In the Land of Fire, in a clearing deep within the forest.
As dawn broke, the highest treetops were touched by a faint golden morning light.
Watching the young boy trembling before him, his mask knocked off, holding a knife with both hands, Shinji, disguised as Orochimaru using transformation jutsu, couldn't help but feel amused.
This boy, future Yamato, now known as Root member Tenzo.
Looking at the masked ninjas lying around, having ended their lives by mutual slaughter, Shinji hadn't expected Danzo to still cause trouble even after being severely punished by the Third Hokage and having his eye gouged out.
Was he here to investigate Shinji, who had suddenly appeared in Konoha and interacted with Tsunade, or was it to help Orochimaru escape? Shinji wasn't sure, but it was likely the latter.
It was purely by chance that Shinji had been caught by bandits on his journey, tied up on a mountain.
In the dark forest, he had used his wit to turn the second and third bandit leaders against each other, causing infighting with the chief. Meanwhile, Shinji took advantage of the chaos to slip away unnoticed.
What could have been a standard plot for a slapstick comedy akin to "The Great Escape" turned into an encounter with Root ninjas as soon as he descended the mountain.
"Not even real humans, just puppets, they don't interest me."
The chilling, sinister aura, the familiar husky and magnetic voice, and the iconic tongue-licking lip motion confirmed that the Orochimaru before him was genuine.
"We were ordered by Danzo-sama to assist Orochimaru-sama in escaping! Why did you kill us?"
"Hehehe..."
Orochimaru chuckled darkly and spoke slowly, "Whatever Danzo's scheming, how could a small fry like you understand? All the Root ninjas here know too much and aren't loyal enough. Danzo, cornered and desperate, wants to use me to eliminate these potential threats."
Hearing Orochimaru's explanation, Tenzo's eyes widened. Danzo-sama had such a plan! He wanted to kill all these Root ninjas!
"No! That's wrong! We're all loyal to Danzo-sa…"
"That's just what you think. Danzo doesn't see it that way. To him, you're just disposable pawns. And I'm just his partner. Tell Danzo our cooperation is over."
With that, Tenzo didn't think twice, sheathed his knife, and sped off!
But Orochimaru's remark, "Not even real humans, just puppets," unconsciously etched itself into Tenzo's mind.
After Tenzo left, Shinji released the transformation jutsu, praising his own acting skills while looting the corpses. As for how Shinji could transform into Orochimaru, it started with witnessing Orochimaru's defection firsthand.
At that time, hiding in the shadows, Shinji had meticulously memorized every detail of Orochimaru. With the transformation jutsu, he could mimic him almost perfectly!
...
Weapons, soldier pills, poison pills, antidote pills, money, scrolls, explosive tags, masks, and a few complete sets of clothing and Konoha headbands—Shinji took everything useful!
After thoroughly looting, Shinji examined the mission scroll he had found.
The scroll clearly marked several escape routes and locations of some of Orochimaru's bases within the Land of Fire.
"Lucky me. Looks like I can do some good looting soon..."
...
Two days later, at the border where the Land of Fire, the Land of Fields, and the Land of Hot Water met.
Inside one of Orochimaru's secret bases, Shinji was busy looting all the useful equipment and documents.
Even Shinji had to admit his luck was incredible, having found three intact laboratories in a row!
"Edo Tensei..."
Looking at the scroll in his hand, Shinji realized he had found something valuable. Perhaps he could use Edo Tensei to understand the souls and the so-called Pure Land of this world.
After studying the Shinigami mask for several days, he hadn't figured out much. The so-called Shinigami didn't reside in the mask; it was merely a medium.
What was the Shinigami's true identity? Who created it? Where did it reside? There were no answers yet.
After storing the last scroll in his system space, Shinji donned Root attire and emerged above ground.
With a mask and short sword, Shinji looked the part. Feeling the weight of the headband on his forehead, Shinji marveled at the real Konoha headband, so different from the toy one he had as a child.
This sense of weight and the patina from the Will of Fire excited him as a longtime fan of the series! He almost shouted, "I'll definitely become Hokage!"
After waiting for several hours, Shinji finally saw his target—Orochimaru. Covered in blood, Orochimaru leaned against a tree, panting, watching Shinji and the three spirit bodies disguised as Root members.
"Orochimaru-sama, please cross the border quickly. We'll hold off the ANBU!"
Seeing the Root member speak, Orochimaru wanted to scream in frustration.
He had reached the border, and now they showed up to say they'd hold off the ANBU? Where were they during the three and a half days he was being relentlessly pursued by the ANBU?
Three and a half days without a sip of water!
"Don't worry. Even if it costs our lives, we'll ensure Orochimaru-sama's escape!"
With that, Shinji and his three spirit bodies, disguised as Root ninjas, protected Orochimaru from all sides.
Hearing the swift movements of pursuers hidden in the branches, Orochimaru decided not to waste breath cursing Danzo and his goons. Escape was the priority.
"I leave it to you…"
With that, Orochimaru dashed towards the border, only about fifty meters away, but...
Slash!!
The sudden surge of killing intent from four directions towards his back made the battle-hardened Orochimaru react!
