Chapter 26: Blow Him Up!!
A few clay bombs were thrown down, shaped like grasshoppers, exploding the moment they landed.
Boom, boom, boom!
The deafening roar sent dirt flying near Jiraiya.
Su Xiao, positioned far away, didn’t fire. He only pulled the trigger when Jiraiya dodged an attack or released a ninjutsu, disrupting the technique.
Gamaken leaped out from the smoke, covered in burns.
“Gamaken, you alright?”
Jiraiya was worried Gamaken was pushing himself.
“I’m… fine.”
Gamaken looked listless, a pool of blood quickly forming beneath him. Seeing this, Jiraiya immediately formed hand signs, preparing to dismiss the summon.
“Though I’m clumsy, I can still fight, Lord Jiraiya.”
“You’ve helped me plenty. Rest now. I’ll summon your brother.”
“Then… very well.”
Gamaken vanished in a puff of white smoke.
“Summoning Jutsu.”
Bang.
White smoke rose again as Jiraiya summoned his second summon.
“Jiraiya?”
A red-skinned toad with a pipe in its mouth appeared. Its size was similar to Gamaken’s, but its weapon differed—a large, guardless short sword. The “short sword” was only short relative to Gamaken’s size; it was actually five meters long.
Gamabunta, Gamaken’s older brother.
“Bunta, jump!”
Jiraiya shouted from Bunta’s back as Deidara dropped more bombs.
“Fire Style…”
Bang!
A bullet flew in, barely dodged by Jiraiya, forcibly interrupting his ninjutsu.
Crack, blood splattered. The toad summon’s massive size made it impossible to dodge the Spider Empress’s bullets.
“Damn, who’s attacking?”
Gamabunta pulled out his large short sword and, without a word, swung at the Third Kazekage, who was caught in the crossfire.
Boom!
The sheer force of the strike was terrifying. Though it didn’t hit the Third Kazekage, it nearly slashed through the Hiruko shell housing Sasori.
Gamabunta was far more ferocious than Gamaken. From the moment he appeared, he hacked wildly at the Third Kazekage and Hiruko, forcing Sasori to dodge. The Third Kazekage he controlled became noticeably more sluggish.
“The enemy is strong, hmm.”
Deidara stopped throwing bombs. The mouth on his palm kept chewing, as if charging a big move.
Bang, bang, bang…
Su Xiao fired repeatedly, punching bloody holes into Gamabunta, slowing his assault.
“Bunta, buy me time.”
Jiraiya knew he could no longer hold back. The enemy’s tactics were utterly vile.
Up close, the Third Kazekage and Sasori pinned him down. Bombs rained from above. And from a distance, long-range attacks constantly interrupted his ninjutsu.
Jiraiya smeared blood on his fingers, drew semicircles under his eyes, and clasped his hands together. A strange wave of energy spread out.
Gamabunta knew what Jiraiya was about to do. He stopped actively attacking Sasori, focusing on protecting Jiraiya.
The coordination among Su Xiao’s trio grew smoother. Sasori had Hiruko spit out senbon and shuriken, all coated in poison. Deidara was charging his ultimate move. Su Xiao sought opportunities to snipe Jiraiya, or failing that, targeted Gamabunta.
Explosions and the clash of ninjutsu echoed continuously.
Gamabunta’s blade work was savage, and his ninjutsu was no slouch either. For a time, he suppressed Sasori, who wasn’t going all out.
Sasori wasn’t using full strength, and neither was Deidara. Coincidentally, Jiraiya was the same. They were probing each other, searching for openings. As for Su Xiao, he was the safest on the field.
But now, Jiraiya was ready to fight for his life. Dragging this out could mean his death.
Bullets flew. Su Xiao had already emptied three magazines, the Spider Empress’s barrel growing hot.
“Ji… Jiraiya, are you done yet? I can’t hold on.”
Gamabunta was riddled with holes, a gruesome wound on his front leg revealing iron sand inside.
“Done.”
Jiraiya sighed in relief. His technique was ready. Blood-soaked Gamabunta vanished in white smoke.
“Welcome to my art.”
A loud shout came from above as Deidara dropped a clay bomb.
