"How was it? Did you succeed?"
In the forest, the Sannin caught up with Gojo Yoru, who was using Lightning Release Chakra to accelerate his Body Flicker. Orochimaru couldn't wait to ask, his eyes full of anticipation.
"Don't know. It was too dark to see clearly, and I couldn't sense it."
As he said this, the corners of Gojo Yoru's mouth rose slightly, and he said meaningfully, "Maybe it succeeded, maybe not, but one thing is certain... it definitely won't be unscathed."
It was his first time using "Hollow Purple," and he couldn't perfectly control the Space-Time Chakra capacity. Using the last teleport to warn the Sannin caused Gojo Yoru to panic a bit, focusing only on escaping to save his life.
After all, without Space-Time Chakra, Gojo Yoru's true strength was just that of a veteran Chunin who could barely use one Fire Release: Rasengan even after consuming all his Chakra.
Like Uchiha Obito who became dependent on intangibility, Gojo Yoru, suddenly losing this invincible protective shell, also lost his confidence momentarily.
Now that he had calmed down, Gojo Yoru first reflected in his heart that he couldn't be so pretentious in the future; otherwise, turning from Gojo into Uchiha would be a bit ridiculous.
To some extent, Gojo seemed no different from Uchiha, ready to put on a red nose at any moment.
As for why Hanzo the Salamander didn't chase after him, Gojo Yoru also came to a conclusion with three possibilities.
First, his Sensing Technique hadn't reached the level of Uzumaki Mito and the Three Great Sages, so he couldn't discover the Space-Time Chakra in Gojo Yoru's body at all.
For the secret technique "Hollow Purple" just now, Gojo Yoru consumed the most Space-Time Chakra, almost draining both his inherent supply and what was stored in the Yin Seal.
Ordinary Chakra was only consumed by less than half.
In Hanzo the Salamander's sensing, Gojo Yoru's Chakra was still enough to unleash another "Hollow Purple."
The second possibility was similar to the first.
No one knew that Gojo Yoru's Flying Thunder God Technique consumed not ordinary Chakra, but the invisible Space-Time Chakra.
Gojo Yoru's Chakra possessed the ability to cast the Flying Thunder God Technique multiple times, so chasing him was meaningless.
However, Gojo Yoru leaned more towards the last possibility, which was... something happened to Hanzo the Salamander or the Salamander!
Although the "Hollow Purple" energy light cluster didn't hit the Salamander, the fact that the latter couldn't dispel the Summoning Technique to return to the summoning world indicated it was affected by the space ripples.
And those space ripples weren't for decoration.
That was what made Uchiha Madara exclaim in the original work... Space Distortion!
Just being within the range of space distortion could bend even the Six Paths Staff.
The moment the Salamander turned into water, the water and rocks were caught by the space ripples, then turned into nothingness upon touching the energy light cluster.
Unless the Salamander's Body Flicker was also teleportation, some parts must have been torn apart by the distorted space.
If a Water Body Flicker Technique could escape distorted space, Uchiha Madara wouldn't have nearly been kicked out of the finale, even if the space distortion created by the energy cluster hadn't reached the intensity of Night Guy.
It was just uncertain whether something happened to the Salamander or Hanzo.
Realizing he had succeeded, Gojo Yoru inevitably felt regretful.
Unfortunately, that "Hollow Purple" wasn't the complete form. Neither the ordinary Chakra nor the Space-Time Chakra capacity met the conditions, so it could only be compressed into a marble-sized energy cluster, creating space distortion with a not-so-amazing area.
If the energy met the conditions, it would be a super-high-speed moving artificial black hole. Let alone dying upon contact, getting slightly close would mean being swept in by the astonishingly intense space ripples. Even before getting close to the artificial black hole, the body would be severely bent and crushed into a blood mist.
The Sannin didn't know that the meteor was actually the prototype of a super secret technique.
Seeing Gojo Yoru so confident, Jiraiya sighed slightly: "If you really caused huge damage to the Salamander, it would be a feat no one in the entire Ninja World could achieve."
"At that time, your fame will surpass ours." Tsunade nodded in agreement.
"?"
A question mark popped up on Gojo Yoru's forehead.
You guys don't expect my strike to kill the Salamander, but instead think causing damage is glory? Isn't that too unambitious?
Thinking that the title of Sannin was given to losers, yet all ninjas considered it an honor, Gojo Yoru suddenly realized that due to the inherent impression from the original work, he had underestimated Hanzo the Salamander of this era.
Being bestowed a title by Hanzo the Salamander in this period was not only a great honor.
Even killing the elderly Hanzo the Salamander was a huge honor.
The Six Paths of Pain only dared to call himself a god after killing the Demigod of the Ninja World, becoming arrogant and believing no one could be his opponent.
