Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
"Summoning Technique!"
As the three plumes of white smoke dissipated, three colossal beasts stood facing the Giant Salamander from a distance: they were Gamabunta, Manda, and Katsuyu.
At this moment, Gamabunta looked slightly younger, probably resembling how Naruto's summoned Gamakichi appeared during the Fourth Great Ninja War in the original story.
Katsuyu hadn't changed much, but her size was slightly smaller, which was related to Tsunade not having fully matured yet.
At this time, Manda had not yet become the leader of the summoned snake clan, but his attitude was still arrogant. "Orochimaru! I want 100 sacrifices this time, or I'll eat you!" His long, purple body writhed on the ground, kicking up gusts of air.
"No problem, but your opponent is that guy." Orochimaru's expression was displeased; being threatened by his own summoned beast, while not a first, was still quite embarrassing.
Manda let out a cold snort and looked toward the Giant Salamander across from him, which was more than twice his size. His eyes sharpened. This deal was definitely a loss.
Hanzou, standing atop the Giant Salamander's head, looked down upon the three top Ninja of the new generation. A hint of admiration was in his eyes, but this wasn't enough to make him hold back; he also thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of crushing a genius.
"Attack! Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Hanzou's throat swelled, and he instantly spat a massive water sphere from his mouth toward Tsunade and the two others. The Giant Salamander quickly burrowed underground, leaving a huge black crater behind.
"Bunta, use oil!"
"Got it, just don't complain that it's too hot for your mouth." Jiraiya looked rather embarrassed, but his hand signs were quick. His cheeks puffed out as he breathed fire, combining it with the oil spat out by Gamabunta, shouting loudly: "Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb!"
The massive flame, created by the combination of oil and Fire Release, rapidly collided with the water sphere.
Boom!
The fierce high-temperature collision caused the water to instantly vaporize into steam, spreading everywhere, seemingly forming a barrier of dense white mist.
"Tsunade, watch out!" Orochimaru yelled sharply at Tsunade, pushing off the ground and swiftly rushing toward her.
Tsunade, having received Orochimaru's warning, suddenly felt a needle-like sensation behind her. Without time to turn around, she slammed her Super Strength Fist forcefully backward.
Bang! Hanzou, holding his sickle, was repelled. He shook his slightly numb arm. "As expected, you pose the greatest threat to me."
In terms of Ninjutsu, Hanzou was confident that the three Ninja before him could not compare to him. Only this woman's Super Strength made him wary, which is why he attacked her first.
"Damn it! Don't underestimate me!" Being targeted first by Hanzou—didn't that imply she was the weakest of the three, meant to be eliminated first before dealing with the other two troublesome opponents?
Tsunade, underestimated by her opponent, tightly clenched her reddened fists, her anger gauge maxed out. She used a Body Flicker and Super Strength Fist to knock Hanzou flying again. Before Hanzou could hit the ground, she flashed into the sky. "It's not over yet! Take this, Heel Drop!"
Poof! The sickle was instantly kicked away. Hanzou didn't have time to dodge, and his chest was immediately shattered by the kick. Before Tsunade could show delight, the Hanzou in front of her 'splashed' and dissolved into scattered water droplets.
Water Clone! A bad premonition surged in her heart! Tsunade instinctively brought her arm up to block.
Bang!
Hanzou appeared behind Tsunade and kicked her away, landing her on Katsuyu's back.
"Oh? An instinctive defense? That sensitivity is sharp." Having failed to land the hit, Hanzou was not discouraged. He slowly said, "But this strike, let's see how you block it. Sword Technique: Flash!"
Catching the sickle that was slowly falling through the air, Hanzou instantly flashed in front of Tsunade. The sickle, representing death, was coated in potent poison; a mere graze could take a life.
The feeling of death enveloped Tsunade's heart. She couldn't dodge this strike, and she was about to brace her body to take the hit when—
A phantom-like figure used a Body Flicker, kicked Hanzou away, and landed next to Tsunade.
