A Bountiful Harvest

Ah—!

Orochimaru's voice echoed through the sky, delivering a message to all: Orochimaru had been defeated.

Deprived of Orochimaru's control, the Eight Branches Technique slowly collapsed to the ground.

Jiraiya looked at Feng Yao, not knowing what to say. Logically, Orochimaru was a missing-nin, and killing him was beneficial to Konoha with no downsides.

Yet, emotion drove him to question Feng Yao: "What have you done to Orochimaru!"

To Jiraiya, Orochimaru was a comrade he had failed to bring back in the past. Part of the reason he never inherited the title of Hokage in the original story was his desire to find Orochimaru; their bond was much like that of Naruto and Sasuke.

Feng Yao stood up slowly, ignoring Jiraiya, and cast his gaze toward the ninjas still fighting below. Orochimaru had not yet released the Impure World Reincarnation, so the First Hokage, Kagami Uchiha, and the others were still locked in battle.

"As for my business with Orochimaru, Lord Jiraiya, you need not concern yourself. I still have use for him and will not kill him so easily."

Setting aside Orochimaru's schemes and plots, his intellect and vision were among the best in the ninja world. As the only man in the series who truly believed in science, Feng Yao was determined to make him serve his own ends, even if it meant using up that Kotoamatsukami.

Aside from Jiraiya's questioning, the most agitated person on the field was Kimimaro. Disregarding everything, he repelled the jonin before him and charged toward Feng Yao.

Bones protruded from his hands, condensing into a massive bone spear.

He roared: "What did you do to Lord Orochimaru! Give him back to me."

Seeing the reckless Kimimaro charging in, Feng Yao initially intended to summon a beast.

But at that moment, a large ghost wearing a mask and wielding a gray bone club slammed into Kimimaro, knocking him back several meters.

It was one of Tayuya's Three Ghosts. When Feng Yao finished off Orochimaru, she had hesitated for a moment, but ultimately chose to stand by the Feng Yao she had been longing for.

Tayuya held her flute, having entered the second state of the Cursed Seal. Although Kimimaro's concern was born of desperation, it was clear that her strength had improved significantly.

Her eyes were fixed on Kimimaro. She used to be afraid of him, but not anymore; she now had someone she wanted to protect.

"I won't let you hurt Lord Feng Yao, unless you can kill me first."

Looking at the girl who had stepped forward for him, Feng Yao felt a stir in his heart.

Previously, he hadn't paid much attention to Tayuya, as her performance in the original story was unremarkable.

But today, she had given him too many surprises—being able to use secret techniques to restrain the self-sealing Danzo, and managing to deflect an attack from Kimimaro.

Feng Yao walked over slowly and placed a hand on Tayuya's shoulder.

"You don't need to fight; leave the rest to me now."

Tayuya's body trembled visibly at Feng Yao's touch.

She lowered her head slightly, her voice no louder than a mosquito's: "Yes... yes, Lord Feng Yao."

She then covered her face and stood behind Feng Yao, peeking at his profile through her fingers.

She thought to herself: Oh my~ Lord Feng Yao's aura is still so captivating. But this second state of my Cursed Seal looks so ugly; I must never let Lord Feng Yao see me like this again.

Feng Yao, of course, had no idea that was the reason she was covering her face.

His expression remained calm as water: "Kimimaro, Orochimaru is in my hands now. You have two choices: one, watch me take him away and go wherever you please; two, follow me from now on, and I can guarantee you a chance to see him. I give you ten seconds to choose."

The bones all over Kimimaro's body were shifting and growing at a visible rate. He desperately wanted to kill the man before him and reclaim Orochimaru.

But reason eventually prevailed, and the Cursed Seal on his body slowly faded, retracting into a small, three-tomoe circle.

Kimimaro's choice brought a faint smile to Feng Yao's face. His first order was for Kimimaro to gather Orochimaru's forces and prepare to retreat.

Continuing to fight would only be a senseless death; with Jiraiya holding the line for Konoha, any number of small fry would just be fodder.

It was better to conserve strength for his own future use.

The group of Sand ninjas below could not help but reveal a look of despair: "Since Orochimaru has been defeated and I am severely wounded, I fear we cannot break through. We cannot let the One-Tail fall into Konoha's hands. Baki, do it."

Rasa's eyes, however, once again shot out a look of determination.

If the One-Tail fell into Konoha's hands, it would inevitably become a weapon, causing immeasurable losses to the Land of Wind.

Hearing the order, Baki's body shook, but he understood the consequences of the One-Tail falling into the enemy's hands.

The next moment, he spread his arms wide, like a giant bird unfurling its wings.

"Wind Blade!"

With a crisp snap, palm winds erupted. Instantly, they whipped up a gale, forming a sky full of invisible wind blades.

They then swirled into a single stream, rushing rapidly toward the exhausted Gaara not far away.

"Leader Baki, what are you doing!" Temari shouted in question upon seeing this.

