The massive surge of chakra just now had been visible even from a distance. Such overwhelming elemental ninjutsu—clearly combining multiple nature transformations—didn't match Orochimaru's usual finesse. Though the escape technique was unfamiliar, the clash's chakra signatures suggested that Hiruzen Sarutobi still held the upper hand. Judging from the ANBU's abrupt movements, it seemed likely the Four Violet Flames Formation had been broken.
"Then let's pick up the pace and clean up our side! Hurry it up!" Might Guy urged energetically.
"Sure," Kakashi responded with a smirk. "Let's see who can take out more enemies."
"Yosh! Kakashi, your flames of youth are finally igniting!"
"Hot-blooded fools are always so easily provoked," Kakashi muttered with a sigh as he rapidly formed hand seals.
Meanwhile, without the binding effect of the Four Violet Flames Formation, the chaos surrounding the Hokage battle began to spill outward. No longer confined to the roof of the arena, the conflict was growing in scale—especially with the First Hokage's Wood Style (Mokuton) techniques in play. With the battlefield expanding, the damage escalated. Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence engulfed the area, summoning a vast forest from the ground. It wasn't just destructive—it restrained and absorbed chakra from anyone ensnared, much like the Spore Technique of the Zetsu clones, rendering opponents powerless.
Fortunately, the Edo Tensei body of Hashirama Senju was weakened compared to his original strength—he couldn't manifest Flower Tree World Technique, or the sheer volume of wood-style constructs would've rendered numerical superiority meaningless.
Even so, the Konoha shinobi were struggling. Only Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, could truly damage the reanimated First and Second Hokage. The rest served more as distractions. Worse still, the Edo Tensei bodies couldn't be sealed—at least not by the standard shinobi units. No one present seemed capable of using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, and even if someone like Mizuki had been there, he lacked the proper knowledge or time to develop a countermeasure to Orochimaru's perfected Impure World Reincarnation.
Mizuki had never anticipated the possibility of the Four Violet Flames Formation being breached so early and thus had never focused on sealing techniques designed for reanimated corpses. He had little to no data, and when it came to meddling in the realms of life and death, he hadn't been desperate—or foolish—enough to try.
Elsewhere, Orochimaru's subordinates—now in Curse Mark Level Two—fought fiercely, relying on their enhanced durability and pseudo-immortality to resist the ANBU forces. Among them, Kidomaru and Tayuya stood out. Kidomaru's Spider War Bow and chakra threads allowed for widespread battlefield control, while Tayuya's Demonic Flute: Phantom Sound Chains turned the battlefield into chaos with her summoned Doki. Jirōbō contributed by hurling massive boulders with Earth Style techniques, though his raw power was of limited use in the spreading chaos. Sakon and Ukon, despite being the most versatile in one-on-one combat with their Parasitic Fusion Jutsu, were far less effective in open warfare. Their main contribution was summoning Rashōmon gates to absorb incoming high-level ninjutsu.
"Huh?" Mizuki, observing from a distance, suddenly sensed something off. "Why are there so many ANBU suddenly appearing out of nowhere?"
Then, a bandaged figure walked into view—Shimura Danzō.
"…Why is he here? That's way off script."
Mizuki's surprise was beyond words. What was supposed to be a contained confrontation was snowballing into an all-out civil collapse.
Orochimaru's expression darkened as he noticed Danzō's approach.
"Well, well… the infamous Root has come out of the shadows. I didn't expect you to reveal yourself in daylight. Don't tell me this wasn't your plan all along?" Orochimaru said mockingly. "I always suspected you approved of my experiments."
"That was your delusion, Orochimaru," Danzo replied coldly. "You made your move and miscalculated. Now you'll deal with the consequences."
The implication was clear: you gambled, and you lost—don't expect sympathy.
"Oh? So I've gone from hunter to hunted. Heh…" Orochimaru laughed bitterly. "I guess I really have been underestimated."
Without another word, he bit his thumb and began forming hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu: Manda!"
A massive purple-scaled snake with piercing yellow eyes erupted from the ground. Orochimaru stood atop its head, sneering down at the shinobi forces.
"Orochimaru… calling me again?" Manda hissed, annoyed. "Have you brought the proper tribute this time?"
"One hundred human sacrifices. I know."
Manda glanced around the battlefield. "One hundred? No way. For this mess, I want two hundred."
"Trivial details. Kill them all for me," Orochimaru ordered.
"Hmph. Fine. Just don't forget my price…"
Without waiting, Manda lunged toward Danzō at an astonishing speed for its massive size. The impact sent shockwaves through the earth, raising clouds of dust and spraying debris everywhere.
Nearby, Mizuki shielded his eyes with an arm as rocks whistled past him.
"The battle's reached the stands already?"
Chunks of stone crashed into the spectator area. It was unclear whether any civilians had been injured. What had been a localized battle confined by the Four Violet Flames Formation was now spilling uncontrollably into the arena.
"A clash between shinobi of this caliber could raze half the village… even if someone wins."
Mizuki's thoughts churned. He had hoped his plan would stay in the shadows, foolproof. But clearly, he'd overestimated himself. And in the distance…
The fight near Kakashi's team had never stopped. With many civilians still trapped in the arena, the Konoha shinobi were forced to hold back. The enemy's advantage in numbers and ruthlessness threatened to drag the defenders into a prolonged war of attrition.
Orochimaru, however, showed no such restraint. He drove Manda forward along with the reanimated First and Second Hokage, leading the chaos straight into the stands.
"Orochimaru! Have you truly abandoned all shinobi ideals? You're dragging civilians into this!" Sarutobi roared.
"The shinobi way?" Orochimaru laughed scornfully. "You're clinging to ancient ideals, old man. Ideals don't matter if you're dead. The dead are nothing but corpses."
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