Hanzo the Salamander slowly removed the mask from his face, revealing eyes that had endured the trials of time yet remained as sharp as blades.
There was an unprecedented resolve in his gaze—this time, he was prepared to give it everything he had.
Amegakure's casualties had already become horrifying, and he would offer a final tribute to those sacrificed souls. The ninja world needed balance, and he was the one who would enforce it.
From childhood, he had been raised as a weapon of biochemical warfare, with a salamander's venom sac implanted within his body.
As the years passed, that poison had fused with his life itself. Every breath he took carried lethal toxic fumes. It was his curse, but also the source of his power—the foundation of his ideals.
Even a peak powerhouse of the ninja world like that old puppet woman had suffered a crushing defeat at his hands. Now, these three young powerhouses from Konoha were merely another step on his path toward his ideals.
His string of victories filled Hanzo with heroic ambition, his confidence blazing like a raging fire.
In his eyes, even beings like the Five Kage were nothing more than another stepping stone on his path forward. He dared to challenge and dared to conquer, because he knew his power had already surpassed ordinary imagination.
"Come, young powerhouses of Konoha. Let me see your strength—and let me fulfill my ideals!"
Hanzo the Salamander's voice echoed across the battlefield like a declaration from the god of death, heralding the coming of a new storm.
Under Hanzo the Salamander's control, the chain in his hand seemed to come alive. It whistled through the air like an enraged serpent, smashing toward Jiraiya with lightning speed.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
A dense barrage of weapon clashes rang across