He flashed behind an Iwagakure ninja, his figure blurring like a specter through the battlefield's smoke. Taking advantage of the moment when the enemy had no time to react, he plunged a kunai straight through the man's heart. The Iwagakure ninja collapsed silently, lifeless eyes staring into the dust.
Thirty seconds later, Senmei Asahi had already sent three Iwagakure Genin to hell, his breathing steady despite the intense exertion. Without wasting another second, he raced across the bloodstained ground, kunai flashing in his hand, and finally arrived beside Namikaze Minato.
"Why are you here, kid?!" Jiraiya bellowed, glancing at him with a mix of surprise and irritation.
"The Tsuchikage's abilities aren't easy to deal with." Asahi explained quickly, voice low but steady. "If Minato-senpai and I work together, we might have a chance!"
Although he knew the full extent of Onoki's power from his memories of the original work, he couldn't just reveal that to Minato and Jiraiya. That would raise far too many questions. Still, as the Tsuchikage, Onoki had participated in both the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars—Konoha surely had some intelligence on him, though it was likely far less precise than what Asahi carried in his mind.
Beyond Onoki's formidable Earth-style techniques, the real threats were his ability to fly and his terrifying Particle-style techniques.
Most ninja in the shinobi world couldn't fly. Against someone who could remain airborne indefinitely, the battlefield became a one-sided massacre. Onoki could simply float above the chaos, launching attacks without exposing himself to counterattacks. As for his Particle-style ∙ Atomic Dismantling Jutsu, it was a devastating Kekkei Tōta that could disintegrate anything in its path. No known defensive technique could withstand it.
Among the Konoha forces, only two shinobi had the capacity to stand against such a threat: Senmei Asahi and Namikaze Minato. Both had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, which allowed instantaneous teleportation. Though they couldn't block Particle-style, they could evade it—making them uniquely suited to face the Tsuchikage.
In fact, one could even argue that aside from Minato, only Asahi had the courage to face a Kage-level opponent head-on. Even if he couldn't win, if Asahi decided to flee, few in the world could catch him. That was the true value of mastering space-time ninjutsu.
This was precisely why Senmei Asahi had been so desperate to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique.
"Onoki isn't someone you can deal with!" Jiraiya snapped. "Get out of here, quickly!"
"It's alright." Asahi responded calmly. "Even if I'm in danger, I can escape using Flying Thunder God. Besides… Onoki can fly. I'm worried Minato-senpai will have a hard time chasing him alone."
Minato turned toward him, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Asahi, you came at just the right time."
He looked up at Onoki, who hovered above the battlefield like a judgmental god, and then whispered, "I need your cooperation."
"I understand." Asahi said at once, his eyes lighting up.
Jiraiya's frown deepened. "What are you two planning to do?"
Minato turned to Asahi and asked, "Can you use the second stage of Flying Thunder God?"
Asahi nodded. He knew immediately what Minato was aiming for—they were thinking the exact same thing.
Neither he nor Minato possessed long-range ninjutsu capable of effectively hitting Onoki. To even land a blow, they would need to get close. That meant one of them had to throw a marked kunai near Onoki, then teleport to it and attack at close range.
If Minato did this himself, Onoki would undoubtedly dodge. He was too experienced and cautious to allow someone of Minato's caliber that kind of opening.
But Asahi was different. To Onoki, he was just a gifted child—dangerous, perhaps, but not an immediate threat. If Asahi teleported near him, Onoki might take the bait, choosing to strike Asahi down instead of retreating.
And that… would be the moment Minato needed.
By using the Reciprocal Round-Robin Jutsu: Flying Raijin Jutsu, Minato and Asahi could switch places mid-teleport, turning a bait into a killing blow.
That was why Asahi had deliberately killed those three Iwagakure Genin as he approached. He wanted Onoki to witness his strength, to believe he was dangerous enough to merit a personal execution—but not so dangerous as to be unkillable.
The only risk was whether Onoki already knew about the position-swapping technique. Iwagakure scouts could have reported it. But even if he was aware, the plan had to be attempted. If it failed, Konoha might be forced to retreat entirely.
However, there was a complication.
Throwing a special kunai mid-air and teleporting to it required the second stage of Flying Thunder God—something Asahi was still mastering. He wasn't sure he could pull it off in real combat.
'No matter what, I have to try!' he told himself.
"Let's do it!" Minato said, nodding firmly. "I'll cover you."
Summoning Jutsu!
Minato formed a sequence of seals and slammed his hand to the ground.
*Puff!*
A large cloud of smoke burst out, and from it emerged the massive figure of Gamahiro, a powerful warrior of the Toad Clan.
Carrying two massive blades and towering over the battlefield, Gamahiro roared in recognition.
"Gamahiro! Let's go!" Minato shouted.
With a deep growl, Gamahiro leapt into the air, launching three massive iron cannonballs at Onoki.
But the Tsuchikage's expression didn't even flicker. Enraged by the earlier slaughter of his forces, he wasn't planning to dodge.
Particle-style ∙ Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!
Clasping his hands, a transparent, blinding-white cube expanded in front of him. It swallowed the iron cannonballs mid-air and continued downward, heading straight for Gamahiro.
*Fwoosh!*
At the last moment, Minato teleported Gamahiro away using Flying Thunder God, barely avoiding instant disintegration.
Minato himself soared toward Onoki, aiming to close the distance again. But even he couldn't keep this up for long—the chakra cost of teleporting such a large creature multiple times was massive.
On their third jump, with Minato drawing all attention, Asahi made his move.
He hurled his marked kunai directly toward Onoki.
At the same time, he handed another marked kunai to Jiraiya—an insurance policy, just in case.
This was it. His first attempt at mid-air teleportation with a thrown kunai. His body tensed as he watched the weapon spin upward, slicing through the air toward Onoki.
'Please work… just once!'
Minato had once told him: teleporting to a moving object wasn't the hardest part of Flying Thunder God—applying it in combat was. Asahi was about to find out just how difficult.
Onoki, ever the battle-hardened veteran, sensed the tactic immediately. He didn't even turn his head—he simply felt the shift in chakra and prepared a counterattack.
He had just used Particle-style, so he couldn't unleash another immediately. But that didn't mean he was defenseless.
*Whoosh!*
As the kunai reached half a meter above Onoki, Asahi teleported.
But something was wrong.
He materialized in mid-air… with his back to the Tsuchikage!
His eyes widened in horror.
'Damn it… I teleported backwards?!'
Earth-style ∙ Rock Fist Technique!
Onoki's right hand morphed into a massive stone gauntlet, and he floated upward, leveling with Asahi mid-air. With a roar, he launched a brutal punch toward Asahi's exposed back.
*****
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