Chapter 23

But he quickly forced another smile. "It's useless, Yi-kun. An attack at this level—"

"It'll regenerate, right?" Uchiha Yi cut him off with a grin. "Impure World Reincarnation. I know. But—"

Before he could finish, he used Flying Thunder God again.

He appeared directly in front of Orochimaru. "If I take care of you, won't that settle everything?"

As he spoke, he extended his right hand and thrust it straight at Orochimaru.

That hand sign...

Not good!

Orochimaru's expression changed drastically, and she instinctively tried to retreat.

But it was already too late. "Lightning Release: Hell Stab—Four-Finger Nukite."

Pfft!

Uchiha Yi's right hand pierced straight through Orochimaru's body.

Orochimaru went limp, her presence cutting off instantly.

But Uchiha Yi knew this guy would not die that easily.

Sure enough, Orochimaru reappeared somewhere else.

But her face was frighteningly pale.

That's right, her. Not him.

Though she had avoided the fatal blow, the attack had injured her badly enough that she could no longer maintain her disguise.

How was this possible?

Heavy Stream Blast was one thing.

But how did he know Hell Stab—Four-Finger Nukite too?

That was the Third Raikage's ultimate move. Even the current Fourth Raikage could not use it!

"Uchiha Yi, you really are powerful." Orochimaru licked her lips. "But killing me won't be so easy."

As soon as she spoke, two more figures appeared beside her.

They were the First and Second Hokage, fully restored.

The two of them stood protectively in front of her.

Uchiha Yi smiled. "Orochimaru, it seems you still don't understand. You think First and Second Hokage brought back through Impure World Reincarnation at this level can stop me?"

Orochimaru's heart skipped a beat.

A terrible premonition rose within her.

Uchiha Yi curled his lips and slowly shook his head. "If it were the First Hokage at his peak, the real God of Shinobi, then I really would have to take him seriously. But Hashirama Senju in his current state wants to protect you? Dream on."

He paused, contempt in his eyes. "Fine. Today, I'll show you just how great the gap between people can be."

Orochimaru's pupils suddenly contracted.

A chill shot up his spine, and he even felt his soul trembling. "Wood Release: Wood-Wall Jutsu!"

Hashirama Senju clapped his hands together and raised a defense almost instinctively. "Lightning Release: Black Kirin!"

This move was different from the Lightning Release: Kirin he had used against Sarutobi Doto before.

This time, Uchiha Yi had directly infused it with the power of Amaterasu's black flames.

He had discovered something—the power of Amaterasu's black flames and Lightning Release multiplied explosively when fused together. Their destructive force was far more than a simple one plus one.

Boom!

The Wood-Wall Jutsu was blasted to pieces, but the Black Kirin was still stopped. "Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"

A massive wooden dragon soared into the air and forcibly intercepted the Black Kirin midway.

Uchiha Yi raised a brow.

He had thought the First Hokage summoned through Impure World Reincarnation would be mediocre at best, and that it would already be impressive if his Wood Release could take shape.

Now, it seemed he had underestimated the man. "He even brought out the Wood Dragon Technique... Looks like Orochimaru came prepared this time."

He had hit the mark.

After suffering a loss in the Forest of Death, Orochimaru had become more cautious and raised the quality of both his sacrifices and his jutsu by a level.

It was not just the First Hokage. The Second Hokage was the same.

Flying Thunder God Technique!

The Second Hokage vanished from where he stood and appeared directly before Uchiha Yi the next instant. "Water Release: Hard Vortex Water Blade."

The water spear spun with tremendous force as it shot toward him.

Uchiha Yi smirked.

Playing Flying Thunder God with me?

You might not believe it, old man, but even though you invented this technique, you're nowhere near as good at it as I am.

Whoosh—

Uchiha Yi vanished as well.

When he reappeared, he was already standing behind the Second Hokage.

During their brief exchange, he had secretly left a Flying Thunder God formula on the Second Hokage.

And his Flying Thunder God had already reached Level Five. It was even stronger than the version used by the Second Hokage himself.

Unless the Second Hokage at his peak had personally taken the field, he would never have noticed the mark Uchiha Yi placed on him.

Truthfully, Orochimaru could have summoned the Second Hokage at his peak.

But did he dare?

Impure World Reincarnation was a jutsu he had developed himself. No one knew better than him how difficult the Second Hokage in his prime would be to control.

A playful look rose in Uchiha Yi's eyes as he flipped his right hand. "Rasengan."

A solid sphere of chakra slammed directly into the Second Hokage's back, blasting him far away and punching a huge hole through his body. He could not regenerate for quite some time.

Uchiha Yi had long understood the principles behind the Rasengan. He could form one whenever he wanted; it was not difficult at all.

The wooden giant summoned by Wood Release had only just taken shape when Uchiha Yi blasted the Second Hokage away.

The next second, the wooden giant raised its fist and smashed it down at him. "Lightning Release: Black Dragon."

He lifted a hand, and black flames wrapped in lightning surged forth, condensing into a savage giant dragon that charged straight at the wooden giant.

Boom—

The giant exploded in midair, splintered wood scattering everywhere.

The Black Dragon did not stop. It continued crushing forward.

The First Hokage's face darkened as he rapidly formed hand seals. "Summoning Technique: Fivefold Rashomon!"

Five enormous iron gates rose from the ground one after another, blocking the Black Dragon's path.

