Naruto: Different Path

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Naruto said to Tsunade, "Lady Hokage, I must head to the other battlefield immediately. I'm worried that Jiraiya-sensei might be in danger."

Tsunade nodded, sharing his concern for Jiraiya's safety. After gathering Sage Chakra, Naruto vanished from sight. 

The Konoha shinobi watched in awe as he disappeared, some female ninjas in the back blushing in admiration.

Meanwhile, Jiraiya had been dominating his battle until now. However, Iwagakure's defensive strategies made it difficult for him to claim victory. 

The arrival of the Tsuchikage, along with a group of elite jonin, completely turned the tide of the battle. 

Recognizing the Tsuchikage's formidable strength, Jiraiya stepped up to confront him personally, immediately activating Sage Mode. 

This explained the earlier sudden disappearance of Fukasaku, the Toad Sage who had been assisting Naruto with training.

The Tsuchikage, though short in stature, floated in midair, drawing all eyes to him. 

A young ninja asked Kakashi, "Kakashi-senpai, who's that old man floating in the sky?"

Kakashi replied gravely, "That's the Tsuchikage of the Land of Earth—a legendary user of Kekkei Tota. Stay far away from him, or you won't survive."

Hearing this, the surrounding shinobi quickly distanced themselves, leaving only a handful of stronger ninjas nearby. 

Kakashi nodded toward Jiraiya and said, "It's all yours now. Numbers won't make a difference here."

Jiraiya replied, "Leave this to me." The remaining ninja swiftly retreated.

Seeing this, the Tsuchikage chuckled, "Jiraiya, it seems you know my reputation well." 

After all, I've lived long enough that most people are familiar with my strength. 

I see you've been gathering chakra with your hands—what sort of powerful technique are you preparing?"

From the moment the Tsuchikage appeared, Jiraiya had been building up his chakra. 

Now, it was ready. Pressing his hands to the ground, he activated the Summoning Jutsu, bringing Fukasaku and Shima onto his shoulders.

Fukasaku remarked, "Jiraiya-boy, you need to learn how to enter Sage Mode on your own. Your student, Naruto, has already surpassed you in that regard."

Jiraiya chuckled. "Really? That kid Naruto? I didn't expect him to complete it already. His chakra is indeed stronger than mine." 

"But for now, let's focus on the fight in front of us."

Seeing Jiraiya's transformation and his summons, the Tsuchikage smirked. 

"So, you've mastered quite an impressive technique. Let's see how powerful it is."

Jiraiya replied, "Against the Tsuchikage, I can't afford to hold back." Forming hand signs, he unleashed, "Sage Art: Fire Release—Giant Flame Bomb!" 

Strengthened by Sage Mode, the technique's size and power were enormous as a massive fireball roared toward the airborne Tsuchikage.

Sensing the fireball's intensity, the Tsuchikage conjured a brilliant white light between his hands. 

"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!" 

The cylindrical Dust Release technique completely nullified the flames and continued its trajectory toward Jiraiya.

Startled, Jiraiya thought, It can even disintegrate flames? 

He quickly evaded the attack, his Sage Mode-enhanced speed saving him from being obliterated.

"Sage Art: Hair Needle Senbon!" 

Jiraiya flanked the Tsuchikage and unleashed a barrage of hardened hair needles, raining them down in a wide area. 

This wasn't a technique that could be easily countered. 

However, the Tsuchikage once again relied on Dust Release to defend himself, not only neutralizing the attack but forcing Jiraiya to retreat.

Despite this, Jiraiya persisted, attacking and retreating while the Tsuchikage alternated between offence and defence. 

Worried about his ageing body, the Tsuchikage was cautious not to overextend his Dust Release's range.

Shima grumbled, "Jiraiya-boy, all you've been doing is running around! It's embarrassing."

Jiraiya replied sheepishly, "I don't have much of a choice. He's a Kekkei Tota user, and his techniques are unstoppable." 

"My attacks don't work against him, so I have to keep dodging. Thankfully, he hasn't widened the scope of his attacks; otherwise…"

Fukasaku interjected, "Looks like we'll have to use genjutsu."

Jiraiya exclaimed, "But I'm terrible at genjutsu!"

Fukasaku reassured him, "We're the experts. We just need a bit of preparation time, and judging by the situation, that should be doable."

Before they could proceed, Shima retorted, "No way! I'm not singing with you in front of all these people!"

Jiraiya sighed in exasperation but didn't argue further. For now, he focused on surviving.

The Tsuchikage, hovering above, also found Jiraiya to be a troublesome opponent. 

He conserved his chakra carefully, noting that without Jiraiya, Konoha's forces were at a severe disadvantage.

Meanwhile, Kakashi faced Akatsuchi, matching him evenly with his Sharingan and a variety of techniques. 

Guy was locked in combat with Kurotsuchi, unable to gain a clear advantage. He avoided using the Eight Gates recklessly. 

However, the elite Iwa shinobi accompanying the Tsuchikage overwhelmed Konoha's forces, injuring or killing several with each Earth Release technique.

Jiraiya and the Tsuchikage both noticed the dire situation. The Tsuchikage believed that maintaining the current state would secure their victory.

At that moment, a group of Iwa shinobi combined their Earth Release techniques, creating massive, unyielding stone walls that began closing in on dozens of Konoha ninjas, intending to crush them. 

Their jutsu was impervious to any counterattacks. Just as they were about to be annihilated, a streak of lightning shot from Kakashi's position, shattering the stone walls in an instant. 

Emerging from the dust, a masked figure clad in a black robe wielded a gleaming blade of lightning. The aura of his Lightning Release surpassed even that of the Raikage.

