Bab 183: Chapter 183: Injuring Hanzo
Minato looked at Tatsuma beside him in a daze. After a series of large-scale Ninjutsu, he noticed that Tatsuma's expression had become somewhat tired.
This rapid chakra depletion and the body's unconscious conversion of stamina into chakra were normal signs for a ninja, but what was abnormal was that Tatsuma's chakra had instantly become saturated again.
"Tatsuma, are you okay?" Minato asked with some concern. Tatsuma smiled and replied, "I'm fine for now."
The Eight Trigrams Seal formed by the Four Symbols Seal and the Double Four Symbols Seal are an extremely flexible Sealing Jutsu. It has a miraculous effect on energy sealing and can autonomously adjust the rate of energy leakage.
Tatsuma had partially released the Four Symbols Seal engraved on his arm by Uzumaki Mito. He didn't dare to fully release it, afraid of falling into a state dominated by emotions.
However, even if only a small opening of the seal was released, the dispersing tailed beast chakra quickly replenished Tatsuma's depleted chakra, and it even had a revitalizing effect on his body cells.
Although this strictly controlled flow of Nine-Tails chakra couldn't affect Tatsuma's current emotions, this chakra, unlike his own refined chakra, couldn't be freely manipulated. Still, it was a decent supplement.
Tatsuma reached into his pouch behind his waist and pulled out a small scroll, saying to Minato, "I can't use ninjutsu for the time being. I need to engage in close combat. Be careful."
To actively use the Nine-Tails' chakra and perform large-scale ninjutsu, Tatsuma couldn't do it yet. He needed a little time to adapt to this particularly energetic and subjectively active chakra.
Hearing this, Minato also drew out a kunai, nodding in agreement.
In fact, Minato was now more proficient in close combat. Deep in the heartland of the Land of Rain, his Fire Release and Wind Release would be greatly affected, while Lightning Release was his least proficient nature transformation technique.
And in comparison, his speed, which was already not inferior to that of a jonin, was his advantage. Coupled with the close combat skills he had honed over the years, his close-quarters threat on this battlefield was undoubtedly greater.
It was only earlier that he had to choose long-range attacks to complement Tatsuma's large-scale ninjutsu.
Seeing Minato was ready, Tatsuma quickly unsealed the scroll in his hand. The chakra short sword gifted by Sakumo Hatake fell into his hand.
The two exchanged a glance, and almost simultaneously, they unleashed their power and charged towards the distant Rain Ninja.
"Wind Release: Blade of Wind!"
Wind nature chakra overflowed from the chakra short sword, wrapping around the blade. The blade extended seemingly out of nowhere, slicing through several Rain Ninja directly.
With Tatsuma, who no longer needed to conserve chakra, the Blade of Wind technique ended directly without even a withdrawal motion. He swiftly leaped up and charged towards a Chunin from the Land of Rain.
"Water Release: Water Blade Slash!"
This time it was the gathering of Water Release chakra. Tatsuma descended from high altitude and swung down, the Rain Ninja hastily blocking with a ninjato, only to be easily cut through by the chakra short sword.
The blade, infused with Water Release chakra, sliced through the Rain Ninja's body. The Water Release chakra rapidly corroded the Rain Ninja's body, causing his blood to flow faster, resulting in severe blood loss, and he fell to the ground unable to rise.
Over a year ago, when facing ordinary Chunin, Tatsuma still needed to be cautious and might even need to use some traps to win. But now, he could go all out without much thought.
In terms of strength, speed, chakra quantity, and mastery of ninjutsu, Tatsuma had completely surpassed them.
Minato, not far away, was in a similar situation. Although his strength and chakra quantity were not as great as Tatsuma's, his speed was even faster, and it was an all-encompassing speed, not just in traveling.
Minato effortlessly dodged the combined attack of three Chunin from the Land of Rain, almost slipping through the cracks between ninja tools and ninjutsu. As he threw a kunai with his right hand, his left hand had already swept past his lower back.
