Orochimaru, Running Away with a Bucket
After receiving reports that Iwagakure had been pushed back on the front lines—forced all the way to the borders of the Land of Earth—Ōnoki made a decisive choice.
The Third Tsuchikage would personally lead Iwagakure's forces to the battlefield.
This decision carried more than one purpose. Not only was it meant to stabilize the crumbling front, but it was also intended to force Konoha's Hokage to appear in person.
If Ōnoki could defeat Kage-level opponents in open battle, then all of Konoha's resistance would become meaningless.
When Konoha learned that the Third Tsuchikage himself was heading to the front lines, the response was immediate. Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi could not afford to remain seated in the village.
After ordering the frontline units to withdraw in an orderly fashion, Hiruzen rose and prepared to head directly toward the battlefield.
"Hiruzen, I'm coming too!"
Danzo Shimura stood up abruptly, his expression dark. He no longer wished to remain in the command room. The duties of coordination could be left to Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu.
What he wanted was not authority—it was bloodshed for Konoha.
"Danzo," Hiruzen said firmly, turning back, "you must stay and protect the village. Kumogakure, Sunagakure, and Kirigakure haven't made any moves yet. If they suddenly mobilize, Konoha will fall entirely under your responsibility."
Hiruzen's words were calm, but the weight behind them was unmistakable.
This wasn't distrust—it was concern.
The three major villages had remained eerily silent for too long. If they chose this moment to strike, Konoha would be vulnerable.
"…I understand."
Danzo sat back down heavily, his face grim.
He couldn't deny that Hiruzen's judgment was correct. Still, the thought of the battlefield raging while he remained behind gnawed at him like poison.
Why am I always the Hokage's deputy?
He had asked himself that question countless times.
If he hadn't taken this position, he would be shining on the battlefield instead of rotting in a command room, issuing no orders and fighting no enemies.
Sitting there without purpose, Danzo felt more like a decorative object than a shinobi.
Retreat and Pursuit
On the battlefield in the Land of Earth, Konoha's ninjas received the retreat order and obeyed without hesitation.
But Iwagakure's forces were furious.
After being suppressed for so long, how could they possibly allow Konoha's forces to escape so easily?
They roared as they pursued.
"Earth Release: Rock Bullet Technique!"
"Earth Release: Rock Drilling Rod!"
Countless Earth Release techniques rained down upon the retreating Konoha ninja. Some attacked from afar, while others chased relentlessly, their feet sinking into the ground as though the earth itself had turned to liquid.
The Konoha ninja fought while retreating, step by step, until they reached the border of the Land of Waterfalls.
"Orochimaru, Tsunade… looks like our luck really is terrible."
Jiraiya glanced back at the pursuing Iwagakure forces. Surrounded on all sides, several enemy ninja swallowed soldier pills, their chakra flaring violently.
"This isn't our bad luck," Orochimaru replied calmly. "It's theirs."
A pale white snake coiled around Orochimaru's arm. Its mouth opened, spitting out the hilt of the Kusanagi sword. Orochimaru grasped it and drew the blade with a soft hiss.
Continuous combat had taken its toll.
He was exhausted—far more than he cared to admit.
Even so, Tsunade and Jiraiya were in even worse condition. Tsunade had been repeatedly creating shadow clones for medical research, while Jiraiya had barely rested for days.
"They really are unlucky," Tsunade said coldly. "They picked the wrong opponents."
Lightning flickered across her body as she activated Lightning Release: Lightning Stimulation. In the blink of an eye, she crossed the battlefield and smashed her fist into an Iwagakure ninja.
The impact crushed his abdomen completely.
Blood sprayed as Tsunade didn't even slow down, charging straight into the enemy ranks.
"Earth Release: Flowing Spear!"
"Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
Jiraiya leapt backward, narrowly avoiding jagged stone spikes erupting from the ground. His long white hair shot forward, binding an enemy ninja—only for his grip to crush nothing but earth.
A substitution clone!
Jiraiya reacted instantly, flinging shuriken and forming the Tatsu hand seal. Wind Release chakra surged, transforming the weapons into spinning blades of wind.
One disc cleaved through a massive tree—and the Iwagakure ninja hiding behind it—cutting him cleanly in half. Another disc screamed toward a second enemy.
The Third Tsuchikage Arrives
High above the battlefield, Ōnoki rose into the air.
