If you can take one of my elbows and not die, you're a real person.

"Let's fight, Orochimaru."

Qianyu's voice was quiet. He turned toward Orochimaru, who was preparing to slip away unnoticed, with not a trace of jest in his eyes.

Orochimaru's figure, just about to melt into the shadows, paused slightly. He slowly turned back, his slit pupils meeting the boy's gaze, a teasing curve lifting at the corner of his lips. "Oh? What do you mean by this, Qianyu-kun?"

"The deal is done, but the performance isn't over yet." Qianyu spoke calmly, though his chakra had already begun to rise. "Konoha needs to see a hero who fought desperately and drove back a powerful enemy to avenge the Hokage, even if it's only an illusion.

"And you need a reason to 'be driven back by Konoha's rising new generation and lie low for now,' don't you? Besides..."

He paused, his gaze sharpening. "I also want to know just how far I still am from one of the legendary Three Sannin."

The smile on Orochimaru's face deepened. "How bold, Qianyu-kun. Since you've invited me so warmly... I suppose I'll stretch a little."

Before his words had even faded, Orochimaru vanished from where he stood like a phantom!

So fast!

Qianyu's pupils contracted slightly. His Sharingan activated instantly, its three tomoe spinning rapidly as they caught the afterimage nearly blended into the air, striking from his left! He ducked, stepped sideways, and drove his right elbow forward like a viper lunging from its den, meeting the incoming attack with perfect precision!

Bang!

Fist and elbow collided with a dull crash. The chakra shockwave pulverized the already shattered floor around them once more.

Qianyu felt a soft yet overwhelming force surge through the point of contact. His arm went numb, and his body involuntarily staggered half a step backward.

Orochimaru, meanwhile, merely swayed before closing in again. There was little flourish to his taijutsu, but it was fast, precise, and ruthless. Every strike carried the cunning and lethal quality of a snake.

This was the taijutsu of one of the Three Sannin—a man who had survived countless life-and-death battles and modified his body to its absolute limits!

Qianyu pushed the perception of his Sharingan and his own hard-earned taijutsu to their limits, countering each move as it came—blocking, dodging, retaliating! The two moved and clashed at high speed through the center of the ruined arena. The sound of fists and kicks colliding rang without end, while the gusts kicked up by colliding chakra swept dust into tiny whirlwinds.

Yet the gap between them was obvious. Orochimaru's experience, control over his body, and almost inhuman flexibility and strength born of countless modifications all firmly surpassed Qianyu's. Though Qianyu barely held on through his Sharingan and exceptional reactions, the battle was quickly tilting against him.

After another direct exchange of punches, Qianyu let out a muffled grunt and slid backward several meters in a stagger. His arms trembled faintly, and his breathing had grown heavier.

In close combat, he was completely outmatched.

"Good eyes and good reactions, but your taijutsu still needs more refinement between life and death." Orochimaru sounded like an instructor critiquing his student.

Qianyu shook out his numb arm and took a deep breath.

"Then... try this."

He pressed his hands together before his chest and closed his eyes. When he opened them again—perfect Sage Mode!

Natural energy surged toward him wildly, blending seamlessly with the chakra inside his body. A vast aura far beyond anything before it erupted, as though he had become one with the earth and forest!

Sage Art: Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!

At Qianyu's low shout, the ground beneath his feet shook violently. Dark-brown tree trunks burst from the earth, coiling and intertwining until, in the blink of an eye, they became a lifelike wooden dragon dozens of meters long! Its massive eyes locked onto Orochimaru, radiating a suffocating pressure!

Orochimaru stared at the colossal creature that had suddenly appeared before him. A performance? You brat really wants to take this chance to beat me up, doesn't he?!

He immediately realized that Qianyu had taken his improvisation far beyond what he had expected. But the senjutsu chakra and power contained within that wooden dragon were no act. Taking even one hit would be unpleasant.

"Sakon and Ukon! Kidomaru! Tayuya! Jirobo!" Orochimaru barked in a low voice without hesitation. "'Run out of stamina' and dismiss the Four Red Yang Formation! Now!"

