He Was Probably Up to No Good

After resting at Night-Cry Sand Sea for ten days, Danzo's army moved! Following another twelve days of rapid marching, the army arrived at Moon Lake. Without the slightest delay, they immediately launched an assault on Sunagakure's bunker network. And it was no minor skirmish—there was no probing, no reconnaissance. They sent out their elite forces from the start, charging in recklessly like a pack of hotheads.

Jing Hang was somewhat puzzled. Danzo had held out at Night-Cry Sand Sea for ten days just to come up with this? A street brawl? Strike first for the advantage? Jing Hang couldn't figure it out, so he picked up his telescope and carefully observed the battlefield.

From Jing Hang's experience, Hidden Leaf Village definitely wasn't putting on an act with a feigned assault this time. Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and even Tsunade, whom he had never met, had all appeared on the battlefield. Although Hidden Leaf Village had come from afar, they had the advantage in numbers. Though Sunagakure had fewer troops, its personnel were well-rested and it possessed a relatively complete defensive system. For a time, the two sides were evenly matched.

"Summoning Technique!"

Three thunderous shouts rang out, followed by three enormous clouds of white smoke.

As the smoke dispersed, a giant toad, a giant snake, and a giant slug appeared on the battlefield. The ninja from both sides, who had been tangled in battle, all looked up at the three enormous summoned beasts. Hidden Leaf Village's ninja immediately erupted into excited cheers.

"Fuck, that's fighting dirty!" In that instant, Jing Hang swiftly pulled out two scrolls and released Iron Sand.

"Magnet Release: Gundam Technique!"

A black giant appeared behind Sunagakure's lines, standing no shorter than the three summoned beasts. It was shaped like an ancient general, clad in beast-faced armor, wearing a crown prince's helmet, and wielding a Sky-Piercing Halberd. It looked imposing and majestic.

"Hey, don't run! Watch Lu Bu take on the Three Heroes!" Jing Hang let out a strange yell and commanded the iron giant to charge forward and clash with the Three Legendary Ninja. Sunagakure's ninja were instantly invigorated, and cheers rose everywhere.

"Did you see that? Add this technique to the plan as well!" Danzo looked up at Jing Hang's Gundam.

"Yes, the plan will likely need revisions. That technique looks troublesome." Nara Shikacho stared fixedly at Jing Hang, his gaze seeming as though it wanted to pierce through the enormous iron giant.

"You have seven days."

"That's enough."

"Fire Release: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!" Jiraiya and Gamabunta beneath him launched their combined technique, and a massive oil flame bullet came crashing toward them with unstoppable force. The left half of "Lu Bu's" body was instantly engulfed in flames.

Jing Hang calmly controlled the Iron Sand to roll and rotate. The armor on "Lu Bu's" left side seemed to vanish at once. In reality, he had separated out the burning Iron Sand coated in oil, gathering it into a blazing iron ring in his hand before hurling it backhandedly at Tsunade.

The flaming ring struck Katsuyu squarely. The enormous slug swiftly split into countless smaller slugs, then reassembled nearby. It immediately spat a mouthful of powerful acid at "Lu Bu." With a sizzling sound, white smoke rose from "Lu Bu's" body.

"Fuck, I overlooked that." Jing Hang gritted his teeth. Iron Sand truly had no good way to deal with acid; he could only evade it.

Rather than retreating, Jing Hang advanced. The iron giant "Lu Bu" swung its Sky-Piercing Halberd and thrust straight at Katsuyu, forcing her to split apart again. Unable to continue attacking with Tongue-Tooth Sticky Acid, she watched as Orochimaru, standing atop Manda, rushed forward. In just a few moves, Manda coiled around "Lu Bu" and opened his enormous blood-filled maw at Jing Hang.

In a flash, "Lu Bu" grabbed Manda by the throat with its left hand. Orochimaru leaped down, wielding the Kusanagi Sword as he went straight for Jing Hang. Jing Hang showed no fear as Orochimaru attacked. An Iron Sand nunchaku instantly formed in his hand, and he screamed at the top of his lungs as he charged at Orochimaru!

Thus, Jing Hang fought the Three Legendary Ninja alone without falling into disadvantage. One against three, he spun like a windmill, fighting until the sky darkened and sun and moon lost their light. The surrounding ninja all voluntarily moved away, clearing the battlefield for fear of being drawn in. The battle lasted from daytime until dusk before both sides sounded the withdrawal.

