Rout of Kirigakure

As the two enormous Summoning Beasts moved across the battlefield, cries of agony rose one after another.

In truth, after Orochimaru and Jiraiya summoned their Summoning Beasts, the Kirigakure commander sensed that something was wrong and immediately ordered his troops to disperse.

However, they were already surrounded by Konoha Ninja. Like turtles trapped in a jar, they had nowhere to flee and could only fight helplessly.

"Water Style—Water Wall ×n." A massive water barrier rose on the battlefield, seeking to block the charge of the two Summoning Beasts.

Unfortunately, as a long blade pierced through the water wall, it was instantly cleaved in two.

"Water Style—Water Dragon Bullet ×n."

"Water Style—Great Waterfall Technique ×n."

"Water Style—Water Whip ×n."

"Water Style—..."

The Mist Ninja unleashed all kinds of water-style ninjutsu, either trying to defend themselves or launch attacks.

However, against such enormous Kage-level Summoning Beasts, not only did their movements bring devastating destructive power, but even their defenses were top-tier.

Those capable of injuring Summoning Beasts of this kind were basically only experts at Kage-level or above, or jōnin who employed unusual special methods.

"Haha, this feels amazing! It's been a long time since I've felt this good!" Every time Manda's purple body surged forward, it crushed a group of Kirigakure ninja to death.

"Hmph, are you just scratching my back?" Gamabunta said as he scratched the spot on his back that had been struck by Water Style.

Although thick mist still surrounded them, it had no effect whatsoever on the two Summoning Beasts. They simply wandered about in the fog. After all, any casual movement could crush a large swath of enemies, so they could attack without discrimination.

Snakes and frogs loved this damp environment most of all, so the two Summoning Beasts grew more excited as they fought.

As the Mist Ninja died in groups, the surrounding fog gradually thinned, and visibility slowly returned.

Moreover, because it was summer, the horizon was already beginning to brighten.

The scene on the battlefield also fell fully into the eyes of the Konoha Ninja surrounding it.

"Are those Lord Orochimaru's and Lord Jiraiya's Summoning Beasts?"

"They're seriously incredible."

"It's almost dawn. Everyone, stay alert. Don't let a single Mist Ninja escape our encirclement."

"Yeah!"

"That should be enough. Bunta, Oil." Feeling that the time was right, Jiraiya spoke to Gamabunta.

"Got it!"

After hearing Jiraiya's words, Gamabunta leaped into the air and spat a huge mouthful of toad oil onto the ground.

"Ninja Art—Toad Oil Flame Bullet!" A large-scale fire-style ninjutsu jointly unleashed by Gamabunta and Jiraiya descended from above, covering the entire battlefield sealed within the thick fog.

"Everyone, use Water Style—Water Shockwave."

The Kirigakure commander gave the order.

"Water Style—Water Shockwave ×n."

Massive waves surged toward the Toad Oil Flame Bullet in the sky.

"Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle."

The collision between water and fire produced huge amounts of mist once again.

However, the fire style Jiraiya and Gamabunta had unleashed was no ordinary Fire Style Ninjutsu. Enhanced with toad oil, it could even continue burning underwater for a while.

"I can't hold on—ah!"

As the first Mist Ninja fell, the others were soon swallowed one after another by the sea of flames filling the sky.

"Damn toad, are you trying to take me out too?" Manda and Orochimaru were also within the range of this attack.

However, from the moment Gamabunta leaped into the air, Orochimaru had already withdrawn from the battlefield.

Watching the rain of fire fall from the sky, Manda, who had been in the midst of a killing frenzy, instantly came to his senses. After cursing angrily, he burrowed straight underground.

The sea of fire lasted for around ten minutes before gradually dying out.

"Wind Style—Pressure Damage."

Seeing that there was no movement on the battlefield, Orochimaru used another wind-style ninjutsu to clear away the water vapor. This time, the thick fog did not spread again.

