The moment Fujimoto Tōma touched down, the true clash of the Three Sannin fully erupted.
Even in just a few exchanges, the intensity was obvious. Orochimaru was fighting both Jiraiya and Tsunade at once, yet he still hadn't fallen into a clear disadvantage.
As for Naruto… even with the Nine-Tails' chakra, he wasn't a decisive threat to Orochimaru. Especially not when Orochimaru still had Kabuto and Guren backing him up. Naruto had already been split off, locked in a ground battle with Guren instead.
From Tōma's perspective, the biggest problem was Tsunade.
Frankly… it was hard to watch.
Without her monstrous strength, no one could ignore her. But aside from that, Tōma wasn't even sure she still qualified as Kage-level right now. Watching her fight made one thing painfully clear.
She had wasted those twenty years.
He couldn't judge her ninjutsu range yet, but her combat instincts had undeniably dulled. The battlefield intuition she once honed as a Sannin had eroded with time. She no longer fought like a Hokage-tier shinobi. At best, she hovered around the level of an experienced jōnin.
That kind of decay was reversible. Tsunade's foundation was still intact.
But not instantly.
And she didn't have the luxury of time.
Jiraiya wasn't flawless either.
His biggest flaw was that he was too versatile. Against enemies of similar or higher level, that versatility became a double-edged blade. Killing Jiraiya was extremely difficult. He always had an answer. But Jiraiya killing someone quickly? That was even harder.
Outside of Sage Mode, he lacked a truly decisive finisher.
He knew a lot. He mastered many things. But he never pushed any one technique to its absolute peak. The Rasengan had stagnated after the Fourth Hokage's death. Sage Mode was incomplete. Even Naruto would eventually surpass him in both areas.
All of this combined explained why a two-on-one battle had dragged on this long.
Orochimaru understood them too well.
Aside from Tsunade's raw strength, he wasn't truly afraid of either of them.
The only thing he hadn't anticipated… was Tōma.
Tōma didn't waste time.
He popped two soldier pills into his mouth and bit his thumb.
Chakra surged violently into his right hand.
That shrill, grinding sound returned.
He grimaced slightly. There was no stopping it. The sheer density of chakra made silence impossible. Normally, he could dampen sound with wind. But not now.
Not while forming this.
The noise cut through the battlefield instantly.
Jiraiya, Tsunade, Orochimaru. All of them glanced toward Tōma.
They saw it.
Solid chakra spiraling violently, taking the vague shape of a rotating shuriken.
"That is—" Jiraiya's eyes widened.
He recognized it immediately.
This wasn't just a Rasengan.
Tōma had actually fused wind chakra nature transformation into it.
The Rasengan alone was already an A-rank technique with brutal learning difficulty. Adding wind nature pushed it even further. Development, not imitation. That alone placed it firmly in S-rank territory.
Jiraiya knew his limits. Learning finished techniques was one thing. Creating them from scratch was another entirely.
Tsunade and Gamabunta didn't grasp the theory, but they felt the danger. The pressure radiating from that technique was unmistakable.
Down below, Naruto was still fighting Guren. His eyes shone as he stared at the spinning chakra construct.
That looks way stronger than Pervy Sage's Rasengan.
Decision made. He was learning that later.
Orochimaru's pupils contracted.
Every instinct he had screamed danger.
Even Manda felt it. The massive snake hissed, scales twitching.
"Damn it, Orochimaru!" Manda snapped. "You didn't say we'd be dealing with something like that!"
"Relax," Orochimaru replied coolly. "Double your blood payment. And attacks only matter if they hit."
He understood now why Tōma hadn't used this earlier. Massive chakra cost. Difficult to land.
But now?
With Jiraiya and Tsunade pinning him?
Orochimaru sneered.
The moment the technique stabilized, Jiraiya and Tsunade intensified their assault. No coordination needed. The goal was obvious.
Create the opening.
Jiraiya hurled a marked kunai skyward.
Orochimaru moved to destroy it, but the Sannin pressed him hard.
Too hard.
In the next instant, Tōma appeared in midair.
The spinning wind-chakra shuriken howled in his hand.
"Wind Style. Rasenshuriken!"
He didn't hesitate.
The moment he threw it, he shouted, "Get back!"
Jiraiya and Tsunade retreated instantly.
Orochimaru laughed.
So that was it? Worrying about friendly fire?
Typical Leaf ninja. Soft. Careful.
Even restrained, Orochimaru was confident he could dodge. Without them locking him down, there was no chance this would land.
"Manda!" he shouted.
Manda didn't need the order. He was already moving.
He could dodge this.
Or so he thought.
Tōma hovered in midair, watching calmly.
The real technique had already been completed.
One-handed seals.
A skill he'd learned long ago, finally finding its purpose.
His palm pressed against empty air.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
The world lurched.
Manda felt it instantly. A summoning pull far stronger than Orochimaru's. A higher-tier contract. One he couldn't resist.
And frankly… didn't want to.
If he stayed, he'd die.
Orochimaru's safety wasn't his problem.
Manda vanished.
Just like that.
Orochimaru and Kabuto were left suspended midair, with nothing beneath their feet.
For the first time in a long time, Orochimaru froze.
What…?
The Rasenshuriken filled his vision.
It struck.
"AAAAAAH—!"
The scream was swallowed instantly.
The technique detonated in full.
A massive sphere of raging wind formed in the sky, countless chakra blades tearing inward from every direction. The storm expanded violently, devouring Orochimaru and Kabuto alike.
"Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto's cry vanished into the roar.
Jiraiya and Tsunade stared at the massive, blazing vortex.
This… might actually be enough.
Guren screamed as she looked skyward.
Naruto seized the moment.
A Rasengan formed in his hand. Incomplete, unstable… yet held together by the Nine-Tails' chakra.
Red crystal barriers rose in panic.
Too slow.
"Rasengan!"
The crystal shattered instantly. The remaining force slammed into Guren, sending her flying.
Naruto collapsed to one knee as the Nine-Tails' chakra faded away, his fangs and slit pupils returning to normal.
The ground shook.
Manda crashed back onto the battlefield, and Tōma landed atop the snake's head, eyes fixed on the storm still raging above.
Every drop of chakra he could spare had gone into that attack.
This was his strongest move.
So now there was only one question left.
Did it work?