Clang clang clang!
Clang clang clang!
Yagura turned, deflecting the incoming shuriken with his kunai.
For a Kage-level Ninja, ordinary shuriken weren't particularly lethal, but the time spent deflecting them was enough for a Ninja like Jiraiya to close the distance instantly.
Whoosh~
The wind whistled.
Jiraiya came in with another elbow strike.
"Damn it!"
Seeing this, Yagura's anger flared. He'd been sucker-punched by an elbow earlier, nearly breaking his face, and now, Jiraiya was trying the same trick again!
"You bastard!"
"Die!!!"
Yagura roared, his hands forming hand seals rapidly. A high-speed rotating water blade formed in his hand and slashed forward.
"Water Release: Water Cutter Blade!"
Don't underestimate Water Release!
The power of water is boundless!
Ultra-high-speed water flow could easily slice through kunai!
"Trading injury for injury!"
"Who's afraid of who!??"
In close-quarters combat, Jiraiya didn't back down either. His right hand flicked, and a rapidly spinning sphere of light materialized, smashing directly towards Yagura's face.
That…
Was the Rasengan!
Aura exploded, and Chakra ran rampant!
Both men attacked frantically, their eyes filled with a resolve that disregarded life and death.
"Damn you, Jiraiya, have the guts not to dodge!" Yagura bellowed.
"No dodging then! Whoever dodges is a grandson!" Jiraiya retorted, glaring fiercely.
"Dog, stop barking!"
"Dog, don't you dare back down!"
"Whoever backs down is a dog!"
"Only dogs back down!"
Amidst their escalating roars, the Water Cutter Blade and Rasengan in their hands slammed squarely into each other's faces.
"Die, you Konoha scum-dog!"
Yagura's face was twisted with rage. Despite his usual gentlemanly demeanor around Sora, he was a true tyrant on the battlefield, with an explosive temper.
"Die!!!"
In the midst of his murderous roar, Yagura's Water Cutter Blade finally struck first, smashing hard into Jiraiya's face.
Revenge achieved!
Sweet!
It's so damn sweet!
Chopping down Jiraiya with one blow made Yagura feel that even if he couldn't escape, his life was worth it!
In that instant,
The spectators' faces also changed dramatically.
Facing an enemy Kage-level powerhouse, if Jiraiya fell, none of them, the bystanders, would escape either!!!
"Jiraiya-sama!"
"No!"
"Oh god!"
The Konoha's Jonin wailed in grief, their expressions more pained than if their own fathers had died.
Amidst the roars-
Amidst the lamentations-
A sudden, shocking change occurred on the battlefield.
Sizzle~
Sizzle~
Boom!
Boom!
Just as Yagura's Water Cutter Blade hit Jiraiya's face, he was stunned to see countless tiny sparks erupt from the struck 'Jiraiya'.
Then,
A startling burst of flame exploded from Jiraiya's face.
'This...'
'Damn it!'
'It's the Clone Great Explosion!!!'
Yagura was dumbfounded.
He didn't even have time to dodge before being instantly swallowed by the terrifying flames generated by the clone's explosion.
Boom!
Boom!
Terrifying flames shot into the sky, sweeping outwards in shockwaves sharp as blades.
The mourning Konoha's Jonin had no time for shock or tears, they immediately turned and fled into the distance.
Boom~ Boom~ Boom~
Crack!
Crack!
The shockwaves ran rampant, breaking trees within a dozen-meter radius and blasting a crater over three meters deep into the ground.
A moment later,
As the towering flames subsided, Yagura could be seen kneeling in the deep crater, his skin torn and flesh ruptured, head bowed, clearly on his last legs.
"Heh heh..."
"Yagura!"
At that moment,
Jiraiya suddenly appeared behind Yagura. Pressing a kunai against the back of Yagura's head, he threw his head back and laughed heartily:
"Hahahahaha..."
"So what if you're Kirigakure's genius Ninja? You still lost to a handsome man like me, one who can make even crying children quiet down! You are indeed excellent, but so what?"
"Even someone as excellent as Minato could only be my disciple, the Toad Sage! You can be proud to die by my hand!"
The battle was decided.
Jiraiya's playful, nonsensical nature was showing again.
He laughed triumphantly, his expression making one itch to punch him hard.
"Handsome man?"
"You..."
"Are far inferior to Sora!"
However,
Just as Jiraiya was beside himself with glee, a cold laugh sounded behind him. Then, a black kunai pierced through the back of his neck, emerging from his throat.
"Cough cough cough..."
"Cough..."
Sudden change happened on the battlefield!
The smug Jiraiya suddenly began coughing up blood violently.
'Behind me?'
'How?'
'Then what's in front...'
In his final moment, Jiraiya looked down and saw that the Yagura kneeling at his feet had, at some point, turned into a puddle of water on the ground.
'Water Clone!??'
With an indescribably complex expression, the last light faded from Jiraiya's eyes.
"Jiraiya-sama?"
"What?"
"He got counter-killed?"
The Konoha's Jonin were dumbfounded. They had just watched Jiraiya pull off a brilliant counter-kill, so how did Yagura counter-kill him back!??
'Holy crap!'
'A Genjutsu, right?'
'This can't be real!'
If Jiraiya died, their political futures would be deader than a widow's prospects, utterly hopeless!
"You think a mere Fire Clone can kill me? Don't look down on Kirigakure's Ninjas!"
Yagura sneered coldly.
Victory ultimately belonged to him!
What Sannin Jiraiya? Just a fraud resting on his reputation!
However,
To deceive Jiraiya, Yagura had invested heavily, pouring most of his already limited Chakra into that Water Clone. Otherwise, it couldn't have maintained its form even briefly after withstanding the Clone Great Explosion.
"In the end..."
"I was the better strategist!"
Yagura felt triumphant.
Killing Jiraiya might cause some trouble with the other Konoha's Jonin, but they were no longer a major concern.
Kage-level vs Jonin? The advantage was his!
However,
Just as Yagura began to feel smug, he suddenly caught a whiff of something burning.
"Huh?"
He looked down.
Sizzle sizzle sizzle~
Sizzle sizzle sizzle~
Instantly,
Yagura's face changed dramatically.
He saw Jiraiya's body was covered with over a hundred explosive tags!!!
'Damn it!'
'Jiraiya, your ugly bastard!'
At this point, Yagura realized he'd been tricked!
'That damned Jiraiya!'
'Not only did you set up layered traps, you even put explosive tags on your shadow clone!'
'Have you no shame?!!'
Boom!
This time,
There was no dodging.
He didn't even have time to perform a Substitution Technique before Yagura was sent flying by the 'crackling' explosion of over a hundred explosive tags.