"Orochimaru, you've actually colluded with the Uchiha clan?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, staring right at his former student. His voice shook with shock and anger.
"Collusion is a bit too harsh," Orochimaru replied casually. "It's just that we happen to have a common enemy, so we decided to cooperate."
Shedding his disguise to reveal his true, pale face, he looked at Hiruzen with a cold, calculating gaze. "It's an honor, Sarutobi-sensei, to be able to fight you again. Are you regretting letting me go back then?"
Hiruzen gritted his teeth at the taunt. Honestly, he did regret it. He regretted letting his judgment get clouded due to their master-disciple bond, holding him back from acting the night Orochimaru fled the village.
Taking a deep breath to calm down, Hiruzen spoke seriously. "Stop this, Orochimaru. If you stand with me today and let the Uchiha clan fall, I will stop hunting you. You will still be my good disciple." He paused, his voice turning desperate. "I will even make you the Fifth Hokage. Didn't you always want that? Stop now, and it's yours."
It was a painfully earnest plea—one that might have almost convinced an ordinary person.
"Hahaha!" Orochimaru covered his face and laughed up at the sky. "Good, good, Sarutobi-sensei. You're as foolish as ever. Do you really think everyone cares about being Hokage as much as you do?"
Hiruzen's face darkened. "Then why did you start your twisted human experiments after Minato became Hokage?" he demanded.
"Blaming me now?" Orochimaru sneered. "Isn't this all your fault? If Danzo hadn't asked for it, and if you hadn't always looked the other way, Sensei..." Orochimaru's voice rose with real emotion, but he quickly caught himself and laughed. "There's no point in talking anymore. Let me send you to your grave."
"Ninja Art: Shadow Snake!"
Orochimaru opened his mouth unnaturally wide. His tongue instantly transformed into a thick, elongated snake that darted forward, sinking its fangs viciously into Hiruzen's neck.
Seeing the pained grimace on the old man's face, a glint of cruel amusement flickered in Orochimaru's eyes.
"Sarutobi-sensei… have you really grown so old that you can't even dodge something this simple?
But a second later, the excitement in his eyes flared even brighter.
"An Earth Clone?" Orochimaru murmured. "As expected. Even if you are old, you are still the God of Shinobi, Sarutobi-sensei!"
Just as he spoke, the Hiruzen bit by the snake dissolved into a puddle of thick mud. The real Hiruzen reappeared a short distance away, his hands already blurring through a rapid sequence of hand seals.
"Ninja Art: Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The few shuriken Hiruzen threw instantly turned into thousands, filling the sky with deadly steel. Each clone was as solid and sharp as the original, creating a lethal rain of blades.
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!" Orochimaru shouted. His right arm turned into a tangled mass of huge, venomous snakes. They lunged forward, catching the shuriken in their jaws or using their bodies as shields to block the attack.
Taking advantage of the split second Orochimaru was occupied, Hiruzen wove another sequence.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"
A powerful river of liquid mud burst from under Orochimaru's feet. He didn't expect the old Hokage to still be this fast. Caught off guard, Orochimaru was instantly swept away and trapped in the swirling mud.
'A perfect opportunity!' Hiruzen's eyes flashed sharply.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet!"
The Earth Dragon Bullet slammed into Orochimaru with crushing force and sticky mud, pinning him in place. A split second later, the Fire Dragon Bullet washed over him, searing his trapped body with intense heat.
Despite landing the devastating combo, Hiruzen's brow furrowed. As the flames finally dissipated, leaving only scorched earth, he spoke flatly into the smoke. "Stop with the pointless performance, Orochimaru. Come out."
"What sharp eyes you have, Sarutobi-sensei."
Orochimaru's body seemed to melt out of the ground, reforming completely unhurt right in front of Hiruzen. "Truly impressive. But did you really think these tricks would defeat me?
Summoning Jutsu: Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes!"
A massive swarm of venomous snakes began boiling out of the ground, ready to swallow the Hokage whole.
"Fire Release: Great Flame Technique!"
Before the sea of snakes could grow, Hiruzen acted first. He took a deep breath and blew out a massive wave of fire, turning most of the snakes into ash in an instant.
Refusing to give Orochimaru even a moment to breathe, Hiruzen pressed his advantage, his hands moving flawlessly from one jutsu to the next.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Lightning Release: Roaring Thunder!"
"Combination Ninjutsu: Lightning Water Dragon Bullet!"
A huge dragon made of water quickly took shape. At the same time, Hiruzen spat out streams of lightning that merged perfectly into the dragon's head. With a bright flash, the electrified dragon roared forward, charging at Orochimaru with incredible speed.
"Such proficiency... no wonder they call you the Professor," Orochimaru muttered, licking his lips as a flash of genuine surprise crossed his reptilian eyes. "Summoning Jutsu: Rashomon!"
A huge, demonic gate burst out of the ground just in time. The Lightning Water Dragon crashed into the metal face of the Rashomon, leaving a massive crater. The gate groaned under the pressure, but it ultimately held firm, perfectly absorbing the explosive might of the combination jutsu.
High up on the Kage summit's tiled roof, Jie Uchiha watched the fierce clash and couldn't help but shake his head.
'Orochimaru is really dawdling,' Jie thought. 'To waste so much time on an old man with one foot in the grave. But whatever. I suppose this is their final meeting as master and disciple. I'll let them catch up.'
He glanced down at Kakashi, who was collapsed beside him, still struggling fiercely to break free from the illusion. Jie couldn't help but offer a word of advice.
"Don't waste your energy," Jie said calmly. "A Sharingan genjutsu is vastly different from the ordinary illusions you're used to. Even if you know you're trapped and try desperately to disrupt your chakra flow to break it, it's all completely useless."
He looked down at the silver-haired Jonin. "Right now, everything about you—except for your consciousness—is under my absolute control. Even the chakra you feel flowing through your body right now is just an illusion."
Having given his explanation for the last time, Jie turned his back on the immobilized ninja and leapt away from the arena, headed deep into the Hidden Leaf Village.
Just moments ago, Joren had sent him a crucial piece of intel. The Anbu had spotted several strangers inside the village—ninjas wearing black cloaks with ominous red clouds on them.
Now, Jie needed to see for himself. If he got the chance, he would take out the Akatsuki intruders all at once.
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