Impure World Reincarnation

Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru stood five meters apart, facing each other. Though their auras were cold, their expressions held a hint of complexity.

The Third Hokage felt conflicted as he faced the student he had once thought most highly of.

Seeing the Third Hokage arrive, everyone felt a little more at ease.

Deep down, they had also feared that Orochimaru might lash out in desperation and kill them.

No matter how you looked at it, Orochimaru was one of the Legendary Sannin.

He might not have been able to kill Ye Fan, but killing them would have been easy.

The other Genin taking part in the Chunin Ninja Exams also arrived here one after another.

Among them, the Otogakure Genin wore solemn expressions, their thoughts unclear.

But one thing was obvious: all of them had brought their strength to its peak, as if ready to fight at any moment.

The Otogakure ninja discreetly signaled to Gaara and the others, who understood what they meant.

Before coming to take the Chunin Ninja Exams, they had received orders from the Kazekage of Sunagakure to work with Otogakure to destroy Konoha.

Sunagakure was covered in endless yellow sands all year round, and its environment was extremely harsh.

Konoha, on the other hand, was rich in all kinds of resources. The benefits of attacking it alongside Otogakure were obvious.

Gaara's group and the Otogakure ninja exchanged glances, all waiting for Orochimaru to make his move.

As soon as Orochimaru gave the signal, they would immediately carry out their plan to destroy Konoha.

Temari and Kankuro were nervous, sweat beading on their foreheads.

They didn't know whether Sunagakure had made the right choice this time.

After all, there was a serious problem before them: they had completely failed to account for Ye Fan as an unpredictable factor!

So far, Ye Fan had displayed strength firmly at Kage Level!

Kabuto Yakushi was mixed in among the Konoha Ninja, ready to act at any moment.

As soon as Orochimaru made a move, he would immediately assist him.

The Third Hokage fell silent for a moment, then slowly spoke. "Orochimaru, you still have some conscience. You let Manda leave; otherwise, the entire Forest of Death would have been destroyed."

Thinking of this, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt somewhat relieved. Deep down, he still believed that Orochimaru wasn't rotten to the core and still had some feelings for Konoha.

"Huh?" Orochimaru looked bewildered for a moment at those words, then burst into laughter.

"Teacher Sarutobi, you're still as naive as ever. That certainly hasn't changed at all!"

"Hmm?" The Third Hokage furrowed his brow, immediately sensing that something was wrong.

"Did he send Manda somewhere else?"

"The village?!"

The first thought that crossed Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind was that he'd fallen for a diversion.

"Quickly, go back to the village and alert every department to prepare. Manda may already have entered the village!"

The Third Hokage pointed at a squad of Anbu, his voice heavy with concern.

If Manda had entered the village while they were unprepared, the consequences would have been disastrous.

The Anbu squad received their orders and immediately prepared to head back, but Rock Lee's voice stopped them.

"Wait! Hokage-sama, Orochimaru didn't send Manda into the village. Ye Fan killed it!"

At those words, the whole crowd erupted.

In an instant, everyone turned to look at Ye Fan.

"That can't be right. I could feel the oppressive force of that Chakra from far away. How could a useless guy with no Kekkei Genkai who can only practice taijutsu have killed it?"

"Is that green-clad kid in those old-fashioned clothes crazy? He can't even make up a believable lie!"

"Manda is an incredibly powerful Summoned Beast with all sorts of extraordinary abilities. How could a brat who isn't even a Genin have killed it?"

Mocking voices rang out from the crowd. They simply couldn't believe Ye Fan could have done such a thing.

They even thought Rock Lee, who had said it, was a lunatic spouting nonsense.

Kabuto Yakushi kept shaking his head, a look of disdain on his face.

Manda was one of the five most powerful Summoned Beasts in Ryūchi Cave. No one could kill him easily.

Besides, Kabuto hadn't sensed any particularly huge disturbance.

The Third Hokage and the Anbu all turned to look at Rock Lee. Judging by their expressions, they didn't believe it either.

"Manda really was blown to pieces by Ye Fan's punch! They all saw it with their own eyes!"

Rock Lee hurriedly explained.

Seeing how flustered Rock Lee was, Neji stepped forward and said, "Third Hokage, Ye Fan really did kill Manda, and he did it with ease."

Sakura and the others nodded too, confirming that Neji wasn't lying.

Seeing this, the Third Hokage furrowed his brow more and more deeply as he stared at Ye Fan with utmost seriousness.

Even now, he still found it hard to believe, but events seemed to leave him no choice.

One person might be lying, but if an entire group said the same thing, it was very likely true.

"That's right. Uchiha Ye Fan really did kill him."

"And Ye Fan isn't the useless brat you call him. He's a one-of-a-kind genius in this world!"

Orochimaru licked his lips, a smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

Everyone was stunned, their hearts shaken.

The disdainful smiles on some of their faces gradually vanished, replaced by overwhelming fear.

Orochimaru had confirmed it himself, which meant it was true.

Only then did they realize that the person they had just mocked was an unbelievably powerful monster!

For a moment, everyone who had mocked Ye Fan felt uneasy.

They were all afraid Ye Fan would suddenly lash out and kill them.

If Ye Fan could kill Manda so easily, killing them would be child's play.

Everyone stared at Ye Fan and instinctively took a few steps back, their foreheads covered in cold sweat.

The Third Hokage was also astonished. He studied Ye Fan with utmost seriousness.

At that moment, he finally understood what Jiraiya had meant when he said those words in the Hokage's Office.

Jiraiya hadn't told Danzo to go ahead and try because he intended to protect Ye Fan himself, but because he had absolute confidence in Ye Fan!

For a moment, the Third Hokage was overwhelmed by complicated feelings, his mind in turmoil.

Even he would have struggled to kill Manda, yet Ye Fan had dispatched him with ease.

If someone like that harbored hostility toward Konoha, he would pose an enormous threat!

The thought of Ye Fan's parents made that feeling even stronger.

The Third Hokage couldn't be sure what choice Ye Fan would make if he learned the truth.

Thinking of this, the Third Hokage sighed and turned back to face Orochimaru.

For now, the most important thing was to capture Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru, will you surrender willingly, or do I have to take you down myself?"

"Haha, Teacher Sarutobi, you think too highly of yourself. You're already running on fumes. Do you think you're still young?"

"Hmph, Orochimaru, even now, you refuse to see reason!"

"Looks like I'll have to deal with you myself!"

The Third Hokage shouted and used the Summoning Technique to summon Enma.

Orochimaru's lips curled up. He gave a glance.

Four Otogakure ninja immediately ran out of the crowd and took up positions in four directions.

Orochimaru shouted, "Surround Ye Fan and the Third Hokage!"

The four Otogakure ninja nodded in unison and formed the Four Violet Flames Formation.

At the same time, Orochimaru bit his fingertip, rapidly formed hand seals, and shouted, "Ninjutsu: Summoning Technique: Impure World Reincarnation!"