Someone unexpected had also appeared in town.
Lin Zi had barely taken half a step when the lingering perception of Ryūchi Cave Sage Mode suddenly tugged at his ankle. In the direction of the town, an enormous chakra was charging wildly through the morning mist.
The chakra was as heavy as a sponge soaked through with water, damp and carrying the distinct, fishy sweetness of Toad Oil.
Lin Zi's golden, slit-pupil eyes narrowed slightly, and his tongue unconsciously licked his lips.
"Hey, another new discovery."
Jiraiya felt like he'd had the worst luck today.
When he received Minato's plea for help, he hadn't even made it into the bathhouse. He'd hurried straight to Konoha.
But with half a day's journey still between him and the village, a summoned toad had hopped out and handed him a new report.
"Whaaaat?! What do you mean, the crisis has already been resolved? Are you messing with this sage? Minato, you little brat!"
Jiraiya stood in the middle of the road, clutching the scroll and so angry he wanted to stuff the wretched thing into the toad's mouth.
But he looked it over again and confirmed that Minato and Kushina were both alive. At last, the weight in his heart lifted.
The power struggles in Konoha had long since left him disillusioned.
Tsunade had left, Orochimaru had defected. The three brats from back then were now scattered across the world. Those events had left a scar on his heart that ached whenever it was touched.
Clad in wooden sandals, he strolled lazily down the town's streets, his gaze wandering shamelessly toward the young women by the roadside.
"Heh heh, looks like I've got material for tonight."
He grinned like a lecherous old man, but the string of caution in his mind remained taut.
For years, he'd traveled the world. He claimed he was gathering material for his novels, but in truth, he'd been pursuing information about Orochimaru all along.
Failing to stop that snake was the thing he regretted most in his life. Afraid that the hatred in Orochimaru's heart would consume the whole world, he kept searching for his old friend, hoping to understand what was really going through his mind.
Today, the Toad Sage Jiraiya wandered to the entrance of the town, looked up, and froze.
Standing opposite him was a familiar face: pale skin, golden slit-pupil eyes, and purple eye shadow.
Orochimaru.
The smile vanished from Jiraiya's face. His right hand instinctively reached for the scroll on his back.
"Orochimaru...?"
He stared hard at that face, but the feeling coming from the other man sent a chill down his spine.
There was no sinister killing intent, no gaze that looked at him like a test subject. Instead, the man seemed to have an almost Jiraiya-like air of carelessness.
The man opposite him tilted his head. His forked tongue slipped out to lick his lips, and he opened with a line that made Jiraiya's blood pressure skyrocket.
"Hey, Jiraiya. Long time no see. You're still alive, huh?"
His tone was flippant, his words rising at the end, as if he were some punk at the bathhouse throwing an arm around Jiraiya's shoulders.
Jiraiya's hand froze on the scroll behind his back, and his brain completely short-circuited.
What in the world was going on?
"Orochimaru! What are you trying to do? Were you behind the crisis in Konoha?"
Jiraiya's hands flashed through Hand Seals. From the corner of his eye, he spotted civilians peeking out from the roadside, and his movements came to an abrupt halt.
This wretched place was full of ordinary people. If they fought here, one ninjutsu would send half the town sky-high.
He gritted his teeth and lowered his voice. "If you want to fight, let's take it outside. Don't hurt any innocent people here."
Lin Zi stifled a laugh and nodded solemnly. Inside, he was already delighted. The Toad Sage had taken the bait. Soon, he'd have him questioning his whole life.
They walked one after the other out of town. They kept going for over an hour, until the town had shrunk to a gray speck on the horizon—and then the speck disappeared, too.
Before them stretched an open field of wild grass. The wind rolled waves through it, making it a good place to fight—and to bury someone.
Lin Zi turned around. His golden slit-pupil eyes took on a suitably pained expression, and he pointed at Jiraiya's nose as he laid into him.
"Jiraiya, you actually had the nerve to come back? Do you still have any love for Konoha? For our teacher, Hiruzen?"
"Come back with me and confess your crimes. You still have a chance to turn your life around! Stop down this path of delusion!"
Jiraiya was completely dumbfounded.
What did he mean, "Do you still have any love for Konoha?" What was this about "our teacher, Hiruzen"? And most outrageous of all, what did he mean by "confess your crimes"?
"Orochimaru, did you hit your head on a door?" Jiraiya's eyes widened. "Are you pretending to be crazy, or did you come all the way here just to mess with me?"
Jiraiya couldn't be bothered to waste any more words. Whatever madness Orochimaru was spouting, he'd tie him up and take him back first!
"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!"
"Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb!"
