Jiraiya's face twisted in frustration as he looked at Konoha's assembled elites, gesturing wildly with both hands.
"I'm telling the truth! Because Tsunade was captured by Namikaze Menma, I've been investigating them nonstop. I even kept watch on Otogakure…
"Just yesterday, one of my toads stationed there sent word—Menma used the Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) to transport a horde of monsters over. I rushed here overnight from the Land of Water…
"And I saw them with my own eyes! Giants—actual giants—over twenty meters tall! Palm-sized dwarves that move with terrifying speed!"
The Konoha shinobi exchanged troubled glances, their eyes tinged with pity as they looked at Jiraiya.
Nara Shikaku sighed. "Jiraiya-sama, I know you're grieving over Tsunade, but this story…"
"I'm telling the truth!!!" Jiraiya roared, nearly spitting blood in his fury. His glare swept the room.
"And it wasn't just me. Orochimaru was there too. Neither of us dared stir the hornet's nest—we were waiting for your reinforcements!
"If you don't send help now, they'll march straight into Konoha!"
But no matter how desperately he spoke, even Sarutobi Hiruzen and the other veterans looked only helpless and weary.
If it were anything else, they'd trust Jiraiya—but this was far too absurd.
Hiruzen rapped his pipe against the desk, interrupting him. "Jiraiya. Rest for now. I'll send scouts to confirm."
"That'll be too late!" Jiraiya's teeth ground audibly.
Just imagining Tsunade chained up, dressed as a maid atop some giant's shoulder, was enough to make him want to kill.
With no one willing to believe him, Jiraiya inhaled deeply.
"No choice then!"
He bit his thumb, slapped his palm on the ground, and shouted:
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Market-Crushing Vendor Technique!"
Boom!
Three colossal toads dropped from the sky, smashing into the training grounds. The earth cracked apart beneath their weight, smoke and dust billowing.
Hiruzen's face hardened. "Jiraiya! What are you doing!? Has Orochimaru taken control of you!?"
"I know you don't believe me, sensei, but watch closely!" Jiraiya barked, then bellowed at the toads:
"Swallow as many as you can—then return to Mount Myōboku immediately!"
Without hesitation, the toads snapped open their jaws, tongues whipping out to reel in shinobi one by one.
Faces paled across the grounds.
Shikaku shouted, "He's under a genjutsu! Hyūga clan head, dispel it quickly!"
Dispel your head!
Jiraiya's expression darkened as his hands flashed through seals. His white hair surged and extended like whips:
"Ninpō – Ranji Shigami no Jutsu! (Wild Lion's Mane Technique)"
The hair lashed out like living tendrils, wrapping Shikaku up and hurling him into the air.
"AAAAH!!!" Shikaku's scream ended abruptly as a toad's jaws clamped shut.
"Damn it…" Hiruzen retreated rapidly, weaving signs before spewing blazing flames:
"Katon – Gōka Ryū no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Technique)"
Jiraiya leapt straight into a toad's mouth, ending the summoning. The fire roared, but only swallowed the dispersing smoke.
"Cursed Orochimaru! How dare you control Jiraiya…" Hiruzen seethed, turning to the others.
"How many did the toads take!?"
A shinobi quickly counted. "Clan heads of the Nara, Akimichi, and even the Hyūga were seized. Along with regular shinobi, twenty-one in total!"
Hiruzen's jaw tightened. "Find Orochimaru immediately! They cannot fall into his hands! Head for the Land of Fire's border!"
Land of Fire Border – A Forest Clearing
Orochimaru dipped his thumbs into a vial of blood, pressed his hands to the ground.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
Poof!
A cloud of white smoke erupted. Gamabunta appeared, disgorging Jiraiya along with two other giant toads.
"Orochimaru, what's the situation!?" Jiraiya demanded urgently.
But Orochimaru didn't look at him. His golden eyes gleamed feverishly, his tongue licking across his lips as he stared into the distance.
"Fascinating… utterly fascinating. Their goal doesn't seem to be Konoha—they'll pass through soon enough. But such bodies…"
His voice trembled with mania.
"Could human modification alone achieve this? Tens of meters tall, with that monstrous strength…
"And that half-fish man—his power is ten times a normal human's, his speed in water unmatched…
"Each one of them wields strength on par with Tsunade herself. Fufufu… marvelous… truly marvelous…"
Orochimaru's excitement was reaching madness.
But the surrounding Konoha shinobi were pale with terror.
"Orochimaru! Did you brainwash Jiraiya-sama!? What are you planning!?"
Jiraiya snapped back, his face dark. He thrust a finger at the horizon.
"Forget that—look over there!"
"…There?" Shikaku, still smeared in toad slime, frowned and turned.
"At first, I thought Jiraiya-sama was under a genjutsu too… there's no way such beings…"
His words trailed into stunned silence as his eyes widened.
"You've got to be kidding me…"
There, towering more than twenty meters high, stood a giant pirate—like a walking mountain.
If not for its steady stride and uncanny speed, they might have mistaken it for a stone statue.
The shinobi froze, dumbstruck, as an entire column of monsters marched past.
"No way…"
"What kind of creatures ARE those!?"
(End of Chapter)
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