96-100

Chapter 96: The Mask of Raikage

Hastily considered leaving and wiping out Sand Ninja, Dodai began to shrink the Cloud troops while sending people to investigate and support the Third Raikage.

Onoki floated back to Iwagakure's elite squad as shadow guards from the air.

"Master Tsuchikage, Sand Ninja has started to retreat, do you want to keep them?" Iwa Ninja Jonin Higashi Shito asked Onogi who landed.

"Let them go." Onogi hesitated for a moment, then shook his head.

"Isn't it good to keep them?" Higashi Shito was a little surprised. He didn't expect that his own Tsuchikage would be willing to let the Sand Ninja who had been defeated leave together.

"The latest information, the puppet granny of Sand Ninja brought Ichio Jinchuriki here." Onoki said softly.

Higashi Shito immediately understood.

Bringing Ichio here and deliberately leaking information about the tailed beast Jinchuriki is obviously to intimidate them.

fish dead net broken?

Higashi Shito didn't think that a one-tailed jinchuriki could resist the current Iwagakure, even with Cloud.

But if Sand Ninja and Yun Ninja are forced to join forces, it will indeed be a big trouble for Iwa Ninja!

His own Tsuchikage, who likes to be safe, obviously doesn't want to make any extra troubles at this juncture, and any accidents will lead to twists and turns.

Retreat if you retreat.

A Sand Ninja Village that has been broken to the point where it can only defend the village and is unable to actively participate in the war is already half out of the game in this Ninja World War.

Next, as long as the Cloud here is wiped out, then Cloud Village can only shrink back and lick its wounds. Their Iwa Shinobi will invade the Land of Fire in one go and start the final war with Konoha.

...

"Rui, you take the comparison and the Cloud troops back to the village together." The third generation of Raikage returned to the camp and ordered his son and subordinates.

"father!" Rui's eyes widened, and the uneasiness in his heart spread to the maximum in an instant.

"I'll stay and block Ohnoki's main force for you." The third generation of Raikage's tone was calm.

"Master Raikage..."

"Hurry up, as long as you are still there, Cloud will not be eliminated in this war, and it will still be one of the five ninja villages!

Iwa Shinobi surrounded the battlefield, but with me attracting attention, it's not difficult for you to break through the encirclement. I will block as many pursuers as possible for you. "The third generation of Raikage interrupted Dodai's words, and said decisively.

"Rui, from now on, you are the Fourth Raikage!" The Third Raikage looked at Rui and said to him.

"Finally, leave me the mask codenamed One."

...

"Did you divide your troops? Where is the Third Raikage?" Onoki also got the information that Cloud divided his troops to break through from the Iwa Ninja in front, and he was not surprised by this. His attention was on the Third Raikage.

As long as the Third Raikage can be dealt with, even if some of those Cloud can successfully break through, they will not be able to escape the subsequent pursuit of Iwagakure.

"Raikage is leading people towards us."

The Iwa Ninja who reported this information was also a little surprised by the choice of the Third Raikage.

"Going to die?" Onoki instantly saw through the third generation of Raikage's thoughts. Onogi was also a little touched by Raikage's choice.

The second Hokage of Konoha did the same thing back then.

"Raikage, is a qualified shadow!"

Onoki praised and admired. But then he began to issue targeted orders to Iwa Ninja without hesitation.

Cherish each other, and even after swapping identities, Onoki might make the same choice, but that doesn't prevent you from being wiped out, and the Cloud you want to protect from being wiped out.

Raikage led a small team of Cloud to break into the vicinity of Iwayin. Under the swarming Iwayin ninjas, the Cloud team that came with him disappeared one after another after being attacked, and finally only the lightning-like flicker on the battlefield remained. A strong figure.

The surging ninjutsu couldn't catch up with the figure that was flickering and galloping on the battlefield at all. Even if the range-covering ninjutsu bombarded, it would often be released, and soon the lightning-like figure could be seen galloping out of the ninjutsu, breaking into the release The ninja group of ninjutsu brought casualties to Iwa Ninja.

For a while, under that almost flickering speed, the entire battlefield seemed to be filled with afterimages of the Third Raikage, and it also brought terrifying casualties to the Iwa Shinobi in the front row.

No one is his enemy of unity. The third generation of Raikage who charged up is like a god of death, who will die if he hits him, and will be injured if he rubs against him.

Many Iwa Shinobi didn't even see his figure, they only heard a burst of thunderous noise and a dazzling figure, their bodies were directly knocked into the air, torn into several pieces in mid-air, and died.

Ordinary ninjutsu can't restrict Raikage's figure at all, and the opponent took the initiative to rush into the Iwa Ninja troops. This seemingly self-inflicted trap and suicidal behavior has also become a nightmare for Iwa Ninja under the opponent's incomparably powerful defense and unparalleled sprinting speed. .

In a few hours, Iwa Ninja paid the casualties of hundreds of Iwa Ninjas.

And that dazzling figure wrapped in lightning was still tirelessly running among the Iwa ninjas, bringing death.

Wherever the electric light flickered, there would be chaos and death among the Iwa ninjas.

Under the roar of thunder, the screams of Iwa Ninja came one after another.

"Master Tsuchikage?" Higashi Shito looked at the Third Raikage who was surrounded by Iwa Ninja, and looked at his own shadow with a calm expression.

"Wait a little longer! Consume more of his Chakra!" Onoki said calmly. Although this is cruel to the Iwa Shinobi in front, this is war.

A ninja who is so powerful that he is crowned with the name of Five Shadows can easily fight against a thousand with one.

Since he wanted to keep a shadow, Onogi was naturally prepared to bear the corresponding losses. Now is not the time to invest in Iwa Shinobi's elite.

At least until Raikage's Chakra is exhausted, it will be the time for Iwa Ninja's elite to harvest.

Raikage obviously also realized this point. Although his physical strength and Chakra are currently abundant, Iwa Ninja has obviously also found a way to restrict him and curb his speed.

The area where he moves has been covered by patches of quicksand and mud, and his speed still seems as fast as lightning in Iwa Ninja's eyes, but he knows very well that his sprinting speed has been affected.

If this continues, he will become a target for ninjutsu fire. At that time, it will be even more difficult to cause a lot of damage to Iwa Ninja.

This method of restricting his speed and lethality is very familiar to Raikage, which made him suddenly feel that he was still fighting against Sand Ninja's Rasa. The difference between the two lies in the fact that Luosha's blood inheritance limit restricts and restrains him more than these Iwa ninjas.

