Watching the Grass Fruit elders being defeated by Nono and her companions, even Aburame Ryoma—normally cold and restrained—felt a surge of anger rise in his chest.
He cursed under his breath, "What a useless bunch of failures!"
If he couldn't rely on these incompetent elders, he certainly couldn't rely on Mui either—especially now that the man had already lost an arm.
Originally, Ryoma had planned to assist Orochimaru in dealing with the enemy.
But when he glanced at Hirakawa Aoshi—who was holding his own against two former Hokage—he made a swift decision.
He would personally step in and capture Nono and the three girls.
Almost all of the Root operatives he had brought were already casualties.
This mission could not fail now.
With that thought, Aburame Ryoma immediately released a massive swarm of Kikaichū, directing them straight toward Nono and the others.
"Watch out!" Sensing the danger, Nono instantly moved in front of Kurenai and her companions.
Although the three girls were skilled and coordinated well, they were still young, and their chakra had been nearly drained by the previous fight.
They couldn't continue battling at full strength.
Nono raised her hands and released a thick cloud of poisonous mist toward the approaching swarm.
As a medical ninja, she wasn't only skilled in healing and surgery—she was also highly proficient in poisons.
The dense toxin engulfed the Kikaichū. In an instant, countless insects fell dead.
But some of them broke through the mist unharmed and continued their assault.
"That's impossible!" Nono stared in disbelief.
Her poison was so potent that even a trace of it could paralyze a normal person. How could mere insects withstand it?
At that moment, Aburame Ryoma's calm voice echoed out.
"Kikaichū are different from ordinary insects. They evolve and reproduce rapidly. In other words, in that short span just now, they already adapted to your poison."
"Your toxins are useless now."
Nono's expression shifted. She was genuinely startled—she had never realized the Kikaichū were this formidable.
Even so, she still had other ways to deal with them.
She quickly pulled out a string of explosive tags, ignited them, and hurled them into the swarm.
At the same time, she leapt backward to avoid the blast.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The explosions tore through the Kikaichū, wiping them out in an instant.
"No matter how much your bugs evolve," Nono said confidently, "they can't become immune to fire or explosions."
Behind his dark glasses, Aburame Ryoma's expression turned displeased.
She wasn't wrong. The evolution of the Kikaichū had its limits.
Otherwise, the Aburame clan would have long since turned them into perfect beings and ruled the ninja world.
"I'd like to see how many explosive tags you have left," Ryoma said coldly.
With that, he released another swarm.
Nono didn't hesitate. She threw out another string of explosive tags to counter it.
Since Aoshi had given ninja tools to Kurenai and the others, he naturally hadn't forgotten about her either.
After destroying another wave of Kikaichū, Nono shifted to the offensive.
She hurled a kunai, activated her Chakra Scalpel, and rushed forward.
But Aburame Ryoma suddenly used the Insect Clone Technique.
While the clone dodged the kunai, his real body appeared behind Nono, launching a surprise attack.
Fortunately, Nono was a jōnin—and more than that, a seasoned former operative.
Her instincts warned her instantly. She spun around, dodging the strike and slashing with her Chakra Scalpel in the same motion.
The blade cut into Ryoma's abdomen. Blood poured from the wound as he staggered back.
Seizing the advantage, Nono pressed forward.
But she was forced to retreat when Ryoma unleashed yet another swarm of Kikaichū.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! As she fell back, Nono's hands moved nonstop.
She hurled several poisoned senbon. They flew like streaks of light.
The injured Ryoma couldn't evade in time.
One struck his right arm. The poison took effect instantly—his entire arm went numb.
As one of Root's most elite members, Aburame Ryoma showed terrifying decisiveness.
Without hesitation, he drew a kunai and severed his own right arm. Then he used his Kikaichū to stop the bleeding.
The brutal sight made Kurenai and the others turn pale.
They weren't afraid of killing—but they had never seen anyone be so merciless to themselves.
Only Nono, who had once belonged to Root as well, remained unfazed.
She continued her assault, forcing Ryoma to retreat again and again.
---
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, the clash between Aoshi and the two former Hokage raged on.
Facing the First Hokage's Wood Release, Aoshi infused Wind Release chakra into his blade, slicing through the wooden constructs as easily as cutting through paper.
At the same time, he delivered a powerful kick to the charging Second Hokage.
The reanimated Tobirama was sent flying, crashing toward Orochimaru.
Orochimaru quickly dodged, avoiding the impact.
But Aoshi's lips curved into a faint smile.
In the next instant, he vanished—Flying Thunder God Technique!
When he reappeared, he was already standing behind Orochimaru.
Taking advantage of that brief distraction, Aoshi drove his blade straight toward the Sannin's heart.
Just as he thought he had succeeded, he realized the Orochimaru before him was only an Earth Clone.
The real Orochimaru emerged from another location.
"Heh heh… Aoshi-kun actually knows the Flying Thunder God Technique," Orochimaru said, cold sweat trickling down his face. "You truly are a genius worthy of your reputation."
Before the operation, Orochimaru had gathered intelligence with extreme care.
And yet, Aoshi still had so many hidden techniques. It almost made him doubt his own preparations.
"Orochimaru," Aoshi said calmly, "your strength isn't that impressive—but your survival skills are second to none."
His words weren't wrong. Throughout the ninja world, Orochimaru was famous for his ability to survive anything.
In the future, once he defected from Konoha and perfected the Cursed Seals and Living Corpse Reincarnation, his survival ability would reach its peak.
That was why—if Aoshi wanted to kill Orochimaru for good, he had to seize this chance now.
To Orochimaru, however, those words sounded like outright contempt. How could one of the legendary Sannin be described as unimpressive?
"Heh heh… it seems I really have been underestimated." Before he finished speaking, Orochimaru slammed his palm to the ground.
Summoning Technique!
In an instant, a massive purple serpent appeared—his personal summon from Ryūchi Cave: Manda.
"Orochimaru," Manda hissed arrogantly, "you'd better prepare one hundred sacrifices for me after this. Otherwise, I'll kill you."
The unruly serpent didn't attack Aoshi right away. Instead, it demanded payment from its contractor.
The sacrifices were, of course, humans—because Manda devoured people.
"I'll have them ready," Orochimaru replied without hesitation.
With that promise, he resumed controlling the two former Hokage.
Wood Release and Water Release surged forward once more.
Satisfied, Manda opened its massive, blood-red jaws and lunged straight at Aoshi.