A Test of His Depth

Konoha, Minato's house.

When they heard that Jiraiya leave the village to gather information about the Akatsuki, the first person to react was not Taiichi, but Tsunade.

And this reaction was quite significant.

Her anger, which she had just suppressed because of being spied on, flared up again in a flash. Her eyebrows furrowed. "Wait! Why is it that Jiraiya, that idiot, can run off and have fun under the guise of gathering intelligence?"

My mom has to sit in the hospital Tenten, frantically staring at piles of documents! I really want to investigate that damn Akatsuki!

Or... going out for a walk to clear your head would be good too!

The old man (Third Kazekage) is keeping such a close watch on me with that broken Telescope Technique, I can't even go to the izakaya or the gambling den, I can't live like this!

Tsunade grew angrier and angrier as she spoke, until she almost roared it out, her full breasts heaving violently.

Minato was immediately overwhelmed, feeling more exhausted than dealing with ten S-rank Mission scrolls.

He finally understood why the Sannin of Konoha were also known as "gambling, prostitution, and drugs"—each of them truly had a troublesome aspect.

Everyone offered kind words of comfort.

Jiraiya, unusually, didn't dare to add fuel to the fire, shrinking back to minimize his presence.

Minato reasoned with them (the village needs your help to oversee the medical system) and appealed to their emotions (Kushina still needs your care).

Finally, Taiichi used his trump card, patting his chest and promising, "Teacher Tsunade, calm down. How about this, give me some of those paperwork tasks you really don't want to deal with! I'll take care of them for you!"

Hearing that she could get rid of some of the paperwork burden, Tsunade's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and the anger on her face vanished instantly as if by magic. "Hmph, you said it yourself! If you dare to go back on your word, I'll tear your house down."

Clearly, her real goal was to "help with the work".

The controversy Tsunade's "protest" subsided, and the topic finally returned to normal.

Taiichi's smile vanished, and his expression became extremely serious.

He scrutinized Jiraiya from head to toe, his gaze so sharp it seemed he could see right through him.

Fragments of memories of fighting alongside Jiraiya during Third Shinobi World War flashed through his mind, recalling each of his battles.

However, this was far from enough. Taiichi frowned slightly. "Jiraiya- sensei, the last battle I remember you fought was over a year ago against Sunagakure. In the past year or so, has your strength made any new breakthroughs?"

He paused, his tone extremely serious. "Based solely on past impressions and written materials, I cannot accurately assess your current strength, let alone determine whether you have the capability to deal with those enemies."

The price of intelligence failure could very well be lives.

Jiraiya and Minato exchanged a glance, both seeing seriousness in each other's eyes.

Taiichi's words hit the nail on the head. The Akatsuki's intelligence is extremely valuable, but the risks are proportional to that. If they rashly venture deep into the Akatsuki due to misjudging their own or the enemy's strength, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Jiraiya a deep breath, his eyes blazing with fighting spirit. "You're right, brat. Talking the talk is useless. Let's have a real fight! Let's test it with actual combat!"

"Go outside the village; no matter how much noise they make there, it won't affect the village."

Minato made his decision, and as he spoke, he extended his hand. Everyone understood and placed their hands on Minato's hand.

The next moment, the room was completely empty.

Oh no, there's also a little baby sleeping soundly in the bed.

Oh no, a few more Anbu emerged, only to sigh helplessly at the empty room. Having someone who could use the Flying Thunder God technique to protect them was a nightmare for these Anbu.

20 kilometers southeast of Konoha.

This place is far from Konoha, far from human habitation, only a vast forest remains.

There's no way around it; the Land of Fire, especially the area surrounding Konoha, has a lot of forests, though not much else.

Minato suddenly appeared beside a stream, accompanied by Taiichi others.

It seems that Taiichi who leaves his mark everywhere; every user of Flying Thunder God has a habit of leaving their Flying Thunder God Mark in various places.

Taiichi looked around at his surroundings and sensed the marks he had left in the village, and then he roughly knew where he was.

It's definitely a great place; at least you won't be bothered by anyone.

"Jiraiya- sensei, should we make some preparations in advance?" Taiichi kindly reminded him.

"Who do you think you are? In a real battle, you don't get a chance to prepare."

Jiraiya was, after all, a veteran top-tier ninja, and he still had the pride of a master, especially since the person in front of him was practically his disciple.

"Alright, shall we begin?" Taiichi said, turning his gaze to Minato.

Minato understood and, without saying a word, immediately took Kushina and Tsunade and left in Body Flicker, far away from the battlefield.

In the arena, there was no start, no preparation, just like in a real battle.

Without warning, Taiichi Body Flicker forward and delivered a straight punch to Jiraiya's chest. The whooshing sound of his fist tearing through the air was enough to make anyone take him seriously.

In their first encounter, Jiraiya naturally wouldn't dodge. Whether it was to test the depth of Taiichi's power or to avoid losing face, Jiraiya decided to take the hit.

