181 181.Fourth Hokage VS Nagato

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Golden snake eyes met golden frog eyes as both Orochimaru and Jiraiya entered Sage Mode.

"Boom!" The clash of their fists reverberated through the air.

What followed was a flurry of taijutsu exchanges.

"Frog Kata!" Jiraiya, with his superior strength, forced Orochimaru back several steps with a single punch. However, Orochimaru's agility was unmatched.

"Soft Physique Modification!" Orochimaru's arm elongated and wrapped around Jiraiya's, flipping him over and slamming him into the ground with great force.

"Boom!" Orochimaru's foot came crashing down, but Jiraiya rolled aside to evade.

Both ninjas prepared their jutsu.

"Fire Style: Great Flame Bomb!" Orochimaru countered almost simultaneously with "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"

Empowered by Sage Chakra, their ninjutsu escalated in size and potency, creating a vast inferno whipped into a frenzy by the wind.

"Rumble rumbling rumbling~" The conflagration engulfed the battlefield, threatening both Konoha and Akatsuki combatants.

For Orochimaru, the welfare of allies was a nonissue, but Jiraiya couldn't afford such recklessness.

"Jiraiya, be wary of harming our own!" cautioned the Toad Sage on his shoulder.

"Leave it to me!" Another toad sage, exhaling a concentrated water blade, sliced through the flames, quelling the firestorm.

"Sage Art: Water Style Blade!" Jiraiya, chagrined by his oversight, refocused his attention on Orochimaru.

"Ha! Still as naive, Jiraiya. In war, casualties are inevitable," Orochimaru taunted, dismissing the notion of ally safety.

"How dare you endanger our comrades!" Jiraiya retorted, infuriated by Orochimaru's callousness.

"Would sparing them prevent their demise? The weak's lives hold no value," Orochimaru declared, launching a volley of energy serpents at Jiraiya.

"Sage Art: Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!" Jiraiya responded, crafting a massive sphere of energy that obliterated the incoming assault.

"And who's filled your head with such nonsense?" Jiraiya demanded.

"Guess," Orochimaru replied smugly, confident in Jiraiya's inability to discern his source.

"Enough, Jiraiya! Let's employ our technique!" urged the sages, ready to combine their powers.

"Understood," Jiraiya agreed, forming seals and spewing a dense oil mist, which, when ignited by flame and whipped into a vortex by wind from the toads, formed a devastating oil tsunami.

"Sage Art: Goemon!" Jiraiya unleashed his formidable Sage Art, countering Orochimaru's equally powerful "Sage Art: Serpent Hurricane Gale." The clash of these titanic forces caused immense destruction, but with the support of the Two Toad Sages, Jiraiya gained the upper hand.

"Pipipi~" Orochimaru found himself scorched by boiling kerosene, an attack that would have obliterated any ordinary person. However, Orochimaru's severely burned body rapidly healed, showcasing his high-speed regeneration ability. Jiraiya watched in shock

"In this case, I have to fight to the end!" Orochimaru declared, driven into a frenzy not by his usual manipulative nature but by the Hollow's violent temperament.

Unlike his preference for manipulation, Orochimaru was driven into direct combat by his inner beast.

The Sage Mode battle between Orochimaru and Jiraiya intensified, showcasing their formidable powers and strategic minds.

In addition to Orochimaru and Jiraiya, there's another who has entered Sage Mode – the Fourth Hokage!

"Sage Mode!"

The Fourth Hokage's eyes transformed, revealing the distinct markings of Sage Mode. Unlike Jiraiya, whose body shows signs of imperfect Sage Mode transformation, the Fourth Hokage's control over Sage Chakra is flawless. He doesn't require the assistance of the Toad Sages to harness Sage Chakra fully.

"Whosh~"

"Sage Art: Super Great Ball Rasengan!"

The Fourth Hokage instantly appeared before Nagato.

"Shinra Tensei!"

Nagato unleashed a repulsive force capable of deflecting all attacks. However, the Fourth Hokage's reflexes, honed to perfection, allowed him to evade just before making contact.

In the next moment, he was back before Nagato, slamming a Super Great Ball Rasengan into him.

Nagato's Rinnegan pupils constricted as he summoned the power of the Preta Path.

"Preta Path: Absorption!"

He caught the Super Great Ball Rasengan with his bare hands, neutralizing the jutsu and absorbing its Chakra.

"What?!"

The Fourth Hokage was taken aback by Nagato's ability, having never encountered the Preta Path's power before.

"Swoosh~"

Nagato brandished a black rod, aiming a fierce stab at him.

"Whoosh~"

The Fourth Hokage, employing the Flying Thunder God Technique, evaded once more.

"The fight isn't over yet!"

Nagato reached out, unleashing a formidable gravitational pull.

"Universal Pull!"

Caught in its grasp, the Fourth Hokage struggled against the force.

Quick-witted, he summoned a Shadow Clone.

"Wind Style: Air Palm!"

The clone generated a gale with its hands, propelling the Fourth Hokage upwards, away from the gravitational pull.

"Asura Path: Missile Launcher!"

Nagato revealed a mechanical arm, launching a barrage of missiles at the Fourth Hokage mid-air.

"Rumble rumbling rumbling~"

As the missiles exploded, it seemed the Fourth Hokage was hit.

"Not quite..."

Nagato's Rinnegan flickered in realization. The supposed 'Shadow Clone' was actually the Fourth Hokage himself, charging at him in a Yellow Flash.

"Puff!"