"It's good that you've arrived."
"That's right. I was concerned that our Gaara would win by disqualification."
Smiling, Hiruzen looked towards the battlefield, and the Kazekage squinted his eyes.
The battle between Gaara and Sasuke continued; both proved to be exceptionally strong, surpassing the capabilities of a Genin. However, there was a limit to everything. Sasuke couldn't defeat Gaara with his current level; after all, Gaara is a Jinchuriki. Nevertheless, Gaara felt the pressure.
Sasuke was as fast as Rock Lee, and his attacks were stronger, causing Gaara to struggle. With no other option, Gaara decided to end it by enclosing himself in a sand sphere and awakening Shukaku.
This action alarmed Kankuro and Temari since Gaara was supposed to release Shukaku only when given the invasion signal. Even Baki felt his skin prickle at this.
But there was no turning back. They couldn't interfere in the battle, and they couldn't stop Gaara.
"Hmph, hiding behind the sand, huh?"
Sasuke smiled at seeing Gaara sealing himself in his cocoon. He jumped high, forming hand seals, and simultaneously concentrated his chakra, his left hand glowing.
He would use his trump card, for which he had trained for a month with Kakashi.
"Chidori!"
*Briri~
With the sound of a thousand birds, Sasuke attacked swiftly, piercing through the sand shield. Injuring Gaara, this caused the sand shield to collapse, interrupting Shukaku's awakening.
"Good, let's begin..."
The Kazekage muttered, and his guards instantly set off smoke grenades.
*Puffff
"There's the signal!"
At the same time, on the outskirts of Konoha, hundreds of Ninjas rushed. The invasion had begun.
*Pufff
*Shhheshhhh
The summoning of the three-headed snake was complete, unleashing the Monster.
*Bam
The snake was swift; upon its summoning, it slithered, creating a large hole in Konoha's surrounding wall.
"We're under attack!"
"Impossible! What's happening? Where are the Anbu hunters?"
The sentinels panicked, with Anbu doing their job to protect Konoha; there was hardly any work for these sentinels, so they let their guard down.
Unfortunately, Konoha had a barrier around it that detected intruders. Still, now this barrier had been breached, and a massive three-headed snake attacked.
*Clink, clink
And it wasn't alone; several invading ninjas accompanied the enormous snake.
"Inform the Fifth Hokage! We need reinforcements! Let the special Anbu hunters act!"
The sentinels quickly became overwhelmed, so their only option was to wait for reinforcements.
Unfortunately for them, reinforcements would take time to arrive.
---
"Boom"
"What was that?"
Turning her head, Tsunade frowned. She was accompanying Yuki at the hospital when suddenly a massive explosion echoed.
Something had happened...
"Is something wrong, Big Sister Tsunade?"
Tilting his head, Yuki asked curiously. He also heard the explosion, and even though his eyes were covered, he could sense Tsunade's aura changing.
"..."
Tsunade didn't respond. However, the room's door swung open abruptly.
"Tsunade-sama, bad news! We're being invaded!"
The person entering the room was Shizune, sweat running down her face. Her expression showed nervousness and concern.
"What?!"
Tsunade couldn't believe it. Someone dared to invade them. They didn't know what gave them the courage to do so, but regardless, Tsunade would make them suffer.
"Who are they?"
"They are ninjas from the Sand and Sound Villages. Currently, the northern area has been invaded, and the wall on the east side is under attack by a massive snake."
The more Tsunade heard Shizune's report, the more surprised she became. Konoha's security had been violated, and it seemed to be a coordinated attack.
Clasping her fists, Tsunade's expression was terrifying. However, she soon calmed down and turned her head towards Yuki.
After all, this was a patient's room, and she didn't want Yuki to exert himself.
He had just undergone surgery and needed time to recover. Besides, Tsunade didn't want to leave him alone, uncertain if the invaders could reach this place.
"Go, Big Sister. You're the Hokage now, and they need you. Don't worry about me; I'll be fine."
Yuki understood everything. He urged Tsunade to go; as the village leader, she had to face this crisis and resolve it with minimal casualties.
