lake upside down with a single Chibaku Tensei seemed… impractical.
"Don't worry, Nagato. We'll just do it again," Kana said, patting his shoulder with a playful wink.
Nagato's face flushed slightly, but he nodded firmly. This time, alongside the new black sphere, came a forest of iron-like trees!
____________________
Upto 20 chapters ahead on patreon :-
patreon.com/ShadySmuggler