In moments, he reached the border of the Land of Waterfalls, his gaze locking onto the trio fighting below.
Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade.
"So that's where you ran…"
Ōnoki's eyes narrowed.
Konoha is bold, he thought. Sending someone as important as Orochimaru to the front lines.
Murderous intent flashed across his face.
He clapped his hands together, forming a cube-shaped barrier of blinding white light and hurled it forward.
Is he using Dust Release right away?!
Orochimaru's pupils shrank.
The moment he saw the flying cube, he activated a movement technique and appeared behind an Iwagakure ninja, kicking him directly into the cube's center.
The unfortunate ninja screamed—but no sound escaped the barrier.
Ōnoki's expression changed.
Have I been exposed?
He canceled the technique instantly. The cube vanished, allowing the Iwagakure ninja to escape, scrambling away in terror.
Ōnoki stared sharply at Orochimaru.
That movement…
The Flying Thunder God Technique?
Ōnoki recognized it as the Second Hokage's signature movement technique, but he misunderstood its nature, believing it to be nothing more than an incredibly fast Body Flicker Technique.
"Orochimaru!"
Jiraiya and Tsunade rushed to his side, staring up at the short, floating figure.
"So that's the Third Tsuchikage?" Jiraiya muttered grimly.
Ōnoki of the Two Weights.
"We're in trouble," Tsunade said quietly.
"The Third Tsuchikage isn't our opponent," Orochimaru said calmly. "He's our teacher's."
As he spoke, a familiar chakra surged toward them.
A diamond-like staff spun through the air.
"That staff…!"
Ōnoki's stone-covered fist collided with the adamantine staff.
A metallic clang echoed across the battlefield.
The staff flew backward, opening a single eye in shock.
Enma—the Monkey King—had never been challenged head-on like this before.
The stone covering Ōnoki's fist shattered, leaving it red and swollen.
"So this is the adamantine staff's hardness…"
"Third Tsuchikage!"
A commanding voice rang out.
"Your opponent is me."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood tall, clad in black battle attire with green armor plates.
Ōnoki's eyes gleamed.
"Third Hokage… let me see how strong you really are!"
Clash of Kage
Ōnoki raised both hands.
A conical barrier of white light condensed between them.
"Dust Release: Primitive World Detachment Technique!"
The cone expanded violently, firing forward in a blinding beam.
Hiruzen leapt backward repeatedly, narrowly avoiding the beam as it erased everything it touched—ground, stone, air—reducing all to nothingness.
The preparation time is long, Hiruzen realized.
Both he and Orochimaru recognized the same weakness instantly.
Enma extended repeatedly, stabbing toward Ōnoki.
Forced to rise higher, Ōnoki gritted his teeth.
Then I'll destroy it!
His fist became coated in rock once more.
"Earth Release: Super Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
The impact cracked Enma's surface.
"Sensei! Recall Enma!" Orochimaru shouted.
Hiruzen reacted instantly, pulling Enma back just in time.
Ōnoki clicked his tongue.
"Tch. Sharp eyes."
Enma wiped cold sweat internally.
The battlefield fell silent as all ninja stopped moving.
Everyone waited.
Two Kage were fighting.
The outcome would decide everything.
Escalation
"Earth Release: Rock Clone Technique!"
Five stone clones formed around Ōnoki.
"Earth Release: Rock Bullet!"
The rocks expanded midair like meteors.
"Enma!"
Hiruzen slammed the staff into the ground and launched himself skyward, swinging it horizontally. The staff extended endlessly, shattering the clones.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
A blazing inferno surged forward.
"Wind Release: Night Wind!"
A powerful gust accelerated the flames.
Tsunade and Jiraiya stared in shock.
"That's Orochimaru's jutsu!"
Orochimaru merely smiled.
Ōnoki countered again.
"Dust Release: Primitive World Detachment!"
The beam sliced through the fireball, detonating it in a massive explosion.
Hiruzen landed, eyes sharp.
Then I won't give you time to use it.
He formed seals.
A massive shuriken appeared.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"
Thousands of shuriken filled the sky.
"Wind Release: Fast Wind Wall!"
The storm of blades assaulted Ōnoki from every angle, preventing any hand seals.
Ōnoki clenched his teeth.
So fast… and so many!
The battlefield trembled.
And the true clash had only just begun.
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