"Jonin Mokgetsu, are you alright after using such a powerful Combined Ninjutsu?" A Konoha Jonin asked when they were about to set out for support.
"The enemies over by Lord Jiraiya's side are strong. It would be dangerous if you're not in good condition."
Mokgetsu smiled and thanked them, saying, "It's fine, I've already seized the opportunity to recover some Chakra. It won't affect the battle."
With Mokgetsu saying that, the Konoha Jonin nodded and didn't say more, joining Mokgetsu and the others in rushing toward the explosion site.
However, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
"Strong, handsome, humble, and values comrades. If he weren't so low-key, he would probably be famous throughout Konoha already."
Although he had no prior interaction with Mokgetsu, he was now very willing to become friends with Mokgetsu if they survived the war.
Since they were all Jonin, their movement speed was extremely fast. They soon arrived at the battlefield of Jiraiya and the Jinchuriki.
When Mokgetsu and the others arrived, both sides seemed to have just engaged in an intense battle. Everyone looked disheveled, and there were several corpses of Hidden Rock Ninja and Konoha Ninja on the ground.
"Lord Jiraiya, we've already driven back the attacking Hidden Rock Squad and achieved a great victory, so we've come to support you specifically." The Konoha Jonin quickly reported to Jiraiya.
"Haha, well done!" Jiraiya laughed heartily.
Although he had anticipated it when he saw the Hidden Rock's signal, he was even happier to hear of a great victory.
Minato saw Mokgetsu approaching, somewhat surprised, but given the dire situation, he didn't go over to inquire.
"Did you hear that? You've already lost." Jiraiya, full of smiles, taunted the two Jinchuriki.
"As long as we're standing here, the Hidden Rock hasn't lost yet." Roshi said coldly.
He didn't take those Konoha Ninja seriously at all; in his eyes, it was just a matter of using one more Tailed Beast Ball.
"If we kill you all and break through the defense, the victory will be ours, Hidden Rock's." Han said calmly. He didn't believe Jiraiya could take on him and Roshi together.
What had just happened was merely a probing attack; they hadn't shown their true strength yet.
"Bold words, let me show you the power of Sannin Jiraiya." Jiraiya's mouth curled up, confident in his strength.
"You'll soon find out who the real braggart is." Roshi laughed when he heard Jiraiya and then directly unleashed the Tailed Beast Chakra inside him.
Boom! Boom!!
An extremely powerful presence suddenly rose. Just releasing the Chakra was enough to crack the ground under its force.
The nearly tangible red Chakra emerged around Roshi, eventually forming a gigantic monkey's head.
Seeing Roshi show his true abilities, Han beside him also went all out, releasing the Tailed Beast Chakra inside him, forming a huge white beast's head.
The moment the two unleashed their Chakra, a fierce wind arose, blowing Jiraiya's hair backward and lifting the dust on the ground, making the atmosphere heavy and tense.
"Is this the power of a Jinchuriki? What terrifying Chakra." A Konoha Ninja, seeing Roshi and Han's daunting aura, couldn't help but sweat from his forehead.
Their Chakra was so strong that it could be sensed without any Perception Ninjutsu.
Mokgetsu calmly appraised both of them.
[Name: Roshi]
[Chakra: 3,250,000 (???)]
[Skills: Lava Release (Master: 100/15,000) ...]
[Name: Han]
[Chakra: 3,650,000 (???)]
[Skills: Boil Release: Unrivalled Strength (Proficient: 2,200/2,500) ...]
Mokgetsu couldn't quite say if their stats were strong or not. On one hand, the skill proficiency of some strong Jonin was much higher. On the other hand, their abundant Chakra was exaggerated, surpassing the combined Chakra of everyone on Konoha's side.
"The Chakra quantity of the Tailed Beasts is indeed terrifying." Mokgetsu sighed inwardly. His appraisal could see the two's Chakra still surging.
Without the Tailed Beast, Roshi would be fine, while Han would merely be an average Jonin.
Because Roshi's Lava Release was his own, Mokgetsu could see his Master Level Lava Release skill, but Han's Boil Release was the ability of the Five-tails. Mokgetsu could only see the usage of Boil Release, not the skill itself.
When their Chakra reached over 5 million, it stopped increasing. Mokgetsu didn't know if this was their limit or the Four-tails and Five-tails' limit, but it was already a terrifying number in Mokgetsu's eyes.
This underscores the importance of skills. Even with such massive Chakra, the Jinchuriki were eventually captured by the Akatsuki. If Mokgetsu had that much Chakra, with his many powerful, highly proficient skills, he could single-handedly take on the Akatsuki.
"If you want to challenge us, bring the Nine-tailed Jinchuriki here; you're not qualified!" Roshi shouted with laughter, then began to condense the Tailed Beast Ball.
The ape's head opened its large mouth, and terrifying Chakra began to gather, eventually forming a small black sphere, which grew larger as Roshi continuously infused his Chakra into it.
On the other side, the Five-tailed Jinchuriki, Han, silently molded a Tailed Beast Ball, and the two black spheres continued to expand.
