The Panda Sage spoke, and a white light shimmered across his body.
Under Yuki Seisui's gaze, the white light coalesced into a shining suit of white armor.
At the same time, the Panda Sage removed the bamboo branch from his mouth.
"Charge!"
At his command, hundreds of massive pandas surged forward in unison.
Among them, the small panda Ming stood atop one of the larger pandas. Compared to the others, it looked completely different.
While the other pandas were round and soft, Ming was lean and muscular, with eight-pack abs and sinewy limbs.
Ming roared, leaping high into the air and leading the charge against Minato.
It had long disliked the three figures led by Yuki Seisui.
I may not be able to take down that bastard Seisui, but hitting this blonde hedgehog is just fine!
The Panda Sage, standing in place, heard Ming's roar and couldn't help but think:
This little guy acts even more pretentious than I do…
"Panda Sage, your style is far inferior to Ming's," Yuki Seisui remarked at that moment.
"Hmph!" The Panda Sage snorted. "You don't understand a thing!"
It's not about looking impressive—power is what counts!
Kurama and Shukaku stared dumbfounded at the neatly organized panda army, utterly confused.
Well, that's a lot of pandas…
Kurama wasn't too concerned, but Shukaku eyed the Panda Sage strangely.
It recalled something Yuki Seisui had said:
Make the enemies few, make the allies many.
Kurama was its enemy, the stinky fox. If it teamed up with the Panda Sage against him, using the massive pandas…
Who would stop Kurama from taking a beating?
These pandas, impervious to weapons, if they charged together, no Tailed Beast could withstand them.
Even if the Tailed Beasts survived and fought back, they'd be overrun and possibly killed—then revived.
Shukaku didn't bother hiding its scheming. Kurama's fox eyes met it, and he chuckled:
Feeling mischievous?
"Hmph!" Shukaku snorted and fell silent.
Minato tensed as the pandas charged toward him, immediately cancelling Gamabunta's summoning.
With so many pandas, leaving Gamabunta here would have made him an easy target.
He could be stomped into toad paste!
With Gamabunta sent back, Minato brought his hands together, channeling natural energy to form Sage chakra within him.
His chakra was not abundant, so he had to seize the chance to refine it whenever possible.
At that moment, Ming's roar reached his ears.
Minato's eyes snapped open. Though he knew he would be pummeled badly by Yuki Seisui, he wanted to resist for a moment longer.
Ming's fist struck, but Minato immediately used Flying Raijin, leaving the punch to slam into the ground and carve a deep crater.
Even kunai made of hardened iron could only leave faint scratches on this dueling arena's surface.
For Ming's punch to create such a pit… its power was unimaginable.
Minato appeared atop one of the large pandas. The two sages on his shoulders exchanged glances and took a deep breath.
"Demonic Illusion: Toad Confrontation Chant!"
Hearing this, Minato's expression changed. He had forgotten to inform the two sages that these white-armored pandas were immune to genjutsu!
But it was too late—the chorus had already begun.
"Ribbit, ribbit! Ribbit-ribbit! Ribbit-ribbit-ribbit!"
A strange melody flowed from the two sages' mouths. Yuki Seisui was momentarily taken aback.
This is… Toad Confrontation Chant?
The sound was noisy, but it had no effect on him.
Kurama and Shukaku were similarly unaffected; genjutsu was essentially useless against them.
Unless it's a Sharingan genjutsu.
Toad Confrontation Chant would reveal their positions, but in the current situation, that didn't matter.
The pandas weren't affected, but Hiruzen and Setsuna at a distance were.
As they stared, horrified, and began retreating, Seisui's Mangekyo Sharingan activated, pulling Hiruzen and Setsuna into his space
Inside this bizarre space, they exchanged glances but asked no questions.
Why are all the rocks and soil floating?
And why are they all perfectly square?
"Be careful not to touch the water," Seisui warned, pointing to the flowing rivers inside.
"This is Yomi waters—it corrodes anything it touches."
"If you touch it, you'll be dissolved," she explained.
Hiruzen and Setsuna nodded.
"This space is truly strange," Hiruzen muttered, looking around.
"It's completely different from the ninja world."
Seisui glanced at him but didn't explain.
The three stayed hidden in this space for a while. When they judged it safe, they exited.
Seisui's left eye shed a tear of blood. Setsuna, also a Mangekyo user, panicked.
Ah… that's the strain of the ocular jutsu!
He touched his own eyes instinctively.
Seeing his grandfather's concern, Seisui smiled:
"All injuries in this space don't affect the real world."
"Don't worry. Once we leave, our eyes will naturally recover."
This was why he had used this space directly; in the real world, it would have been impossible.
The space consumed a massive amount of chakra, especially when carrying others.
Back in the arena, Minato leapt across the pandas' heads. The two sages complained:
"Minato! You didn't tell us this was happening!"
"Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to!" he called out while dodging.
The sages grumbled but then composed themselves.
This opponent is stronger than anything we've faced before!
In this deathless world, we can unleash our full power!
"Minato, did Jiraiya teach you about his chakra oil?" one sage asked.
Minato paused, then nodded.
When he began learning Sage Arts, Jiraiya had passed down his chakra-infused oil.
It enhanced fire techniques for greater damage.
Seeing Minato nod, the sages exchanged a glance.
"Then let's begin!"