Alarmed the Hokage!

"Yin Seal?"

Orochimaru leaned back in his chair. He froze for half a second, then suddenly burst into laughter.

His laughter echoed through the empty top floor of the command tower.

Qian Ye felt a chill run down his spine and shrank back slightly.

"Teacher, what are you laughing at? Is this technique no good?"

Orochimaru stopped laughing and braced both hands on the desk, his golden slit pupils filled with approval.

"No. Quite the opposite."

"Qian Ye, I take back what I said. Not only are you not greedy, you are frighteningly clear-headed."

Orochimaru stood and walked around the desk.

"The Yin Seal is a secret technique passed down by the Uzumaki Clan, later improved by Tsunade."

"This technique has no offensive power whatsoever. Its sole purpose is to store excess chakra in the forehead bit by bit during normal times, forming an enormous chakra reservoir."

"When battle calls for it, releasing the seal grants an instant, terrifying amount of chakra."

Orochimaru stopped in front of Qian Ye and reached out to pat his shoulder.

"Your body is strong enough to withstand the impact of massive chakra. What you lack is simply a container."

"The Yin Seal is practically tailor-made god-tier equipment for you."

Qian Ye was overjoyed.

That was exactly what he had planned!

Every day, Zhao Hai kept harvesting from Garp in the Pirate World, providing an endless supply of Sea King meat.

As long as he accepted that meat and ate it, it could be converted into enormous amounts of vitality and chakra.

He could store all that chakra in the Yin Seal during normal times.

Then, when it was time to fight, he could open the floodgates.

Who would dare say he lacked chakra then?

"Then, Teacher, the scroll..." Qian Ye rubbed his hands together, his face full of anticipation.

Orochimaru shook his head.

"The original Yin Seal is in the Book of Seals in Konohagakure."

The smile on Qian Ye's face froze.

"So you've just been dangling a carrot in front of me?"

Orochimaru ignored Qian Ye's complaint and turned to walk back to the massive sand table.

"The front lines aren't safe right now."

"Pakura is Sunagakure's trump card, as well as their hero. Chiyo and Rasa definitely won't just sit by and watch her fall into our hands."

Orochimaru picked up the small red flag representing Pakura and planted it directly on the spot representing Konohagakure on the sand table.

"If she stays here, she'll be a bomb that could explode at any moment. Once Sunagakure catches its breath, it will fight to the death to take her back."

"So I've decided that first thing tomorrow morning, an elite squad will escort Pakura back to Konohagakure."

Orochimaru turned to look at Qian Ye.

"You'll return with the escort team."

Qian Ye was stunned for a moment.

"Me? Back to the village?"

"Yes." Orochimaru nodded. "You earned the greatest merit this time, and you captured the enemy commander. Those are genuine war achievements. Returning to the village to report is the rule."

"Besides, don't you want the Yin Seal?"

"Once you safely hand Pakura over to ANBU, I'll naturally write to the old man and have him grant you access to the Yin Seal scroll."

Qian Ye's eyes lit up.

This deal was worth it!

Not only could he get away from the meat grinder that was the front line, he could also return to the village and obtain an S-rank ninjutsu without any trouble.

"Mission guaranteed!" Qian Ye straightened up and answered without hesitation.

Two days later.

Konohagakure, Hokage Building.

Smoke filled the office.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat behind his broad desk with a pipe in hand, his brows twisted into a tight knot.

The desk was piled high with battle reports from the front lines.

Not one of them carried good news.

The defense line at Kikyo Pass was under immense pressure, while Sunagakure attacked like rabid dogs.

Things within the village were far from peaceful as well.

The fallout from Sakumo Hatake's suicide was still fermenting, and the conflict between civilian ninja and clan ninja grew sharper by the day.

Konohagakure was truly plagued by troubles within and without.

"Haah..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi let out a long sigh and tapped the ash from his pipe.

"I wonder how much longer Orochimaru can hold on over there."

Just then, someone knocked on the office door.

An ANBU wearing an animal mask pushed the door open and entered, dropping to one knee.

"Lord Hokage, urgent dispatch from the Kikyo Pass front line!"

The ANBU held out a scroll tightly bound with red cord in both hands.

A red scroll.

The highest level of emergency battle report!

Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart skipped a beat, and the pipe in his hand nearly fell onto the desk.

It was over.

Had the front line collapsed?

Had Orochimaru failed to hold it?

He snatched up the scroll, his fingers even trembling slightly.

Undoing the red cord and opening the scroll, Hiruzen Sarutobi prepared himself for the worst.

His gaze fell on the first line.

[Sunagakure launched its full assault ahead of schedule. Its assault force was completely annihilated by our side.]

Hiruzen Sarutobi froze.

Completely annihilated?

He hurriedly read on.

[Sunagakure's ace Scorch Release user, Pakura, suffered chakra backlash and has been captured alive by our side.]

[The enemy formation fell into disarray. Rasa led the remaining forces back to the outskirts of Kikyo Pass and is unable to resume battle in the near future.]

Bang!

Hiruzen Sarutobi slapped the desk, suddenly rising to his feet.

"Good!"

The old man's face flushed with excitement, and even his beard trembled.

Pakura had been captured!

This was an event that could change the entire course of the war!

Not only had Sunagakure lost a powerful commander, its morale would plummet as well.

Most importantly, Konohagakure now possessed an extremely important bargaining chip.

With Pakura in its hands, Sunagakure would be forced to hold back. The pressure on Kikyo Pass could instantly be reduced by more than half.

"Orochimaru did beautifully!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi laughed heartily, and the gloom weighing on his heart these past few days was swept away.

He sat back down and continued reading the scroll.

He wanted to see exactly how Orochimaru had captured Pakura alive despite being at a disadvantage in numbers.

His eyes swept past the casualty report in the middle of the scroll and landed directly on the section labeled "Special Commendation."

[Greatest contribution in this battle: Qian Ye.]

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned.

Qian Ye?

Why did that name sound so unfamiliar? Which clan's elite Jonin was he?

He followed the name down to read the record of achievements.

[Identity: civilian Genin, twelve years old.]

[Achievements: When the right-wing defense line collapsed, he held the rear alone and killed a total of twenty-three Sunagakure Chunin and Genin.]

Hiruzen Sarutobi rubbed his eyes.

Twelve years old?

A civilian Genin?

He killed a whole group of Sunagakure ninja?

Was this battle report written incorrectly?

Suppressing his shock, he continued reading.

[Used himself as bait to lure the berserk Pakura into an ambush zone.]

[Note: This Genin's precise chakra control far exceeds that of ordinary people, and he possesses exceptional tactical aptitude. I have accepted him as my personal disciple. — Orochimaru]

The office fell deathly silent.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand holding the scroll stopped in midair.

He knew Orochimaru too well.

His disciple had always been arrogant, looking down even on the geniuses of the major clans.

Yet now, he had plainly written in a battle report that he had accepted a civilian Genin as his personal disciple!

And this boy had killed more than twenty Sunagakure ninja alone, survived against berserk Pakura, and had even suppressed Scorch Release in return.

Was that really something a twelve-year-old brat who had just graduated could do?

"ANBU!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly raised his head and ordered the ANBU standing by the door.

"Investigate!"

"Yes!" The ANBU vanished from the spot in a flash.

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair and relit his pipe.

He took two puffs.

The smile on the old man's face simply would not fade.