Chakra gathered in his hands, Jiraiya struck out with a palm towards Taiichi's arm, attempting to deflect Taiichi's attack.

Upon contact, Jiraiya's expression changed; the strength was astounding!

His palm strike didn't change the path of the fist much; it simply shifted the attack from the chest to the right shoulder.

However, he could no longer launch any further attacks and could only dodge by turning to the side.

With Jiraiya's dodge, he completely lost the initiative. Taiichi seized the opportunity and unleashed a barrage of powerful punches and kicks.

Jiraiya could only try his best to dodge, and after one or two collisions that dissipated his energy, he would grimace in pain.

"That bastard really shows no mercy!"

However, prolonged defense inevitably leads to defeat. After more than fifty moves, Jiraiya was finally exploited with a small opening, and a sweeping kick sent Jiraiya flying.

In the distance, Kushina, who was watching the battle, turned to look at Minato and said worriedly, "Isn't this too intense? I think Jiraiya took a pretty bad hit."

"This is nothing, just watch, Kushina, this is only the beginning."

As if to confirm Minato's words, Jiraiya, miraculously regained his balance and began Hand Seals before even landing.

Ninja Technique· Needle Jizo.

Jiraiya's loose white hair stood stiff like a hedgehog's quills, and then a thousand needles shot out at once.

Seeing this, Taiichi, who was in pursuit, didn't even need to Hand Seals. He simply raised his hand and waved it, and a Great Fireball as tall as a person condensed in front of him, which he then blasted towards Jiraiya.

The Needle Jizo, being essentially hair, were burned directly by Taiichi's Great Fireball and continued their trajectory towards Jiraiya without diminishing their momentum.

"Jiraiya- sensei, whether it's the Rinnegan or the Sharingan, the two people I fought were basically using techniques without hand seals."

Jiraiya escaped Taiichi's clutches, Jiraiya naturally wouldn't let him get close.

Earth Style · Earth Style Wall.

An Earth Wall rose up, blocking the attack of the Great Fireball.

Earth Style · Swamp of the Underworld.

A large patch of soil in front of Jiraiya transformed into a dim, yellow swamp, attempting to block Taiichi's path.

Unexpectedly, Taiichi did not play by the rules. Above the Earth Style Wall, Taiichi's figure, with wings on his back, flew directly over.

"Jiraiya- sensei, that Pain with the Rinnegan can also fly."

Jiraiya's lips twitched, but faced with Taiichi flying towards him, he had no choice but to continue retreating while Hand Seals again.

Summoning Technique.

Runes unfolded, and white smoke billowed out.

A giant Gamabunta appeared, lifting Jiraiya atop his head. And that wasn't all; on Jiraiya's shoulders stood two smaller Toad —the two great sages, Fukasaku and Sage Shima.

"Yuha, Jiraiya, you called me out now, are you going to fight someone this time?"

"Oh dear, Jiraiya actually called his wife here. Has some formidable enemy appeared?"

"Old woman, this doesn't seem like a formidable enemy. Headband, isn't this someone from Konoha?"

As soon as the three Toad— one large and two small—appeared, before the white smoke had even dissipated, the croaking and croaking of the frogs began to ring out continuously.

Taiichi also stopped his pursuit, hovering at a height where Gamabunta could look him in the eye, and watched quietly.

He was able to summon two great immortals directly; this is different from what I remember. It seems that Jiraiya- sensei has improved as well.

"Grandpa, Grandma, this isn't against an enemy, but it's a high-stakes sparring match. If we don't take it seriously, we might lose badly. So please, don't hold back."

After their previous encounter, Jiraiya realized that Taiichi was now far beyond his ability to fight.

This isn't a distance that can be closed by one or two powerful Ninjutsu; it's an overwhelming advantage in all aspects of ability.

The previous battles didn't involve any powerful Ninjutsu or secret techniques; they were just basic Taijutsu clashes and simple Ninjutsu attacks.

But it is precisely because of the basics that the differences become more apparent.

In terms of strength, speed, and the release and power of Ninjutsu, it was inferior in every aspect.

He then had no choice but to summon the two immortals Gamabunta for help.

Three pairs of frog-like horizontal pupils simultaneously looked at Taiichi in the air, their gazes filled with scrutiny and astonishment.

Taiichi saw that Jiraiya had summoned these three, he knew that Jiraiya had done his best, so he no longer held back.

With a flash, he abruptly disappeared from the spot.

Jiraiya seeing this, Jiraiya immediately went on high alert and shouted a warning, "Watch out, it's the Flying Thunder God!"

But before he could finish speaking, Taiichi appeared behind him, already pressing down the Rasengan in his hand.

Ninja Technique: Needle Jizo.

His full head of white hair hardened and straightened, covering his entire body, and at the critical moment, he blocked Taiichi's Rasengan.

"When did he imprint the Flying Thunder God on you?"

Having dodged the attack, Jiraiya's long hair flew wildly, and he transformed from the Needle Jizo into the Needle Jizo, which temporarily forced Taiichi.

