Chapter 82: The Strength of the Past
Judging from the effects and side effects currently displayed by these life-saving pills, a man of Hiruzen Sarutobi's age taking such a massive dose would have practically no chance of survival.
Still, there was no time to dwell on that now. Hiruzen quickly pulled out the pill and injected its full contents into his arm without hesitation. Instantly, a wave of warmth spread through his body along with his blood.
"This is the effect of the pill? It truly is powerful. If only it had no side effects… that would be incredible!"
Hiruzen knew this was wishful thinking. Something already this effective—removing its side effects too? That was simply unreasonable. The world wouldn't likely contain anything so convenient.
As the pill took effect, he felt as though he were being reborn from within. His long-decayed organs began revitalizing themselves, while his aged, thinning skin regained its luster.
"This feeling… I can feel the strength of youth returning."
Ducking an ambush from the shadows with surprising agility, Sarutobi leapt back and began preparing himself.
Watching silently from the shadows, Orochimaru slowly sensed that something was different.
"Old fool, what exactly did you do?" He was still the same man—but his aura had clearly changed.
"Orochimaru, though you've learned much from Konoha, there are still many things you don't know. Today, I'll show you what makes our village proud…"
With swift movements, the agile Hiruzen rapidly formed hand seals and summoned Enma using the Kuchiyose no Jutsu.
"It's been a while, Sarutobi," Enma said as he appeared, instantly sensing the gravity of the moment. "Looks like we're fighting together again. Hmm? Wait—what's going on with your body?"
Bound by a spiritual summoning contract, he was the first to detect the abnormality within Hiruzen.
"This power… You used a Kinjutsu, didn't you?"
Hiruzen shook his head. "Not exactly, but close enough."
"How could this be..." Without realizing the full severity yet, Enma hadn't noticed how dire the situation must be for the Third to resort to something that drained his very life force for power—a feat achievable only under extreme circumstances, even for an aging Kage like him.
"Orochimaru has returned," Sarutobi confirmed. "And he has used the Impure World Reincarnation to summon the First and Second Hokage."
"No wonder he's like this…" Enma murmured. "But Sarutobi, such powerful forbidden techniques surely come with grave consequences, right?"
"Of course. But all of this is worth it." The Third declared firmly.
"I understand. Then let's begin." With that, Enma transformed into his favored staff form.
The Third caught the staff and faced Orochimaru hidden in darkness. "Let's resume the lesson we've long postponed!"
Placing the staff aside, he formed hand seals and shouted loudly, "[Flame-Twisted Earth Dragon Bullet]!"
Once more, the combined Ninjutsu surged forth—but this time, far more powerful than before. A massive earthen dragon coiled around a gigantic fireball, instantly reducing a wide area to scorched earth. The relentless technique struck the barrier, sending shockwaves rippling across its surface. The barrier wavered, then stood steady once more.
Across from him, Orochimaru stared in shock at the sudden burst of power from the Third.
"How is this possible?" he muttered. "Under these conditions, how could he unleash a ninjutsu with such overwhelming power?"
As Hiruzen Sarutobi's disciple, Orochimaru had once witnessed firsthand the peak of the Third Hokage's might. And now, the power of this combined technique was nearly on par with that legendary level.
"There are many things you don't know," Sarutobi said calmly. "I'll be sure to teach them to you."
The incomplete first and second Hokages were struck directly by this technique. Trees summoned through Wood Release were burned away in great numbers, while the damaged bodies of the former Kages slowly regenerated thanks to the undead properties of Impure World Reincarnation. At the same time, the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique was canceled when the Second took damage, finally allowing the Anbu outside to see what was happening inside.
"That terrifying ninjutsu just now was used by the Third, wasn't it? No wonder he's called the legendary strongest Fire Shadow."
Mizuki overheard an Anbu agent speaking and secretly shook his head. If he hadn't known so much himself, he might have believed it as well. He couldn't really fault them for their limited understanding—after all, they couldn't grasp what the highest levels of power actually entailed. When it came to raw ninjutsu talent, this world truly had no equal to the Third Hokage's natural gifts. Possessing five different chakra natures was already unprecedented. Aside from Kekkei Mora, no one had ever mastered the Five Elements to the extent the Third had.
Judging from the battle three years later, those bizarre secret techniques and Kekkei Genkai, although still powered by chakra like standard jutsu, could hardly be considered ninjutsu anymore. They were practically divine arts!
Meanwhile, Orochimaru, who had narrowly avoided Sarutobi's combined attack, carefully studied the Third.
"I see," Orochimaru suddenly laughed. "So you've used some kind of kinjutsu, haven't you? But even so, I imagine there are severe side effects. You can't possibly sustain this for long. With your aging body, how much longer can you keep going?"
With that, he deployed the restored first and second Hokages, sending them quickly toward Hiruzen Sarutobi to continue pressuring the Third.
"I don't need it to last long," Sarutobi replied. "Long enough to kill you will do." With that, the Third created two Shadow Clones and engaged the former Hokages in fierce battle once more.
At the front-line medical station, Mizuki's real body had finally been replaced by arriving medical ninjas and was now sprinting between giant trees in the forest.
"[Still time. I haven't sensed any tailed beast chakra yet.]"
Ordinarily, a few genin shouldn't have been in much danger. Still, Mizuki couldn't guarantee exactly how things would play out. After all, Sakura Haruno had advanced to the third stage of the Chunin Exams and defeated Dosu. Neither Hayate Gekko nor Dosu had died—well, not yet anyway. Whether they survived or not depended mostly on luck. This butterfly effect wasn't huge, but it wasn't small either. Regarding Konoha's Twelve Shinobi, if something happened to one or two of them—even just death without serious injury—Mizuki wouldn't be surprised. Rock Lee had nearly been disabled, hadn't he? Sometimes even righteous comrades face unexpected dangers. Not everyone lives long enough to follow the hero to the end.
As he ran, Mizuki suddenly spotted something ahead.
"Is that... Shino Aburame?"
Shino Aburame, a young but capable bug handler, lay unconscious on the branch of a giant tree.
Now that he's been found, it would be irresponsible to just leave him like this. What if he dies unexpectedly? There's still time for now. Finding Shino also means Gaara and his group shouldn't be too far away. Stabilizing him and saving his life should be manageable.
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