Hanzo the Salamander was not only the pinnacle of the Ninja World but also the faith of countless ninjas.
"Orochimaru-sama, Tsunade-sama, Jiraiya-sama, bad news!"
The four returned to the central tower-like border base.
Before Gojo Yoru could find a quiet place to recover Chakra, a man wearing a protective suit appeared in front of them using Body Flicker.
He handed two scrolls marked with the character "Seal" to Orochimaru, one in each hand, and said with a solemn expression: "News came from Danzo-sama and Sakumo-sama. Combat units from the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind are simultaneously trying to infiltrate our Land of Fire from the junctions of the Land of Rivers and the Land of Rain, and the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass."
"Danzo-sama and Sakumo-sama have already led combat units to intercept. This is the secret report sent back by my clansman."
The Sannin's expressions changed instantly, and Orochimaru hurriedly took the scrolls and opened them.
Gojo Yoru raised an eyebrow, thinking secretly that the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth really knew how to pick their timing.
Although he hadn't become a member of the higher-ups yet, as an honor student in academic classes, Gojo Yoru knew that the border base was a signal tower.
It had the best technological equipment and barriers, and was also one of the strongest defense lines of the Land of Fire's military force.
All instructions and information were sent and received from here.
Troops were spread out in layers around the border base, rotating shifts when there was nothing to do. Once something happened elsewhere, they would quickly "dispatch police," and reinforcements would arrive successively.
Even though the western part of the Land of Fire was large and lacked high wall defenses, very few large groups of foreign ninjas could infiltrate.
As for the few rats that successfully infiltrated, they couldn't stir up any waves.
But now, due to Hanzo the Salamander, only a few members remained at the border base, and instructions and information couldn't be transmitted and received as quickly as possible.
This line of defense was equivalent to being torn open with a huge hole, the best opportunity for invasion.
Neither the Land of Wind nor the Land of Earth let down this opportunity bestowed by Hanzo the Salamander.
Unexpectedly, Konoha had already prepared precautions.
Gojo Yoru didn't know the cause of Konoha's three-front war in the original work.
This three-front war was obviously a butterfly effect caused by him.
"A three-front war in just a few months; this pace is a bit fast! With me as a variable, who knows how many years it will last? And will it cause an even bigger butterfly effect?" Gojo Yoru thought to himself, but didn't care much.
There were only a few people he cared about.
They either didn't need to participate in the war or possessed powerful strength, needing no worry from Gojo Yoru.
Gojo Yoru, still just a Genin, didn't need to lead a ninja squad either.
He would only participate as a special combat member when the Flying Thunder God Technique was needed.
For extremely dangerous missions, he could even use the privilege granted by Sarutobi Hiruzen to refuse execution.
How to arrange troops and strategize was the business of these adults and higher-ups.
He didn't want to, and couldn't participate for the time being.
Thus, Gojo Yoru didn't stay to listen to the Sannin's conversation. He prepared to find a quiet place to recover Chakra randomly, then go fulfill the agreement.
The Sannin didn't care about Gojo Yoru's departure; their gazes were all on the two secret report scrolls.
"Just as you said, Orochimaru, that little old man Onoki's target wasn't the Land of Rain at all, but our Land of Fire."
"It's normal. You've experienced Hanzo's strength and deterrence at close range. Given a choice, no major power would want to offend such a powerful existence for this little profit." Orochimaru said calmly, "Didn't you see Sunagakure, which was declared war on by Hanzo, also chose to put aside hatred and act against us?"
Tsunade looked at the secret report sent back by Hatake Sakumo, looking worried: "The team leading the Land of Wind is that old hag Chiyo's son and daughter-in-law. Remind Sakumo-senpai to be careful of these two."
"Being able to develop the antidote formula in just three months, leaving aside that old hag Chiyo's medical ability, her poison skills are definitely second only to Hanzo in the Ninja World."
"Her son and daughter-in-law might have also inherited her poison skills and possess unknown poisons."
"Not just Sakumo-senpai, remind Danzo-sama too." Orochimaru sneered, "Since their target is confirmed to be us, it's easy to handle. Next, we just need to shrink the battle line, maintain a triangular formation, and let reconnaissance teams, support units, and Anbu be responsible for monitoring the front line and rear defense. If they dare to infiltrate, we will encircle and suppress them."
"After a few times, their only choice will be to fight us head-on!"
"The terrain of the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind is very harsh, and the speed and difficulty of transporting supplies are far above ours. If they want supplies, they either wait slowly for supplies to be transported or rob the Land of Rain, Land of Rivers, and Land of Grass."
"Given the terrain of the Land of Grass and Land of Rivers, and the agreement between our Five Great Ninja Villages and Kusagakure, their best choice is only the Land of Rain."
"Since it's the junction of three major powers, and since they actively provoked the war, let the Land of Rain become the main battlefield of this war!"
