The Great Battle Ends

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Deafening explosions rang out incessantly.

Across the sky and upon the ground, the figures of ninjas locked in combat were everywhere.

Under the leadership of the Third Hokage, Shukaku was successfully suppressed, and Gaara reverted to his human form.

However, the powerful figures summoned by the Impure World Reincarnation dealt the allied forces a heavy blow. Fortunately, Konoha had not deployed its entire ninja force, and the vast majority of their shinobi remained within the village.

Every three jonin formed a squad to stall a single Kage-level combatant.

The most troublesome aspect remained the Impure World Reincarnation; the summoned warriors were fearless and possessed immense strength, causing the jonin fighting them to nearly lose their lives on several occasions.

"Damn it, is the sealing scroll not ready yet? Dragging this out is disadvantageous for us!" Asuma Sarutobi cursed while fighting fiercely.

Although they could still hold their ground, the longer the battle dragged on, the greater the destruction to Konoha, leaving them feeling quite helpless in their response.

"Stay calm," Kurenai comforted from the side. "We can only wait for the results from Jiraiya-sama's side. All we can do is buy time and hold these enemies back."

As she spoke, a massive wave of Water Release surged toward them, forcing them to leap away to evade the attack.

Meanwhile, Rasa was busy commanding the Sunagakure army; with his combat effectiveness severely compromised, he naturally could not charge into the fray himself.

"Kazekage-sama, isn't dragging this out detrimental to us? Konoha has too many jonin, our forces are nearly decimated, and the promised reinforcements from outside haven't arrived. If Orochimaru loses..."

Baki looked at the increasingly disadvantageous position of Orochimaru and voiced his concerns with worry.

This invasion had not been as easy as they had imagined. The Kazekage was severely wounded, Jiraiya had appeared, and Shukaku had been suppressed by the Third Hokage; now, they were forced to pin all their hopes on Orochimaru.

Sunagakure had become a complete turncoat in this operation. Originally ranked among the middle tier of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, if this battle failed, they would surely be relegated to the bottom.

Rasa let out a cold snort, his expression growing increasingly grave. "We have no other choice now. If we retreat, do you think Konoha will let us go? How is Gaara? Can he enter Tailed Beast mode again?"

As Rasa spoke, his tone shifted, turning to inquire about Gaara.

As the weapon of Sunagakure, Gaara was, in Rasa's eyes, a failure.

He had originally intended for Gaara to go berserk and wreak havoc in Konoha, but he hadn't expected the Third Hokage to suppress him with the Five Elements Seal.

This sealing technique required the user to master all five basic chakra nature transformations, and it could only be undone with the Five Elements Unseal.

"No, our abilities are insufficient to break this seal. I fear Gaara cannot enter Tailed Beast mode."

Baki reported the truth to Rasa.

Rasa's face grew even gloomier. Gaara was now like a feast covered by a lid—he would attract others, yet he himself could not consume it.

He even harbored thoughts of disposing of Gaara right there. He could not allow the village to fall into such danger; if a jinchuriki died, the Tailed Beast would eventually revive elsewhere in the world after a period of time.

Tailed Beasts were sentient masses of chakra; killing the host only meant dispersing that chakra.

"Keep a close eye on Gaara. When the battle ends... you will handle it."

In the end, for the sake of the village's safety, Rasa issued this order. Baki hesitated for a moment.

Having been Gaara's mentor for so long, he was not entirely without feelings—in the original timeline, he was the one who overcame opposition to help Gaara become Kazekage—but at this moment, he could only accept the command.

Meanwhile, the battle between Orochimaru and Jiraiya had reached a white-hot stage.

Jiraiya's Sage Mode provided him with a massive reserve of chakra, and with the two Great Sage Toads assisting him in gathering natural energy, he was exceptionally well-suited for prolonged combat.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya now stood on opposite sides, with burn marks visible on Orochimaru's body.

Clearly, even he struggled when facing the two Sages and Jiraiya simultaneously, whereas Jiraiya remained virtually unscathed.

"Little Jiraiya, is this the Orochimaru you spoke of? It is indeed very difficult to defeat him in a duel."

Sage Shima, standing beside Jiraiya, spoke up.

Orochimaru gave a cold, sinister laugh. "I truly must thank the Sage for the compliment. It seems I also need to find power capable of rivaling Mount Myoboku as soon as possible."

Hearing this, Jiraiya furrowed his brows. If Orochimaru were to obtain the power of other sacred sites, his ambition would make him even more dangerous.

"You won't get the chance, Orochimaru! I will not let you escape this time. Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb!"

Jiraiya took a deep breath, puffing out his cheeks to refine his chakra into oil. As he spat the oil filling his mouth, he simultaneously used a Fire Release technique to ignite it, creating a blast far more powerful than a standard fire jutsu.

Jiraiya's Sage Mode is truly formidable. It seems I have no choice but to use that technique.

