After finishing the letter
Uchiha Chiba suddenly looked up.
A familiar chakra grew clearer.
Was it Hanzo the Salamander?
Had he come alone to kill me?
Uchiha Chiba didn't dare let his guard down. He immediately left the house, his figure appearing in a flash in the Great Forest of the Land of Rain. He had to get out of the Land of Rain. As the current leader of Amegakure, Hanzo the Salamander surely had ways to track him down!
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
A muffled voice came from beneath the mask.
RUMBLE!!!!
One terrifying blue pillar of water after another shot into the sky, pursuing him as if they had eyes. Trees shattered wherever they passed, leaving destruction in their wake. Their terrifying power told the fleeing Uchiha Chiba that Hanzo was serious!
"Damn it, is Hanzo the Salamander trying to drive me toward the Konoha forces?" Attacks kept coming from behind Uchiha Chiba. Even though he knew Hanzo's aim, he could only run in the direction Hanzo had planned. If he stopped, he'd die!
The next second,
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"
A ferocious fire dragon radiated waves of scorching heat. It looked as if it were carrying the sun in its jaws. Raindrops struck its body, raising wisps of steam, but they did nothing to lessen its terrifying power!
VROOOM!!!!!!
A massive explosion erupted beneath Chiba's feet.
Uchiha Chiba's body was hurled through the air.
Perhaps he couldn't bring himself to cross swords with the man who had taught him his power. Or perhaps it was because of Katsuzuki of the Salamander, who had already died. The smell of roasting flesh rose from Uchiha Chiba's legs. He only glanced at Hanzo the Salamander behind him, then gritted his teeth and kept running. His blood-red Three Tomoe Sharingan had already copied the ferocious fire dragon perfectly.
Hanzo the Salamander said nothing. He merely gripped the Kusarigama in his hand, launching attacks from time to time. His scythe soon tore through Chiba's back. The force of the blow was so great that his stark white bones were faintly visible.
At last,
the tents of the Konoha forces appeared in the distance.
Hanzo the Salamander glanced at the fleeing Chiba, then at the Konoha tents. His gaze lingered on Konoha's insignia. When Chiba was too far away to notice, he sighed and formed Hand Seals.
"Ibuse!"
A gigantic brown salamander burst from the earth, its massive form blotting out the sky. Then it opened its mouth wide. Chiba felt his hair stand on end and poured chakra into strengthening his speed.
A flood of purple poison swept toward him.
The terrifying attack sent Uchiha Chiba flying.
THUD!!!!!
Chiba's body slammed hard into a tree before sliding to the ground. He felt the Salamander Toxin inside him gradually merging with his chakra. After all, Hanzo the Salamander had first used this method to treat Chiba's shattered dantian. With the toxin's boost, the chakra in Chiba's body would only grow denser as time went on.
"Fire Style: Fire Oil Flame Bullet!"
Jiraiya appeared in a flash. He came to stand in front of Uchiha Chiba, formed Hand Seals, and attacked Hanzo the Salamander in the distance!
BOOM!!!!
The giant salamander merely raised its head, blocking Jiraiya's Fire Style completely!
"Hanzo the Salamander?" Orochimaru's voice reached Chiba's ears first. Then he arrived alongside Tsunade.
Looking at the Sannin he had named not long ago,
Hanzo the Salamander snorted.
"Uchiha brat... Too bad I couldn't kill you myself, you assassin. You're lucky you ran into them. If it had been anyone else, I would have killed you... The debt for my daughter's death can only be repaid in blood!" Hanzo the Salamander readied himself to attack again.
Orochimaru spoke slowly. "Weren't you going to withdraw your forces? If you keep attacking, we'll fight to the death. Sunagakure can't make much of a move anyway."
Hanzo the Salamander paused, as if he were truly considering it. He snorted. "He killed my daughter and tried to kill me. How are we supposed to settle that score?"
"Casualties are inevitable in war. My younger brother was killed by your people, too." Tsunade came to Uchiha Chiba's side, green chakra glowing in her hand. Hearing Hanzo's words, she looked at him and spoke.
Uchiha Chiba tried to speak, but found his body completely numb. He could only stare as his Sharingan spun frantically.
"Heh... You're a lucky kid." Hanzo the Salamander left those words behind, then slowly walked away.
There,
Orochimaru and Jiraiya came to Uchiha Chiba's side.
"A Three Tomoe Sharingan? At such a young age, he's already Kage Level. What a genius," Jiraiya said, somewhat surprised. After all, he wasn't considered a genius himself.
"An Uchiha... Hmm... What's your name?" Orochimaru's hoarse voice came.
"Chi...ba..." Enduring the numbness in his lips, Uchiha Chiba knew this was his only chance to enter Konoha. He had lost his Forehead Protector long ago, and during wartime, losing it meant losing his identity.
Then,
Tsunade punched Orochimaru and Jiraiya once each.
"You two, this child's suffering from such severe poisoning, and you're making him talk?" Tsunade looked at her teammates helplessly.
"I was just making an observation. I didn't even ask him anything... Ow!" Jiraiya held his head.
Orochimaru merely shook his head. "I was just gathering basic information, Tsunade."
Then,
It seemed the poison had reached his bloodstream.
Uchiha Chiba lost consciousness.
Sunagakure
On the main battlefield between Konoha and Sunagakure,
Hatake Sakumo put away his short blade and wiped the blood from it. He looked at the Sand Ninja force of nearly a hundred behind him.
The murderous look in his eyes
made the entire Sand Ninja unit take a step back.
"If you don't dare fight, then leave. I'm not a bloodthirsty man. Besides, your village must have information about me, too. If you run into me, you're free to flee," Hatake Sakumo said calmly.
Seeing that no one dared approach,
Hatake Sakumo turned around, intending to leave the battlefield.
The next second,
two Puppets charged out of the crowd.
BAM!!!!
His short blade parried one Puppet's attack. Using the force, Hatake Sakumo leaped into the air and kicked away the other Puppet, which was about to complete a pincer attack from behind. His short blade flashed, seemingly slicing through something. Several Chakra Threads fell from the Puppet in front of him.
Clack, clack, clack!!!
The Puppet's joints rattled.
Then,
Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!!!!
RUMBLE!!!!
Hatake Sakumo leaped away in a flash.
"Destroying the Chakra Threads triggers the Explosive Tags?" Hatake Sakumo stood on high ground, looking down at the crowd. At last, he spotted the attackers: two figures dressed in cloaks.
"You brought this on yourselves." Hatake Sakumo shook his head and spun his short blade, White Fang, once.
The next second,
a white figure shot into the crowd.
"Hatake Style Kenjutsu!"
The short blade spun deftly in his hand. Hatake Sakumo immediately locked onto the two Puppet Masters. Before they could react, he reversed his grip and slashed.
Blood splattered across the ground.
Before you continue