The second wave to arrive was the Military Police Force.
In other words, the Uchiha Clan.
"Careful. That Mud Wall will burn your feet." As the Uchiha prepared to rush forward, Sakumo Hatake, who had come over to hand things off, gave them a reminder.
Fugaku Uchiha, however, only curled his lip and brushed it off.
Now serving as the vice-captain of the Konoha Military Police Force, he was already in his twenties. Among ninja, that was an age where one was supposed to be mature.
And yet.
Maybe it was the Uchiha blood. Maybe life just had not worn him down yet. Either way, there was still a bit of adolescent bravado clinging to him.
The elders in the clan liked to say that once his son was born, he would finally settle down.
Fugaku did not buy it.
Raising a kid? He had never done it, sure, but how hard could it really be?
"Burning hot?" the thought flickered through his mind. "Uchiha don't fear heat. Even if it burns, it's just part of training."
With that, Fugaku leapt straight onto the Mud Wall.
The rest of the Uchiha followed suit.
Sakumo raised an eyebrow, quietly wrapped chakra around his sandals, and stepped up beside Fugaku.
Fugaku regretted it the moment his feet landed.
He had thought it would only be a little warm. From the other side, the earthen wall looked fine enough.
Endurance training that bordered on self-torture was nothing new to ninja.
But when Fugaku looked down, his heart sank.
The center of the wall had already melted, the stone turned into something viscous and lava-like, heat still pulsing through it without pause.
"What refined Fire Style…" he thought, teeth clenched. "Is this the Third Hokage's work? He melted through a wall this thick?"
He was just about to quietly gather chakra when he caught sight of Sakumo out of the corner of his eye. The man was watching him, eyebrows twitching like he was barely holding something back.
"Hot, right?" Sakumo said, wearing his usual blank, earnest expression. "Probably better to use chakra to protect your feet."
Fugaku wanted to tough it out. Then he saw the rest of his clansmen, all of them barely holding on, faces stiff with strain.
After a moment, he nodded through gritted teeth.
"Hatake-sama is right."
The Anbu nearby were having the time of their lives. Masks made it easy to laugh without consequence.
What was this supposed to be?
A tsundere getting outplayed by someone even more devious?
Fugaku activated his Sharingan as chakra fluctuations in the field caught his attention.
"What kind of jutsu is that…" he murmured.
The reason for his reaction was simple. In his vision, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was completely coated in a hard, jet-black layer from head to toe. Even the staff in his hand looked like it had been forged from black diamond.
"It feels like Earth Style," Sakumo said after a moment of thought. "Some kind of hardening technique. From the looks of it, the Third is keeping it active over his whole body. Kind of like Cloud's Lightning Style chakra armor."
"Wouldn't that affect mobility?" Fugaku frowned. "Most Earth Style hardening techniques do. They also interfere with using other jutsu at the same time."
"And keeping it active nonstop has to drain chakra," he added, then hesitated. "The Third Hokage's reserves…"
He stopped himself.
Talking about a Hokage's chakra being insufficient was a dangerous subject.
Sakumo looked at him with open curiosity. "You're saying the Hokage might not have enough chakra?"
Fugaku rubbed his forehead.
He really did not know how to deal with this man.
Who was it that said Sakumo Hatake was rigid and humorless? From where Fugaku stood, the man was sharp, sly, and quietly provocative.
"I didn't say that," Fugaku said flatly. "I meant… I mean…"
He gave up and went silent.
Shinnosuke Sarutobi glanced at him, baffled.
The Uchiha were truly hard to judge.
They loved acting cool, loved playing aloof, and their people skills left a lot to be desired. A few sentences in, and Fugaku was already circling around how his own father was getting old and might not be able to maintain multiple techniques.
Still, they were reliable. They arrived just as fast as Anbu, and the Police Force had done its job well.
There was something oddly aesthetic about it. Like someone who wanted to rebel but did not quite have the resolve.
