Konoha: Who's the good guy?

boom!

The exploding water spray obscured the view.

The mountain scenery, affected by the recoil, flew backwards, skimming the surface of the water.

He twisted his waist and swung his arm to deliver an elbow strike behind him, knocking a frog that had been trying to sneak up into the water again, and then used the momentum to flip himself over.

His feet left long trails in the water, and before he could even come to a stop, he clapped his hands together and activated his ninjutsu once more.

Water Release: Mist Concealment Technique!

The thick mist rose up with each breath.

Yamanaka Kei sucked on his gums, about to wipe away some of the blood and use a summoning technique to summon a mirage, giving Jiraiya a little shock from the mirage, but his movements suddenly froze.

Didn't he say yesterday that he wouldn't use illusion magic?

hateful!

All that sucking blood from the gums was for nothing.

Quickly form hand seals.

Yamanaka Kei changed tactics again, using a ninjutsu he had just learned from the Senju clan's legacy scroll the night before.

Water Release: Wave Strike!

His lack of ninjutsu proficiency prevented him from skipping hand seals, but the top-tier chakra control brought by the red attribute [Zero Frame Start] and the understanding of water release brought by the purple attribute [Water Release Master] still allowed him to release ninjutsu at a speed far exceeding that of ordinary Jonin.

With the execution of Water Release: Wave Strike, Yamanaka Kei swiftly submerged into the water like a swimming fish.

The use of the water transformation technique caused his figure to disappear from the sight of the several Myoboku toads that were waiting for an opportunity to strike at the bottom of the water.

"Young people these days really have no consideration for their elders!"

Jiraiya wiped the sweat from his forehead, and the Iron-Armed Toad under his feet began to move around constantly, guarding against possible surprise attacks from all sides.

From the beginning until now, he has been constantly on the defensive, and his several counterattacks have all ended in failure.

Even though he had summoned eight toads from Mount Myōboku to help him, it still couldn't change the fact that he was gradually falling into a disadvantageous position.

This is still the result of the fact that the mountain scenery has not used any illusions.

If we completely let go...

"Quack quack quack~" "Underwater!" "Disappeared! No trace left! Quack!"

The croaking of frogs could be heard through the mist created by the Mist Concealment Technique.

Jiraiya was startled. He leaped into the air with a light step, his hands quickly forming hand seals.

In the current situation, the Fog Concealment Technique severely obstructed his vision, while Shan Zhongjing's perception ability was completely unaffected by the thick fog.

To reverse the tide of battle between the two sides, simply solving the Mist Concealment Technique will only put them in a more passive position.

Because whether it's using Wind Release to blow it away or Fire Release to evaporate it, it requires several times the chakra of the Hidden Mist Technique, and Yamanaka Kei wouldn't stand idly by and watch him easily resolve the Hidden Mist Technique.

Then there's only one option...

"Barrier - Heavenly Canopy Formation!"

Thud! Thud~

The perception barrier centered on Jiraiya has just been deployed.

Standing on the water's surface, the Iron-Armed Toad, tasked with blocking the enemy, slammed its arms down onto the water's surface.

The sudden burst of water collided with the iron-armed toad, and the powerful impact caused the water surface to explode into a giant bowl-shaped depression!

The power exceeded the limits of what one could withstand, causing the Iron-Armed Toad to turn into chakra smoke and return to Mount Myōboku.

However, the momentum of the mountain scenery's sudden underwater attack was thus directly suppressed.

This gave Jiraiya a chance to catch his breath!

"here you go!"

Jiraiya was secretly delighted and was preparing to launch a counterattack when the perception of the Heavenly Canopy Barrier made his eye twitch.

Two crows circled overhead, while four small puppets, only half a person's height, silently concealed themselves within the Mist Concealment Technique, sealing off the space around him.

After knocking the Iron-Armed Toad back to Mount Myōboku, Yamanaka Kei himself stood quietly on the water's surface, waiting for him to jump into the trap!

There's nowhere to go but to heaven and nowhere to hide!

He was certain that no matter what counterattack he made, he would face a barrage of attacks the next moment.

"I give up! Stop! Stop!"

Jiraiya shouted loudly, completely disregarding any sense of face.

There was no other way; he was genuinely afraid that if he shouted too slowly, that unethical guy, Yamanaka Kei, would use a mind-disruption technique on him, controlling him to perform another round of "Paradise Paradise."

That thing, if a little girl jumps, he can glare his eyes out.

