Jiraiya began running in mid-air, his feet seemingly stepping on solid ground despite being surrounded by nothing but air, rapidly closing in on Ōnoki with incredible speed.
Ōnoki raised his hand to counter the approaching Jiraiya, his jutsu already prepared.
"Jinton: Genkai Hakuri no Jutsu!" (Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!)
A transparent cube rapidly expanded into a rectangular prism, hurtling toward Jiraiya at high speed.
With a strong push off the air, ripples formed under Jiraiya's feet, and his figure vanished from sight.
"Senpō: Soru!" (Sage Art: Shave!)
Jiraiya instantly reappeared in front of Ōnoki, throwing a punch that roared through the air. Ōnoki understood the sheer force behind that punch—it wouldn't be good to take it head-on.
In that instant, Ōnoki dodged backward, watching the fist pass by just in front of his face.
However, a powerful force struck his face unexpectedly, sending him flying backward.
"Senpō: Kawazu Kumite!" (Sage Art: Frog Kata!)
Jiraiya pulled back his fist, watching Ōnoki fly through the air, but he didn't intend to stop there. Raising his hand, a massive Rasengan far larger than his own body formed in his palm.
"Senpō: Chōōdama Rasengan!" (Sage Art: Super Big Ball Rasengan!)
Jiraiya stomped the air, vanishing and reappearing in front of the flying Ōnoki, slamming the colossal Rasengan down toward him.
At that moment, Ōnoki felt the imminent threat of death.
He quickly clasped his hands together.
"Doton: Kajūgan no Jutsu!" (Earth Release: Added-Weight Rock Technique!)
Ōnoki stopped his backward flight, applying immense downward pressure on his body, causing him to plummet to the ground like a massive boulder.
Ōnoki could feel the wind whistling in his ears as he fell.
Jiraiya wasn't ready to give up. This was the only chance he had to kill one of the enemy Kage.
He followed Ōnoki downward, the massive Rasengan trailing behind him.
However, Ōnoki's falling speed was too fast, aided by his jutsu, and his weight far exceeded Jiraiya's.
Seeing he couldn't catch up, Jiraiya quickly moved his feet, forming a hand sign in a split second.
After all, even Gin could perform hand signs with just his breathing, so it was reasonable that Jiraiya had developed a technique using his feet for hand signs.
"Senpō: Ranjishigami no Jutsu!" (Sage Art: Wild Lion's Mane Technique!)
Jiraiya's hair rapidly grew out, extending wildly toward the falling Ōnoki.
Ōnoki's expression changed as the hair wrapped around him, and he raised his kunai to cut it away.
However, as his kunai struck the white hair, he realized it was far tougher than he had imagined.
The hair began pulling him upward, closing the distance between him and Jiraiya.
Ōnoki looked at the massive chakra ball behind Jiraiya. If that hit him, even his bones might not remain.
"You think killing me will be that easy?"
Ōnoki clasped his hands together again, quickly channeling chakra into his palms.
Dust Release transformed into a conical shape, aimed directly at the rapidly approaching Jiraiya.
"Jinton: Genkai Hakuri no Jutsu!" (Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!)
The conical barrier expanded forward, and even its sharp tip carried lethal power.
Caught off guard, Jiraiya's shoulder was pierced by the cone. If he hadn't moved in time, it would have gone through his heart.
As the cone's white light began to glow, Jiraiya quickly slammed the massive Rasengan toward it.
Boom!
A powerful shockwave rippled outward, forming large, concentric circles that spread rapidly.
When the dust settled...
Jiraiya and Ōnoki stood in the air, facing each other.
However, blood had soaked through Ōnoki's clothes from an unknown wound.
"Konoha's strength never ceases to impress," Ōnoki said grimly, eyeing Jiraiya.
"Thanks for the compliment," Jiraiya replied, his face just as serious.
Even though Ōnoki had been in a precarious position, Jiraiya, clutching his injured shoulder, knew that Ōnoki had still managed to land a blow on him. The Tsuchikage's reputation was well-earned.
...
Meanwhile...
Time rewound to the moment when the three combatants had been separated.
Tsunade stood on the ground, facing a massive salamander.
"Looks like I picked the weakest one," Tsunade muttered through gritted teeth. Despite their title, no Kage could truly be considered weak. She was worried about both Jiraiya and Orochimaru.
Especially Orochimaru.
He had already been greatly weakened before the battle began. She wasn't sure if he could handle the Kazekage on his own.
Though Hanzo was known as a "demigod," Tsunade didn't think much of his strength, having already gathered comprehensive intel on him.
In some ways...
She was the perfect counter to Hanzo.
"Woman! Don't underestimate me!" Hanzo said, clearly displeased. Couldn't she at least keep her insults quieter? After all, he was still the leader of the Hidden Rain Village.
Even if the village was in shambles, a man had his pride.
"A demigod? Don't make me laugh, you old geezer!!"
Tsunade's figure suddenly appeared in front of Hanzo, throwing a full-force punch at him.
Boom!
Hanzo's body turned to water under Tsunade's punch.
His real figure appeared in the air, scythe in hand, as he slashed down at Tsunade.
Swish!
Tsunade dodged just in time.
Immediately following the scythe attack, a powerful stream of water surged from Hanzo.
"Suiton: Mizurappa!" (Water Release: Wild Water Wave!)
Facing the torrential water, Tsunade stepped back with her right foot, adopting a poised stance, then punched forward.
"Kairiki Musō!" (Unrivaled Strength!)
Her punch shattered the stream of water, and Tsunade charged at Hanzo, flipping her body and bringing her leg down hard.
"Tōtenkyaku!" (Heavenly Foot of Pain!)
Hanzo used a water body flicker technique to escape in time, but the unfortunate salamander below was crushed under the tremendous force, unable to move for a moment.
Poof! The salamander vanished in a puff of smoke.
Hanzo reappeared on the ground some distance away, the salamander now by his side.
Quickly forming hand signs, Hanzo shouted, "Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!" (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!)
A massive wave of water spewed from his mouth, engulfing the entire area like an ocean.
At the same time, the salamander opened its mouth, spraying a purple liquid.
"Dokumono Shashin!" (Toxic Ejection!)
The water mixed with the poison, turning into a purple river that consumed everything, bubbling like molten lava.
Since his opponent wasn't a chakra-absorbing ninja like Orochimaru, Hanzo could now fight at full strength.
Tsunade wasn't surprised by Hanzo's sea-like water jutsu. In the current era, with the widespread practice of Basic Inner Technique, more and more shinobi could achieve such feats, though they were still relatively rare.
"As expected of the Demigod Hanzo, you do live up to your reputation."
This was Tsunade's first time battling Hanzo.
He was much stronger than she had anticipated.
In that moment, she acknowledged his true strength.
"Well, I'll have to go all out."
Tsunade formed hand signs, and the diamond-shaped mark on her forehead extended outward into strange runes.
"Yin Seal: Release!"
"Ninpō: Byakugō no Jutsu! Kai! Mugen Saisei!" (Ninja Art: Mitotic Regeneration! Modified! Infinite Regeneration!)
Upon hearing the word "infinite," Hanzo narrowed his eyes.
That sneaky snake also had a jutsu with the name "infinite."
A bad feeling began to creep over him.
(End of Chapter)
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