Realizing that this multi-nation melee, or rather the Second Great Ninja War, was unavoidable, Tsunade also said decisively: "You guys are better at warfare; you and Sarutobi-sensei can make the decisions. For the next period, I will travel between Shikkotsu Forest and the laboratory, or even return to Konoha. If you need my help, remember to notify me in advance."
"Thanks for your hard work, Tsunade."
Orochimaru and Jiraiya knew Tsunade was under greater pressure.
Once the Land of Rain became the main battlefield, Hanzo the Salamander was an existence they had to face.
Without the antidote formula and production line, they would be very passive.
"Don't worry, mere Salamander poison; I'll handle it soon!" Tsunade revealed a confident and beautiful smile, making Jiraiya's heart race.
The Sannin began to get busy with their respective tasks.
Even though it was night, they had many things to do.
Tsunade needed to organize the things looted from Amegakure, then research the ingredients and formulation of the antidote.
To develop a complete formula, even with the support of Shadow Clones and the Senju Clan's powerful stamina, it would take some time.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya, while briefly reporting what happened tonight to Sarutobi Hiruzen, reorganized the combat units stationed nearby and ready for orders.
Because the "signal tower" hadn't restarted yet, they could only communicate via secret report scrolls to grasp the situation there and be ready to support at any time.
Unlike the orthodox duels in the One Piece world, the reason wars in the Naruto world could last for several years was that they were all fighting intelligence wars.
First collect intelligence, then formulate combat plans, until everything is mastered, then look for an opportunity to wipe out the opponent in one go.
When a large number of ninjas began to kill each other face to face, it was either the moment to decide the stage victory or defeat, or one side had reached a dead end.
The infiltration by the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth were just probes.
If the Land of Fire didn't react, this probe would become reality.
Since the Land of Fire reacted, they naturally wouldn't foolishly fight in the opponent's home field without intelligence advantage.
After all, not everyone was Hanzo the Salamander.
However, for a period in the future, the Land of Fire would have to engage in exhausting battles.
The signal for war had been sent, and the situation was no longer the Land of Rain VS the Land of Wind, but a four-nation melee.
On the surface, Konoha was fighting on three fronts, needing to face attacks from the Land of Rain, Land of Wind, and Land of Earth simultaneously.
But the other three countries were not allies.
The Land of Rain needed to be wary of not only the Land of Fire but also the Land of Wind, which they actively declared war on, and even the Land of Earth, which had raided them before. Actually, it was also fighting on three fronts.
The Land of Wind and the Land of Earth were slightly better off; they only needed to be wary of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain simultaneously.
The first night of the melee was a carnival for assassins.
Who knows how many ninjas would be decapitated tonight due to not mastering enemy intelligence.
Who knows how many ninjas, clearly powerful, would die from very simple hidden weapons and traps costing only a few hundred or thousand ryo due to being mere mortals and negligence.
This night could be called the "Night of First Encounter Kills."
Also on this night, a portrait, a name, a title, a piece of intelligence... quietly spread from Amegakure, quickly reaching the surrounding three major powers, and then sweeping across the entire Ninja World through summoning beasts.
The portrait wasn't a scrawled ink painting but a color painting almost as realistic as a photo.
In the painting was the appearance and attire of a boy: white short hair, icy blue eyes, black coat and trousers.
More critically, in the painting, he held a golden laser sword in one hand and reverse-gripped a kunai engraved with a special formula in the other.
Although seeing this formula for the first time, everyone knew what it was.
Because next to the portrait, there was text, strikingly writing—[The Black Flash · Gojo Yoru · Flying Thunder God User].
This wasn't a portrait; it was more like a movie poster!
Unfortunately, the actress with the stage name "Fuji Kazahana" might not have been born yet, and her debut was still many years away.
Otherwise, seeing this poster, she might want Gojo Yoru to be her male lead.
This poster-like portrait, along with Amegakure's external propaganda, made Gojo Yoru famous throughout the Ninja World.
Amegakure's external propaganda roughly meant...
The reason Hanzo-sama went to the Land of Fire's border was that Konoha's Flying Thunder God user infiltrated Amegakure and stole valuable items. He went to retrieve them.
However, Konoha ninjas not only didn't return them but also set up an ambush on the way, and finally crossed the border into the Land of Rain to besiege their great Hanzo-sama.
That Flying Thunder God user used an unprecedented technique to injure Hanzo-sama's Salamander. Now Hanzo-sama cannot summon his partner and can only fight alone.
Regarding this rising star, Hanzo-sama gave a very high evaluation: "His speed and attacks are as fast as a black flash. Without intelligence in advance, even this old man suffered a small loss. As Konoha's secretly cultivated trump card, this old man has to admit, perhaps the future of the Ninja World belongs to him!"
