The moment that dense darkness erupted, Jiraiya reacted instantly. Using the Body Flicker Technique, he widened the gap between himself and Diarmuid once more, retreating over twenty meters.
The second his feet touched the ground, he performed the Summoning Jutsu again.
Two small toads appeared, perched one on each of his shoulders—the two Great Toad Sages, Fukasaku and Shima.
"Jiraiya-boy? What's wrong?"
"Have you encountered a powerful foe? It's rare for you to summon us."
Fukasaku and Shima spoke simultaneously.
Then, they looked ahead and saw an enormous Rasengan being rapidly devoured by a black power they had never witnessed before.
"That guy is troublesome," Jiraiya said. "Especially that power thick with dark energy; it seems capable of completely absorbing ninjutsu!"
On the other side, the dark aura around Diarmuid gradually dissipated, his expression slightly helpless.
I wanted to get along with you as an ordinary ninja, but all I got was a gap in power. Fine, I'll stop pretending. I'm a cheater, and I'm coming clean.
Indeed, from the moment Diarmuid began fighting Jiraiya, he hadn't intended to "cheat." He wanted to properly experience the style of a top-tier ninja battle while accumulating combat experience and skills.
Against a regular Jiraiya, he could suppress him with raw strength. But once Jiraiya activated Sage Mode, even after only a few exchanges, Diarmuid could already feel the disparity.
In terms of using only "ninja power," Diarmuid was still too shallow. He hadn't been in contact with this energy for long, and while he had learned much, he was no match for a Sage Mode Jiraiya in any category.
Under these circumstances, he wouldn't be gaining any "experience," at best, he'd just be trading hits.
So, he had no choice but to "cheat."
"One move," Diarmuid suddenly said to the distant Jiraiya.
"What?" Jiraiya frowned, not quite understanding.
Diarmuid held up a single finger. "I'll give you one last chance to make a move."
"You aren't suggesting that after this one move, I won't have another chance to strike, are you?" Jiraiya said with a short laugh.
Is he really that confident?
"You could interpret it that way," Diarmuid replied after a thought, following with a smile of his own.
Jiraiya's expression turned solemn. He took a deep breath. "Sages, let's use that jutsu..."
"Hey, Jiraiya, that jutsu might actually kill him," Fukasaku said immediately.
The sage could tell that Jiraiya lacked bloodlust, and neither did the man across from them. The atmosphere between the two was bizarre, hard to put into words.
"He's very strong," Jiraiya replied first, then continued: "Besides, that inexplicable darkness of his absorbed my Great Flame Bullet earlier and just took in the Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan. Ordinary techniques probably won't break through. We have to use a jutsu with a larger coverage and greater scale to see if we can exceed the absorption limit of that dark technique."
This was Jiraiya's judgment. Since his previous attempts failed, it was logical to try and find the upper limit of Diarmuid's darkness by using the most powerful technique in his arsenal.
"Since you've put it that way!" Shima agreed, clasping her toad paws together.
Inside that tiny toad body, an incomprehensibly vast amount of natural energy began to surge.
Seeing this, Fukasaku said no more, likewise clasping his hands in a preparatory stance.
Jiraiya took a deep breath, hands slowly forming a seal. His chest and belly expanded as if something was desperate to be unleashed.
Watching from a distance, Diarmuid's brow twitched. He slowly raised his arm, dark energy leaking from between his fingers. It seemed he intended to cooperate with Jiraiya and take the technique head-on.
"Sage Art: Goemon!!!" Jiraiya roared.
As he finished his cry, he violently spat out a stream of liquid!
Oil!
Simultaneously, Fukasaku and Shima on his shoulders released their own ninjutsu. Fukasaku unleashed a flame from his mouth, a powerful Fire Release, resembling the Dragon Flame Jutsu.
Shima, meanwhile, utilized a powerful Wind Release.
Oil, Fire, and Wind!
Jiraiya's oil was instantly ignited by Fukasaku's flames. With the oil acting as an accelerant, the Fire Release reached an unprecedented level of power. Then, Shima's Wind Release merged into the fray.
Wind feeds fire!
When the three techniques were first unleashed, they didn't seem particularly intimidating. But now, fused together and bolstered by massive Sage power, they created an instant sensation of world-ending destruction.
The coverage was immense. Everywhere Diarmuid looked was a sea of fire. It was as if a blanket of flames was descending upon him in an overwhelming wave.
The fire hadn't even reached him yet, but the heatwave, capable of turning all things to ash, was already slamming into Diarmuid's face. This wasn't the mere intimidation of an ordinary Fire Release, nor was it just a matter of scale. The Sage power acted as a catalyst; this was no longer a common flame, but something imbued with a stronger, indescribable power.
However...
"It is indeed a powerful jutsu. But using it to test my darkness... Jiraiya, you made a mistake with this last move," Diarmuid whispered.
As he spoke, the dark aura leaking from his fingers expanded violently.
"Dark Annihilation: Abyssal Darkness!" Diarmuid's eyes filled with black mist as he gave a low command.
