Night had fallen as usual, yet outside Konoha Village, chaos reigned instead.
Gamabunta was covered in wounds, slumped to the side as he gasped for breath.
"Damn it, ever since I ran into Jiraiya, and now you, I've really been cursed for eight lifetimes."
"Tsk, it hurts like hell. Damn you, Minato, I'm going back to rest."
Namikaze Minato wasn't in great shape either. Looking thoroughly disheveled, he nodded apologetically at Gamabunta.
"Thanks, Bunta. Really, thank you."
"Go back and get some rest."
With a puff of white smoke, Gamabunta vanished.
"Minato, are you alright?"
"Yes, Third-sama, I'm fine. What about the casualties?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced around, then let out a breath, a hint of relief in his tone.
"Hmph, casualties? None dead. The elite ANBU who came all fought with long-range harassment, and with your Flying Thunder God support, no one died. But there are quite a few seriously injured."
"That's also thanks to Third-sama' Adamantine Staff defense."
"I have to say, that Chizan really taught them well. 'Protect yourself first no matter what'—every single one of them used the Substitution Technique beautifully."
"Damn Nine-Tails, destroying my Ninja Academy like this—this isn't over!"
Hatake Sakumo had originally been the ANBU captain, only taking over the Ninja Academy after retirement.
Seeing the ANBU members protecting themselves even amid battle filled him with satisfaction.
Though, after learning about Gekko Chizan's teaching methods, he had to admit they were brutal—actually using his One Thousand Years of Death as punishment. Brutal, really brutal.
At this moment, Minato was holding Kushina, refining the seal. Looking at her unconscious face, his eyes were full of worry.
"How is Chizan's side?"
"The fighting here with the Nine-Tails has stopped. The battle on his side has stopped too."
"Has the search team been dispatched?"
Hearing Minato's question, Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.
"They've already gone. One ANBU squad—his disciple Kakashi is with them. As his student, he should understand his movements better."
"The Yamanaka clan has also been arranged to assist."
Suddenly, a signal flare shot into the sky. The red light signified the highest level of alert.
Namikaze Minato, Sarutobi Hiruzen, and Hatake Sakumo all froze.
The next second, they all moved.
"Deploy the medical team!"
"Now!"
Minato felt his heart leap into his throat. A red signal flare—why did it have to be red?
He tried to activate Flying Thunder God, only to suddenly realize that the marker he had left with Gekko Chizan was gone. His heart sank even further.
...
When everyone arrived at the location of the signal flare, they were all stunned.
On a tree, Gekko Chizan was covered in blood. A pitch-black long spear had pierced through his chest, nailing him to the trunk. There was no sign of life.
The surrounding area was in complete ruin—damage even worse than what the Nine-Tails had caused.
"How is this possible..."
"Sensei..."
Kakashi couldn't believe what he was seeing. His body couldn't move even an inch.
Everyone around him was the same.
One of Konoha's Twin Stars, Gekko Chizan, had actually… died?
"Where's the medical team?!"
"Hurry!"
Minato felt as if the blood in his veins was about to stop flowing.
The man before him wasn't just anyone—he was his closest friend, his family in all but blood!
How could this be?! What in the world happened?!
"Impossible! How could Sensei—!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out from behind them. Two figures rushed forward, and just as one of them was about to charge toward their teacher, Kakashi grabbed him.
"Obito..."
Yes, the one before them was Uchiha Obito.
The other was Nohara Rin. As a member of the medical team, she had followed orders to rush to the battlefield immediately.
Obito had specifically requested to come along to protect Rin.
And what did they see?
Their teacher, Gekko Chizan, lying dead right in front of them.
"Kakashi, tell me this isn't real. This person isn't Sensei Chizan, right?"
"Sensei—he's so sneaky, so bad. His first reaction in any fight is always to run. He never fights a battle he isn't sure of."
Obito's face screamed disbelief—absolute impossibility. Yet Gekko Chizan was right there before them, lifeless, nailed to the tree.
"Obito..."
Kakashi didn't want to believe it either. No—none of them did.
After all, Gekko Chizan's strength was evident to all. He was someone who had forged a fearsome reputation on the battlefield.
Undetectable Transparent Release, the unpredictable Flying Thunder God, a successor of Ryūchi Cave—someone like that hadn't died on the battlefield.
And yet he died tonight?
Everyone lowered their heads. Even the medical team lowered theirs—not because they refused to treat him, but because… was there any point left in treating him?
At that moment, Minato moved. Under everyone's gaze, he took Gekko Chizan down from the tree and laid him flat on the ground.
As for the pitch-black long spear, he pulled it out of Chizan's body.
Even though he was used to life and death, Minato's heart was filled with sorrow. What kind of Hokage had he become?
Foreign enemies invading, the Nine-Tails rampaging, and now his best friend had died before his eyes.
The sorrowful atmosphere gradually spread.
"Obito..."
"Your eyes..."
Suddenly, the attentive Nohara Rin noticed something wrong with Obito and whispered beside him.
Uchiha Obito's whole body was trembling. His Sharingan began to spin unconsciously, strangely transforming into another form.
"Ah!"
"So it really works!"
"Good evening, everyone. Surprise?"
Just as everyone had accepted Gekko Chizan's death as reality, his eyes suddenly snapped open. Then, like a spring, he jumped up.
"Ah!!! He's come back to life!"
"My god! A zombie!"
"A legendary zombie!"
Everyone present was an elite, and even their panicked reactions were elite-level.
Minato flashed back dozens of meters with Flying Thunder God. Hatake Sakumo slid backward in one smooth motion.
The most impressive was Sarutobi Hiruzen—his Adamantine Staff instantly performed a vertical pole stand, extending straight upward.
Everyone else fled in terror at top speed, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and the "zombie" before them!
"Bastards, how could I possibly be a zombie?!"
"I was just tired and took a nap!"
"A bunch of idiots! And you too, Namikaze Minato—why didn't you come help me?! I almost kicked the bucket!"
Gekko Chizan shoved his hands into his pockets like nothing had happened, then mercilessly switched into full machine-gun mode.