Jiraiya gasped with lingering fear, clutching his bleeding chest wound, unsure whether the liquid on his face was sweat or rain.
If he had reacted a second slower just now, he might have met his end there.
Their movements were impressively swift and crisp, without any hesitation, almost seamless.
"I thought it was some little mouse sneaking a peek, turns out it's Lord Jiraiya of the Konoha Sannin. May I ask what brings you here?"
The man in black, holding a scroll, smiled at Jiraiya with ease.
His face hidden under the shadow of a hood, his appearance was unclear.
But judging by the deep voice, he was an adult male.
"Nothing much, just out for a walk. Though, it's a bit unfair."
Jiraiya joked with a smile, seemingly unworried about the dire situation he was in.
"Unfair?"
"Because you all know me, but I don't know any of you, doesn't that seem quite unfair?"
Jiraiya stared intently at the five unidentified individuals before him.
"How forgetful of an esteemed person. On the battlefield in the Land of Grass, we must have crossed paths with your Konoha. But for someone like Lord Jiraiya of the Sannin, we were merely inconspicuous figures, so it's normal you wouldn't recognize our voices."
The man with the scroll lifted his hood, revealing a male face with messy white hair like Jiraiya.
The other four also removed the hats that covered their faces, though not extremely familiar, they weren't entirely unknown either.
After a brief recognition, Jiraiya exhaled deeply and his eyes grew more cautious.
"I see, it's the infamous Nokizaru Group. You are quite the regulars in the underground black market of the Ninja Realm."
The Nokizaru Group has rapidly emerged in the underground black market in recent years as a bounty hunter clan, engaged in various mercenary activities, especially closely collaborating with the Hidden Rock Village.
Dubbed by enthusiasts as 'Ninja hunters', every member possesses a unique secret technique of unknown origin, with bizarre capabilities, belonging to a deadly stream of specialized ninja techniques.
Since debuting as bounty hunters, they've achieved a task completion rate exceeding ninety-five percent, rarely failing.
Over two years ago, during the war between Konoha and Hidden Rock in the Land of Grass, the Nokizaru Group was frequently hired by Hidden Rock to raid Konoha's supply points, causing significant losses to Konoha at the time.
For such mercenary groups engaged in destructive actions throughout the Ninja Realm, Jiraiya naturally harbors no goodwill.
A bunch of ruthless executioners, aware only of killing, with no sense of justice.
"Since you're here, I guess you're planning something nefarious again?"
"Taking money, solving troubles for others, it's our proud capital in the underground black market."
The Insect Man chuckled.
"Seems there's no way to negotiate peacefully."
Regrettably, Jiraiya said.
"Don't speak so grandly, as ninjas of the Five Great Nations, you're essentially killer groups raised by the Daimyos, no different from us. The difference is you have greater power, so you are deemed righteous."
Upon hearing the Insect Man's cold words, Jiraiya was about to rebut when one opponent started forming hand seals:
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bomb Jutsu!"
A ten-meter-long water dragon emerged, soared into the sky, then descended towards Jiraiya's position.
Jiraiya continued to retreat and started forming his own seals.
"Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!"
The ground under the Insect Man's group immediately destabilized, instantly transforming into a bottomless swamp, intending to swallow their bodies.
"Now if you surrender, there's still time—"
Before Jiraiya could finish his sentence, the Earth Man among the five placed his palm on the swamp's surface, transmitting chakra.
The swamp quickly turned back into solid ground, disappearing.
Jiraiya's expression grew serious.
Chakra was infused to alter his jutsu's characteristics.
This ability was indeed bizarre.
"Wake from your dream first. Even if you're one of the Sannin, alone you're not a match for us five combined."
The Insect Man spoke arrogantly, yet Jiraiya did not retort.
Facing the five in unison, he felt the pressure.
If he wasn't careful, he might end up defeated here, needing to fight seriously.
Dodging the Fire and Water Style attacks while careful of sporadically emerging earthen spears, Jiraiya realized their teamwork was too seamless, offering him no respite or chance to counter.
"Fire Style: Flame Bomb!"
Finally finding an opening, Jiraiya spewed a scorching fireball towards the enemies.
The Earth Man promptly raised an earthen wall in front, blocking the fireball.
This was within Jiraiya's expectations, swiftly using Instantaneous Body Jutsu to escape the range of the Water and Fire Style attacks, and began forming seals.
The Insect Man recognized the sealing sequence as that of Summoning Jutsu, intending to summon a giant toad into the battle.
If such a creature was summoned, it would indeed make the battle troublesome.
But, you're already within my attack range, the Insect Man thought.
While forming seals, Jiraiya suddenly felt a stinging pain in his eyes.
The scene of the grayish rainy surroundings, centered around the Insect Man, was illuminated with bright hues, accompanied by hoarse noise, and the images of rain and forest vanished from sight, as Jiraiya felt a chilling sensation flow from his eyes into his body.