Chapter 4: The Toad Sage

After departing with Brunhilde in the afternoon, he would go directly to the presence he sensed and confront an elderly woman there. The elderly woman was by herself, selling medication in an alleyway with no resident in sight. She was burning incense, which gave off a floral scent. Seigfried approached the elderly woman and, despite his initial confusion, decided to approach her. She noticed him walking towards her and spoke.

Pharmacist Old Lady: Sir, did I do something wrong? *in a curious tone*

Seigfried: No, not at all. I thought I saw someone suspicious.

Pharmacist Old Lady: Oh my! *she said it with a shocked expression and added* sound scary.

Seigfried: *He would chuckle and said* Yeah, you should be careful since someone might attack you… Well, in that case, I'll continue to try to find him.

Pharmacist Old Lady: I hope you find him sooner. That way, I can be assured that my grandchildren will be safe. *She struggles to get out of her chair.*

Seigfried: Let me assist you in getting out of the chair. Could you please tell me where you would like me to take you? *He then gave her his hand.*

Pharmacist Old Lady: Alright, if you could, please drop me off at the home of my grandchildren. *She then slowly grabbed his hand.*

Seigfried: Of course.

Seigfried would make sure to give her a firm grip when holding onto her hands to prevent her from falling. He helped her out of the chair by holding onto her hand and then continuing to hold onto her. He repeatedly threw her as hard as he could against the wall and the cold, hard ground, leaving a huge dent in the ground, and then he beat the daylight out of her with both hands. Then he asked.

Seigfried: Tell me who you are. *He glared at them intensely while still hitting the pharmacist, an old lady.*

Pharmacist Old Lady: *They would summon Wakizashi out of thin air and try to slash Seigfried, but failed; they then stood up. * Damn, is that how you treat your elderly, Seigfried? *They turned back to their original form; he had a sinister smile and added. * As for my name? You can call me Jiraiya.

Seigfried: Jiraiya... what is your purpose here? *He then called for his spear and pointed at him, still with a serious gaze.*

Jiraiya: *He still retains his sinister smile.* I'm not going to tell you because even if I did, you would still try to stop me because my plan doesn't fit with your objectives. Ain't that's correct, Seigfried, or should I say, *He said his name silently, and He smiled even more.*

Upon hearing that, Seigfried lunged toward Jiraiya with his spear, with the full intention of killing Jiraiya.

Jiraiya: Hey, what the matter, ~Seig? I was expecting someone who fought Gilgamesh to be stronger than this. Oh, wait, that is wrong because you are Gil... 

Seigfried: SHUT UP!!

Seigfried would strike even faster with his spear, eventually landing a blow on Jiraiya in the gut. But something didn't feel right, and indeed, he was correct because, in that second, Seigfried would be slashed from every side, catching him off guard. Jiraiya would appear out of thin air, behind him, and say.

Jiraiya: Are you holding back? If you are, that is just beyond pathetic. because you can't even behave like the monster that people have described you as, so now you pretend to be human after murdering billions of people. Not only that, I heard that you've recently hired someone to do your dirty work because you're too weak. Man, aren't you the worst? *He would smile wickedly and point a finger at him.*

Seigfried would turn quickly around and slash the back of him, cutting Jiraiya in half. After cutting Jiraiya in half, he will then look around his surroundings, hearing the same bell from earlier. The only difference in the area is that the air itself now tastes sweet, and the smell is floral. Just then Jiraiya, who had been cut in half, shot a bullet that was barely brushing his face, and Seigfried would dodge it. He then stabbed Jiraiya with his spear and threw him across, hitting the wall. Seigfried dodged again when another bullet materialized out of thin air above him. However, this time was unique because the bullet ricocheted from the ground and struck Seigfried's knee, causing him to fall, but he was able to halt his fall with his spear. Jiraiya would suddenly materialize, attempting to go in for the kill, just as he had stopped his fall. Then Seigfried would call forth a phalanx of spears above them and guide them down. Striking the surrounding terrain, hitting Jiraiya from above, and pinning him to the ground. But Seigfried knew it wasn't over, so he would try to calm his anger and analyze all that happened in the fight. Seigfried would finally speak.

