GSiN: Ch. 188

Without further delay, Ryouma could hardly wait to deal with Black Zetsu.

Last time in the Land of Whirlpools, he'd been played by that thing. This time, if he managed to catch him, there'd be no way he'd let him off easily.

"Obito, I need to step out for a bit."

"What?"

The concert area was too noisy. Obito couldn't hear clearly, so he leaned closer, cupped a hand around his ear, and shouted, "What did you say?"

"I said wait here for a while. I'll be right back!" Ryouma raised his voice.

Without checking if Obito actually heard him, he shoved Kurama into Obito's arms.

Sensing the spatial coordinates stored inside his alert scroll, he vanished.

Only Kurama and Obito were left there, staring at each other.

---

Inside Taki, the roar of its waterfall was completely drowned out by the explosive sounds of battle.

Sōwa gritted his teeth and took a half step back, cold sweat seeping from beneath his soaked forehead protector.

Unlike his bedraggled older brother, Sōto calmly held his water-forged blade.

"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"

Sōwa's hands blurred through seals and torrents of water surged up from the whirlpool at his feet. But before the mighty water dragon could even form, three swift water blades that Sōto flicked out almost sliced it apart midair.

Sōwa's pupils shrank. A shrill whistle split the air by his ear.

"Too slow. Why can't you understand?"

Sōto sighed. His right hand's fingers moved lightly, like plucking strings.

Instantly, every puddle on the battlefield began to churn violently. Hundreds of water droplets rose into the air, and under the pull of chakra, hardened into bullets tougher than iron, raining down to cut off every avenue of escape.

Under that overwhelming assault, the hastily erected Water Formation Wall shattered instantly. Sōwa's left shoulder, thigh, and forearm were all pierced. Bursts of blood stained the water below him a faint red.

"Ugh... Water Release: Great Waterfall!"

Wiping blood from the corner of his mouth, he gambled everything on one final move.

Pouring massive chakra into it, he summoned a towering torrent that crashed down with boulders and broken trees.

But it was all in vain.

Of the two brothers, Sōto had always been the more gifted one. Any technique Sōwa had mastered, he could perform even more flawlessly.

He too formed hand seals and unleashed his own Great Waterfall Technique. The two massive torrents collided midair with a deafening crash, sending mist cascading down like rain.

Within the thick mist, Sōwa's figure wavered, then collapsed to his knees, letting out a muffled groan of pain.

"You should face reality."

Stepping lightly across the water, Sōto leaped and landed before the weakened Sōwa. Beneath his cold expression, no one could read his true emotions.

"I know you brought the Hero Water with you. But I suggest you don't drink it. Keep your life and watch how I make Taki great again."

"Cough... cough!"

Sōwa coughed violently, blood spurting from his lips, though his breathing finally eased a little.

Half lying on the ground, he cast a subtle glance toward the direction where Jiraiya had been blasted away by the Tailed Beast Ball. His left hand quietly moved toward his chest.

Sōto frowned deeply, a flicker of impatience flashing in his eyes.

He stepped forward, seized his brother by the collar, and hauled him up roughly.

"Did you not hear what I said? I don't know how you managed to summon one of the Sannin, but the man standing with me is the very origin of that title. With your strength, even if you drink that thing, what could you possibly change?"

The last time during the coup, he had also defeated his brother like this. But back then, he never imagined that Sōwa would actually drink the Hero Water, ignoring its life-devouring side effects. This time, however, he was fully prepared. He would never again allow his brother the chance to turn the tables through sheer recklessness.

---

On another battlefield in the distance, Hanzō cast a brief glance toward the direction Jiraiya had been flung, then lost interest. He had seen clearly enough that at the last moment, Jiraiya had summoned a giant toad. It was highly unlikely that he'd be killed outright by the Tailed Beast Ball.

The only question was whether he'd taken the blast head-on, or if he'd used reverse summoning to retreat into Mount Myōboku with the toad.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

His legs suddenly tensed. His figure blurred like lightning as he closed the distance to Sōto in just a few leaps.

Seeing Hanzō's arrival, Sōto abandoned his focus on his brother.

Reaching into Sōwa's chest pocket, he pulled out a vial of liquid, then heartlessly threw Sōwa onto the ground.

