Deep within his heart, Orochimaru already felt the urge to retreat.
Naruto's strength had surpassed every one of his expectations.
To break the Four Violet Flames Formation so easily, and then to dismantle the reanimated First and Second Hokage in an instant it was beyond reason. Orochimaru knew he didn't stand a chance in a direct fight.
So it is… those eyes, that aura. This is Mount Myoboku's Sage Mode. Orochimaru's golden pupils narrowed as he recognized the state Naruto was in, and his mind grew heavier.
He had witnessed Jiraiya's Sage Mode before, and unless he gambled with his most desperate techniques, staying here would mean certain death. But this body had already reached its limit. If he forced himself to use the Eight-Headed Serpent technique, the strain would demand he abandon it immediately and switch hosts.
And Sasuke's body was the prize he coveted most.
Naruto's expression remained cold. His knees bent slightly, and in the blink of an eye he shot forward like a streak of golden lightning.
"So fast!" Orochimaru's pupils shrank as he tried to raise the Kusanagi Blade in defense. But he was a fraction too slow.
Naruto's foot smashed against his face, warping his features grotesquely before he even realized it.
As his body floated backward through the air, Naruto had already reappeared above him, raining down a storm of blows. Fists and kicks thundered in rapid succession, each impact cracking like a drumbeat across Orochimaru's flesh.
The sound of strikes echoed harshly in the night sky, flesh against flesh, relentless and merciless. Orochimaru couldn't so much as form a single hand sign. His chakra scattered uselessly, unable to gather.
It was only thanks to his grotesque, modified body that he avoided being torn apart outright. His inhuman physiology, flexible and resistant, kept him alive but barely.
For anyone who wasn't a taijutsu specialist, being caught in a continuous flurry like this was the worst possible fate. Gaara had felt it before. Now, Orochimaru shared that same misery.
At last, his bruised and battered frame crashed into the ground, swollen and twisted from the unrelenting assault. He lay there gasping, every nerve screaming in pain, utterly unable to move.
Naruto stood over him, his gaze as sharp as steel.
Orochimaru's lips curled into a crooked smile, his voice hoarse and rasping. "Heh… Naruto-kun. Truly, you are Minato's son. No, perhaps your talent already surpasses his."
Naruto didn't answer. His eyes held no warmth, only that same chilling indifference. He lifted one hand, gathering energy. In an instant, a Rasengan infused with Sage chakra spun into existence, humming with lethal power.
Orochimaru's eyes went wide. The next moment, the sphere drove forward, crashing into his skull. The devastating force tore through his head and body alike, reducing him to fragments that scattered across the rubble.
For a breath, there was silence. Orochimaru's presence faded completely.
Only then did Naruto lower his hand and turn back to the Third Hokage.
Yet, unseen by him, a small white snake slithered out from beneath the shattered stone. Its cold eyes lingered on Naruto and the Hokage before it silently slipped away into the shadows.
"Grandpa," Naruto said as he returned to Hiruzen's side.
The ANBU squad that had withdrawn earlier now regrouped around the old Hokage, forming a protective circle.
"Your Sage Mode…" Hiruzen's tired gaze locked onto Naruto. He could see the boy's eyes had reverted to their usual brilliant blue, the dark markings around them already faded.
"Ah, it's my first time using Sage Mode," Naruto admitted, scratching the back of his head. "I already burned through all the natural energy I managed to gather."
"Enough talk. Let me heal you first." Naruto pressed a glowing palm to the Hokage's back. Gentle streams of green light seeped into Hiruzen's weary body, easing his pain and mending the damage little by little.
Hiruzen's breath steadied. "I see. Then I'll trust you, Naruto."
His gaze lifted, sweeping across the rooftops of the village.
By now, most of the civilians had been safely guided to shelters by squads of genin and chunin. With that burden lifted, the shinobi of Konoha were free to unleash their full strength.
And when Konoha fought without restraint, the difference was overwhelming.
Bloodline clans and secret arts flourished here in numbers unmatched by most other villages. Against the invading Sound and Sand forces, who lacked their own Kage-level support, Konoha's shinobi tore into them like a flood.
This was their home ground. Reinforcements were plentiful. And sheer numbers tilted the scales further still.
Across the battlefield, the Sound and Sand forces crumbled beneath the counterattack.
At the village gates, two enormous snakes had been wreaking havoc, their massive coils crushing walls and scattering defenders. But now, they writhed helplessly beneath the fists and blades of two even larger toads Gamaken and Gamahiro summoned by Jiraiya himself.
Large beasts were best dealt with by even larger beasts. And compared to Orochimaru's brainless summons, the great toads of Mount Myoboku were seasoned warriors, far more powerful and intelligent.
Sand's commander, Baki, stood pale-faced on the walls, his expression tightening with dread. He knew it already. The invasion had failed.
Their ace, Gaara, had attempted full-tailed beast transformation from the very beginning. The plan had been simple: unleash the Shukaku in the heart of Konoha, obliterate swathes of shinobi with a Tailed Beast Bomb, and cripple the village in a single strike.
But instead, Naruto had intervened instantly, whisking Gaara and Shukaku away with the Flying Thunder God technique. The destructive blast had been relocated far outside the village, leaving Konoha untouched.
Baki cursed under his breath. "Another Yellow Flash… damn it."
His mind flashed back to the last war, to the shadow of Minato Namikaze. The fear he inspired on the battlefield had scarred every shinobi nation. No safe zone had ever truly been safe. One moment you thought you had escaped, and the next, a golden-haired blur appeared at your throat. Entire platoons were wiped out before they realized they had been marked.
And now, before Baki's eyes, another Namikaze stood on the battlefield.
With Jiraiya's summons dominating the gates and Naruto blazing through their elites, the balance had shattered completely.
Across the village, Sand shinobi found themselves cornered, overwhelmed by Konoha forces. Though Sand had invested heavily in training strong individual fighters to make up for strained resources, their strength paled in comparison to Konoha's finest.
From the First Shinobi War to the Third, Konoha had always fought outnumbered, yet still emerged victorious. Their individual skill and resilience made them unrivaled. Facing them head-on was a nightmare no village wished to relive.
Baki clenched his fists. If this continued, the entire Sand contingent would be annihilated. There was only one path left.
He raised his hand. "Sand shinobi, surrender!"
The call rippled through the battlefield. Sand ninja dropped their weapons, raising their hands in reluctant defeat.
Their surrender doomed their allies.
The Sound shinobi, leaderless and without a figure of authority to negotiate for them, had no such mercy extended their way. Konoha shinobi, fueled by anger and loss, cut through them without hesitation. In the chaos, not a single Sound ninja escaped.
Sand's surrendered forces were swiftly bound with sealing jutsu, stripped of their chakra and contained.
At last, silence began to fall over the village.
Hiruzen let out a long breath. "So… this counterattack is finally over."
Naruto's brow furrowed as he glanced across the ruined rooftops. "But why, Grandpa? Why would Sand and Sound suddenly launch an attack like this?"
Hiruzen's eyes dimmed with gravity. "Do you remember what I told you during the Chunin Exams?"
Naruto nodded slowly.
"The exams are a shadow of war itself. Resources in this world are limited. The strong claim more, and the weak must make do with less. Sand Village sought to claim more for themselves. That is why they struck."
The boy's eyes narrowed. He didn't answer, but deep inside, a vow took root.
If strength was what determined everything, then he would grow stronger still so that no one could ever again threaten the people he swore to protect.
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