"Fire Release: Great Flame Bullet!"
Jiraiya spewed forth a torrent of scorching fire, cascading in all directions like a crimson tide.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
The Iwa ninja quickly formed hand signs in perfect unison, dozens of hands simultaneously slamming onto the ground.
As a massive amount of chakra flowed into the earth, the ground before them loosened, and colossal walls rose from the earth, connecting to each other, as if a steep mountain range had suddenly emerged from flat ground, trapping Jiraiya like a caged beast in the center.
The sea of fire spread, but it was abruptly stopped by the towering earth walls. In an instant, raging flames enveloped the surroundings.
White mist rose, the temperature plummeted, and the last embers of fire were swiftly extinguished by the pouring rain.
However, it wasn't over yet. The Iwa ninja formed hand signs again. The earth walls trembled slightly, and countless fine spikes protruded from their surface. Accompanied by the synchronized shouts of the Iwa ninja, slender stone spears shot through the air, like a volley of a thousand arrows, launching an indiscriminate assault on the central area.
"Earth Release: Multiple Stone Spikes!"
Nawaki descended from mid-air, watching the overwhelming barrage of stone spears hurtling through the air, his heart almost leaping into his throat.
Judging solely by their fierce speed, the power of each stone spear was no less than that of a siege crossbow!
"Well, there's no choice. It seems to break free, I'll have to show some real skill!"
From below, Jiraiya's hearty laugh echoed:
"Summoning Jutsu: Gamaken!"
With a "bang," a massive cloud of white mist billowed and dispersed. A gigantic, muscular purplish-red toad appeared out of thin air, carrying Jiraiya on its head.
Its size was no less than Gamabunta. It wore black clothes, had majestic horizontal pupils, and a distinctive U-shaped black tattoo on its face. It carried a massive pot-lid-shaped shield on its back and a giant barbed trident in its hand.
As soon as it appeared, it wielded its trident, instantly making a countermove.
"I'm counting on you, Boss Gamaken!"
Jiraiya shouted, then suddenly shook his head. His silver hair rapidly extended like tentacles, coiling around Nawaki in mid-air.
"Understood! Although I'm very clumsy, I'll still try my best!" Gamaken's voice was deep, with a hint of timidity, but its movements were relentless. It swung its trident, pulverizing the stone spears that came its way.
Its hands moved continuously, whirling the giant trident with formidable force. Countless afterimages formed a dense, dark barrier around its body, impenetrable, crushing all the densely packed stone spears.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
A sudden gust of wind rose, and heavy wind sounds filled the air.
Jiraiya pulled Nawaki back to his side. The wild wind disheveled his long hair. He looked around and laughed loudly:
"Isn't that quite capable?"
Gamaken shook his head slightly, his expression serious. "No, I'm very clumsy."
Jiraiya paused slightly, then noticed that Gamaken had a several-meter-long cut on its calf, with blood slowly seeping out.
Did he focus his defense on his head? Jiraiya mused to himself, looking at Gamaken with a touch of emotion.
"You're injured!"
"That's why I said I'm clumsy!" As it spoke, Gamaken quickly bent its knees and, relying on its powerful jumping ability, leaped into the high sky with a whistling wind, instantly clearing the range of the Multiple Earth-Style Walls.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
The stone spears immediately changed direction, chasing Gamaken's massive figure into the sky.
"Lord Gamaken!" Nawaki exclaimed.
"I know!" Gamaken swiftly unslung the shield from its back and rode it like a skateboard. The stone spears landed one after another, "clinking" against the shield, sending out dense sparks.
"Although I'm not good at this jutsu, I'm willing to try!"
Gamaken muttered in a low voice, then swung its trident in a full circle with one hand, drawing the rainwater in the air towards the center of the trident. In the vast white rain curtain, the head of the trident rapidly swelled with a giant water ball.
"Sage Art: Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"
The air suddenly became silent, and countless raindrops stopped in mid-air.