The Sound Four, who had been maintaining the barrier's stability, were confused by the order, but they obeyed Orochimaru unconditionally. All four immediately put on weary expressions as though they could barely keep going and had exhausted their chakra, while simultaneously releasing the hand signs sustaining the barrier!

Bzzzz—!

The dark-red cubic barrier covering the arena flickered violently several times before collapsing with a roar!

When Qianyu saw Orochimaru dismiss the barrier, he deactivated his Sharingan.

The scene outside the barrier instantly came into crystal-clear view for the Konoha ninja fighting nearby!

The first thing they saw was the wreckage in the center of the arena—and the Third Hokage lying on the ground, utterly motionless!

Before cries of grief and fury could leave their mouths, everyone's attention was seized by the unbelievable sight in the arena!

An enormous wooden dragon coiled beneath the feet of a black-haired boy! And that boy was none other than Lady Tsunade's disciple, Cangshu Qianyu!

"W-Wood Release?!"

"Is that the First Hokage's Wood Release?!"

"Qianyu... Qianyu can use Wood Release?!"

Cries of shock rose one after another, filled with utter disbelief. Wood Release—the legendary kekkei genkai believed to have long been lost—had appeared once more in the body of a thirteen-year-old boy!

Qianyu stood atop the wooden dragon's head, looking down coldly at Orochimaru, who now appeared somewhat isolated and helpless below. He controlled the wooden dragon as its massive tail swept viciously toward Orochimaru with a howling gale! The already ruined spectator stands along its path were torn apart and flung away like papier-mâché!

Orochimaru narrowly avoided the wooden dragon's sweeping strike. His movements remained graceful, but to the Konoha ninja watching outside, he looked as though he were dodging in disarray beneath the terrifying power of Wood Release.

Summoning Technique!

White smoke burst forth, and Orochimaru summoned a purple giant snake of equally astonishing size. It coiled across the shattered arena and hissed threateningly at the wooden dragon.

"Manda, restrain it!" Orochimaru ordered.

Manda's cold snake eyes swept over the wooden dragon opposite it, which radiated natural energy that made it deeply uncomfortable. It finally turned to Orochimaru and hissed, "Orochimaru, this time, the sacrifices must be doubled!"

"Fine!" Orochimaru agreed without hesitation.

Only then did Manda shoot forward. Its long, thick body carried the force to crush everything in its path as it coiled toward the wooden dragon!

The two colossal creatures instantly became entangled. Wood chips and snake scales flew through the air, while hisses and the wooden dragon's roaring chakra intertwined. The earth shook and the mountains seemed to tremble! The sight was both magnificent and terrifying.

However, just as Manda was barely managing to wrestle with the Wood Dragon, Qianyu, standing atop the dragon's head, made another move.

His hands formed seals again. The senjutsu chakra within him surged like a boiling ocean, all of it pouring down beneath his feet!

"Sage Art: Wood Release: Wood Man Technique!"

RUMBLE—!

The earth shook violently, as if trampled by a colossal god! Beneath Qianyu's feet, an even larger and more imposing wooden giant rose from the ground!

The Wood Man stood nearly a hundred meters tall, like an ancient deity holding up the heavens, its face solemn and majestic. The enormous Wood Dragon, meanwhile, wrapped itself around the Wood Man's waist like a guardian divine beast, raising its head toward Manda in a silent roar.

Manda, who had just been proud of its own size, looked up at the Wood Man that nearly blocked out the sky. When it saw that it only reached the other's waist, the ferocity in its snake eyes froze instantly, replaced by an undisguised sense of absurdity that screamed, Are you fucking kidding me?

It decisively released the Wood Dragon, turning its massive head toward Orochimaru. Its tone was blunt and crisp. "What kind of joke is this?! Orochimaru, fight that monster yourself! Forget the sacrifice!"

Without giving Orochimaru time to react, Manda's huge body vanished into white smoke with a BANG, dismissing its own summoning and fleeing.

Orochimaru: "..."

Even with his composure, as he looked at the empty ground and the Wood Man towering overhead like it was gazing down upon all living things, the corner of his mouth twitched. Had this performance... gone a little too far?