Another kunai appeared in his left hand as he dashed between two Rain Ninja. His left hand flicked up, aiming for the throat of one Rain Ninja, while his right hand formed a chakra sphere, pressing it against the waist of another Rain Ninja.
"Rasengan!"
"Sizzle~ Boom!"
In an instant, three strikes were triggered simultaneously. In the next moment, Minato shifted his position again. As he attacked the next Rain Ninja, the two Rain Ninja who had their throats cut only just "reacted" and collapsed to the ground, leaving aside the one sent flying by Rasengan.
Orochimaru, who was battling Hanzo, caught sight of this scene in the brief moment, finally realizing what kind of ninjutsu Rasengan was. No seals, instant activation, extremely destructive! Even Orochimaru couldn't help but marvel at such a technique. He hadn't developed such an ultimate jutsu himself.
Jiraiya also felt envious. He lacked such a powerful close-range jutsu. While Mount Myoboku had the Frog Kata to compensate for close combat weaknesses, this jutsu required Sage Mode to be effective.
For Jiraiya, Sage Mode still seemed distant. He always struggled to quiet his mind to sense natural energy. There were several opportunities just now where he and Hanzo were close, but lacking a powerful close-range attack method, he couldn't inflict any damage on Hanzo, unlike Tsunade who had Enhanced Strength at least.
If he could learn Rasengan and then use Sage Mode to compensate for his weak Sensory abilities, Jiraiya felt he could become a ninja without any weaknesses.
He wondered how Sakamoto Tatsuma's mind worked, how could he be so clever? Why couldn't he think of such a powerful jutsu himself?
"Bang!"
Distracted, Jiraiya's hands suddenly couldn't keep up with the rhythm of the battle, and he was kicked hard in the ribs by Hanzo, causing his thick armor to dent deeply.
"Crack~"
Jiraiya's expression changed, not because of the pain, but because he knew what the impact of a broken rib in battle would be. They already needed to rely on teamwork to match Hanzo, and now, if he was injured due to distraction, the balance would tip.
Orochimaru and Tsunade also furrowed their brows tightly. Orochimaru released a large number of snakes to disrupt Hanzo's movements, while Tsunade used Body Flicker to appear next to Jiraiya, performing Medical Ninjutsu, and asking at the same time:
"Are you alright?"
"Not really."
Jiraiya's face turned somewhat pale. His ribs weren't just cracked, they seemed to be fractured and displaced. His breathing became difficult, and each breath was accompanied by intense pain.
"We don't have time for you to recover."
Tsunade said discontentedly, swiftly resetting Jiraiya's ribs. Although her hands could only reach inside his armor, the space to move was very narrow.
But as the best medical ninja and the owner of Enhanced Strength, Tsunade successfully restored Jiraiya's armor to its original state, making room to reset his ribs.
However, they couldn't afford to consider the other injuries caused by the fractured ribs at this time. Jiraiya nodded without saying much.
By now, Orochimaru could no longer restrict Hanzo, but thankfully, Tsunade, who had finished treating Jiraiya, arrived in time and drove Hanzo away.
Meanwhile, Katsuyu split into another form and crawled onto Jiraiya, working to stop the bleeding from his internal injuries. Jiraiya did his best to relax his body and let Katsuyu treat him.
Seeing this from afar, Tatsuma furrowed his brows and pressed his lips tightly together. That expression and demeanor of contemplating countless strategies reappeared on his face. After just a second of consideration, Tatsuma firmly said:
"I'll go help. Minato, you watch over the battlefield."
"Got it!"
Minato didn't hesitate. If he hadn't known his own limitations, he would have wanted to help too. But now, letting Tatsuma go was undoubtedly the most sensible choice.
Although there were other Jonin in the field with stronger overall abilities than Tatsuma, Ninja combat wasn't just about numerical comparison. Being stronger didn't necessarily mean being more suitable.
While Tatsuma's Body Flicker wasn't as fast as Minato's, it was still faster than most Ninja on the battlefield. He swiftly traversed the field, and while some Rain Ninja tried to stop him, they couldn't keep up, or they were intercepted by Konoha Ninja.
