Outside the Hidden Konoha Village. At the moment when Sarutobi Hiruzen successfully sealed away Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, Orochimaru, who was battling with a group of Konoha Ninjas including Aya Uchiha, furrowed his brow.
"It's worthy of Master Sarutobi. And that girl who uses Wood Style, she's Tsunade's daughter, right?"
As the caster of the Reanimation Jutsu, upon discovering Senju Hashirama's sealing, Orochimaru swiftly checked the memories before the sealing was completed. He licked his lips with his long tongue, his eyes quickly flashing.
Just then, a sharp ninja blade infused with Lightning Style chakra swiftly stabbed him.
Seeing this, Orochimaru's attention could only return to the present moment. In an instant, his body, modified beyond human structure, swiftly twisted in defiance of human anatomy to effortlessly dodge the ninja blade. Then, his mouth widened, and a large number of venomous snakes erupted from within, opening sharp poisonous fangs and rushing toward the nearby Aya Uchiha.
Rip!
The pungent smell of blood sprayed wildly. Aya Uchiha twisted her wrist, her ninja blade sharply cutting through all the incoming snakes in one swift motion.
Following a step forward, the incredibly sharp ninja blade once again slashed toward Orochimaru with a rapid sound of breaking through the air.
Orochimaru dodged once more.
At that moment!
Aya Uchiha's Sharingan, embedded with three tomoe, moved. Its target wasn't Orochimaru, who never met her gaze, but the bright blade of her sword.
In an instant, the reflective surface of the blade revealed a pair of Sharingan with three tomoe.
With a flicker, the tomoe directly aimed at Orochimaru, who happened to be looking at the blade while dodging.
"I've been wary of this move of yours for a while."
Orochimaru smirked coldly and closed his eyes in advance.
Though limited by his innate capabilities, his ceiling in strength was much lower compared to individuals like Kaguya, Uchiha Madara, or Senju Hashirama. But relying on extraordinary talent, in areas such as skills and experience unaffected by innate factors, he was confident in being at the forefront of the ninja world.
A finite body carrying an infinite soul.
This was why Orochimaru sought to develop forbidden jutsu like Reanimation while envying Kekkei Genkai, especially the bodies of Uchiha and Senju clans.
Not just for immortality.
But hoping to use forbidden techniques to break through innate limitations and achieve boundless possibilities.
At this moment.
Orochimaru, who was fully aware of Aya Uchiha's cautious thoughts, had already closed his eyes in preparation. Without any delay, he was about to deliver a decisive blow to this woman who was uncovering his hidden scars.
Underneath Aya Uchiha, within her own shadow.
As the true trump card, another concealed shadow that had been lurking for a long time instantly moved at incredible speed towards Orochimaru, who was nearby with his eyes closed.
The next second, Orochimaru, about to raise his palm, froze.
Feeling completely immobilized, his expression changed, "This is..."
"Shadow Imitation Technique, success!"
Behind him, concealed within the crowd, previously unassuming but through meticulous planning, Nara Shikaku, at this moment, slightly curved his lips.
In terms of strategy, for centuries, the Nara clan ranked second, with few who could surpass their prowess.
"Shadow Jutsu? Nara Shikaku? No wonder you're the head of the Nara clan."
On the other side, Orochimaru, who quickly realized the situation, was uncommonly praised.
This time, he had indeed fallen into the trap.
With Nara Shikaku's strength, although he couldn't restrict Orochimaru for long, a few brief moments were enough.
For a Ninjas, such time was enough to determine life or death.
However, even so, Orochimaru's eyes showed no signs of panic.
Gazing calmly at Aya Uchiha in front of him, who continued to swing her blade, he, under the shadow's control, remained motionless.
However, within his clothes, venomous snakes had already emerged.
Aya Uchiha paid them no mind.
Just as she continued to swing her blade forward, the snakes, which should have attacked her according to her awareness, instead strangely swelled one by one.
Aya Uchiha's eyes changed.
The next moment, expanding upon Orochimaru's body, the snakes, already reaching their critical limit, abruptly exploded.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The earth shook, debris flying.
Within the rapidly rising enormous smoke, Aya Uchiha's figure was swiftly thrown back.
Although her breath was intact, her incredibly sturdy chakra-infused black armor had visibly suffered considerable damage.
On the other hand, as the center of the explosion, Orochimaru, being the summoner of the snakes, wasn't spared either.
At this moment, his body was already disfigured by the explosion, seemingly dead by all rational standards.
But Orochimaru wasn't bound by rationality.
Through the snake explosion, which forced Aya Uchiha back, and at the same time, released him from the shadow's restraint, although his body was now in terrible condition, a new Orochimaru emerged from within his mouth, aided by the Body Replacement Technique under his influence, with little chakra consumption.
With a cold smirk towards the approaching Konoha Ninjas once again, and then opening his mouth:
"Ten Thousand Snakes Formation!"
Instantly, tens of thousands of snakes surged forward like an ocean.
"Everyone, heed my command..."
Regretting the missed opportunity, forced into this unfavorable situation, Nara Shikaku quickly issued new orders.
When it came to Orochimaru's various abilities, undoubtedly, it was Konoha who knew him best.
Therefore, after identifying him as their target, Nara Shikaku and the others had long been prepared.
Orochimaru didn't expect this move to take down these formidable elite Konoha Ninjas.
But delaying time was enough.
During this gap, he quickly released the jutsu binding Senju Hashirama, allowing his soul to return to the afterlife.
Normally, when the Impure World Reincarnation's vessel was sealed, even the caster couldn't manipulate it for a short while.
However, Orochimaru had other plans for Senju Hashirama. Before initiating the jutsu, he had left a hidden move on him.
Now, he took advantage of the slight opening caused by breaking the seal, allowing Senju Hashirama's soul to return to the afterlife.
"Next, it's time to summon the First Hokage once again. And this time, his strength needs to be even greater. Otherwise, I'll once again be disrupted by Master Sarutobi and that little devil named Mito. The bloodline of the Senju clan is truly remarkable!"
As he spoke, Orochimaru's eyes were filled with greed.
Soon, having returned to normal, he glanced at the Konoha Ninjas still at a distance behind the sea of snakes, and then, without further attention, slammed his palm against the ground.
With a 'bang' and amid billowing white smoke, a giant snake materialized.
Under Orochimaru's instruction, the snake opened its large mouth, regurgitating a snowy white figure from its belly.
It was the very figure Orochimaru had devoured on the outskirts during the confrontation between Obito, Nagato, and Konan—a figure of Hashirama Senju.
Orochimaru intended to use this as a sacrifice for the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu.