Chapter 442: Konoha Jonin! Jiraiya!
"This guy has completely lost his mind, hasn't he?"
Kenichi looked up at Obito, who stood atop the pale wooden spikes. Around them stretched a dense, hellish forest of thorns, with countless people impaled upon the sharp branches.
At least, that was how Kenichi saw it.
Obito had gone completely insane.
Of course, this had also been Kenichi's goal from the beginning. He had originally thought he might be able to unlock some new and interesting way to play this game, but he had not expected Obito to collapse this thoroughly. The man had probably realized that Kenichi was holding Rin Nohara and understood exactly what Kenichi intended to do with her.
Kenichi tilted his head.
A wooden spike grazed past his neck and nailed itself into the ground behind him. He looked up again. Obito was still standing above him, and that attack had clearly come from him.
Kenichi sneered.
He wanted to see just how much trouble Black Zetsu could cause without Obito.
Taking a deep breath, Kenichi used his thoughts to send evacuation orders to the nearby ninja who had received his blessing. He instructed them to immediately lead the residents of the Land of Water's capital to safety.
Population was important.
Kenichi was not willing to let these people die just because they were caught in the aftermath of his battle with Obito.
With that thought, he stomped down hard. The muscle strength he had built up through countless days of training exploded in an instant, propelling his body upward like a fired arrow.
As Kenichi shot toward Obito, countless wooden spikes stabbed at him from all directions.
Every strike aimed for a vital point, but most of them targeted his face.
The Mangekyo in Kenichi's eyes slowly spun. He did not even need to rely on the Mangekyo Sharingan's special abilities to avoid these annoying wooden spikes.
But just as Kenichi adjusted his position in midair, he saw a vast wave of Fire Release blotting out the sky as it surged toward him.
Even from a distance, the scorching heat made his hair curl.
Caught off guard, Kenichi could only take the Fire Release ninjutsu head-on.
Flames swallowed his body.
A moment later, sharp pain tore through his back. A powerful rotational force struck him and sent blood spraying from his mouth. The blood dried almost instantly in the heat of the flames, and Kenichi was blasted backward.
"A direct hit? No, that doesn't feel right."
Jiraiya cautiously watched the burning area ahead of him. Although his Fire Release ninjutsu had struck Kenichi just now, he did not believe that brat would be so easy to deal with.
More importantly, no one had emerged from the flames.
That alone proved Kenichi was definitely fine.
"Jiraiya? Why aren't you, the Great Toad Sage, off collecting material for your novels? What are you doing here?"
Kenichi crouched atop one of the wooden spikes and looked down at Jiraiya, impatience already stirring in his chest.
Normally, he would not have minded chatting with Jiraiya and reminiscing a little.
But he truly did not have the time right now.
That bastard Obito was probably already moving toward Uchiha Shiori. If Kenichi could not get back quickly, it would become very troublesome if Rin Nohara was taken away.
"Konoha S-rank rogue ninja, Amamiya Kenichi!"
Jiraiya took a deep breath and roared the words aloud.
Kenichi's pupils shrank slightly.
What was Jiraiya trying to do?
His identity should not have been a secret to Konoha, but Kenichi had not expected Jiraiya to shout it out so loudly here. Fortunately, within the Land of Water's capital, aside from Obito, there did not seem to be any other forces nearby. For now, he did not have to worry too much about his true identity being exposed.
No, in some ways, being exposed might actually be useful.
Once that happened, the Hidden Cloud Village would certainly have opinions about Konoha. The other ninja villages would also have opinions.
That would make things interesting.
"Konoha jonin, Jiraiya, is here to bring you to justice!"
Before Kenichi could think further, Jiraiya had already finished speaking. In the next instant, he charged forward with a Great Ball Rasengan in his hand.
Kenichi was forced to temporarily set aside the matter of Obito and focus on Jiraiya's attack.
As for the Rasengan, the ninjutsu that Naruto would repeatedly use from a young age in the future, Kenichi naturally knew it well. Its power was indeed excellent.
How strong was Jiraiya?
Naturally, very strong.
