Orochimaru's guess was right; it was Minato Namikaze who handled Shukaku. Using the unmatched mobility of the Flying Thunder God technique, Minato swiftly arrived on the battlefield and immediately noticed the rampaging Shukaku. Naturally, he understood that tailed beasts couldn't be killed, and the only solution was to seal it.
Seeing that Orochimaru and Choza Akimichi had already engaged Shukaku, Minato began searching for the one controlling the beast. As he searched, both Orochimaru's Manda and Choza were defeated. He was about to summon Gamabunta for help when Linton suddenly appeared, suppressing Shukaku directly.
Summoning Gamabunta required a lot of chakra, as did the Flying Thunder God technique. Minato had already used a considerable amount of chakra, and fortunately, Linton stepped in to help. Using this time, Minato found the controller of Shukaku.
After swiftly dealing with a few guards, Minato subdued the controller and sealed Shukaku once again, finally resolving this major crisis.
With Shukaku gone, the Sand Shinobi forces could no longer hold the line. Konoha had already held the upper hand, and now the Sand Shinobi had lost their will to fight. They quickly retreated, leaving behind a field of corpses. The remaining Sand Shinobi either fled or were captured, and the battle soon ended.
In the Battle of Kikyo Pass, Konoha emerged victorious. Not only did they defeat the Sand Shinobi forces, but they also captured their jinchuriki.
The captured jinchuriki was an elderly bald man named Bunpuku, who seemed like a monk. After his capture, he didn't resist, simply saying, "Don't blame it. It only wanted to protect me." After that, he said nothing more.
Konoha had no intention of killing him since that would only release Shukaku again, which would mean more trouble with another sealing. They reinforced the seal on him and detained him, awaiting further instructions from Konoha's higher-ups on what to do next.
The next issue was how to proceed with the war. The main Sand Shinobi forces had been defeated, but that didn't mean the war was over. It was clear that this war had an element of a trap. Several high-ranking Sand Shinobi officials, such as the newly appointed Fourth Kazekage and powerful individuals like the renowned puppet master Chiyo, had yet to appear. They still had the strength to continue the fight.
However, Shikaku Nara believed that the Sand Shinobi would likely seek peace. He couldn't see them being willing to fight to the death. His proposal was to march toward Sunagakure while waiting for the Sand Shinobi to send negotiators.
Minato strongly agreed with peace talks, primarily because Konoha was also struggling. The Third Shinobi War had been raging for several years, and Konoha's resources were nearly depleted. Before coming to this battlefield, the Third Hokage had spoken with Minato, sending him with the goal of quickly resolving the war with the Sand Shinobi.
Ultimately, they decided to press for peace, but they couldn't let the enemy see their exhaustion. Konoha's forces continued to advance toward Sunagakure to apply pressure and secure better terms in the negotiations.
Of course, such grand strategies had little to do with Linton. His main concern was still his identity. Shortly after the battle ended, someone called for him, and it was Orochimaru.
When Linton entered Orochimaru's temporary tent, he realized that Orochimaru was the only one inside. This was different from what he expected. He had thought he might face members of the Uchiha clan, as he had seen several Uchiha on the battlefield. The Uchiha clan would easily expose his true identity.
To be honest, if confronted by the Uchiha, Linton had no idea how to fabricate a convincing identity. Despite having watched the entire series, there were only a few prominent members of the Uchiha clan, and he couldn't claim to be someone like Madara's son, as the generations didn't match up.
Without any clear plan, Linton decided to take things step by step. In the worst-case scenario, he could just fight his way out. With his newfound confidence after unlocking the Mangekyō Sharingan, he figured he could hold his own in a battle. And even if he died, he'd just respawn, having already profited immensely.
What Linton hadn't expected was how much he'd gained from just messing around on the battlefield. He had earned 100,000 points in no time, a truly unbelievable haul. While cleaning up the battlefield, he even managed to snag a few more items unnoticed, though this time the rewards were smaller. His total points were now around 50,000, and he was quite satisfied with that.
He also noticed a pattern: Konoha corpses seemed to be worth more, as Sand Shinobi bodies didn't yield any valuable items. Among the Konoha corpses, the Uchiha and Hyuga clan members were particularly valuable, suggesting that the Sharingan and Byakugan were highly prized. Interestingly, he could upload the same item multiple times, but each time the value decreased. His first upload earned him 30,000 points, but by the last time, it was only 10,000 points. It seemed you couldn't exploit the system too much.
Having already gained so much, Linton didn't want to push his luck further. His plan was to blend in for as long as he could. So, despite not having a clear strategy, he went to meet Orochimaru when summoned, only to find him alone.
"Uchiha Linton..." Orochimaru turned around, startling Linton with his unsettling gaze. The rumor that it felt like being stared at by a venomous snake fit him perfectly.
"You've been hiding quite well," Orochimaru said with a cold smile.
"Hiding?" Linton was briefly confused, then realized what Orochimaru meant. He quickly replied, "Orochimaru-sama, I wasn't hiding anything. I just awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan on the battlefield. I saw an older brother who was very kind to me get killed by Shukaku, and in that moment, my eyes burned, and I rushed in. Looking back, I'm still a little scared myself."
"Oh? An older brother who was kind to you? What was his name?" Orochimaru asked with a grin.
"Uh…"
"By the way, I specifically asked Elder Josan, the Uchiha leader, about a 'Uchiha Linton.' It seems that name isn't on the list of participants for this mission. Moreover, he doesn't recall anyone by that name in the Uchiha clan either," Orochimaru continued.
"Well... this is a bit troubling," Linton thought. Orochimaru had seen through him, and there was no way to talk his way out of this. Before, he had managed to blend in due to the urgency of the war, and Orochimaru probably didn't pay him much attention. But now that he had demonstrated his power, he was under scrutiny, and it was only a matter of time before his cover was blown.
"Who... are you really?" Orochimaru asked.
Linton found it odd. If Orochimaru wanted to arrest him as a spy, why summon him alone? He could have just called for backup. Clearly, Orochimaru had something else in mind.
Orochimaru probably wasn't looking to expose him, and might even be willing to protect him. Given that Orochimaru was the leader of the forces here, he had significant authority. This private meeting was likely for a reason. Could it be that Orochimaru was interested in the Mangekyō?
"In fact, I'm not really from the Uchiha clan," Linton suddenly admitted. "My name is Linton, but I don't have the Uchiha surname."
"What?" Orochimaru was surprised. "But your eyes…"
"They were transplanted," Linton shrugged.
"Transplanted? But with transplants, there are side effects, and..." Orochimaru began.
"Rejection, strain on the body—I have some special methods that can solve those problems. In fact, I can use them almost as well as the Uchiha themselves," Linton explained.
"Really? It seems you have some impressive skills," Orochimaru said, still somewhat skeptical.
Linton nodded slightly, remembering that Orochimaru had already begun human experimentation. After this war, he would soon be exposed and defect from the village. The anime had mentioned that he was once a contender for the position of Fourth Hokage, but had to give up due to these experiments, and the selection of the Fourth Hokage happened right after the Third Shinobi War.
Orochimaru's experiments likely involved Sharingan transplants, as it was said that Danzo was among those funding his research. Danzo would later implant several Sharingan into his own body after the Uchiha clan massacre, but the experiments must have started much earlier, perhaps with Orochimaru's help.
From their conversation, it was clear that Orochimaru had already done some research into transplants, which is why he knew about rejection and bodily strain. Linton's gamble had paid off.
"You don't seem very afraid," Orochimaru observed, noticing how calm Linton had become.
"I don't think you intend to kill me, do you?" Linton responded with a question of his own.
(End of Chapter)