Hanzo's strength was multifaceted. Even now, without the aid of his signature summon, the Salamander, he remained one of the most formidable warriors in the shinobi world.
Hanzo took a large step back, winding the chain of his kusarigama around his arm. His gaze grew distant, his breathing slowed, and yet his aura sharpened with intensity.
In his youth, he had traveled alone to the Land of Iron, wielding only his kusarigama, and carved out a name for himself. Back then, any samurai who heard Hanzo's name would flee in terror.
"Kenjutsu: Iai Slash!"
"Whoosh!"
A sharp blade of light flashed by. Although Orochimaru had tried his best to evade it, his right arm was severed.
Hanzo grinned menacingly, giving Orochimaru no time to adjust. With one hand, he swiftly formed seals.
"Katon: Explosive Flame Array!"
Numerous explosive tags surged from the ground, clinging to Orochimaru's legs like a deadly disease.
"Boom!!!"
This was Hanzo's signature jutsu, a compound technique that combined the power of explosive tags with the complexity of arrays and fire release.
At nearly seventy years old, Hanzo had used this very move to blow off Nagato's leg when the latter was an adult.
The raging fire swallowed Orochimaru's form whole. Hanzo raised a single finger and, with a cold expression, said, "I accidentally killed one of you. But don't worry, you two—I'll capture you alive."
"After all, it seems like Konoha might have won this war."
But before Hanzo could finish speaking, Orochimaru's charred "corpse" began to twitch unnervingly and stood back up.
Hanzo watched with interest, a relaxed smile on his face, as if he had everything under control.
"Oh, still alive, are you?"
The next moment, Hanzo's smile vanished. A horrifying sight unfolded before him.
Orochimaru, with his remaining hand, forcefully pulled at his mouth, stretching it until it was nearly a meter wide, and began to retch violently. A perfectly unharmed Orochimaru, drenched in sticky mucus, emerged from the mouth of the original "Orochimaru."
In all his nearly fifty years in the shinobi world, Hanzo had never witnessed such an indescribable scene. He muttered to himself in disbelief:
"Are all Konoha's shinobi monsters? Why is it that I never seem to encounter normal humans?"
"Konoha truly is an evil village."
Tsunade and Jiraiya were both struck speechless, lines of frustration etched across their faces. This was also the first time they had seen Orochimaru use this technique.
This was Orochimaru's "Great Snake Substitution Technique," a technique he had developed by studying the regenerative properties of the "Star" and Hashirama's cells.
He had originally planned to teach this life-saving skill to Nawaki, but after seeing it, Nawaki firmly refused to learn it.
"If I crawl out of my own mouth in front of the girl I love, my life might as well be over," Nawaki had declared. In some ways, he wasn't wrong.
Hanzo quickly shook off his shock. This was merely a failed attack.To him, this battle offered endless opportunities.
Forming a seal with his left hand and gripping his blade with his right, Hanzo disappeared from sight.
"Whoosh!"
It wasn't true invisibility, but to Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru, even Hanzo's afterimages were difficult to perceive.
Hanzo's Shunshin no Jutsu was so fast that even a decade later, he could still dodge attacks from the Gedo Mazo. And right now, he was in his prime!
With just his swordsmanship and Shunshin no Jutsu, Hanzo was already teaching these three younger shinobi a hard lesson. Though he was alone, it felt as if Hanzo had surrounded them.
Tsunade sighed helplessly. Her powerful punches couldn't land on Hanzo, leaving the ground littered with deep craters while Hanzo remained unscathed.
Jiraiya was even more frustrated. At this point, he relied mainly on ninjutsu, but Hanzo's swift blade didn't give him any time to form hand seals.
Among the three, only Orochimaru could hold his own, thanks to his summoning techniques from Ryuchi Cave and his Great Snake Substitution Technique, which required no seals.
Patiently, Hanzo chipped away at their chakra and stamina, slashing at them again and again. He was in no hurry, waiting for the perfect moment when they would reveal a fatal weakness.
Hanzo played the role of the hunting lion, while Orochimaru and the others were like antelopes—once they were too exhausted to continue, it would be time for the lion to pounce.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, searching for Hanzo, who had hidden himself again. Anxiety was creeping into his mind.
"If this keeps up...we might really die."
His thoughts drifted toward a special explosive tag in his ninja pouch, a creation of his and Nawaki's.
Nawaki had taken all of Tobirama Senju's preserved explosive tags, divided them into three parts, and fixed them with a tracking seal, turning the forbidden jutsu into a ninja tool.
If Orochimaru detonated the Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags now, Hanzo would have no chance of surviving. However, they themselves would also face near-certain death.
Stealthily, Orochimaru reached for his ninja pouch, prepared to make a final desperate move.
.............
Meanwhile, ten kilometers away from the battlefield in Amegakure:
Minato's squad had just arrived and noticed the abnormality of the battlefield.
Kushina spoke urgently, "This is bad, Minato. I can sense Tsunade-sensei's chakra, and it's getting weaker and weaker."
"There's also a strong, sharp chakra—I feel it moving as fast as Fuma-sensei, and it's attacking them! Tsunade-sensei and the others are under attack by a powerful enemy!"
Minato's expression grew serious. He already had an idea of who the enemy was.
"A shinobi from Amegakure moving at speeds close to Fuma-sensei... it can only be Hanzo."
"Fuma-san has told me about this ninja. He possesses incredible Shunshin no Jutsu and swordsmanship, and he can even use ninjutsu to change the weather."
"He's been listed as one of the enemies I absolutely cannot engage before the age of seventeen."
Upon hearing about Orochimaru and the others' dire situation, Nawaki grew anxious and urgently asked,"Then let's hurry and save them! If their chakra is that weak, they must be in great danger!"
He was restless, constantly glancing in the direction of the battlefield, but he could see nothing.
Minato gestured for Nawaki to calm down, quickly analyzing the battlefield situation as he spoke,"There's another unfamiliar and strong chakra behind us—it's probably an enemy. We need to finish this quickly."
"The situation is critical. Your Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags will be our only chance, Nawaki."
Nawaki saw that Minato had finally decided and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Just tell me how to kill Hanzo, Minato!"
Minato's eyes grew determined as he began to devise a strategy.
"To maximize the effectiveness of the Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags, they need to be stuck to the enemy so the blasts can chain together."
"But even if we get close enough to attach them, the explosion will be too fast. I won't be able to teleport five people away with my Flying Thunder God Jutsu in time."
"Kushina, activate your Kagura's Mind Eye. We're going to infiltrate Amegakure."
"Nawaki, prepare a delayed explosive trap. Let's give Hanzo a parting gift."
Minato's team circled around the battlefield and advanced towards Amegakure.
As Fuma often joked with him: "Every strategy, no matter how intricate, eventually comes down to adaptation!"
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