Diarmuid controlled a mass of darkness roughly the same scale as the Sage Art: Goemon with pinpoint precision. It was just enough to block every lick of flame outside the darkness.
Then, upon contact, the immense power of the flames was rapidly absorbed...
The originally surging fire began to shrink continuously under the shroud of darkness.
The expressions of Jiraiya and the two Toad Sages grew increasingly heavy. He can even absorb a Sage technique of Goemon's caliber?
"Unprecedented..." Fukasaku remarked with a sigh.
"What exactly is that dark technique?" Shima added in disbelief.
Jiraiya's face was exceptionally grim. "We might actually lose."
When both the darkness and the flames dissipated, Diarmuid's stylish figure, clad in his haori and hakama, remained standing in the same spot, not having moved an inch. A smile played on his lips. "My darkness is boundless. Thus far, I have never seen a power capable of breaking it... So, Jiraiya, you lose."
"So you really intend to defeat me with just one move?" Jiraiya asked, recalling Diarmuid's earlier words.
He had already used his "last move," and it had been useless. Although the ground was scorched black as far as the eye could see, Diarmuid was completely unharmed.
According to Diarmuid, Jiraiya wouldn't be given the chance for a second move.
Diarmuid didn't speak. Instead, his eyes gradually turned pitch black, even the whites being stained.
"A dojutsu?" Jiraiya thought in shock.
Dojutsu were rare in the shinobi world, usually being innate talents like those of the Uchiha or Hyuga clans.
"Abyssal Lock!" Diarmuid raised his palm toward Jiraiya.
As the words fell, he slammed his palm shut into a fist!
Jiraiya felt nothing physical, only an instinctive palpitations of the heart. He didn't even know how to defend against such a technique.
Before he could finish the thought, his vision went pitch black.
He could see nothing!
He couldn't even move!
"Genjutsu!?" Jiraiya cried out in surprise.
"No, it's not genjutsu!" Fukasaku and Shima spoke in unison from his shoulders.
The three of them were currently in a trinity state, each circulating their own chakra and Sage power. In such a state, it was impossible for a genjutsu to work.
"You can't move either?" Jiraiya asked.
"No. Even with the massive amount of natural energy I've gathered, I'm completely paralyzed. I can only speak. Jiraiya, what kind of monster have you provoked?" Fukasaku said helplessly.
"It must be some kind of sealing jutsu..." Shima analyzed.
From the outside, for Gama, for instance, Jiraiya and the two sages had been instantly swallowed by a darkness that appeared out of thin air. They were now encased in a rectangular, coffin-like shape, sealed tight inside.
However, since the toad sensed no killing intent and understood Diarmuid didn't intend to kill anyone, he didn't panic. He simply asked, "A sealing jutsu?"
"You could say that," Diarmuid responded after a thought.
He actually knew nothing about sealing jutsu, but since this technique had a powerful sealing effect, it could be considered one.
"Can they not break through, even with the power of the two sages combined with Jiraiya's?" the toad asked.
"I suspect not. Though I haven't encountered the power of other sages, so it's hard to make a definitive judgment. Perhaps there will be a turn of events?" Diarmuid said with a chuckle.
He didn't speak in absolutes, but the armored toad sighed. "No need to wait for a turn of events. You could kill them at any moment right now, so they've already lost. Let me speak on their behalf. We admit defeat, Diarmuid."
Diarmuid pondered for a moment. "If I capture the two Toad Sages, will Mount Myoboku teach me Senjutsu?"
The toad: "???"
"Hahaha, just kidding," Diarmuid laughed loudly.
His eyes returned to their normal state, and the distant Abyssal Lock dissipated. The figures of Jiraiya and the two sages reappeared.
"Is the seal undone?" Fukasaku asked.
"It's more like we were let out," Shima said, looking at Diarmuid.
Jiraiya scratched his head awkwardly.
Strong. Too damn strong! He'd entered Sage Mode and it was still useless!? In his memory, he had never seen anyone this powerful. Winning against him in a one-on-one was likely impossible.
"Jiraiya, I have a friend whose grandmother lived to be over a hundred years old. Do you know why?" Diarmuid suddenly asked.
Jiraiya hesitated, then said, "Because of a strong constitution?"
"No. Because she never meddled in other people's business," Diarmuid said with a grin.
After a short pause, Diarmuid continued, "Since we got along reasonably well before, I'll let it go this time. Consider this my advice: you look like the type who loves to meddle. Wouldn't it be better to just be a best-selling author? Don't go wading into muddy waters for no reason, or you'll eventually die because of it."
Jiraiya sighed. "I understand the logic, but sometimes I just can't help myself..."
"Take care. I expect we'll meet again. I hope next time, you'll be willing to tell me the location of Mount Myoboku," Diarmuid said with a smile. Then, his body became weightless as he slowly floated into the air and flew off into the distance.
"Is that the Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique?" Jiraiya watched the scene with concern. He didn't kill the Third Tsuchikage too, did he?