Fiery Rain Decisive Battle

After the meeting concluded, Senju Genma and Tsunade returned to their tent together.

As soon as they stepped through the entrance, the two saw Konan waiting for them.

Seeing that her brother and sister had returned safe and sound, Konan opened her arms to Genma.

Senju Genma responded enthusiastically; the moment Konan opened her arms, he rushed forward, and the two naturally embraced.

Having had the experience of being with Kushina and Uchiha Mikoto, Senju Genma had gained some insight into the art of nurturing relationships.

The most important thing was to have a face that could leave others spellbound, then cultivate feelings step by step, until, through the passage of time, you became part of them and they became part of you.

As long as the owner of that face didn't have a truly wretched personality, there would basically be no problems.

Tsunade stood to the side, feeling unhappy as she watched the two cuddling without restraint.

However, fortunately, the two were so adorable that Tsunade's heart quickly melted. She pulled them both into her arms, letting out an occasional, strange "hehehe" chuckle.

Konan rubbed her face against Senju Genma's chest. Genma had already taken off his armor, and Konan took a deep breath before speaking timidly: "Brother Genma, war is truly terrifying! I was so worried about you!"

Looking at Konan's frightened expression, Senju Genma felt a pang of heartache: "It's alright, don't worry. The war will be over soon, and peace will arrive before you know it!"

With the final decisive battle looming, it wasn't just Genma; even a battle-hardened veteran like Tsunade felt a sense of tension.

Perhaps to alleviate this nervous energy, Senju Genma chatted with Tsunade and Konan for a long time.

They talked about everything from the potential scenarios of the upcoming battle to their future after returning to the village, and from Genma's own future to the future of the Senju Clan.

That night, after Senju Genma coaxed the two women to sleep, he summoned a small Katsuyu.

Having chatted with Tsunade and Konan for so long, Senju Genma hadn't forgotten that there were three others back home missing him dearly!

Within the Senju Clan Grounds, Mito, Kushina, and Uchiha Mikoto were gathered together, and Uzumaki Mito had also summoned a Katsuyu.

Not long after Senju Genma had left for the battlefield, Uchiha Mikoto, who was still a Genin, had wanted to head to the front lines to find him.

After Uchiha Yodo learned of Mikoto's intentions, he pondered for a long time before deciding to send her to the Senju Clan.

Mikoto did not refuse, and Uzumaki Mito was happy to see it happen.

Although some members of the Senju Clan had their reservations about this, Uzumaki Mito was glad to see anything that could promote unity within the village.

Furthermore, Genma and Mikoto shared a close bond, and Uzumaki Mito was willing to help Genma keep an eye on things.

"Lady Mito, Kushina, Mikoto, I've missed you all so much after these few days apart." The moment the connection was established, Senju Genma expressed his longing.

Having been on the battlefield for two years, Senju Genma had used the Reverse Summoning Technique to return to the village and visit the three of them.

However, opportunities were rare; the last time he had returned was seven days ago.

The three had been worried about his safety because they hadn't seen him for several days, so they were overjoyed to finally make contact through Katsuyu.

"Lady Mito, is your health alright?" During their brief time together a few days ago, Senju Genma had clearly felt that Uzumaki Mito's health was not what it used to be, which left him deeply concerned.

Katsuyu relayed Uzumaki Mito's words, her tone revealing a hint of worry: "Don't worry, I still have some time left!"

Senju Genma lowered his gaze, his fists clenching involuntarily, but what he blurted out was: "Is that so? Then I can rest easy!"

The next morning.

After Orochimaru delivered the pre-battle mobilization speech, the Konoha forces marched in unison toward the Hidden Rain Village.

Having rested for the night, the Konoha ninja had returned to their peak state, each of them brimming with momentum.

The Yellow-Gambling-Poison Trio set out first, leading the vanguard.

As the troops drew closer to the Hidden Rain Village, everyone soon realized something was wrong.

Although the outer outposts of the Hidden Rain Village had been wiped out, the village definitely still had remaining forces.

Now that they were approaching the village with such fanfare, they had only encountered a few patrol units without facing any effective resistance; it was clearly suspicious.

"It's a trap!" someone in the ranks suddenly shouted.

Countless Explosive Tags suddenly erupted from the ground, latching onto the legs of the ninja.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several explosions rang out, and in an instant, flames soared into the sky as screams echoed through the crowd.

The troops fell into chaos.

"What the hell is this?!" terrified cries erupted from the front of the formation.

Purple mist began to spread at the front of the troops, and as the ninja inhaled the gas, they collapsed to the ground, paralyzed.

Cold sweat dripped down Orochimaru's forehead; he had already guessed why things had turned out this way.

"To be able to utilize the Explosive Flame Formation to this extent, and to be so skilled with poison—I can only think of one person."

"Jiraiya, wasn't Hanzo on the Sand Ninja front?"

Facing Orochimaru's questioning, Jiraiya's expression was grim; he hadn't expected things to turn out like this either.

"Perhaps the intelligence was wrong."

"Don't worry about that now, have the troops retreat! We'll take care of the rear guard!" Tsunade said quickly.

Orochimaru nodded and immediately began issuing orders for the troops to retreat.

Hanzo, of course, would not simply watch the Konoha forces escape; he immediately summoned Ibuse to the battlefield to spew toxic mist, while he charged into the Konoha ranks alone.

Because Hanzo had the poison sac of a salamander implanted in his body, he possessed a resistance to toxins. With the coordination of Ibuse's poisonous mist, the paralyzed Konoha ninja were like lambs waiting for the slaughter.

He knew that the Hidden Rain Village could not defeat Konoha; the defeat of the Hidden Rain Village was already an inevitable outcome.

However, what he had to do now was make Konoha see his threat, striving to ensure that the Hidden Rain Village would not lose too many interests after the war.

Orochimaru and his two companions also saw Hanzo appear on the battlefield and used the Body Flicker Technique in unison to quickly enter the fray and intercept him.

Jiraiya arrived behind Hanzo, his hands weaving seals at lightning speed. "Fire Style: Great Flame Bomb!"

The next second, Jiraiya's mouth filled with oil, and as he spat it out, he used Fire Style to ignite it.

"Too slow!" Hanzo remarked with disdain, forming a seal with one hand to turn himself into a puddle of water, evading the attack of the Great Flame Bomb.

While Jiraiya was searching for Hanzo's position, Hanzo had already arrived behind him, raising his sickle high.

"Watch out!" Orochimaru shouted from not far behind Jiraiya. "Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"

Several large snakes slithered out from Orochimaru's sleeves, striking toward Hanzo's position.

Jiraiya and Tsunade also reacted.

Jiraiya quickly wove seals with his hands, his long silver hair covering his entire body and hardening for defense.

Ninja Art: Needle Jizo!

Tsunade leaped high into the air, bringing a fist imbued with the Strength of a Hundred crashing down toward Hanzo.