The technique Hiruzen was using, which he himself called "Earth Style: Iron Skin" was indeed a hardening technique.
And yes, it came with all the drawbacks Fugaku had mentioned.
For other people.
For Hiruzen Sarutobi, whose chakra was abundant and whose mastery of the five nature transformations ran deep, those weaknesses simply did not exist.
"A ninja's body is fragile," Hiruzen said, voice steady. "Like a glass cannon."
"You protect yourself at all times. Never spare chakra where it matters."
He drew in a breath, then expelled a massive cloud of smoke across the formation of Rashomon gates.
Fire Style chakra surged at his fingertips, and flames erupted in an instant.
"Fire Style: Burning Ash won't be blocked by Rashomon," Sakumo said, eyes lighting up. "And the hardening hasn't restricted him at all. He's still using all five natures freely."
"As expected of the Third Hokage," Fugaku agreed.
His Three Tomoe Sharingan stayed locked on Orochimaru as he added, almost without thinking, "That vitality, that presence… he's like a monster."
In his vision, Orochimaru was engulfed by flames, yet it barely seemed to matter. His body shed and reformed like a snake molting its skin as he slid across the ground.
Was that really human?
"Oh? You mean to say…" Sakumo began, curiosity written all over his face.
"No, no, Hatake-sama," Fugaku said quickly, face darkening. "I didn't mean anything."
Why could he never keep his mouth shut?
Did he really need to get married and have a kid just to grow up? Would that even help?
The Anbu were barely holding it together.
First he implied the Hokage was old. Then he suggested Orochimaru was not human.
What a mouth on that Uchiha.
On the battlefield, Hiruzen formed seals in rapid succession. A massive water dragon spiraled up from the ground.
Water and fire collided, releasing scalding steam that tore through the air.
The Rashomon gates, their internal structure already damaged by extreme heat, shrank violently when hit with cold water. Cracks spread across their massive doors.
Hiruzen lifted his staff, chakra coiling around it, and charged straight into the steam.
Wind Style reinforced the strike as he swung.
With a thunderous crash, all six Rashomon gates shattered into fragments under the sheer force.
Fugaku's Sharingan captured every detail.
His brain lagged behind.
In his eyes, Hiruzen had charged into the chaos and smashed steam and six towering gates into pieces with a single swing.
What?
This scene was witnessed not only by Fugaku, but also by Danzoa and Root, as well as Jiraiya, who had arrived carrying Asuma and Kakashi, and Tsunade.
"Damn it!" Jiraiya shouted, vision going dark. "The old man's snapped! He's really going to kill that snake and clean house!"
He dumped the two kids on Sakumo and rushed forward. "Hold back, old man!"
"This isn't worth killing over!"
Sakumo casually passed the kids along to Shinnosuke.
Asuma and Kakashi were tossed back and forth without the slightest ability to resist.
For the first time, Kakashi, hailed as the academy's top prodigy, truly understood the gap between students and veteran jonin. A crushing sense of loss washed over him.
It did the same to Asuma.
Sakumo stepped directly in front of Jiraiya. "The Hokage has not given permission for anyone to enter."
Jiraiya stomped his foot in frustration. "By the time permission comes, that snake could be dead! Be flexible, Hatake-sama!"
Fugaku's expression grew serious.
Sakumo's speed was so fast that even his Three Tomoe Sharingan struggled to track it.
If that turned into close combat…
"No wonder his reputation is so strong."
Sakumo stood firm in front of Jiraiya, one hand hovering over the hilt of the White Fang, his gaze warning Tsunade not to make a move.
Fugaku could not help himself. Even this, he judged silently.
"This is family business. Blocking people like this is just asking to offend someone."
Then another thought surfaced.
Thinking of the Third Hokage's ferocity, Fugaku winced. "Didn't the clan head say the Third was getting old? Where, exactly, is the old part?"
"With a swing like that, even Susanoo wouldn't want to take it head-on."