Iwagakure obviously wanted to exhaust his Chakra in this way, at least to limit his speed, only in this way, Onogi's Dust Dungeon could pose a threat to him.

The worst thing is that he lost half of his arm by Chen Dun before, which seriously affected his release and use of ninjutsu.

Lightning Armor and Hell Thrust are difficult to have the range and long-range capabilities of other Lightning Dun ninjutsu.

...

"It's been a day and a night, and you can still persist? What a belief!"

Looking at the third generation of Raikage who was still sprinting tirelessly in the encirclement, building a line of defense by himself, and resisting Iwagakure, Onogi's face also showed a little moved look.

The Iwa Ninja outside the encirclement, facing the shadow that silently blocked them, couldn't help but feel a little fear in their hearts.

The opponent's incomparably powerful body and lightning armor did not suffer obvious injuries under the fire of their ninjutsu, and once they got close to him, they would inevitably face death.

"His speed has slowed down." Higashi Shito stood on a high platform, condescendingly looking at the third generation of Raikage in the distance, whose terrain had been changed by many earth escape ninjutsu, cutting and limiting his speed, calmly Said.

The threat of the Third Raikage is still great, but the damage he caused is rapidly declining. The impact of the third generation of Raikage losing an arm on his strength is undoubtedly revealed at this moment.

But now he was surrounded by Iwa Shinobi, and as the rearguard, he had to delay Iwa Shinobi's main force in order to buy more time for the retreat of the Cloud troops.

The vitality of Jinchuriki is very tenacious, and fighting with Jinchuriki who can be tailed is an activity that consumes time and physical strength.

Once he is restrained, Iwa Ninja can rest assured to send a large number of people to break through his blockade, chase and pull the retreat of Yun Ninja troops.

Therefore, the third generation of Raikage decisively distanced himself from him after experiencing Han's power. Anyway, under the blessing of Lightning Armor, what made Iwa Ninja the most headache was not his ultimate defense, but his swift speed like lightning.

This gives him great battlefield autonomy.

If it wasn't for Iwa Ninja using human sea tactics to surround him, and he didn't want to leave for the sake of Yun Ninja, under the condition that Onoki and others didn't make a move, he couldn't stop him from leaving at all.

But since the five-tailed jinchuriki has appeared, it means that Onogi has begun to push the elite combat power to the battlefield.

Soon, the appearance of another ninja with a powerful aura also confirmed the guess of the third generation of Raikage.

The blazing high temperature, accompanied by the magma-wrapped stones, fell from the sky, and smashed towards the third generation of Raikage like meteorites.

A man with a serious face, wearing purple clothes and breastplate, with a big beard, wrapped in high-temperature lava, scorching the surrounding air like ripples of water, started to hunt down the third generation of Raikage together with Han.

The three of them chased each other and launched a vigorous battle within the encirclement.

Facing the two Jinchuriki who have strong defenses and recover extremely fast under the cover of the tailed beast Chakra, even the Third Raikage felt the pressure.

Especially Onogi, who was floating in mid-air, condensing a ball of white light in his hands all the time, made the Third Raikage have to devote a part of his energy to pay attention to his movements.

After all, Onogi in the sky holds the only dust escape that can bring him fatal damage!

Night gradually fell.

The third generation of Raikage felt the rare emptiness and fatigue in his body. After a sudden explosion, he collided with the two entangled jinchurikis, and took advantage of the momentum to open a distance. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he dispersed himself. Lightning Armor, put a pale white bone mask on his face.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 97: The Second Golden

Evil and oppressive power suddenly erupted from the Third Raikage. Under everyone's surprised gaze, the Third Raikage's body hunched down as if enduring some kind of intense pain.

The condensed black chakra rose from his body, circling and intersecting, like a wind escape net, setting off a gust of wind, whistling and shaking out towards the surroundings.

The Iwa Shinobi who were affected subconsciously raised their arms to block their eyes, feeling the strong wind scraping across their bodies, the cold and dark Chakra made the Iwa Shinobi who felt it subconsciously retreat a few steps, and touched themselves involuntarily The exposed skin, which was a bit chilly, was uneasy.

The third generation of Raikage's skin color was dyed a deep black, and his messy hair began to grow rapidly, spreading behind him like a jungle of thorns.

A black tail extended from behind Raikage, slightly lowering his hunched body.

What's even more surprising is that the severed arm of the Third Raikage, which was erased by Chen Dun, also regenerated and grew back under the rolling of flesh and blood. In just the blink of an eye, the Third Raikage had completely changed his appearance. Not only had his limbs fully recovered, but his body size had also doubled.

"What is that?"

Feeling the oppressive aura and power emanating from the Third Raikage, Ohnoki's eyes widened.

Tailed beast?

From the feeling, it does look like the oppressive feeling of a tailed beast, but from the state, it is completely different from the tailed beast coat and the semi-tailed beast state.

Zizi!

Black lightning flickered around the third generation of Raikage who had been deformed into a monster.

His legs were bent back like goat hooves, and his feet turned into two claws, grabbing the ground. The figure is slender and agile, with bulging muscles under the black skin.

Two bull horn-like protrusions protruded from both sides of his forehead, and a thunderbolt was forcibly condensed into a thunderbolt spear by him, which he grasped in his palm.

Under a pale white bone mask, a pair of golden pupils, full of tyranny and hunger, stared at the two jinchurikis rushing towards him.

The current appearance and aura of the Third Raikage cast a heavy shadow and depression on everyone on the battlefield. Uncontrollable fear, like the soul is trembling.

so fast!

Han's pupils shrank suddenly, and the deformed Third Raikage in front of him disappeared like a teleportation. The next moment, the alarm bell rang in his heart, and the fatal sense of crisis made him instantly explode a large amount of steam, speeding up again. own speed for irregular movement and dodge.

However, all of this was useless. The moment the sense of crisis in his heart eased, a bright lightning spear suddenly hit his body.

The highly penetrating Lightning Dungeon, coupled with the strong penetrating power due to acceleration, instantly pierced Han through.

The tailed beast coat on his body didn't even play the slightest protective effect in the face of this sudden blow, and a big hole had already been pierced through it.

What's even more frightening is that the lightning paralysis attached to the lightning spear forcibly interfered with his nerves, making him freeze in place.