Thinking this, Orochimaru bit his finger and performed a series of rapid hand seals. His body began to change, swelling and expanding until he spat out eight massive white-scaled serpents.

"Secret Technique: Eight Branches Technique."

The terrifying white snake, known as the "strongest python," possessed a massive body that dwarfed Manda, along with a visage revealing ferocious fangs.

In the original story, Orochimaru, who had been swallowed by Uchiha Sasuke, released this technique when Sasuke's "suppressed chakra" ran dry.

Unfortunately, Itachi possessed the Sword of Totsuka, the Blade of the Gods, which took Orochimaru out instantly.

However, that did not mean the technique was weak; being one of Orochimaru's trump cards, it naturally possessed extraordinary qualities.

It was one of Orochimaru's greatest and most powerful techniques, and the embodiment of his long-standing, unchanging obsession!

"Little Jiraiya, be careful. This move is not simple," Sage Fukasaku warned from the side.

"I understand. Great Sages, please prepare yourselves."

Jiraiya finished speaking and stomped his feet, the force of the impact shattering the ground into two deep craters as he launched himself into the air.

He pressed his palms together.

"Ninja Art: Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"

This technique elongated his hair, shaping it into a lion's mane to ensnare the opponent; though it was merely hair, its strength was sufficient to shred flesh. It had once instantly defeated the summoning creature of the Animal Path of Pain.

Countless strands of hair split into dozens of streams, binding the Eight-Headed Serpent before him.

Hiss—! Roar—!

The eight massive heads were tangled together, colliding with one another, but soon one of the heads spat out flames, the intense heat instantly burning the hair away. Jiraiya watched this without a hint of panic.

He flipped his hand, unleashing another binding technique.

"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!"

A massive swamp suddenly appeared beneath the serpent's body, causing it to sink into the mire, unable to escape.

Orochimaru, hiding within the serpent's belly, gave a disdainful smirk as another head of the Eight-Headed Serpent exhaled a blast of frigid frost.

The entire swamp froze solid, and even Jiraiya's body was coated in ice crystals as the Eight-Headed Serpent crawled right out of the trap.

"It seems those eight heads can each utilize a different nature of ninjutsu."

After two exchanges, Jiraiya analyzed the Eight-Headed Serpent's attack pattern, and the two Sages exchanged a glance upon hearing his assessment.

"In that case, little Jiraiya, let us take the stage."

"Sage Art: Frog Call!"

The most potent form of genjutsu is auditory; this was a combined Frog Call from the toad couple, capable of trapping an opponent in a powerful illusion that rendered them completely immobile.

Even the Eight-Headed Serpent froze in place upon hearing the sound.

"Good chance!"

"Sage Art: Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!"

This was a sage technique more than ten times larger than the Big Ball Rasengan, possessing terrifying destructive power capable of leveling a massive mountain.

Jiraiya leaped high into the air once more, slamming the entire Rasengan into the heads of the Eight-Headed Serpent.

The serpent shook off the genjutsu and let out a roar.

Roar—!

Two of the heads were blown to pieces by the impact of the Rasengan.

The two Sages did not remain idle, coordinating their efforts to unleash a follow-up.

"Tongue Battle Bind / Water Slash!"

Sage Shima first used her tongue to bind the Eight-Headed Serpent, then Sage Fukasaku spat out a high-intensity Water Release technique. The piercing power of this move was no weaker than the Second Hokage's Water Severing Wave, slicing off yet another head—the very one Orochimaru was hiding inside.

"Little Jiraiya, now's your chance!"

Seeing Orochimaru exposed, Jiraiya reacted instantly. His hair whipped out and elongated, locking onto Orochimaru to drag him out, the two of them locked in a stalemate.

"Orochimaru, give it up. Your actions have already brought too much pain to this ninja world."

Jiraiya continued to plead with Orochimaru, hoping to pull his old friend back from the brink. This was the reason he hadn't let the two Sages strike immediately; he did not want to kill him.

"Hmph, Jiraiya, how could you possibly understand my heart? Life is so fragile, and people are so easily broken! I want to make life more resilient, to achieve eternity."

Orochimaru roared at Jiraiya. Having witnessed the cruelty of war and the departure of his loved ones since childhood, he did not vent his emotions through tears like ordinary people. Instead, he attributed everything to the fragility of life. Back then, he feared losing his companions, and thus, he stopped trusting in the power of others.

Just as Jiraiya prepared to retort, a figure appeared instantly behind Orochimaru.

"Flying Thunder God Technique!"

Feng Yao had finally waited for this opportunity. He had already planted a Flying Thunder God seal on Orochimaru during their previous skirmish, and now, Orochimaru was completely powerless to resist.

He grabbed Orochimaru as the Kamui vortex opened in his right eye.

"Orochimaru, it seems your eternal life will have to be spent inside my dimension."

Orochimaru's body twisted as he was sucked into the Kamui Dimension.

"No—!!"