If I jump by myself...

I don't want to recall it, so let's stop here!

"Phew~"

Yamanaka Kei exhaled a breath of stale air and casually dispelled the thick fog created by the Mist Concealment Technique.

The two crows flying in the sky cawed twice before turning into chakra smoke and returning to the animal pens.

The four small puppets, each about half a person's height, returned to his side under the control of the "Mind Transference Clone Technique".

He took out the storage seal scroll from the left chest of the Jonin vest and resealed the four small puppets.

Yamanaka Kei sat directly on the water's surface, pondering the issues exposed during their recent exchange.

First, there's the issue of ninjutsu proficiency.

The ninjutsu I learned last night from the scroll technique passed down from the Senju clan worked very well, but I still need to practice it more.

Even if we don't talk about using any hand seals, at the very least, we should be able to clap our hands together and shout for something to come!

We can't waste the bonus effect brought by [starting with zero frames].

And physical skills!

With the enhancement of the Hozuki clan's Great Water Arm Technique, he used the techniques from his past lives in the Palace of Memories.

The power that erupted was stronger than he had imagined!

He just used the acceleration underwater from "Water Release: Wave Riding Strike" to amplify his Iron Mountain Lean with the Great Water Arm Technique, directly blasting the Iron Arm Toad apart.

If I could also master the "wave stacking" technique I saw last night, which is based on water escape techniques.

It's possible that he could also, like the Third Raikage A, go and test his strength against the Tailed Beasts.

And of course, there's the most important point.

Combat habits!

His current sparring session with Jiraiya is actually a rehearsal for his later encounter with Madara Uchiha.

That's why he took the initiative to suggest not using illusion magic yesterday afternoon.

After all, even though Madara Uchiha had transplanted the Rinnegan into Nagato, his eye power was definitely no weaker than that of the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.

Illusion magic against an opponent will likely have unsatisfactory results.

Therefore, he must correct his habit of trying to use illusions right from the start.

Okay, lastly, it's Flying Thunder God...

After sparring with Jiraiya, Minato also wanted to spar with him to get used to the high-intensity Flying Thunder God combo and fully utilize the effect of the [zero-frame start].

And after doing all that...

"Madara, Hasi Hot Mom is gone, how about I, the upgraded Toby Hot Mom, dance with you? Hehehe~"

Yamanaka Kei grinned, his anticipation for meeting Uchiha Madara growing stronger.

"You're a monster, kid!"

Jiraiya walked over and sat down next to Yamanaka Kei.

He has never been the kind of person who can't accept defeat. On the contrary, he is happier and more pleased than anyone else to see young people surpass him.

If Konoha had more young people like Yamanaka Kei.

Why doesn't he just travel to the ninja world and save those unfortunate young ladies who have gone astray?

"You could have fought back just now, right? You could have completely wrapped yourself in the needle Jizo, or swallowed yourself with a toad, and then canceled the summoning jutsu once the toad fell into the water."

Yamanaka Kei glanced at Jiraiya to the side, not taking the praise he received too seriously.

The battle between the two just now was indeed thrilling.

Jiraiya was indeed completely dominated by him throughout the entire match.

The reason for this situation is twofold: firstly, this guy underestimated him at the beginning and lost the initiative; secondly, he misjudged the intelligence.

Even without using illusion magic, he has no shortage of powerful attack methods!

As for the final surrender...

Jiraiya's leap into the air was indeed a mistake, though not a minor one. No matter how he resisted, he would only fall into a greater disadvantage.

However, this guy clearly held back, whether it was the hand seals he used in the original work or the powerful combined ninjutsu with the toads of Mount Myōboku.

If they really want to fight back, it's not entirely impossible.

"The move you just used against the Iron-Armed Toad was comparable to Tsunade's superhuman strength. Who would use a needle-wielding Jizo to catch that? Besides, summoned beasts feel pain when they're injured. It was just a friendly spar."

Jiraiya smiled and waved his hand. He had always regarded the toads of Mount Myōboku as companions and friends, and he would never do something like using a summoned beast as a tool.

As for taking a blow that was comparable to superhuman strength.

He still feels pain in his ribs when he thinks about that punch from Tsunade back then, so he won't try it again.

"How's your Sage Mode training going?"

"...Next topic."

"You really are..."

The scenery in the mountains is somewhat speechless.

Is this Sage Mode really that difficult?

You don't even want to mention it?