The lightning spear that pierced through him continued unabated, pulling out a flashing electric light in the air under the approaching dark night, and finally landed near the Iwa Ninja outside the encirclement.

Boom!

The ground rolled and vibrated violently, and after the lightning gun touched the ground, all the energy was released instantly, bursting out with unparalleled destructive power.

The Iwa Shinobi within a radius of 100 meters died instantly under the high temperature of the explosion of the lightning gun without any resistance. The oscillating air waves then roared in all directions like waves.

"Han!"

The old purple who followed closely blocked Han's front, and his body wrapped in lava grabbed the third generation of Raikage who rushed up with the help of the power of the tailed beast.

The high temperature of the lava scorched the skin of the third generation of Raikage, and finally the old purple who restrained the opponent's speed sprayed several red lava balls on the face of the monster Raikage.

The high-temperature lava liquid landed on the face of the Third Raikage, making a sizzling barbecue sound. But the next moment, under Roshi's surprised eyes, the temperature on the lava quickly disappeared and cooled down, and the lava beast coat on his body was also plundered by some kind of force.

explode!

Sensing that something was wrong, Roshi immediately exploded the lava-shaped tailed beast coat on the outside of his body.

The shock wave caused by the explosion separated the two, and Roshi directly bumped into Han behind him, dragging him to roll on the ground in embarrassment.

"How are you?" Roshi stared at the third generation of Raikage who stood up again in the distance, who now looked more like a monster than their jinchuriki, and asked Han who was also a jinchuriki in a low voice.

"I can't die." Han under the red armor replied in a muffled voice. The surging Chakra of the tailed beast coat on his body was quickly filling the terrifying fatal wound on his abdomen.

But judging from the situation, even with the help of the tailed beast Chakra, it is a luxury for Han to recover to the peak combat power.

"Sand Y concealed a lot of important information!"

Onoki's Dust Escape failed to have the desired effect.

As a bloodstain elimination, the lethality of Dust Escape is naturally beyond doubt. It can be called a sure kill for these three types of enemies: bulky, slow-moving, and large in size.

But in the face of an opponent like the Third Raikage who is extremely fast and has quick reactions, the hit rate of Dust Dun is often not satisfactory without restrictions.

He now combined the distortion of the Third Raikage with a certain battle intelligence about Sand Ninja and Yun Ninja in his memory, and realized that Sand Ninja must have disguised this intelligence, deliberately concealing important information.

But right now, Onoki has no time to worry about Sand Ninja's calculations and thoughts. The problem in front of him is how to restrict and solve the distorted Third Raikage!

With one blow, the opponent seriously injured the five-tailed jinchuriki, coupled with the faster speed than before, the third generation of Raikage on the field has become a bigger trouble than the tailed beast.

Melting Escape Lava River!

Roshi threw Han to the Iwa Ninja who came to protect him, quickly formed seals with his fingers, and spewed out hot lava towards the ground. The lava river radiating high temperature poured on the earth and rushed towards the third generation of Raikage.

He keenly noticed that the current situation of the Third Raikage is not normal, it is somewhat like the jinchuriki tailed beastization is out of control, loses consciousness and is kidnapped and controlled by the will of the tailed beast.

When those golden eyes stared at him, he could easily feel the madness, destruction, greed and other dark emotions attached to his eyes.

Earth Dungeon Earthquake Core!

Onoki, who was floating in the sky, couldn't just sit idly by, and took the initiative to cooperate with Roshi to display ninjutsu to restrict the third generation of Raikage.

The ground began to rise and fall, and the earth movement core can create a formation that is beneficial to one's own side according to the flow of the caster's chakra. The Iwanin Village, which is good at earth escape ninjutsu, has an absolute advantage over other escape techniques in terms of positional warfare and terrain creation.

The three rising rock walls restricted the movement space of the third generation of Raikage, and the rushing lava river flowed towards the third generation of Raikage along the specially vacated gap.

Under Onoki's terrified and shrinking gaze, two pitch-black wings squeezed out from the left and right sides of the seemingly inevitable third-generation Raikage's back.

...

[Bengyu series · Cursed Seal Hollow (One)

Quality: Gold (10001/50000)

Features: Magnify a certain emotion or will in the heart. The support of this emotion and will determines the continuation of reason.

Description: A technique based on soul and natural power. Souls corroded by the Cursed Seal's Void will gradually be consumed by its power. During this process, those affected will receive a boost of natural energy.

If the bearer cannot maintain their sanity, their soul and will will be devoured and absorbed by the ninja tool that houses the Cursed Seal's Void. Within the tool, they will engage in endless slaughter and consumption.

Subsequent users will gain the power, experience, and ninjutsu of previous users until their soul and will are completely consumed by the Cursed Seal's Void, becoming new sustenance.

Note 1: Souls will be trapped in an endless cycle of slaughter within the ninja tool until a complete entity emerges.

Note 2: Those who successfully master this power will become powerful sages capable of using senjutsu.

Note 3: It is still growing stronger, ever stronger!

Approval Rating: 60001/100000, Physical Attributes +50, Chakra +5000

New Approval Rating Feature: Natural Attribute Physical Traits +1, Soul Attribute Strength Traits +1.

Conclusion: You will enter a period of inspiration in the further development of the Cursed Seal's Void. The only thing limiting your inspiration is materials!

Golden Card Reward: Void Power

Seeing the approval rating soar, and even the quality of the Cursed Seal's Void masks that had flowed out transformed into gold, Shikane had a guess in his heart.

Has it finally found a suitable wearer?

Shikane temporarily stopped the experiment at hand, tidied up, and came to the room where the original Cursed Seal's Void mask was hanging.

His fingers gently touched the mask. As the first mask to bear the Cursed Seal's Void, although its power had leaked out, it still possessed the ability to sense the existence, division, power, and souls of other masks.

Compared to the masks that had fallen from those wearers, this pure white bone mask in front of him was the true main body.

An incomparably violent power and a tenacious will were clearly captured by Shikane. That power felt very familiar to him.

Lightning Release!

A Lightning Release even stronger than that of Rai from the envoy group.

The Third Raikage!

Shikane relied on deduction to determine the protagonist who caused this transformation.

The further the approval rating goes, the harder it is to increase. To be able to increase it to over sixty thousand in one go, it was clear that only war, and a war of sufficient scale with a sufficient number of participating ninjas, could achieve this.

