A Coordinated Battle

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"

Seeing Konan use Paper Shuriken, Nagato immediately brought his hands together and took a deep breath. Then he blasted a gust of wind at the shuriken flying straight toward Jiraiya!

The chakra Nagato gathered in his mouth combined with the air in his lungs, transforming its energy in an instant. A massive stream of air compressed, then became a violent gale. Accelerated by the wind, the Paper Shuriken flashed forward at a speed and with a force that put its earlier attack to shame!

Gale Palm could easily send someone flying on its own, but its true strength lay in combining it with projectiles like shuriken or kunai. The powerful wind pressure accelerated their flight and multiplied the force of their impact, dramatically increasing their lethality...!!

"Haha, you used Wind Release to speed up the shuriken!" Jiraiya said with a grin and a nod.

"Not bad, but you won't hurt me that easily!"

With a shout, Jiraiya instantly gathered a large amount of chakra in his hand.

"Rasengan!"

Jiraiya plunged the rapidly spinning Rasengan in his hand beneath the surface of the water in front of him.

"Boom!"

A massive wave surged upward. Before Nagato's accelerated Paper Shuriken could even reach it, the shockwave kicked up by the wave scattered them.

"Get out of the way!"

Yuehua Ai shouted, then swiftly formed Hand Seals. Konan and Nagato also quickly dodged to the side.

"Now's our chance!"

As Jiraiya slid backward from the Rasengan's recoil, Yahiko, who had already circled behind him, seized the opportunity without hesitation.

"Ah!" Yahiko charged at Jiraiya with a roar. He planted one foot hard on the water, sending it splashing, and leaped into the air, kicking toward Jiraiya's head.

"Too slow!"

Jiraiya laughed and reached back to grab Yahiko's incoming leg without even turning around.

"Damn it!"

Jiraiya seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, having anticipated Yahiko's attack well in advance. Cursing under his breath, Yahiko could only do his best to pull back the force behind his kick. His charge had given the attack extra momentum, but the gap in strength between them was still considerable. He couldn't let Jiraiya catch his leg during a clash like this.

Though Yahiko couldn't push off from anything in midair, he curled his waist and abdomen, folding himself up like a shrimp. Using the momentum of the movement, he managed to pull back his extended leg, turning the sweeping kick into a downward strike.

As Yahiko changed his move, Jiraiya turned around as well. He leaned back slightly to evade Yahiko's downward kick, then raised an arm to block the punch Yahiko brought down in its wake.

Jiraiya blocked all of Yahiko's attacks in an instant. As Yahiko descended, unable to move, a blazing blue orb appeared in Jiraiya's palm. He pressed it into Yahiko's abdomen.

"What!?" Yahiko's eyes widened!

"Boom!" The chakra sphere burst, sending Yahiko flying far away with a tremendous impact.

Though Yahiko was sent flying in an awkward tumble, he wasn't seriously hurt. The chakra mass had only been a small clump Jiraiya gathered by imitating the Rasengan. If he'd used a complete Rasengan, Yahiko would probably be dead by now!

Just as Yahiko and Jiraiya opened up some distance between them, Yuehua Ai finished preparing his attack, too.

"Water Release: Water Ground Cannon!"

A compressed ball of water nearly a meter in diameter appeared, then hurtled toward Jiraiya like a cannonball.

"Gale Palm!" As soon as Ai finished forming the water projectile, Nagato immediately used Wind Release again to accelerate it.

Jiraiya had just shifted his attention away from Yahiko. When he turned around, the compressed water cannonball was almost on top of him.

Water Ground Cannon was a technique of the Second Hokage's, and he had taught it to Yuehua Ai. Jiraiya knew the technique extremely well. The waterball might not look very big, but it was made of a vast amount of compressed water. Once it burst, its attack would cover a huge area. Even with his speed, he couldn't completely dodge it in the split second he had!

"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"

If he couldn't dodge, he'd meet it head-on!

Jiraiya made up his mind in an instant. He formed the Tiger Seal, opened his mouth, and spewed out a huge fireball.

Flame Bullet was a powerful Fire Release technique that required only one hand seal. In battle, it could often catch an enemy off guard and kill them. Though Water Release countered Fire Release, Flame Bullet was far more powerful than Ai's Water Release. It also contained Toad Oil, allowing it to burn fiercely even underwater. Using Flame Bullet to counter Ai's Water Ground Cannon was more than enough.

"Hiss, hiss—"

The fireball and water projectile collided violently. A powerful shockwave erupted, while thick clouds of steam rose and enveloped the entire river.

"Damn it, where's Jiraiya-sensei?"

Yuehua Ai heard Yahiko's shout coming from deep within the white fog. The steam now filling the area was just like the Hidden Mist Technique, obscuring everyone's vision. Yahiko and Konan had lost sight of the others. Jiraiya's whereabouts were unknown, but Ai's sensory talent let him see through the mist, and Nagato had the Rinnegan, so the mere water vapor probably wouldn't hinder him either.