"She is not alone," Orochimaru said coldly.
The battle looked fierce but had only lasted a few seconds. Orochimaru had finally arrived in time to save Tsunade.
Hanzou, having been kicked away, quickly stabilized his posture, brushed off his sleeve, and gave a contemptuous smile. Before he could speak, a shout came from nearby.
"That's right! She isn't fighting you alone! Ninja Art: Lion's Mane Hair Technique!" Jiraiya had somehow closed the distance to Hanzou's side. His white hair rapidly extended, tightly coiling around Hanzou's body.
Jiraiya urgently shouted to the two of them: "Now! Hurry!"
Orochimaru and Tsunade naturally knew this was a rare opportunity. The moment Jiraiya bound Hanzou—
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
"Heel Drop!"
The two struck Hanzou simultaneously from different directions. With a loud crash!
"Did we succeed?" Jiraiya retracted his white hair and asked with a solemn expression.
"No, the feeling is wrong. It didn't feel like hitting a human body." Tsunade's face was ashen. She had nearly been struck by Hanzou just now; although it wouldn't have been fatal, it would have left her incapable of fighting.
As the white hair retracted, only a puddle of water remained on the ground. Another Water Clone!
So where was Hanzou? The Three Ninja quickly became wary of their surroundings. Due to the pervasive steam, visibility was poor, and the surrounding area had very low sightlines.
Not around, not above... it was below!
With a rumble! The ground rapidly split open, and an enormous Giant Salamander burst from the earth, slamming directly into Katsuyu. With a bang, Katsuyu instantly fractured, scattering into countless small Katsuyu that fled in all directions.
Katsuyu's combat ability was truly terrible, or rather, she was completely unsuited for battle, but her ability to survive was truly outrageous.
Not good!
Katsuyu was dispersed by the impact, and the three of them didn't have time to react, falling from the air.
A blade flash shimmered up from below. Without a foothold in the air, this strike would be very difficult to evade!
Slash! A bone-deep cut appeared on Tsunade's back. Dark green poison rapidly corroded the wound, and the skin and flesh visibly blackened.
Tsunade landed on the ground, barely supporting herself. Her face was pale. Gritting her teeth, she quickly cleaned the toxins from the wound, tore off a piece of her sleeve, and performed a simple bandage to stop the bleeding.
"Tsunade, are you alright? How bad is it?" Jiraiya immediately rushed to Tsunade's side after landing, his expression tense and angry. He had been completely unable to save Tsunade while they were airborne. Looking at her pale face, his heart filled with rage.
"I'm fine, I can still fight." Tsunade recovered slightly, calming her expression. She could fully withstand this level of injury.
Orochimaru stared coldly at Hanzou, slowly analyzing: "First, he used the steam generated by the Water Release and Fire Release to obscure his movements, then created two Water Clones to confuse us, while he himself hid inside the Giant Salamander and went underground to wait for an opportunity. Truly worthy of Hanzou; he is extremely cautious."
"You are not bad either. To withstand several of my attacks and not die is something you can be proud of." A cold, heavy metallic sound came from his mask, extremely grating.
"Tsunade, Katsuyu is not suited for combat. Have her disperse to support the other Ninja, leaving just one behind to relay information." Orochimaru shouted to Tsunade.
"Then the Giant Salamander..."
"Leave that ugly thing to us. I'm going to slice it up and boil it for dinner!" Gamabunta's massive body leaped forward, two plumes of white air puffing from his nostrils.
Manda also flicked his crimson tongue and charged toward the Giant Salamander. They hadn't been able to help at all in the previous fighting, and they were genuinely furious.
"Hee hee hee, then let us properly confront this 'Demigod' of the Ninja World next."
"Tsunade, don't underestimate your enemy again."
"Idiot! Mind your own business!"
At this moment, Uzumaki Lin Yu had arrived on the battlefield, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan fixed intently on the fighting Ninja.