Chapter 486: Tailed Beasts and Nature

"Everyone, stay alert!"

Hanzo's voice cut through the battlefield, his usual confidence replaced by fear. His eyes remained locked on Minato, who stood radiating power in Sage Mode.

Rōshi frowned, sensing an unsettling change in the air, while Rasa, standing nearby, looked puzzled.

The trio halted their charge immediately.

"Boom!"

Minato, now fully immersed in Sage Mode, punched forward. The air itself seemed to ripple, forming an invisible force that radiated outward.

Even Hanzo, a seasoned ninja, couldn't discern the exact nature of Minato's attack.

"Lava Release: Granite Wall!"

Reacting swiftly, Rōshi spewed molten lava from his mouth. The magma solidified instantly, forming a barrier between him and the incoming force.

"Bang!"

The newly formed barrier shuddered violently before crumbling into pieces as if struck by an invisible hammer.

"What… what is this?"

Rasa's voice trembled slightly. He had witnessed Minato's punch, but the collapse of Rōshi's solid granite barrier seemed inexplicable.

Among the onlookers, only Jiraiya, a fellow practitioner of Sage Mode, understood what had just transpired.

"Using shadow clones to condense sage chakra and entering Sage Mode at such incredible speed?" Jiraiya thought, both amazed and envious. Minato's mastery of Sage Mode surpassed his own, allowing him to enter the state far faster and with greater precision.

Even with this advantage, Jiraiya knew Sage Mode had its limits—Minato could sustain it for only five minutes.

Five minutes to turn the tide against three S-ranked ninjas… Can he really pull it off?

Still, something puzzled Jiraiya. Minato had mentioned a new technique earlier. What could it be?

Rōshi, meanwhile, felt a chill run down his spine. The attack that had shattered his barrier was invisible, yet he had sensed its presence through the molten chakra coursing through his body.

Minato narrowed his eyes as he observed Rōshi. Hanzo and Rasa, formidable as they were, couldn't detect his Frog Kumite strikes, yet Rōshi had clearly perceived their flow.

How is this possible?

Sage Mode attacks, fueled by natural energy, were imperceptible to ordinary sensory ninjas. Yet Rōshi could somehow sense them.

"Could it be the tailed beast?"

A theory began to form in Minato's mind. The tailed beasts were unique entities with immense chakra reserves, capable of reforming after death. Their origins and connection to natural energy had always been shrouded in mystery.

Minato glanced briefly at Rōshi, his curiosity piqued. The Four-Tails Jinchūriki's ability to detect natural energy might point to a deeper link between tailed beasts and the natural world—a connection yet unknown to ninja society.

The thought lingered, intertwining with other questions Minato had recently unearthed: the mysterious disappearance of the Senju clan, the identity of the masked man who attacked Konoha, and the deeper secrets of the tailed beasts.

This war… this chaos… there's something bigger at play, Minato mused, his resolve hardening.

Hanzo's voice broke through Minato's thoughts.

"Can you sense those invisible attacks?" Hanzo demanded, stepping closer to Rōshi.

"Yes," Rōshi replied, his tone tinged with unease. The molten chakra in his body allowed him to detect the otherwise imperceptible movements of natural energy.

Hanzo's face lit with grim determination. "Good. Let's put that to use."

He turned to Rasa, who nodded silently, already forming hand seals to ready his golden sand.

"Then let's test this!" Hanzo bellowed, charging toward Minato.

Rasa manipulated the gold sand around him, creating shuriken-like projectiles that hovered protectively as he followed Hanzo.

Minato readied himself, drawing upon Frog Kumite once more. His attack, invisible to the naked eye, surged toward Hanzo.

"Four o'clock!" Rōshi shouted, his voice cutting through the din.

Hanzo adjusted his trajectory instantly, veering to the side. A sharp tingle grazed his body, the only sign of the narrowly avoided attack.

It worked!

Hanzo's heart raced, but a glimmer of satisfaction crossed his face. For the first time, Minato's invisible strikes had been evaded.

"Gold Dust Shuriken!"

Rasa's golden projectiles shot forward, forming a defensive screen around Hanzo. The glinting sand moved in synchronized arcs, warding off Minato's rapid advances.

Minato smiled faintly as he observed their coordinated efforts. "Interesting."

He launched another Frog Kumite strike, prompting Rōshi to call out another direction. Once again, Hanzo dodged, narrowly escaping the attack.

The battle continued in this manner, with Minato launching strike after strike, and Rōshi guiding Hanzo out of harm's way.

However, Minato wasn't deterred. With each exchange, his understanding grew clearer.

There's definitely a connection between the tailed beasts and natural energy, he thought. Rōshi's ability to sense his attacks was beyond normal sensory perception, and the tailed beast chakra within him seemed to be the key.

Jiraiya, meanwhile, grew increasingly anxious.

"Minato, what are you waiting for? You're running out of time!" Jiraiya called out, his voice tinged with urgency.

What Jiraiya didn't know was that Minato's Sage Mode wasn't bound by the usual five-minute limit.

...

==============================================

Support me at p@treon.com/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.

=============================================