His brain started to become highly active, and one after another, inspirations for the development of the Cursed Seal's Void sprouted like bamboo shoots after a rain.

Shikane didn't delay at all, recording every inspiration that appeared in his mind one by one, lest he forget them later.

Due to factors such as cost, experimental equipment, experimental materials, and funds, Shikane still needed to categorize those inspirations, focusing on recording some of the most likely to be realized first, and selecting and sealing some nearly whimsical and currently unachievable ones for future development reference.

It wasn't until late at night that the fountain-like inspirations of Shikane gradually began to dry up and stabilize.

Looking at the several notebooks filled with inspiration notes in his hands, the slightly tired Shikane shook his somewhat sore arms, his heart filled with satisfaction.

Afterward, Shikane didn't forget to do a detailed examination of his own body. His physique hadn't increased much, but the strength and resilience of his soul had soared significantly.

Simply put, the increase in soul strength and resilience gave Shikane higher resistance to genjutsu, mental techniques, and techniques targeting the soul.

He himself would find it easier to learn and master Yin Release ninjutsu and techniques involving the spirit and soul.

With Shikane's current soul strength, he estimated that even if he lost his physical body, he could still exist in the world for a period of time in soul form, rather than returning to the Pure Land.

Similarly, his affinity and control over natural energy had surpassed that of Jugo in some aspects.

The combination of Yang attribute physique, Yin Release power, soul strength, and natural energy affinity allowed Shikane to better control the natural energy entering his body, rather than losing control like Jugo after reaching a certain stage, like a split personality.

Mastering Sage Mode and cultivating senjutsu also required talent. Natural energy was even more dangerous than forbidden techniques, and the success rate was lower.

At least his teacher, Orochimaru, had once flinched from the Sage training at Ryūchi Cave and instead found Jugo, wanting to familiarize himself with and freely control natural energy through research, to increase the success rate of his subsequent cultivation of Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode.

For Orochimaru, the uncertain and highly fatal Sage Mode conflicted with his desire for immortality and self-preservation. At least without a certain degree of certainty, he wouldn't dare to gamble everything on it.

Orochimaru had also warned Shikane and Anko not to easily accept the Sage trials at Ryūchi Cave without being sure.

Just as Shikane was thinking, a small white snake quickly crawled over from a dark corner. Its little head gently touched Shikane's finger twice after he squatted down. Then, its mouth opened wide, its upper and lower jaws stretching to a surprising arc, and from its small body, it spat out a scroll much larger than itself.

Shikane took the scroll spat out by the snake in his hand. The exterior of the scroll was clean, without any mucus. After opening the scroll with the Unsealing Technique, there was intelligence information about the battlefield sent back by Orochimaru.

Iwa ninja joined the war, Kumo ninja retreated, the Third Raikage single-handedly blocked the Iwa army.

Shikane quickly scanned the contents of the scroll, focusing on the parts he was interested in. The Third Raikage did indeed actively use the Cursed Seal's Void and fought tenaciously for two days and two nights under its erosion.

The Five-Tails jinchuriki Han was severely injured, the Four-Tails jinchuriki was severely injured, and the Third Raikage's whereabouts were unknown.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 98: Prophecy and Change

Drizzling rain fell from the sky, and the surroundings were filled with vibrant green, teeming with life. Towering trees reached towards the heavens, their canopies blocking out the sun.

Massive toad statues were scattered among the giant trees.

The air was rich with abundant and active natural energy. Here, ninjas could clearly perceive its presence.

This was Mount Myōboku, one of the three great Summoning Animal Sanctuaries and the dwelling place of the Toad Clan.

Since the dawn of recorded history in the ninja world, the three great Summoning Animal Sanctuaries had always held a significant place in legends.

In the historical records passed down through generations, their existence even predated that of tailed beasts and ninjas.

In every era of the ninja world, there were powerful ninjas who formed contracts with the three great Summoning Animal Sanctuaries. They assisted the summoners in battle, and the summoners occasionally did favors for the three sanctuaries.

The most outstanding and qualified among those who signed the summoning contracts could request to learn senjutsu from the sages of their respective sanctuaries.

However, the process of learning senjutsu was fraught with immense risk. The toad statues here and the ninja statues beneath their feet were all failures who had attempted to learn Mount Myōboku's senjutsu and were assimilated into stone statues by natural energy.

"You've finally arrived, little Jiraiya."

With a puff of white smoke, a white-haired ninja had just landed in a daze when he heard a familiar voice.

"Boss Gamamaru?"

Jiraiya, dressed in a Konoha Jonin uniform, wearing a Konoha headband, and with two distinct red lines on his face, looked down at the green toad with a white mustache in front of him.

"Sorry to call you over at this hour. It seems there's another war going on over there, isn't there?" The toad, called Boss Gamamaru, apologized to Jiraiya.

"Yes, I'm currently handling some urgent matters in the Land of Rain. I can't stay away for too long," Jiraiya scratched the back of his head and laughed.

"I can't help it either. The Great Elder has a new prophecy to tell you," Gamamaru explained as he led the way.

His speed was remarkable, easily leaping a great distance with each jump. Jiraiya followed closely behind.

"A new prophecy? Is it about the Child of Prophecy?" Jiraiya subconsciously thought of the Child of Prophecy who could end the war and bring peace to the ninja world.

It seemed that only this prophecy was related to him! Because according to the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, the person who would quell the great war in the future and bring peace to the ninja world would become his disciple!

Currently, among his disciples, Yahiko, Nagato, and Minato Namikaze were the most likely candidates to be the Child of Prophecy who would quell the war and bring peace, as foretold in the prophecy.

Being in the Land of Rain, he needed to learn more about Yahiko and Nagato's ideals during this time.

"No, it's not about the Child of Prophecy! But I don't know the specifics either," Gamamaru shook his head. "The Great Elder is getting senile, and he doesn't stay awake for long each day.

Little Jiraiya, I think sometimes you don't need to put so much pressure on yourself. Some of the Great Elder's prophecies always turn out to be false."

As they talked, they entered a grand hall.

Inside the hall, a massive, seemingly ancient toad was sprawled on a giant armchair. It was so large that its head, wearing a hat, was almost touching the ceiling of the hall. A necklace with the word "Oil" hung around its chest. Jiraiya, standing beneath it, looked like a tiny insect.

Gamamaru's hind legs exerted force, and his small body jumped onto the armrest of the Great Toad Sage's chair in a few leaps. On the other side of the chair stood a toad of the same size, with part of its head being purple.

