Hanzō and Mifune stood on opposite sides, the former holding a chain sickle, the latter gripping a blade with both hands.
The clash just now had been a direct battle between the two of them.
Both were masters of swordsmanship, and both were equally proficient in the way of Iaidō.
Back then, after Mifune lost to Hanzō in swordsmanship, he did not become discouraged. Instead, he continued to train day after day.
Today's battle was the trial through which he would verify his swordsmanship.
"Hanzō, after all these years, you haven't really improved, have you?"
"In that case, I'll be the one to defeat you and prove my swordsmanship!"
Since he was already standing on this battlefield, Mifune would not hesitate. The sword in his hand was his path, and the Hanzō before him was the challenge he needed to overcome himself.
Behind him, Yahiko and Konan were panting heavily.
Just moments ago, the two of them had already fought Hanzō together once.
Even working together, they couldn't gain any advantage against Hanzō and were even suppressed at one point. And that was without his summoned salamander. If not for Mifune's timely arrival, they would have been in serious danger.
A light drizzle continued to fall over Amegakure, while waves of disturbances rippled one after another in the central area.
"Yo, things are getting pretty heated here..."
"Hoh, that big salamander."
"Fire Release, Rasengan!"
Yugto and Mei Terumī, who were dealing with the salamander, had both gone all out. As members of the younger generation of powerhouses, they were very confident in their strength. Yet a single salamander had managed to stall them, which left both of them extremely annoyed.
At that moment, a teasing voice rang out, followed immediately by a streak of light like a falling meteor.
That crimson light slammed heavily into the salamander's abdomen. With the impact, violent flames instantly engulfed it.
Before the two girls could even react, the salamander let out a heart-rending howl.
"This..."
"That bastard teacher?"
Yugito was the first to react. How could she possibly fail to recognize the voice of Gekko Chizan?
Mei Terumī's gaze followed, and she saw that the Rasengan in Gekko Chizan's hand had already disappeared. After all, the salamander was already ablaze—now all that remained was for it to turn itself into dried grilled fish.
"You two are really not cutting it. Why is dealing with a single salamander taking you so much effort?"
"And this isn't even Hanzō's original salamander. Sigh, looks like you still need more practice."
Gekko Chizan looked at his two disciples with a look of disdain.
This immediately drew their dissatisfaction.
"Nonsense! Didn't you see all the corpses of Amegakure jōnin around here?!"
"We took all of them down! If the two of us hadn't held back those ANBU and jōnin, how could Konan fight Hanzō properly over there?!"
"You bastard teacher, are your eyes broken or what?!"
Yugito's mouth rattled on like a runaway train.
This made Gekko Chizan burst into laughter. In truth, he had already seen the situation clearly—he was just deliberately teasing them.
"Alright, go help Konan and the others."
"I can't step in against Hanzō, but I can guarantee that no one else will get in here."
The two girls showed a hint of confusion. In the next second, changes began to occur around Hanzō's castle.
They only heard Gekko Chizan say calmly, "Four Violet Flames Formation!"
In an instant, rectangular barrier walls of translucent purple flames rose up in the four directions—east, west, south, and north—around the castle. Purple flames clung to the barrier, preventing anyone outside from entering. Anyone who touched the walls would be burned by the flames.
It wasn't that Gekko Chizan didn't want to use the more powerful Four Red Yang Formation, but his crystal simply couldn't withstand such an immense amount of chakra.
The Four Red Yang Formation required Kage-level chakra to deploy, and crystals created by Crystal Release just couldn't handle it.
So he could only choose the weaker Four Violet Flames Formation. It was enough to isolate the battlefield.
"Mei Terumī, take this. Once the battle is over and Hanzō is dead, crush this crystal and the barrier will be lifted."
Gekko Chizan casually tossed a crystal to Mei Terumī. It was identical to the four crystals used to form the barrier. The chakra within all five crystals was linked together.
Once one of them was destroyed, the others would shatter as well.
This was a chain mechanism developed by Gekko Chizan using Crystal Release, specifically for barrier techniques.
"Understood."
"Mm. Go on. Take down Hanzō and let me witness your strength."
"Yes!"
Under Gekko Chizan's gaze, Yugito and Mei Terumī ran toward the battlefield where Hanzō was.
Left alone, Gekko Chizan revealed a faintly satisfied smile.
After glancing once more at the sky over Amegakure, he vanished from where he stood.
He believed that Yahiko and the others would definitely be able to defeat Hanzō and incorporate Amegakure into Takigakure's territory, turning it into his powerful rear support force.
...
Returning to the seaside of Kumogakure, he had already found a place to rest and was calmly waiting for Killer B and the others to arrive.
Little did he know that Killer B's team, which had clearly set out on their mission long ago, hadn't even made it out of the village yet.
"Killer B, hurry it up!"
"Didn't I ask you earlier whether you wanted to bring luggage? What did you say back then?"
"Idiot!"
Motoi was about to explode with anger, because at this very moment, Killer B was frantically shopping for supplies to take to the beach.
Just look at the things he bought—he even purchased swimwear. Do you really think he was going on a mission? Bullshit! He was clearly planning a vacation!
"Motoi, you don't understand at all! Is this a mission? No!"
"This is a trip! A seaside trip! How could I not bring swimwear?!"
"Hey, Samui, help me carry this for a moment. I'm going to buy some more! What's going on with the village lately—why is everything out of stock?"
Killer B's frantic shopping spree quickly reached the ears of the Fourth Raikage.
"Crack!"
Dodai watched as the Raikage smashed through a window and shook his head helplessly, muttering to himself,
"Killer B, honestly, of all times to cause trouble, you had to pick this moment. Sigh. What a headache."
Very soon, Killer B—still shopping—was grabbed by the head with one huge hand and dragged straight out of the shop.
"Oh! NO! Brother! Easy, easy! My head!"
"Idiot! B! I sent you to handle the coastal situation, and this is the attitude you show?!"
The two brothers—one begging for mercy, the other shouting in rage—drew the attention of everyone on the street.
"Motoi, bring the others and follow! I'll be waiting for you outside the village!"
A burst of blue lightning erupted as the Fourth Raikage grabbed Killer B by the head with one hand and activated his Lightning Release Armor, charging straight toward the east.
He was going to personally throw Killer B out of the village!
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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