"Summoning Technique!"
The black-robed men pressed their bloody handprints down and shouted.
"Bang!"
A thick cloud of white smoke appeared out of nowhere and billowed outward.
"Hissss!"
A sound like a serpent's hiss rang out, but it was countless times louder and sharper.
The sound was so piercing it could practically tear through eardrums. The thick cloud of white smoke that had just appeared was ripped apart by the sound waves.
An enormous figure gradually emerged.
The ninja on duty at the gate saw this and, horrified, stumbled into the village to sound the alarm. He continued shouting hoarsely as he ran.
"A sn-snake... There's a snake!!"
The Konoha Guardian Ninja who rushed over crouched on the village wall. Seeing the giant snake before them, they were so terrified their hearts nearly stopped.
The snake stood dozens of meters tall. When it raised its head, it towered half a body above the wall.
Its entire body was covered in hard gray scales, with spikes jutting out from them!
Most terrifying of all, the snake had three heads! Each head had a pair of huge, blood-red eyes that gleamed with a ghastly light.
As the snake moved, trees toppled one after another, and it carved a flat path straight through the dense forest.
Thick drops of saliva dripped from the giant snake's mouth. The trees and plants they touched withered, and any unlucky animals splashed by it were corroded into white bones.
It was poisonous!
The giant snake was enormous, yet it moved with astonishing speed. In just a few seconds, it had reached the wall.
"Bang!"
The giant snake slammed into the wall. The several-meter-thick barrier was like paper before it, and the impact tore a huge hole right through it.
The wall couldn't stop the snake. The ninja, who had already moved some distance away, pulled Kunai from their pouches, attached Explosive Tags, and hurled them with all their might.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The ninja were highly skilled, and every Kunai struck the giant snake's head.
Unfortunately, Kunai and Explosive Tags were completely useless against it.
One Kunai even exploded right on the snake's eye, yet it didn't so much as scratch it.
"Go get reinforcements!"
Seeing this, the ninja retreated again. One of them immediately ran off.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
"Thud! Thud! Thud..."
But just as he leaped into the air, three Kunai shot out from a tricky angle and struck him in the back. Blood streamed from his wounds, and he fell from the air.
The other ninja quickly turned toward the direction the Kunai had come from. When they recognized the attackers, they clenched their fists.
"Damn it, they're from Sunagakure! Is Sunagakure trying to start a war with Konoha?"
The Sand Ninja, who had come prepared to fight, weren't going to back down just because of a few threats from Konoha's ninja.
They exchanged glances, then charged at the Konoha ninja. A fierce battle erupted.
Battles were breaking out all over Konoha, not just at the village gate.
Konoha had fallen into chaos!
At that moment, Lin Mu and Akiyama were in the stands beside the Chunin Ninja Exams arena.
With the Sand Ninja invasion plunging all of Konoha into chaos, the exams had been canceled, and all the students taking part had been gathered together for protection.
Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy, both jonin, stood in front of the stands alongside several Anbu. Even with Konoha in grave danger, someone still had to protect the children.
Suddenly, two figures burst out with murderous intent and charged at the examinees in the stands.
"Bang!"
Before the two could get close, a gray-haired figure struck them both away in a single blow!
Once he got a good look at the two attackers, the gray-haired ninja furrowed his brow.
"I didn't expect the enemy to disguise themselves as Anbu..."
The gray-haired figure was none other than Konoha's Copy Ninja, Kakashi Hatake!
Watching Kakashi fight stirred Lin Mu's interest. He rarely got the chance to see elite ninja in battle.
Perhaps because the area was crowded with so many students, Kakashi Hatake didn't use any powerful, wide-range ninjutsu. Instead, he fought with Taijutsu throughout.
But even using only Taijutsu, Kakashi Hatake was incredibly powerful.
His strikes were sharp and aimed at vital points. In just a few punches and kicks, he took down several lurking Sand Ninja.
"Ha! Let me show you the power of Konoha's Blue Beast!"
Seeing Kakashi swiftly take down several invaders, Might Guy refused to be outdone. He had always considered Kakashi his greatest rival, and even in a situation like this, he wouldn't allow himself to defeat fewer enemies than Kakashi.
As a ninja who specialized in Taijutsu, his movements were purer and more ferocious, like a tiger prowling through the mountains. Every move was deadly.
The invaders were knocked down in an instant, lying unconscious on the ground.
Seeing that the invaders who had tried to attack the students had all been taken down, Lin Mu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Then his gaze shifted once more to a rooftop in the distance.
A square purple barrier now covered the roof. It blocked the view, making it impossible to see what was happening inside.
The Four Violet Flames Formation!
It had been set up by the four Sound Ninja personally trained by Orochimaru, after they activated the power of their Cursed Seals.
Once formed, the barrier could seal off everything inside from the outside.
It had another formidable feature: breaking through from the outside was nearly impossible. Only power from within could possibly open it.
And inside the Four Violet Flames Formation were the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru, disguised as the Kazekage!
"The Third Hokage probably still doesn't know the Kazekage is his former student, Orochimaru, in disguise..."
Lin Mu thought it over quietly, but even knowing everything there was to know about a battle between shinobi of the Hokage's caliber, he had no way to get involved.
At that moment, inside the Four Violet Flames Formation.
The Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was still inspecting the barrier, unaware of what was happening.
Suddenly, his body stiffened. A Kunai pressed against his neck.
Hiruzen Sarutobi narrowed his eyes and looked at the Kazekage behind him. He asked in a low voice,
"Lord Kazekage, is this a barrier formation...? I never thought the Sand Ninja would betray Konoha."
"The so-called treaty was nothing more than a smokescreen to lull our opponent into complacency."
The Kazekage, holding the Kunai against the Third Hokage's throat, sneered and continued,
"This pointless exam ends here. From this moment on, history will change!"
At those words, a cold glint flashed in the Third Hokage's eyes. He said sharply,
"Are you trying to start a war?"
"That's right!"
As he spoke, the Kazekage pressed the Kunai in his hand harder against the Third Hokage's throat.
Although the Third Hokage was now in mortal danger, his voice remained calm.
"We should avoid using force and seek to resolve this through negotiations. It's not too late yet, Lord Kazekage!"
The Kazekage behind Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent for a moment. Then he opened his eyes wide and said darkly, "Age has made you lose your head over peace, Teacher Sarutobi!"
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