"DAMN YOU, UTAHA!! JUST WAIT!!!"
Eriri's furious shout echoed through the guild chat, but it carried no real threat. Everyone knew that even if the two stood face to face, the outcome wouldn't change.
Eriri would still lose.
And that—
Was exactly why she wanted power.
Only by becoming stronger could she finally defeat that infuriating woman in real life. After all, unlike the others, she and Utaha lived in the same world.
This wasn't just a verbal battle.
It was personal.
Utaha, however, didn't even bother responding. She had heard that line far too many times to take it seriously anymore. Instead, she shifted her attention elsewhere.
"Guild Master… why don't you contract a summon?" she asked calmly. "That creature looks quite powerful."
Ryujin replied without hesitation.
"Too ugly."
Utaha blinked.
"…Huh?"
Ryujin continued, his tone as indifferent as ever.
"Summoned beasts are generally ugly."
"I don't like ugly things."
Silence.
Then—
"…Actually… yeah…" Asuna hesitated before admitting it. "That giant salamander really is ugly…"
"RIGHT?!" Eriri jumped in instantly. "I AGREE!! IT'S SUPER UGLY!!"
Ryujin's gaze remained fixed on the battlefield as he spoke again.
"It only looks oppressive because of its size."
"In reality… it's average."
The chat fell silent.
Saeko was the first to respond, her voice steady but filled with disbelief.
"…Average?"
"That thing can shatter the ground just by appearing."
"…And that's average?"
Asuna swallowed slightly.
"I feel like it could kill me in one hit…"
Utaha didn't hesitate.
"That's not a feeling."
"That's a fact."
Inori's calm voice followed, her analysis precise and unsettling.
"…Its size is massive, but its speed isn't slow."
"If it were me…"
"…I wouldn't last long."
Her conclusion made everything clear.
Which meant—
Ryujin himself—
Was the true monster.
"LOOK!! THEY'RE FIGHTING!!"
Eriri's shout snapped everyone's attention back to the stream.
On the battlefield—
Hanzo of the Salamander barely moved.
Yet every attack from Jiraiya and Orochimaru was blocked effortlessly, as if he were brushing away dust.
Cold.
Effortless.
Absolute.
"…We go all out."
Orochimaru's voice dropped, his killing intent rising sharply.
Jiraiya nodded.
No hesitation remained.
Against a monster like Hanzo—
Even the slightest mistake meant death.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Jiraiya bit his thumb and slammed his hand against the ground.
"BOOM—!!"
A massive toad from Mount Myōboku appeared instantly, its enormous body crashing into the battlefield as it leapt forward without hesitation.
"Water Release!!"
A violent torrent burst from its mouth, surging forward like a raging river.
"BOOOOM—!!!"
The collision of giants shook the earth itself. The salamander, the toad, and the unleashed techniques clashed violently, tearing through the surrounding terrain.
The ground cracked open.
Trees collapsed.
Crater after crater formed as if the land itself was being crushed under unimaginable force.
Hanzo raised his hands.
His seals—
Too fast to follow.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
"ROOOOOOOAR—!!!"
A massive torrent surged forward like a natural disaster, devouring everything in its path. The battlefield was instantly flooded, the sheer volume of water overwhelming even distant shinobi.
This was no ordinary ninjutsu.
It was a catastrophe.
"Earth Release: Earth Wall!"
"Earth Release: Earth Wall!"
Jiraiya and Orochimaru reacted immediately, their defenses rising together.
For a brief moment—
They held.
Then—
"CRACK—!!!"
The walls shattered.
The flood broke through.
Jiraiya's summon was engulfed in flames, its massive form collapsing before vanishing entirely.
Orochimaru seized the opening, striking from behind—
But it was too late.
Hanzo's chain-sickle flashed.
"SLASH—!!"
Blood sprayed across the battlefield as a deep wound tore through Orochimaru's abdomen.
Chaos followed.
Explosions.
Shockwaves.
Collisions.
Rain turned to steam under the intense heat, while the ground twisted and split under relentless earth techniques. Trees were sliced apart by invisible wind blades.
At the center of it all—
Three figures clashed.
Two geniuses—
Against—
A legend.
Five minutes later—
"BOOOOM—!!!"
Jiraiya's body slammed into the ground, his strength spent.
Defeated.
Barely conscious.
Moments later, Orochimaru was struck head-on by a devastating water blast, his body sent flying over twenty meters before crashing violently into solid rock.
Blood poured from his mouth.
He tried to stand.
Failed.
Tried again.
Failed again.
Both of them—
Defeated.
Jiraiya clenched his fists, struggling to move, but his body refused to respond.
Orochimaru was worse.
Severely wounded.
Unable to continue.
Silence spread across the battlefield.
Even the surrounding shinobi stood frozen.
Because what they had just witnessed—
Was not a battle.
It was absolute suppression.
Inside the guild stream—
No one spoke.
Not Eriri.
Not Utaha.
Not even Saeko.
Their understanding of the world had been shattered.
They had thought ninja battles were about speed, stealth, and clever techniques.
But this—
This level of destruction—
Was beyond anything they knew.
Beyond weapons.
Beyond machines.
Beyond war as they understood it.
This was—
Something else entirely.
Asuna's voice came quietly, almost like a whisper.
"…This… is ninjutsu?"
No one answered.
Because everyone realized the same thing.
The world their Guild Master lived in—
Was far more terrifying—
Than they had ever imagined.