"Since the Hidden Stone ninja are already here, why don't we leave them a little gift?"
"Let's call it an announcement. The Sannin have returned to Konoha."
Tsunade glared at the Iwa encampment, her eyes flashing with pure hatred.
During her hemophobia treatment, Itachi's genjutsu had forced her to relive the deaths of her loved ones on the battlefield. The exact culprits were long gone, but in her heart, she laid the blame squarely at Iwa's feet.
Orochimaru weighed her proposal. The Hidden Stone forces hadn't secured a firm foothold yet. If they were going to strike, now was the perfect time.
"If you insist, Tsunade," Orochimaru said, a cold sneer forming on his lips. "Let's give old man Onoki a surprise he won't forget."
Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya exchanged a single glance. In a blur of motion, they vanished from the command tent.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Three voices roared in unison across the battlefield.
"Katsuyu!"
"Bunta!"
"Manda!"
Boom!
Three massive plumes of white smoke erupted into the sky. As the smoke cleared, three towering beasts materialized right between the Hidden Stone and Konoha forces.
"That's Lord Jiraiya's toad! And Lord Orochimaru's Manda! Princess Tsunade's Katsuyu is here too!"
"This is incredible!"
"With the Sannin leading us, there's no way we can lose!"
The sight of the gargantuan beasts sent the Konoha shinobi into a frenzy. Deafening cheers echoed across the lines.
"Charge! The three lords are clearing the way! Konoha is guaranteed victory!"
"Victory!"
"Forward! Don't let them fight alone!"
Blood pumping, the Konoha ninja drew their weapons and surged toward the center of the battlefield like a tidal wave.
On the other side, the Hidden Stone shinobi went dead pale.
Morale shattered. Legs trembled. To the Iwa ninja, the beasts looming over them looked like monsters capable of piercing the very sky.
"What are those things?! How are they so huge?"
"Are they Tailed Beasts? Doesn't Konoha only have the Nine-Tails?!"
"This is terrifying... Can we really beat monsters like that?"
Inside the Hidden Stone command tent, Onoki's brow furrowed into a deep scowl. He recognized those iconic summons instantly.
"All three Sannin are here?" Onoki muttered, his expression darkening. "This is a problem. I should have brought Roshi."
Regret washed over the Tsuchikage.
Between the sudden mobilization and his lingering distrust of Roshi, Onoki had left the Four-Tails Jinchuriki at home. He had only brought Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, to the battlefield.
It was a costly mistake. Seeing Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru united once more, Onoki knew the harsh truth... he and Han alone couldn't stop Konoha's momentum.
Back in the Second Great Ninja War, a young Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru had survived a battle against Hanzo of the Salamander—a man hailed as a demigod. Hanzo himself had crowned them the 'Sannin'.
Then came the Third Great Ninja War, where each of them carved out terrifying, blood-soaked reputations. All three possessed undeniable strength.
And right now? They were at their absolute peak.
Facing three highly coordinated Kage-level monsters, Onoki hated his odds. But he had no time to dwell on his mistakes. Atop their colossal summons, the trio was already making their move.
"Tch! I never thought I'd see the day I fought alongside a stinking snake like you again," Gamabunta grumbled. His booming voice shook the air as he took a long drag from his giant pipe, his hand resting casually on the hilt of his massive tanto.
"And I never expected a wretched toad like you to still be breathing," Manda hissed back. His forked tongue flicked the air, a cruel hunger gleaming in his reptilian eyes.
"Prey like you should just obediently let themselves be eaten."
Manda shifted his massive coils, turning his attention to his summoner. "Orochimaru. You owe me a hundred sacrifices for calling me out here. You better not default this time."
Orochimaru's face twisted into a cold, amused smile. "The sacrifices are standing right across from us. How many you claim depends entirely on your own skill."
"Is that so? Then I won't hold back." Manda reared his massive head, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes.
