Jiraiya watched Mizuki open the door and leave, and did not try to stop him.
"Look at what Konoha has become. Sarutobi-sensei cannot escape responsibility. The White Fang's suicide, Orochimaru's defection, Nawaki's death, Dan's death, Tsunade leaving the village, the Senju clan's decline, the Uchiha clan's extermination… If none of that had happened, how strong would Konoha be now?"
Jiraiya knew every one of those scars by heart. But he was Hiruzen's student. He had no standing to judge the Hokage. Ninjas were forged into tools from the moment they were born. They were not meant to question. They were meant to obey.
Tsunade was proof of that. Even as the First Hokage's granddaughter, she could do nothing but watch events roll forward, powerless to change them. In the end, she left Konoha without a word. Out of sight, out of mind. She drowned her days in gambling, trying to bury what she could not bear.
"Ninjas are born to die on the battlefield. A ninja who dies quietly of old age is a failure. Konoha needs to change. I believe in Tsunade. She will lead the village well. Sarutobi-sensei… go in peace. Since the Second Great Ninja War, you have not set foot on a battlefield. Today is your last chance. If you fall to an enemy, your name can still be preserved. But if you die of old age, you will be mocked even in death."
So why, in the anime, did Jiraiya only fight at the village gate, blocking the giant snake, instead of rushing to Hiruzen's side?
Because he understood Orochimaru's intent. And, at some level, it matched his own. Better for Hiruzen to die in a blaze of glory than to wither away. Let the old man's upright image remain forever in the villagers' hearts.
As a student, it was the last gift Jiraiya could offer his teacher.
And it was not only Jiraiya and Orochimaru. Did the others not think the same? Kakashi, Guy, Kurenai… even Asuma. Who truly wanted to force their way inside and save Hiruzen?
They fought "hard", but only against minor foes. Kakashi and Guy even had time to talk. They were watching. Waiting. Letting the end come.
"The worth of a ninja lies in the way they die. Sarutobi-sensei… I hope you can understand." Jiraiya sighed.
He knew that once Mizuki left, Hiruzen was finished.
That Sharingan technique, Takamitamanomikoto, was simply too monstrous to counter.
"I should move as well. I can't let Konoha be reduced to rubble."
He left the Hokage Tower and hurried toward the village entrance, where a giant snake was already tearing through the walls.
At the Chūnin Exams finals arena, the rooftop battle raged on.
One had to admit it: that roof was absurdly sturdy, comparable to the Quintuple Rashōmon. If certain real estate developers saw it, they would be so ashamed they would bury themselves underground.
Fighting erupted across the village, but it did not take long to notice something off: Konoha's people were dragging their feet.
The Jōnin most of all. They looked like they were "trying", yet a single Chūnin could keep them busy for three whole minutes.
Mizuki reappeared outside the Four Violet Flames Formation. This time, he dropped all pretense and showed his real face.
Hiruzen was a heavyweight, whatever one thought of his character. Someone like that could not be allowed to die as "killed by an unknown ninja". That would be too cruel.
And killing the Third Hokage was an honor. Hiding would only make it seem like the killer feared being known, inviting contempt for no reason.
So if he was going to do it, he would do it openly. Not like Kakuzu, lobbing a shuriken from hundreds of miles away. In the end, nobody believed Kakuzu but Kakuzu.
He was even mocked by his own village as a loudmouth who did not dare to fight, and was forced to defect.
Not worth it.
On the rooftop, the instant Mizuki appeared, cold flashes of steel cut toward him. Senbon, shuriken, and kunai arrived in a single storm.
Shinra Tensei ▻ Almighty Push
A violent repulsive force exploded outward. The weapons were blasted away, and the shinobi who had closed in screamed as they were hurled back.
One move cleared the field.
The commotion drew the eyes inside the Four Violet Flames Formation. Orochimaru's gaze lit up. When he saw Mizuki's eyes, he could not help extending his tongue and licking his lips.
"Mizuki-kun, you're finally here. I thought you were going to break your promise!"
Mizuki glanced at Orochimaru.
His tongue is out. The Sharingan and Rinnegan have hooked him, and now he's interested in my body…
When Hiruzen recognized Mizuki, his expression darkened. Tobirama's Darkness Technique had already been dispelled, and both Hiruzen and Hashirama had regained their sight.
"Mizuki, you really came! Konoha trained you, yet you show no gratitude and become our enemy. Like Iruka, you were an orphan from childhood. Konoha raised you, and you repay kindness with betrayal. You are unworthy of being called human." Hiruzen launched into a lecture.
Mizuki sneered, "I defected because you forced me to. I wanted to stay in Konoha, but you drove me out. And let me be clear: I bear Konoha no malice. I came today for one reason only. To kill the Third Hokage, and no one else."
Orphan, raised by Konoha, Konoha owing him some great kindness… he laid it out so confidently. But what does any of that have to do with me, Mitchell?
I only transmigrated here halfway through. I never enjoyed any of the so-called kindness you are talking about.
So I feel no guilt at all.
Just then, Hashirama said, "A Mangekyō Sharingan in your left eye, and it's an Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. Looks like you've had it rough, just like Madara."
As he spoke, he let out a sigh, clearly assuming Mizuki was another Madara: awakening the Mangekyō after losing a friend, then achieving the Eternal Mangekyō after losing a sibling.
Hiruzen choked, then stressed, "Lord Hashirama, he is the enemy right now!"
