Naruto: Manipulation-Chapter 130: One Hand! He Only Used One Hand!

If the turbulent waves of the sea suddenly calm, then beneath the surface, even greater storms must be brewing.

Even though Shigen merely manipulated natural energy to slow Jiraiya's movements, everyone knew that the next move would decide the battle.

And yet...

They felt powerless to resist.

"Damn it..."

Jiraiya forced a bitter smile. The immense pressure weighing down on him felt as heavy as a mountain. There was still an unwillingness in his heart—a regret that he could not accomplish what he had hoped for in this battle.

"I can't even move my feet?"

He had gathered...

Quite a bit of intelligence.

But all it did was make him realize how weak he was.

"Is he about to use some terrifying technique?"

Shima glanced at Shigen with worry.

"Forget it!"

Fukasaku, seeing Jiraiya's dejected expression—something he had never seen before—bit his lip like a stern elder and made a decision.

"No matter what, we have to break Jiraiya free from the natural energy binding him! If we unleash a large-scale, powerful jutsu, it will disrupt the balance!"

"Go all out! Use that move!"

Fukasaku opened his mouth wide!

Jiraiya and Shima didn't hesitate any longer. They quickly followed Fukasaku's lead, preparing to unleash a terrifying Sage Art!

However...

They were too late!

The ground beneath them suddenly split apart!

Jiraiya and the two toad sages barely had time to react before they felt an eerie force locking onto them—chunks of earth surged up, sticking to Jiraiya's body!

"Chibaku Tensei."

Shigen, who had raised his hand, finally clenched his fist.

Under his control, Jiraiya and the two sages were rapidly sealed within a mass of earth and rock, forming a sphere that floated in mid-air!

Compared to normal Earth Release sealing techniques...

Chibaku Tensei was nearly impossible for an ordinary person to escape!

Jiraiya and the two sages struggled desperately, but there was no breaking free. They could only watch helplessly as it all unfolded!

Fortunately...

Shigen had no intention of killing them.

However, by the time Shigen released Chibaku Tensei and Jiraiya, along with the two sages, collapsed onto the ground, exhausted and utterly spent, they were immediately hit with another crushing blow.

"Shigen is so strong!"

Naruto rushed toward Shigen, his face full of astonishment as he shouted excitedly,

"He beat Jiraiya-sensei using only one hand!"

And...

That was indeed the truth.

At least, in the eyes of a child.

Whether Shigen cast ninjutsu, used the Rinnegan's abilities, or even wielded his Chakra Scalpel—he had only ever used one hand.

Even though...

In Naruto's mind, Jiraiya was already incredibly powerful.

Jiraiya's jutsu were devastatingly strong. No matter how powerful an attack he used, even summoning a toad the size of a mountain...

It didn't matter.

Shigen could neutralize everything with just a simple raise of his hand. His techniques were not only stronger than Jiraiya's, but they also looked cooler!

He was practically...

A god!

"Shigen is truly amazing!"

Naruto clung to Shigen's leg, showering him with praise.

"He only used one hand! Jiraiya-sensei didn't stand a chance!"

"Hey, hey, hey..."

Jiraiya's eye twitched.

Wait a second—

Did this brat even understand what had happened?!

Did he have any idea how many abilities Shigen had actually used?!

Yes...

On the surface, it looked like Shigen had only used one hand.

But every time Shigen raised his hand, he unleashed an extremely powerful technique. It was just that none of his jutsu required hand seals—making it seem as if he was effortlessly casting them.

"..."

Jiraiya tried to think of a way to correct Naruto's misunderstanding.

But...

He quickly gave up.

Because Naruto wasn't focusing on the danger of the battle—he was more concerned with understanding things he didn't quite get.

For example...

The technique known as Shinra Tensei.

Since the first use of Shinra Tensei had been weaker, Naruto hadn't felt anything when it was cast. His very cooperative Jiraiya-sensei had simply been sent flying.

"That jutsu is called Shinra Tensei."

"The second time I used it, I increased its power."

Shigen casually ruffled Naruto's hair as he explained Shinra Tensei—providing both Jiraiya and Naruto with valuable information.

"Each use of Shinra Tensei requires a five-second interval, and I can adjust its power."

"Ohh~"

Naruto nodded as if he understood.

Meanwhile, Jiraiya quickly committed this crucial intel to memory.

This was...

A missed opportunity.