"Great Elder, little Jiraiya is here!" Gamamaru shouted to the Great Toad Sage, who was squinting, seemingly half-asleep in a hazy state.

The Great Toad Sage seemed not to hear, still immersed in its peculiar drowsy state.

"Great Toad Sage, I'm here!" Jiraiya also shouted from below. He didn't forget to greet the stylish purple-haired Shima on the side.

"Old fool, little Jiraiya is here!" Seeing that the Great Toad Sage still seemed not to have heard, Shima frowned and her voice resounded throughout the hall, clearly using natural energy.

"Oh? Oh! Sorry, I almost fell asleep," the Great Toad Sage woke up with a start, looked around in confusion, and muttered without changing its posture.

"Little Jiraiya is already here, Great Elder. If you have any prophecies, say them quickly! After that, I still have to cook. Little Jiraiya is staying today to try my new menu!" Shima continued to shout loudly, glancing at Jiraiya below when she mentioned the last sentence.

Although the aged Great Toad Sage now seemed senile, Jiraiya showed no disrespect. Because apart from the prophecy about the Child of Prophecy, all the other prophecies this sage had made for him had come true.

This made him believe in the sage's prophecies without a doubt. He held the Great Toad Sage who made the prophecies in high regard.

"Oh, there is a new prophecy, and it's about Jiraiya... what was your name again?"

The Great Toad Sage's sudden memory lapse halfway through his sentence made Jiraiya and the two great sages, Fukasaku and Shima, show helpless expressions.

"This is little Jiraiya! The contractor of Mount Myōboku! Great Elder, you've made prophecies for him before!" Fukasaku explained with a face full of helplessness.

The Great Toad Sage always seemed to enjoy playing memory loss and dementia games with them, making them wonder if it was real or feigned now.

"I remember! It's little Jiraiya!" The Great Toad Sage suddenly exclaimed, "I called you here because there's something I need your help with."

"Is it about the Child of Prophecy?" Jiraiya stepped forward and asked. In his mind, it seemed that only the Child of Prophecy was worthy of the Great Toad Sage urgently summoning him from the outside world.

"No, it's not about the Child of Prophecy," The Great Toad Sage shook his head. "It's a new, peculiar, and strange dream that I find quite odd."

"Peculiar and strange?" Jiraiya was taken aback, unable to comprehend the Great Toad Sage's words.

"If you're going to say it, say it clearly! How can little Jiraiya understand if you speak like that?" Shima said with disdain.

"A tremendously tragic war will breed immense darkness. The Pure Land will no longer be the sole destination for souls.

Restless souls will seek to return to the real world in another form. They will bring new power to the ninja world, but also upheaval and countless deaths."

The Great Toad Sage's voice was weak, and his eyelids slowly closed as he spoke. By the time the last word was uttered, he seemed to be entering that half-asleep state again.

"What do you mean by upheaval and death?" Jiraiya shouted.

"It refers to changes and deaths that will affect the entire ninja world. No one can escape. You must be prepared!" The Great Toad Sage's voice grew fainter.

"Then what should I do? Who is the cause of all this in the future? Is it good or bad for the future of the ninja world? Great Toad Sage, what do you want me to do?"

Jiraiya always had a natural sense of responsibility towards prophecies and missions with a sense of purpose. After hearing the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, he felt that the sage would definitely assign him some tasks. He needed to decide what to do based on the sage's answer.

"I don't know," the Great Toad Sage's voice remained weak.

Huh?

Not only Jiraiya but also the two great sages, Fukasaku and Shima, were stunned. They didn't expect such an uncertain answer from the Great Toad Sage.

"I can't determine whether its appearance is good or bad for this world, but its emergence will definitely shake the foundation of the ninja world and the ninjas.

I only saw some images and relayed them to you in the form of a prophecy. However, you can seek out a powerful medical ninja. He might be the root of everything."

After the Great Toad Sage finished speaking, he let out a soft snore, and his belly began to rise and fall rhythmically. He had clearly re-entered a dream.

A powerful medical ninja?

Jiraiya was astonished. The first person that came to his mind was a beautiful woman with a ponytail, a generous bosom, a fondness for gambling, and a trail of debts across the ninja world.

One of the Three Sannin of Konoha, the Princess of the Senju Clan, the renowned medical expert of the ninja world - Tsunade!

Could it be that Tsunade would research and create some kind of monster that would shake the ninja world? Wouldn't it be more believable if this were about Orochimaru?

Jiraiya wanted to ask more, but the Great Toad Sage had already fallen into a dream and no longer responded to any external questions.

"Don't worry too much about the Great Elder's prophecy. What's meant to happen will happen." Fukasaku comforted Jiraiya.

"I know!" Jiraiya nodded, but he didn't give up the idea of investigating.

Whether it was Tsunade or other famous medical ninjas, Jiraiya planned to contact and inquire about them after returning to the ninja world.

He was already seriously thinking about who the ninja with superb medical ninjutsu was.

Tsunade.

The Wandering Miko.

And also Shennong, who healed both ordinary people and ninjas without seeking wealth.

As the one among the Sannin who was good at gathering intelligence, these were the only three that left an impression on him.

Tsunade, his teammate and friend, was the one he was most familiar with and understood the best.

Next was the Wandering Miko, a renowned female medical expert in the ninja world, rare in some aspects to be compared with Tsunade, who had disappeared from the ninja world for a long time, and there seemed to be some secret behind her.

As for Shennong, it was purely because his deeds were too prominent during the war. And it seemed he had recently appeared in the Land of Rain.

Jiraiya had heard his name mentioned by the people of the Land of Rain.

As long as the person was indeed Shennong, it wouldn't be difficult for Jiraiya to investigate and track him down for contact.

And among the three targets, Shennong seemed to be the only one he could reach and find in a short time.

...

"Gather information on Shennong?" Yahiko looked at his teacher, somewhat confused.

"You don't know Shennong?" Seeing Yahiko's bewildered expression, Jiraiya frowned slightly.

As the representative sent by Konoha to secretly connect with the Akatsuki organization, Jiraiya knew his identity was sensitive and couldn't be easily exposed to the Rain ninja village. Otherwise, it might provoke Hanzo to take some extreme actions.

He planned to stay within the Akatsuki organization for a while, handling the cooperation between Konoha and Akatsuki on one hand, and observing his three disciples and the Akatsuki organization they had founded on the other.

