Conflict

"Hehe, so it's Orochimaru- senpai. What brings you here today with your 'dog'? Speaking of which, your dog is quite something, betraying both Konoha and Sasori of the Red Sands. I wonder when it will betray you?" Issui said, looking at the group of people who had suddenly appeared.

"Haha, you don't need to worry about that. I'm here today to borrow something from you..." Orochimaru said expressionlessly. He wouldn't dwell on whether Kabuto would betray him. What did it matter if he betrayed him or not? As long as you used the appropriate methods to manipulate him, he wouldn't do anything stupid, at least not outwardly.

Guren, who was standing next to Orochimaru, was overjoyed to hear Issui call Kabuto a dog. "Hmph, that description suits him perfectly."

"Orochimaru- senpai, do you want to borrow the Three-Tails? That won't do, it belongs to Kirigakure, I can't make that decision..." Issui shook his head and pointed at Mei Terumi.

Orochimaru glanced at Mei Terumi and feigned surprise, saying, "Oh my, I didn't expect the Mizukage of Kirigakure to be here too. My apologies. I wonder if the Mizukage would be willing to lend me this 'thing'..."

Mei Terumi frowned and said, "Orochimaru, you need to know what you're doing. You're making an enemy of the entire Kirigakure!"

Orochimaru chuckled sinisterly, "Haha, if the Mizukage insists, then so be it. We're all standing here, what else is there to say? But, I'm not the only one here..."

"Thump..."

Suddenly, a figure fell from a large tree in the jungle on the other side. Upon closer inspection, everyone saw that it was an unknown man dressed in a black outfit with red cloud patterns and wearing a yellow Uzumaki- shaped hat with only an eyehole.

"Oh no! Deidara -senpai, we've been discovered..." The Spiral Mask Man lying on the ground suddenly stood up with incredible speed, facing upwards towards a tree, and said.

"Damn it... Tobi, you've exposed your own identity, and now you've exposed mine too! I'm going to kill you..." Deidara jumped down from the tree in a rage, kicking Tobi's body...

"Ah... Help! Deidara- senpai is going to kill someone! Everyone run!" Tobi, always eager for chaos, dodged Deidara's kick and ran around yelling.

"???"

A series of black lines immediately appeared on everyone's minds. What were these two clowns doing? There's no need to be silly here. Don't they have any sense of propriety? There are two other groups watching them. They really don't respect others at all.

"Lord Orochimaru, we..." Kabuto glanced at Tobi and Deidara, then said to Orochimaru.

"Adaptability is key. It seems the Three-Tails is in danger of being captured today. Has Akatsuki already begun that conspiracy?" Orochimaru said, narrowing his eyes.

"Lord Mizukage, what do we do?" Ao asked Mei Terumi in a heavy voice. Orochimaru and his group were already formidable, and now these two strange people had suddenly appeared. Although they were somewhat unreliable, it also indirectly showed that they were fearless and their strength was definitely not low. The man with golden hair was probably a member of the group that invaded Sunagakure. As for the Spiral Mask Man, he was unsure, but he had a strange feeling of familiarity with him. Had he seen him somewhere before?

"I'll take Orochimaru. You two can handle the other two. That blond guy uses explosive clay, which is Earth Release. Lightning Release can counter him..." Issui said calmly. Orochimaru can stay here forever today. He's lived too long; it's time for him to die. Deidara, as his spy, will definitely not hold back, otherwise he'll be exposed. Tobi won't really make his move yet; it's not the right time. He won't easily reveal his fangs.

"Alright, that's the only way..." Mei Terumi nodded, signaling all the Kirigakure to confront Deidara and Tobi.

"Alright, now we don't have to worry about anyone interfering. Orochimaru- senpai, we're going to settle this today. This time, I won't let you off the hook..." Issui pulled out Shuriken from behind his back and pointed it at Orochimaru's head.

"Hmph, stop talking big. Orochimaru's power is beyond your comprehension. I think the one who will die today is you..." Upon hearing Guren 'Issui words, Lord Orochimaru was furious. How dare someone like you insult Lord Orochimaru?

"It seems there's no way to settle this peacefully today. Kabuto, Guren, both of you come at me together. Let's finish this quickly..." Orochimaru said calmly. He didn't care about the reputation of any experts anymore. Issui's strength was unfathomable. Even if he used all his strength, he wouldn't dare to say he could defeat him. Although Kabuto and Guren were not as strong as him, they were still considered elite ninjas. With their assistance, they would cause some trouble. And when Issui opening, he just needed to deliver a fatal blow.

"Tch, Orochimaru, you're too naive. Do you really think these two weaklings can cause me any trouble? Bring it on! If I back down even a step, I'm not Issui Kanna." Issui was full of contempt.

