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"Captain Jiraiya, you've stirred up too much commotion. Even though I've made some arrangements elsewhere, I doubt they'll be as effective as I'd hoped."
"So you all need to leave—right now. I've marked Kabuto with my Flying Thunder God seal. This time, all of us will make it back."
Flying Thunder God Technique? Wasn't that the Fourth Hokage's jutsu? And wait—did that guy just use Wood Style?
Nono Yakushi was completely disoriented. Everything she'd seen today seemed to defy her understanding of reality.
Yet Kabuto showed no sign of surprise. What exactly happened during the time they were apart?
"You're not coming with us?" Nono couldn't help but ask, despite the confusion in her heart.
"You don't need to worry about me, Director." Shuuzawa looked upward, slowly sliding a mask over his face.
"As for me... I've still got unfinished business to take care of."
...
"Orochimaru! Stop clinging to your delusions!" On the battlefield, Jiraiya stood atop Gamabunta's head, shouting furiously.
But his words didn't slow Gamabunta in the slightest—he swung his enormous blade down at Manda's head.
There was no love lost between those two. If anything, Gamabunta despised Manda more than anything, and reconciliation was never on the table.
Manda responded in kind. Evading the blade, he coiled and lunged toward Gamabunta, baring his fangs to take a vicious bite.
"Delusional?" Orochimaru scoffed as he heard the insult, shaking his head.
"You know what I hate most about you? It's that smug attitude—pretending you understand everything and are not involved when you are.
You help others commit atrocities, then act like your hands are clean. Always coming to me, trying to drag me back to that wretched village... Who do you think you are?"
He sneered. "You should've stayed curled up with your toads in your little fantasy. By the way... Have you found your 'Child of Prophecy' yet? The last one was Minato Namikaze, right?"
"Tch... seems like everyone you name the 'Child of Prophecy' ends up dying early."
"You bastard!" The jab visibly rattled Jiraiya. Orochimaru's words cut deep—his tongue was as venomous as ever.
"Fine, if that's how it is, I'll just beat some sense into you and drag you back myself! Gamabunta!"
"Tch. Why waste words on him?" Gamabunta knew exactly what Jiraiya meant.
With a grunt, he leapt high into the air, unleashing a stream of toad oil. Jiraiya quickly formed hand seals. "Fire Style: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!"
"Tch... what a nuisance." Orochimaru's expression tightened as the oil and flame combined into a blazing inferno.
But he wasn't helpless. As Manda retreated, Orochimaru swiftly weaved hand signs. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
A howling gale blew forward, pushing back the flames—at least the ones directly ahead. The rest of the fire spread, limiting Manda's ability to move.
"Now's our chance! Gamabunta, go!" Jiraiya seized the opportunity and shouted, but Gamabunta grumbled in irritation.
"Don't yell—I know." Still, he leapt immediately, diving straight toward Orochimaru.
With a thunderous crash, the two giant summons collided. As their massive forms clashed, Jiraiya and Orochimaru were already in close combat, fists flying, movements blurring too fast to follow.
"You're not escaping this time, Orochimaru! I will bring you back to Konoha!"
Jiraiya growled mid-fight, but Orochimaru only sneered.
"You are a fool. Why would I ever go back with you? You should be more worried about yourself."
"That's none of your business!"
"Is that so? I wonder what the Third Hokage will say... You just finished peace talks with Iwagakure, and now you're stirring up trouble again. Tsk tsk."
"Don't spout nonsense, I—"
"Nonsense? You think no one saw you? Or no one recognizes you? Get real. You may be foolish, but you're not invisible."
Jiraiya winced at Orochimaru's words and mocking grin.
He knew this mission had got out of control, and now he wasn't sure how to explain it back home.
Still, that was a problem for later. Right now, stopping Orochimaru comes first.
"Captain Jiraiya, looks like you're in a bind." A sudden voice rang out, interrupting the battle. Both Jiraiya and Orochimaru immediately broke apart.
"That voice..." Orochimaru frowned. It sounded familiar—and not in a good way. For someone to approach so silently... one name came to mind.
"Shuuzawa?" Jiraiya turned, face lighting up with hope.
"You came! Good! Let's take down Orochimaru before he escapes!"
"Shuuzawa?" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. Of course, he recognised the name.
That boy had delivered experimental materials to him more than once—he was Danzō's mole, planted right next to Shisui Uchiha!
"Konoha's Flying Thunder God user... is him?" Orochimaru didn't know all the details—he'd been gone from Konoha too long.
But he knew some interesting figures had emerged recently: Shisui with the Mangekyō, a new user of Flying Thunder God, and someone reviving Wood Style.
