WEEKLY POWER GOALS 💎🔥 30→2ch | 60→5ch | 100→8ch | 200→15ch | 400→25ch⏰ Resets Monday!
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"Bastard. Take one more step and I'll kill you!"
Tsunade spun around, her entire body tensed, eyes locked on Orochimaru.
She knew he wasn't just talking. This guy would actually do it.
"Oro… Orochimaru…"
As the two argued, Jiraiya, who had been unconscious and grievously wounded, finally stirred. He struggled to lift his arm, raised two fingers, and slowly flashed Orochimaru a weak, bloody V-sign.
"???" Orochimaru stared, dumbfounded.
"You won't do it, Orochimaru."
A slight smirk tugged at Tsunade's lips. "Jiraiya trusts you from the bottom of his heart. That trust alone is enough to stay your hand."
"Tch. How tedious…"
Orochimaru gritted his teeth, the kunai in his hand trembling slightly. He raised it again… but his legs felt like they were cast in lead. No matter how hard he willed it, he couldn't take that step forward.
BOOM! RUMBLE—CRACK!
Just as Orochimaru was locked in indecision, the mountain cave they were in suddenly began to shake violently. The earth itself seemed to roll over. A deafening roar filled the air.
The ground trembled. Stones cracked and rained down.
Orochimaru casually backhanded a falling boulder aside. Through a newly formed crack in the collapsing mountain wall, he looked out. The view outside was filled with Iwa-nin—dozens of them in their brown uniforms and earth-yellow flak jackets.
They didn't seem interested in searching for the Sannin. Instead, they were acting in unison, their hands slamming into the ground. Earth Release: Earth Splitting Palm. Their goal was clear: to bring the entire mountainside down on top of them.
"Tch. I told you to make a choice sooner." Orochimaru pulled his gaze back, turning a cold eye on Tsunade. "Now look. All three of us are going to die here."
"How… how did this happen…"
Tsunade bit her lip hard, silver teeth grinding. The sheer number of Iwa-nin outside made despair flood her face.
A rough estimate put them at no less than twenty full squads.
If all three Sannin were at their peak, handling this would be troublesome, but possible. Retreating intact would have been an option. But now…
Tsunade clenched her fists. A cold dread seeped into her bones. Helplessness coiled around her heart.
The last time she'd felt this hopeless was facing the demigod of their era—Hanzō of the Salamander. Then, as now, victory seemed like a distant, impossible dream.
"It's my fault. If not for saving me, you wouldn't be trapped here." Jiraiya managed a bitter laugh from the ground.
"What's the use of saying that now?" Orochimaru shot him a sidelong glance, his voice icy. "Focus on how we're getting out of this."
"Look out! Enemy attack!"
"Get them!"
Just as the three were at a loss, chaos erupted outside. The orderly rows of Iwa-nin performing their earth jutsu suddenly broke into disarray.
"What's going on?"
The three exchanged glances and looked out again.
A group of Konoha shinobi, clad in black combat gear and green flak jackets, tore through the Iwa formation like a sharpened blade.
At their head was a brown-haired boy, charging forward while whooping. "Sis! Orochimaru-sensei! Jiraiya-nii-san! We're here to save you!"
"Reinforcements… Reinforcements are here!"
Relief washed over Tsunade's face. None of them had to die. No one had to be left behind.
"That's…!"
Jiraiya's pupils contracted. His gaze was riveted not on Nawaki, but on the black-haired boy running beside him.
A boy with a medical kit, sprinting across the battlefield. He will bring to the shinobi world unprecedented destruction… or peace.
Jiraiya stared, the Great Toad Sage's prophecy echoing once more in his mind.
"Could it be him?" Jiraiya murmured.
He was becoming obsessed. The prophecy had gotten under his skin. He felt his entire life's purpose was to find this so-called Child of Prophecy and guide him. Nothing else mattered.
In all the world, Jiraiya was probably the only person who would willingly reverse-summon himself to his summons just to help them out.
"But… is that kid really a medic-nin?"
After watching for a moment, Jiraiya wasn't so sure.
The kid had a chakra scalpel in hand. He was stabbing hearts with pinpoint accuracy. Not a hint of hesitation. Brutally efficient. Was this really a life-saving medic?
…His level of violence felt on par with Tsunade's!
"Nawaki-kun! Danger! I'm coming!"
Orochimaru watched Nawaki plunge deep into the enemy ranks. His pale face twisted with worry.
Nawaki-kun. I will not let you fall into danger again!
With a swish, Orochimaru leapt from the cave opening. He shot toward Nawaki, arms windmilling in a motion that was, somehow, perfectly scientific.
"Cough… In all my life, I've never seen Orochimaru's face make so many expressions." Jiraiya clicked his tongue in amazement.
"Shut up, Jiraiya."
Tsunade didn't join the fight, even though she was desperately worried about Nawaki and Chiba. Jiraiya, in his current state, needed her protection right here.
"The Sannin are over there!"
Orochimaru's charge had revealed their position. A dozen Iwa-nin immediately broke off, charging toward the cave.
THUMP! THUMP!
Tsunade planted herself in the cave entrance. Two punches. Two Iwa-nin who'd lunged first were sent flying to meet their ancestors.
The monstrous strength of the Senju wasn't a joke. They could focus chakra with pinpoint precision, releasing it in a single, explosive instant—shattering solid rock. A human body was far more fragile.
"We're here, Tsunade-sama!"
Under the cover of Kosuke's masterful water jutsu and Orochimaru's overwhelming assault, Chiba, Nawaki, and Nonō finally broke through the enemy lines and scrambled into the cave.
"Tsunade-sama, please leave Jiraiya-sama to me!"
The moment he entered, Chiba's eyes locked onto the prone form of Jiraiya.
Points! Points! POINTS!
Chiba's eyes practically glowed. He saw only the injured Jiraiya, completely ignoring Tsunade who stood nearby, arms slightly raised as if for a hug.
"Heh, Sis, you always said you hated mushy stuff." The clueless Nawaki, seeing his sister's open arms, happily gave her a tight hug. He then grinned a cheeky grin. "Women really are tsundere, huh?"
"Mmph! Sis, ease up!"
Tsunade didn't reply. She just silently increased the pressure of her hug, nearly squeezing the life out of her little brother.
"Let me help, too." Nonō, who had followed them all this way, spoke up.
Known as the Wandering Shrine Maiden, Nonō was highly skilled in medical ninjutsu. If not for Danzō's threats, she would have chosen to be a medic-nin.
"Sis, let Chiba and the others handle Jiraiya-nii-san. Let's you and me go kick some ass!" Nawaki said brightly.
"This…" Tsunade hesitated.
She glanced at Kosuke. Only when the old man gave her a slight, confident nod did she relax. She trusted Chiba's skills. She trusted Kosuke's strength implicitly.
"Alright. Let's go!"
Before leaving the cave, Tsunade shot one last look back at Chiba. He and Nonō were already shoulder-to-shoulder, hands almost touching as they began treating Jiraiya.
Damn it. I'm so pissed!
Tsunade's anger spiked. She took a heavy step forward. CRUNCH. The solid rock floor beneath her foot cracked into a spiderweb pattern.
"Nawaki." Tsunade's voice was dangerously calm as they charged into the fray, fighting back-to-back. "Who is that woman with Chiba?"
"Oh, her?" Nawaki cut down an Iwa-nin with a swing of his blade, then shrugged. "Who else? Chiba's little girlfriend, I guess."
After Chiba touched her, she chased him all this way, probably wants him to take responsibility. That's what Nawaki figured. Why else would a member of the Intelligence Division, mission complete, not report back but follow them onto a battlefield?
THWUMP.
Tsunade threw a punch. Her expression was blank. An Iwa-nin's head exploded.
Watching the skull shatter like a watermelon, a chill shot straight up Nawaki's spine.
What's wrong with Sis? What's she so pissed about now?
Completely baffled, Nawaki muttered under his breath, "Women are so troublesome. Chiba's way easier to deal with…"
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