The current Jiraiya had already entered Sage Mode. The two toads on his shoulders made that clear.
Kenichi did not know whether he should feel proud or troubled. After all, when Jiraiya faced his former disciple in the future, he had not entered Sage Mode right away and ended up making a fatal mistake.
But now, facing Kenichi, Jiraiya had gone all out from the beginning.
That also showed how serious Jiraiya was about killing him.
"Enough talk!"
The strange markings on Jiraiya's face could not hide his seething rage. He slammed the Great Ball Rasengan toward Kenichi's chest.
Kenichi's gaze sharpened. He used the Substitution Jutsu and narrowly avoided the close-range Rasengan.
While he was still in the air, he saw Jiraiya rapidly forming hand signs.
Almost at the same time, Jiraiya's hair whipped out. The hardened strands shot toward Kenichi like needles, stabbing at his body with terrifying speed.
Kenichi did not overthink it. He immediately used the Body Flicker Technique, trying to break past Jiraiya's attack range.
But Jiraiya's combat experience was far too rich.
A blast of Fire Release struck Kenichi from behind before he could fully get away, and his body vanished into the flames.
"Indeed..."
Kenichi's mood grew more irritable.
Jiraiya's battle experience was extremely deep, and his strength was formidable. Kenichi had even confirmed that Jiraiya had already entered Sage Mode. This was truly a full-power attempt to kill him.
"One really can't underestimate famous ninja..."
Kenichi spat the blood in his mouth onto the ground. He wiped his lips, then looked at Jiraiya with excitement in his eyes.
Since arriving in the ninja world, Kenichi had rarely experienced battles this intense.
Most of the time, he was more accustomed to achieving his goals through other means. But this time, Jiraiya clearly had no intention of compromising with him. Kenichi could tell from Jiraiya's eyes and his current fighting style.
Kenichi did not consider himself an especially cruel person.
When facing acquaintances like Jiraiya, especially people with whom he had once had a decent relationship, he generally would not truly get angry and resort to killing.
But now that Jiraiya was trying to kill him, Kenichi could not afford to hold back either.
Standing before him was Konoha's elite jonin, Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya, aren't you afraid Konoha will be besieged?"
Kenichi was somewhat annoyed.
Facing Jiraiya, even he had to be cautious. It would be laughable if he made a mistake here. But he truly did not have that much time to waste.
Obito made no other moves throughout the exchange.
He only continued attacking Kenichi with wooden spikes.
That made Kenichi faintly feel that something was wrong.
Kenichi glanced upward.
Obito still stood there, silent as ever, continuously controlling wooden spikes to attack him. Kenichi licked his lips, stomped down on a tree trunk, and used the recoil to lunge directly in front of Obito.
At the same time, he kicked out.
Obito retreated.
Seeing this, Kenichi opened his mouth and unleashed a Great Fire Annihilation toward him.
Obito disappeared.
Kenichi sneered.
Just as he had expected, the Obito standing there had only been a Shadow Clone.
The real Obito must have gone to find Rin Nohara.
As expected of Obito.
He was truly devoted to Rin Nohara.
Fortunately, Kenichi had made preparations in advance and ordered Uchiha Shiori to relocate Rin. Obito should not be able to defeat Shiori instantly. Although Shiori's combat power was not particularly high, she possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan, so she should be able to hold out until Kenichi arrived.
As long as he got there and formed a pincer attack, the problem would not be too big.
But before Kenichi could leave, the Rasengan came pressing toward him again.
Jiraiya had closed the distance.
Kenichi was forced to use the Substitution Jutsu again to dodge the close-range attack.
"Uncle Jiraiya, you're really forcing my hand!"
Kenichi gritted his teeth. The Mangekyo in his eyes spun rapidly.
In the next instant, a giant wooden man rose from the forest of spikes below, with Kenichi standing atop its head.
The rising wooden man completely crushed the massive tree of spikes beneath it, instantly destroying the battlefield.
But that strange, annoying melody was still ringing.
Kenichi's body swayed slightly.
That only drove his killing intent to its limit.
