Minato shook his head helplessly. How was he even supposed to explain this?
Just talking about it would embarrass his Sensei... sigh.
"It's kind of like your situation—also caused by a summoning mishap. But instead of being transported away, I summoned... a toad I definitely shouldn't have."
"I was surrounded and planned to summon Gamabunta to blast through and blow up the bridge..."
At that, he glanced at Jiraiya, who immediately turned his head, avoiding eye contact.
Kazuyama and the three Snake Princesses listened with great interest.
"Don't look at me like that! I had already summoned Bunta into battle, so Minato couldn't use him."
"He did summon a toad though—ugh, that one!"
"Yeah... that one..."
Jiraiya's face crumpled. Just the thought of that toad gave him a headache.
Minato took a deep breath and continued.
"His name is Gamabunryō, Bunta's younger brother. Apparently he's the disgrace of Mount Myōboku."
"A toad who does nothing but eat and sleep, and stirs up trouble whenever he's awake."
"Not only did he not help when summoned, he stood off to the side watching and distracting me."
"In the end, the plan to blow up the bridge failed completely."
"Sigh..."
That deep, resigned sigh said it all. If even the usually upbeat blond could sigh like that, you knew this toad was something else.
Jiraiya scowled and added,
"Gamabunryō's already been dealt with. Fukasaku sent him to the outskirts of Mount Myōboku. He won't cause problems again."
"Probably... I mean, it should be fine..."
His confidence clearly wavered near the end. After all, Mount Myōboku was huge, and there were a lot of toads.
Kazuyama and the Snake Princesses burst into laughter.
He had tried to guess what caused the mission failure, but he never would've landed on a completely useless toad being the culprit.
The whole incident happened just because both master and student tried to summon toads—absolutely ridiculous.
"The mission failed, and Iwagakure has since stationed heavy defenses at Kannabi Bridge."
"Cutting off the bridge now is nearly impossible."
Tsunade looked like she was about to break something. The battle had been going so well—Konoha had the manpower, the high-tier fighters, and even the upper hand against the Tailed Beasts.
How did things fall apart so badly?
Well, it was better now. Kazuyama was back. And even Tsunade had to admit, for all his infuriating antics, the brat was useful.
His mind always found strange angles—like turning Katsuyu into a bomb. She never would've thought of that in a million years.
Now she could only hope Kazuyama might come up with another miracle.
"This is killing me. It had to be the damn toads. Only they could screw things up like this."
"Hahahaha!"
Tagitsuhime mocked the Mount Myōboku toads without mercy.
Kazuyama tried to hold in his laughter, but his face had already turned red. The other two Snake Princesses were laughing openly.
Jiraiya and Minato were beyond words. The embarrassment was so intense, they could've dug a house with their toes.
[Ding! Host has led the three Snake Princesses in mercilessly mocking the Mount Myōboku duo, leaving them utterly humiliated. Special reward: Taijutsu +2.]
Tch. Lazy system again.
Come on, that was the future protagonist's dad and teacher, and it only gave that much?
System: You got a problem with me?
Kazuyama: You're the boss. Whatever you say!
"Alright, Kazuyama, enough teasing."
"Focus on strategy."
"Right now, both sides are locked in a standoff, gradually wearing each other down."
"But our lines are slowly being pushed back. Hanzō of the Salamander is a huge threat."
Leaning against a tree, Tsunade's face grew serious. Kazuyama quickly waved to the Snake Princesses to stop messing around.
"Ahem, okay, I'm done laughing."
"But seriously, it was just too good."
"The ultimate accident-prone master and student duo, hahaha—"
Before he could finish, three burning glares silenced him instantly. He cleared his throat and went on.
"Don't look at me like that. It's not my fault."
"Our situation's already rough, okay?"
"Hanzō of the Salamander—when I first heard about him, I didn't think much. We've seen strong people before."
"But the moment we clashed, I realized how disgusting he really is."
"That poison of his is a nightmare. Powerhouses might be immune, but he wipes out everyone else until only the elites are left."
Tsunade and Jiraiya nodded grimly. They remembered all too well.
Years ago, they had many comrades when they faced Hanzō. But by the end, it was just the three of them.
That's when they were given the name "The Legendary Sannin"—a title born out of survival and loss.
Hanzō's most terrifying weapon was his poison mist. The area-of-effect was massive, and every five minutes, he'd release another deadly wave—like the Grim Reaper sweeping through ordinary soldiers.
"Throw in two Jinchūriki and, yeah, this is bad."
"Minato, any chance you can take out both Jinchūriki at once?"
"Maybe toss them into the sea?"
Kazuyama grinned as he looked at Minato, waiting for a response.
Minato twitched, then shook his head.
"Kazuyama, be serious. Those are Tailed Beasts."
"In past battles, I've only been able to tie one down with the Flying Thunder God Technique while Lady Tsunade and Sensei handled the other."
"Taking on both by myself? I don't have the chakra for that."
Minato was genuinely frustrated. He had thought himself strong—after all, Flying Thunder God had made him the Yellow Flash of the battlefield.
But when facing Tailed Beasts, he still felt powerless.
"Then there's nothing for it. Leave Hanzō to me. He had the nerve to gang up on me—I'll make sure he's out of this war."
"As for the rest... I can't be everywhere at once."
Kazuyama's smile faded, replaced by a cold edge.
He held grudges. Especially when he got mobbed. Revenge was a must.
And he had plenty of ways to do it.
"Alright. If you can keep Hanzō off the field, we still have a fighting chance."
"Kazuyama, you—"
"First, reimburse me for the explosive tags I used earlier."
Tsunade had just raised a hand to pat Kazuyama on the shoulder in encouragement, only for his words to fry her brain like a short-circuited CPU.
The fury surged instantly, coloring her vision red.
"You brat! You've gone too far!"
"Die!"