"It's different from last time, seems like they're really going all out this time. Minato, we need to retreat," Jiraiya said with a serious expression.
Previously, Roshi had used a Tailed Beast Ball, but it was much smaller compared to this, and this time even Han joined in.
"Everyone, come closer to me!" Minato sensed the terrifying power within the Tailed Beast Balls, his face changed drastically, and he quickly shouted.
He could feel the power of the black spheres was enough to instantly destroy the whole of Konoha. Such a terrifying attack, though he had great faith in Jiraiya's strength, he did not believe Jiraiya could block such a dreadful Tailed Beast Ball. Using the Flying Thunder God to dodge was the best strategy.
Jonin Mokgetsu was the first to rush to Minato's side. Although he could also run out of the attack range himself, it would expose his true strength. It was better to hitch a ride.
Minato's two teammates knew his capabilities and quickly moved toward him. Several Konoha Jonin were the last to arrive, but they managed to get close to Minato before the Tailed Beast Ball hit the ground.
"Flying Thunder God Jutsu!"
Minato swiftly covered the surrounding people with Chakra and left with them.
Whoosh!
Rumble!!!
A fierce explosion shot light straight into the sky, and the instant the Tailed Beast Balls hit the ground, the earth began to collapse rapidly, forming an enormous crater.
The commotion created by the two Tailed Beast Balls was so great that even though Minato and the others used the Flying Thunder God to escape, they could still see the terrifying explosion's white light and feel the slight tremors in the ground.
"Phew, have we arrived in the afterlife?" A slightly chubby, dark-skinned ninja couldn't help but quip.
"Clearly not, but if Minato hadn't mastered the Flying Thunder God, we'd probably be headed there," the black-haired ninja remarked.
Feeling the Tailed Beast Ball upfront allowed for understanding the importance of the Jinchuriki. He felt that if this was aimed at Konoha's ninja camp, no Barrier Defense Ninjutsu could possibly fend it off.
Minato gently exhaled; it was his first time experiencing the full power of a Jinchuriki's Tailed Beast Ball, and its power was truly horrifying.
If his ninjutsu had failed back then, everyone would have died under the Tailed Beast Ball.
"The power of the Tailed Beasts is so terrifying, and that kind of monster resides inside her..." Minato couldn't help but think of Kushina far away in Konoha, triggered by Roshi's final words.
Konoha wanted Kushina to unleash the Nine-tails' power, hence had her undergo special training.
"Thanks, Minato." Mokgetsu smiled and thanked Minato.
Mokgetsu's words pulled Minato out of his thoughts.
Minato replied with a gentle smile, "Helping companions during a fight is the right thing to do."
"I know you guys are close, but now's not the time for reminiscing. The rest of you return to guard the camp, Minato, teleport us back," Jiraiya pondered a tactical plan for a moment, then spoke.
After the Jinchuriki fully exert their power, regular Jonin won't be able to make a difference in the fight. Minato would waste extra Chakra using the Flying Thunder God to protect them. He planned to take his class, personally taught by him, to confront the two Jinchuriki.
"Master Jiraiya, I think I should stay and lend a small hand," Mokgetsu said proactively.
He didn't come over just to witness the power of the Tailed Beast Ball and leave.
"Jonin Mokgetsu is much stronger than us. The victory in this battle owes much to Jonin Mokgetsu. He severely injured Hidden Rock's Explosion Release Gari and killed many Hidden Rock Ninja."
To prevent Mokgetsu's goodwill from being misunderstood, the Konoha Jonin from the same battlefield briefly explained Mokgetsu's achievements in this battle.
"That Gari was actually defeated by you," Jiraiya expressed his surprise upon hearing that.
In Jiraiya's impression, Mokgetsu was merely a good cook with a decent talent for Fuinjutsu, just an ordinary Special Jonin. But Explosion Release Gari was no simple foe; aside from him, only Minato on the frontlines of the Land of Grass had the capability to single-handedly take on Explosion Release Gari.
"He underestimated me. Actually, I'm just slightly stronger than him," Mokgetsu said humbly.
"Never expected you to possess such strength," Jiraiya smiled heartily and patted Mokgetsu's shoulder.
"Then let's take them together and show those two Jinchuriki the power of Konoha Ninja!"
Minato's expression showed more surprise than Jiraiya upon hearing Mokgetsu's battle achievements. Just earlier, while fighting the Jinchuriki, he occasionally worried about Mokgetsu's situation on another battlefield. Unexpectedly, Mokgetsu turned out to be so strong, even defeating Explosion Release Gari.
"Mokgetsu, here's my Flying Thunder God Kunai. Take it first," Minato handed a Flying Thunder God Kunai to Mokgetsu.
Mokgetsu accepted it without fuss and thanked Minato.
"Everyone, get ready, we're going back," Minato reminded them, then used the Flying Thunder God after ten seconds.
Whoosh!
The scene rapidly changed before their eyes, and in the blink of an eye, Mokgetsu and the others returned to the battlefield, standing at the edge of the crater, while the two Jinchuriki stayed where they had just launched the Tailed Beast Balls.