"Hmph, how dare you be so arrogant! I'll deal with you! Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Blade!" Guren was extremely indignant at Issui's words. It was one thing for Kabuto to be a nobody, but to include her in that too was incredibly disrespectful. Moreover, speaking to Lord Orochimaru like that was suicidal. Everyone knew that Lord Orochimaru was extremely powerful when he was angry.

Guren used ninjutsu to form a crescent-shaped blade on her arm and attacked Issui with swift speed.

"Hey, crystallization, looks interesting. Let's see whose crystal is more powerful, Ice-- Ice Crystal Blade!!!" Issui looked at the crimson crystal on Guren's arm, and thinking of his own Ice Release crystal, suddenly wanted to compete with her to see which one was more powerful.

"Clang..."

Suddenly, a crystalline ice blade appeared on Issui's arm, colliding with Guren's Jade Crystal Blade as it attacked, producing a crisp sound.

"??? Ice Release??"

Guren stared in surprise at the ice blade in Issui's hand. She was slightly taken aback. Although she knew that the Yuki Clan of Kirigakure could also crystallize things like moisture in the air using Ice Release, she had never fought against Yuki before. This time, she had finally encountered a ninja who also used crystallization Ninjutsu. Although it wasn't Yuki's Ice Release, it was similar. A competitive feeling immediately arose in her heart, and she wanted to compare and see whose crystallization was more powerful.

"Crystal Release - Crystal Shuriken!!!"

The Jade Crystal Blade on her right arm was immobilized, but her left hand still had some strength. Guren quickly conjured a Crystal Shuriken with her left hand and attacked Issui's chest.

"Click..."

Just then, a sudden change occurred. Issui's left hand shattered Guren's Jade Crystal Blade, then hurtled towards her chest...

"Snort..."

In the blink of an eye, Guren saw Issui blades attacking her. Unfortunately, because all her weight was on the Crystal Shuriken in her left hand, she was running out of strength. Immediately, she made a bold decision: she would fight him to the death and see who would survive. Since her Crystal Shuriken was about to pierce his chest anyway, she decided to trade injury for injury. Letting Orochimaru see her fighting desperately was a good idea; that way, he would pay more attention to her.

"Puff..."

"Smack..."

Guren's Crystal Shuriken pierced Issui's heart, while Issui's ice blade pierced Guren's chest, both producing a crisp sound. However, although the two sounds rang out simultaneously, they were completely different.

"..."

Guren stared in astonishment at Issui. He was no longer the man she remembered; he was now a figure made of shattered ice. Looking at herself, she saw a shallow gash on her chest, cut by an ice blade, the tender flesh torn open, blood flowing freely...

He held back, Guren thought. Clearly, that one strike would have been fatal, yet the shallow wound had only grazed her skin, posing no threat whatsoever. How could this be? Weren't they enemies? Why would he do this? Ninjas shouldn't have emotions; he actually softened. This is utterly illogical.

What surprised Guren even more was that when the Issui blades clashed with her Jade Crystal Blade, they were almost evenly matched, neither gaining an advantage. But just as she launched her next attack, her Jade Crystal Blade was shattered. The ice blade's hardness had suddenly increased. How could that be? Increasing the hardness and density of an ice blade instantly was no simple matter. Even if she wanted to increase the hardness of her Jade Crystal Blade, it would be extremely difficult, and absolutely impossible to do so in an instant.

The increased hardness of the ice blade was one thing, but since his own Crystal Shuriken was about to strike him anyway, he escaped in an instant with Ice Clone, without any warning. He hadn't even seen him Hand Seals. Of course, not seeing them didn't mean he didn't Hand Seals; it just meant he Hand Seals incredibly fast, and with only one Hand Seals, while his other hand was attacking him. Amazing! Is he even human?

Orochimaru watched Guren's battle from behind. The moment Guren's Jade Crystal Blade shattered, he sensed something was wrong. However, he didn't warn Guren because he didn't need any useless Orochimaru. Survival of the fittest, elimination of the unfit, and no reason for failure to live. Moreover, he needed to observe Issui's weaknesses and deliver a fatal blow. Guren was merely a pawn in his game, a pawn to test Issui.

"!!!???"

Kabuto, who was observing the battle, suddenly sensed something was wrong. Where was Issui? No, underground. Realizing Issui's intentions, Kabuto suddenly leaped away from his original position...

"Not so easy! Get down here! Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique!!!" Suddenly, Issui burst out of the ground, grabbed Kabuto's leg, and slammed him into the ground.

"Bang..."

The bag, which had been pulled into the ground, suddenly turned into a puff of white smoke and disappeared. It turned out to be Shadow Clone Technique, which was probably prepared in advance.

The real Kabuto emerged from the shadows, adjusted his glasses, and said, "Truly worthy of the rumors about the Demon God, the Star of Hope of Konoha. Amazing! In such a short time, you swiftly completed your attacks on Guren and me. If I hadn't been a little smarter, I might be in the same situation as Guren now..."