Wouldn't Taking You Out Settle Everything?

The Konoha Crush Plan's ultimate target had originally been Sasuke, but the sight of the Third Hokage stirred the murderous intent in Orochimaru's heart.

Although that urge had been suppressed when he met Uchiha Yi earlier, Uchiha Yi hadn't anticipated just how twisted Orochimaru's feelings toward the Third Hokage were.

Orochimaru had once seen the Third Hokage as a father, but over time, that feeling had slowly changed into a desire to kill him.

Orochimaru had never been normal, and his emotions were warped to begin with. Looking at the aging Third Hokage now, he felt that dying on the battlefield would be the best ending for him.

"Orochimaru, you..."

"Teacher Sarutobi, spare me the chatter. As the teacher I once respected and admired most, let me see you off today!" Orochimaru twirled the Kusanagi Sword. "Such a lavish lineup, such a grand feast of death-this is your student's final tribute to you." With that, he thrust the Kusanagi Sword straight at the Third Hokage. But just then...

Boom!

Before the muffled boom had faded, Orochimaru felt both hands go abruptly numb. Then scorching black flames surged up through his fingers.

"This is..." He barely managed half a sentence before excruciating pain seized his nerves. Without hesitation, he abandoned both hands.

Using the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Technique, the now-handless Orochimaru instantly relocated. His intact body swayed, but his eyes remained fixed on the still-burning black flames.

What was that? He had already seen it from Uchiha Itachi-the Mangekyō Sharingan's Amaterasu! Who but Uchiha Yi would bother setting such a dirty trap for him?

The Third Hokage stood nearby, his mind racing. He had no idea what Amaterasu was and found this sudden turn utterly baffling.

"We're leaving!" Orochimaru wasted no words on the Third Hokage. He merely glanced at him, then turned and fled with his men.

Orochimaru's retreat was so abrupt that not only the Third Hokage but the surrounding Konoha ninja were stunned. Some started to give chase, only for the Third Hokage to shout them down before they could take a step.

It wasn't that he was softhearted. Had he truly been ruthless enough, he would have used the Reaper Death Seal earlier.

For one thing, Orochimaru and his group were unnervingly powerful. For another, Konoha was in chaos inside and out, with Sand ninja still wreaking havoc everywhere. He himself was badly injured and exhausted. Pursuing them now would only get people killed.

Meanwhile, in the Land of Snow, the newly crowned Kazahana Koyuki was sitting with Uchiha Yi, who was pondering how to tease this queen.

Suddenly, Uchiha Yi frowned. The Amaterasu he had planted on Orochimaru using Vision Resonance and the Transcription Seal had activated.

He had set specific triggers for it: either Orochimaru made a genuine attempt to kill the Third Hokage, or the Third Hokage used the Reaper Death Seal.

Earlier, Orochimaru had stopped the Third Hokage before he could use it, so nothing had triggered. Now that Orochimaru was about to strike, the seal had detonated.

If the black flames burned the Third Hokage, they would only delay his use of the Reaper Death Seal. But if they burned Orochimaru? That would be interesting. Yi had never intended to let Orochimaru actually kill the Third Hokage. The black flames were simply a safeguard against Orochimaru, and sure enough, the man hadn't behaved himself.

A cold glint flashed through his eyes, and he sprang to his feet.

"What's wrong?" Kazahana Koyuki tilted her head at him, a hint of confusion in her voice.

"There's something I need to take care of."

"Are you... going back?"

"Yes. I'll be right back!"

The moment he finished speaking, Uchiha Yi vanished.

Kazahana Koyuki opened her mouth, then finally just sighed. Looking toward where he had disappeared, she knew this young man was no ordinary person and couldn't stay by her side forever. She just didn't know when he would return after leaving this time. Would he... come back?

Outside Konoha, Orochimaru had already put some distance behind him when his steps suddenly faltered and he stopped dead.

"Lord Orochimaru, what's wrong?" The Sound Four immediately gathered around to protect him.

Orochimaru said nothing. He merely stared in one direction.

All four were bewildered, but a moment later, their eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets-a person had appeared in what had been empty space.

"Well, hello, Orochimaru. Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Uchiha Yi asked with a smile.

"Heh, if it isn't Yi. What brings you here?"

"Nothing much. I'm just feeling a little annoyed." He shook his head, then his gaze suddenly sharpened like a blade.

"Orochimaru, I believe I told you not to touch the Third Hokage. Yet you went back on your word!"

"Damn you! Who do you think you are, talking to Lord Orochimaru like that?"

"Kid, are you asking to die?"

The Sound Four immediately bristled. Uchiha Yi merely gave them a bland glance.

Tsukuyomi: Illusion Realm!

All four froze on the spot as though struck by lightning, their faces twisting into a bewildering mix of terror and confusion.

Orochimaru's expression changed, and he instantly went on guard.

"Hehe, as expected of you, Yi. Your genjutsu is even stronger than Itachi's!"

"Yi, I didn't actually kill the Third Hokage. Surely that doesn't count as breaking our agreement?"

Orochimaru had backed down.

"Heh. If I hadn't prepared a safeguard, the Third Hokage would already be dead."

"Yi, why go this far? That teacher of mine was certainly involved in the Uchiha Clan Massacre!"

"I know that. But right now, I want the Third Hokage alive!"

