"That evil dragon seems completely immune to poison. You must be very careful. Let me kill the boy on the dragon's head first. Then the other side won't be able to cause any more trouble."
Hanzō of the Salamander directly stated his plan. He had already set his sights on Ryun.
Facing the oncoming giant salamander, the Black Dragon did not hesitate at all and charged forward to meet it.
"Demigod huh..."
Looking at Hanzō standing atop the giant salamander's head, Ryun appeared extremely solemn.
"Jiraiya, never mind the others for now. Hanzō is targeting Ryun. We need to get over there quickly."
After shouting this, Orochimaru jumped onto the river surface. Then without paying attention to Manda who was locked in fierce combat with the salamanders, he rushed straight toward Ryun's location.
"Gamatatsu, I leave the salamanders to you. I need to join them in stopping Hanzō." Jiraiya yelled loudly, then immediately jumped onto the river surface and charged at Hanzō.
"Damn you Jiraiya... I can't handle this alone..." Gamatatsu couldn't help but curse loudly.
Even though he was one of the great toads of Mount Myōboku, facing these poisonous salamanders was still a headache.
As a poisonous creature, the giant toad had some resistance to the salamander's toxic mist, but unlike the Black Dragon, it could not completely neutralize the poison.
And it wasn't just him. Not far away, Manda couldn't either...
The salamander's poison might not be fatal to them, but that didn't mean it was completely ineffective. Once poisoned, they would still suffer paralyzing symptoms.
"Water Release. Exploding Water Shock Wave."
Standing atop the giant black salamander's head, Hanzō rapidly formed hand seals, then unleashed a powerful water release jutsu.
A massive wave formed beneath the giant salamander's feet, lifting it as it slammed fiercely toward the ferocious dragon.
The coordination between man and beast actually seemed to overwhelm the Black Dragon in terms of momentum at first glance.
"Roar..."
Seeing the approaching duo riding the waves, the Black Dragon let out another deafening roar. In the next instant, it violently whipped its tail against the river surface, releasing its senjutsu chakra.
A huge bubble suddenly bulged beneath its feet. The Black Dragon was lifted high by the bubble-like wave, then crashed headlong into the oncoming giant salamander.
As a dragon, even without Ryun using jutsu to assist it, the Black Dragon could summon massive floods at any time to counter Hanzō's techniques.
Boom.
Two towering walls of water dozens of meters high collided instantly. The tremendous noise carried far into the distance. But the two giant water beasts ignored the impact, immediately engaging in brutal close-quarters combat.
The deadly sharp horns stabbed toward the black salamander's head. However, at the critical moment, the salamander swiftly ducked to evade, then bit down hard on the Black Dragon's body.
At the last second, the Black Dragon's claws grabbed the salamander's head. Terrifying strength instantly pierced through the salamander's tough skin, digging into its flesh.
But due to the salamander's massive momentum, the Black Dragon was also knocked over. The two giant summoned beasts crashed violently into the turbulent river.
Ryun and Hanzō leaped high into the air during the collision. The chakra blade and chain sickle clashed instantly.
Neither had the ability to fly, so the clash was brief. But as they separated, Hanzō forcefully swung his chain, sending the weighted end hurtling toward Ryun's head.
This move was incredibly fast. But under the Three Tomoe Sharingan's perception, it held little threat. Ryun twisted his blade, precisely blocking the chain's weighted tip with the flat of his sword.
Clang.
The metallic clang rang out as Ryun was sent flying back by the tremendous force. However, he quickly stabilized himself, skidding across the water's surface to disperse the impact.
Just as he steadied himself, Hanzō instantly vanished before reappearing right in front of him with absurd speed.
"So fast."
His Three Tomoe Sharingan barely tracked the movement. At the last possible moment, he raised his sword to block the descending sickle.
The extreme speed generated terrifying force. Even though Ryun blocked the lethal strike, the impact sent him flying back over a hundred meters.
At this stage, his physical strength remained his greatest weakness. After all, he was only twelve years old. Fundamentally still just a child, his physique couldn't compare to a peak shinobi like the Demigod.
"Die."
Not giving Ryun a chance to recover, Hanzō of the Salamander charged forward, his deadly sickle slashing down mercilessly.
His methods were swift, his techniques ruthless. It was clear he was going all out to eliminate Ryun, the dragon summoner, as quickly as possible.
Facing Hanzō's relentless assault, Ryun found himself barely able to defend, with no opportunity to form hand seals or employ other techniques.
'The ultimate skill lies in speed' was no empty saying.
Clang.
Another metallic clang sounded as Ryun blocked the attack by holding his sword horizontally across his chest. But the tremendous force smashed him deep into the riverbed.
"Ninja Art. Hidden Shadow Snake Hands."
Orochimaru finally arrived, summoning a swarm of venomous snakes that lunged at Hanzō.
Hanzō retreated a step to evade the snakes, then swung his chakra sickle, slicing them all apart.
"Fire Release. Great Flame Bullet."
A massive fireball hurtled toward Hanzō. Jiraiya had also arrived.
"Body Flicker Technique."
With a simple Body Flicker, Hanzō easily dodged the fireball. But this allowed the two sides to temporarily disengage.
Orochimaru plunged one hand into the river, using his snake hands to fish Ryun out.
"Cough..."
Ryun coughed out water, his expression toward Hanzō filled with wariness.
His palms were split open from the tremendous force, blood visibly dripping from his sword grip.
The legendary Demigod. Today he finally experienced firsthand how terrifying this opponent was.
After just a few exchanges, he had already been completely overwhelmed.
No wonder even the Sannin combined couldn't defeat the Demigod despite exhausting all means. Anyone bearing the title of 'God' was no simple foe.
"Are you alright."
Seeing the blood dripping from the boy's hands, Orochimaru asked quietly.
"I'm fine."
Green light glowed around Ryun's hands as he used Mystical Palm Technique while gripping his sword.
"No one can defeat him alone. Stick to the original plan. All three of us attack together."
"Watch your feet."
Jiraiya suddenly shouted.
From the churning river, two ferocious beasts burst through the water's surface, sending towering waves crashing down.
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