The enemy's dozen or so members seemed to have prepared in advance. When the Konoha side charged toward them, several of their number stopped forming hand seals and moved to intercept—yet even while defending, their circular formation remained intact.
Kakashi, the Copy Ninja, and Gai, the Taijutsu powerhouse, both unleashed their strength—but their foes were in their Cursed Seal–enhanced states. Their chakra was immense, their power monstrous.
One unleashed Raiton (Lightning Release), the other used Konoha Senpū (Leaf Whirlwind)!
"Boom!"
The lightning technique crashed against a Doton (Earth Release) wall, while Gai's spinning kick was blocked by an enormous chakra arm.
At that moment, the remaining sound-nin finished forming their seals.
Suddenly, towering pillars of light burst forth across the village, joining together in a circular network marked with curse-patterns.
Shigeo appeared. Several Konoha ninja, upon seeing him return, called out in relief,
"Shigeo-sama! You're back!"
"Yeah." Shigeo didn't explain further. His eyes locked on the group standing in a circular formation atop the rooftops—their arrangement clearly designed to resist external interference.
Judging from the markings, these were Orochimaru's curse seals.
Then, one of the sound-nin screamed. As his chakra surged beyond control, his body detonated like a living bomb.
The enormous chakra explosion blasted the surrounding Konoha ninja back several meters. Even Kakashi and Gai had to retreat a few steps before charging again, engaging the circle-formation enemies in fierce combat.
A nearby Konoha shinobi turned to Shigeo. "Shigeo-sama, what do you think they're trying to do?"
Shigeo shook his head. He had never seen such a setup. They weren't attacking or retreating—more like forming some kind of ritual array.
Other Konoha ninja tried to break the formation, but the enemies' chakra was overwhelming, their resistance immense. For the moment, breaching the circle was impossible.
The events were already diverging from the original timeline—attacks from outside forces, the presence of the Sound Four's variants, and even the Akatsuki's duo, Jyakin and Magu, who weren't supposed to exist at this point.
Realizing close combat was futile, several Konoha ninja switched to long-range attacks—Katon (Fire Release) and volleys of shuriken rained upon the enemy circle atop the roof.
But their opponents' chakra reserves were enormous, and they were clearly prepared. When one sound-nin defended, another maintained the glowing pillar of light.
The Konoha side regrouped and launched a coordinated Katon barrage.
"Suiton, Suiryūdan no Jutsu!" (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!)
The enemy countered in unison. Massive water dragons surged forward, extinguishing the flames and crashing back toward the Konoha shinobi.
The enemy's jutsu were several times larger than the standard techniques of ordinary ninja. Even thrown shuriken couldn't pierce through their defense.
Then, another sound-nin's chakra overloaded—his body exploded like the last, his life sacrificed to sustain the array.
The rest gritted their teeth, enduring the agony. Shigeo could feel it—their power had risen a hundredfold from drugs and curse seals, but the cost was unbearable torment.
Moments later, the light pillar in the village's center grew even brighter. Above it, dark clouds gathered—thunder rumbled and lightning flickered.
Several sound-nin shouted in unison:
"Raiton: Sanden Fūbatsu! (Lightning Release: Lightning Storm!)"
Shigeo's eyes widened.
That was his jutsu! Although the version they cast differed slightly, he immediately understood what they intended.
They were going to annihilate Konoha—the Sound ninja were making their final stand.
Earlier, Orochimaru had lost his arms to the Third Hokage's Shiki Fūjin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal) and escaped the village. Konoha had barely averted disaster.
This attack was meant as the final blow. Even if Konoha wasn't completely destroyed, it would suffer crippling damage. They had waited for Shigeo to leave before acting.
It was clearly part of Orochimaru's plan—because if Shigeo had remained, they would never have succeeded.
"Boom!"
Another human bomb exploded. Yet the survivors continued channeling their chakra upward, forcing the storm to its peak.
A colossal thundercloud spread across a two-kilometer radius above Konoha. The impending lightning storm was catastrophic. Konoha ninja on the perimeter launched attacks in waves, but none could pierce the defense—the enemy's chakra was simply too vast.
Shigeo exhaled sharply.
He had promised to complete three missions for Konoha, and he would not allow anyone to obstruct him. This was Tsunade's village now—helping Konoha meant helping her.
A faint smile crossed his lips as he thought of Tsunade and Shizune.
He leapt high into the air, hovering over the battlefield.
"Did you know?" he called down coldly. "Every jutsu I develop has a counterpart—a technique meant to counter it. Don't show off my own creations in front of me."
His cloak billowed in the wind as he began gathering Senjutsu Chakra (Sage Chakra). Colorful markings spread across his eyes and cheeks as he entered Sennin Mode (Sage Mode).
Forming hand seals, he released his own counterattack.
Countless black dust-like particles emerged from every direction, swirling together like dark clouds. They gathered between Konoha's sky and the thunderstorm brewing above.
The surrounding ninja gasped. Some genin had never seen anything like it.
So this was the power of a Kage-level shinobi.
The black magnetic particles clustered thicker and thicker, soon covering the storm clouds themselves.
"Incredible… Is that his Jiton (Magnet Release)?" Inuzuka Hana muttered. She had long heard tales of Shigeo's overwhelming power—the man who could reshape mountains and seas—but witnessing it firsthand was something else entirely.
As the Sound ninja's chakra surged to its limit, lightning crashed down.
The Raiton struck the black magnetic storm head-on.
The villagers and shinobi below watched in stunned silence as blinding lightning crashed upon a vast magnetic dome. The two forces collided, filling the sky with dazzling arcs of light.
The Jiton absorbed and diffused the storm's power. Konoha's sky became a glowing sea of light, as if gods themselves were clashing above.
And below—Konoha remained completely unharmed.
Far away, villagers were leaving the shelters, misinformed that the danger had passed. When they looked up, they froze in awe.
Above the village, two masses of cloud were battling—one dark and furious, the other glittering with radiance.
Lightning intertwined, thunder roared, the heavens blazed.
It was a sight no one in Konoha would ever forget.
(End of Chapter)
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