He hit the earth hard with a dull thud, clutching his chest as another fit of violent coughing wracked his body. His face was as pale as paper.

Hanzō looked down at the man curled up and convulsing in pain. "So this is the incompetent brother you told me about, the so-called village leader?"

"That's right," Sōto replied.

Hanzō frowned slightly. "Then why haven't you killed him yet?"

At those words, Sōto slowly turned his head. His gaze pierced straight into Hanzō's eyes.

"I have my reasons. Are you trying to tell me how to handle my own business?"

Though Hanzō and Sōto stood together as partners, beneath the surface, both harbored ulterior motives and conflicting interests.

Sōto had offered the Seven-Tails as leverage in exchange for Ame's full military support. However, he had never truly intended to hand the beast over.

The Seven-Tails was the cornerstone of his plan, the foundation for making Taki great again. How could he possibly give it away?

Hanzō had seen through Sōto long ago. He knew full well that Sōto would never honor their agreement. The only reason he'd played along this far was because of the official tailed-beast transfer pact signed between Taki and Ame.

Once Sōto became the legitimate leader of Taki, that pact would gain legal weight, allowing him to use it as proof of ownership over the Seven-Tails in the eyes of the shinobi world.

In the end, this cooperation persisted only because both sides needed Sōto to successfully claim the title of Taki's leader. Otherwise, why would he ever tolerate some upstart brat dancing around in front of him?

Especially one who couldn't keep his damn mouth shut.

"Looks like you can't hold it in any longer, huh?"

"When did I ever give you the illusion that I was patient?" As Sōto spoke, he lightly twirled the vial of Hero Water between his fingers.

Up to this point, his plan had gone perfectly. The phase of reshuffling Taki's internal power structure was complete.

Next, he would, in the name of the village's rightful leader, purge the evil known as Hanzō and his followers.

No matter the era, the capture of a leader is always a devastating blow to morale.

Especially for a village like Taki, which had long been immersed in peace and comfort. The ninjas there had long since lost their former fighting spirit, becoming more like a paid security force than true warriors.

When even their final hope, Jiraiya, was blasted away by the Tailed Beast Ball of the traitorous jinchūriki, some of the Taki ninjas began considering surrender. After all, for them, Sōto taking over as chief was still something they could reluctantly accept.

And it was precisely this mentality that Sōto intended to exploit.

When a good man commits an evil act, it's called "showing his true colors." But when an evil man spends a lifetime committing misdeeds and finally does a single good deed at the crucial moment, that's called repentance.

His gaze swept across the battlefield. The remaining Taki ninjas were locked in a tense standoff against the invading Ame forces.

The corners of his mouth curled upward in a cold smirk as he shouted loudly, "Damn you, Hanzō! You used my trust to track me and ambush Taki! I will never forgive you!"

Hearing such an absurd accusation, Hanzō's mouth twitched. He was just about to retort when Sōto suddenly swung his right arm.

Three kunai, each tied with explosive tags, sliced through the air with sharp whistles, hurtling straight toward Hanzō.

Of course, such an attack was useless. With just a few backward leaps, Hanzō easily evaded the blast radius. But injuring the enemy wasn't Sōto's true goal. What he needed was simply the appearance of fighting back against Hanzō, so that he could establish his new position within Taki.

At the same moment, several of his men, who had been planted in the Taki ranks beforehand, immediately shouted, "Protect Sōto-sama!"

"Sōto-sama is the one the people truly support!"

"Only Sōto-sama can save Taki now!"

Though their flattery was a bit over the top, there was truth in their words.

No matter what he had done before, with Sōwa fallen and the jinchūriki having betrayed them, Taki indeed needed a strong leader.

Even those Taki ninjas who didn't like him had to admit it. If anyone could save the village now, it would be him.

What, were they really supposed to fight Hanzō themselves? Don't be ridiculous.

Just as morale on the Taki side began to waver, a blue-haired woman with glasses arrived at the battlefield with more than a dozen subordinates.

She bowed respectfully to Sōto.

Sōto glanced at her. "You're late, Aoi."

That accusation was, in truth, rather unfair.

After all, she had just fired two Tailed Beast Balls in her Seven-Tails Chakra Cloak Mode toward the signal flare, and then rushed here without stopping for a single breath. She hadn't delayed at all.

