"He's so big!"
Looking at Shishou, who now stood four meters tall, like a demon lord stepping out of hell, Tsunade and Shizune were utterly dumbfounded. This was their first time seeing Shishou transform. Not only that, but he looked incredibly impressive!
Jiraiya, equally shocked, stared at Shishou. He hadn't expected Shishou to have a transformation technique just like him. And to look this impressive! Jiraiya, who became less attractive in his own transformation, couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.
After entering the second stage of the Cursed Seal transformation, Shishou waved his hand, forming a water mirror in front of him, reflecting his new form. Satisfied with his appearance, Shishou nodded approvingly. He had specifically designed this demon lord look for himself. For someone with parasitic insects and symbiotic armor beetles, changing his appearance in the Cursed Seal form was a simple task.
"Vain!"
"Narcissist!"
Seeing Shishou admiring himself, Tsunade and Shizune both rolled their eyes at him.
"Jiraiya, be careful. I sense senjutsu chakra in him. He might know how to use senjutsu energy," Fukasaku, the Toad Sage, warned seriously.
Jiraiya was stunned upon hearing this. He hadn't expected Shishou to also have mastery over senjutsu energy...
"Let's begin," Shishou said, dismissing the water mirror and smiling at Jiraiya. It was his first time using the Cursed Seal transformation in a fight, and he was eager to test it out.
"Alright!" Jiraiya nodded, leaping backward. Due to the dangerous poison in Shishou's body, he chose to keep his distance.
Sage Art: Needle Jizo!
As Jiraiya jumped into the air, his hair bristled, forming countless hardened needles that shot towards Shishou.
Watching the needles approach, Shishou made a single hand sign.
Sage Art: Water Dragon Guard!
A miniature blue water dragon emerged from Shishou's mouth, circling around him and rapidly expanding into a massive dragon, ten meters wide and dozens of meters long, absorbing all the needle attacks.
"Amazing!" Shizune exclaimed, her eyes wide at the sight of the enormous water dragon, comparable in size to a summoned beast.
Tsunade, equally astonished, quickly understood the reason. Shishou's chakra reserves were immense, and with senjutsu energy added, the scale of his water dragon made sense.
Roar!!
The giant water dragon roared as it circled Shishou and then charged towards Jiraiya in mid-air. Fukasaku, the Toad Sage, was taken aback by the power of the young man's jutsu.
"Prepare the oil," Shima, the Toad Sage, reminded.
"Got it!" Jiraiya quickly formed hand signs.
Sage Art: Goemon!
Combining Jiraiya's oil, Fukasaku's wind release, and Shima's fire release, a high-temperature inferno shot towards Shishou's water dragon, clashing with it and producing a massive steam explosion.
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
Sage Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu!
Shishou created twenty shadow clones around him. Three of the clones exhaled a thick mist that merged with the surrounding steam. Shishou and his clones then vanished into the dense fog.
The mist, enhanced with senjutsu energy and water-nature chakra, was impenetrable even to the Byakugan and Mangekyo Sharingan, making it perfect for ambushes with his parasitic insects. The continuous use of this jutsu by his clones meant that Jiraiya and his companions couldn't easily dispel it.
Even with Sage Mode's enhanced sensory abilities, Jiraiya would be hard-pressed to locate Shishou among the clones.
"Jiraiya, this mist is problematic," Shima said gravely.
Jiraiya placed his hand on the ground, using Sage Mode to sense, "He's using clones. I can't find the real one."
Wind Release: Typhoon Water Vortex!
Fukasaku formed a single hand sign, generating a massive wind storm to clear the mist. However, the moment their visibility returned, the mist reformed, cloaking them once again.
"We can't clear it?" Jiraiya and his companions were shocked to be engulfed in the mist again.
"To the left!" Fukasaku suddenly shouted.
A water whip lashed out from the mist, striking at Jiraiya. He narrowly dodged the attack.
Splat!
The whip struck the ground, carving out a one-meter-deep trench.
Such power! Jiraiya's mouth twitched at the sight. This wasn't just a water whip—it was more like a water severing wave!
More water whips shot out at Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya, more coming!" Shima warned.
"I see them," Jiraiya replied.
A massive white sphere formed in Jiraiya's hand, destroying the incoming whips.
Sage Art: Super Giant Rasengan!
Hiding in the mist, Shishou chuckled, sending ten more senjutsu-enhanced water whips at Jiraiya. He needed to keep Jiraiya and the Toad Sages from using their sound-based genjutsu, so constant harassment was necessary. Moreover, some of the parasitic insects he had planted inside Jiraiya were still there. He could defeat Jiraiya anytime, but he wanted to practice his control over senjutsu energy and deepen his understanding of it. So, he decided to keep playing with Jiraiya for a while.
...
Tsunade watched the dense mist with a vigilant look, guarding against any surprise attacks from Shishou.
"Lady Tsunade, we can't see anything," Shizune said disappointedly.
"Hmph, this is definitely Shishou's doing!" Tsunade didn't need to guess; she knew who was responsible for the mist. Last time, she had been caught off guard by this very technique while Shishou was fighting the Third Hokage. Now, she was always on edge, fearing Shishou might suddenly appear and take advantage of her and Shizune...
"So what do we do now?" Shizune asked.
"What do we do? Make him clear the mist!" Tsunade shrugged.
Taking a deep breath, Tsunade shouted into the mist, "You bastard, clear this mist right now! I can't see the fight!!!"
Hearing Tsunade's shout, Jiraiya and his companions were stunned. Then, to their surprise, the mist began to dissipate...
Elsewhere.
In Konoha.
"What's happening over there?"
"Is there a battle outside the village?"
"Report to the Third Hokage immediately."
When Jiraiya's fire technique lit up the night sky, the guards and elite ninja in Konoha were alerted. Soon, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, received the news and led a group of Konoha ninja towards the outskirts of the village. As they approached the edge of the mist, they heard Tsunade's loud voice.
Then, they saw the mist clear, revealing Jiraiya.