"Shennong?" A deep voice sounded behind Yahiko. Kakuzu, dressed in a black Akatsuki robe, raised his head from the Akatsuki's ledger.

"You know him?" Jiraiya's gaze shifted to Kakuzu. He had briefly sparred with this Takigakure missing-nin who claimed to represent the Technology Development Department and manage finances, carrying Shika Ne's scroll. Under the condition of both sides holding back, they had acknowledged each other's strength.

After confirming that the other party indeed had no ill intentions and only honestly managed finances after arriving, and was quite skilled at it, Jiraiya relaxed.

"I've heard his name. He's a doctor with a high reputation who travels around providing free medical treatment. I once passed by him, but because he had no bounty, I didn't make a move on him," Kakuzu thought carefully and gave his answer.

"Is he in the Land of Rain? Teacher wants to find him?" Hearing this, Yahiko's favorability towards Shennong immediately increased, and he even had the thought of inviting him to join the Akatsuki organization.

After all, Akatsuki currently had basically no medical ninjas. If he joined, he could also guide Konan in medical ninjutsu.

...

The rain poured down heavily.

Shennong, the one they were talking about, was currently looking at a monstrous body with a shocked and greedy expression.

It was a demon-like monster with slender limbs, pitch-black and tough skin, and two curved ram-like horns on its head, its face obscured.

Because a cracked, pale white bone mask covered the monster's face.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 99: The Task

Darkness, evil, power.

Even in death, an unparalleled force emanated from the corpse!

It was like another Zero-Tails!

Another source of darkness, gathering the dark side of all beings.

Even to Shinno's perception, the residual power on this corpse was of a higher quality than the dark chakra gathered by the Zero-Tails!

Standing before the corpse, Shinno could feel his soul tremble. Even though it lay there silently, a mere corpse, it exerted immense pressure on him.

It was a pressure that came from the deepest part of his heart, confronting his very soul. Standing before the corpse was like an ant gazing up at the remains of a giant beast.

A pleasant surprise!

Shinno was extremely satisfied with this unexpected gift. He even considered putting his plans aside temporarily and returning to his base with this peculiar corpse.

After all, he had been out for a long time, and his true plans and goals were almost complete. It was time to leave with the people he had brought along.

Shinno began writing sealing runes. Without taking precautions, some perceptive ninjas might still notice the corpse's abnormality.

At the very least, he needed to restrain and contain its overflowing power before sealing it along with the body.

After the room was filled with sealing runes, Shinno began forming hand seals, compressing the runes into the corpse.

When the last sealing rune disappeared into the corpse, the peculiar pressure vanished, and the oppressive, chilling feeling dissipated.

Knock, knock, knock!

A knock sounded at the door. A stranger wearing a black robe and a Rain Village headband stood respectfully outside. Behind him were several panicked villagers and a familiar, robust, white-haired ninja.

"Jiraiya?" Shinno's heart skipped a beat upon seeing the white-haired ninja.

"Have we met?" Jiraiya was taken aback, slightly bewildered by Shinno's gentle and friendly face.

At first glance, Shinno possessed the characteristic aura of a medical ninja, similar to Tsunade and the medical ninjas working in Konoha's Medical Department.

However, Shinno exuded an even greater sense of compassion and kindness. Overall, his first impression was not bad.

"I've heard about you from Tsunade and Orochimaru," Shinno opened the door, first calming the panicked villagers outside and asking them to return to their homes, then inviting Jiraiya and the Rain ninja inside.

"So you've met Tsunade and Orochimaru," Jiraiya nodded slowly. He sensed a familiar power rapidly dissipating within the room, indicating that Shinno had been researching something before their arrival.

"I encountered Lady Tsunade by chance and discussed some medical ninjutsu with her. With Orochimaru, I discussed matters related to body modification," Shinno replied calmly.

Without waiting for Jiraiya to ask further questions, Shinno took the initiative, shifting the focus from himself to Jiraiya.

"Coming here late at night, what brings one of the Sannin to me? I don't see any injuries on you."

"It's not about me. I'm here on behalf of the Akatsuki to extend an invitation to you," Jiraiya waved his hand, choosing a plausible excuse instead of revealing the prophecy.

In truth, this excuse was also partly true. Nagato and the others did hope to recruit Shinno, even if only temporarily. Jiraiya, on the other hand, wanted to use this opportunity to interact with Shinno and see if he was the medical ninja mentioned in the prophecy.

"Is the Akatsuki cultivated by Konoha?" Shinno glanced at the Rain ninja beside him, then at Jiraiya, a look of realization crossing his face.

During his time in the Land of Rain, he had heard of the Akatsuki and knew that their members, aside from wearing the Rain Village headband, were also distinguished by their black robes.

Seeing Jiraiya vouching for the Akatsuki, Shinno made many connections instantly.

"No, no, no! The Akatsuki has nothing to do with Konoha! It's just that Konoha has a business deal with them," Jiraiya said, then sighed resignedly upon seeing the lingering doubt in Shinno's eyes.

"The founders of the Akatsuki have some connection to me. I taught three children here in the past, and they grew up to establish the Akatsuki.

I only found out recently. But Konoha does have a business deal with them."

Jiraiya explained the existence of the Healing Talisman in detail. It wasn't classified information, so he had no qualms about sharing it.

Shinno carefully examined and experienced the Healing Talisman Jiraiya handed him, nodding in admiration.

As a medical ninja, Shinno understood the value of the Healing Talisman. He hadn't expected such continuous good fortune today, first with a powerful and valuable corpse for research, and now the Healing Talisman delivered to his doorstep.

He decided to accept Jiraiya's invitation and teach Konan medical ninjutsu for a while. During that time, he should have ample opportunities to learn the secrets of creating the Healing Talisman.

Even a partial understanding would be enough for him to reverse-engineer and develop similar medical talismans. After all, what limited most people were ideas and creativity. Once an idea was successfully implemented, similar competing products would inevitably emerge over time.

His future research and plans required significant financial and resource investments! The Healing Talisman could quickly generate wealth for him.

Shinno was as confident in his ability to gather intelligence and obtain what he desired as he was in his medical ninjutsu.

After all, he had acquired two S-rank forbidden techniques in Konoha alone.

The Zero-Tails Technique and the Eight Gates Released Formation!

