"Orochimaru!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's sharp rebuke cut off Orochimaru's words just as he was about to speak!
This posturing... an idiot could tell that these powerful figures were definitely hiding something from him! Naruto slapped his forehead, feeling helpless: Did these people still think he was a baby in a greenhouse? It was time to update their thinking!
How could a Hokage be cut off from information?
What was there to hide?
He just had Kurama sealed inside him, everyone in the village already knew!
But...
Naruto checked his own senses: there were two unusual chakra signatures quietly settled within the Nine-Tails' seal, and an even purer energy was silently dormant deep inside his body.
He was sure these chakras were harmless; otherwise, he would have erased them long ago.
Could Orochimaru's big move be related to them?
"Tch, I'll have a good talk with Kurama tonight. It seemed pretty happy when I beat up the First Hokage, after all."
On the other side.
At the mention of "Naruto," the lifeless look on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face finally shifted.
Naruto, Jiraiya, and Kakashi were all here; the First and Second Hokage must have been defeated.
Naruto won!
This boy had actually defeated the First and Second Hokage!
At this moment, a thought sparked within him: He wanted to live, to see the future of the Leaf Village that this boy would forge with his own eyes!
Not as the Hokage, but as a retired shinobi.
Because it was time for the Hokage position to be handed over.
His gaze swept over Orochimaru. The figure vaguely overlapped with the prodigal genius Orochimaru of his youth—this disciple he once had such high hopes for...
A glimmer of tenderness flashed in his eyes, and then he made his decision!
He ordered Jiraiya in a hoarse voice, "Jiraiya! Together... we will apprehend Orochimaru!"
"Hiruzen! Do you still want to let the tiger back into the mountains?!" Enma, the summoned ape, warned in a stern voice.
"Now!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's roar exploded! His body moved like a flash of lightning!
Orochimaru's life or death? He wouldn't decide it; the new Hokage would!
"Tch!"
The moment Orochimaru's golden snake eyes met Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze, a cold smile of a successful scheme flickered at the corner of his lips.
Sure enough, the old man had gone soft again!
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
He thrust his pale hands forward!
From his dark sleeves, dozens of giant serpents with cold, shimmering scales shot out like arrows!
Their gaping mouths held vicious fangs, and a foul wind accompanied their deadly hisses, like a giant net poised to devour Hiruzen and Jiraiya!
Whoosh—Bang!
The Adamantine Staff, formed by Enma, swept through the air with the force of wind and thunder!
The staff's shadow twisted like a furious dragon, and its sharp force tore through the air. The first few serpents were instantly turned into a bloody mist!
Orochimaru's body retreated half a step like a ghost, avoiding the staff's attack, and symbolically threw a few shurikens.
Clink, clank! The shurikens were all swept away by the staff's wind!
In the next second, two hands enveloped in lightning chakra locked onto his shoulders like iron clamps, the bones crackling!
Orochimaru only struggled for a moment before he was captured on the spot!
The dust settled, and the show was over.
Naruto stood up and put away his little watermelon seeds and small stool.
His fluid movements suddenly paused!
Within his sensory range, a violent One-Tailed chakra suddenly erupted over ten kilometers away!
Nearby, there were three familiar chakra signatures: Sasuke! Sakura! Shikamaru!
"Kakashi-sensei,"
Naruto suddenly turned his head, a look of confusion on his face: "Did Sasuke and Sakura have a combat mission? Why are they in a fierce battle with Shukaku?!"
"Huh?"
Hearing this, Kakashi's dead-fish eyes narrowed, and his face hidden by his mask seemed to tremble.
The instructions were clear—track and observe! Stay far away! Wait for Naruto to support them!
They were actually fighting?
Suddenly, Sasuke's stubborn face, full of "I will surpass Naruto," flashed through his mind.
He seemed to understand why.
With that thought, his voice dropped, carrying a barely noticeable heaviness: "I ordered them to monitor the One-Tails Jinchuriki's movements... I didn't expect them to actually get involved in a fight with Shukaku."