Seigfried: I think I have figured out your trick, Jiraiya. That hand sign you performed was kuji-kiri, right? *He said it with a confident tone.*

Jiraiya: *He would materialize once more out of nowhere.* Yeah, so what about it?*After that, he aimed his rifle at him.*

Seigfried: During your kuji-kiri performance, you employed a genjustu, but it wasn't just any old illusion; rather, it was an illusion that engaged the target's five senses. When I arrived to find you, you had already begun burning incense. The aroma of the incense had altered not only my smell but also my taste perception, as the air tasted sweeter than it did when I first arrived. When reaching the second phase of your plan, as I lunged toward you with my spear, you would dodge my attack. Then I heard a bell, which altered my hearing. In your final stage, you purposefully performed Kuji-kiri in front of me to finally cast the genjustu. But there is one major flaw in your genjustu: you need to set it up.

Jiraiya: *He would smile and say* You're right, but how are you going to win? After all, once I cast this genjustu, it doesn't go away until I decide I want to remove it. In fact, the one you're talking to is nothing more than an illusion, as the real Jiraiya is nowhare near close to you.

Seigfried: This isn't something I need you to release; in fact, I should have done this sooner, but because I was so angry my only thought was just to kill you.

Jiraiya: *He stopped grinning and expressed something serious.* What do you mean?

Seigfried: *With a crazy smile, he answered.* I ain't telling you.

Then Jiraiya performed Kuji-kiri, instantly summoning a group of clones, all of whom would shoot and point their rifles at him. Seigfried would gaze up at the sky, close his eye, and inhale deeply and exhale. They would all shoot at him at the same time, as the bullet came close to Seigfried. Then, with a crazy smile on his face, he would open his eyes, which had been originally dark red but were now the color of the sky.

Jiraiya: I already told you it was useless! My genjustu affects all five senses!

Seigfried: Only five senses, right? * His smile grew wider.*

As the bullets came in all directions toward Seigfried, he dodged every single one with ease after dodging all the ricochet bullets from the Jiraiya clone. The Jiraiya clones would each perform a ninjutsu move. they would all breath fire hot enough to melt the ground Seigfried was standing on. Seigfried would take one step in, and at that second, he would dodge every single Jiraiya clone attack and eliminate every single one of them. The real Jiraiya would be pinned to the wall and stabbed in the right shoulder by his spear in that second.

Seigfried: *He brought his face near Jiraiya and grinned.* Holding back, I'm I.

Jiraiya: Huh?... What just happened?*He was in disbelief after seeing everything.*

Seigfried: Well, what happened is that I used the Eyes of God. Which allowed my body to move on its own when it sensed incoming danger, but most importantly, it gave me a sixth sense that detects the "soul." Now that I have answered your question, I need you to answer mine. *He would push his spear deeper into his shoulder.*

Jiraiya: *At first he would grunt in pain, but then he would slowly start laughing.* I'm going to assume you want me to explain how I found out your true name. Is that right, Seig.

Seigfried: *He would then drive his spear deeper, causing Jiraiya to be interrupted. * Quite trying to piss me off and tell me. *Cast a menacing glance at Jiraiya, who was in pain.*

Jiraiya: Oh my, is that how you ask a person a question? Nevertheless, I guess I will answer your question. I learned this information from another hero, and they wanted me to stop your mission.

Seigfried: Who and why?

Jiraiya: *He would laugh hysterically, making a smug face before speaking at last.* That is something I cannot discuss! ogatas Attack!!

Jiraiya would call forth twenty men decked out in toad masks, all of whom would launch an assault on Siegfried. Keeping the spear on Jiraiya's shoulder, he would try slashing him across his right shoulder and to the left. However, Jiraiya would use his right hand to seize his spear. When Siegfreid attempted to kill Jiraiya by drawing a dagger with his right hand, Jiraiya removed the dagger from Siegfreid's hand and forced him to drop it. While using his left hand, Jiraiya would force Siegfreid's right hand to perform Kuji-kiri. Eventually, he would spit fire and charge straight at Siegfreid. Seigfried launched the dagger that was on the ground, striking the ogatas in the head and landing right next to his foot, just as it attempted to attack his back. After that, he let go of his spear and attempted to back away. However, Jiraiya held onto him, resulting in Siegfried being directly hit by the fire. With only a blackened corpse remaining that Jiraiya was clinging to, the fight had finally come to an end. Jiraiya would push the charred corpse away and take the spear out of his right shoulder. Then he would get up and stomp on the head with a smile while holding his right shoulder and staring at the blackened corpse.

