The next second, Minato appeared behind Shiro, thrusting his kunai toward the back of her neck. But Shiro was faster. She did not even turn around, merely sweeping a hand backward.
Clang!
The kunai struck Shiro's skin with the sound of metal against metal. A dark red keratin layer surfaced over her skin, blocking the blade.
"Physical attacks are ineffective," Shiro said, then struck back at Minato with her palm.
Minato vanished and reappeared ten meters away. But Shiro's palm strike left a pit three meters across where he had just stood. Its walls were as smooth as glass, as though something invisible had erased the earth.
"A spatial attack?" Minato's gaze sharpened.
"One of the abilities bestowed upon me by my master," Shiro said. "Your ninja techniques are child's play before him."
She raised her hand again and made a grasping motion toward Minato.
Minato felt the space around him compressing, as though trying to crush him. But he calmly formed hand seals.
"Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder!"
The spatial compression was redirected into the distant cave wall, blasting out a massive crater.
"Space-Time Ninjutsu?" Shiro finally showed a flicker of emotion. "Interesting. But that is all."
She pressed her palms together, and the dark red markings on her body began to glow. The entire cavern began to shake.
The dark red plants on the cave walls grew wildly, writhing like tentacles toward Minato and Jiraiya. Meanwhile, the puppets rose again and closed in from every direction.
"Gamabunta!" Jiraiya shouted.
"Coming!" Gamabunta climbed out of the rubble. Though injured, he could still fight. He spat out sticky oil, combining it with Jiraiya's Fire Release to clear an area.
"Minato, this thing is too strong! We need to retreat!" Jiraiya shouted.
"We can't," Minato said calmly. "She's locked down this