Orochimaru: "Strike the first blow!"
Orochimaru: "A battle titled 'The Revival of the Uzumaki'."
Orochimaru: "Declaring the return of the Uzumaki... and endless fury!"
Orochimaru: "..."
In the Chat Room, Orochimaru's speech sounded very much like a fanatic of Black-Framed Naruto.
Of course, everyone was more or less immune to it by now.
Orochimaru wasn't wrong, though.
After this battle, the entire Ninja World would fall into a state of panic.
Wiping out Kusagakure overnight was certainly something the Five Great Ninja Villages could achieve.
However, it was not that simple.
The sudden emergence of such a force in the Ninja World would clearly shatter the current delicate peace.
["Hmm?"]
[Just as he was about to make a move, Naruto suddenly frowned.]
["Great Fox, did you sense that?"]
["It's a very strange feeling... like a product of Yang Release, yet also like a product of Wood Release... more like... it doesn't exist, yet the malice is as real as a person."]
[Inside the Sealing Space, the Great Fox was also frowning deeply.]
[She then glanced at the physical form she had currently manifested.]
[Naruto had just told her to make sure her figure didn't lose its shape when she appeared.]
[The Great Fox naturally didn't panic at all; it was just a Chakra body anyway, so it didn't matter. It wasn't as if she were releasing her actual current form.]
[Reminded by Naruto, the Great Fox finally noticed the malice hidden underground and even within the trees.]
["That's right."]
["Malice perception is the most pure."]
["Since there is malice... perhaps some Secret Technique allows the caster to hide within nature."]
["True enough."]
["A Secret Technique like that... I want it too. There aren't many of them; I'll control them first and take them back with me later."]
[Naruto nodded.]
[With a thought.]
[Chakra flowed through the soles of his feet and into the ground.]
[The preparations he had made earlier immediately bore fruit.]
[Boom—!!!]
[At five locations near Kusagakure.]
[Three underground, and two within trees.]
[Suddenly, several large wooden hands infused with sealing Chakra appeared.]
[Crunch—]
["Ah~" x5]
[Almost simultaneously.]
[In the perception sent back to Naruto, those dozen or so large wooden hands all transmitted the sensation of having grabbed some kind of humanoid creature.]
[They had no gender.]
[And... they all had the shape of a human, yet were not human-like.]
[It was very strange.]
[Extremely strange.]
[This was the first time Naruto had ever seen such creatures.]
[Moreover, most importantly, within these five White Humanoid Beings.]
[Naruto sensed extremely pure Chakra.]
[While rich in vitality, it also possessed the characteristics of Wood Release.]
[And after being caught by the wooden hands, the parts of them that were grabbed seemed to show a tendency to assimilate into the wooden hands.]
['A major discovery!']
[Naruto's pupils suddenly constricted.]
["They're like human mutants!"]
["And highly compatible mutants at that!"]
["If they can be researched... no, using their cells to culture tissue... for Medical Ninjutsu, this would be a breakthrough sufficient to overturn everything!"]
["Even if someone suddenly loses half their body, as long as limbs from such a creature can be transplanted... there's no need to worry about rejection; its compatibility is beyond imagination!"]
[Naruto was truly excited.]
[The greatest harvest of this trip to Kusagakure was undoubtedly the discovery of these White Humanoid Beings.]
[However, a moment later, Naruto frowned again.]
["No!"]
["If that's the case... then besides Kusagakure, do such existences exist in other places as well?"]
[Naruto narrowed his eyes slightly.]
[He looked at the five White Humanoid Beings controlled by the Wood Release.]
[Under the night sky, even from a great distance.]
[Naruto could still clearly see the appearance of the five White Humanoid Beings.]
["Plants? Wood Release?"]
["It seems... I can actively cultivate them!"]
["As long as there is enough Chakra... no, Chakra that possesses Wood Release and Yang Release, which is to say, Chakra with vitality..."]
[Naruto's hands trembled slightly.]
[However, the look of excitement on Naruto's face soon vanished.]
[Looking at the appearance of those White Humanoid Beings... and that somewhat familiar skin color.]
[His gaze narrowed.]
["This... so that's how it is?!"]
["It all makes sense now!!!"]
[Inside the Sealing Space, the Great Fox asked in confusion, "Why are you so startled all of a sudden?"]
["It makes sense!"]
["Great Fox!"]
["Look closely at the hands of those White Humanoid Beings!"]
["Does it feel familiar?!"]
["And..."]
["The characteristics possessed by that body!"]
[The Great Fox narrowed her eyes, and a trace of bewilderment flashed across her pretty face, which still had a hint of fox-like charm.]
[But she didn't show it, instead pretending to be deep in thought.]
[That damn blondie!]
[Making a fox think again?]
[Refused!]
[Wait, this blondie will definitely say it himself in a moment.]
[Sure enough, Naruto soon spoke again:]
["According to what Kakashi-sensei said, Uchiha Obito had half of his body crushed back then."]
["To be able to survive... and on the Night of the Uchiha Massacre, I even cut off one of his hands."]
["Was it blood that flowed out then?!"]
["To this day, I still remember that night."]
[Speaking of this, a cold killing intent flashed in Naruto's eyes.]
[Indeed, he had always remembered that night.]
[The purpose was to capture Uchiha Obito in one blow the next time he saw him.]
[Not to kill him, but to capture him!]
["Looking at it this way."]
["The Uchiha Obito of back then used this kind of White Humanoid Being to sustain his life."]
["Therefore... I'm certain that when I see him again, the hand I cut off will have recovered."]
["And the reason he could survive with half his body crushed is likely because of this white creature... so, my previous guess was correct."]
["These White Humanoid Beings... I can cultivate them as well!"]
[At this point, Naruto felt excited again.]
[For an individual, such a creature was likewise a supreme treasure.]
[And for a power, the value of such a creature would only be higher.]
[So, what about for a country?]
[For someone who intends to re-establish a country and revive a nation?]
[War never happens without people dying.]
[Those who survive might not necessarily be whole.]
[With a creature comparable to a divine medicine... that was absolutely no joke.]
[Besides... most importantly...]
[Snap—]
[In the distance.]
[The arm of one White Humanoid Being was forcibly torn off.]
[But it was trapped in a Genjutsu and could not sense pain.]
[It didn't scream or shout, or perhaps... it had no sense of pain?]
[It didn't matter.]
[Because Naruto thought of a possibility.]
[Since these White Humanoid Beings were linked to Uchiha Obito, they were likely one of the hidden cards left behind by Uchiha Madara.]
[Since they were with those people... then by using their characteristics, they could hide in many places in the Ninja World and be almost impossible to discover.]
[This also fit the speculation that Uchiha Madara was plotting something massive...]
[In short, Naruto felt no psychological pressure treating them as inanimate objects or medicine.]
[This might be the best gift to give Tsunade upon meeting her.]