Aside from Shisui's identity, he was in the dark. He never imagined this boy was the one using Flying Thunder God.
"So... Danzō is setting me up." Seeing a kid with that technique show up here, there was no way it wasn't connected to Danzō.
"I figured." Shuuzawa gave Jiraiya a helpless glance—he had just blown his cover by shouting his name aloud.
He and Orochimaru were old acquaintances. Now that he'd been exposed, there was no more need to hold back.
With a clap of his hands, an immense surge of chakra burst out of Shuuzawa!
"What the...?" Orochimaru's expression shifted. He sensed danger.
A heartbeat later, the earth erupted with towering trees—vines and branches surged forward, relentlessly entangling Manda.
"Wood Style? He can use that, too?" Orochimaru looked grim.
He wondered if this boy was one of his old test subjects. But no—this Wood Style felt different. There was genuine vitality in it, not the artificial kind.
"A natural awakening... Senju bloodline?" There was no time to think. With Manda trapped and having his chakra drained, Orochimaru leapt away without hesitation.
"Where are you going, Lord Orochimaru?" Shuuzawa suddenly appeared before him, then slammed a fist into Orochimaru's face!
Pain exploded in Orochimaru's skull as he was sent flying. With LV11 physical stats, Shuuzawa's strength exceeded most standards.
The system had no "Super-Kage" tier, but his raw power was monstrous. Orochimaru crashed to the ground, dust billowing into the air.
"Flying Thunder God... where did he learn it?" But Orochimaru wasn't down for long.
Twisting his distorted body, he casually snapped back into form—his snake-like transformation made his Soft Physique Technique more grotesquely effective than ever.
"Through my markings, of course, Lord Orochimaru." Shuuzawa appeared behind him again as if answering his thoughts, striking even harder!
"Damn it!" Orochimaru's face tightened.
Shuuzawa's version of the Flying Thunder God was far more elusive than Minato's—it used Wood Style as teleportation anchors.
No kunai. No trajectory. Just instantaneous, unpredictable movement. Even someone like Orochimaru couldn't keep up.
Dull thuds echoed as he was repeatedly struck and sent flying. Jiraiya and Gamabunta stood frozen in place, watching in disbelief.
Especially when Manda, unable to endure the chakra drain any longer, roared,
"Orochimaru! You owe me a hundred sacrifices!"
"Tch. What a wimp. You were useless the entire fight, and now that this guy's here, why didn't you call him sooner?" Gamabunta grumbled.
Jiraiya was just as stunned. He knew Shuuzawa was powerful—after all, he had captured both the Fourth Raikage and the son of the Third Tsuchikage.
But this level..."His speed and power are terrifying. And his Flying Thunder God... how is he even moving like that?"
"Why're you asking me? Shouldn't you know better? Minato used that jutsu too!"
"Yeah, but I don't know it!"
"Which makes you an idiot."
Jiraiya couldn't argue. He honestly didn't understand how this was possible.
Meanwhile, after taking several hits, Orochimaru was beginning to adapt.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Wood Style... Flying Thunder God... is he using the surrounding trees as the seals for teleportation?" As he scanned the area, realisation dawned.
Snakes burst from his arms, their mouths releasing a yellow-grey poison mist that quickly blanketed the area.
Orochimaru could not counter the technique, so he went for deterrence.
As expected, Shuuzawa halted, unwilling to charge through the toxic cloud.
But his sharp gaze swept the area.
"You really are stronger than I imagined, kid." Orochimaru had also vaguely noticed something, but his focus remained on Shuuzawa.
He licked his lips and spoke with a meaningful tone. "Wood Release and the Flying Raijin... You are something else. I doubt anyone ever imagined you were a descendant of the Senju."
"..."
Shuuzawa pressed his lips together—here we go again.
"But are you sure you want to follow Danzo?" Before Shuuzawa could answer, Orochimaru continued speaking with a twisted smile.
"Do you know why you're here? Or why I'm here?"
"..."
Shuuzawa blinked. He didn't understand what Orochimaru meant by that, but he was now sure of one thing.
"The Akatsuki are here. Looks like it's time to get serious."
Earlier, Shuuzawa hadn't been fighting seriously, at least not at full power. He had only been using a combination of Wood Release and the Flying Raijin.
But in a battle where no one knows where he's placed his teleportation marks, anyone would be caught off guard.
The Fourth Raikage was, and so was Orochimaru. However, Orochimaru was clever.
He used wide-area attacks and solid defence to prevent Shuuzawa from recklessly closing in.
He was testing Shuuzawa's capabilities. But now, it seemed even Orochimaru was ready to get serious.
