"Ebara, you okay?" Tsunade asked, fending off a puppet, her voice laced with worry.
Though shocked by Ebara's strength—different from what she remembered—she was more concerned for his safety.
"I'm fine. She can't touch me," Ebara said casually.
He glanced at Tsunade's situation.
Under attack from two Sand ninjas, she held her own but bore several wounds.
"No need to drag this out with Chiyo. Let's end it quick," Ebara decided.
Chakra surged within him like a tide, his hands weaving seals like fluttering butterflies.
In a blink, he finished.
A transparent beam formed in his hand.
"Dust Release!" Chiyo gasped, horrified.
She knew Dust Release's power all too well.
Since developing it, Mu had only lost to the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju (Naruto canon).
Aside from Tobirama, no one matched him.
Even his rival, Gengetsu Hozuki, often ended in draws.
Seeing Dust Release again, Chiyo didn't dare hesitate.
Her fingers twitched, scattering the Chikamatsu Ten Puppets in all directions.
She moved swiftly, not even thinking of resisting.
Dust Release could reduce anything to molecules.
Almost no jutsu could withstand it.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World!"
The beam shot from Ebara's hand toward Chiyo.
It moved so fast it reached her in an instant.
With no escape, two puppets suddenly appeared behind her.
They slammed into her, knocking her away.
The puppets vanished in her place, disintegrated.
Rolling on the ground, Chiyo's shock lingered.
Though Dust Release wasn't inherited like other bloodline limits, blending Fire, Earth, and Wind chakra, only Mu and Onoki had ever mastered it.
Chiyo never imagined a third user—here, today.
No time for shock, she manipulated the remaining Chikamatsu… Eight Puppets.
Two had been destroyed saving her.
The eight puppets covered each other, attacking Ebara from four directions, preventing a single sweep.
They moved like lightning, closing in.
Ebara stayed calm, quietly forming seals.
When the puppets reached him, he was gone.
Chiyo's pupils contracted. "Space-time ninjutsu? No—Mu's Dustless Bewildering Cover!"
Her eyes flashed with dread.
Dust Release and Mu's elusive invisibility were his trademarks.
Ebara had both.
Chiyo almost wondered if Mu had reincarnated.
But then, alarm hit her.
"Murou Ichiro, Hana, get out of there!" she shouted to the ninjas attacking Tsunade.
Murou Ichiro, her prodigious son, a jonin despite his youth.
Hana, her daughter-in-law, disciple of the Second Kazekage, Shamon.
Chiyo's warning was fast, but Ebara was faster.
As her voice reached them, he struck.
"Earth Style: Dual Rock Fist!"
Rock coated his arms, smashing into Murou and Hana with titanic force.
Caught off guard, they couldn't defend.
They crashed to the ground like meteors, blood spewing, organs churning, instantly incapacitated.
Bang! Bang!
Tsunade seized the moment, shattering their puppets with two punches.
She and Ebara lunged at Murou and Hana, clearly not done.
"Three Treasures Suction!"
Three puppets formed seals, mouths opening to reveal "Buddha," "Monk," and "Law."
A hurricane-like suction erupted, pulling Ebara and Tsunade uncontrollably toward them.
They couldn't reach Murou and Hana.
Two puppets swooped in, each grabbing one of the fallen ninjas, retreating to Chiyo.
The remaining three puppets, weapons drawn, waited for Ebara and Tsunade to fall into their trap.
Tsunade, undeterred, swung her fist at them.
Ebara formed seals.
"Earth Style: Weighted Boulder Jutsu!"
His body became heavy as a mountain, immune to the suction.
Without pause, he continued.
"Fire Style: Flame Dance!"
A blaze erupted before Tsunade.
Fueled by the suction, it roared, engulfing two blade-wielding puppets.
Only one puppet faced Tsunade now.
"Die!" she roared.
Her fist met the puppet's long blade head-on.
In a stunning moment, the blade shattered like glass upon contact.
Tsunade's fist, unscathed, kept going.
The puppet dodged under Chiyo's control, narrowly avoiding a direct hit.
But even the graze caused it to disintegrate mid-flight.
All its parts turned to dust.
Ebara marveled. No wonder she's Hashirama's granddaughter. Good thing I've got cheats, or she'd dismantle me in a fight.
After crushing the puppet, Tsunade dodged.
The two fire-damaged puppets emerged, blades still gleaming, thrusting at her.
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"
A wall rose, shielding Tsunade from the blades.
It crumbled instantly, but Tsunade found an opening.
With a kick, she swept at the puppets.
Chiyo kept the suction going while making the puppets dodge.
Under heavy resistance, Tsunade's kick missed.
Her body was pulled toward the three puppets.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World!"
A beam shot up, hitting the three puppets first.
They vanished, as if they'd never existed.
The hurricane suction stopped.
Chiyo glanced at Ebara, then fled toward the Land of Wind with two puppets carrying her son and daughter-in-law.
Ebara was trouble enough, plus Hashirama's heir and the lurking threats (Jiraiya, Sawako).
Chiyo knew she had no chance.
With six of her Ten Puppets destroyed, her strength was crippled.
"Ebara's kid, huh?" she muttered. "Shokawa, you raised a hell of a son. We'll meet again on the battlefield."