"Yahiko, watch out! Jiraiya-sensei is coming toward you!"

Yuehua Ai shouted. Yahiko had given away his position by calling out, and Ai sensed Jiraiya heading in his direction as soon as Yahiko spoke.

"I'll help Yahiko!" Nagato called out, then shot toward him.

"Okay!" Yuehua Ai replied, heading toward Konan.

"What should we do?" Seeing Ai approach, Konan breathed a sigh of relief. Frowning, she asked him.

This situation gave them no advantage. Yahiko and Konan had lost their sight, greatly limiting their combat abilities. Though Ai and Nagato weren't affected, if they each acted alone, Jiraiya could easily find and defeat them one by one.

"It's fine. Watch this." Yuehua Ai smiled at Konan, reassuring her, while his fingers began moving at the same time.

"Rat—Ox—Monkey—Goat."

"Water Release: Water Curtain Cover Technique!"

Yuehua Ai called out the name of the technique. Konan then saw the water beneath their feet flow outward in a circle around them. The ring of water rose, forming a thin, hemispherical curtain.

"Ha!" Yuehua Ai formed the Goat Seal and shouted, pouring more chakra into the technique.

The curtain of water rapidly expanded outward, spreading dozens of meters in the blink of an eye. Wherever it passed, all the water vapor, mist, and raindrops vanished. Even the air in the space around them felt less damp.

"Is this the technique you developed earlier to counter the Hidden Mist Technique, Ai!?" Konan exclaimed, looking at Yuehua Ai with admiration.

"Yeah! I named it Water Curtain Veil." Yuehua Ai confirmed her guess, unable to hide a little pride.

He had adapted Water Curtain Veil from the Water Curtain Wall technique in Water Release. The original Water Curtain Wall could turn water into a curtain for defense and could also block an enemy's vision. It was a defensive technique.

Yuehua Ai's Water Curtain Veil was different from the original. It was neither an offensive nor a defensive technique. If he had to give it a category, it would be a technique for clearing an area.

It had no offensive or defensive power at all, but its unusual changes in form allowed it to sweep away anything in the space around it. Whether mist or poison gas, it could clear it all away.

The idea for Water Curtain Veil had come from actual combat. Over the past two years, they'd fought plenty of shinobi from other factions, including the Rain Ninja, with whom they'd clashed several times.

Many Rain Ninja were skilled in Water Release, and quite a few excelled at the Hidden Mist Technique. In battle, it didn't do much against Yuehua Ai or Nagato, but it was difficult for Yahiko and Konan to deal with. So Yuehua Ai had set his mind to finding a way to counter it.

Later, as he studied more techniques, he mastered the Hidden Mist Technique and learned about Water Curtain Wall as well. The technique's unusual defensive form inspired Ai. Before long, he removed its defensive function, added changes in shape, and refined it through several experiments, eventually perfecting Water Curtain Veil, a technique with a unique purpose.

Today was the first time he'd used it in combat. The mist vanished wherever the curtain passed, and seeing everyone suddenly come into view, he knew the technique had worked better than expected.

Sure enough, there was no such thing as the strongest technique in battle—only the most suitable one!

After the curtain swept over everyone, it dissipated. Jiraiya and Yahiko's group looked around at the sudden clarity in surprise, then cautiously spread out.

"What incredible creativity!" Jiraiya exclaimed, watching Yuehua Ai lower his hands.

"Jiraiya-sensei, now's not the time to admire him!"

Yahiko grinned and attacked again while Jiraiya was distracted.

"Hmph!" Jiraiya narrowed his eyes. Seeing Nagato attack at the same time, he was about to dodge to the side when his steps suddenly grew heavy.

"What's this...?" Jiraiya stared in surprise at the water wrapped around his calves, a flicker of confusion passing through his mind. When had that happened?

"Haha!" Seeing Jiraiya suddenly slow down, Yahiko grinned.

"Snake—Goat—Horse—Rabbit—Goat—Horse—Rabbit. Water Release: Water Prison Technique!"

Yahiko shouted as he finished forming the Hand Seals. A huge sphere of water rose from beneath Jiraiya's feet, trapping him inside!

Yahiko kept one hand inside the Water Prison, continuously supplying it with chakra. Then he glanced at Nagato beside him.

"Lightning Release: Appreciative Wave!"

As Nagato finished his hand seals, Yahiko pulled his hand out of the Water Prison holding Jiraiya captive and swiftly retreated.

"Crack!"

A dazzling flash of lightning shot from Nagato's mouth. With countless branching arcs of electricity, it struck the Water Prison like a spear.

There was no way to dodge!

Jiraiya's Shadow Clone widened its eyes inside the Water Prison, able only to watch helplessly as lightning filled its vision.

"Boom!"

The Water Prison burst with a loud crash. When the waves settled, Jiraiya's clone was gone from the center of the prison. Only a cloud of smoke remained where it had just erupted...