Even so, she didn't try to defend herself. Instead, she bowed her head immediately. "My deepest apologies, Sōto-sama."

"Forget it. You're here now, that's what matters."

Sōto might have a foul mouth and a bad temper, but his insight and decisiveness were not lacking. In his plan, he had already decided to use the effects of the Hero Water, combined with the power of their Seven-Tails jinchūriki, to gain a two-on-one advantage and repel Hanzō.

Hanzō's gaze fell on the vial of Hero Water pinched between Sōto's fingers.

"Do you really think drinking that thing makes you a hero? Laughable."

Originally, he had planned to wait until Sōto fully controlled Taki before making his move to seize the Seven-Tails. Though the situation had progressed a bit earlier than expected, it didn't disrupt his plans.

Just as the tension between Sōto and Hanzō reached its peak, a loud boom shook the battlefield.

Jiraiya descended from the sky, crashing heavily into the lake's surface, sending up towering plumes of water.

"I'm back."

"Jiraiya-sensei!" Yahiko and Konan, seeing that Jiraiya was safe and sound, both let out sighs of relief and instantly used Body Flicker to return to his side.

When they saw him blasted away by the Tailed Beast Ball earlier, they had been dying to go after him. If not for the corrosive poison gas sealing off the waterfall area, they would have rushed out long ago.

"Jiraiya?"

Hanzō turned his head. As his eyes fixed on the man who had just returned, his brow furrowed deeply.

This guy took a Tailed Beast Ball head-on and still looks fine? Seriously?

Sōto hadn't expected this either. He had just finished his entire villain redemption arc and was ready to join forces with Aoi to repel Hanzō. And now the supposedly defeated and out of the picture Jiraiya suddenly came back? What were he and Hanzō supposed to do now, team up and fight him instead? How awkward would that be?

The Taki ninjas who had been ready to support Sōto were also left confused and unsure of what to do.

"Hm? Why are you all looking at me like that?"

Jiraiya tilted his head, clearly puzzled by the complicated expressions on everyone's faces.

Yahiko scratched his head and quickly explained the current situation. "Jiraiya-sensei, while you were gone, Sōto was preparing to fight Hanzō. He planned to use the power of the Hero Water and the Seven-Tails' jinchūriki to take him on, and he's already rallied all the Taki ninjas to his side."

Jiraiya was momentarily speechless. He'd anticipated that while he was adjusting his senjutsu chakra, the situation might change somewhat, but he hadn't expected this.

Konan sighed softly, sounding a little regretful. "If you'd come back just a little later, they would probably have already started fighting."

"Yeah."

Yahiko nodded, wearing an expression that said, What a waste.

Hearing that, Jiraiya couldn't hold back his exasperation. "How was I supposed to know that? Damn it, what's wrong with that guy anyway?"

"Enough!" Sōto's furious roar silenced everyone, drawing all eyes toward him.

He took a deep breath, forcing down his irritation, then turned toward Jiraiya in the distance, speaking as evenly as he could.

"Just as your students said, I now have the full support of Taki's ninjas..."

He paused, realizing that his tone sounded too harsh, and softened it a little.

"If you're willing to join me in fighting Hanzō, then I'll welcome you. But if you have other intentions, then I'll have to ask you to leave Taki. Our home, we can protect it ourselves."

"You really are putting on a show."

Hanzō had seen Sōto's usual brash behavior, so seeing him suddenly act polite made him feel almost nauseous.

"Oh? You sound nervous," Sōto shot back.

Logically speaking, Jiraiya's best move at this point would be to cooperate temporarily with Sōto, defeat Hanzō first, then sort everything out later.

But things didn't go as Sōto expected.

"Hahaha..."

Jiraiya suddenly lowered his head, letting out a chuckle.

He reached into his robes and pulled out a scroll, slowly unfurling it for Hanzō, Sōto, and everyone else to see.

Inside the scroll was a large symbol, a circle drawn boldly in ink.

"How unfortunate," he said, clicking his tongue as he looked up.

"If only you'd come to your senses a little earlier, I might've actually agreed to your plan. But too bad. I've already called for reinforcements. From here on out, you're all on your own."