"We're both caught up in Danzo's scheme."
Shuuzawa didn't reply. Orochimaru didn't care. He stuck out his tongue, licked his lips again, and spoke coldly.
"He sent me here to eliminate two people. But clearly, he sold out my intel. That's why you and Jiraiya are here. Especially you... Do you know who the two targets are?"
His voice grew even darker.
"They're none other than your old friend Kabuto Yakushi, and your orphanage head, Nono Yakushi!"
As he spoke, the chakra inside Orochimaru surged wildly. Visible blue chakra flickered around him.
"Both of them wanted to leave Root. People like that—Danzo would never let them live. So he sent me to clean up."
"And bringing you here... was so that you'd see their corpses and believe it was my doing."
"That way, you'd feel even more tied to him. Because only he can track me down and uncover my secrets."
"I have to admit, Danzo played this hand well. But it all fell apart because of Jiraiya."
"Still, some things are already set in motion. Now I want to ask—do you still want to follow someone like him?"
Orochimaru kept speaking his thoughts aloud, but Shuuzawa was left dumbfounded.
What is going on? I haven't framed him yet, and he's already convinced himself that it was all Danzo.
But thinking about it more carefully, considering the situation and Orochimaru's relationship with Danzo… maybe this is the truth.
"Oh… So you're another one sickened by that bastard Danzo."
Just then, a voice rang out unexpectedly. Neither Shuuzawa nor Orochimaru was surprised—they both raised their heads slightly.
Under the moonlight, four figures in black cloaks with red clouds appeared in the distance.
"More enemies?"
Jiraiya stood atop Gamabunta, staring in disbelief at the newcomers. Judging by their cloaks, there was no doubt—they were members of the Akatsuki.
They were all here. Shuuzawa's intel was spot on.
"That's…"
Within the Akatsuki group, Konan looked toward the giant toad in the distance, her expression gradually darkening.
"Jiraiya-sensei…"
She never expected to run into him in a place like this. The chakra she sensed earlier had felt oddly familiar, so it was someone she knew.
But retreat was no longer an option. She had no choice but to face him head-on.
"Oh, looks like you have some company."
Shuuzawa looked at the Akatsuki members, not giving Orochimaru any chance to speak.
"Though it's not surprising. The Akatsuki gathers rogue ninja from every village."
"And you, Orochimaru, are a rogue from the Leaf. It's no shock you'd be involved with them."
This time, it was Orochimaru's turn to be speechless. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off as Kakuzu from the Akatsuki stepped forward.
"Orochimaru is undoubtedly one of us. But I didn't expect this little brat to be here too. And judging by what I'm seeing, you're an enemy of Orochimaru.
Perfect. That means I can take you out too."
"…"
Orochimaru gave Kakuzu a strange look. He recognised who Kakuzu was, but they'd never even met before, had they?
"As expected… birds of a feather."
Shuuzawa gave Kakuzu a half-smile, then immediately stepped in before Orochimaru could speak again.
"In that case, I won't hold back either. Time to test my new research—I've spent long enough developing it. Let's see how it performs!"
"…"
Orochimaru felt like he'd been caught in a trap. No matter how he tried to explain, nothing seemed to make sense anymore.
He glanced at Shuuzawa, who was quickly gathering chakra, then at Jiraiya, standing atop Gamabunta, already preparing for battle.
With a sigh, Orochimaru rubbed his temples. He had no idea what Shuuzawa was thinking—maybe it was because Jiraiya was here that he didn't dare speak plainly?
But the next moment, Orochimaru's expression changed. And not just his—Jiraiya and the Akatsuki members who had arrived, all looked stunned.
A savage burst of chakra exploded from Shuuzawa, and within it was a clear trace of natural energy!
"This is… Sage Power?" Jiraiya looked at Shuuzawa in disbelief. Then he noticed something else.
"This chakra… It's the same one that drew me here in the first place." As the powerful chakra surged through him, golden light began to glow around Shuuzawa.
At a glance, he even resembled a future version of Naruto in his Six Paths form.
No Truth-Seeking Orbs, and no chakra-transformed tomoe on his body—but Shuuzawa was already more than satisfied.
He raised his head and looked at Orochimaru, suddenly grinning widely.
In the blink of an eye, he ignored the poisonous mist and dashed straight toward Orochimaru. A kunai appeared in his hand.
"Orochimaru… you got one thing wrong."
The kunai sliced through the air with a sharp screech as his voice rang out by Orochimaru's ear—words that made Orochimaru's pupils contract.
"Lord Danzo sent me here to say hello on his behalf…So rest in peace."
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