The battle fell into a cruel stalemate and attrition. The Three Legendary Sannin of Konoha, relying on their summoned beasts and tacit cooperation, barely managed to withstand the fierce onslaught of Hanzou and Ibuse, but they were clearly at a disadvantage.
Poisonous mist was constantly eroding their defenses, and their Chakra and stamina were being rapidly consumed. Hanzou, however, seemed tireless, his offensive growing more intense with every wave.
"This can't go on!"
Tsunade parried a Water Blade and shouted breathlessly; her medical Chakra was being heavily consumed by resisting the toxins and maintaining the high-intensity combat.
"His poison and stamina seem to have no end..."
Jiraiya's expression was also grim, and Gamabunta's body was marked with several scars eroded by the poisonous mist.
Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils were locked onto Hanzou's figure, which flickered in and out of sight within the poison mist, as he rapidly calculated in his mind.
The chances of winning were slim, but the consequences of a retreat could be even more severe... They had to hold on, at least to force out more of his techniques or find a flaw... Hanzou seemed to see through their predicament, and his attack rhythm quickened once more. Salamander Ibuse also let out a violent roar, its poison mist exhaling even more fiercely.
Under the weight of the poison mist, the scythe, and the violent power of Salamander Ibuse, the scales of battle tipped irreversibly.
The Chakra and stamina of the three from Konoha were like leaking wineskins, rapidly hitting rock bottom under the high-speed, high-intensity confrontation and the continuous erosion of the toxins.
Their summoned beasts were equally riddled with scars.
Hanzou, however, was like a tireless killing machine.
His control over the poisonous mist had reached the realm of perfection; its density followed his will, serving as cover, a weapon, and an extension of his perception.
Even more terrifying was his unpredictable Body Flicker Technique!
Under the cover of the poisonous mist, his movement trajectory became increasingly difficult to grasp; one moment he was in the distance swinging his scythe to release a Water Dragon Bullet, and the next, he had already appeared behind Tsunade's flank, his poisoned Kunai thrusting straight for her heart.
"Tsunade!"
Jiraiya's eyes were nearly bursting as he tried to come to her aid, only to be forced into a frantic dodge by a sharp water pillar that suddenly rose from the poison mist beneath his feet.
Tsunade, relying on her tempered battle instincts and Monstrous Strength, forcibly twisted her body and parried the Kunai with her vambrace, but the massive impact still made her blood surge and her arm go numb.
Hanzou, however, had already used the momentum to disappear into the mist again.
"Watch out from above!"
Orochimaru hissed a warning, his golden vertical pupils catching a faint, imperceptible Chakra fluctuation.
However, it was too late.
Hanzou's figure appeared directly above the three as if teleporting; it was not his physical body, but a Water Clone.
The true killing intent came from the ground.
Salamander Ibuse's massive body had quietly slipped underground at some point, and now it suddenly burst through the earth. Its spine, covered in spikes and poison glands, slammed violently into the three as they struggled to find their footing. Simultaneously, it opened its massive maw and spat out a highly concentrated, deep purple Poison Mist Bomb.
"I can't dodge it!"
Jiraiya roared, and together with Gamabunta, he exhaled flames with all his might, attempting to block the Poison Mist Bomb.
"Earth Release: Multiple Earth-Style Wall!"
Orochimaru instantly erected several thick earth walls in the path of the impact.
"Hah!"
Tsunade channeled her remaining Chakra into her legs, attempting to leap up and evade.
"Boom!!!"
The earth walls shattered like paper under Ibuse's brute force. The Poison Mist Bomb and the flames collided and exploded, sending a thicker and wider range of poison mist, mixed with shockwaves, sweeping in all directions.
Gamabunta was sent tumbling away, crushing several tents.
Orochimaru's Earth Release was broken, causing his blood to surge backward. Although Tsunade had jumped, she was still caught by the edge of the explosion; her protective Chakra dissipated, and she inhaled a breath of poison gas, her vision instantly turning dark.