Jiraiya: I guess you underestimated me, Sieg. *He would face his man and order them.* ogatas initiated an attack on the city gate and kill the woman who was with him.

When he turned around and jumped to the top of the building, they would do as he said and make their way toward the gate, with him still holding on to his shoulder as he ran off. In his thoughts, I should have asked for more because of all that shit I've been through. Now that the battle has come to an end, let's return to Brunhilde.

Brunhilde put one of the flowers in her pocket and set the remaining bouquet next to the girl. She raised her blade at them and gave them a fierce glare. She would finally run toward them with her blade. The fourteen ogatas attacked her simultaneously, kunai and shuriken first. Brunhilde would dodge it; although she dodged the kunai, the kunai grazed her by her thigh. A couple seconds later, after the kunai grazed her, she started to spit a lot of blood, and at that moment she knew she was poisoned. They threw it again at her, but she deflected all of it with her sword alone, and eleven of the ogatas managed to dodge. But the other three were not so fortunate, being struck by their weapons, and they quickly convulsed on the ground until they died. After she redirected their attack, she reappeared directly behind an ogata to sever them in half horizontally as they were dodging.

When six of the ogatas approach her quickly, she turns to them as she heads toward them. She would be held by one of the ogatas she had just cut off, holding on to both of her ankles. In an attempt to free herself, she turned her blade toward the one who was holding onto her, but two of them used a kusarigama to catch her blade. She stepped on the ogatas' heads right away, but before she could escape, the other four ogatas bound her with the chain portions of the kusarigama, first with her hands and then with her ankle. The two who took her blade are now throwing their poison kunai at her. Brunhilde would swing all four of them toward the projectile with all her strength, forcing them to release their kusarigama before they were thrown toward it.

However, because they had dropped their weapons, she had gained possession of them. She quickly rotated the two she was holding so fast that the kusarigama as well as the winds formed a barrier, shielding her from the oncoming attack. She took advantage of the moment to cut the chain while she was spinning them around to free her ankle. As soon as the projectile stopped, she swung Kusarigama like a yo-yo and went after the four people holding her, slitting their throats with the sickle part. They tried to block with their wakizashi, but since she was using all of her strength, she sliced all four of them with the blade like butter. With that, there were only two left. She raised her sword using Kusarigama's chain parts, threw it in her direction, and then grabbed the handle of her sword.

Even seeing the fight Brunhilde had put the last two ogatas in, they did not back down. Instead of approaching Brunhilde from a distance, the two ogatas decided to charge her in two different directions; as they approached, they sidestepped the Kusarigama rather than blocking it. Using their combined Jujutsu and Wakizashi skills, they confronted Brunhilde when they were close enough. This forced her to defend both of them at once, and it was obvious that their goal was to prevent her from attacking. Brunhilde is beginning to get tired of the nonstop fighting and the poison inflicted from early. But they quickly managed to trap her in the corner and keep attacking. As things appeared hopeless, an attacker would appear and force the two ogatas to retreat from Brunhilde. The person who had saved her was Marika, who then stood in front of her, staring at the two ogatas who were prepared to fight.

Marika: I apologize for the delay; I've just completed the evacuation of all of my citizens. So let me take it from here. *She stared at Brunhilde in the eyes.*

Brunhilde: *she sat down on the ground and said.* Sure, go ahead.

The two ogatas would try to outrun Marika to get to Brunhilde, but she would attack them, forcing them to reorient and charge in her direction. However, Marika would effortlessly parry both of them at once, removing their weapons with her daggers and completing the fight with two slashes. She inhaled deeply and exhaled, looking at the night sky then turned to face Brunhilde, holding out her hand and uttering a few words.

Marika: Hilde, Let's go to a hospital and get rid of that poison.

Brunhilde: *she would smirk and say.* Yeah.

From afar, Jiraiya, holding onto his right, saw the fight and thought, That woman, Huh? What did he even see in her? She barely stood a chance against my ogatas. Either way, as of now, I probably lose if I attack her now in my current condition, and besides, I can't even use my rifle… I should go report back to the person who wants Seig to die. He walked away while holding his right shoulder in pain heading toward the tower with the bonfire.