Danzo stood there, eyes unfocused.
Wasn't this man supposed to have been crushed by the pressure of being Hokage?
This level of vitality was no worse than his prime.
What was going on?
Did one serious illness bring enlightenment? Or did some former Hokage possess him? Maybe Danzo should get a fever too.
In midair, Hiruzen continued forming seals.
"Earth Style: Mobile Core!"
The ground itself was forcibly lifted, and under that violent upheaval, Orochimaru was dragged into view.
His hit-and-run plan had failed.
But the match was not over.
Master and student locked eyes, confirming each other's condition.
No need to stop.
Orochimaru reached into his throat and pulled out a finely crafted ninja blade. He slashed at Hiruzen and shouted, "You idiot, Jiraiya! Stay out of this and watch. Don't interfere with my sparring with sensei!"
"Come down if you want," Hiruzen barked back, swinging his staff. "I can measure you too while I'm at it."
Jiraiya wilted instantly, then perked up again. "Old man, beat the hell out of that snake!"
The two began trading blows with weapons.
Blade and staff collided. Orochimaru's vertical pupils shrank.
"When did the old man get this strong…" he thought.
His entire body rippled as he dispersed the force, thanks to his unique technique, Soft Physique Modification.
If anyone else tried that, internal bleeding would be the least of their problems.
"Impressive," Hiruzen laughed, excitement rising. "Blades don't pierce you, fire and water don't faze you."
The thrill of wielding such power, the novelty of seeing so many techniques in action, intoxicated him.
"Try this one!"
Chakra surged into the staff as Hiruzen brought it down with full force.
The impact boomed.
Orochimaru sensed danger the instant their weapons met. He twisted aside, shedding the force, and was sent flying through the air.
The staff smashed into the ground, carving out a massive crater as dirt and stone exploded outward.
Fugaku bared his teeth, sucking in air.
No wonder the Uchiha lagged behind the Hokage's line.
Watching these two go at it, you would think they were really trying to kill each other.
This was not sparring. This was real.
If he ever had a son, this was how he would teach him.
Throw him onto a battlefield early and let him feel what the ninja world was really like.
"Sensei, your surname is Sarutobi, not Senju," Orochimaru complained internally as he lay there.
Then he opened his mouth wide. A massive snake shot out of his throat, charging straight at Hiruzen.
Slime coated its body, dripping onto the ground and hissing as it corroded the earth.
During this time, more jonin arrived, along with some chunin and genin.
The Sarutobi clan's allies, the Ino-Shika-Cho, were among the first of this group to reach the scene.
"Perfect!" Hiruzen shouted, though it was unclear whether he meant the reinforcements or the attack.
He swung his hardened fist straight at the snake's head.
It burst in a spray of flesh and blood.
From the remaining body, a fresh Orochimaru emerged and drove a punch toward Hiruzen's abdomen.
Hiruzen did not dodge. He met it head-on.
They exchanged blows and each staggered back several steps.
Hiruzen glanced around. Enough people had arrived.
He stopped attacking.
"Guess these old bones can't handle it like they used to," he said, rubbing his ribs. "That one's going to ache for days."
Then he looked at Orochimaru. "You all right, my old student?"
One Iron Skin was not enough.
Even after refining it, it still fell short.
He would need to study more taijutsu-oriented techniques, ones that balanced offense and defense.
"They're incredibly useful."
"Sensei, don't you think that's a bit insulting?" Orochimaru said. Blood streamed from his mouth, making the complaint almost comical. "Who do you think took that punch? I'm human too. If I'm coughing up blood, that counts as injured."
"That just means you're sturdy," Hiruzen replied cheerfully, giving him a thumbs-up. "That move earlier was good. Teach it to me sometime."
"That was a combination of Yang transformation and nature change, right? And I sensed traces of Summoning Jutsu too."
He was referring to Orochimaru's snake-style substitution.
