After dealing with the Rain ninja in the bamboo grove, Gojo Yoru didn't immediately go help Tsunade, nor did he check whether the explosions had alerted the tower.
Instead, he pulled a palm-sized storage scroll from his large pocket. While sealing away the heads of the corpses, he also searched their bodies for antidote.
Perhaps Hanzō trusted the salamander poison too much—never imagining that anyone other than himself, the one bound by a blood contract to the salamander, could develop a formula to counter it.
And because the salamander's poison mist couldn't be completely blocked even with gas masks—so as not to have his own subordinates die to his own weapon—each of those seven Rain ninja in flak vests carried antidote on them.
Yoru's luck was good today too: his dismemberment hadn't destroyed any of the antidote vials.
"Hm?"
After sealing all the heads and collecting all the antidote, Yoru continued retrieving the Flying Thunder God kunai and marked pebbles he had used earlier—placing them in the grove as part of his Earth Body Flicker and intangibility "trap" setup.
Suddenly, the ground beneath him trembled slightly.
The vibration was faint and fleeting, but Yoru's expression immediately turned serious.
A random tremor wouldn't happen for no reason.
Thinking the earlier commotion had been noticed and a large force—or some massive creature—was charging this way, Yoru formed seals, closed his eyes, and used a sensing technique.
In the next second, his expression changed violently.
Without bothering to retrieve the remaining Flying Thunder God kunai and stones, Yoru activated intangibility and vanished in an instant.
…
Back to the moment when Yoru was chasing the sensor ninja.
Tsunade entered the opening leading to the underground base. She didn't bother creating a shadow clone to scout ahead—she simply ran down the corridor.
Because this place had already been infiltrated once.
The hallway wasn't pitch-black; electric lights lined both sides.
But the stairs were uneven, covered with signs of explosions and jutsu impacts. More than a dozen unprocessed corpses lay around, and the stench of blood was thick.
Clearly, the Rain ninja didn't dare handle the bodies casually. They had sealed the entrance and guarded this place, waiting for Hanzō's return.
If Amegakure hadn't been attacked and Rain ninja weren't stretched thin elsewhere, the guard here would never have been only seven.
Reaching the end of the corridor, Tsunade found a heavy iron door blocking her way.
There were no traces of Earth Release on the ground—only scorch marks and congealed blood. Remembering that Katsuyu had mentioned a damaged barrier, Tsunade's face lit up.
"Great—this hasn't been looted yet. Iwagakure really did us a favor!"
But the surrounding signs made her calm down.
She didn't smash the door open recklessly. Instead, she retreated into the corridor, created a shadow clone, held her breath, and waited.
BOOM—!
The shadow clone punched the iron door. A terrifying chakra burst dented it inward.
In the next instant, an even louder explosion erupted.
The door bulged and opened countless tiny holes, spraying a pillar of flame made of innumerable "fire snakes." It instantly swallowed the shadow clone and slammed into the corridor walls.
The heat was horrifying. Tsunade backed up, a chill of fear running through her.
Now she finally understood why the corpses in the corridor hadn't been handled—and why the bodies inside had vanished.
They'd been burned away.
Thankfully it wasn't poison gas. Tsunade stopped holding her breath.
When the flames died out, she created another shadow clone, punched again, and finally knocked the door down.
This time the door didn't counterattack. Tsunade rushed inside.
A sealed chamber—like a forbidden-tech vault—filled her vision.
Unlike a forbidden vault full of bookshelves, this place was lined with herb cabinets, piles of medicines, and various instruments.
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
Time was tight. Tsunade didn't waste a second marveling. She formed seals and created shadow clones again.
More than a dozen Tsunades immediately began stripping the room.
Meanwhile, the real Tsunade used Summoning Jutsu to call a giant slug.
"Katsuyu-sama, I'll have to trouble you," Tsunade said respectfully.
"Of course, Tsunade-sama. It's a small matter," Katsuyu replied gently.
Katsuyu split into countless bodies again. With the true body in Shikkotsu Forest assisting, they began emptying the chamber.
Even then, Tsunade remained extremely cautious.
Afraid there might be explosive tags or traps under or behind the cabinets, she didn't let her clones move the heavy furniture. Instead, she first transferred everything visible and reachable to Shikkotsu Forest, then planned to violently pry open the locked cabinets afterward and loot what was inside.
"Main body! We found the formula section!"
A shadow clone suddenly shouted.
Tsunade Body Flickered over. Seeing the scrolls, all sealed, she quickly said, "Katsuyu-sama, move everything here to Shikkotsu Forest first!"
"Understood."
Slug bodies crawled over, each carrying scrolls, then vanished in white smoke.
As thick white smoke filled the room, Tsunade suddenly felt the ground beneath her tremble.
Just as she thought she might have triggered a trap, Katsuyu's warning reached her ear:
"Tsunade-sama—run!"
The warning was timely—but the smoke and cramped space boxed Tsunade in.
Before she could even recall the direction of the entrance, the sharp crack of the floor breaking rang out.
"ROAR…"
A hoarse beast's roar surged up, whipping air that blasted away the white smoke.
But in the next second, purple smoke swallowed Tsunade's figure again.
It's over.
Before the purple smoke engulfed her, Tsunade saw the creature clearly—and accidentally inhaled a mouthful of purple fumes. Only one thought filled her head.
Her shadow clones and Katsuyu's split bodies also inhaled the poison, then all dissipated into smoke at once.
Slash—
With her body going limp, her consciousness heavy, her vision blurring, Tsunade faintly saw a streak of cold light cut through the purple smoke and shoot toward her.
With the last of her strength, she instinctively jumped backward.
Even so, the blade still caught her.
A cut stretched from her left shoulder down to her right waist. Her jōnin vest tore like paper, and blood burst out.
The airflow from the swing cleared some of the purple smoke, revealing Hanzō of the Salamander—hidden within the poison.
Failing to take her head in one strike, Hanzō pressed the advantage. Both hands on the hilt, he thrust toward Tsunade's heart.
Decisive. Ruthless. A perfect demonstration of assassination.
As darkness closed over her awareness, Tsunade wasn't afraid of death—only quietly regretful.
Sorry, Nawaki… it seems I won't live to see the day you become Hokage.
CLANG!
Just as Tsunade was about to lose consciousness, the sound of metal colliding rang out in her ear.
She fell into a warm embrace. Looking up, she saw Gojo Yoru holding her with one arm, while the other gripped the Sword of the Thunder God, blocking Hanzō's thrust.
Her lips moved. In the end, she only managed two weak words:
"Id… iot…"
Hanzō's pupils shrank. He stared at the white-haired boy who had appeared out of nowhere, memorizing his face in an instant—then prepared to leap back, planning to wait for the poison to take effect before attacking again.
But before he could move, the white-haired boy vanished without any movement trail—taking the unconscious blonde woman with him.
When the poison smoke cleared, the chamber—nearly emptied—held only Hanzō and the giant salamander.
A few seconds later, a muffled voice from behind the gas mask broke the silence.
"Princess Tsunade… and… Flying Thunder God."
~~~
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