If Mokgetsu had used a clone strategy, Hanzo wouldn't find it so strange, but Mokgetsu withstood his Detonating Flame Array, which Hanzo couldn't comprehend. He didn't see any traces of defensive Ninjutsu beside Mokgetsu either.
"Could it be the ultimate Earth Release hardening?" A conjecture appeared in Hanzo's mind.
Each type of Chakra Nature Changes has its characteristics: the Fire Attribute can burn and explode, the Lighting Attribute can activate cells, while the Earth Attribute Chakra can harden the body, with a simple version being Hardening Jutsu, and a more advanced version being Earth Spear.
Despite his killer move being blocked, Hanzo remained unfazed; he had many techniques at his disposal, some of which even the toughest hardening couldn't withstand.
Looking at the unscathed Mokgetsu, Nagato's memory halted, and his expression turned delighted.
"He was holding back even when fighting me." Kakuzu also thought Mokgetsu had an extremely high Earth Release hardening ability.
The Ninja Sect ninjas relaxed significantly once they saw Mokgetsu was unhurt.
"As long as we withstand the pressure on our side, there's still a chance. Teacher Sosuke's strength is not inferior to Hanzo's." Ike Masaya kept a close eye on the elite Rain Ninja standing above.
Ike Masaya thought if he told his past self about the things that happened following Mokgetsu, his past self would never believe this was his future.
The slogan that Teacher Sosuke was on par with Hanzo was just Ike Masaya trying to ride the wave of Hanzo's reputation in the Land of Rain; he never expected Mokgetsu to be on the same level as Hanzo.
Seeing the untouched Mokgetsu, Kitsuchi displayed a shocked expression.
He was just thinking casually, and it turned out Mokgetsu indeed had such strong Earth Release hardening.
Kitsuchi was willing to call Mokgetsu the strongest Earth Release hardening ninja because no ninja in the Earth Release-specialized Hidden Rock mastered this level of Earth Release hardening.
Whoosh!
Taking advantage of Hanzo's momentary surprise, Mokgetsu erupted with Chakra and charged forward, swinging a fist at Hanzo.
Hanzo was confident in his Taijutsu; he could defeat the samurai of the Land of Iron without using Ninjutsu. A confident Hanzo did not retreat.
His Taijutsu, honed over half a lifetime, couldn't possibly lose to Mokgetsu, who was not even thirty, right?
Bam!
A dull collision sound echoed, and the moment Hanzo and Mokgetsu made contact, Hanzo flew backward like a severed kite and crashed heavily to the ground.
Mokgetsu was not surprised at all; Hanzo had overestimated his own Taijutsu abilities.
Just moments ago, Mokgetsu not only used Full Concentration of the Breath of Rock to enter the Transparent World state but also took the initiative to attack. How could Hanzo dare to face him head-on?
"Lord Hanzo!" Some Rain Ninja saw Hanzo getting blasted away and couldn't help but exclaim.
In the hearts of the Rain Village ninjas, Hanzo was undoubtedly the strongest ninja.
Ninja Master Sosuke was said to be on par with Hanzo, but the Rain Village ninjas didn't think Sosuke truly had such strength.
But faced with reality, no matter how much trust the Rain Village ninjas had in Hanzo, they couldn't change the reality that the strongest in their hearts had been thrown away.
The Rain Ninjas quickly launched an attack to stop Mokgetsu from pursuing Hanzo.
"To still be able to fight like this in such a situation." Shimura Danzo's expression turned somber.
From Shimura Danzo's perspective, Hanzo was adequately prepared, yet he still couldn't gain the upper hand against Mokgetsu, whose displayed strength exceeded his expectations.
Theoretically, whether Hanzo won or Mokgetsu won, it would fulfill Shimura Danzo's objective, as his ultimate goal was to weaken the strength of the Land of Rain.
But Shimura Danzo preferred Hanzo's victory; one reason was his continued cooperation with Hanzo, and another was that Mokgetsu and Nagato's potential was greater, posing a larger threat to Konoha.
The Ninja Sect ninjas were completely filled with excitement and joy; the stronger Mokgetsu's performance, the more favorable the situation was for them.
Before Hanzo could even get up, he hurriedly performed a Single-Handed Seal to create distance from Mokgetsu using the Water Instant Body Jutsu.
Mokgetsu's Taijutsu was beyond what Hanzo had imagined, so much so that Hanzo began to doubt whether Mokgetsu was truly as young as his face.
In battles with Kakuzu, Mokgetsu had demonstrated terrifying Fire Release, withstood the Detonating Flame Array with super strong Earth Release, and now used Taijutsu far exceeding his own.
Hanzo felt that no matter how much of a genius a ninja was, it was impossible to progress so far in so many fields at such an age.
Having suffered a setback once, Hanzo decided not to engage in Taijutsu battles with Mokgetsu in the upcoming fight, as he focused on not being stubborn.
Meanwhile, after dodging the Rain Ninjas' attack, Mokgetsu quickly launched another wave of assault on Hanzo.
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Dance!"
Mokgetsu switched his Breathing Technique to the Breath of Flame, and pushed the breathing to the extreme, entering the Breath of Flame Chakra Mode to enhance his Fire Release ability and strengthen his body.
Even though it was a rainy day and Fire Release was countered by Water Release, Mokgetsu still decided to use Fire Release against Hanzo.
There was no other reason; Mokgetsu's Fire Release was powerful enough.
To this day, Fire Release remained Mokgetsu's strongest form of Ninjutsu attack.
With Perfect Level Fire Release Nature Changes, plus a plethora of Master Level Fire Release Ninjutsu, in the current Ninja World, strictly in terms of Fire Release, Mokgetsu surpassed all ninjas except for Uchiha Madara.
As for Uchiha Madara, Mokgetsu had not used Identification Jutsu to see his stats, so he couldn't be certain whether Uchiha Madara's Fire Attribute Chakra Nature Changes had reached Perfect Level.
Although he hadn't seen it, Mokgetsu felt that with enough Chakra, his Fire Release should not be weaker than Uchiha Madara's, and might even be stronger, because Mokgetsu has Master Level Breath of Flame and can enter the Breath of Flame Chakra Mode to enhance his Fire Release.