...
"What a sinister method. Does he want to kill the Gojo kid with praise, or deliberately lure the enemy?"
The portrait soon reached the hands of Orochimaru and Jiraiya. The latter saw through Hanzo the Salamander's method at a glance.
"Assassins like to create smoke bombs. Let's see if any fearless guys go to test it." Orochimaru sneered.
With Hanzo the Salamander's strength, even without relying on the Salamander, he was the pinnacle of the Ninja World.
Without using human wave tactics, fighting him in that country with perennial rainy seasons, probably only the Five Kage could contend with him.
Jiraiya revealed a gloating smile: "He actually sacrificed his reputation to praise the Gojo kid. It seems that meteor shot likely worked."
"This also shows that he wants Yoru dead more than anyone else." Orochimaru said in a deep voice, "He sacrificed his reputation mainly to remind the surrounding two countries that except for the intelligence about the Salamander being injured, everything else is true."
"Maybe even the intelligence about the Salamander being injured is actually true."
"In the rainy night battle, that meteor must have been discovered by many reconnaissance team members and Anbu. Hanzo didn't want them to waste time investigating, so he pointed out the target directly."
"He wants Yoru to help him attract the attention of Onoki and the Third Kazekage."
At this point, Orochimaru's gaze was deep: "If so, the intelligence about the Salamander being injured is even more credible. That number one poisonous creature in the Ninja World should be injured quite badly."
"This is good news for us, buying Tsunade more time for research."
Jiraiya looked at the portrait in his hand again, clicking his tongue in wonder: "So handsome. As expected of someone with white hair like this great one, he has some of my style. I really want to ask the painter to draw a cover for my novel!"
"Since you write novels, the public opinion war is yours."
"Eh—no way?!"
Jiraiya was dumbfounded and hurriedly explained: "I just write novels; I don't understand political speech!"
Seeing the corner of Orochimaru's mouth rise slightly, Jiraiya reacted immediately and shouted, "You Orochimaru, playing tricks on this great one again. Do you want to fight?"
"Fight here? Do you dare? Tsunade's laboratory is just two floors above."
"Uh..."
Jiraiya instantly wilted.
...
"Flying Thunder God user, real or fake?"
Chiyo looked at the portrait in her hand, her eyes full of suspicion: "That old man with a snorkel would sacrifice his reputation to praise a junior from another village? Could this be fake news?"
"It's Amegakure's external propaganda."
Ebizo's expression appeared very solemn at this moment.
Chiyo gritted her teeth: "Clearly during the day, or even earlier, he already knew Konoha had a new Flying Thunder God user, yet he hid it until we attacked the Land of Fire before announcing it to the outside world. He anticipated the Kazekage's decision long ago. This old man with a snorkel is really sinister enough!"
Ebizo was silent for a long time before chuckling: "Maybe it's not a bad thing. At least we're not the most anxious."
Chiyo was stunned, then smiled: "True. That old guy Hanzo would rather sacrifice his reputation to kill this junior with praise. It seems he indeed suffered a small loss. If only the Salamander really is injured."
"Maybe it's true, but no one dares to bet. The cost is too high." Ebizo sighed.
"It doesn't matter. The Land of Rain wasn't our target anyway." Flames seemed to burn in Chiyo's eyes. "This melee situation is an unprecedented opportunity. Now we just need to wait, then pierce through Konoha's White Fang's defense line, and we can bite off a big piece of meat from the Land of Fire, completely occupying the buffer zone of the Land of Rivers. From then on... offense and defense will switch."
Ebizo, who was also not yet old, was equally full of fighting spirit.
...
"Flying Thunder God Technique, white hair, but surnamed Gojo?"
Onoki leaned back in his chair, also holding a portrait of Gojo Yoru, murmuring: "Could it be the Senju of the Forest integrated into Konoha, coincidentally from the Second Hokage's lineage, inheriting his talent?"
"Dad, a variable has appeared. Should we proceed according to the original plan?" Worry finally appeared on the teenager Kitsuchi's face.
"What are you afraid of?" Onoki said grumpily, "Brat, you have to remember one thing: in this world, no technique is perfect. Even the God of Shinobi's Wood Release that pacified the chaotic times has the Mangekyo Sharingan that can contend with it."
"If the Flying Thunder God Technique were invincible, the Second Hokage wouldn't have died on the battlefield."
Staring at the boy in the portrait, Onoki said meaningfully: "The most worrying first-encounter kill has been erased by that Demigod of the Ninja World sacrificing his reputation. We can't disappoint that temporary ally either."
Recalling the scene of being humiliated by Uchiha Madara in his youth, Onoki's eyes were somewhat gloomy: "Let this old man teach this young man a lesson."
The wave driven by the Black Flash not only caused reactions from all sides but also made the original history deviate further and further.
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