From atop the Wood Man's head, Qianyu's voice rolled down like a god's judgment. "Orochimaru! Take my elbow!"

As his words fell, the towering Wood Man bent slightly. Its massive wooden arm curled, chakra light capable of making one's heart tremble gathering around its elbow. Then, like a falling meteor, carrying the force to crush everything, it smashed its elbow viciously down toward where Orochimaru stood!

BOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

An indescribably deafening blast!

The entire Konoha seemed to jump! Centered on where the elbow struck, a gigantic crater over fifty meters in diameter appeared in an instant. A violent shockwave spread outward in a ring, blasting apart and scattering every ruined wall, broken stone, and piece of rubble around it! Dust soared into the sky like a mushroom cloud, blotting out the sun!

Every Konoha ninja who witnessed the scene—whether ANBU, clan ninja, or Kakashi, Asuma, and the others who had just arrived nearby—stood with their mouths agape, utterly stunned.

The power of that attack... had far exceeded everything they knew of genin, or even most quasi-Kage! This was practically the power of a natural disaster!

The dust slowly dispersed.

At the center of the crater, there was no one—only fragments of white shed snakeskin scattered about.

Orochimaru... was nowhere to be seen. It seemed that before that earth-shattering attack landed, he had escaped with a Substitution Technique or some secret art.

At the edge of the crater, Qianyu, who had collapsed weakly to the ground after the Wood Man dissipated, swayed. His face turned paper-white as the weakness of chakra exhaustion swept through his entire body. His legs gave out, and he fell straight down, gasping heavily, cold sweat covering his forehead.

"Qianyu!" "Lord Qianyu!"

The Konoha ninja around him finally snapped out of it and rushed over from every direction with cries of alarm. Several ANBU arrived first and carefully helped him up. Their gazes toward Qianyu were filled with unprecedented awe and a trace of unconscious reverence—the natural emotion inspired by absolute power and a protector.

"Lord Qianyu, are you all right?" an ANBU squad captain asked respectfully. Even his form of address had changed.

"I... I'm fine." Qianyu steadied himself with their support and shook his head. His gaze swept across the faces gathered around him, some worried and others shaken, before turning toward the direction where the Third Hokage had fallen. At the right moment, a heavy grief and a hint of self-blame appeared on his face.

His voice was hoarse, carrying just the right amount of exhaustion and guilt as it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"I'm sorry... everyone. The Third Hokage... Grandpa... he... died in battle. I couldn't save him..."

He paused before continuing with difficulty. "Orochimaru... was too strong, and far too cunning. I couldn't keep him from escaping... I'm sorry..."

This display of weakness after demonstrating his strength, crediting the Hokage's sacrifice, and blaming himself for failing to do more instantly won the goodwill and sympathy of every Konoha ninja.

Who could blame a child who had already given everything, even using the lost Wood Release to fight the enemy to the death, only to exhaust all his chakra in the end? He had already done everything he possibly could!

"No! Qianyu, you've already done very well!" A familiar voice rang out.

Kakashi appeared beside Qianyu in a Body Flicker and patted his shoulder. "You forced Orochimaru back and protected more people. The Third... died as a Hokage defending the village. That was his choice, and it was also his honor."

Kakashi looked around and raised his voice. "Everyone! The urgent task now is to eliminate the remaining invaders, treat the wounded, and restore order to the village! Qianyu has overexerted himself and needs rest. We'll discuss everything else once Lady Tsunade returns!"

"Right, with such a fierce battle going on, where is Lady Tsunade?" Everyone knew Tsunade was in the village.

Kakashi explained, "Tsunade happened to have been ordered to search for Jiraiya. Who would have thought Orochimaru would attack at a time like this?"

Only then did the people around them fall silent. Qianyu quietly memorized the face of the person who had spoken.

Supported by the others, he slowly left the devastated battlefield. He turned back for one final look toward where the Third Hokage had fallen, and a complicated glimmer flashed deep within his eyes.

The performance was over.

From this day onward, the name of Wood Release would resound throughout the ninja world.