Naruto: I Confronted the Five Kage Before the System Arrived

Chapter 260: A Cold Forehead

After enduring the continuous assault of the Super Shinra Tensei and the Truth-Seeking Ball explosion, the ruins of Mount Myoboku sank even further.

A chilling wind howled across the devastated land, as if mourning for the final inhabitants of this once serene place.

Hagoromo Gengetsu and the Great Toad Sage stood facing each other.

The cold breeze blew away some of the dust on their bodies, bringing a brief moment of coolness.

The Great Toad Sage narrowed his eyes.

In the brief respite, he noticed the cat's eye stone with the "oil" character hanging around his neck.

"Great Toad Grandpa! Let me out! I can fight too!" Naruto's voice echoed from within the stone.

Though sealed inside the gem, Naruto could still see everything happening outside.

From the Great Toad Sage's perspective, he had witnessed the entire battle, far more intense than he had imagined.

Even now, as a mere spectator, Naruto's heart was still pounding.

Regarding Hagoromo Gengetsu, Naruto felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness.

However!

Seeing the once beautiful and harmonious Mount Myoboku reduced to ashes, with the Great Toad Grandpa now missing an arm and in grave danger, Naruto clenched his fists, his unyielding fighting spirit flaring up, ready to resist the enemy to the end.

But...

Even at this critical moment, the Great Toad Grandpa still had no intention of letting him out to assist.

If this continued, the Great Toad Grandpa would surely die!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Naruto shouted and punched furiously, determined to break the seal in front of him.

"Kid, your strength alone is not enough."

Suddenly, Kurama's voice echoed in Naruto's mind.

Naruto paused, instinctively asking in his mind:

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you need greater power! So... let's cooperate."

"Huh?"

The Great Toad Sage withdrew his attention, ignoring Naruto's pleas.

Hagoromo Gengetsu's gaze shifted from the cat's eye stone on the Great Toad Sage's neck back to him.

Even at this moment, he wasn't letting Naruto out?

Asura's reincarnation + Nine-Tails Jinchuriki + Sage Mode Naruto still had considerable fighting strength.

Hagoromo Gengetsu couldn't understand the Great Toad Sage's reasoning.

Given his current weakened state, letting Naruto out, even if only to let him escape, would be better.

Why keep him hanging around his neck?

Was he expecting to drop loot after his death?

So considerate?

Hagoromo Gengetsu shook his head, not bothering to think any further.

As long as he killed the Great Toad Sage, everything would be settled.

Then.

In an instant.

He stomped forward with his right foot, wielding a black rod, and with two Truth-Seeking Balls, he charged at the Great Toad Sage like a fierce wind.

The Great Toad Sage, who had personally experienced the power of the Truth-Seeking Balls and didn't want a repeat, maintained his shrunken state and jumped backward, retreating rapidly.

However, in the next moment.

A Truth-Seeking Ball elongated swiftly, transforming into an arrow and shooting towards the Great Toad Sage in mid-air.

The operational radius of a Truth-Seeking Ball was seventy meters.

With Hagoromo Gengetsu taking the initiative and the Great Toad Sage being weaker than before, although he dodged in time, he couldn't completely escape within a short period.

Seeing the inescapable Truth-Seeking Ball arrow slicing through the air towards him.

The Great Toad Sage opened his mouth, shooting a water bullet condensed from sage chakra.

Boom!

Although the Truth-Seeking Ball couldn't neutralize sage techniques, it easily dispersed the incoming water bullet.

But the water bullet had fulfilled its purpose.

The Great Toad Sage seized the moment to leap out of range.

Seeing this, the Truth-Seeking Ball arrow contracted back into a sphere and returned to hover around Hagoromo Gengetsu.

"Afraid of close combat? That's not up to you."

Hagoromo Gengetsu's Rinnegan twitched.

"Banshō Ten'in!"

A powerful gravitational force enveloped the Great Toad Sage.

Unlike before, when he was unmoved, the now human-sized Great Toad Sage struggled but was inevitably pulled towards Hagoromo Gengetsu.

Although the toads of Mount Myoboku had secret techniques to shrink their bodies, it didn't mean that their original body density remained unchanged or even became higher under compression.

If that were the case, the massive Great Toad Sage shrinking to human height and having the strength of an elephant in the size of an ant would be invincible.

The strength a body can exert is proportionate to its size.

Though the shrunken Great Toad Sage's speed had increased significantly, his strength and physicality had diminished.

However, compared to becoming a sitting duck for the Truth-Seeking Balls in a larger form, the Great Toad Sage preferred facing Banshō Ten'in.

In an instant, the Great Toad Sage's sage chakra ignited, his hands and feet gripping the ground firmly, resisting the gravitational pull.

Hagoromo Gengetsu didn't give him a chance to breathe.

"Shinra Tensei!"

As the gravitational pull ceased, a fierce repulsive force swept over.

With a swish, the Great Toad Sage was hurled backward.

Hagoromo Gengetsu moved in tandem, throwing the short black rod in his left hand towards the airborne Great Toad Sage.

But that wasn't all.

Hagoromo Gengetsu's free left hand fired a barrage of black rods like a machine gun, each one whistling through the air, aiming to impale the Great Toad Sage from all angles.

"Great Toad Grandpa!"

Seeing this, Naruto, who had reached an agreement with Kurama and was preparing himself, couldn't help but stand up and urgently shout in warning.

The Great Toad Sage didn't disappoint Naruto.

Though unable to dodge while being pushed backward, his tongue was still agile.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

With a tongue harder than steel, the Great Toad Sage swatted away all the incoming black rods.

Soon, the Great Toad Sage landed back on the ground.

He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when his pupils suddenly contracted.

Hagoromo Gengetsu's feet extended an ice pathway, propelling him far faster than anticipated, already reaching the Great Toad Sage.

The sound of breaking air echoed.

A Truth-Seeking Ball eagerly struck at the Great Toad Sage.

The Great Toad Sage sidestepped in time to dodge.

In the next second, another Truth-Seeking Ball flew towards his forehead.

The Great Toad Sage quickly ducked, narrowly avoiding it.

At that moment.

A long black rod seized the opportunity, piercing straight towards the Great Toad Sage's forehead.

The Great Toad Sage felt a chill between his brows.

Unable to dodge, he instinctively extended his only right hand, grasping the black rod tightly.

Drip.

Seeing the black rod stopping just short of his forehead, a drop of cold sweat trickled down the Great Toad Sage's face.

Opposite him.

Hagoromo Gengetsu held the long black rod in his right hand, observing the Great Toad Sage gripping the rod, struggling to halt its advance.

He glanced coldly, his right hand exerting more force.

The Great Toad Sage's arm and entire body trembled violently.

In the next moment.

Drip.

The tip of the black rod pierced the surface of his forehead, a drop of blood slowly trickling down.