The grass beneath them instantly turned into a churning swamp, opening its maw to swallow Lin Zi, while a huge fireball burst from Jiraiya's mouth. The heat warped the air as the flames tried to pin down their target in the mire.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
With a bang, a cloud of white smoke exploded. Sage Fukasaku and Sage Shima landed on Jiraiya's shoulders, one on each side.
Fukasaku squinted. "Little Jiraiya, fighting that Orochimaru brat again?"
Shima slapped Fukasaku on the back of the head. "You old fool! Can't you see he's standing right there? Why even ask?!"
Jiraiya's expression was grave. "You two sages, I need to build up power and enter Sage Mode. Please help me."
Fukasaku and Shima nodded and began helping him gather Natural Energy.
Lin Zi stood by with his arms folded, watching the show. Then he suddenly scoffed. "Hey, Jiraiya, since when could you use Senjutsu?"
"...Huh?"
"But, well..." Lin Zi tilted his head, amusement filling his snake eyes. "Looks like you still have a long way to go."
Before the words had left his mouth, Lin Zi brought his hands together.
"Sage Mode, activate!"
Boom—
Violent Natural Energy exploded outward from him. Two sharp horns suddenly protruded from his head, the purple eye shadow around his eyes darkened, and a nictitating membrane slid over his pupils.
The weighty pressure of Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu slammed down on the grass, sending ripples across even the swamp.
Fukasaku and Shima froze at the same time on Jiraiya's shoulders.
"Th-this is Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu?!" Fukasaku cried out.
With those horns on his head, Lin Zi stood there with his arms folded, looking as if he had all the time in the world as he watched Jiraiya slowly build up power.
"Take your time. I'm in no rush." He licked his lips. "Once you're ready, we can settle this."
Lin Zi spread his arms. His golden slit-pupil eyes gleamed frighteningly as he called out in a theatrical voice.
"Spirit Snake Sprite Sage Daoist of Ryūchi Cave—better known as the Spirit Snake Sage—makes his entrance!"
Jiraiya's face went completely blank, and the corner of his eye twitched.
"...That's plagiarism, isn't it?" he cursed. "You even stole my idea for the title?"
No longer willing to wait, Jiraiya pushed off the ground and kicked straight toward Lin Zi, shouting, "Sages, back me up!"
"Got it!" Sage Fukasaku puffed out his cheeks and spat a huge glob of thick Toad Oil. At almost the same moment, Jiraiya threw back his head, a blaze of fire building in his throat.
"Sage Art: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!"
The oil and fire collided in midair, erupting into a sea of flames. The heat was so intense it warped the air, and the inferno crashed down on Lin Zi.
Lin Zi stood unmoving, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.
"Sage Art: White Rage Technique."
He opened his mouth, and a red-glowing dragon shot out from his throat. Its claws clutched a pitch-black orb as it coiled around it and spun faster and faster, until at last the entire dragon plunged into the orb.
The black orb swelled and burst.
Boom!!!
A blinding red light, like someone had tossed a sun onto the field, instantly swallowed the Toad Oil Flame Bullet. Then came a shriek sharp enough to pierce eardrums. The sound wave burst outward in a ring, shaking the whole field.
Jiraiya cried out in pain and clapped both hands over his ears. Tears streamed from his eyes as the glare seared them, and it felt as if countless needles were stabbing around inside his head. He staggered backward.
Sage Fukasaku's expression turned grave. "That's definitely Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu... and he's incredibly practiced. It'd take ten or twenty years of training to reach that level."
He turned to Jiraiya, his voice heavy. "Little Jiraiya, until you finish building up power and enter Sage Mode, you're no match for him right now."
As the blinding light faded, the horns atop Lin Zi's head glinted coldly among the embers.
He looked down at Jiraiya, who was kneeling and panting, amusement flashing in his snake eyes.
"Are you still going to fight, Jiraiya? You've been running for years. Isn't it time you went back and faced justice?"
"That's what I'm saying! I don't understand a single thing you're talking about!"
Jiraiya shouted, yanking the great scroll off his back. He bit his thumb and pressed it to the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Boom!!!
The earth shook violently, and dust billowed into the sky. A toad as large as a mountain dropped from the heavens and crashed onto the field, making the ground shake three times in every direction for a hundred meters.
A pipe dangled from the toad's mouth, and a massive short sword was slung across his back. It was Gamabunta.
"Hey, Jiraiya," Gamabunta said roughly, the embers in his pipe glowing on and off. "Didn't you already summon Old Man Fukasaku and the others over there? Why are you—"
He broke off mid-sentence.
Gamabunta slowly turned his head, his enormous round eyes meeting those of the man across from him.
Sage Mode.
Orochimaru.
The pipe fell from Gamabunta's mouth with a clack, smashing into the ground and leaving a crater.
"...Orochimaru in Sage Mode?"
Gamabunta's voice changed, as if someone had grabbed him by the throat.
What the hell was this thing?
Before you continue