"Naruto! You—" Kakashi's words were cut off.
"Relax!"
Naruto's mouth was already turned up in his iconic brilliant smile, and his blue eyes shone brightly: "Leave it to me! I'll bring everyone back, not a single one missing, and completely unharmed!"
Swoosh!
Before his words had even finished, a flash of golden light appeared!
Naruto's figure instantly became formless, disappearing into a ripple in space!
A little while earlier—
Deep in the forest.
Three people and a dog sped through the trees like a gale.
Sasuke's face was ashen. His arrogance from before the final match was long gone—the chasm named "Naruto" was tearing at his perception at a terrifying speed!
Witnessing the battle earlier, the power he once considered an abstract concept had now solidified into a tangible monster that could crush his perception—a Tailed Beast!
"I'll use this clash to measure the distance between you and me!"
"Someone is blocking us ahead!" Pakkun warned!
The team braked. Someone had to stop and deal with it.
Shikamaru's gaze swept over them: Sasuke was focused on what was ahead, and Sakura was worried about Sasuke.
Seeing this, he stepped forward, his voice lazy: "Leave this to me."
The wind suddenly rose, and dry leaves swirled!
Temari stood proudly on her giant fan!
"Tch, what a pain!" Seeing his old opponent, Shikamaru scratched his head, his eyelids half-closed.
After speeding for another while.
"They've stopped!" Pakkun's warning came suddenly.
"Just what I wanted!" The three tomoe in Sasuke's crimson eyes appeared! His figure tore through the forest like a black arrow!
Swoosh!
In the center of the clearing, he stood in front of the two Sand Village shinobi!
"Come and fight! Gaara!" Sasuke's fingertips crackled with lightning, pointing directly at his target!
As for Kankuro, who was beside him? Ignored!
Gaara was not in his usual frenzied state at the moment; Shukaku inside him was very stable.
"Sasuke Uchiha?" He recognized the distinctive black hair. This was the blond kid Naruto's teammate.
"Release the monster inside you now!" Sasuke yelled, moving closer!
Kankuro moved to block him, but Sasuke twisted his body and sent him flying like a cannonball with a powerful kick!
Kankuro had barely gotten back on his feet when his vision was blocked by Sakura, who had her knuckles clenched white! Her eyes were burning with a fighting spirit:
"Your opponent is me!"
No one is getting in Sasuke-kun's way!
A drop of cold sweat ran down Kankuro's forehead—the shadow of the monstrously strong girl from the stadium still lingered!
On the main battlefield.
With the Sharingan's lock-on, base Gaara was at a complete disadvantage!
Against the lightning speed from Kakashi's special training, his Sand Armor was like paper, and Gaara's figure was sent flying backward again and again!
Crack! Boom—
The Sand Armor shattered inch by inch!
"I'll kill you!!!"
In the shattered sand, Gaara's pupils narrowed to a pinprick. That suppressed, primal desire from the depths of his heart finally burst forth with a roar!
In an instant, Gaara's body swelled and twisted, transforming into a monstrous, half-Tailed Beast!
But,
In front of Sasuke, who had been training with "Sensei Leopard" for half a year—it was still just a punching bag taking a beating!
The Fire Release Great Flame was like a dragon!
The Lightning Release Chidori Sharp Spear was like a deadly beam of light, cutting back and forth!
The half-Tailed Beast's body rolled clumsily, scattering sand. The sharp, blue and white lightning easily tore through its newly formed limbs!
"Aow—"
Under extreme pain and humiliation, the restraints broke!
A mountain-sized Sand Shukaku suddenly appeared in the clearing!
However, this colossal creature... only caused a ripple in the crimson tomoe of Sasuke's eyes.
Swoosh!
A flash of golden light, and Naruto suddenly appeared on a treetop!
The three people and one dog's gazes converged. Naruto checked the situation of the two people and the dog.
The summoned dog, Pakkun, was sitting comfortably.