She sprinted toward Gaara at the same time. Regardless of anything else, she was Gaara's sister, and putting aside their positions, she loved him dearly.

But the wind blades were faster.

Just as they were about to strike, Feng Yao used the Flying Thunder God to move in front of Gaara, taking the hit head-on.

"Mr. Feng Yao!" Gaara saw this, his eyes splitting with rage, and he struggled desperately to stand up. A massive gash ran across Feng Yao's chest from his collarbone to his waist, and blood was flowing out incessantly.

Jiraiya, who was helping the ninjas seal the Impure World Reincarnation, frowned upon seeing this.

He wondered: "Strange. He shouldn't have been hit by an attack like that."

Feng Yao feigned a cough, spitting out two mouthfuls of blood. Beside him, Gaara grew even more anxious, hurriedly tearing off a piece of his own clothing to cover the wound in an attempt to staunch the bleeding.

This was a bitter-meat ruse Feng Yao had specifically orchestrated. He had been wondering how to spirit Gaara away, and now Sunagakure had handed him the perfect opportunity.

He spoke in a weak, listless voice, "Gaara, the people of this village don't deserve your sacrifices. Are you willing to come away with me?"

Gaara's eyes were bloodshot. "I will go with you. Master Feng Yao, please, stop talking. You are severely wounded."

Hearing this, Temari and the others wanted to intervene, but upon reflection, they wondered if keeping Gaara in Sunagakure was truly the right choice. In the end, they remained silent.

Rasa, standing to the side, furrowed his brows deeply. His son was supposed to be extremely reclusive; why was he showing such concern for this Feng Yao?

After Gaara helped Feng Yao to his feet, Kimimaro had already finished assembling Orochimaru's forces.

This included Yakushi Kabuto, who had just retreated from the battlefield; he could hardly believe his ears upon hearing the news that Orochimaru had been captured.

Just then, three spectral entities erupted outward, charging toward Baki without the slightest hesitation.

Simultaneously, the sound of a flute swirled through the air, attempting to drag the opponent into a genjutsu.

"You wounded Master Feng Yao—I will have your life!"

Tayuya had entered the second state of her Cursed Seal. Her skin had undergone a transformation, horns sprouted from her head, and her eyes were filled with killing intent and rage, every strike aimed to kill.

Even Baki was forced into a continuous retreat, not daring to clash head-on with her.

Feng Yao couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself, forced to speak up once more.

"I'm fine, Tayuya. It's over here; withdraw with me." Tayuya's figure faltered.

In the end, she gritted her teeth and returned to Feng Yao's side. She gently supported his other shoulder, her eyes filled with heartache as she looked at his wound.

Supported by the group, Feng Yao stood up and looked at the Sound Five, Kabuto, Gaara, and the others. His eyes glowed with a divine light; his harvest this time was truly significant, and he feared his mission would be completed very soon.

He then turned his head toward Jiraiya.

"Sasuke and Naruto are at an inn three kilometers from here. People of Konoha, we shall meet again."

Following this, the Kamui vortex in his right eye expanded, and the spatial whirlpool enveloped himself and everyone around him, sucking them into the Kamui dimension.

Konoha endured three more hours of war before the dust finally settled. The Impure World Reincarnation summons, including the First Hokage and Kagami Uchiha, were all sealed. Rasa led the remaining Suna ninja in surrendering to the Third Hokage, and Jiraiya was appointed as the interim acting Hokage, with the Third assisting in handling all matters, both internal and external, for Konoha.

"Sigh, war brings only pain. Once this incident passes, who knows how many families in Konoha and Sunagakure will be torn apart? I fear the neighboring nations will not remain quiet either!"

The Third Hokage stood beside Danzo's corpse, his eyes revealing self-reproach, heartache, and helplessness. Jiraiya stood to the side with his arms crossed.

He said calmly, "I will stay in Konoha for this period. Once everything stabilizes, I will go find someone to inherit the position of Hokage."

The Third was slightly stunned, then realized something.

"Ah, you mean that child Tsunade. She is indeed suitable, both in character and status. It will be hard on you during this time. Also, you must be careful of that Feng Yao; his identity is far too mysterious."

Jiraiya laughed heartily.

"Rest assured, I have a grasp on his abilities by now; it won't be a problem for me to deal with him. Besides, we didn't suffer any losses from our cooperation with him this time."

At that moment, a Chunin suddenly rushed over in a panic.

"It's bad, Third Hokage, Master Jiraiya, something terrible has happened!"

Seeing the messenger so flustered, Jiraiya frowned. Sunagakure had already been defeated; what else could possibly go wrong?

"Don't rush, speak slowly."

The messenger took a deep breath and said tremblingly, "All the forbidden jutsu scrolls in the Konoha Library, as well as the funds obtained from our village's commissions, have been completely swept away!"

"What—!! Who did this?" Just as he finished asking, a beautiful face flashed through Jiraiya's mind. He gritted his teeth and spat out:

"Feng Yao, you bastard brat! Don't let me run into you again!"