Chapter 35: Time Stop and Relocation

In this unremarkable grove, a massive gear appeared before Dan. It was ancient and heavy, as if it had endured countless vicissitudes of the world, turning relentlessly and slowly.

Whoosh!

A thought crossed Dan's mind, and his Stand power shot out like a streak of light, like a thin needle, lodging into one of the gear's teeth. The gear of time stopped. The entire world dimmed, and all things lost their original color.

One second, two seconds.

Three seconds, four seconds.

After a full five seconds, with a snap, the thin needle broke, and the gear of time resumed its rotation.

Finally.

Dan could now stop time for five seconds.

Compared to the previous two seconds, although it seemed like only three seconds were added, these three seconds allowed for much more to be done.

You must know.

In a ninja's battle, even 0.1 seconds could determine life or death.

Now, when Dan faced the likes of Tobi or Danzo, even if they mastered Izanagi, he could try to pluck out their Sharingan within the time stop, then kill them with a single punch.

Just think about it.

With a five-second time stop, combined with Dan's physical techniques and full output from his Stand, how many in the ninja world could withstand it?

Drip, drip.

Something fell on Dan's straw hat.

He looked up to see a dark sky with countless raindrops falling.

It was time to go home.

He walked into the grove, strolling along the path in the rain, heading towards Konoha.

The rain grew heavier, making the leaves rustle.

The rain falling from the sky formed lines, countless lines formed a net, and in the end, it was like a waterfall, pouring down from the sky.

In the primeval forest of the Land of Fire.

A woman in a dark green coat, wearing black high heels, was running in the rain.

Splat!

She stepped in a puddle on the ground, mud splashed onto her fair instep, dirtying her toes painted with red nail polish.

But Tsunade didn't care about these things now.

After being choked by Dan, it took her two days to recover, and the first thing she did was to track him.

Previously.

When Tsunade fought with Dan, she sprinkled a colorless and odorless powder she had personally prepared on him. No one but her could detect anything unusual.

She tracked him to find out his true identity.

However, it was raining now, and once the faint smell of the powder was washed away by the rain, Tsunade would lose track of him.

So she had to hurry.

Suddenly.

Tsunade's figure halted, she stopped in her tracks.

Because she saw a person standing in the rain with his back to her in the open space ahead.

The man was nearly two meters tall, wearing a straw hat and a cloak, his towering figure standing there gave a sense of oppressive heaviness like a mountain.

Yes, it was that guy.

At this time, the rain was pouring heavily, Tsunade's golden hair and clothes were soaked, clinging to her body, making her look as miserable as a drowned rat.

But that man, clearly also in the rain, was not wet at all.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed, and upon closer inspection, she found:

A layer of chakra was emanating from his body, forming a shield that repelled countless raindrops falling on him.

His entire body, whether it was his hair or skin, even including his straw hat and cloak, had become like lotus leaves.

Raindrops fell and quickly slid off, rolling away, taking the dust on his clothes with them.

His body was like a lotus leaf, clean and flawless.

This scene deeply shocked Tsunade and made her feel inferior.

His use of chakra was exquisite to the extreme.

Or rather, he had integrated the practice of a ninja into his daily life, even using the rain to practice chakra techniques, never relaxing for a moment.

Such a person was truly terrifying, no wonder he had developed such terrifying muscles.

This person was naturally Uchiha Dan.

In the rain.

"Sure enough, Tsunade, one of the Three Legendary Ninjas, was able to leave a tracking mark on me without me noticing," Dan spoke first, but didn't turn around.

"It's just a small trick, not worth mentioning," Tsunade shook her head, her eyes serious, and asked directly, "Are you a ninja of Konoha?"

"No," Dan answered straightforwardly. He was indeed from Konoha, but not a ninja, because he hadn't even graduated from the first grade of the Ninja Academy.

Upon hearing this, Tsunade frowned and fell into thought.

She thought for a moment, then asked again, "Then who are you really? Why do you have the Sharingan of the Uchiha and also know the Multiplier Technique of the Akimichi clan?"

"My name is Araki, I'm a bounty hunter," Dan answered.

Araki?

Upon hearing this name, Tsunade knew that it was most likely a code name, not his real name, but she didn't care.

Since she couldn't find out, she might as well take action.

She stepped on the accumulated water on the ground and walked towards Dan step by step, vowing to wash away her previous shame with the upcoming battle.

Feeling Tsunade's undisguised intent to fight, Dan sighed silently and decided to give her a warning, so he silently recited those two words in his heart.

Za Warudo!

In an instant.

Everything in the world turned gray, countless raindrops froze in mid-air, forming a curtain of transparent beads, creating a spectacle that no one had ever seen before.

Dan turned around.

Five meters away, Tsunade was raising her fist, her face full of fighting spirit, even the heavy rain couldn't extinguish the flames in her eyes.

Whoosh.

Dan lowered his center of gravity and dashed out.

After shattering many raindrops, he reached out his right hand, picked up Tsunade around her waist, and hoisted her onto his shoulder.

He sprinted all the way to twenty meters away.

Then.

He placed Tsunade on the ground like a statue, quickly turned around, and returned to his original position at sprinting speed.

All these actions were completed within five seconds.

Next.

Time resumed its flow.

"Take this!"

Tsunade shouted, about to throw a punch, but suddenly froze in place.

She found that her opponent, who was just within reach, had somehow created a twenty-meter distance between them in the blink of an eye.

No.

The other party hadn't moved at all, it was her... who had retreated.

Tsunade was shocked.

What on earth... was going on?

Could it be that she had fallen under his genjutsu again?

Tsunade refused to believe it.

She shook her head vigorously to stay alert, then once again took a step forward, cautiously approaching Dan.

This time, she was fully focused, her nerves stretched to the limit, always on guard against his genjutsu attack.

Ten meters, eight meters, five meters.

Tsunade reached this distance for the second time.

Then, the bizarre scene from before replayed—

Tsunade was inexplicably pushed back to twenty meters away from Dan.

The man's figure was like a destination she could never reach, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get closer...