Chapter 624: Feel the Power of Nuclear Fusion!
"That sound... did something fall?"
Jiraiya looked at Isshiki, resolve gradually filling his eyes.
He had already made his decision.
If he left now, he might indeed survive. He might even earn a few more concerned glances from Tsunade.
But that was not what Jiraiya wanted.
Who was he?
He was Jiraiya.
The Great Toad Sage.
He was not the kind of man who would cling to life simply because he feared death.
Isshiki had become the greatest obstacle preventing the Shinobi World from achieving genuine peace and unification.
As long as Isshiki died, the peace that the Shinobi World had long desired might finally arrive.
Thinking of that, Jiraiya's expression became firm.
He remembered what Kenichi had told him when arranging his infiltration mission.
"Jiraiya, do you understand?"
"To kill Isshiki, the entire world has united."
"The Five Great Shinobi Villages and the Five Great Nations are all standing on the same side."
"Do you know what that means?"
"It means peace."
Jiraiya had understood what Kenichi meant.
He had personally witnessed the major shinobi villages gather together under Kenichi's call.
Of course, Jiraiya could also tell that part of their cooperation came from fear of Kenichi's overwhelming military power.
Still, Kenichi had achieved something important.
He had given the entire world a reason to unite.
A common enemy.
Everything was difficult at the beginning.
But once the first step had been taken, everything that followed became much easier.
To someone like Jiraiya, Kenichi's words still sounded somewhat like grand promises.
But unlike the vague prophecy he had spent so much of his life chasing, Kenichi had shown him something real.
A future he could actually see taking shape.
That realization had shaken even Jiraiya's long-held faith in the Child of Prophecy.
He still respected the Great Toad Sage.
But when a tangible path toward peace was placed directly before him, how could he ignore it?
Jiraiya wanted to see it.
He wanted to witness what a truly peaceful Shinobi World would look like.
And right now, that future seemed possible.
There was only one condition.
Isshiki had to die in the battle Kenichi had prepared.
Only then could the Shinobi World finally move toward peace instead of endlessly tearing itself apart through internal conflicts and sending shinobi to kill one another.
"This sound is extremely loud."
Isshiki looked upward.
"But there are no chakra fluctuations."
He paid little attention to Jiraiya.
As far as Isshiki was concerned, there was no possible way Jiraiya could know his true identity.
So at the moment, Isshiki was far more curious about the strange noise coming from above.
Had those fools outside somehow activated the husk of the Divine Tree again?
If so...
That might actually be interesting.
Isshiki knew many of Akatsuki's hidden trump cards.
He knew far more than anyone realized.
And precisely because of that knowledge, he carried immense pride.
Kaguya had once ambushed him and nearly killed him.
But Isshiki had survived.
More than that, he had managed to hide directly beneath the remnants of Kaguya's plans.
There was a certain irony to that.
All Isshiki needed to do now was continue hiding.
Endure.
Recover.
Wait until he regained enough strength to change the world on his own terms.
He had deliberately established his base beneath Akatsuki.
Partly, it allowed him to use the organization as cover.
At the same time, it let him observe those people from close range.
Naturally, some of this decision also came from Isshiki's arrogance.
But there was no reason to admit that to anyone.
As far as he knew, nobody in the world knew his identity.
That made Isshiki extraordinarily confident.
In his eyes, aside from Kaguya and her two sons, almost no one in this world deserved serious attention.
Certainly not Jiraiya.
To Isshiki, Jiraiya was simply a useful worker.
Someone who could handle inconvenient matters on his behalf.
Nothing more.
Originally, Isshiki had even considered taking Jiraiya's genetic material if he refused to cooperate, then creating a replica who could serve as a professional enforcer for Kara.
Fortunately, Jiraiya had accepted the offer.
That had saved Isshiki some trouble.
Otherwise, he might genuinely have needed to make a clone.
"Jiraiya, what do you think that is?"
Isshiki turned toward him.
"Why don't you go up and take a look?"
Although Isshiki believed his identity was completely hidden, caution was still useful.