With a thunderous boom, Manda's enormous purple body burst out from beneath the ground and lunged directly at Gamabunta.

Perhaps having anticipated this, Gamabunta immediately braced his blade against Manda's mouth, stopping him from advancing any further.

"Big earthworm, do you want me to turn you into a snakeskin wallet?" Gamabunta glared at Manda and asked viciously.

"Hehe, I've eaten plenty of frogs. Today, I was just thinking of finding out what dried Mount Myōboku frog tastes like." Manda was extremely displeased that Gamabunta and Jiraiya's final Toad Oil Flame Bullet had included him in its range.

He had been having the time of his life—there was food to eat, fun to be had, and no fear of anyone seeking revenge afterward. He had been happy as could be.

Then this damn frog had blasted him with a sea-of-fire sauna. That was absolutely intolerable. Today, he had to teach him a lesson and show him why the flowers were so damn red!

"Ah, Lord Manda, Bunta didn't do it on purpose. We were trying to eliminate the enemy, and there really wasn't time to notify you. I apologize to Lord Manda on Bunta's behalf." Jiraiya was afraid that their own side would start fighting right after the battle ended, so he hurriedly apologized to Manda.

"Hmph."

Gamabunta indicated that he had done it on purpose. He had disliked this big earthworm for far more than a day or two. Every time he saw him, all four limbs started itching.

If not for the relationship between Jiraiya and Orochimaru, he would have wanted to give him a slash long ago.

Don't let me find an opening. One day, I'll punch holes through this big earthworm's upper and lower jaws so that he leaks air whenever he eats.

This was Gamabunta's true inner thought.

Likewise, Manda had disliked this self-important ugly toad for a long time as well.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you won't lose it next time.

You're just a Summoning Beast, yet you spend all day acting like a human—wearing clothes, smoking, carrying a sword around, pretending to be some kind of immortal!

(In the future, Kakashi's Summoning Beast Pakkun: ??? I feel like I've been caught in the crossfire.)

In Manda's eyes, every frog from Mount Myōboku, from the Toad Sage down to an ordinary little frog, was a fraud!

If he ever got the chance, he would definitely strip the clothes off this damn toad in front of him, hang them from that sword, and write the two words "fraud" on them.

The Three Great Sage Regions were not exactly at each other's throats, but neither could they be called close. They were familiar strangers, at best.

Though they disliked each other, they had never actually wanted to kill one another.

Mount Myōboku and Ryūchi Cave were particularly so. Katsuyu of Shikkotsu Forest had a gentle nature and got along well with the beasts on both sides.

If the Three Great Sage Regions ever truly went to war with one another, it would definitely be a conflict no less devastating than a war between the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

The good thing was that Summoning Beasts did not have as many twists and turns in their hearts as humans. Since war would bring losses, they would try their best to avoid it, no matter how many benefits it offered.

Under the overwhelming force of the four Kage-level combatants—Orochimaru, Jiraiya, Manda, and Gamabunta—the remaining thousand Kirigakure ninja were eliminated without any suspense.

It should be mentioned that Manda had devoured nearly three hundred of the Mist Ninja. If Jiraiya and Gamabunta had not used Toad Oil Flame Bullet at the end, Manda should have been able to swallow around another hundred.

That was one reason why he wanted to fight Gamabunta as soon as he emerged from the ground. After all, he had missed out on more than a hundred sacrifices. Of course he would not be happy about that.

What remained was the post-battle arrangement. First, they naturally had to cancel the Summoning Jutsu and send off these two enormous creatures.

Gamabunta left decisively, but before Manda departed, he looked at Orochimaru with a hesitant expression, as if he wanted to say something but held it back.

"Lord Manda, if I need help next time, I'll call on you again." As expected of Manda's master, Orochimaru might not have been able to keep him fully in line, but he understood Manda's thoughts perfectly well.

Thus, seeing Manda's expression and wanting to better borrow Manda's strength in the future, he immediately understood how to smooth his scales—no, how to stroke his snakeskin.

