Smoke billowed across Konoha as the rebellion drew to a close.
With Jiraiya and the Third Hokage joining the battle, morale on Konoha's side soared.
With Kakashi and Might Guy's help, the Hyuga Clan also broke through the encirclement and took down a host of rebels.
Once the Hyuga Clan broke free and rushed off in every direction, the battle was all but settled.
Ye Fan watched the battle from atop the Hokage Rock. It would soon be over.
Watching Jiraiya tear through the enemy, taking down one Jonin after another with a single punch, Ye Fan smiled.
Ye Fan vaguely remembered that during the battle against the Six Paths of Pain, Jiraiya had said he was no longer quite human.
Judging by the strength he'd shown, Jiraiya had already surpassed ninety-nine percent of the shinobi in the current ninja world—and he hadn't even entered Sage Mode.
Ye Fan thought that if Jiraiya had known the secrets of the Six Paths of Pain, he might have been able to take them all on by himself!
As the battle in Konoha gradually came to an end, Ye Fan reappeared in the Hokage's Office.
Ye Fan sat beside Orochimaru, close enough to make them look like a pair of old friends on excellent terms.
"Did Danzo die by your hand?" Orochimaru asked calmly, as if making casual conversation.
"Yeah. He was too weak. I hadn't even exerted myself before he went down." Ye Fan gazed into the distance, his mind elsewhere.
"Have you considered that he might have faked his death? Knowing he couldn't beat you, he might have pretended to die to deceive you," Orochimaru said.
Orochimaru knew about the Sharingan on Danzo's body.
He had been one of the people Danzo had sought out to study Hashirama Cells and the Sharingan.
Back then, he had used a fake death to extricate himself from the affair.
Of course, it wasn't because Orochimaru thought he couldn't beat Danzo. He'd simply wanted to avoid trouble.
After all, if Danzo had learned that Orochimaru was one of the people studying Hashirama Cells, he would have sent plenty of people to harass him.
Orochimaru said this because he, too, had studied many ancient texts about the Sharingan and knew a great deal about its secrets.
"Are you talking about Izanagi? If I wanted to, Danzo wouldn't have been able to use that jutsu. Someone like him never stood a chance."
Ye Fan's gaze remained fixed on the distance, as if he were admiring Konoha's scenery.
Orochimaru was taken aback, then understood.
Ye Fan had once been a member of the Uchiha Clan. It wasn't surprising that he knew about the forbidden jutsu Izanagi.
Then Orochimaru asked, "Ye Fan, don't you want to kill me? I once devoted myself to destroying Konoha!"
"Heh. You haven't destroyed Konoha yet, have you? Ask me again when you're actually strong enough to destroy it."
"Haha! Looks like you weren't caught by Kotoamatsukami, supposedly the strongest Genjutsu!"
Orochimaru looked at Ye Fan with growing greed.
Ye Fan's body was simply too perfect, as if it had been made just for him.
Genjutsu was Orochimaru's weak point, the one flaw he most wanted to overcome.
He had only realized it was a weakness after Uchiha Itachi had taken him down with a single glance. Before that, he had always believed he was immune to Genjutsu.
And Ye Fan not only possessed unparalleled strength but could also resist Genjutsu. He was everything Orochimaru had ever dreamed of.
Ye Fan turned and looked directly at the greedy Orochimaru. His expression remained as calm as still water.
"With your strength as it is now, trying to take over my body is nothing but wishful thinking."
"If I wanted to kill you, it would be effortless!"
"But do you know why I haven't killed you?"
"Oh? Why? You're so perfect—what could I possibly do for you?"
Orochimaru licked his lips without denying Ye Fan's words.
He knew Ye Fan was telling the truth. Killing him would be effortless.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, who had already woken up but were still pretending to be unconscious, pricked up their ears.
They were both curious about what Ye Fan was up to.
Ye Fan didn't keep them in suspense. He answered directly, "Impure World Reincarnation. You're the only person in the current ninja world who knows the jutsu. That's why you're still alive."
"Impure World Reincarnation?" Orochimaru didn't understand what Ye Fan meant at first. But once he pieced things together based on Ye Fan's background, he understood.
"You want to use me and this jutsu to revive your parents?"
After thinking it over, Orochimaru decided that this had to be the reason.
Otherwise, ninjutsu and the like probably meant nothing to Ye Fan.
Before absolute power, everything else seemed insignificant.
And Ye Fan possessed power of that caliber.
"Orochimaru, you're clever," Ye Fan said softly, then shook his head.
"But your Impure World Reincarnation is still far too crude. It's nowhere near good enough."
"What I want is an Impure World Reincarnation that brings people back with their strength nearly equal to what it was at their peak."
"And one that doesn't require sacrificing a living person!"
Ye Fan's words shook Orochimaru.
From the way Ye Fan spoke, he could tell Ye Fan understood Impure World Reincarnation—and knew how the forbidden jutsu needed to be improved.
"What, can't you do it?" Ye Fan glanced at Orochimaru. "If you can't manage something this simple, you'll never be able to take over my body."
"If you summoned Hashirama Senju at his peak, you might be able to use him to defeat me."
Orochimaru fell silent, lost in thought. What Ye Fan said seemed to make perfect sense.
Given the situation, that really did seem to be his only chance.
Based on his first attempt at reincarnating Hashirama Senju, Hashirama's strength at his peak had to be far beyond what it had been when Orochimaru first summoned him.
"Orochimaru, I'm giving you a chance to take over my body. It's up to you to seize it."
"I'll give you one year. If you still can't do it after that, I'll have to find someone else."
"Go. I'll see you in a year. If you haven't succeeded by then, there'll be no reason for you to stay alive."
Ye Fan waved a hand and turned his gaze back to the distance.
"Heh, Ye Fan. Then I'll see you in a year!"
Orochimaru leaned against Ye Fan, took in his scent, and disappeared.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu lay on the floor pretending to be unconscious, their hearts pounding and their minds blank.
Although the exchange had been brief, they found it deeply shocking.
Jiraiya, who had been on the roof for a long time, had heard their entire conversation. His expression was grave.
What Ye Fan had asked Orochimaru to do could very well threaten the entire ninja world!
Hashirama Senju hadn't earned the title God of Shinobi for nothing.
If Orochimaru really managed to control Hashirama Senju at his peak, his dangerous ambitions would make him a disaster waiting to happen!
"Ye Fan, are you really sure you want to do this?"
Jiraiya's grave voice rang out as he suddenly appeared beside Ye Fan.
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