"Earth Style: Yellow Spring Swamp!"
The ground beneath One-Tails Shukaku turned into a vast swamp the instant Jiraiya performed the jutsu.
Shukaku's body began sinking rapidly. The more it struggled, the faster it sank.
"Gamabunta, you're up!"
"Got it!"
With the Yellow Spring Swamp holding it in place, Shukaku was practically a stationary target.
Gamabunta moved swiftly, leaping in front of Shukaku in the blink of an eye.
Clang!
A flash of white streaked past, and Shukaku's arm was cleanly cut off.
As soon as the arm hit the ground, it turned into a pile of sand.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!"
"You dare cut off my arm!"
"I'll kill you!!!"
One-Tails Shukaku shrieked, flames of fury blazing in its eyes.
At the same time, its presence surged wildly. Its enormous Chakra output made the air around them feel thin.
"I did dare—and I'll do it again!"
Gamabunta bellowed and charged once more, long sword in hand. This time, its target was Shukaku's tail.
After their brief exchange, Gamabunta had realized that Shukaku's tail was the most troublesome part of it.
As the sword came at it, Shukaku used its tremendous strength to break free of the Yellow Spring Swamp and dodge Gamabunta's attack.
The sword cleaved the ground where Shukaku had been, leaving a deep gash so long it nearly split the land in two.
The sheer force of the blow was plain to see.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
Shukaku had only just broken free when a wave of scorching flames came right after it, slamming into its back.
Jiraiya had known the Yellow Spring Swamp wouldn't hold Shukaku for long, so he'd already anticipated where and when it would escape.
Ye Fan was surprised by how precisely Jiraiya had seized the opportunity.
Even though Ye Fan was now powerful enough to sweep through the entire shinobi world, he still had to admit that Jiraiya's combat experience far surpassed his own.
Scorched by the Fire Style jutsu, Shukaku quickly retreated, its expression turning grave.
After only a brief exchange, it had realized that neither the man nor the toad before it was ordinary.
"Your arm's already healed? You really are a pain to deal with!"
Jiraiya couldn't help remarking as he watched Shukaku's restored arm.
With no time to spare, Jiraiya launched another large-scale jutsu.
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire!"
A colossal fire dragon surged up from the ground, completely surrounding One-Tails Shukaku.
The relentless heat made Shukaku writhe on the ground as the flames burned fiercely, wrecking numerous houses.
A torrent of sand spilled from Shukaku's body, putting out the raging flames.
"Ow, ow, ow! You foolish humans have really made me angry!"
One-Tails roared, "Wind Style: Void Bullet!"
The surging Tailed Beast Chakra became a violent gale that swept toward Jiraiya.
The earth split and houses collapsed wherever it passed.
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
Jiraiya rapidly formed hand signs, and a wall of earth rose from the ground like a castle rampart.
The Void Bullet struck the wall, carrying tremendous Chakra. In an instant, it smashed through, sending dust billowing into the air.
"Foolish humans! You're finally dead, aren't you?" One-Tails Shukaku laughed, overcome with delight.
As the thick smoke slowly cleared, Shukaku's expression suddenly twisted with rage.
It stared at the distance in disbelief.
Jiraiya was standing behind a small mound of earth, completely unharmed.
"How is this possible? How could a human's strength stop my Void Bullet?!"
"Heh. An attack like that isn't enough to kill me."
Jiraiya's lips curled into a smile. He had nearly figured out the limits of One-Tails' strength in this state.
"Looks like you can't bring out your full power while you're possessing a medium through the Tailed Beast Possession Jutsu."
"If you could use your full strength, you might actually give me trouble. But with power like this, you'd better surrender obediently!"
"You ignorant human! How dare you look down on me!"
Sunagakure had always revered Shukaku as a supreme being. Now, for the first time, it felt utterly humiliated.
It couldn't tolerate being belittled by a human. It was burning with rage, furious beyond measure.
Vast Chakra surged like crashing waves, and a terrifying presence filled the air around them.
Even the shinobi fighting elsewhere could clearly feel the overwhelming pressure.
Sasuke had just arrived from the Forest of Death. He was so stunned by the sight that he couldn't even speak.
He'd thought the battle at the Forest of Death was already unbelievable, but the fighting here was even more shocking.
As One-Tails gathered Chakra, preparing to use Wind Style, Jiraiya struck first.
"Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
Jiraiya's long hair rapidly grew, shooting toward One-Tails like impossibly tough steel cables and binding it completely.
The powerful restraints completely suppressed One-Tails for a moment, leaving it unable to move!
With One-Tails pinned down by Jiraiya, Gamabunta seized the opportunity and used Water Style: Iron Cannonball.
Huge balls of water rained down on One-Tails like cannonballs.
With no way to defend itself, One-Tails Shukaku was battered senseless by the Iron Cannonballs. Its limbs and chest were all pierced through.
"Ah!!!"
Its agonized howl rang across all of Konoha.
The pain drove One-Tails into a frenzied struggle.
Its tail was the first to break free of Jiraiya's jutsu. Then its whole body tore loose.
Furious at having been tricked, One-Tails lunged at Jiraiya.
But!
Before it could get close to Jiraiya, a flash of blade light suddenly appeared.
Gamabunta swung its sword, severing One-Tails' left leg!
Off balance, One-Tails immediately toppled to the ground.
"Gamabunta!" Jiraiya shouted.
"On it!" Gamabunta leaped in front of Jiraiya.
"Fire Style: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!"
Gamabunta spewed oil while Jiraiya breathed fire. The oil and flames combined into an even stronger blaze—one that was far harder to extinguish.
Faced with the terrifying Fire Style jutsu, One-Tails hurriedly used Sand Armor to defend itself.
The raging flames crashed against the Sand Armor. In mere seconds, they heated Shukaku's armor until it glowed red. The intense heat seeped through and into its body.
The Sand Armor had become like a steamer, completely useless as a defense.
Trapped inside the armor, One-Tails was like a turtle in a jar, suffering terribly.
With no way to endure the heat, One-Tails dispelled its Sand Armor.
The instant the armor vanished, the raging flames fell upon its body.
And Gamabunta doused it with another burst of oil!
This time, the flames burned far more fiercely than before!
Under the intense blaze, One-Tails' skin turned bright red. Even its markings were burned away!
"Can humans really fight at this level?"
Sasuke stared intently at Jiraiya, and Ye Fan's image rose unbidden in his mind.
"With a master that powerful teaching me, how am I supposed to get my revenge?"
Sasuke silently clenched his fists, yearning desperately for strength.
"Hm? After all that, the medium still hasn't woken up?" Jiraiya frowned.
"All our attacks have been blocked by Shukaku itself. They haven't affected the sleeping medium at all."
Gamabunta analyzed the situation. "If we want the medium to wake up, looks like we'll have to give him a good beating!"
"Yeah, there's no other way." Jiraiya nodded. "Hold it down for me. I'll go wake him up!"
Before you continue