Grind is My Ninja Way

*Thump thump thump~*

Heavy and hurried footsteps echoed in the forest.

With each step Roshi took, he would burn a scorched black pit on the ground. Any nearby flowers, plants, or trees would be instantly ignited.

At this moment, Roshi was like a descending fire god, awe-inspiring.

Looking at the layer of lava armor on his body and feeling the intense heat emanating from it, Seimei frowned, having no intention of making any contact with it.

Putting away his short sword, Seimei used the Body Flicker Technique and directly rushed into the crowd.

Seeing this, Roshi shouted, "Get out of my way!"

As he spoke, he chased after Seimei.

The Iwa ninjas along the way didn't dare to block his path. They scattered to both sides like startled rabbits, their footsteps quick.

But Seimei still needed to use them to restrain Roshi. How could he easily let them leave?

So, he turned his body and charged towards the Iwa ninjas who had just dodged.

Nagashima Tomojiu immediately saw through his intentions. So, while ordering these Iwa ninjas to attack, he formed hand seals and used ninjutsu to stop Seimei from getting close.

*Puchi* *Puchi* *Puchi*

Rock spikes abruptly emerged from the ground, stabbing towards Seimei's vital points and blocking his path.

Seimei seemed to have no way to escape, but since he dared to charge into the formation, he naturally had some confidence.

With his Sharingan fully activated, the process of these rock spikes appearing was like slow-motion playback. Seimei's figure flickered continuously, easily avoiding them.

Not only these rock spikes but also the ninja tools and projectiles thrown by other Iwa ninjas were all precisely dodged by Seimei.

The power of the Sharingan was fully displayed by Seimei in this chaotic situation.

With a "swoosh," Seimei flashed into the crowd.

Instantly, the crowd was in chaos again.

Roshi behind them wanted to attack several times, but seeing the Iwa ninjas around Seimei, he held back.

As a Jinchuriki, many people in the village already had prejudices against him.

If he launched indiscriminate attacks now and hurt his own people, the public opinion would likely explode.

Thinking of that scene, Roshi couldn't help but shiver.

It was said that words were the sharpest weapon. If he fell into a situation where everyone pointed fingers at him, no matter how strong his heart was, he wouldn't be able to bear it.

Moreover, Iwagakure wasn't without the power to subdue him. Not to mention anything else, Onoki alone was enough to suppress him.

If he really angered the public and forced Onoki to take action, it would be a big problem.

With concerns in his heart, Roshi's movements naturally slowed down.

And as the one under pressure, Seimei naturally noticed the sudden change in Roshi's behavior and actions at the first moment.

So, a slight smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

Things were developing just as he had expected. The presence of these Iwa ninjas did make Roshi hesitant to attack with full force.

Next, he just needed to continue stalling for time and wait for Namikaze Minato to arrive.

...

Time passed by.

The Iwa ninjas on the field became more and more scattered, and the time it took him to move from one place to another became longer and longer.

Correspondingly, the gaps for Roshi to attack also became longer and longer.

Gradually, Seimei's heart started to race.

*Bang*

Another magma ball smashed over.

Seimei dodged with a Body Flicker and then used the ninjutsu - Wind Release: Wind Blade!

This was the only ninjutsu among all his techniques that could injure Roshi. The high attack power of the wind blade could precisely cut through Roshi's lava armor.

Initially, when he used this technique, it caught Roshi off guard, leaving a shallow scar on him.

But now, it could only delay him for a bit.

Roshi, facing the rapidly approaching wind blade, focused his mind and immediately mobilized more chakra, thickening the lava layer facing the wind blade.

*Zizizi~*

The wind blade cut into it, making a harsh sound, but ultimately failed to cut through Roshi's lava armor.

After the wind blade dissipated, Roshi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, he continued to chase after Seimei.

As for why he didn't dodge?

The reason was simple. Although the lava armor enhanced his attack and defense, it restricted his movement speed.

And the Wind Release: Wind Blade happened to be known for its speed. Roshi simply couldn't dodge it.

So, he could only endure it head-on.

It was precisely because of this that Seimei could use this technique to buy time.

A few more minutes passed, and the battle between Roshi and Seimei suddenly intensified.

There was no other way. There were no Iwa ninjas around, so Seimei could only face him alone.

And Roshi, no longer restrained, relied on his vast amount of chakra and used various large-scale Lava Release ninjutsu.

In a short while, he turned the surroundings into a lava inferno, filled with flames and flowing magma, greatly limiting Seimei's dodging space.

It was only thanks to Seimei's powerful Sharingan that he could seize the gaps in the opponent's technique execution to dodge; otherwise, he might really have been defeated.

Of course, it was nonsense to say that he could be killed.

With his current strength, although there were people in the ninja world who could kill him, there were definitely not many, and the opponent was definitely not one of them.

If it weren't for the fact that Lava Release was too effective against his fighting style, and the lava armor restricted the use of his Sharingan genjutsu, with the opponent's strength, he wouldn't have been forced into such a situation.

However, this also served as a reminder for Seimei.

'Perhaps, the development of the third chakra nature should be put on the agenda.'

As for which nature to develop?

Previously, Seimei had planned to develop Lightning Release, wanting to further strengthen his body with Lightning Release.

Now...

Seimei planned to develop Water Release chakra.

Otherwise, it would still be troublesome to encounter similar opponents in the future.

Seimei didn't want to be so aggrieved again.

Moreover, Water Release ninjutsu was also known for its wide coverage.

As long as he had enough chakra, he could completely use it as an opening move to create a suitable combat environment for himself.

Various thoughts flashed through his mind, and Seimei collected his thoughts, continuing to entangle with Roshi.

The Sharingan's powerful insight, coupled with his own agility, allowed Seimei to avoid being hit or injured, even though he couldn't directly confront Roshi, who was going all out.

And although Roshi wasn't afraid of Seimei's attacks, he also couldn't injure Seimei.

In this way, the situation became deadlocked.

Time continued to pass.

Just as Seimei was getting a bit impatient from waiting, a commotion suddenly arose from the outer Iwa ninjas, and then a figure appeared on the scene.

The newcomer was none other than Namikaze Minato.

He looked at the mess all over the ground and said to Seimei, "Sorry, I'm late. The situation on the north side is a bit bad. I'll go there first."

Seimei had actually anticipated this.

Because not long ago, he sensed the Five-Tails' violent aura in the north, and Namikaze Minato hadn't come over yet. At that time, he had this guess in his mind.

It was precisely because of this that he persisted until now.

Otherwise, he would have run away long ago. Why would he be here fighting Roshi to the death?

It was impossible for him to take the hit for someone else!

(End of this chapter)