Sakura was brushing dust off her sleeve, a sign of her easy victory over Kankuro.
On the other side was Shikamaru, who had defeated Temari.
In the exam, the Carefree Pill was not allowed, so Shikamaru had narrowly lost.
But outside, the Nara clan genius, who had no shortage of Carefree Pills, had completely overwhelmed her.
"Naruto-kun!" Sakura's eyes instantly lit up like stars.
The pillar of their team had arrived! The anxiety she felt for Sasuke-kun could finally ease!
Shikamaru half-opened his eyes, his eyebrows slightly raised: "Yo."
That was his greeting!
Pakkun looked up and saw an old acquaintance, wagging his tail and asking for a pet: "Naruto, do you want to touch my paw pads?"
Did he want to pet the dog?
Of course!
His fingertips expertly sank into the soft paw pads, but Naruto's gaze was sharp, piercing through the branches and locking onto the center of the battlefield!
Time seemed to freeze.
The colossal Shukaku stood still like a sand sculpture. Sasuke stood on the treetop, facing it with cold eyes.
His gaze focused on the top of Shukaku's head—Gaara was breaking out of the sand, roaring and trying to use his fake slumber jutsu!
But... he failed!
No matter how he changed his hand seals, the core consciousness that should have awakened—the Tailed Beast named Shukaku—had no response!
"Monster! Get out!! Get out right now!!!"
Gaara's voice was twisted by his desperate need for power, and he frantically hammered the sand with his hands! But that familiar, brutal consciousness was like a completely extinguished flame, offering no response!
Deep within the sand—Shukaku's consciousness was huddled in a ball. At this moment, there was none of its usual brutality and madness, only a terrified fear that had not yet subsided!
"I'm not going out! You can kill me, but I'm not going out!!"
It remembered the terrifying golden nightmare from a little while ago that had completely shattered its courage!
That fist the size of a sandbag had easily shattered its Tailed Beast chakra construct, again and again!
Then, it was forcefully beaten into scattered sand that flew everywhere!
That wasn't a battle... it was pure, one-sided humiliation!
The monstrous power contained in every single punch was like a heavy hammer crushing its core soul!
It hurt!
It hurt so much that its mind went blank!
It hurt so much that it couldn't even muster any anger!
That freaking hurt so much!
You want me to go out? If I go out again, I'm a dog!
"Hey, Shukaku,"
Gaara's voice was absurdly mocking: "You're not... afraid of this Uchiha, are you?"
Shukaku's reaction: A measly Uchiha? He's nothing!
"No..." Gaara instantly understood, his pupils narrowing in shock—the answer was so absurd that it sent a chill down his spine:
"You're afraid of him! Naruto Uzumaki!!"
Boom!
This realization was like a sledgehammer smashing Gaara's understanding!
That peerless monster that constantly roared about freedom and tore at his flesh... was it so afraid of another man that it was willing to abandon the freedom it could easily have?
Even when that man wasn't even present, it didn't dare to show its head?
"Heh, hahahaha!"
Gaara's laughter was hoarse and twisted. "So you've become a coward too? Just because of that little blond boy who was crushed by the First Hokage?"
"Dead?"
Shukaku's consciousness was instantly thrown into a massive turmoil!
A man like that could die?
"Yes! You must have sensed that terrifying battle from afar earlier. He was blasted into dust by the summoned First and Second Hokage!"
It remembered that battle.
The sight, that terrifying chakra fluctuation, was like the scorching sun of summer. Even with its limited senses and the dozens of kilometers separating them, it still felt a burning heat!
The little blond boy is dead! Hahahaha!
The chains of fear instantly broke open a crack, and the floodlight of ecstasy almost blinded its beastly eyes!
If that's the case...
In the very next moment,
The blank beastly eyes, which had been standing still, suddenly narrowed to a pinprick. Then, a pure, destructive hunger, like a wild beast that had broken its chains, suddenly awakened deep within this body!
"Hahahaha! I'm out again!!!"
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