Therefore, his safety was secondary...
"But..."
"Don't worry, Tsunade-sama. I'll take care of Danna-sama."
Although Tsunade didn't want to leave, in the end, she gritted her teeth and decided to leave everything to Tsubaki.
"I'll be back soon! Don't you dare run, Yuki!"
Leaving these words of warning, Tsunade left the room.
"She's gone, Danna-sama..."
"Well, it's time to act."
Smiling, the bandage around Yuki's eyes fell, and he opened his eyes, revealing his new Sharingan...
"There's a blood debt to settle..."
"Exchange..."
Tsubaki's cheeks blushed as she looked at her husband with tenderness, activating her power at the same time, disappearing instantly...
---
Konoha descended into chaos, with various ninjas invading. Simultaneously, the three-headed snake destroyed everything in its path. The weaker ninjas began evacuating civilians, while the stronger ones faced the invaders.
"How did this happen? What about the Anbu hunters? Isn't there supposed to be a barrier around the village? Why isn't it activated?"
Seeing Konoha caught off guard, several Jonin couldn't help but comment.
With the help of this barrier, Konoha's security was guaranteed. After all, activating the barrier prevented invading ninjas from entering and captured those who had entered. But now, not only were the special Anbu hunters absent, but the barrier wasn't being activated.
"They can't activate it."
Answering the question, Ibiki approached with his hands in his pockets.
As one of the Elite Jonin, Ibiki responded to the call for reinforcements.
"Why not?"
"In the entire village, only one ninja can activate the barrier. Unfortunately, this ninja is on a special mission and is not in the village."
As Yuki underwent ocular surgery, and his identity couldn't be revealed, Tsunade issued a phantom mission to the Devourer, under the pretext of him leaving the village so that Yuki wouldn't have to assume his responsibilities while in recovery.
Ibiki received this information a few days ago. At first, he didn't think much of it; after all, the Devourer often took missions outside the village.
But the invaders seized this opportunity to attack, without activating the barrier and with Konoha's most powerful ninja absent, their invasion plan proved successful.
"That ninja... It can't be..."
Swallowing saliva, the shinobi blinked cautiously as he asked, "So, the Devourer is not here, and Anbu is currently like a snake without a head. Moreover?"
Narrowing his eyes, Ibiki turned his head and looked toward the distant battlefield.
"The invader is one of the legendary Sannin and an S-rank criminal, Orochimaru..."
---
"You've aged, Sensei..."
Revealing his true identity, Orochimaru licked his lips. Acting as the Kazekage to get close to Hiruzen had been a challenging task, as agreed upon by Orochimaru and Yuki. Orochimaru would take care of Hiruzen.
Killing his former teacher might seem foolish, but Orochimaru simply found pleasure in it. The student must surpass the master.
And to prevent Hiruzen from escaping and third parties from interrupting their fight, Orochimaru brought along four more ninjas, his bodyguards. The four from the Sound Village, bearers of cursed seals, activated a barrier.
"Now I understand; so, this is your plan..."
Hiruzen sighed with sadness. Initially stunned by Orochimaru's appearance, he realized that Orochimaru and Yuki were working together.
And the Chunin exams were just a façade to lure him and execute him. There could be much more to this evil plan, and its objective was obvious.
(Is this your way of avenging my order to exterminate your clan? Using my own favorite disciple as an assassin?)
Hiruzen knew this day would come—the day when Yuki would kill him for revenge.
Yuki harbored immense hatred towards him, the elders of the council, and Danzo.
And by his actions, he knew he had to pay. Wiping out the Uchiha clan was the worst decision he made as Hokage.
Thus, even if he died at Yuki's hands, he was prepared. He had to answer for his actions; exterminating the Uchiha clan was the worst thing that happened during his time as Hokage.
However, he never imagined Yuki would be so cruel as to use his former favorite student against him.
"Are you ready, old man? Don't worry; I'll finish this quickly."
"Orochimaru, don't think you'll take my life so easily!"
---
TN: 🐍🐍