115 Iron Sand World Method, Tangled in One's Own Web

Tsunade shot Orochimaru a fierce glare before charging straight at Jūbi. She knew all too well that her current state—fueled only by sheer rage and pain—couldn’t hold for much longer; any moment now, she might collapse. Before that happened, she had to crush one of the two S-rank rogue ninjas into a pulp. As for the rest, she’d leave it to Orochimaru. After all, they had faced life and death together countless times; they were not without a shred of understanding.

“Troublesome, troublesome. This bounty really isn’t easy to claim,” Jūbi said calmly, retracting eight massive black tendrils onto his back. Facing Tsunade’s full-on charge, the two masked beasts on his shoulders opened their jaws wide, unleashing blasts of wind and fire.

From their previous encounter, he had already grasped Tsunade’s unparalleled physical prowess and brute strength. Now, in her frenzied state, she was an even fiercer opponent in close combat; there was no way he could best her head-on. Quickly dispatching her was unrealistic; but if he could outlast her burst of power, she’d be nothing more than a frightened woman—a mere puppet to be killed at will.

Whistling winds fanned the flames as Jūbi’s ninjutsu spread across a surprisingly vast area. Even Tsunade’s constitution dared not cross through the inferno, forcing her to retreat. Seizing the moment, Jūbi summoned two more masked beasts, their elemental techniques poised and ready, forming a tight perimeter to keep Tsunade confined within a radius of over ten meters.

Had she been in full control of her mind, she might have broken through their defenses. But now, with only a shred of rationality left and attacking solely on instinct, she stood no chance against the seasoned Jūbi. Yet, even so, she had managed to drag out the battle.

—

Elsewhere, the fight between Sasori and Orochimaru raged on.

With a swift whoosh, a colossal tail whipped through the air like a giant whip, crashing down toward Sasori’s puppet, the Scarlet Haze.

Sasori narrowed his eyes as six metallic legs extended beneath Scarlet Haze, leaping just in the nick of time to evade the devastating blow.

The earth shook violently; rocks cracked open, leaving a long furrow in the ground where Scarlet Haze had just been moments before.

Missed once, but Jūbi’s Thousand Snakes remained undeterred. Two snake children contracted into needle-sharp points, scanning for the enemy like searchlights.

The giant whip-like tail lashed continuously, allowing no respite for the opponent.

The ground trembled and roared; the forest echoed with thunderous sounds. Scarlet Haze darted left and right like a flea, evading relentlessly.

As a life-preserving puppet machine, Sasori had not equipped it with many offensive capabilities, but it excelled in evasion and mobility.

Thus, though the situation seemed dire, Sasori was not in immediate danger.

Of course, this was only against the giant snake summon. Above, Orochimaru loomed, surveying the battle below, yet to make his move.

Inside Scarlet Haze, Sasori’s eyes flickered. The Third Kazekage puppet flapped its iron wings and extended several massive blades from its arms, diving toward Orochimaru with thunderous speed.

“Heh… I’ve been waiting for you,” Orochimaru sneered, drawing the Kusanagi sword from his waist. As the Third Kazekage puppet closed in, he shifted from absolute stillness to swift motion, swinging the blade in a deadly arc.

One-on-one, even one against two, defeating Sasori and Jūbi was not difficult. The real worry was if these two cowards, valuing their lives above all, fled at the first sign of trouble.

Both were notorious for their survival instincts, and Orochimaru knew well how swiftly they could vanish.

Take, for example, the Third Kazekage puppet: just its ability to fly rendered him helpless.

Therefore, before extinguishing their will to fight, he had to either severely injure them instantly or eliminate all their escape routes.

Orochimaru doubted he could do the former but was confident about the latter.

He had been charging this moment for a long time, his body enhanced by Sage Mode. This time, he intended to shatter the Third Kazekage puppet with a single strike.

In a flash, the puppet veered aside, narrowly avoiding being cleaved in two.

However, the arm wielding the massive blades was caught in the blow; the tough iron sand armor shattered like paper.

Inside Scarlet Haze, Sasori’s expression remained blank. As a human puppet himself, he lacked such defensive capabilities, but the cold glare in his eyes betrayed his grim mood.

Orochimaru of Konoha was no stranger to Sasori; the Sand Village had clashed with Konoha multiple times in the Ninja Wars, and Sasori had fought on the battlefield before his defection.

Whether from memory or intelligence gathered later, Orochimaru was known as a ninjutsu specialist; his taijutsu was ordinary at best.

Hence, Sasori had not let the Third Kazekage puppet engage Orochimaru in a ninjutsu duel but chose close-quarters combat instead.

Yet, to his shock, just a single encounter left his puppet gravely damaged.

How was this possible?

Human stamina was limited; Orochimaru couldn’t master both ninjutsu and taijutsu simultaneously.

Suddenly, Sasori recalled the rumor from the black market—information he and Jūbi had dismissed as nonsense.

“That bastard… he really wounded the Fourth Raikage?” Sasori’s eyes flickered with disbelief. Yet, judging by the Eight-Tails jinchūriki’s previous display and Orochimaru’s recent sword strike, it was likely true.

Realizing this, Sasori decided not to prolong the fight. His puppet was held back by Jūbi’s Thousand Snakes, and he couldn’t handle Orochimaru alone. Continuing would only endanger himself.

Claiming the bounty was a pastime; unlike Jūbi, he wasn’t obsessed with money to the point of risking his life.

“Magnet Release: Iron Sand World Technique!” Sasori made a swift decision, commanding the Third Kazekage puppet to unleash the most potent magnet release technique.

Countless iron sands spewed from the puppet’s mouth, coalescing into a sphere in midair. Moments later, iron spears shot out, branching and stretching in all directions, sealing off all escape routes around Orochimaru’s head with piercing sharpness.

Orochimaru’s eyes gleamed as he formed hand signs. “Sage Art: Inorganic Rebirth!”

A rumble rose as a stone wave surged upward from the earth, rolling forward like a calm sea, sweeping toward the barrage of iron spears.

Where ordinary earth release failed against magnetically charged iron spears, this stony torrent slowed them as if mired in a swamp.

Sasori was stunned. He knew the full power of this magnet release technique but didn’t expect it to be stopped.

Still, his objective was achieved: the Iron Sand World created a scaffold that fully immobilized the Thousand Snakes. With the layer of earth added, it became a complete cage.

Trapped by his own design.

“Heh, we’ll meet again next time,” Sasori said, glancing at Orochimaru as he commanded the Third Kazekage puppet to dive down, ready to whisk him away.

But at that moment, a muddy torrent mixed with debris erupted, blasting toward the Third Kazekage puppet.