Better safe than sorry.
What if someone unexpectedly recognized him?
Isshiki had no desire to expose himself unnecessarily.
That was precisely why Jiraiya existed.
But when Isshiki turned around...
His eyes narrowed.
Several toads were perched around Jiraiya.
And Jiraiya was gathering chakra.
"I know."
Jiraiya's voice was calm.
"But I have a bad feeling."
Isshiki hesitated briefly.
Still, he remained composed.
He was not particularly worried about whatever Jiraiya might try.
He was an Otsutsuki.
A being from an entirely different level of existence than the inferior life-forms of this world.
More importantly, Isshiki still believed Jiraiya had no idea who he truly was.
So he simply watched as Jiraiya entered Sage Mode.
At the same time...
The strange screeching sound above became increasingly sharp.
More piercing.
Jiraiya opened his eyes.
Then he looked directly at Isshiki.
A smile appeared on his face.
"As expected."
"You're exactly the kind of person Kenichi described."
"Arrogant."
"Conceited."
"And convinced everyone else is beneath you."
Jiraiya burst into laughter.
Then he lunged straight at Isshiki.
Isshiki's pupils contracted.
Why?
Why was Jiraiya attacking him?
There should have been no reason for this.
Isshiki had never openly clashed with Jiraiya.
There had been no obvious disagreement between them.
So only one question filled Isshiki's mind.
Why?
And who was Kenichi?
Isshiki had never heard that name before.
Amamiya Kenichi sounded almost ordinary.
It was completely different from the famous names Isshiki knew throughout the Shinobi World.
He sounded like some irrelevant person.
Yet even while confused, Isshiki was not the type to simply stand there and wait to be attacked.
A black receiver shot forward.
It pierced directly through Jiraiya's body.
But the instant it did...
Isshiki sensed something wrong.
The attack had been sudden.
But based on Isshiki's understanding of Jiraiya's strength, there was no reason Jiraiya should have failed to react.
Yet Jiraiya had deliberately allowed himself to be pierced.
That realization immediately raised Isshiki's guard.
Something was wrong.
But before he could determine what...
Jiraiya coughed up blood.
Then he released all of his chakra at once.
A restraining ninjutsu wrapped around Isshiki.
Isshiki's sense of unease intensified.
"Isshiki Otsutsuki!"
Jiraiya laughed loudly despite the blood spilling from his mouth.
"Do you know what that sound is?"
Isshiki's eyes widened.
"This is the death knell the Shinigami is ringing for you!"
Isshiki's pupils contracted violently.
Jiraiya knew his name.
Impossible.
How?
How could Jiraiya possibly know?
And the way he said it...
Could it be...
Isshiki finally realized something was terribly wrong.
He immediately tried to break free.
The difference in power between him and Jiraiya was enormous.
Ordinarily, a restraint like this would never hold him for long.
But Jiraiya had poured everything he possessed into the technique.
For just a brief moment...
Isshiki was trapped.
Then the world became silent.
For one instant, there was nothing.
And in the next...
A terrifying explosion erupted.
Jiraiya smiled.
Then he closed his eyes.
Extreme heat and a devastating shockwave swallowed him instantly.
His body disappeared within the blast before he could feel anything more.
And now...
Isshiki had to endure the full force of the hydrogen bomb.
The instant the bomb detonated, the entire world seemed to fall silent.
Everything at the center of the explosion simply vanished.
Nothing remained.
Nagato and the others had already left the previous day.
Kenichi had deliberately assigned them missions elsewhere.
Isshiki had noticed nothing strange.
Akatsuki members frequently traveled around for various reasons.
To him, their departure had seemed completely normal.
"My God..."
Hiruzen stared toward the distant blast in horror.
"What kind of ninjutsu is that?!"
Even Hashirama and Madara turned toward Kenichi.
Neither of them had ever witnessed anything so absurd.
Kenichi himself was standing right beside them.
He had merely sent a Shadow Clone forward.
Yet that clone had unleashed destruction on a scale they could hardly comprehend.