The next moment, a long, straight, ultra-high-pressure water column shot out from the top of the trident, like a transparent bolt of lightning, instantly piercing through the towering earth wall and striking directly into the ground.
The water column surged, like an incomparably sharp blade, its destructive power terrifying. It easily tore through the ground upon contact. As Gamaken wielded it like a brush painting calligraphy, the water column ploughed the earth, drawing a complete circle.
Mud and smoke rose, huge rocks tumbled, and screams echoed one after another. Except for one quick-reacting sensor ninja, all the Iwa ninja were cut in half by the water column, their internal organs spilled, and blood stained the earth.
With a "rumble," Gamaken, carrying the two, plummeted down. It retracted its shield and squinted at the fleeing black silhouette of the Iwa ninja, sighing involuntarily.
"Still let one get away. I really am clumsy."
Gazing at the figure desperately fleeing, even Jiraiya frowned slightly.
In reality, his mission this time was not to support the front lines but to delve deep into the Land of Rain to meet with Hanzo, the leader of Amegakure.
As the scale of the battles gradually expanded, and factions clashed, resentment had festered for a long time, showing signs of escalating. Everyone could smell the scent of war.
At this point, confirming alliances and unifying fronts became extremely important.
Anyone with discernment could see that Konoha, Suna, and Iwa were at loggerheads, with little possibility of peaceful reconciliation. Once Amegakure formally entered the fray, the curtain of war would be fully drawn.
There were many possible outcomes to this battle, but from Konoha's perspective, the worst outcome would be the destruction of Amegakure.
During the high-level meeting, Hiruzen Sarutobi firmly expressed his opinion: he preferred that Amegakure maintain its independence rather than see this small country divided and swallowed by the other two powers.
However, there was a disagreement at the meeting. The hardline faction, led by Danzō Shimura, chose to continue the war. Their strategy was to "ally with distant states and attack close ones," using the war among the three great ninja villages to completely destroy Amegakure, after which Konoha would press its advantage, seize the fruits of victory, and incorporate the Land of Rain into the Land of Fire's territory.
But this approach carried too great a risk; it could easily lead to Konoha facing three enemies simultaneously. Therefore, Hiruzen Sarutobi, using his authority as Hokage, forcibly rejected the hardliners' approach and secretly dispatched personnel to make secret contact with Hanzo, attempting to forge an alliance.
This seemed like a horizontal alliance but was, in fact, a vertical one, aiming to thoroughly expel the Suna and Iwa ninja from the Land of Rain.
This was Jiraiya's true purpose for this mission.
But the problem arose here: his route had seemingly avoided all surveillance, yet he was ambushed by an Iwa ninja squad just as he was approaching Amegakure.
Judging by their reaction and the intensity of their ninjutsu, they were clearly an elite squad that had been lying in wait.
This meant... his intelligence had been leaked in secret.
This engagement had left many traces. If the survivor were allowed to escape, the "intelligence" leak would become overt, and his mission would fail!
"Nawaki, stay here with Boss Gamaken. I'll be right back!"
His thoughts raced. Jiraiya didn't hesitate. Before the Iwa ninja disappeared into the rain, he immediately started chasing.
He was fast, but the Iwa ninja was also quick. Rain lashed at Jiraiya's cheeks, and he didn't dare to stop for a moment.
Just then, a blinding white flash suddenly streaked across the edge of his vision, like a slender bolt of lightning, cutting through the rain curtain and vanishing with the wind.
Reflected in Jiraiya's pupils was the Iwa ninja's body, split in two.
He quickly approached, and the figure of the person who struck became clear in the rain.
He wore a tight suit, was tall and slender, and his silver-white hair was tied into a ponytail. He was holding a short blade horizontally, using the rain to wash the blood from its surface.
Jiraiya exclaimed, "Sakumo!? Aren't you supposed to be supporting the front lines? What are you doing here?"
Seeing Jiraiya approach, Sakumo Hatake looked up, his gaze carrying an inherent sense of languor.
"With me there, the base has been fully recovered. I'm here under a secret order from Lord Hokage to support you."
He said plainly.
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