Naruto: I Became a Sword Saint in Konoha

Hoshiyomi and the others stood on top of their summoned beasts, looking straight across at Hanzō.

Watching Hanzō give the order for Ibuse to spew poison again, Hoshiyomi suddenly smiled.

He raised his hand, first lifting it high into the sky, then swiftly dropping it in a single motion to point at Hanzō.

He opened his mouth and said:

"Rainfall, come!"

As soon as Hoshiyomi's voice fell, thunder rumbled from the sky.

In an instant, heavy rain poured down in sheets.

The poison mist that Hanzō had sprayed out was significantly diluted by the rain as it spread, and its diffusion rate sharply dropped.

At that moment, Hoshiyomi exchanged a glance with Orochimaru. The two moved in unison.

Orochimaru formed a sequence of Water Release hand seals, while Hoshiyomi once again activated Steel Slash—but this time, he used Water Release chakra obtained through chakra nature transformation.

"Water Release: Raging Torrent!"

Hoshiyomi's water tornado combined with Orochimaru's Raging Torrent, perfectly recreating the Hurricane Vortex Technique that Naruto and Yamato had used together in the original story.

Both used Water Release, and in this torrential downpour, the power of their jutsu was far beyond normal.

A water tornado over ten meters in size roared to life.

The swirling water currents swept through the battlefield, carrying away all the poison mist that had already been weakened by the rain.

Ibuse's poison sac reserves were limited. It was impossible for it to release poison indefinitely.

After two consecutive large-scale poison sprays, Ibuse no longer had enough poison stored.

Staring at the water tornado roaring past, Hanzō found himself unable to understand.

What confused him wasn't the water tornado itself, nor Hoshiyomi and Orochimaru's ninjutsu—

—it was the timing.

Why had it started raining just as they were preparing to use Water Release?

Could it be that even the heavens were helping them?

At that thought, Hanzō asked without thinking:

"You planned this down to the rainfall? That's impossible. Humans can't predict the weather like that!"

In fact, the principle was very simple.

Hoshiyomi had used the mechanics behind Lightning Release: Kirin.

In the original manga, during Sasuke's battle with Itachi, they used large-scale Fire Release to create upward airflow, changing a clear sky into a thunderstorm.

So, when Hoshiyomi Gekkō used Fire Release while the sky was already on the verge of raining, triggering rainfall in advance was no problem at all.

It was all part of Hoshiyomi's calculations.

The two Fire Release techniques he had used earlier in the battle were precisely to prepare for this moment.

From the start, he had planned to use the storm to neutralize Hanzō's poison.

But of course, Hoshiyomi had no intention of explaining any of this to Hanzō.

He smiled mysteriously and assumed a mystical, cryptic pose, saying:

"Because you are only a demigod—

But Konoha… once gave birth to the true God of the Shinobi."

Seeing Hoshiyomi's theatrical display, Hanzō was infuriated.

"You sharp-tongued brat. Let's see how long you can keep up that act. You think this rain benefits only you?"

As he spoke, his hands blurred into afterimages.

In the blink of an eye, he completed a long and complex series of hand seals.

Hoshiyomi tried to interrupt, but Hanzō evaded effortlessly using a feather-light Body Flicker Technique.

"Water Release: Water Fang Bullet!"

In an instant, a powerful A-rank Water Release jutsu was launched by Hanzō.

As a so-called demigod of the shinobi world, Hanzō's arsenal obviously went beyond poison and speed—his Water Release techniques were highly advanced.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The rainwater on the ground, along with the residual water left behind by Hoshiyomi's earlier water tornado, suddenly surged to life as if animated.

Water from all directions gathered in front of Hanzō, lifting stones and discarded ninja tools along the way, forming more than ten serpentine water dragons.

Each of these water serpents spun continuously, compressing and accelerating as if sentient. Anyone with sharp eyes could immediately tell—getting hit by even one of these would be fatal or severely injurious.

Originally an A-rank jutsu, under Hanzō's control and amplified by the current rainy conditions, its power now pushed toward S-rank.

Hoshiyomi and the others felt a tremendous pressure bearing down on them.

Hanzō grinned. With a flick of his wrist, the dozen or so water serpents charged forward like tearing storms aimed straight at Hoshiyomi and his allies.

Seeing the oncoming torrent, the four of them exchanged a quick glance—and each revealed their own countermeasure.

Orochimaru slammed his hand to the ground:

"Triple Rashōmon!"

Jiraiya called down to Gamabunta at his feet:

"Bunta! Use your Toad Oil Bullet—blow them apart!"

Tsunade, riding Katsuyu, darted to the side with ease, dodging the attack from the water serpents.

Lobo and Hoshiyomi fought side by side—man and wolf, using blade and claw to tear the water serpents apart one by one.

While everyone was busy dealing with the surrounding attacks, Hanzō's figure suddenly vanished.

The next instant, he appeared silently behind Tsunade.

In his hand, a sickle coated with deadly poison slashed mercilessly across her back.

Fortunately, Katsuyu reacted instantly. Her massive tail swung behind her, taking the brunt of the blow and shielding Tsunade.

Even so, Hanzō's sickle cleaved through a portion of Katsuyu's tail and still left a shallow wound on Tsunade's back.

"Tongue Tooth Sticky Acid!"

Katsuyu wasn't one to be bullied easily. She opened her mouth and spat a large glob of corrosive acid, forcing Hanzō back.

Although Hanzō dodged most of the spray with his speed, a few droplets still landed on his clothes, eating several holes through the fabric.

Hanzō felt a cold chill—he hadn't expected even the summon to be so dangerous.

Tsunade felt a wave of numbness surge across her back.

She realized immediately—it wasn't the gas, but the poison on Hanzō's blade.

She hadn't expected the sickle's poison to be this potent.

Had she not drunk the antidote earlier, she might have lost the ability to fight altogether.

Fortunately, she was an expert in medical ninjutsu. Without even turning around, she raised her hand and used Chakra Scalpel: Extraction to draw out the toxin.

As for the cut itself, with the physical resilience of the Senju bloodline, it would heal quickly.

Hanzō may have been driven back by Katsuyu, but that didn't mean his assault had ended.

Taking advantage of the moment while Tsunade was treating herself, he silently formed another hand seal.

"Fire Release: Exploding Flame Formation!"

Suddenly, several exploding tags burst from the ground beneath Tsunade's feet.

Just as they were about to latch onto her calves, they began to ignite.

Even the Body Flicker Technique wouldn't be fast enough to dodge.

"Ninja Art: Needle Jizō!"

Just then, several silver-white strands of long hair flew in, wrapped around Tsunade's arms, and instantly pulled her away.

BOOM!

The exploding tags detonated with a thunderous boom.

Tsunade looked at her calves, then let out a breath of relief, patting her chest:

"Thanks, Jiraiya."

"Of course," Jiraiya replied. "But be careful—this guy's getting serious now."

There was a new layer of caution in Jiraiya's gaze as he looked at Hanzō.

Just then, a voice came from behind:

"This isn't the place for idle chat, you know."

The voice belonged to none other than Hanzō of the Salamander himself.

The Hanzō who had been standing before Jiraiya and Tsunade vanished with a poof of smoke.

It turned out to be just a shadow clone!