Orochimaru's expression grew complicated.
For a fleeting moment, he missed the stubborn old man from before.
Somewhere deep down, he felt that if the so-called Professor of Ninjutsu started stacking jutsu onto himself the way Orochimaru did…
Something terrifying might happen.
"Even though the timing isn't right, I'm very pleased with your growth," Hiruzen said warmly.
"Well done, Orochimaru."
He stepped closer, rolling his shoulders. One hand pressed against his own injury, the other against Orochimaru's wounded chest. A soft green glow spread from his palm.
Orochimaru's eyes flicked toward the crowd, then curved upward.
"With sensei like this, if we really went all out, I'd be the one losing face today," he thought.
"Stopping now and healing me in front of everyone…"
There was no doubt about it. This gave Orochimaru plenty of respect and left room for speculation.
Who said Orochimaru and the Third Hokage were drifting apart?
Look at this. It was practically a display of paternal affection.
"I may have won," Hiruzen said, carefully returning the bell to his ninja pouch, "but I'm keeping this. I'm used to it being there."
Orochimaru's smile widened.
At that moment, Hizashi Hyuga arrived.
Anbu, Root, and the other ninja who had come earlier all looked at him with loaded expressions.
The Hyuga Clan, with the Byakugan, should have detected village disturbances first.
They specialized in taijutsu. Their speed should not have been slow.
So why were they so late?
Hizashi felt bitter but said nothing.
Clan rules were clan rules.
As a branch family member, he could not make decisions on his own. Even after noticing the situation immediately, he had to report to the main house and wait for the elders' judgment.
That delay cost time.
This generation of the Hyuga main house followed a policy of neutrality, staying out of village affairs unless war broke out.
With the fight over, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, who had arrived with the third wave, exchanged a glance.
Koharu stepped forward. "Hiruzen, what are you doing?"
She wanted to ask why he caused such a commotion without informing them.
Hiruzen's gaze hardened. "Advisor, address me by my title while on duty. This is not the time for you to speak."
Koharu fell silent.
She wanted to argue, but the severity in his eyes stopped her cold.
Hiruzen formed seals again.
"Earth Style: Dark Swamp!"
In moments, the training ground turned to mire. The remains of the Rashomon gates and the bodies of countless snakes were dragged deep into the earth.
Then refined Fire Style followed. Red-white flames baked the ground at full power.
In an instant, the swamp dried.
Blades of Wind Style shaved the uneven terrain flat with surgical precision.
The training ground was left clean and level.
"That chakra reserve is unreal…" Orochimaru stared at Hiruzen, who was not even breathing hard. His mind raced.
This series of techniques looked like simple cleanup.
Used on people instead?
How many ninja could survive that kind of wide-area bombardment? He was practically a walking reaper.
Orochimaru was not the only one thinking it.
Chunin and genin stared at Hiruzen with pure admiration.
Asuma gaped. "Wait, my dad's this strong? He's way stronger than my teacher!"
A middle-aged ninja in a green jumpsuit, thick brows and beard streaming with tears, cried out, "Hokage-sama! Is this the Hokage's youth? I feel like I'm on fire!"
The outfit was impossible to miss.
Hiruzen noticed him and gave a kind nod.
Danzo, meanwhile, was deep in self-reflection.
"When did Hiruzen train in Yang techniques?" he raged inwardly. "He's reversed his aging!"
"And I didn't notice a thing under that Hokage hat."
Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back and sighed. "Still old…"
He took out his pipe, lit it, and drew a deep breath.
Then he shouted, voice ringing clear.
"All ninja present, assemble!"
In an instant, the ninja formed ranks before him.
This was not just respect for the title of Hokage.
It was reverence for overwhelming strength.
Hiruzen took it all in.
Just as he thought. In a world of the extraordinary, connections and authority mattered, but strength was inseparable from them.
He gathered his thoughts.
The speech to come was the real centerpiece.
Everything before had only been setting the stage.