The Border of the Land of Fire.
"Lightning Style Scroll."
"Water Style Scroll."
"Earth Style Scroll."
Facing such a powerful enemy, and with their captain currently pinned down, the siblings finally pulled out their ultimate trump cards: Summoning Scrolls.
Items that Tonbo Tobitake had sealed within these scrolls were pulled out one by one. Wind, Fire, Water, Earth, Lightning... and the most critical piece of all: the "Proxy License" ninja tool.
Rumble!
The masked man's eyes widened. Facing this barrage—one that seed to be specifically locking onto his coordinates—he realized his opponents were seeing right through the chanics of his space-ti ninjutsu. His Fire Style and Genjutsu were being systematically dismantled, one after another.
It was just like years ago at the border of the Land of Rain with that ninja nad Mibu Shinobu. Their raw power wasn't necessarily overwhelming, but their combat experience had suddenly skyrocketed, as if they had beco entirely different people.
Sizzle!
Black Zetsu was covered in black smoke as lightning ravaged his body. "Madara, it seems we can't capture them!" Black Zetsu said in despair. The children's combat intuition had spiked unnaturally; no ninja of their age should possess such seasoned experience. Furthermore, the sheer volu and variety of high-level ninjutsu scrolls they were burning through gave off a sense of imnse wealth.
The masked man used Kamui again to evade a lethal blow, but a Wind Style blade grazed him, leaving a large gash on his torso.
Splatter!
Blood sprayed from the wound. Hearing Zetsu's words, he cast a deep, lingering look at the trio. "I underestimated them. There must be a ninjutsu that allows their combat experience to explode... Tonbo Tobitake..."
This situation reminded him far too much of Tonbo. It had happened at the Rain border, and now it was happening again. Even though he hadn't used his full strength last ti, this ti Tonbo's two children were displaying extraordinary combat prowess backed by an endless supply of expensive scrolls.
It was becoming a nuisance. If not for the elusiveness of the Kamui space-ti technique, he might not have even known how he died.
"Sensory ninjas are such a pain."
Because all three were sensory specialists, Obito's Kamui couldn't grant him a decisive advantage; they had already figured out the timing.
"Should we wear them down?" Zetsu suggested. Activating scrolls still required chakra; draining them was a viable tactic.
"Ninja teamwork exists for a reason. I'll let them go this ti." The masked man gave them one last look.
"Seriously, we've failed before we even started! If even the brats are this difficult, can we really capture the Nine-Tails with that Tonbo Tobitake around?" Zetsu grumbled.
"There's always a way. I don't believe they can maintain this state forever. Besides... these scrolls must cost a fortune," the masked man noted. Even he felt a twinge of envy; the number of scrolls the two had unleashed represented a small fortune in Ryo.
"Let's go."
Swish—
Hayama Shirakumo's blade sliced through the masked man's body, but the figure was already vanishing. Zetsu also sank into the ground, disappearing from the spot.
"Damn it, what were those things?" Maki said, clearly frustrated. Despite using so many precious ninja tools and the trump cards their father had given them, they still hadn't managed to take the enemy down. These enemies were just too strong.
The battle just now had left them trembling with a lingering fear they had never experienced before. While they had encountered strong enemies in the past, they had always been manageable. This fight, however, exposed a massive gap in power. They had even been forced to use the Proxy Licenses their father gave them.
"Based on their clothing, they were likely mbers of the Akatsuki," Wataru noted.
Hayama Shirakumo nodded. "Yes, they are Akatsuki mbers. Although there isn't much intel on those two specifically, they have been seen in action before."
As the strongest ninja village, Konoha's intelligence network spanned the entire ninja world. Once they focused their resources, a great deal of information regarding the Akatsuki ca to light. Among that intel were records of those two, though they carried out missions far less frequently than others.
"What did that pitcher-plant guy call the masked man just now? I think it was... Madara?" Tianyu suddenly spoke up. His hearing was excellent, and he was certain he had heard that na.
"Madara?" Hayama's face grew solemn at the ntion of the na. That's impossible... wasn't he dead long ago?
"Are you sure you heard correctly?" Hayama asked.
"I'm sure." Tianyu shook his head, certain of what he had heard.
"It seems the leader of the Rain Village really does have a connection to the Akatsuki. Their hideout might even be right there in the Rain. However, according to Tonbo's intel from years ago, the Rain ninjas didn't show signs of joining the Akatsuki. Could it be..."
Hayama shook his head and told the trio to keep watch while he contacted the Hokage.
On the other side.
Tonbo Tobitake watched the exchange between Orochimaru and Sai, then followed as Yamato led Naruto and the others in pursuit.
"Naruto's self-healing is truly impressive. Though, looking at it now, it's not quite as amazing as I thought."
Early in Tonbo's physical evolution, he had focused on chakra volu. Once he no longer lacked chakra, he shifted his focus. While his chakra volu had hit a plateau, his other attributes had not. His self-healing and toxin resistance were constantly improving. With the addition of Sage Mode, his regeneration was definitely a step above current Naruto's—though perhaps not yet on the level of Tsunade's Strength of a Hundred or Kabuto's Yin Heal Wound Destruction.
Suddenly, he sensed a specific anchor point disappear. No... two.
"Tianyu and Maki used their Proxy Licenses... did they run into a powerful enemy?"
As soon as the chakra in the Proxy Licenses was exhausted, Tonbo could feel it. He knew imdiately his children were in danger. He glanced at the tracking team with Naruto.
He wove a series of hand signs.
"Sage Art: Transfer."
His body broke down into cellular particles. Communicating through the chakra left in the neural threads, he tunneled through the intervening space. When he reappeared, he was in a blood-red ntal landscape.
"Their chakra is nearly depleted, but they aren't in any serious danger."
Tonbo had appeared inside Tianyu's body, though he did not manifest physically.
"Who's there?" Tianyu suddenly barked, focusing his perception inward. His sudden shout startled the others.
"It's your dad. Did you run into so trouble?" Tonbo had intended to stay quiet, but Tianyu's perception was so sharp he had detected Tonbo even while he was rged within him. Tonbo was forced to speak.
"Wow, Dad! You're actually spying on !" Tianyu's first reaction was that his father must have placed so kind of jutsu on him to communicate so quickly. He puffed out his cheeks in annoyance.
"Hurry up and tell , I have things to do. Do you need help?" Tonbo expanded his perception. He found the surroundings in a state of total ruin, covered in the scars of ninjutsu strikes.
As he felt the familiar lingering chakra in the air, a bad feeling sank into his gut.
"My money..."
Support on Patreon: spatreon/c/MistaQuartz
On Patreon, you can explore Extra Chapters in advance!
User Comments
0 comments from readers