"Are you okay? Konohamaru?"
High in the sky, Naruto looked helplessly at Konohamaru floating beside him.
Unlike Naruto, who flew purely through the Otsutsuki anti-gravity talent, Konohamaru had to rely on Chakra to use the Ultralight-Weight Rock Technique for flight.
As a result, his flying speed lagged far behind.
Not long after they took off from the Land of Earth, the kid's Chakra was nearly half-depleted, forcing Naruto to pull him along using gravitational force.
The consequence was that Konohamaru's current physical strength couldn't handle the excessive pulling force, making him nauseous.
This feeling was different from the 'thrown into a washing machine' sensation of crossing between worlds.
"I... huff... I'm fine..."
Konohamaru paused for a few seconds, waiting for his breathing to stabilize and his heart rate to slow slightly before descending from the high altitude towards the city below with Naruto.
During the descent, he suddenly seemed to remember something, looking at Naruto belatedly.
"Wait... Naruto-Aniki, I recall you could have come here first by yourself, then opened that spatial gate and brought me over, right..."
Hearing this, Naruto, who had been grinning and looking downwards, paused for a second or two, then acted as if he hadn't heard, pointing below.
"Look, Konohamaru, Jiraiya-sensei has created so many 'old acquaintances'. Hey, there's your grandfather too..."
"Don't change the subject, Naruto-Aniki! And my grandfather or something... Huh?!"
Konohamaru, who had been jumping up and down mid-air, unconsciously looked in the direction Naruto pointed and indeed saw a knockoff version of Hiruzen below, using various 'Earth Release Ninjutsu' against the enemy.
How to put it...
Even from a grandson's perspective, the Third Hokage clone Jiraiya had created was almost indistinguishable from the real thing.
This showed how meticulous Jiraiya's observation of the Third Hokage was, how deep his memory went… enough to perfectly replicate every wrinkle on his face.
While Konohamaru was spacing out, Naruto descended quickly, landing on the city wall, and looked at Jiraiya and Shion.
"Jiraiya-sensei, you really know how to run..."
Naruto took over supporting Jiraiya from Shion, continuously pouring Chakra into him.
—If he hadn't possessed an Otsutsuki physique, he couldn't casually 'recharge' others like this.
While 'complaining' to Jiraiya-sensei, he also smiled at the Priestess beside him.
Seeing this golden-haired, handsome man descending from the sky, and then looking at the also smiling Jiraiya, Shion understood this should be the 'good disciple' he had mentioned.
'...But could one person really deal with so many Ghost Army soldiers?'
'If the teacher couldn't handle it, could the disciple?'
Shion didn't know, but she had no other choice.
"You rascal... finally here. Any later, and these old bones of mine would be done for."
After receiving that life-filled Chakra replenishment, Jiraiya's originally pale complexion immediately improved greatly, even his spirits lifting.
He smiled at Naruto, no trace of tension left.
Because Jiraiya knew that once Naruto arrived here, everything could be declared over.
"Hahaha… you're exaggerating too much. With your strength, even if you couldn't eliminate these guys, escaping should be no problem."
Saying this, Naruto looked around at the city, now left with only soldiers and the Priestess, then back at Jiraiya, understanding the reason.
'As always, Jiraiya-sensei.'
"Alright, alright. I'm exhausted. I'll leave this to you. Later, I need to tell you about the 'real business'."
Clearly, Jiraiya intended to share the information he had gathered about the mysterious attacker with Naruto.
"That's perfect. I also have some 'real business' to tell you."
Naruto's real business was simple.
Besides the Flying Thunder God Technique record scroll, it was inviting Jiraiya to the One Piece World to be a witness at his wedding.
Rumble... rumble!
Two more Ink Tailed Beasts, Matatabi and Shukaku, collapsed under the siege.
Seeing this, Jiraiya simply canceled all his abilities, letting the Ghost Army's stone soldiers regroup and form a straight line charging toward the city.
After doing this, he gestured to Naruto, signaling him to begin his performance.
Jiraiya knew that even based on Naruto's performance when they last met, clearing out the enemy opposite would probably take one or two moves.
Seeing this, Naruto flew straight out beyond the city wall.
"F-flying!?"
Shion, who hadn't noticed how Naruto had arrived earlier, exclaimed in surprise. Although she knew Ninjas had many means, seeing someone fly unaided was a first.
"Don't make a fuss. Isn't flying something anyone can do easily?"
A young, immature voice came from the air.
"Oh! Konohamaru, Naruto brought you back too? What about Karin and Sasuke?"
Jiraiya looked at Konohamaru, who had visibly filled out and darkened, undisguised appreciation in his eyes.
'This little one's aura... had changed greatly too!'
'He had probably... seen blood by now. It seemed the other world had brought him significant growth.'
Jiraiya could sense that Konohamaru was now completely different. While his temperament couldn't compare to theirs during the Ninja War Era, it was certainly beyond what peacetime Academy students could match.
"Karin-nee? They didn't come back. Only Naruto-Aniki and I came this time… Ah, don't talk now. Quickly cover your ears. Naruto-Aniki's about to act."
Konohamaru landed on the city wall. He was about to say more to Jiraiya when he saw Naruto's starting stance, his expression changed, and he shouted to those around him.
Though unclear what was happening, everyone instinctively obeyed.
Shion stood frozen until Jiraiya patted her, signaling her to do as he did.
Sure enough, the next moment, an energy sphere crackling with black lightning appeared in the palm of Naruto's outstretched hand, growing larger with each passing second.
...
On the other side, seeing everything blocking the Ghost Army's path disappear, Yomi showed an 'I knew it' expression. Then he immediately turned to his followers and said,
"Kusuna, now! Go!"
"Yes!"
Just as they were about to leap up, a buzzing sound filled their ears, suffocating them.
Then, even from over a kilometer away, they could clearly see a black beam of light sweeping from the Ghost Army's direction across the sky like a streamer.
Wherever the black beam touched, everything vanished like an image erased by a rubber, leaving only a 'smooth' pit.
"Not good, quickly—"
They only managed a few words before the black beam, with its terrifying force, swept before them.
Kusuna, Gitai, and the others tried to flee with Yomi, but the beam's speed far surpassed their movements.
In an instant, these would-be destroyers of the Land of Demons disintegrated into fine particles, dissipating into the air.