After discussing medical ninjutsu with Tsunade, Shinno had begun researching his own forbidden medical techniques.

...

Konohagakure.

Technical Development Department.

"The test subject has disappeared?"

When Shikane sensed that the Third Raikage's Hollowfied trace had completely vanished, he speculated that either the Third Raikage had entered some kind of different space, similar to Obito's Kamui dimension or the one in the Land of Iron, or he had fallen into the hands of a ninja or ninja organization and been sealed away with sealing techniques.

He now somewhat understood why Orochimaru would travel all over the ninja world to recruit talented children.

They could serve as backups for the Living Corpse Reincarnation technique or be used as subordinates to carry out tasks.

Currently, Shikane only had Kakuzu and half of Jugo who could truly do the dirty work and were of value.

Kakuzu had been sent out to manage the accounts and collect debts, while Jugo's physique was somewhat uncontrollable, so he could only be considered half.

Should he create one or more clone-like helpers?

This idea was growing stronger in Shikane's mind. His main body needed to conduct various experiments when there were no missions, but occasionally he also needed to leave the village for some actions that were not convenient for others to know.

If there were trustworthy people outside, they could obviously bring back rare materials like the Third Raikage immediately.

After all, there was currently only one Cursed Seal Hollow test subject that hadn't been completely devoured by the mask and was still undergoing deep-level transformation.

The Third Raikage's strength, will, soul, and body had clearly withstood the erosion of the Cursed Seal Hollow and reached some kind of balance with it.

As long as this balance wasn't disrupted, the soul battles and devouring within the mask would eventually end with the passage of time. The final victor would reintegrate with the body eroded by the Cursed Seal Hollow, coexisting as a brand new individual.

What Shikane was worried about was someone breaking this evolution and causing it to stop.

Although the Cursed Seal Hollow was now being upgraded and the first generation Cursed Seal method was nearing obsolescence, it was still a finished product with a chance of success.

Its state data was still very valuable to Shikane!

The Land of Rain?

Thinking of the direction sensed on the Cursed Seal Hollow mask, which was close to the location he had placed on Kakuzu, Shikane made his judgment.

...

The Akatsuki's base was in a mountain outside the Rain Village. They had used ninjutsu to hollow out the mountainside, creating a living space for Akatsuki members and their families.

In Kakuzu's room, a small black snake crawled out from a dark corner. Its little head swayed left and right in front of Kakuzu, who was calculating accounts, until it caught his attention. Then it opened its mouth wide, its upper and lower jaws splitting almost to its full body length, and spat out a scroll from the slender space in its abdomen.

After doing all this, it coiled its body and stayed quietly on the table, watching Kakuzu.

Damn it!

Seeing the snake's lively eyes, Kakuzu cursed inwardly, annoyed that it had interrupted his counting of money.

Since his arrival, Nagato and the others had almost completely handed over the financial power to Kakuzu, with a sense of urgency that made Kakuzu feel a bit dazed.

He originally thought there would be a lot of money to manage in the Akatsuki, but after taking over the finances, he discovered that this organization was frighteningly poor.

Not only did Kakuzu not have any money to count, but he had to rack his brains every day thinking about how to save money for this organization and how to buy the most necessary supplies in sufficient quantities with the least amount of money.

To put it bluntly, Kakuzu was shocked that this organization hadn't disbanded due to lack of money yet.

Especially the founder, Nagato, whose actions of donating food to the surrounding Rain villagers even when he could barely afford to eat himself, made Kakuzu's blood pressure rise.

Nagato and the Akatsuki members recognized Kakuzu's accounting abilities, but they found it painful to squeeze money out of him.

Kakuzu didn't approve of their actions and believed that wasting money and food on these doomed and worthless civilians was wasteful.

Because of these expenditures, Kakuzu and the three Akatsuki founders had clashed more than once, but in the end, the winner was still Nagato, who was determined and stuck to his principles.

I can't abandon them! If the Akatsuki can't even protect the people around us and let them live in peace, wouldn't the idea of hoping for world peace be a joke!

Faced with Nagato's firm words, Kakuzu could only reply, "I'm just a temporary accountant. You're the leader. If you've made up your mind, then so be it."

Of course, it was hard to say how much Jiraiya, who stood behind Nagato and the others with a silly grin of approval, contributed to Kakuzu's concession.

Compared to racking his brains, thinking about how to buy more supplies with less money and how to spend money more cost-effectively, a job that was almost mentally torturous, Kakuzu would rather return to being a bounty ninja, mercilessly reaping a few unlucky targets to vent his frustration, and then taking their heads to the black market to exchange for money and count it.

He didn't want to have any contact with Nagato right now because his existence clashed greatly with his own philosophy of survival.

"The whereabouts of the Third Raikage's corpse?"

After reading the information on the scroll, Kakuzu casually destroyed it.

"If you want me to do something, it'll cost you!" Kakuzu finished cleaning up the scroll and looked at the black snake coiled on the table.

The black snake seemed to understand Kakuzu's words. Its tail swayed rapidly, writing a number on the table with chakra. After finishing, it flicked its tail again, drawing a horizontal line through the middle of the number.

"Deduct 30 million Ryo from my debt? I'll take this mission!"

Kakuzu skillfully understood the message the black snake was conveying. Thirty million Ryo was indeed worth taking action for.

Anyway, it was just finding the whereabouts of the Third Raikage's corpse. And according to the information revealed on the scroll, the Third Raikage's corpse was in the hands of a ninja or ninja organization in the Land of Rain who knew sealing techniques.

What ninja organizations were there in the Land of Rain?

The Rain Village, the Akatsuki, and rogue ninjas who had wandered here or defected from their villages.

"What kind of help did the scroll mention?" Kakuzu asked after indicating that he had accepted the mission.

The black snake's body moved on the table, and its mouth split open once again, this time its upper and lower jaws almost tearing open to half its body size.

A white bone mask was spat out from the snake's open mouth and landed on the table.

A peculiar power emanated from the mask as soon as it appeared. Kakuzu felt his spirit inexplicably become heavy, but soon, this effect quickly disappeared, so fast that it made one wonder if the previous feeling was an illusion.

"This mask can lead me to the Third Raikage's corpse?" Kakuzu endured the discomfort in his soul, picked up the mask, and examined it, asking.

Under Kakuzu's gaze, the little snake nodded repeatedly, its little head almost creating an afterimage in the air.