However, after carefully examining himself, he found no trace of the Flying Thunder God on his body.

Fukasaku and Shima weren't idle either. When Taiichi was forced to retreat, the two immortals opened their mouths, and two sticky tongues shot out.

These are Fukasaku's Tongue Battle Slash and Shima's Tongue Battle Bind; they are indeed excellent moves for surprise attacks and offensive maneuvers.

Taiichi didn't want to be bound by the Toad's tongue, so he flapped his wings to dodge the attack while simultaneously Hand Seals.

Water Style: Water Gun Technique.

A giant water sphere condensed beside Taiichi and was launched in just one second.

The largest Gamabunta, narrowed his eyes. He was all too familiar with this move; after all, it was his specialty. Now that someone was showing off in front of him, he immediately felt the urge to compete.

He leaped into the air, his massive size generating immense wind pressure that flattened the surrounding forest. While in mid-air, he opened his mouth to gather strength and unleashed a Water Gun Technique shot at Taiichi.

Taiichi's lips curled slightly, revealing an interested expression. He kept the hand seal unchanged, but increased the amount of Chakra poured into it.

Immediately, one, two, three, four Water Gun Technique materialized around him and began to bombard Gamabunta in the air.

With no leverage, Gamabunta couldn't even dodge.

"Holy crap!" Taiichi yelled, opening his mouth and spitting out two Water Gun Techniques.

The water cannons struck repeatedly, creating three huge sprays of water in the air, while Taiichi's final Water Gun Technique shot pierced straight through the water curtain and hurtled towards Gamabunta.

Don't underestimate frogs.

With a roar, Gamabunta drew his short Short Sword from his waist, twisted his Toad waist with all his might, and with that force, cleaved the incoming Water Gun Technique in two with a horizontal strike.

"Haha, did you see that, little one? This old man is really powerful—"

Gamabunta smug, Gamabunta; he started shouting even before he landed.

"Careful!!!"

The old man's exclamation came from above, but before Gamabunta could even look around, a sharp pain shot through his back.

As Gamabunta twisted his waist and slashed, three more Water Gun Technique formed and, taking advantage of Gamabunta's back being turned, broke through the water curtain and blasted up.

Hit by three Water Gun Techniques, even someone of Gamabunta's physique would experience excruciating pain and let out a huge scream.

"Gamabunta, are you alright!" As expected of a mother, Sage Shima's first concern was Gamabunta's safety.

"Thank goodness, that really hurt! That kid really didn't hold back at all!" Gamabunta muttered, but even so, his voice was clearly heard by those watching from afar.

"Old woman, use that move. Gamabunta, pay attention to your coordination, Jiraiya."

"Okay, I understand."

This time, Gamabunta stopped jumping and quickly crawled towards Taiichi on the ground, genuinely afraid of being hit by Taiichi's Water Gun Technique again.

Fukasaku and Shima also clasped their claws together, and when the distance was right, they opened their mouths and launched an attack.

Sage Art: Frog Song

A piercing scream echoed throughout the entire arena. Directly in front of the Sage Art, Taiichi, who was flying in the air, froze instantly. His wings stopped flapping, the Wind Style escaping around him dissipated silently, and his entire body plummeted.

At this moment, Taiichi felt his mind was in complete chaos, unable to even perform the most basic control over his body. Truly worthy of being called Sage Art, its power is indeed incomparable to ordinary Genjutsu.

Just as Gamabunta was about to rush over, Taiichi "bang".

"Shadow Clone? When did that happen?"

Fukasaku and Shima immediately took turns on guard, while Gamabunta was far less composed.

The massive Short Sword swept across left and right in a fit of rage, completely destroying the surrounding forest.

"Hey kid, where are you? What kind of skill is it to hide like that? Come out and settle things with me!"

And wouldn't you know it, Gamabunta's widespread destruction just happened to affect Taiichi's hiding place.

Eight golden Chakra chains shot into the sky, entangling Gamabunta from different directions.

"It's Adamantine Sealing Chains; be careful not to get entangled in those chains."

The Sage Fukasaku knowledge and experience, recognized the technique Taiichi used at a glance.

"What! How can you even have this?"

The Short Sword in his claws kept striking, deflecting the Adamantine Sealing Chains that were wrapping around him, but this distracted Gamabunta.

Five more Water Gun Technique condensed, rushing towards Gamabunta like five meteors. If Gamabunta were hit by them in succession, he would suffer serious injuries.

Sage Art · Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall.

A massive Earth Wall suddenly rose up, blocking the five Water Gun Techniques for Gamabunta.

Amidst the swirling rain, Jiraiya's voice rang out, "Gamabunta, you should rest. Leave the rest to me."

Taiichi looked closely Jiraiya saw that Jiraiya's nose was swollen and covered with bumps, and his eyes had turned into the horizontal pupils of Toad. Fukasaku and Shima were firmly connected to him on his shoulders. He had entered Sage Mode!