Jiraiya's demeanor seemed to have aged many years in an instant.
The reason he rushed here so hurriedly was because he was afraid something would happen to Naruto.
However,
Even though he had done his best to hurry, he was still... one step too late.
And moreover,
Just as he had predicted back then.
Naruto had fallen because of the bond he was pursuing.
Thinking of this,
Jiraiya's lowered eyes were even more filled with gloom.
However,
This time,
Before Kakashi and Tsunade could speak,
A beside them immediately furrowed his brow and shouted deeply:
"Hey!! Is this the time to be thinking about that?!"
"The renowned Konoha's Legendary Sannin, the teacher of the Yellow Flash... is he only at this level!?"
A roared angrily.
He had lost his most beloved younger brother and was still here fighting persistently.
Yet Jiraiya before him seemed to instantly lose his fighting spirit upon learning of Naruto's situation, which naturally made him quite displeased.
As his words fell,
Jiraiya and Tsunade were simultaneously stunned.
And at this moment,
Onoki beside him also spoke deeply, his tone quite serious:
"The Raikage is right."
"Many people have died in this war... Should we mourn or lose our fighting spirit every time someone dies?"
"Instead of wasting time depressed, it's better to plan how to defeat the guy before us, right...?"
As he spoke,
Onoki looked up at Six Paths Madara in the sky, and said deeply:
"I can clearly feel..."
"Madara now has completely surpassed his former peak...
"Even if the First Hokage were alive, he might not necessarily... no, he definitely could not defeat him."
As his words fell, it instantly set an even heavier tone for this war.
It must be known that,
The battle between Hashirama and Madara back then was almost a legend known throughout the Shinobi World.
Even,
There were statues of the two at the Valley of the End.
Yet today,
Madara had returned in the form of a reborn,
And facing him was not the God of Shinobi, the First Hokage of that era,
But the Third, Fourth, and even Fifth Kage from the four great villages.
Even more despairing was,
The Uchiha Madara who had returned now had transformed into an even more powerful form...
Everyone was silent for a long time.
Jiraiya and Tsunade, realizing the severity of the crisis, naturally had to temporarily set aside their grief.
As Konoha's Legendary Sannin, they once again stood side by side on the battlefield. Although one was missing, at least at this moment, they would not be defeated by grief.
And just then,
Mei, who had been silent for a long time, seemed to realize something, looked up at Jiraiya, and said:
"I remember you just said..."
"Perhaps soon, we will 'see' something you have handled..."
"What does that so-called 'see' refer to?"
As these words fell,
Everyone was momentarily stunned.
Mei's words obviously sounded strange,
Everyone was facing an unbeatable enemy, yet she suddenly asked about Jiraiya's just-spoken words...
However,
Upon careful thought,
They instantly realized something was wrong.
Jiraiya's words clearly contained some important information, yet...
He hadn't directly stated it.
No wonder Mei felt concerned,
After all,
When Jiraiya said this, he seemed to be expecting something...
Thinking of this,
Everyone's gaze focused on Jiraiya.
Logically speaking,
He should have prepared some kind of contingency plan.
Hearing this, Jiraiya was momentarily stunned, then smiled wryly and shook his head, slowly saying:
"I don't know yet if it can make it in time."
"Let's try to resolve the situation before us first."
As he spoke,
Jiraiya looked up at Madara in the sky, his expression returning to solemnity, and said in a low voice:
"The reason I suddenly attacked just now was actually to test those unsettling mysterious floating black balls behind him."
"Unexpectedly... they truly possessed an unusual power."
"It seems,"
"He is able to change them into any shape, thereby eliminating any Ninjutsu they come into contact with..."
"If that's the case,"
"Perhaps I can... try another way."
As these words fell,
Everyone was momentarily stunned.
Another way, what did that mean...?
However,
Just as they were puzzled,
Suddenly, two old toads appeared behind Jiraiya, standing on his left and right shoulders respectively.
They were the Toad Sages from Mount Myoboku, Fukasaku and Shima!
And at this moment,
Jiraiya clapped his hands together.
A moment later,
Strange dark red markings immediately appeared on his face!
The moment they saw this scene,
Others were still stunned, but Tsunade instantly felt a stir in her heart!
This is… Sage Art!!?
She naturally immediately recognized it.
The reason Jiraiya was called "Toad Sage" was precisely because he had trained in Sage Art at Mount Myoboku.
Sage Art differs from ordinary Ninjutsu, which uses the Chakra within one's body; it is a state that can use Natural Energy.
In this state, one can use Natural Energy to enhance attack and defense, and can also use natural energy to create "Senjutsu Chakra", which can dramatically increase the power of one's own Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu!
Its only drawback was the long time needed to gather Senjutsu Chakra, so the time Jiraiya could maintain it was very limited.
For this reason, when he used Sage Art, he usually summoned Fukasaku and Shima to assist in the attack, which could extend the duration of Sage Mode!
As the saying goes, every technique has its weaknesses.
Although Madara's black spheres could indiscriminately eliminate Ninjutsu attacks... they might not necessarily be able to eliminate Sage Art!
With the right tactics,
He could completely test this out, and even inflict heavy damage on him!
A glimmer of hope surged in Tsunade's heart.
And Jiraiya looked at the people around him, his expression serious, slowly exhaling, and said deeply:
"Next, can everyone use various attacks to help me temporarily suppress Uchiha Madara...?"
"...!?"
As Jiraiya's words fell,
The expressions of the several Kage instantly hardened, then their eyes lit up one after another!