Chapter 52.3- One Thousand Hands

The Hokage lashed out with the staff, and this time forced the Raikage to block. Their shadows met and the Raikage was frozen still. Sakumo could see the shadows that connected them shift to form a single line between both men. The shadow possession jutsu, he thought with narrowed eyes. Hiruzen Sarutobi did not stop there. Forming two seals in quick succession, his arm shifted and expanded, he slapped the Raikage backwards with his hand the size of the man’s whole body. Partial expansion jutsu as well?

“They call me the Professor for a reason” The man said, stepping forward to engage the Raikage further.

“Why do you think they call me the Professor, Ay” He said, speaking to the man who was digging himself out of the surface of a giant boulder he’d been sent into.

“I do not fight alone. I fight with the strength of all of Konoha behind me, and I must remind you what that means.” He said, taking off the jounin vest he had previously relied on for protection and letting it fall to the floor. His black bodysuit shone out from behind it.

“Uzume, Sakumo, engage the approaching Kumo forces. I will deal with Ay myself” He said next, taking another step forwartd before reaching for a scroll in his ninja pouch. When he unrolled it in one smooth movement, instead of weapons, it produced a swarm of insects that began to arrange themselves in organised rows once he dipped his hand into the cloud. Even the Aburame jutsu?

XXXXX- TSUNADE

The smile on Jiriaya’s face as he ground against Hanzo’s kusarigama with his giant rasengan would remain in her memory forever. That was preferable to the memory of Hanzo shoving said Kusarigama into her teammate’s gut before kicking him backwards like he as trash from the streets that had gotten just a bit too close to hum. They’d lost, she’d realised early on. Even with reinfrocements from every major clan head in Konoha and several more shinobi, Hanzo had still cut through them like a hot knife through butter.

Her chakra was nearly exausted and the run was taking what little she had left away from her. That said nothing about the strain that came from tandem healing both her teammates to keep them alive as she ran. Jiraiya lady slumped against Orochimaru’s back as the snake summoner had the unenviable job of making sure he wasn’t left behind. The only problem with that was that she could feel him slipping. She’d never worried about not having enough chakra for a technique before, and chakra exhaustion had been something for others to worry about, so she had known of the expertise with managing it that came with experience.

She was flagging, and she was flagging hard. “Is he still coming?” She asked with between gasps for air, still running.

“Just keep fucking running” Orochimaru replied, also gasping for air. She scowled, but did as he instructed. Orochimaru was the better sensor between them— especially now that she was focused on healing the both of them from the wounds that they had sustained in the battle.

“Enough of this. I will not be chased and herded like cattle” The fourth one among their number— the only clan head to have made it so far— Uchiha Satoru spoke with a scowl on his face.

‘Don’t do it’ she wanted to gasp, but something stilled her tongue. He turned and then jumped in the other direction, a purple specter beginning to build around him before he was too far away for her to see.

“Hopefully he buys us an extra minute or so” Orochimaru said, and while she did not nod, she shared the sentiment much to her shame. Was this the worth of her Grandfather’s dream? Sacrifices in a foreign land?