Hanzou's original body only then stepped slowly out from the densest part of the poison mist at the center of the explosion, like a ghost.
His breathing was steady, his scythe pointed diagonally at the ground as he watched the three who were stumbling back, blood leaking from their mouths, clearly at the end of their ropes.
"It's over."
Hanzou's voice, through his mask, delivered the cold sentence.
His figure moved again.
This time, his speed increased to the limit, almost turning into three afterimages as he attacked the three of them simultaneously.
Jiraiya only saw a flash of purple before his abdomen took a heavy hit. Intense pain flared, his Chakra was completely thrown into chaos, and he was sent flying, slamming heavily onto the ground, unable to rise for a moment.
Tsunade endured the dizziness and swung her fist to counter, but she struck only air.
Hanzou's true self had already circled behind her, and the handle of his scythe struck her heavily on the back of her neck. Tsunade let out a muffled groan and collapsed to the ground.
Orochimaru was the most alert and tried to use a Substitution Jutsu to evade, but Hanzou's Body Flicker Technique was too fast. Chains coiled around him like venomous snakes, binding him, and the tip of the scythe was pressed against his throat, its cold touch carrying the chill of death.
Victory and defeat were decided in a flash.
Meanwhile, the Konoha camp, having lost the support of the Sannin, completely collapsed under the opportunistic slaughter of the Amegakure elites and the rampage of Hanzou's summoned beast.
Cries of resistance were quickly drowned out by screams, and the firelight reflected a one-sided massacre.
When the last Konoha Chunin who attempted to form seals and counterattack was pierced by an Amegakure Jonin's blade, there were no more Konoha Ninja left standing in the core area of the camp, aside from the fallen Sannin and a few dying wounded.
Hanzou retracted his scythe and did not look again at the three who were either restrained or lying unconscious.
He looked around the corpse-strewn camp, which resembled a purgatory, and finally turned his gaze toward the direction of the Land of Fire, remaining silent for a moment.
The war was already lost; next would be negotiations and surrender. He needed to leave some room and provide Konoha with a way to save face so they wouldn't completely fall out.
He walked up to Jiraiya, who was struggling to stand, then looked at Orochimaru, whose eyes were cold as a snake's while bound by chains, and finally at Tsunade, who was struggling to open her eyes.
"Ninjas of Konoha," Hanzou began, his voice still muffled but with less killing intent and more of a condescending tone of judgment.
"We, Amegakure, have lost this war."
He paused, as if stating something that had nothing to do with him, then changed the subject, his gaze sweeping over the three.
"However, you three... to be able to fight me to this extent, forcing me to use my full strength, and even causing me a bit of trouble. On this battlefield, you deserve a title."
Hanzou raised his hand and pointed at them, speaking each word as if carving them into stone.
"From now on, you shall be called—"
"The Three Legendary Sannin of Konoha."
A bestowal of names.
A name given by the enemy.
Against the shameful backdrop of their own side being nearly wiped out and their own crushing defeat and capture, this title was granted in a near-charitable manner from the mouth of this Demigod who had almost driven them to desperation.
Jiraiya clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging into his palms as blood mixed with soil dripped down. Humiliation and resentment almost consumed him.
Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils constricted to the limit. In the depths of those cold eyes, for the first time, a clear and blazing cold fire ignited, directed at a specific target.
This name "Sannin" was not a coronation of glory, but a brand of defeat, a casual label applied by the enemy in their moment of victory, a shameful medal pinned to the start of their Ninja careers.
It would forever remind them that on this night in the Land of Rain, they had lost, lost utterly, to the point where even their own title was a gift from the enemy.
Having finished speaking, Hanzou no longer looked at them and turned toward his summoned beast.
Salamander Ibuse let out a low growl and slowly sank into the ground.
The Amegakure elites began to withdraw in an orderly fashion, taking their spoils and clearing their tracks, receding like a tide and leaving behind only devastation and deathly silence.
Advance chapter available on pãtrêon Got1808