Jiraiya roared in anger, successfully summoning Gamabunta, and stood on Gamabunta's head, quickly pouncing forward.
Just as the cold sword tip was about to pierce Naruto's body—"Clang!"
A sound of metal striking stone.
The incomparably sharp kusanagi sword directly struck the Sage Cloak covering Naruto's body.
The sword's edge clashed and rubbed against the Sage Cloak, emitting a harsh metallic scraping sound and the sizzling of energy annihilation, sending up a trail of dazzling sparks.
But, it failed to pierce!
And that wasn't all!
The moment the kusanagi sword reached him, Naruto's left hand shot out like a predator's talons, covered in golden Chakra so condensed it seemed solid, and with incredible precision, he firmly gripped the kusanagi sword's cold and sharp blade!
"Clang—!!!"
A crisp, ear-piercing clang of metal echoed across the battlefield!
"H-how... how is that possible?"
Orochimaru's smile instantly froze.
Through the sensation transmitted by the kusanagi sword, Orochimaru was absolutely certain—the sword had been grabbed!
It had been grabbed by the opponent's bare hand!!
Moreover, the power emanating from that palm was like an iron clamp, not moving an inch.
Orochimaru was in a dilemma, unable to make the kusanagi sword advance or retreat even a hair's breadth!
"Why is this happening?"
"The kusanagi sword is the sharpest Ninja tool in the world! Even the old man's Enma, with its Vajra body, wouldn't dare to touch the kusanagi sword casually. How dare that Nine-Tailed Fox brat grab it with his bare hands!?"
Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils constricted to pinpricks due to extreme shock, and a colossal wave surged in his heart.
"Orochimaru, since you're offering such a treasure, then—"
"Let go!!"
Naruto roared.
His left hand, gripping the kusanagi sword, yanked it violently towards himself!
The hundred-meter-long kusanagi sword, like a rope in a tug-of-war, was forcefully pulled to Naruto's side with an unstoppable force.
No.
This couldn't even be called a tug-of-war, because the "player" on the other side—Orochimaru—couldn't resist Naruto's immense power at all.
His mouth, biting the kusanagi sword, was almost ripped out, teeth and all, as if he were biting the tail of a giant dragon.
"Stretch, stretch, stretch."
Orochimaru could only rely on his will to continuously lengthen the kusanagi sword, thereby counteracting Naruto's pulling force.
"Still not letting go? In that case, I'll make you let go of your mouth!"
Naruto flicked the kusanagi sword away with a finger, transforming into a golden lightning bolt, soaring into the air, and shooting towards Orochimaru, who stood atop Manda's head.
At the same time, his right foot, covered in golden Chakra, swept out like a battle-axe, tearing through the air with a shriek, aiming fiercely at Orochimaru's head, which had extended due to his sneak attack.
"Another kick-shot?"
"What does this Nine-Tailed Fox brat take my head for? A football!!"
Orochimaru's dynamic vision captured Naruto, his pupils violently constricting, and numerous thoughts flashed through his mind.
That time in the Death Forest.
Just now, when he ambushed Tsunade.
And this time.
Three times in total, his head had been used as a football by Naruto.
Orochimaru even suspected Naruto had developed an addiction to kicking it.
"Damn it!!"
Orochimaru's face changed drastically.
Too fast! Too close! No time to react at all!
He could only barely extend it a little, avoiding the vital points.
"Boom—"
A muffled thud of an air wall being kicked apart!
Naruto's whip-kick, imbued with terrifying monstrous strength, directly kicked through the sonic boom cloud, solidly sweeping Orochimaru's neck.
Orochimaru's pale head, with its expression of horror, instantly separated from his body under the impact of the terrifying force.
Like a football powerfully shot, it spun, trailing a dark red line of blood, and flew high into the distant ruins!
"Thud!"
The headless body fell from Manda's head like a broken sack, landing on the scorched earth, twitching a few times before becoming still.
"Hiss—!?"
Manda looked at the headless corpse that had suddenly fallen from its head, and the head that had flown away, its gigantic snake pupils filled with bewilderment and a hint of—...absurdity?
One of the legendary Sannin, Orochimaru, renowned throughout the Ninja World, whose strength surpassed most Ninja, had his head kicked off?
Naruto didn't even glance at the headless body. After kicking Orochimaru's head away, his right hand had already firmly grasped the still humming and vibrating kusanagi sword.
The hundred-meter-long kusanagi sword, losing Orochimaru's support, quickly shortened, and the brown-scaled poisonous snake pulled from Orochimaru's mouth was casually crushed by Naruto.
He casually pulled this legendary divine weapon from the snake's mouth, shook off the mucus, and then threw it into the [item bar] like trash.
Orochimaru could control the kusanagi sword like "sword-riding," but now that the kusanagi sword was in the [item bar], no matter how great his abilities were, he couldn't control it anymore.
Naruto turned his head, his gaze coldly sweeping towards Orochimaru's head, which had rolled a few times in the distant ruins, covered in dust, and finally stopped.
The golden snake pupils on that head were still rotating, filled with extreme venom, disbelief, and a hint of—terror.
He looked at Naruto, his mouth opening and closing, seemingly wanting to say something, but only able to emit a whooshing sound of air.
"Nine-Tailed Fox brat—" "Get lost."
Naruto snorted coldly, the golden-red Chakra on his body slowly receding, revealing a face stained with a little snake blood and dust, but his clear blue eyes remained sharp as blades, "If you dare to provoke Granny Tsunade again, next time it won't be your head I kick to pieces, but your snake eggs!"
As if responding to Naruto's threat, Orochimaru's head quickly deflated like a punctured ball. Countless tiny white snakes, like maggots, frantically swarmed out from inside his head, quickly burrowing into the cracks and shadows of the ruins, disappearing from sight.
Only a pool of dark red blood and a few shattered snake scales remained on the spot.
Manda, seeing that Orochimaru had fled, then looked at the golden-haired youth who stood in mid-air like a demon god, without needing any flying apparatus or Ninja beasts. For the first time, its gigantic snake pupils showed an emotion called "fear."
It let out an unwilling but clearly fearful hiss, its massive body preparing to dispel the summoning on its own, wanting to leave the scene and escape back to Ryuchi Cave.
Just then.
A shadow covered its head. A shining, snow-cold short sword, reflecting the orange light of the setting sun, plunged straight down from mid-air, instantly piercing through Manda's massive snake head, firmly pinning both its upper and lower jaws to the ground.
"Manda, are you trying to escape? Don't dream about it, just stay and keep me company! Croak—!"
With a loud "bang," Gamabunta, with a giant pipe in his mouth, bandages around his waist, and wearing a short jacket, descended from the sky. He gripped the giant short sword with both hands, piercing Manda's snake head, and his massive body also rode on Manda's vital seven-inch spot.
"Gamabunta, oil!"
Before Manda could struggle and writhe, Jiraiya, standing on Gamabunta's head, immediately used the Fire Release combo technique with Gamabunta—Gamayudan—spraying it onto Manda's long snake body.
Adding fuel to the fire, it burned more and more fiercely, directly turning Manda, whose body was even larger than Gamabunta's, into a giant sea of fire.