"It's not bad—using Wind Release to amplify the impact of oil, then igniting it with Fire Release. Once the flames touch the oil anywhere on the body, the fire spreads instantly. If you don't deal with it properly, extinguishing it becomes extremely difficult."
Watching the raging flames, Ash narrowed his eyes. He had to admit that Jiraiya's ninjutsu was highly practical.
"Sage Art: Water Release!"
Ash rapidly formed hand seals. A high-pressure water column erupted from his mouth, surging forward like a cannon blast. Empowered by natural energy, it smashed into the self-propelled flames at terrifying speed.
"Bah! Bah! Bah! Bah! Bah! Bah!"
The instant the scalding fire collided with the water column, a shrill screech echoed through the battlefield—the sound of water evaporating under extreme heat. Yet, to everyone's surprise, Ash's Water Release was actually holding its ground against Jiraiya's oil-fed flames.
Once ignited, oil fire was notoriously hard to extinguish. Even water struggled against it. Under normal circumstances, Ash's technique should have been overwhelmed already.
But it wasn't.
"As expected… after entering the Curse Mark state, ninjutsu power increases by more than a level. Even chakra consumption becomes negligible. This really is worthy of being called pseudo-immortality."
Ash felt the endless stream of natural energy flowing through his body, and his heart grew calm and confident.
Normally, activating a Curse Mark required one's own chakra, and maintaining it drained chakra continuously. That was why, in the original records, even Curse Mark users couldn't stay in that state for long.
However, after absorbing the Yin chakra of the Nine-Tails, Ash's chakra reserves had become terrifyingly vast. Maintaining the Curse Mark for an entire day was no longer an issue.
Moreover, Jūgo's Curse Mark was fundamentally incomplete. Without exceptional chakra control, one couldn't properly regulate the sudden influx of natural energy, leading to berserk transformations.
In essence, the first stage of the Curse Mark was comparable to Sage Mode, while the second stage was an advanced evolution—allowing partial bodily transformation through natural energy and granting overwhelming power.
"Mangekyō—Amaterasu."
Staring at the stalemate between water and oil fire, Ash maintained his ninjutsu. He slowly closed his right eye, then snapped it open.
A pitch-black flame suddenly ignited at the center of the clash.
In an instant, the oil fire was swallowed whole.
"What… is that black flame?! A Mangekyō dōjutsu?!"
Jiraiya's pupils shrank as he stepped back instinctively. His ninjutsu collapsed the moment his concentration broke.
"Sage Mode greatly enhances perception, reaction speed, mental power, recovery, and ninjutsu output. That means the next attack will come without warning…"
Ash understood Sage Mode very well—after all, he was using it himself. Finding a breakthrough wasn't difficult.
And as for speed—
Even Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash, could barely outpace Ash now.
"Body Flicker Technique!"
The ground beneath Ash shattered.
His figure vanished.
"Damn it—be careful! This kid can keep up with even Minato's space-time movement! Maintain constant perception!"
Jiraiya shouted as he desperately extended his sensory range.
BOOM!
WHOOSH!!!
"Gah—!"
Despite sensing the attack, Jiraiya's body couldn't react in time. Ash's kick slammed into his waist, launching him like a cannonball through several buildings.
"So this is payback for your last attack."
Ash spoke calmly—and vanished again.
In the next instant, he appeared behind the airborne Jiraiya.
"Water Release!"
Suddenly, Shima, the Toad Sage perched on Jiraiya's shoulder, formed seals and fired a high-pressure water column straight at Ash.
"I almost forgot about you two… using my own technique against me?"
Ash smirked—and his body blurred.
As he entered a space-time intangibility state, the water column passed straight through him. Shima's ninjutsu caused no harm at all.
"Cough! Cough!"
Jiraiya finally came to a stop after crashing into a wooden house. Smoke billowed into the air as he dropped to one knee, coughing violently. Dark blood splattered onto the ground twice as he struggled to breathe.
"Tch… I'm fine," Jiraiya said hoarsely. "Luckily, Sage Mode's recovery is strong. Otherwise, that single hit would've shattered a few bones."
He steadied himself and lifted his gaze toward Ash, standing not far away. Only now did Jiraiya truly realize how terrifying the gap between them had become.
"I didn't expect it… not this much."
"What—?!"
"Ahhh!!"
"Help—!!"
"A monster!!"
At the same time, chaos erupted from Gengar's direction.
Under the eerie glow of Confuse Ray, civilians and shinobi alike descended into complete disorder. Unlike illusions, Confuse Ray didn't trap the mind—it directly induced dizziness, scrambling one's sense of direction and balance.
As the affected crowd staggered aimlessly, Gengar slowly clenched both fists.
A massive spectral fist materialized around them.
In the next instant, Gengar vanished like a phantom—reappearing amid the confused targets as the gigantic fist slammed down mercilessly.
Shadow Punch.
One after another, figures were sent flying through the air, screams echoing across the battlefield as Gengar tore through the disoriented group with ruthless precision.
(End of Chapter)
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