"This bastard is trying to take off again! Katsuyu, can you stop him?" Tsunade asked, watching Deidara once again mount his dragon in an attempt to ascend.
"I can, Tsunade-sama."
"Tongue Tooth Sticky Acid!"
The massive slug behind her spewed another wave of acid, just as overwhelming in quantity as before.
Sizzle!
The C2 dragon's body was rapidly corroded, its wings riddled with holes. Though it flapped desperately, its ascent slowed significantly.
"Yaaahhh!"
With a loud shout, Tsunade grabbed onto the dragon's talon and, with sheer brute force, lifted it off the ground.
After spinning several times to build momentum, she hurled the flaming dragon straight at the flailing C2 dragon in midair, sending it crashing into Deidara.
Boom!
The two massive creatures collided, the force of impact compressing their contact points into a flattened mass. The C2 dragon lost all ability to stay airborne and plummeted.
Deidara leaped off just in time, tossing out a clay bird and mounting it to regain altitude. However, just as he steadied himself, a shadow suddenly appeared beside him.
Tsunade?!
Deidara was stunned. Wasn't she still on the ground?
He quickly glanced downward—sure enough, another Tsunade was still standing there. Was this a clone?
The airborne Tsunade smirked maliciously. "Brat, you didn't think I was incapable of making clones, did you?"
The only reason she rarely used them before was because, for a taijutsu-focused ninja like her, clones were almost redundant.
Shadow clones could use ninjutsu and genjutsu, but they were ineffective in taijutsu combat—after all, a single solid hit would dispel them instantly.
That didn't mean Tsunade couldn't use basic clone techniques. And in this case, it wasn't even a simple Shadow Clone—it was an even more advanced technique.
This clone had hidden itself by clinging to the flaming dragon, hitching a ride to Deidara's altitude.
Deidara had been too occupied dodging the slug's acid to notice. He had missed his chance to detonate the dragon when Tsunade grabbed it, and he had failed to detect the clone's presence.
Clay Serpent Hand!
In this desperate situation, Deidara reacted instinctively, sending a swarm of clay serpents coiling toward Tsunade.
But she didn't even flinch. Instead, the Yin Seal on her forehead spread across her body.
With Creation Rebirth, this level of damage was meaningless. The heat and shockwave from an explosion couldn't destroy her flesh faster than her cells could regenerate.
And now, her Creation Rebirth was even stronger!
"Katsuyu, give me your Sage Chakra!" Tsunade shouted. She could already picture herself pummeling this brat into the ground.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama!"
The small slug on her shoulder responded, channeling the unique Sage Chakra of the Shikkotsu Forest into Tsunade's body.
Brat, disappear from this world!
With that, my biggest stain will be erased—and of course, that's what Danzo-sama wants as well.
Boom!
Tsunade burst out from the explosion, her right fist glowing with a radiant green light.
But unlike normal medical ninjutsu, this green hue felt more domineering, more refined, and far more powerful.
"Die, brat!"
Her punch carried an unimaginable force, amplified by the dense Sage Chakra—this was no mere physical strike anymore.
Splurt!
The sheer impact nearly forced Deidara to spit out the clay in his mouth.
Like a shooting star, he plummeted toward the earth, Sage Chakra relentlessly disintegrating his clay-based body.
Even as he kept consuming clay to regenerate, the rate of destruction far outpaced his ability to recover.
He was nearly obliterated, reduced to a barely functional mess. Within three to five minutes, he would be completely incapacitated—meaning he was at Tsunade's mercy.
One more Sage-Enhanced Monster Punch, and she could finish him off.
Yet, Deidara showed no panic. Instead, a smirk crept onto his lips.
"Tsunade, this is my escape route. You fell for it!"
As he neared the ground, he didn't crash as expected. Instead, he vanished into a deep tunnel—one secretly dug by his Clay Worms earlier.
The tunnel was deep, deep enough to shield him from the impending explosion.
His landing, however, was anything but graceful—he collapsed at the bottom like a lump of mud. Barely managing to form a hand with his clay, he extended his index and middle fingers.
"Art is an explosion!"
"Ha!"
Above ground, Tsunade had landed as well, scanning for Deidara's whereabouts.
Seeing the deep, bottomless hole before her, coupled with Deidara's smug grin, an ominous feeling surged within her.
"Damn it! Tsunade-sama!"
"The enemy has distanced himself from us!" Katsuyu realized.
But it was too late.
Clay Serpents, Clay Flame Dragon, Clay C2 Dragon—
All three had surrounded them, simultaneously detonating into an inferno of destruction.
"Art is an explosion!"
"Ha!"
[ Tsunade's Shock Value +3000 ]
[ Katsuyu's Shock Value +3000 ]
[ Jiraiya's Shock Value... ]
The thunderous explosion, combined with the blinding flash of light, was visible to nearly everyone in Konoha.
As a result, the accumulated Shock Value was no longer limited to just Tsunade and Katsuyu.
However, given that only those at a quasi-Kage level or above could now generate Shock Value, the number of eligible contributors in Konoha had significantly decreased.
Still, none of that mattered at the moment.
Right now, there was only Tsunade.
And, of course, the slug.
"Tsunade-sama!"
A distance away, the remnants of several small slugs merged, forming one the size of a car, writhing toward the explosion's center.
"You're… still alive?!"
The slug's voice was filled with both joy and disbelief.
By all logic, Tsunade shouldn't have survived that level of explosion.
After all, Creation Rebirth didn't equate to absolute defense. If the damage was too overwhelming or inflicted too quickly, even regeneration wouldn't be fast enough.
Katsuyu slithered over Tsunade's weary form, immediately beginning treatment.
"…Huh?"
"This… this is Asura's power… Which generation of Asura was this again?"
"Oh, right."
"It was the last generation's Asura—Senju Hashirama."
"So, Tsunade must have transplanted his cells… No wonder she's grown so much stronger."
"But why… why does she also have another power inside her? It feels like a prison, trapping her within…"
"This sensation…? The Mangekyō Sharingan… The power of Indra?"
"…Hmph. Hagoromo really had troublesome sons."
Katsuyu's antennae twitched, exuding a troubled aura.
"A while ago, Gamamaru even sent someone to ask for my help in guiding fate back on track."
"Well then, I'll take Tsunade-sama back to the Shikkotsu Forest for treatment. After all, she's a crucial figure in fate's path."
With a puff, the slug vanished along with Tsunade.
Unlike those who awakened Wood Release through Hashirama's cells, Tsunade had never manifested it.
The others had gained Wood Release because Hashirama's cells had completely invaded and replaced their own.
The higher the proportion of Hashirama's cells in their body, the stronger their Wood Release abilities.
But Tsunade was different.
She already possessed Hashirama's bloodline.
Her own cells were highly compatible with Hashirama's, meaning she wasn't overtaken by them—thus, she never developed Wood Release.
Much to Danzo's frustration.
However, he soon discovered that despite not awakening Wood Release, Tsunade had still gained incredible benefits.
Her vitality, chakra reserves, and physical resilience had all surged to near-Hashirama levels.
From an omniscient perspective, her body was gradually evolving into Sage Physique—that was her true gain.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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