Many Kumogakure shinobi immediately recognized him. "That's him—the Black Lightning, the one who assassinated the Daimyo of the Land of Fire!"

The Tsuchikage turned his attention to the figure, his voice sharp with anger. "It's you!"

Seeing Naruto's arrival, Jiraiya finally let out a sigh of relief. He had already heard from Fukasaku that Naruto had surpassed him. 

The Tsuchikage was desperate to eliminate Naruto, blaming him for his current dire situation. 

However, he had no choice but to focus on Jiraiya's relentless attacks, leaving him unable to target Naruto.

Naruto quickly assessed the battlefield. The main threat to the Leaf Village came from the powerful Iwagakure Anbu. 

Channelling an immense amount of chakra, Naruto activated Sage Mode, enhancing the Raijin Armor he was already using. 

The lightning energy around him grew brighter and expanded to cover his entire body, creating a protective radius of about three meters. 

The armour, now resembling a giant lightning-clad warrior, radiated overwhelming power.

Naruto infused even more chakra into his Raijin Sword, making it glow intensely as the blade extended to a massive ten meters. 

His transformation forced the Konoha shinobi to retreat to avoid collateral damage. 

With a swift forward motion, Naruto launched himself toward the enemy Anbu. 

Anticipating his attack, the Iwa-nin erected several thick earth walls using Earth Release techniques. 

Yet, with a single thrust of the Raijin Sword, the walls crumbled into dust.

Before they could react, Naruto appeared in their midst, delivering a sweeping slash with his sword. 

The Anbu were engulfed in lightning and disintegrated into ash. 

In the blink of an eye, these elite warriors, who had previously pushed Konoha to the brink of defeat, were no more. 

Konoha's shinobi stood in awe, unable to believe their eyes. Meanwhile, the Iwa-nin was paralyzed with fear. Was this truly the power of a human?

Despite their terror, the Iwa-nin displayed their characteristic fearlessness. 

A group charged at Naruto, only to meet the same fate—obliterated by his Raijin Sword. 

Akatsuchi performed his ultimate technique, Earth Release: Mountain Stone Technique, summoning two massive mountains to crush Naruto. 

Yet, the lightning from Naruto's Raijin Armor and Raijin Sword shattered the mountains instantly.

Akatsuchi gasped, "Impossible! He destroyed my ultimate technique in mere moments!"

The Tsuchikage, still occupied with Jiraiya, glanced over just in time to witness Naruto's overwhelming display. 

He saw his elite Anbu lying in pools of blood, their gazes filled with fear even in death. 

Rage consumed the Tsuchikage as he recalled Naruto's past transgressions, including the assassination of the Earth Daimyō. 

Unable to restrain himself, the Tsuchikage unleashed Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique, expanding its range to the maximum and sweeping it toward Jiraiya.

The wide radius of the attack left Jiraiya with no room to evade. Just as it seemed he would be consumed, he vanished, reappearing beside Naruto. 

Fukasaku exclaimed, "We're doomed! We couldn't avoid it in time!"

Relieved to have been saved, Jiraiya looked at Naruto and said, "It seems you've truly surpassed me, your master. You saved us this time."

Enraged by Naruto's repeated interference, the Tsuchikage gathered his remaining strength and launched another Dust Release attack at him. 

Yet Naruto effortlessly evaded using the Flying Raijin Technique. 

However, the continuous battle and excessive use of chakra had taken a toll on the Tsuchikage. 

He landed heavily on the ground, clutching his back in pain and groaning, "My old back! It feels like it's breaking!" 

Two Iwa-nin hurried to his side, helping him stand. The Tsuchikage was now incapable of further combat.

Despite their leader's condition, Iwa-nin continued to fight ferociously. 

Noticing the dire situation, a Yamanaka clan member discreetly communicated with the Konoha forces, signalling them to retreat behind Naruto. 

Once the Leaf shinobi had withdrawn, Naruto summoned two shadow clones, and all three simultaneously activated Sage Art: Raging Water Wave. 

Augmented by Sage Mode, torrents of water surged like massive rivers, sweeping across the battlefield.

Although some Iwa-nin attempted to counter with Earth Release techniques, only the most powerful could divert or block the raging water. 

Many were engulfed and disappeared into the deluge, though a significant number managed to survive. 

As the waters calmed, the battlefield turned eerily silent. Standing on the water's surface, both Konoha and Iwa-nin were soaked from head to toe.

Naruto's Sage Mode dissipated as his chakra reserves were nearly depleted. 

Observing this, Jiraiya urged, "Fukasaku and Shima, now's the time to merge with Naruto!"

Fukasaku replied, "That's impossible due to the Nine-Tails' interference, but Naruto has found his solution."

Naruto quickly unsealed a scroll, summoning one of his distant shadow clones from Konoha. 

Releasing the clone, its accumulated Sage chakra returned to Naruto, reactivating Sage Mode. 

Shima marvelled, "What a brilliant workaround! He's truly found a way to bypass the fusion issue!"

Naruto, reinvigorated, created two more shadow clones while channelling immense energy into his Raijin Sword. 

His clones split off to either side, forming a coordinated attack. 

Lightning surged from the sword as Naruto and his clones invoked Sage Art: Thunder Purgatory. 

The entire battlefield erupted in blinding lightning, turning the water below into a lethal sea of electricity. 

The immense power devastated the remaining Iwa-nin. Only a select few, shielded by the Tsuchikage's Dust Release, managed to survive.

With most of Iwa's forces obliterated, the Tsuchikage, heavily weakened, commanded a retreat. 

Naruto prepared to pursue, but Jiraiya stopped him. "Let it go, Naruto. This battle is already won."

Understanding Jiraiya's reasoning, Naruto nodded, letting the surviving Iwa-nin flee.

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