If he had known before the battle, perhaps things wouldn't have gone so poorly.

Jiraiya was already analyzing Shigen's weaknesses.

In fact...

He had begun formulating a strategy to counter him.

Step one:

Find a way to bait out Shinra Tensei.

Step two:

Use ninjutsu to trick Shigen into absorbing chakra.

Step three:

While Shigen is absorbing ninjutsu, either rush in or use Shima's Tongue Bind to pull him in and break his Reanimation body.

From a theoretical standpoint, this plan was highly feasible.

But in a real battle...

Just getting past Shigen's first layer of defense, his overwhelming ninjutsu, was already incredibly difficult.

"..."

Jiraiya suddenly thought of his former student—Minato Namikaze.

If Minato were still alive, he would have had a very high chance of defeating Shigen.

Because Minato's Flying Thunder God allowed for instantaneous movement, he could evade Shigen's attacks.

As long as he could bait out Shinra Tensei...

Minato could teleport directly to Shigen and finish him off.

In fact...

Jiraiya wasn't the only one thinking of Minato.

Far away in the Land of Fields, Orochimaru was also thinking of Minato.

As Orochimaru ordered Kabuto to search for strong shinobi corpses, he was simultaneously prying into the secrets of the Rinnegan from Obito.

Coincidentally...

Orochimaru came to the same conclusion as Jiraiya.

To defeat Shigen...

They needed a space-time user who could close the distance and kill him in one strike!

"Are you joking?"

Obito scoffed at Orochimaru's plan.

He recalled the only two times he had ever lost a battle after gaining his Mangekyō Sharingan.

With a deep voice, he revealed a piece of critical information:

"That bastard Shigen... can also use the Flying Thunder God."

"..."

Orochimaru's expression darkened immediately.

This was troublesome.

He knew just how difficult it was to deal with a space-time user.

But before long, Orochimaru's lips curled into a sly smile as he licked them.

"That only means... we need a space-time user of our own."

"Unfortunately..."

Orochimaru let out a sigh, thinking about his former rival.

"I can't use Edo Tensei to revive Minato Namikaze."

"Perhaps..."

Orochimaru recalled a highly classified secret he had obtained from Danzo.

"Minato used the Reaper Death Seal before he died. His soul was devoured by the Shinigami instead of entering the afterlife, which is why Edo Tensei can't summon him."

"Even if you could revive him..."

Obito sneered at Orochimaru's delusions.

"Do you think you could control his will?"

"..."

Orochimaru's slitted pupils narrowed.

That was...

Indeed a problem.

Because Edo Tensei still needed refinement.

He had to find a way to allow the resurrected shinobi to retain their full strength—while still keeping them under his control.

Especially...

For someone like Hashirama Senju.

The cells of the First Hokage were scattered everywhere, making it incredibly easy to use Edo Tensei to revive him. The real difficulty lay elsewhere—

If his strength was too great, he would be impossible to control.

But if his power was too weak, then he wouldn't pose any threat to Shigen.

"I need more time."

Orochimaru could only sigh regretfully. He planned to continue refining Edo Tensei while also researching the Reaper Death Seal, hoping to uncover a way to bypass it.

"After all, based on the intel you just provided..."

"The Shigen we're up against is a space-time jutsu user."

"That means I need to find a way to Edo Tensei summon Minato Namikaze..."

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"Do as you wish."

Obito fell silent for a moment before replying indifferently, as if he no longer cared about the teacher he had once killed with his own hands.

However...

"We only have seven or eight years at most."

Obito wasn't willing to wait indefinitely for Orochimaru's research.

He recalled a piece of information Kisame had relayed to him and spoke in a cold tone:

"According to intel from the Akatsuki, in order to protect the Nine-Tails, Shigen has personally gone to Konoha."

"Konoha?"

Orochimaru's eyes flickered.

It seemed...

There might be a way to deal with Shigen.

Of course.

Before an actual plan could be put together...

This hypothetical plan had to include a space-time user.

Either Minato Namikaze or Tobirama Senju had to be resurrected.

The problem was...

Neither of them could be revived via Edo Tensei.

It wasn't as if they could just rely on Obito, right?

Sure, Obito was also a space-time user, but he was far too unreliable...

Orochimaru didn't doubt Obito's strength.

What he doubted was Obito's mindset—

The man always spoke and acted as if the entire world should bow to his will.

That kind of arrogance...

Made it hard to trust him.

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