"Orochimaru… I never thought you would walk this path."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the intruder before him—his former student, once a genius of the village—and a wave of complex emotions washed over him. Years ago, when he discovered Orochimaru's inhumane human experiments, he had let him escape out of lingering affection as teacher for pupil.
Now, Orochimaru had returned at the head of Sunagakure and Otogakure's forces, seeking to crush everything within Konohagakure.
With a heavy sigh, Hiruzen slipped off his Hokage robes, revealing the black battle armor beneath. He had already prepared for this. Ever since the second phase of the Chūnin Exams in the Forest of Death, he had suspected Orochimaru's true intentions.
"This time," Hiruzen said firmly, settling into stance, "I will not allow you to leave alive."
"There's no need to be so impatient, Sensei." Orochimaru's lips curled into a serpentine smile.
He knew very well that Senju Haruto would not intervene in this fight. The Four Violet Flames Formation surrounding them would keep every other Konoha shinobi at bay. In other words, Hiruzen Sarutobi was utterly alone.
With a clap of his pale hands, Orochimaru wove signs and slammed them down. The rooftop rumbled as if something massive was being unearthed. Slowly, two coffins rose from the stone, their lids engraved with the numbers "1" and "2."
Hiruzen's brows furrowed sharply. His mind flashed back to Kakashi's report from Kusagakure, when he and Haruto had confronted Orochimaru.
Kakashi had said Orochimaru then used a forbidden jutsu, invented by the Second Hokage himself—Edo Tensei, the Reanimation Jutsu—to summon back the long-dead Third Kazekage.
And now… here it was again.
The Hokage's heart tightened.
But Orochimaru was not finished. The rooftop trembled once more as a third coffin began to force its way up.
"No—!"
Hiruzen's instincts screamed. He hurled a shuriken, disrupting the summoning before the third coffin could surface. Even so, the first two remained, and that alone was grave enough.
"Orochimaru… first you disgraced yourself with twisted human experiments, and now you desecrate the dead so casually…" Hiruzen's voice was low, his fury clear.
The lids of the first two coffins crashed open.
What emerged left Hiruzen's eyes wide and his throat dry.
Standing before him were none other than—
Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage.
Senju Tobirama, the Second Hokage.
"Lord First… Lord Second…"
Hiruzen's breath hitched. His heart pounded violently. Against either one alone, victory was uncertain. Against both—and Orochimaru besides—it seemed impossible.
"For the sake of bringing these two back, I went through no small amount of trouble," Orochimaru said, savoring Hiruzen's shock. He described with relish how he had located their remains, how he had perfected Edo Tensei to drag them back from the Pure Land.
The only limitation, he admitted, was that they could not return at full strength. Even with his enhancements—Hashirama's very cells integrated into his body—the two Hokage could at most display sixty percent of their true power. Any more, and control would slip from his grasp.
But sixty percent… was still monstrous.
Hiruzen clenched his jaw. Orochimaru's blasphemy only deepened his resolve.
"Orochimaru, your plans will never succeed. Since the day you left the village, new heirs to the Will of Fire have already arisen—stronger than I am."
He bit into his thumb, weaving hand signs, and slammed his palm onto the ground. With a puff of smoke, the Monkey King Enma appeared, shifting instantly into the form of a golden, unbreakable staff—the Nyoi-bō.
"You must mean Senju Haruto," Orochimaru sneered, stepping closer as the coffins shattered fully, leaving the two Hokage standing firm.
"Even if Haruto breaks free from the tailed beast of Sunagakure, even if he somehow breaches the Four Violet Flames Formation—do you truly believe he could defeat me?"
"Look at who stands before you, Sensei. Reanimated by my power are the men closest to the Sage of Six Paths himself… The ones the shinobi world named Gods of Shinobi!"
At his words, Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju slowly opened their eyes.
"…Sarutobi?" Hashirama blinked, taken aback. The elderly man before him resembled his young student, though decades older.
"It seems we've been revived in this era, Brother," Tobirama muttered, examining his hands. They were cracked, fragmented—proof of their unnatural state.
"I invented this jutsu… Edo Tensei, didn't I?"
"Tell us, Sarutobi," Tobirama said at once, his sharp gaze locking onto Hiruzen. "Who has used Edo Tensei to summon us? What has happened to the village?"
"It was me," Orochimaru interjected, revealing himself with no hesitation. His golden eyes gleamed with malice. "I was once Sarutobi-sensei's student. It is I who brought you both back. Lord Tobirama, you were the shinobi I admired most—but I must say, this jutsu of yours is… quite the dangerous creation."
Tobirama's brows knit. As a master sensor, he instantly felt the vile aura radiating from Orochimaru.
"So it was you who revived us…"
Beside him, Hashirama chuckled awkwardly. "Tobirama, I told you not to invent such bizarre techniques. See what happens?"
"Shut it, Brother!" Tobirama snapped irritably, eyes narrowing back on Orochimaru. His voice was cutting, commanding. "Brat—Orochimaru, was it? Watch your tongue. Do not think being the caster of Edo Tensei gives you license to control me."
"Now speak. Why have you reanimated us?"
Orochimaru's grin widened, his voice dripping with venom. "Why else? To use your power… to destroy Konoha."
"…What did you say?!"
The Second Hokage's chakra flared, rage igniting instantly at the thought of his beloved village being reduced to ruins.
But Hashirama only sighed, almost amused. He gazed past Orochimaru, expression oddly gentle.
"As expected… no matter the era, there will always be war." He shook his head, almost laughing. "Tobirama, I told you, didn't I? Stop inventing strange jutsu like this…"
"Brother!" Tobirama barked again, furious at his sibling's lighthearted tone.
Orochimaru's smile only deepened.
The true battle for Konoha had begun.