"Save the catching up for later. Let's move," Tsunade snapped, cutting through the banter. "Katsuyu, prep a long-range attack on the Iwa lines!"
"Yes, Lady Tsunade!" Katsuyu replied in her gentle voice. The giant slug's soft body trembled as she gathered a massive surge of chakra.
"Sage Art: Sticky Acid"
Volleys of highly corrosive acid blasted from Katsuyu's mouth, raining down from the sky and crashing directly into the Hidden Stone encampment.
"Ah! What is this?!"
"It burns! Why is my foot melting?!"
"My hand is melting too! My shoulder! My head—ahhhh!"
Any Hidden Stone shinobi touched by the acid dissolved into plumes of foul, acrid smoke in mere seconds. Within moments, the battlefield was littered with half-melted corpses.
"Well done! Keep it up, Katsuyu!" Tsunade praised. Despite the gruesome deaths of the Iwa ninja, her expression didn't so much as twitch. This was simply the brutal reality of war.
"Yes, Lady Tsunade!" Katsuyu's massive body rippled as another deadly wave of acid cascaded from her maw.
"Looks like Tsunade beat us to the punch, huh?" Jiraiya laughed, looking down at the giant toad beneath him. "Bunta, let's join the party. We'll use that jutsu."
"That jutsu, eh? Let me brew it up," Gamabunta rumbled. He worked his heavy jaw, gathering a massive pool of thick liquid in his mouth.
"Toad Oil!"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
"Fire Style: Toad Oil Flame Bullet
A colossal torrent of oil blasted from Gamabunta's mouth. The moment it met Jiraiya's flames, it ignited into a blinding inferno.
A massive sea of fire roared to life, instantly engulfing the sky above the Hidden Stone forces.
This was no ordinary Fire Style.
Fed by the highly flammable toad oil, the flames were almost impossible to extinguish. Standard Water Style jutsu would only spread the burning slick, making the inferno even worse.
To make matters worse for the enemy, these were shinobi from the Land of Earth—barely any of them specialized in powerful water techniques to begin with.
"Manda, it seems they've stolen your thunder," Orochimaru remarked dryly.
"Tch. Damn toads," Manda spat, his massive coils shifting in irritation. "If I had mastered Senjutsu, I could wipe out that entire side with a single Sage Art."
In truth, Manda felt a flash of embarrassment.
When it came to long-range assaults, his only real option was spitting venom. It just couldn't match the sheer, sweeping destruction of Katsuyu's acid or Gamabunta's inferno.
In this grand spectacle, the giant snake was left at a noticeable disadvantage.
But right at that moment, the battlefield shifted.
A brilliant, translucent beam of white-gold light sliced across the sky. Wherever the beam passed, the raging sea of toad-oil flames simply vanished—erased into absolute nothingness.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
As the blinding light faded, Onoki drifted into view. Hovering high above the smoke and ash, the Tsuchikage stared down the Sannin.
"A Kekkei Tota, hm?" Orochimaru mused casually, his serpent-like eyes fixed on the floating old man. "Every time I see it, I'm reminded of what a truly terrifying jutsu it is."
"Orochimaru! What is the meaning of this?!" Onoki demanded, his expression murderously grim. "Why is Konoha suddenly attacking the Land of Earth?!"
"Please don't misunderstand. Konoha has absolutely no intention of starting a war," Orochimaru replied smoothly, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
"Everyone you see here is simply part of a diplomatic delegation."
"The Fifth Hokage noted how hard the Hidden Stone has been working toward 'peace,' and Konoha naturally couldn't fall behind..."
"Therefore, the Hokage dispatched this delegation specifically to discuss a new peace treaty with you, Lord Tsuchikage."
Hearing Orochimaru's brazen lie, Onoki's face flushed a furious, plum purple.
"A delegation of four to five thousand troops?!" he roared, his voice echoing over the battlefield. "Do you think I'm a fool who would believe such blatant nonsense?!"
Upto 40 chapters ahead on patreon :-
patreon.com/Vristikk