Hiruzen Sarutobi the Water Dragon Bullet, rendering Chiyo's sealing array ineffective, forcing her to get up and dodge the attack once more.
He has fast hand seals, agile movements, knows various large-scale destructive Ninjutsu, and has rich combat experience...
Even a seasoned Puppet Master like Chiyo couldn't gain any advantage against Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Fortunately, reinforcements have arrived.
Golden Gold Dust suddenly gushed forth from the ground, transforming into a giant hand that lunged at Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Seeing the Gold Dust resembling giant waves, Hiruzen Sarutobi leaped out of the opponent's attack range with a few quick movements.
Looking up at the sky, Hiruzen Sarutobi's face turned serious. "Are you the Fourth Kazekage Rasa?"
"Not bad, Third Hokage. I didn't expect Sakumo to send you out."
Rasa's expression was also serious. Hiruzen Sarutobi's initial attack had successfully worn down Sunagakure's morale, so even though he was being held back by Chiyo, Konoha's resistance remained fierce.
Moreover, the defenses of Mount Kikyo have been significantly strengthened.
Sunagakure is not suited for a protracted war; the village's strength is what it is, and they can't outlast Konoha no matter what.
We must act swiftly and decisively.
At this point, Rasa had no choice but to eliminate Hiruzen Sarutobi to demoralize Konoha.
Within the Shikkotsu Forest.
Compared to the tense atmosphere that has returned to the Shinobi World, Shikkotsu Forest is full of life.
With the pocket money and commission fees he had saved over the years, Kazashiro bought a lot of daily necessities and ingredients. At this moment, he was sitting with the Katsuyu's little clone around the stove he had built himself, quietly waiting for the ingredients in the casserole to cook.
Anyone who has ever been a ninja knows that, aside from living expenses, the biggest expense for a ninja is the purchase of ninja tools.
Especially for ninjas like Kazashiro and Minato who use the Flying Thunder God Technique in combat, their Flying Thunder God Kunai are far more powerful than ordinary Kunai and require special customization.
So Kunai fooled by how cool Minato on the battlefield; he looks just as disheveled when he picks them up afterwards (just kidding).
Kazashiro never picks them up, and he never buys ninja tools.
If he needed something, he would ask Danzo for it; if Danzo wasn't home, he would go to the Root to get it.
So, looking at his overflowing savings, Kazashiro exclaimed on the spot, "I can't spend it all! I simply can't spend it all!"
As the aroma gradually wafted out from the vent of the casserole lid, Pakura, who was lying not far away, twitched her nose slightly. Still unconscious, she smelled the aroma, and her strong curiosity drove her to open her eyes.
"Hmm..."
With a soft hum, Pakura fully regained consciousness and turned to look in the direction from which the fragrance was coming.
Hearing the slight noise made by Pakura, Kazashiro felt that the other party should be waking up soon, and turned to look at her, just in time to reveal the Konoha Forehead Protector hanging around his neck.
"Konoha ninja?!"
Upon seeing Konoha's Forehead Protector, instinct drove Pakura to summon a Scorch Release fireball, which hurtled straight toward Kazashiro, only to vanish in an instant.
Pakura herself was also struck by the sudden paralysis, losing all her strength and ability to gather Chakra.
Is this how you treat someone who saves your life?
Having anticipated this situation, Kazashiro looked at the casserole pot again, ice crystals forming on his fingertips as he easily picked up the scalding hot lid. "Then let me introduce myself first. My Shimura Kazashiro, and I am your savior."
Seeing that the ingredients weren't fully cooked, Kazashiro added some seasonings and put the lid back on, "By the way, to prevent you from refusing to repay my life-saving grace, I've inscribed a few Curse Mark on you."
Even without turning around, one could tell just how unpleasant Pakura's expression would be upon hearing those words.
"Don't be nervous, it's nothing scary. It's just something that will prevent you from attacking me, from revealing my information, and from harboring any hostility towards me."
Standing up, Kazashiro slowly walked to Pakura: "Besides, I engraved it with your permission."
"Nonsense."
Although she understood the situation, Pakura was still disgusted by the other party's nonsensical behavior.
I was unconscious, how could I possibly agree?
"Really, when I asked you if I could carve a Curse Mark on you, you didn't say anything, so I took that as a yes."
Kazashiro shrugged and extended his hand. "So, what are you going to do? After all, I really am your savior."
Pakura squinted, carefully examining the pretty "girl" in front of him, and felt that she was absolutely terrible.
It's Kunai of the Mist Ninja than to fall into the hands of such a vile brat.
But...
Surviving means having the chance for revenge...
Pakura finally grasped Kazashiro's hand in return, while simultaneously remembering something very important.
Shimura Kazashiro... the White Death God of Konoha... this guy is a man!
Pakura's condition is not very good.
It's not physical, but mental.
She used to believe that the will to protect the village would make a ninja stronger, but the village she was so devoted to protecting easily betrayed her.
What war hero, what meritorious ninja? In the eyes of the higher-ups, they were nothing more than pawns with slightly higher value.
"Rasa, you bastard!"
Pakura, disregarding his image, shouted curses while simultaneously downing a glass of strong liquor.
A small Katsuyu nearby chimed in, extending its antennae to refill Pakura's glass.
Wait, how did you two end up sitting together drinking?
Kazashiro, who was developing a new Ninjutsu at a distance, wanted to concentrate on his training, but the occasional insults made him prick up his ears to listen.
After all, Pakura's insults were quite vulgar.
"No, no, clear your mind and observe the angle of the mirror reflection yourself."
Having experienced the Lightning Illusion Pillar once during the Third Shinobi World War, Kazashiro knew how troublesome visual Illusion Technique was, and wanted to use Ice Release to create Illusion Technique that would affect vision.
"Start here, then here, and finally here."
Actively stepping into the area surrounded by Ice Mirror, Kazashiro removed the excess Ice Mirror, leaving only the key ones, while personally experiencing the field of vision before him.
"Hey, Pakura, stop drinking and come here!"
After finalizing the location of the last Ice Mirror, Kazashiro turned and beckoned Pakura over to test it out.
"Ha?"
Pakura, already in a bad mood, felt her anger flare up even more when she heard Kazashiro call her name so casually. Just as she was about to explode, she remembered the Curse Mark that the person in front of her had carved on her.
"Knew."
Pakura suppressed his anger instantly and walked to the position designated by Kazashiro, looking up at the Ice Mirror in front of him.
"This is..."
Despite having drunk quite a bit of alcohol, Pakura's combat instincts remained intact, and she sensed something was wrong the moment she saw the Ice Mirror.
So many versions of myself.
She summoned a Scorch Release fireball to shatter the Ice Mirror, but the discomfort in her vision remained. The Ice Mirror's position was too tricky, allowing her to catch a glimpse of herself out of the corner of her eye.