The bomb was a round puppet. The moment it left Deidara’s hand, he formed hand signs. With a bang, the puppet expanded, its descent accelerating due to gravity.
This was Deidara’s killing move, C18, infused with his highest-grade chakra.
Below, Sasori stopped engaging Jiraiya, releasing a few low-level puppets to stall him, then turned and ran.
This move alerted Jiraiya. Just as he tried to flee, bullets flew in, forcing him to dodge.
“Little Jiraiya, what’s going on?”
An old toad perched on Jiraiya’s shoulder spoke.
“Husband, the attack is coming. Protect little Jiraiya.”
Another toad on Jiraiya’s other shoulder chimed in.
Jiraiya’s appearance had drastically changed. His nose had swollen, covered in bumps, and red marks appeared under his eyes.
“Sage Mode?”
Through the scope, Su Xiao noticed Jiraiya’s transformation. The two old frogs on his shoulders were from Mount Myoboku: Fukasaku (male) and Shima (female).
Normal Jiraiya and Sage Mode Jiraiya were two different concepts. But now, he was about to face Deidara’s bombardment.
The C18 clay bomb landed. This technique had once leveled a village.
A blinding white light spread, silent at first.
The light engulfed Jiraiya. Even Sasori, who had fled far, was caught in the blast. Hiruko was sent flying. Farther away, Bubu Wang marveled, “What a big firework.”
“Explosion is art, hmm!”
Deidara admired his handiwork. Su Xiao covered one eye; the white light, amplified by the “Optical Infrared Detection Scope 8x (Active),” stung his eyes painfully.
Boom!
The shockwave radiated outward, tearing up the ground. The nearby forest was instantly flattened.
The white light lasted a few seconds before fading. Where Jiraiya had stood, a massive crater four hundred meters in diameter now lay. The crater was slightly concave, the soil vitrified, glinting in the sunlight.
At the explosion’s center was a “flesh sac,” mostly destroyed, resembling the stomach of some creature.
“Cough, cough, cough.”
Jiraiya staggered out of the stomach sac, his internal organs shaken by the blast.
“What explosive power. Good thing I summoned in time.”
Fukasaku had barely spoken when a bullet whistled toward him.
Jiraiya sidestepped. The bullet flew past, severing a few of his singed hairs.
“Time to counterattack.”
Jiraiya stomped the ground, sending dirt erupting. His strength was terrifying.
Whoosh~
Jiraiya dashed toward Sasori’s Hiruko. Sasori tried to control the Third Kazekage but found it unresponsive—Fukasaku had wrapped his tongue around it.
“Toad Vibration.”
The two toad sages on Jiraiya’s shoulders puffed out their cheeks, releasing a special wavelength—a powerful sound-based ninjutsu.
Hiruko froze in place. Jiraiya kicked it in the head.
Crack! Hiruko shattered. Sasori, inside, was sent flying.
“That’s the real body.”
Jiraiya moved to attack Sasori’s core but noticed the two giant clay birds above closing in.
Clang, clang, clang, clang…
A dozen iron rods, several meters long, drove into the ground around Jiraiya.
Zzzz~
The sound of wire retracting. Realm Severing Thread used the rods to form a net.
Su Xiao had put away the Spider Empress. Dozens of small white frogs leaped from his sleeve, falling toward Jiraiya.
Deidara wasn’t idle either. Dozens of clay bombs were thrown.
“Detonate.”
“Detonate.”
Boom, boom, boom…
Explosions rang out endlessly. The iron rods Su Xiao had planted around Jiraiya were blasted away.
The explosions ceased after dozens of seconds. When the smoke cleared, Jiraiya was nowhere to be seen.
This disciple of the Third Hokage, teacher of the Fourth, comrade of the Fifth, grand-teacher of the Sixth, and life mentor of the Seventh, had been driven off by the combined sniper + puppet + bombing tactics of Su Xiao, Sasori, and Deidara.
“Tch, that guy got away fast.”
Deidara grinned, though his clay bombs were completely spent.
In the distance, Sasori stood up. One arm fell off with a thud.
Su Xiao sat on the clay bird’s back, blood seeping from over a dozen small wounds.
Though they had all paid a price, the three of them had nearly left one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, dead on this field.