"Mm."

Manda answered with a grunt. He was quite satisfied with Orochimaru's tact. If he needed help again in the future, Manda could consider asking for fewer sacrifices.

Manda had shamelessly forgotten what he had said to Orochimaru when Orochimaru first summoned him.

(Warning: he's hooked now.)

Whew, just looking at those two Summoning Beasts was stressful.

The other Konoha Ninja watched the two Summoning Beasts vanish before their eyes and thought this.

Even knowing that the two Summoning Beasts were allies, their immense size was simply too oppressive for ordinary people. This was probably what people called megalophobia.

After that great fire, fewer than ten Kirigakure ninja had survived.

And those who had survived were basically all jōnin.

Now was the time to capture these jōnin and interrogate them for intelligence.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh." "Thud." "Urgh."

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! There are still hidden enemies nearby! Everyone, be careful!" Just as the Konoha Ninja were cleaning up the battlefield—

The sound of projectiles cutting through the air rang out nearby, followed by the sound of objects piercing flesh and dying groans.

It all happened in the blink of an eye, before anyone could react.

They had truly not expected anyone to survive under such circumstances, so they had let their guard down.

But when everyone turned and looked around, it seemed that all the Konoha Ninja who had remained alive since the Summoning Beasts appeared were still nearby.

So who had died?

"Oh no, the surviving Mist jōnin prisoners!" Jiraiya immediately realized something and looked toward the Mist Ninja who had been tied up, treated by the Medical Ninja, and barely managed to cling to life.

"This is bad. All the prisoners are dead." After checking the condition of the Kirigakure prisoners, the nearby Medical Ninja spoke.

The bound Mist jōnin had all become corpses. The Kunai and Shuriken lodged conspicuously in their necks could not be faked. Even their blood had not yet dried—it was still warm.

"Damn it!"

A group of Konoha Ninja immediately rushed out and surrounded the attacker.

There was only one attacker. His entire body was covered in burns, and his true face could not even be seen clearly. Yet he stood there panting, still holding the posture of having thrown ninja tools.

There was no need to guess. The deaths of those prisoners had surely been this person's doing.

And this person had clearly been confirmed dead by the Konoha Ninja earlier. Yet he had somehow come back to life, leaving everyone incredulous.

"Hehe, people of Konoha, you will never obtain any intelligence about our Kirigakure."

Then, before everyone's eyes, he pulled out a Kunai and stabbed it into his own neck.

This time, he was dead beyond all doubt.

"Ah, was that really necessary?" Jiraiya had wanted to stop him, but it was simply too late.

"Lord Orochimaru, it was our mistake. We are willing to accept punishment." Several ninja who had earlier checked for survivors on the battlefield immediately stepped forward to apologize.

"Don't worry about it. We weren't expecting to collect any important intelligence anyway. Besides, he probably cultivated a ninjutsu similar to turtle-breathing, so it was normal that you failed to detect him." Orochimaru did not care about it at all.

Due to the Blood Mist policy, every Mist Ninja had undergone the harshest training. It had always been extremely difficult to obtain important information from them.

He had long been prepared for the interrogation to fail. They could simply consider this an early confirmation of that failure.

In any case, the strategic goal of this surprise attack—to wipe out the Kirigakure ninja stationed in the Land of Tea—had already been achieved. Everything else was secondary, so why chill the hearts of his subordinates?

"Compile the results of this battle into a report and submit it to me. You may all leave now."

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru." Because of this, Orochimaru received even more admiring looks from the Konoha Ninja around the battlefield.

"Orochimaru, I'll leave the remaining trouble to you. I'm going to rest." Jiraiya had never been good at politics, so he directly handed all the aftermath over to Orochimaru. There was nothing else to do anyway.

As dawn fully broke, the elite Konoha Ninja led by Orochimaru and Jiraiya had likewise accomplished their objective—annihilating the Kirigakure ninja.