It was breathtaking.
Even Hagoromo looked visibly surprised.
He clearly had not expected Kenichi to possess a method like this.
"Saturation bombardment."
Kenichi showed no intention of stopping.
"Begin now."
The special tactical squad immediately obeyed.
Countless shells were launched toward the designated target area.
Explosions followed one after another.
The bombardment never stopped.
At the same time, Kenichi ordered the sealing squad to begin preparing every restraint they possessed.
Isshiki could shrink himself.
Escape was unacceptable.
The town that had been swallowed by the hydrogen bomb no longer existed.
Every house had vanished.
In its place stretched scorched earth that still released heat into the air.
A strange, pungent smell lingered throughout the area, the result of metal, plastic, and countless other materials being subjected to extreme temperatures.
The trees were gone.
Only blackened stumps remained.
Branches had been torn away and scattered by the shockwave.
The remnants resembled bones left behind after some unimaginable disaster.
The shinobi stood far beyond the blast zone.
Even from a safe distance, disbelief and horror were obvious in their eyes.
They had witnessed everything.
Their hands still rested on their weapons.
Blades remained ready.
Those weapons represented the final trace of dignity and composure they possessed as shinobi.
Their gazes crossed the silent wasteland.
Some seemed to be searching for signs of life.
But everyone understood that the possibility was almost nonexistent.
Thick gray clouds covered the sky.
Sunlight struggled to penetrate the haze.
For perhaps the first time in their lives, many of those shinobi felt truly powerless.
They were accustomed to slipping through darkness.
Killing silently.
Using ninjutsu.
Winning battles through skill, speed, deception, and courage.
But this...
This was different.
Their expressions became complicated.
Fear of the weapon.
Shock at its destructive power.
And uncertainty about the future.
If weapons like these existed...
Were shinobi still necessary?
Nobody knew.
But the destruction was not over.
At Kenichi's command, the shells continued falling.
Again.
And again.
The target area was bombarded repeatedly, as though the land itself were being plowed apart.
Then another airship rose into the sky.
One of Kenichi's Shadow Clones sat aboard it.
This clone carried an even more difficult mission.
Test the antimatter bomb.
Determine its destructive power.
And naturally...
The test target would be the unfortunate Isshiki Otsutsuki.
Under the gaze of countless shinobi, Kenichi, and Hagoromo...
A vast wall of black particles suddenly surged across the horizon.
It seemed to blot out the sky.
Kenichi said nothing.
He knew what they were seeing.
The explosion had produced an enormous shockwave.
Dust, debris, and countless particles had been thrown outward at tremendous speed.
Because everything happened so quickly, the mass of material appeared almost like a gigantic black wall sweeping across the land.
The sight was enough to make anyone despair.
"Is it really safe for us to stand here?"
Hiruzen could no longer stop himself from asking.
Beside him, Mei and the Raikage also looked toward Kenichi with concern.
Kenichi nodded.
As far as he was concerned, there was no major problem.
Still, he could understand their fear.
That enormous black wall was already rushing toward them.
"When the dust settles..."
Kenichi calmly began preparing a technique.
"That will be the signal for the full assault."
The blast had also carried dangerous radiation and debris outward.
Kenichi himself was not particularly concerned.
But allowing his own allies to suffer casualties before the real battle even started would be ridiculous.
So he acted.
With a casual ninjutsu, Kenichi redirected the enormous black cloud.
The wall of dust swept over the heads of the gathered shinobi and continued toward the rear.
The battlefield ahead was finally exposed again.
Dead.
Silent.
Ruined.
And from within that devastated land...
A figure slowly crawled upward.
Isshiki.
Black markings covered parts of his body.
Kenichi raised an eyebrow.
"As expected of an Otsutsuki."
"He actually survived that?"
His gaze sharpened.
There were traces of something else around Isshiki.
Remnants of a restraining ninjutsu.
Kenichi immediately understood.
If Isshiki had been caught inside a restraint before the explosion...
Then there was little need to wonder who had cast it.
Jiraiya.
....
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