Seeing Tatsuma charging in, Tsunade's face showed a look of urgency, about to shout for him to retreat, but Hanzo had already noticed.
"Needle Jizo!"
"Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Just at the moment when Hanzo's attention shifted slightly, Jiraiya and Orochimaru, lying on the ground, seemed to have already realized it and began to unleash Ninjutsu.
Strands of silver hair emerged from the ground, entwining around Hanzo's legs, while snakes slithered out from Orochimaru's sleeves, tightly coiling around Hanzo.
Hanzo's face became serious as he erupted with strength and Chakra simultaneously, trying to break free. Seeing this, Tatsuma, who was not far away, didn't dare to delay.
"Bang!"
With Enhanced Strength erupting beneath his feet, a deep pit appeared, and Tatsuma's figure shot like an arrow towards Hanzo. A water vortex appeared on his right hand.
"Hard vortex Water Blade?!"
Hanzo's heart skipped a beat, his first reaction being to recall the representative Ninjutsu of Senju Tobirama, the Second Hokage, but he hadn't seen Tatsuma forming seals at all.
Just as he was suspicious, Tatsuma, with all his speed and strength unleashed, had already arrived above Hanzo's head. Ibuse, not far away, tried to rescue Hanzo, but was entangled by Bunta and Manda.
"Spiral: Heavy Water Strangulation Jutsu!"
Different from Senju Tobirama compressing water into rotating spears, Tatsuma's technique, in the moment of completion, was like a large water funnel that enveloped Hanzo.
As Hanzo was engulfed by the rushing water, his first sensation was one of heaviness. In contrast to the usual lightness felt in ordinary water, this seemingly clear water was as viscous as glue.
Exerting strength to break free from the entanglement of snakes and hair, Hanzo felt that his movements became extremely difficult. Every slightest movement seemed to drain his strength as if moving at all would exhaust him completely.
And this was just the beginning.
The viscous and heavy water engulfing Hanzo suddenly began to spin. Hanzo felt an unbearable stinging sensation on his skin, as if his skin was being pulled in different directions.
The folds could no longer hold, bursting open, allowing crimson blood to be drawn out and churned into the water flow.
In just a moment, the watery blue funnel suddenly gained a hint of hazy red, like elusive crimson mist, which could not blend with the heavy water but was continuously pulled and dispersed.
"Ah!!!"
Even the battle-hardened Hanzo couldn't help but let out a cry of pain. The strangulation by heavy water was no longer confined to the surface of his body. Hanzo felt his muscles and bones being churned.
At the same time, the snakes and hair entangling him were also being broken by the pull of the heavy water. Feeling his body loosen, Hanzo exhausted all his chakra, bursting outward while exerting all his strength to break free.
"Boom!"
The water funnel was torn apart, and the source of it, Tatsuma, was thrown violently into the distance. However, the bloodied figure standing in place made everyone somewhat incredulous. The mighty Hanzo had actually been injured so severely by a child's technique.
"Hoo~ Hoo~"
The mask emitted Hanzo's eerie breathing. He could sense that Tatsuma, wary of his poison, hadn't strangled his head, otherwise, his injuries might have been more severe. But at the same time, everyone present had to die.
"Crack~ Crack~"
Hanzo forcefully reset several dislocated joints, the rain washing away his blood to reveal tattered clothes and a body full of fresh wounds.
Tatsuma, rising from the ground, rubbed his chest and looked at Hanzo standing in the rain. He couldn't help but admire Hanzo's strength. His technique could twist and tear even steel, but it only caused Hanzo minor injuries.
"Konoha's Dragon! Given time, you are definitely worthy of my direct attention. I, Hanzo, acknowledge your talent! Join me in battle! You are now more than capable of being one of the challengers who can relieve my boredom!"
Despite the injuries, the pain quickly subsided for Tatsuma. He stood up, looking at Hanzo with utmost seriousness. He also wanted to spar with such a strong opponent and sharpen himself.
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