Splash-
Fifteen minutes into the battle with the three Sand Ninja...
The Swamp Monster amid the gold dust collapsed once again.
Luo Yan immediately kept a wary eye on his surroundings, guarding against another ambush once the Swamp Monster re-formed.
But...
"Hm?" Luo Yan hesitated. The Swamp Monster wasn't coming out at all!
Since the swamp was still churning, Luo Yan hadn't been sure whether the Swamp Monster could no longer emerge, until...
"Luo Yan! Get over here and help!" Chiyo snapped in frustration.
Only then did Luo Yan notice that Akaseki had returned to his normal appearance, no longer resembling the Red Lion from earlier!
Although he didn't understand how it worked, Luo Yan now realized that Akaseki must have exhausted some sort of power. The Swamp Monster... must have been a byproduct of it, too.
Indeed, Akaseki had exhausted his nature energy and could no longer maintain his senjutsu chakra.
His Swamp Release was unaffected, of course, but without Inorganic Reincarnation to support it, Akaseki couldn't create that thing through ninjutsu alone. Akaseki kept the Swamp Realm churning for a while, leaving Luo Yan suspicious and buying himself a little more time...
Meanwhile, although Luo Yan was now free to act, six of Chiyo's Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu had already been destroyed!
That finally made the old woman panic. Seeing the change in Akaseki while Luo Yan still stood there like an idiot, she immediately called him over to help.
Although Luo Yan joined her, Chiyo's fighting strength had already suffered badly. In particular, Akaseki had deliberately destroyed Law, one of the puppets required to use Three Treasures Suction Destruction, first. He had also destroyed Ox Head, which handled direct assaults, and the Chain Sickle, which was best at pinning him down...
As a result, Chiyo posed far