The moment Naruto summoned Gamabunta, every gaze snapped toward them.
"Th-that's… that's Jiraiya-sama's summon." Kurenai covered her mouth, eyes wide.
The rest of the rookies stared in disbelief at Naruto standing atop Gamabunta's head.
"Is that… really Naruto?"
Sakura took a step back, eyes round, whispering to herself.
Standing a little behind Naruto, Sasuke clenched his fist, a flicker of frustration in his eyes. Naruto, you've gotten stronger again.
He didn't know when it started, but Naruto's growth had begun to outpace his own. Even so, on instinct, Sasuke still treated Naruto like the former dead-last.
This scene forced him to admit it—Naruto had already surpassed him without him noticing.
"Too weak."
Sasuke lifted his head to the Konoha burning in war, and the thought surfaced unbidden.
Meanwhile, Gamabunta's huge face twitched stiffly as he took in the field.
"Boss Toad!"
On Gamabunta's crown, Naruto shouted in excitement.
"Kid, you are in deep trouble."
Gamabunta's eyelids jumped as he rumbled at Naruto.
Naruto blinked, not getting what he meant.
Because of Gamabunta's sheer size, he didn't just draw every eye—he instantly drew Shukaku's.
"Finally, something interesting instead of fleas!"
Shukaku let out a wild laugh, slapped his belly, and aimed his maw at Gamabunta.
Fūton: Renkūdan (Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet)!
A massive wind shell blasted forth—but Gamabunta didn't even dodge.
Not because he didn't want to—he simply had almost no stamina left.
Sand, Mist, plus the Six-Tails and the One-Tail… this is a full-on attempt to break Konoha.
Gamabunta sighed inwardly.
"Boss Toad! Dodge!"
Seeing the attack barreling in, Naruto yelled.
"Brat, if I weren't running on fumes right now, I'd swat you flat."
Gamabunta's voice went cold—and with the last word,
Poof!
Gamabunta vanished in a puff of smoke, returning to Mount Myōboku.
Naruto tumbled from where Gamabunta had been, barely slipping past Shukaku's strike.
He hit the ground, clutching his backside with a yelp.
Then, feeling a hundred eyes on him, he snapped his mouth shut; even his thick skin couldn't stop the flush on his cheeks.
Elsewhere, locked with Saiken, Jiraiya froze midair as Gamabunta suddenly disappeared.
Gamabunta would never return to Myōboku at such a critical instant. That left only one possibility.
"Naruto!!!"
Jiraiya's scream tore out of him.
Suspended midair, with no toad beneath his feet to step from, he couldn't even dodge—he could only watch himself hurtle toward the Bijūdama (Tailed Beast Bomb).
And at that moment, the Bijūdama fully formed.
Saiken had no intention of mercy for the airborne target. Its jaws tightened, and the bomb lanced forth.
So this is it!
Four bleak words flashed through Jiraiya's mind.
"Your scream is as grating as ever, Jiraiya."
A cool voice cut past his ear.
He glimpsed a flash of blonde—then a kick slammed into his gut, booting him out of the line of fire.
The roaring bomb skimmed by him and detonated on Konoha's outskirts with a colossal blast.
The land around the impact was flattened for a wide span.
Luckily, Sand had attacked from a more remote edge of the village. If that blast had hit the center, the losses would have been catastrophic.
Even so, people lived in those outskirts—no one within that radius would survive.
Clutching his aching stomach, Jiraiya pushed himself up and eyed the figure in front of him, grumbling under his breath,
"Even if you're saving me, you didn't have to kick that hard… Tsunade."
Tsunade turned, a look of disgust on her face. "Idiot. Playing tough when you're outmatched. If I hadn't kicked you, there wouldn't even be scraps left."
Jiraiya scratched his head, embarrassed, but a small warmth rose in his chest.
"That should be Mist's Six-Tails. I just got back—what happened? Are the Mist attacking Konoha?"
After a quick once-over confirming Jiraiya was only lightly hurt, Tsunade exhaled and spoke, face set.
"Worse than that. Not just Mist—Sand is here too. And Orochimaru is involved."
Jiraiya's fists tightened, his expression ugly.
Tsunade paused, then turned her gaze on Saiken, voice going ice-cold. "Whoever destroys the village Grandpa built—I won't spare a single one. Not even Orochimaru."
Boom!
Tsunade stamped down and blurred into a streak, charging Saiken.
Jiraiya moved a heartbeat behind her. He'd been about to enter Sage Mode—
but with the two of them together…
Their eyes hardened in unison. They barked out:
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!"
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!"
A colossal Katsuyu bloomed under Tsunade, and beneath Jiraiya rose another giant toad—this time not Gamabunta, but one of Mount Myōboku's senior bosses, Gamaken!
On Hokage Rock.
Hearing Ranmaru's report through the Red Eye, and seeing enough of it even from his vantage,
Yuto paused—then burst out laughing.
"As expected of the 'most unpredictable ninja.' Naruto's little stunt almost sent Jiraiya to the Pure Land."
"A blonde woman, huh? Looks like Tsunade came back early. That's a surprise."
"Shame. If not for Tsunade, Naruto would've saved me the trouble of one enemy."
He stopped laughing after a moment, but still shook his head with open regret.
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