Quickly elongating and twisting his body into an S shape, Orochimaru dodged the swords aiming for his heart and head!
Although he avoided the fatal strikes, his left abdomen and leg were wounded!
"Danzo!!"
Backing off several meters, clutching his abdomen, Orochimaru instantly thought of a possibility. These Root members might not be here to assist but to loot his lab and take the data back to Root!
No wonder his remaining labs had been thoroughly ransacked! Damn Danzo!
Although unclear of the reason, it was evident Danzo had abandoned him! The ANBU wanted to capture him alive, so they wouldn't kill. But these Root members aimed to kill!
They might have been secretly following him, waiting for him to be exhausted before attacking!
"Sorry, Orochimaru-sama, this is our mission. So… please go to hell!"
With that, Shinji led his three spirit bodies in attacking Orochimaru from four directions!
"Don't underestimate me, bastard!"
Orochimaru's Hidden Shadow Snake Hands attacked two of Shinji's spirit bodies, while his tongue extended towards Shinji rapidly!
Simultaneously, countless small white snakes slithered towards the remaining spirit body!
But at that moment, a dozen wounded ANBU appeared behind Shinji and Orochimaru!
At the same time, Shinji halted, stopping his attack, and swiftly leaped to the side to escape, while the three spirit bodies continued attacking Orochimaru!
Seeing this, the ANBU quickly split, two chasing the suspected Root ninja, while the rest charged towards Orochimaru. Their mission from the Third Hokage was to bring back Orochimaru alive! They couldn't let him die!
"Danzo!!"
Cursing through gritted teeth, Orochimaru suddenly sensed something wrong. He noticed the numerous explosive tags attached to the Root ninjas' inner garments!
The ANBU leader also noticed this and shouted.
"Retreat!!"
Boom!!
The explosion engulfed everything within a twenty-meter radius! The blinding light forced the ANBU who escaped the blast to shut their eyes, and the ground trembled, uprooting trees!
The ANBU leader knew such a blast required at least a hundred explosive tags!
...
"Captain, we lost him."
Ten minutes later, the two ANBU who had chased Shinji returned to the blast site, reporting their failure. They looked at the devastation, unsure what to say.
"Damn!"
The captain punched the scorched ground in frustration, gritting his teeth.
All that remained were fragments of three Root ninjas, while Orochimaru had vanished without a trace!
"Captain, were those really Root ninjas? What was their goal? To silence Orochimaru?"
"Probably."
The captain nodded, rising, and looking at the crater left by the explosion, feeling deeply helpless.
These Root ninjas had no humanity, willing to do anything for their mission! They only obeyed Danzo's orders!
"Thirteen, go inform the Third Hokage. The rest of us will search along the border. Orochimaru might still be alive."
"Yes, sir!"
"Everyone, follow me!"
"Yes, sir!" ×n
...
Will Orochimaru survive?
The answer is: dream on! In this ninja world, no matter who dies, he won't. He's the unkillable cockroach of the ninja world! He's definitely alive and well!
So Shinji wasn't worried about killing him. Shinji figured Orochimaru had already crossed the border by now!
"Does turning Orochimaru and Danzo against each other have any benefits, host?"
"It's fun. Watching them backstab each other is entertaining."
System: …
...
Today, Tsunade was inaugurated as the Fifth Hokage. Standing on the Hokage Tower, wearing the Hokage hat, she stood proudly, looking spirited!
Among the new generation of ninjas below, this was a sight to behold. They felt Konoha's future was bright, ready to take on ten missions to celebrate the new Hokage!
After two days of contemplation, Tsunade had finally come to terms with her decision. She had already made up her mind but had been avoiding it.
The dead couldn't speak or give her answers. She had to find the answers herself. She believed that if Dan and Nawaki knew, they would support her!
As for that man, Dan, forgive me!
The excited ninjas below gazed at their new Hokage, her face partly obscured by her ample chest. One of the Sannin, creator of Konoha's medical system, was now the Fifth Hokage!
At this moment, nothing could be more uplifting! Konoha would rise again!
"Everyone! Quiet!"
The crowd fell silent.
"From today, I am the Fifth Hokage of Konoha!"
Tsunade's powerful voice echoed, and after a brief silence, the crowd erupted in cheers!
Their new Hokage was incredibly imposing!
Behind Tsunade, Hiruzen Sarutobi's old face was full of excitement. His one big gamble in life had paid off!
Standing with Hiruzen, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado looked sorrowful and defeated, appearing to have aged ten years in a few days.
At the edge of the crowd stood a group with somber expressions, showing no emotion. They were the Uchiha clan, Konoha's ping-pong dream team!
"Dad, it's great that Tsunade-sama is the new Hokage."
Five-year-old Itachi, clapping with the crowd, turned to his expressionless father.
"Hmm…"
Fugaku responded blandly. He didn't care who the new Hokage was; he cared about the Uchiha's position under the new Hokage.
Noticing the discontent on his clan members' faces behind his father, Itachi, with his keen insight, sensed something.
"Hey Kuro (Chloe)! Being Hokage is so cool!"
"Kabuto, do you want to become Hokage?"
"No, I want to see you become Hokage! You definitely want to be Hokage too, right? Don't pretend, I can tell!"