Hashirama blinked, then suddenly remembered, "Oh, right. He's the enemy. He's here to kill you."
Hiruzen: "…"
Orochimaru: "…"
Mizuki: "…"
What a natural airhead. How can someone be this dense?
No wonder his own brother called him one of Konoha's three idiots, on the same level as Minato and Naruto.
If Tobirama's mind were not currently suppressed by Orochimaru's talisman, he would have roasted him on the spot.
"Saru, what do we do now?" Hashirama asked.
{T/N: In previous chapters, Hashirama often called him "Monkey". That is just a nickname, "Saru" means "monkey", taken from "Sarutobi". From here on, I will use "Saru", since it is a shortened form of the surname.}
Hiruzen said, "Help me create an enclosed space."
Hashirama nodded. He clapped his hands and shouted,
Mokuton: Mokujōheki ▻ Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall
Around Hiruzen, vine-like trees surged up, forming a ring that sealed over his head and enclosed him within.
Mizuki did not rush to strike. He wanted to see what tricks the old man still had left at a time like this.
"Shut the First up first!"
Activating Body Swap, Mizuki flashed to Orochimaru's side and raised his right hand.
Banshō Ten'in ▻ Universal Pull
Hashirama's body immediately flew toward Mizuki, completely out of control.
At the same time, from the center of Mizuki's left palm, a black rod emerged. This black rod could seal chakra. Anyone struck could not move. Even tailed beasts, once pinned by the black rod, could only submit.
The next instant, the black rod pierced Hashirama's chest. Mizuki frowned. The feel was wrong. It was a bit too hard.
Sure enough, the next instant, Hashirama's body turned into wood.
"A Wood Clone? When?"
His brow furrowed slightly. As expected of the First Hokage. He had used a clone at some point, and Mizuki had not even seen it with his own eyes.
No wonder, in the Final Valley battle, Madara was tricked by Hashirama's Wood Clone and then got stabbed from behind. This technique had been mastered to perfection.
Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Kōtan ▻ Wood Release Secret Technique: Nativity of a World of Trees
Countless trees grew wildly. In the blink of an eye, the flat rooftop turned into a primeval forest.
Everyone's line of sight was affected.
Mokuton: Mokujin no Jutsu ▻ Wood Release: Wood Human Technique
A mass of trees gathered together to form a gigantic wood golem, and its huge foot stomped down toward Mizuki and Orochimaru.
Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu ▻ Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique
Tobirama raised his hand. He did not need hand seals at all. Water as vast as a lake surged up around him, formed into a water dragon above his head, and slammed into the wood golem.
The water dragon struck the wood golem and made it stagger, but it did not knock it down.
Suiton: Suidanha ▻ Water Release: Water Severing Wave
Tobirama spat out a high-pressure jet of water that swept across the wood golem.
The Water Severing Wave was like a laser, able to split mountains and cleave stone. Yet against the wood golem, it only carved shallow damage and could not cut through. Worse, the injured sections regenerated in the blink of an eye.
"He really is worthy of the title of First Hokage." Orochimaru praised, "The power behind his jutsu is extraordinary. If the Edo Tensei sacrifices weren't so substandard, Hashirama's strength would increase severalfold. At that level, the First Hokage could destroy the world with a casual strike."
At that moment, the Fourth Kazekage made a move as well. A surge of golden sand rushed to the wood golem's feet and coiled around its left leg.
Jiton: Sakin Taisō ▻ Magnet Release: Gold Dust Imperial Funeral
The crushing pressure from the compressed sand mangled the golem's left foot, twisting it out of shape before grinding it into fragments. With one foot ruined, the massive wooden giant immediately lost its balance and crashed to the rooftop.
Even so, the rooftop was still sturdy…
The golem's damaged foot began repairing itself at once. It would not take long before it was as good as new.
Orochimaru said, "Mizuki-kun, that wood golem is a nightmare. Earlier, the First Hokage summoned one too, and we had to throw everything we had at it just to bring it down. If you want to finish it in a single blow, I'm afraid only your Wind Release: Rasenshuriken can do it!"
Mizuki shook his head, "No need."
The Rasenshuriken was powerful, but it shredded the meridians in the user's arm. Even with Naruto's Uzumaki physique and the Nine-Tails' rapid healing, it was a dangerous technique. Mizuki could not rely on it.
"An ordinary Rasengan will do."
He lifted his hand and hurled a Rasengan. Like a tailed-beast bomb, it slammed into the wood golem's chest and blasted out a crater half a meter deep and nearly a meter wide.
For a giant like the wood golem, it was barely a scratch. The crater began to knit itself back together.
Less than half a second later, another Rasengan detonated in the exact same spot. The wound had not even finished closing before it widened further.
And it did not stop. Rasengan after Rasengan hammered the golem like gunfire, striking without pause.
Orochimaru was stunned.
Mizuki's hands moved in perfect rhythm. The instant one Rasengan left his palm, another formed, uninterrupted. In only two or three breaths, he had already thrown dozens.
On the far side, the wood golem was riddled with holes, with no time to regenerate.
Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and licked his lips, murmuring, "Ninjutsu can be used like this? This is the Fourth's Rasengan… How did a move that powerful become a basic attack in his hands?"
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T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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Take a look at the new books I'm translating on my profile, Cyberpunk 2077: A God-Level Skill Every Day and Infinite Worlds: Building the Strongest Harem! They are also on my website for $5 and $1.5, respectively!
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