But when the black lightning dragon crashed into them, it tore through them like paper, shattering one gate after another.

The iron gates ruptured, fragments flying everywhere.

Then the Black Dragon passed through the final gate and slammed violently into the First Hokage.

The legendary shinobi was blasted into ashes as well.

Only after the Black Dragon completely dispersed did the battle finally come to a pause.

Orochimaru stood to the side, his expression nearly cracking apart.

Watching those two Kage-level powerhouses get blown apart one after another, revive, then get blown apart again, only one thought remained in his mind—

How could this guy be this powerful?

At the end of the day, Orochimaru had simply run into Uchiha Yi at the worst possible time.

If it had been before, Uchiha Yi would not have been this absurdly strong yet.

He did have the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, and the two Impure World Reincarnation bodies facing him were not at their peak.

But the problem was... when the First and Second Hokage joined forces, their coordination was far more than a simple one plus one.

Not to mention that the ones summoned this time were even stronger than those from the Konoha Crush Plan in the original story.

Logically speaking, they should not have been beaten down so badly.

It was a complete one-sided crushing.

It made no sense at all.

There was only one reason this could happen—

Uchiha Yi's chakra had finally caught up with his combat power.

His Eight Gates had just reached Level Five.

After farming experience with the Super Multi Shadow Clone Technique, the Eight Gates had leveled up at a terrifying pace.

He had not rested during his time in the Land of Snow either, so the breakthrough had come naturally.

His Eight Gates status now read—Level Five, ninety-three thousand experience points, seventy thousand short of the next level.

After being enhanced by the Extreme Sharingan, this taijutsu could permanently open the Eight Gates without causing the slightest damage to his body.

At Level Five, the Gate of Limit was already permanently open.

The effect it brought was simple—his chakra was increased a hundredfold.

Once the Fifth Gate was permanently opened, it added another tenfold increase.

Uchiha Yi's Eight Gates had shot straight up to Level Five.

The Super Multi Shadow Clone Technique had farmed a huge amount of experience, sending the Eight Gates' leveling speed soaring as well. During his time in the Land of Snow, he had not been idle at all, and the Eight Gates had naturally broken through.

Eight Gates: Level Five (93,500/1,000,000). After being enhanced by the Extreme Sharingan, the Eight Gates can be permanently opened without causing the body any damage.

Currently at Level Five, the Gate of Limit has been completely unsealed, increasing chakra by a full hundredfold.

After his Sharingan evolved into the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, Uchiha Yi's chakra had long reached the level of an elite jonin.

What kind of concept was an elite jonin's chakra multiplied by a hundred?

Even he could not say for sure. He only knew that it had definitely reached the level of a Tailed Beast.

And this was only Level Five. If it kept rising at this pace, Uchiha Yi felt his chakra would eventually break through the heavens. "Maybe one day, I'll be able to swagger through the Naruto world on chakra volume alone."

Ever since the Eight Gates reached Level Five, that thought had constantly circled in Uchiha Yi's mind.

Now, it seemed entirely possible.

The First and Second Hokage together? He could crush them however he pleased.

After blasting apart the First and Second Hokage once more, Uchiha Yi's eyes flickered and he shouted, "Lightning Release: Infinite Thunderstorm!"

Two bolts of lightning slammed viciously into the First and Second Hokage as they were regenerating, followed by a chain of exploding thunderbursts.

This completely interrupted the First and Second Hokage's regeneration.

This was a ninjutsu Uchiha Yi had specifically devised. Its power was not especially great, roughly B-rank at most.

But the key was that it could be sustained indefinitely. As long as he did not withdraw his chakra, the thunderstorm would not stop.

Against the endlessly regenerating style of Impure World Reincarnation, it was a perfect counter.

Of course, if someone stepped in at this moment, breaking Infinite Thunderstorm would not be difficult.

But the only one still capable of moving at the scene was Orochimaru. And Uchiha Yi was watching Orochimaru like a hawk.

Did he dare go break it?

Did he?

"Orochimaru, whatever tricks or trump cards you have left, bring them all out now."

Uchiha Yi smiled at Orochimaru. He had originally wanted Orochimaru to use the Eight Branches Technique, since he wanted to witness it for himself.

But Orochimaru had clearly misunderstood. "Uchiha Yi, you're determined to humiliate me, aren't you? Fine, then I'll open your eyes!"

Orochimaru's face tightened as he rapidly formed hand seals. "Summoning Technique: Impure World Reincarnation!"

Uchiha Yi: "..."

I wanted to see the Eight Branches Technique. Why the hell are you giving me another Impure World Reincarnation?

When he saw the coffin that had been summoned, with the character "Four" written on it, Uchiha Yi burst out laughing.

The Fourth?

Are you fucking kidding me?

Uchiha Yi said nothing. He simply wanted to see whether this stubborn Orochimaru could really snatch the Fourth Hokage's soul back from the Grim Reaper.

The result...

There was no result at all.

The coffin sat there intact for ages without the slightest movement.

Uchiha Yi could practically see crows cawing as they flew across the sky above him.

The scene could not have been more awkward. "Orochimaru, when it comes to arrogance and ignorance, I, Uchiha Yi, acknowledge you as the strongest."

Uchiha Yi had become completely addicted to talking like that. "You know a little about the Dead Demon Consuming Seal now, right? Don't you know that after using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, the caster's soul is swallowed by the Grim Reaper and can never find peace?"