Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the two people ahead. Hozuki Lengyue cautiously stood in front of the gravely wounded Jing. Despite his inhuman appearance, he seemed to be in excellent condition. His breathing was steady, and neither his repeated use of powerful water release techniques nor the healing of his injuries showed any sign of taking a toll on him.
Hiruzen could not be certain what abilities Lengyue now possessed, so he decided to focus on probing him. He transformed the Monkey King into the Adamantine Staff once more and pointed it at Lengyue from a distance. Suddenly, the Adamantine Staff extended sharply, shooting toward Lengyue like an arrow and reaching him in the blink of an eye.
Lengyue summoned a ninja blade from his scroll. This time, he brought out Hiramekarei. With a loud shout, he sent it crashing against the Adamantine Staff, its surface blazing with powerful chakra.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's partner, the Monkey King, ranked among the most powerful summoning beasts. Orochimaru even considered him the strongest—though he probably had not counted those beings that defied all comparison. Then again, whether those beings could even be summoned was another question.
Even an ordinary thrust could match Hiramekarei when it was infused with powerful chakra, and even gain a slight advantage. It was an eye-opening experience for Lengyue. What happened next surprised him even more: the Monkey King's face suddenly appeared on the Adamantine Staff and roared at him.
Amplified by chakra, the sound could deafen an ordinary person and momentarily freeze even a ninja. At that instant, the Monkey King spat out a burst of flame, blasting Lengyue in the face at point-blank range.
The Monkey King had already learned from Hiruzen that physical attacks were almost useless against this man unless they used lightning release chakra. But the