"Just as expected of the Three Legendary Ninja personally named by Hanzo of the Salamander. I've never met opponents this troublesome—so many tricks, fast recovery, and such incredible endurance! To think there were people like this among my peers. I really underestimated the heroes of the world." Jing Hang wiped his neck with a hot towel and couldn't help sighing.

"Yes, three very promising young people. You'd have no problem with two, but three were somewhat taxing, weren't they?" Chiyo looked at Jing Hang kindly.

"Garukei! Come in."

"Third Kazekage, what are your orders?" A young ninja holding an enormous iron fan entered the main tent. He was Karura's cousin, the second son of the Iron Fan Clan in Hidden Sand Village. He was capable and efficient, and his Three-Star Fan Technique was quite impressive.

"Go to every camp and select five hundred elites. We're launching a night raid tonight!"

"A night raid!?"

"We're tired, but damn it, Hidden Leaf Village's ninja aren't made of iron either. Tonight, we'll set their camp ablaze and freeze them to death!" Jing Hang sneered.

"I feel Jing Hang is harder to deal with than Hanzo of the Salamander! I feel like I've nearly used my full strength, yet he was still at ease." Jiraiya said.

"His close combat and taijutsu aren't weak either," Orochimaru said.

"His chakra reserves are unfathomable. If the three of us hadn't attacked from multiple angles, his Iron Sand might have shown even more variations. Any one or two of us alone definitely wouldn't be his match. You two didn't lose unfairly last time." Tsunade glanced at Orochimaru and Jiraiya.

"Mm." Nara Shikacho kept his head lowered, rapidly writing something in a notebook. After a long while, he looked up and asked Tsunade, "Do you think Lady Katsuyu's Tongue-Tooth Sticky Acid affects that iron giant?"

"Yes, absolutely. After Jing Hang's iron giant was hit once by Katsuyu's acid, he kept avoiding Katsuyu's attacks!"

"Mm. I hope that when we fight tomorrow, you can make Jing Hang use as many techniques as possible. I need to calculate his total amount of Iron Sand. I'm counting on the three of you." Shikacho gave the Three Legendary Ninja a slight bow, then turned and walked out of the main tent.

"Report! The enemy is launching a night raid!"

The Three Legendary Ninja exchanged glances and immediately rose to leave the tent. Outside, flames already filled the night.

The night raid's results were not as good as expected, thanks to Danzo's strict command and Hidden Leaf Village's well-trained ninja. They shifted from defense to counterattack with great speed. After burning down one-third of the tents, Jing Hang saw that the situation was turning unfavorable and immediately withdrew.

Yet early the next morning, Danzo disregarded everyone's exhaustion and continued attacking Sunagakure. He even entered the battlefield himself to raise morale. Sunagakure had no choice but to send out everyone. Even Elder Ebizo, who had come to deliver supplies, was forced into battle. There was no helping it—there were simply too few experts available to come out and "stand guard."

Who would have thought that on the third day, Hidden Leaf Village's attack would continue unchanged? Their assaults, heedless of life and loss, made Jing Hang feel that there had to be a conspiracy behind them. After all, Sunagakure was fighting on home ground, with favorable terrain and advantageous defensive fortifications. Over the past three days, Hidden Leaf Village had suffered far greater losses than Sunagakure, yet the unceasing attacks had left Jing Hang exhausted.

"Garukei! Gather a thousand brothers tonight. Have them beat gongs and drums, shout and yell outside Hidden Leaf Village's camp gate. If they come out, retreat. If they go to sleep, keep making noise. Anyway, if Danzo gets any sleep tonight, then neither will you!" Jing Hang angrily assigned Garukei his task.

After such harassment, Danzo indeed became much more restrained. Hidden Leaf Village's army withdrew thirty li, raised a truce banner high, and never sent another person toward Sunagakure's defensive line.

"How many days has it been?"

"Three days."

"Still no movement at all?"

"None at all."

Jing Hang sucked his teeth.

"I think that old turtle Danzo is definitely up to no good."

"Ignore him. Elder Chiyo, you'll have to make the trip. Without supplies or water, let's see how many more days he can hold out." Jing Hang slammed his fist down on Hidden Leaf Village's camp on the map.