Kakuzu, with a sense of trepidation, followed the instructions on the scroll and infused his chakra, imbued with his spiritual consciousness, into the mask. He closed his eyes and focused on sensing.

Nothing.

It seemed it wasn't nearby.

Kakuzu opened his eyes and thought for a moment. The tentacles formed by the Earth Grudge Fear jutsu shot out from his shoulder, binding the mask and pulling it into his skin. A faint face appeared on Kakuzu's right arm.

As long as he was close enough to the target, it would automatically alert the wearer.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 100: Might Dai

"Nine hundred and ninety-eight!"

"Nine hundred and ninety-nine!"

"One thousand!"

Two figures, one large and one small, both clad in green bodysuits, flipped their upside-down bodies back upright, their previously raised legs landing firmly on the ground.

"Right on the finish line!" Might Dai gave a thumbs-up to his son, Might Guy, who was panting and drenched in sweat, flashing a toothy grin.

Might Guy, who had been training with his father since early morning, forced his exhausted body to give his father a thumbs-up in return.

"Dai-senpai," Shikane interrupted this heartwarming father-son moment. "Please come in."

"Shikane!" Might Dai approached Shikane with nimble steps. His son, Guy, despite his sore and tired body, also greeted Shikane and Shisui, who was beside him.

Shisui was no longer surprised by the father and son's enthusiasm and fondness for Shikane. Since joining Orochimaru's team, he had encountered this rather peculiar father-son duo every now and then.

Within Konoha, the father and son were quite famous among the villagers, though their reputation wasn't exactly positive.

After all, anyone who had lived in Konoha for a while would almost every day, regardless of wind, rain, or scorching sun, see this father and son persistently training, completely oblivious to the gazes of others.

Handstand walking, frog jumps, running, push-ups, coupled with their eye-catching green bodysuits and bowl haircuts, left a lasting impression.

But even after such rigorous training, Might Dai remained a genin who barely knew any elemental ninjutsu.

If it were any other Uchiha, they probably wouldn't even spare a glance at the father and son. But Shisui knew that Might Dai's strength far surpassed others' imagination.

At least in taijutsu, even with his Sharingan activated, granting him enhanced dynamic vision and observation skills, he still felt pressure from Might Dai.

"We're troubling you again!" Might Dai bowed deeply to Shikane, pulling Might Guy along.

Might Dai was immensely grateful to Shikane and the Sannin, especially Tsunade and Shikane, for adjusting and healing their bodies.

The Eight Gates Released Formation, being a forbidden technique, required one to hone their physique to the utmost limit to maximize its power.

The process of tempering the body was extremely painful, and this pain persisted day after day, allowing no room for slacking.

Pushing the body to its limits, gradually improving it bit by bit, would have caused an ordinary person's body to collapse long ago if not for the existence of chakra, a special form of energy.

It was precisely because of chakra's existence and nourishment that people like Might Dai, who relentlessly pushed their bodies to the brink with high-intensity training, could persevere and remain active and healthy.

But this didn't mean there were no hidden dangers.

Might Dai wasn't a medical ninja and had only relied on his own experience to gradually explore the correct training methods. He might be able to help Might Guy avoid many detours, go further in the Eight Gates Released Formation, accumulate deeper strength, and forge a more powerful body. But this was achieved at the cost of his own body and experience.

The appearance of Tsunade and Shikane provided immense help to the father and son, mitigating these hidden dangers as much as possible and raising the upper limit of the technique.

Might Guy might not yet fully grasp the significance of this, but Might Dai understood it crystal clear. Despite his seemingly single-minded and carefree nature, he wasn't oblivious to social dynamics. In fact, people who often faced cold stares and mockery tended to be more sensitive.

Might Dai knew very well the impact their intervention and assistance would have on him and Might Guy. Especially since Shikane would regularly check their bodies and use medical ninjutsu for adjustments.

In recent years, he had become more aware of the changes in his body and the growth of his strength. And Might Guy's foundation was even more solid than his, so his future potential and achievements would undoubtedly surpass his own.

All of this filled him with gratitude towards Shikane and Orochimaru, who had allowed all of this to happen.

"No, your body data and blood are also valuable research materials for me. It's a mutually beneficial relationship," Shikane shook his head, replying as he led the two towards the laboratory.

Might Dai and Might Guy didn't mind Shikane's words.

A few years ago, when it came to the Eight Gates Released Formation, Shikane had also used a similar rationale. But even though the Eight Gates Released Formation was powerful, Might Dai had no intention of keeping it a secret.

In fact, back then, if anyone expressed interest in learning it and asked him, he would usually teach the technique to them without reservation.

It wasn't just Shikane who had sought the Eight Gates Released Formation from this perennial genin. Once, a medical ninja from another village, who had noticed something from his training methods, had also inquired about the technique.

Because that person had a connection with Tsunade and had come to Konoha through her recommendation, Might Dai didn't hoard the knowledge and taught the Eight Gates Released Formation in its entirety.

The power of this technique lay in the years of accumulated physical and mental training. Without those, it was merely a forbidden technique that traded life and bodily harm for power.

After entering the laboratory, Might Dai and Might Guy skillfully and consciously lay down on the operating table, quietly watching as Shikane attached various instrument patches to their bodies.

Afterward, they had to engage in actual combat against training targets to assess the damage. By the time the collection of their new body data was complete, more than two hours had passed.

"Dai-senpai, the Technical Development Department has recently developed a potion that can enhance physical fitness. It will have a particularly good effect on you and Guy, who are practicing the Eight Gates Released Formation. Would you like to try it?" Shikane suddenly asked after completing his usual physical adjustments for the two.

"A potion that enhances physical fitness?" Might Dai looked at Shikane in surprise.

"It can increase the human body's limits and, in cases of fatigue and internal injuries, effectively reduce the spread of damage and significantly accelerate self-healing," Shikane explained. "It will have a good mitigating effect on the aftereffects of opening the Eight Gates."

"Is that so? Then let me try it first," Might Dai readily agreed but excluded Guy. As a father, he always wanted to experience things himself before passing on his experience and feelings to his child.

He trusted Shikane's skills and character, but that didn't stop him from subconsciously protecting Guy.

"No rush. I still need some time to create the most suitable potion based on your latest body data. Let's wait a couple of days," Shikane didn't mind whether Guy was included or not. He simply wanted to see how effective the potion he created would be for a ninja whose body had already been honed to its limits.

(End of Chapter)