He could sense that this was an extremely dangerous ninjutsu. If he could not deal with it quickly, things would become very troublesome.
"No, this..."
Kenichi's pupils constricted.
Genjutsu?
Jiraiya was actually using genjutsu on him?
Hadn't he just been forming hand signs in front of him?
But this was not an ordinary genjutsu.
An ordinary genjutsu could not affect him. He had the Mangekyo Sharingan. How could a simple genjutsu work on him?
If he had not seen any other Mangekyo nearby, Kenichi might have suspected he had been caught by Kotoamatsukami.
That unique melody, that strange rhythm, everything about it gave Kenichi a deeply ominous feeling.
He looked toward the source of the sound.
Then he saw the two toads standing on Jiraiya's shoulders, singing that strange melody at the top of their voices.
Kenichi did not know exactly what kind of ninjutsu this was. His memories from his previous life were blurry, and there did not seem to be much information about this technique in his mind.
But the unease in his heart told him one thing very clearly.
He had to kill those two toads immediately.
Otherwise, this would become extremely dangerous.
"Susanoo!"
Kenichi clapped his hands together.
A strange energy instantly enveloped both him and the giant wooden man beneath him.
Black chakra formed armor over the upper half of the wooden man, transforming it into a massive, bizarre figure.
A ninja.
"Susanoo? It can even be combined with Wood Release?"
Jiraiya stared at the battlefield in shock.
He knew Kenichi could use Wood Release ninjutsu. He also knew Kenichi possessed the Sharingan.
But he had truly not expected that this little brat had already mastered both powers to such a degree.
No wonder.
No wonder he could kill the old man.
Kenichi had not even gotten to experience the satisfaction of landing a proper strike on Obito before this game was forcibly interrupted by someone else.
How could he not be annoyed?
Jiraiya did not hesitate. Facing the giant half-armored monster before him, he unleashed the strongest Fire Release ninjutsu he could use.
He had to buy enough time for Fukasaku and Shima to complete Demonic Illusion: Toad Confrontation Chant.
But why had the First Hokage's Wood Release once been hailed as the strongest power in the ninja world?
It was because Wood Release ninjutsu was not especially afraid of Fire Release.
And Kenichi had even covered the wooden man with a layer of Susanoo armor.
Thus, under Jiraiya's gaze, the massive wooden man raised the black long blade formed from Susanoo and slashed down with overwhelming force.
The long blade struck the ground, instantly tearing open a huge crack.
Black flames surged upward, scorching everything nearby.
Facing that powerful blow and the dark flames clinging to the blade, Fukasaku could only reluctantly abandon the nearly completed Toad Confrontation Chant.
If he did not give up, he would have to gamble on whether his body could withstand that terrifying attack.
The sword destroyed countless civilian houses.
Jiraiya stood in the ruins, covered in dust. His expression was grim as he looked at the massive monster before him.
Bringing Kenichi to justice was clearly not going to be easy.
"Is that it, Jiraiya?"
Kenichi looked down at the disheveled Jiraiya below, then glanced at the two toads who had finally stopped singing. His killing intent continued to churn.
This was not a friendly spar between acquaintances.
This was a life-and-death battle between enemies.
"Isn't it just Fire Release? I can do it too!"
Kenichi took a deep breath.
An immense amount of chakra condensed inside his body. Under his will, surging flames spewed toward Jiraiya.
Jiraiya dodged quickly.
Kenichi did not hesitate. He swung the sword in the wooden man's hand, sending a sweeping slash toward the direction Jiraiya had dodged.
This time, Kenichi held nothing back.
He did not care even if Jiraiya died.
Kenichi then controlled the wooden man beneath him and transformed the Tang sword in its hand into a giant round shield.
With brutal force, he brought it crashing down toward Jiraiya's head.
Far away, Obito looked toward the Susanoo-covered wooden man in the distance.
A flicker of apprehension flashed through his eyes.
"This guy..."
Obito stared at the massive figure.
Kenichi was becoming stronger and stronger.
That was troublesome.
But right now, Obito had to figure out how to deal with the people in front of him.
.....
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