The Reaper Death Seal? Released
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The effects of the One-Yuan Seal radiated down to the first floor, eliminating the Sand Village shinobi who had been regrouping there. Now, the only sounds of combat emanating from within the Hokage Tower came from the underground levels.
Mujin closed the Eye of Eido once more. In a short span of time, he had consecutively deployed several large-scale barrier techniques and seals, leaving him with less than half of his chakra reserves.
This was another drawback of using barriers and sealing techniques—they consumed an immense amount of chakra. Even with the Uzumaki clan's unique physical endurance, Mujin found himself feeling somewhat strained.
He rummaged through Nara Shikaku's belongings, hoping to find anything of value, but as expected, there was nothing noteworthy. This left Mujin slightly frustrated with the ninja world's technological stagnation. "At the very least, they could've invented something like storage rings," he muttered under his breath. "It'd be convenient to store personal items for easy access, wouldn't it?"
Standing up, Mujin sighed regretfully. "Let's go. They'll likely notice something's wrong downstairs soon."
With that, the two quickly made their way to the confidential archive room located at the end of the third-floor corridor.
The door to the archive was protected by a complex layered barrier system—a protective barrier intertwined with an alarm barrier. Triggering either would set off the other.
To save time, Mujin activated the Eye of Eido once more and materialized a counter-barrier formula directly onto the door. With a single hand seal, he unleashed a surge of chakra, and with a loud BOOM, the protective barrier shattered.
The destruction of the protective barrier immediately triggered the alarm barrier, and a shrill alarm began blaring throughout the Hokage Tower.
However, given the current state of the tower, the alarm seemed almost meaningless.
The duo swiftly entered the archive room and began searching for their objective.
After a while, Karin exclaimed joyfully, "Mujin-niisan, I found it!"
Mujin hurried over and saw that the scroll in Karin's hands was indeed their target—the Reaper Death Seal Release!
Finally, the Shinigami Mask would serve its purpose.
A satisfied grin spread across Mujin's face as he raised the large scroll he had retrieved. "I've also found the Scroll of Seals, but…" He unrolled it, revealing that the only forbidden technique listed was the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu, followed by a collection of B-rank or lower elemental ninjutsu.
"Clearly, this is a fake Scroll of Seals," Mujin remarked dryly. "Though it could pass as a compendium of basic elemental techniques."
Upon reflection, it made sense. Even if the Third Hokage had been lenient toward Naruto, he wouldn't have allowed the real Scroll of Seals to be stolen so easily. After all, the forbidden techniques contained within were powerful enough to cause chaos if leaked.
"But," Mujin pondered aloud, "if the Reaper Death Seal Release is here, then Cat Granny's intel was correct. So why can't we find the Reaper Death Seal itself?"
The Reaper Death Seal represented the pinnacle of the Uzumaki clan's research into sealing techniques.
The Shinigami, capable of sealing away souls, was either created or captured and modified by the Uzumaki clan to serve as a tool for their jutsu. Even if Mujin didn't intend to use the technique himself, obtaining and studying the Uzumaki clan's greatest achievement was a tantalizing prospect.
Karin looked up at the shelves lining the walls. Most of the scrolls stored there contained information about shinobi profiles and mission reports, with only a handful related to secret techniques. "Maybe they moved it to a more concealed location later," she suggested. "None of the other forbidden techniques are here either."
Mujin nodded thoughtfully. Perhaps that was the case. At the very least, they had secured the most critical item—the Reaper Death Seal Release.
"Perhaps," Mujin conceded. "Regardless, let's gather all these scrolls. They might come in handy someday."
As he pulled out several sealing scrolls, the ground beneath them suddenly began to glow a deep crimson!
KABOOM!
A torrent of flames erupted from beneath the floor, spiraling into a fiery vortex within the archive room. The inferno consumed every scroll it touched, reducing them to ash in moments!
With a whoosh, Mujin and Karin emerged from the blaze, covered in soot and dust.
Mujin stared at the burning archives with a sigh of resignation. "It seems I miscalculated. I didn't expect there to be a third delayed self-destruction barrier triggered alongside the alert system. If no one disables it within a set timeframe, it activates automatically to ensure the information doesn't fall into enemy hands."
Karin glanced down at the intact Shiki Fūjin: Kai she had shielded protectively in her arms and exhaled in relief. "At least we accomplished our primary objective."
Mujin held up the Scroll of Seals they'd retrieved. "We also gained an extra prize—a compendium of basic Five Elements techniques. Though we won't need them for now." He pulled out another scroll and sealed both the Scroll of Seals and the Shiki Fūjin: Kai inside before stowing it away. "Let's leave this place and see how the battle has progressed. We can't miss extracting Shukaku from Gaara."
Karin nodded. After securing their spoils, they exited the Hokage Tower.
By now, the battle raging across Konoha had reached its peak. The combined forces of Suna and Oto were making one final, desperate push. Despite their dwindling numbers compared to the seemingly endless waves of Leaf shinobi, they had inflicted irreparable damage upon the village in such a short time.
Mujin and Karin ambushed two ANBU operatives, stealing their faces to blend in as they approached the Great Arena—the site of the initial attack.
Here, Suna and Oto forces still held a significant advantage. However, neither Mujin nor Karin spotted Might Guy anywhere nearby.
When asked about his whereabouts, Karin pointed toward the battlefield where Shukaku loomed. There, a figure wreathed in green chakra darted through the air like a comet.
"Guy has already opened the Eight Gates," Mujin observed thoughtfully. "He's likely on the third gate by now. It seems Shukaku won't last much longer."
After pondering Shukaku's predicament briefly, Mujin turned to Karin. "Prepare Plan B."
Karin blinked in surprise. "Plan B? What's that?"
"You know... that plan."
"Oh, that!" Realization dawned on her face. They each created a shadow clone imbued with substantial chakra and sent them off to prepare accordingly.
Meanwhile, Mujin and Karin climbed onto a nearby rooftop to observe the ongoing clash between the Third Hokage and Orochimaru.
Given that several ANBU agents were also spectating from a distance, their presence went unnoticed.
Inside the Four Purple Flames Formation, the space was now filled with dense woodland. Orochimaru and the Third Hokage exchanged flashy jutsu after jutsu, adhering strictly to the principles of elemental counters.
Orochimaru unleashed Water Release techniques; the Third countered with Earth Release. When Hiruzen retaliated with a Fireball Jutsu, Tobirama extinguished it using Water Release.
They were still playing by the rules of elemental affinities!
In this version—where the level cap was only 60—the Third Hokage and Orochimaru represented the pinnacle of ninja power. As the strongest Hokage, Hiruzen barely batted an eyelid when confronted by Hashirama and Tobirama simultaneously, merely finding their appearance mildly troublesome.
Who could have imagined that just a few updates later, once everyone reached Level 100, the once-heralded "Strongest Hokage" would remain stuck in the outdated 60-level era, becoming the weakest Hokage overnight?
Concepts like elemental counters, hand seals, and limited chakra reserves quickly became laughable relics of the past.
In the Level 100 era of towering mechas—there were no tricks, only raw stats!