Chapter 54
"Huh!" Shiranami snorted and quickly backed away. He no longer had any intention of fighting Saitama. This Konoha kid was a monster. In such a short time, he had grown significantly stronger. Shiranami knew he was no longer a match for him.
But Saitama wasn't about to let him retreat. His sword slashed again and again, each strike leaving a deep gash. Blood began to pour from Shiranami's side.
"Hiss..." Shiranami narrowed his eyes, as if resigning himself to fate. Gritting his teeth, he charged forward instead of retreating, raising his weapon in a desperate attempt to exchange blows.
"Hmph." Saitama twisted midair, gracefully dodging the attack. As he flipped, his blade came down from above.
Schk!
The blade pierced the back of Shiranami's neck, crackling with lightning as it severed the spinal cord cleanly. With no more resistance, Saitama pulled his blade free as he landed, already scanning the battlefield for his next target.
General-level Shinobi no longer posed a threat to him.
Scenes like this played out all across the battlefield. Sand Shinobi had been besieging the Konoha forces with confidence and momentum, but somewhere along the line, large numbers of Konoha reinforcements had burst in, turning the tide and throwing the Sand ranks into disarray.
However, the Sand Shinobi were seasoned veterans. Though caught off guard at first, their numerical superiority helped them regroup quickly, and the clash continued to escalate in brutality and chaos.
At a distance, the battlefield trembled from another intense duel. The giant serpent Manda roared in pain, his massive body covered in deep wounds as he fended off several elite jonin. But his movements remained swift and precise—it was clear that these injuries hadn't come from them alone.
Elsewhere, Orochimaru and the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, were locked in fierce combat. Sand torrents clashed with enormous serpents, and rivers of glinting gold dust chased after Orochimaru's elusive figure. Neither held back. The area around them was cleared—no ninja dared interrupt a battle between such monsters.