Provocation? Useless! Damn it!

"Uchiha Yi, do you think I'm afraid of you? If we really fight, you won't come out unscathed either!"

"No. I'm telling you seriously-you should be afraid of me!"

Uchiha Yi's nonchalant manner only stoked Orochimaru's anger further.

But Orochimaru wasted no words. He formed hand seals and shouted, "Summoning Technique!" With a boom, Manda's enormous body slammed onto the ground.

Manda flicked his tongue and cursed, "Orochimaru, you bastard! How dare you summon me whenever you please? Do you have a death wish?"

Orochimaru suppressed his anger. "Enough chatter! I'll find you the fattest sacrifices afterward!"

Manda glanced at Uchiha Yi and sneered. "Fine. So my opponent is this little brat?"

Manda curled his lip. "You've really gone downhill, Orochimaru. You can't even handle a little brat?"

Uchiha Yi frowned. "A brat again?"

His temper flared at once. Lifting his chin, he shot back, "You're just a giant earthworm, yet you really think you're something special?"

With a rush, surging chakra erupted from his body, and a towering giant's silhouette that blotted out the sky instantly appeared-Susanoo!

Orochimaru's pupils contracted sharply. He had never seen this form before. Beneath him, Manda's slit pupils narrowed as he exclaimed, "Susanoo? You're an Uchiha brat?"

Uchiha Yi's voice turned cold. "How many times do I have to tell you? Don't call me a brat."

With a thunderous rumble, an enormous lightning sword formed in Susanoo's right hand-a magnified Lightning Blade sustained by a vast amount of chakra. Only Susanoo could wield something like it.

The lightning sword swept down, trailing a sky full of lightning.

Orochimaru's expression changed drastically. The threat was overwhelming, and he immediately shouted, "Manda!"

"Quit your babbling!" Manda replied. Orochimaru then formed hand seals with both hands. "Wind Release: Super Great Breakthrough!"

It had originally been a C-rank ninjutsu, but with Manda's assistance, its power surged all the way to S-rank. A hurricane swept forward, forcibly halting Susanoo's movement.

Uchiha Yi scoffed. Susanoo paused its lightning sword, then brought it crashing down again.

Orochimaru hurriedly shouted, "Wind Release: Super Great Breakthrough!"

Another combination attack briefly stalled Susanoo. Manda seized the chance to evade the strike, and the lightning sword slammed into the ground, blasting out an enormous crater.

Manda panted. "Orochimaru, this brat is seriously freakish. Keep this up and we're dead!"

Orochimaru gritted his teeth. "I know!"

Then he shouted, "Manda!"

"Understood!" Manda answered.

"Wind Release: Super Tornado Hurricane!"

A gigantic tornado hurtled toward Susanoo.

Uchiha Yi's gaze chilled, and he scoffed. "You think a little combination ninjutsu like that can stop my Susanoo?"

The lightning sword in Susanoo's hand suddenly swelled, its glare too dazzling to look at.

"Break!" As his low shout rang out, the lightning sword cleaved the tornado in two.

Uchiha Yi raised his chin. "Orochimaru, you've had your turn attacking me. Isn't it time I struck back?"

The lightning sword in Susanoo's hand abruptly transformed into an enormous bow, and Amaterasu's black flames instantly condensed into a giant black arrow.

The moment Orochimaru saw the black arrow, he sensed something was wrong. Manda shuddered too, gripped by a fear etched into his very bones.

Orochimaru panicked and hurriedly formed hand seals. "Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon!"

With three heavy thuds, three enormous Rashomon gates rose into place. But the black arrow pierced straight through them, instantly blasting the gates to pieces before punching clean through Manda as well.

"Argh!" Manda screamed. His body instantly turned into white mist as he was summoned back to the Summoning World, his fate unknown.

Orochimaru's face turned sickly as he stared at the giant figure, his snake-like pupils narrowing to slits. This was the first time he had faced anything like this-a completely one-sided beating, with no chance to fight back.

But Orochimaru wasn't finished yet. In fact, when he had seen Amaterasu while trying to kill the Third Hokage, he had already anticipated Uchiha Yi's arrival and prepared a contingency.

With two rushing sounds, two figures charged over-the First and Second Hokage!

Unlike in the original story, their souls were still present, and the workings of the Impure World Reincarnation had not unraveled. Orochimaru had kept the two of them hidden all along, intending to give Uchiha Yi a surprise.

The First gave a low shout. "Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"

The branches had barely wound around Susanoo before the Second Hokage, Tobirama, moved.

"Forbidden Technique: Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags!"

Crackling explosions and bursts of light shook the entire battlefield, blasting the immense Susanoo into fragments.

But Uchiha Yi didn't try to withstand it. He dismissed Susanoo, and his figure blurred out of sight.

A moment later, he had appeared before the Second Hokage. Raising his arm, he unleashed "Lightning Release: Black Flame Lariat."

He had modified this move by mixing Amaterasu's black flames into the original Lariat, making it far more powerful.

With a boom, the Second Hokage's entire body was blasted to pieces.

Before those fragments had finished scattering, Uchiha Yi used Flying Thunder God to flash in front of the First, Hashirama. He unleashed the same Black Flame Lariat again, and the First couldn't withstand it either, his body blasted apart.

Orochimaru watched from a distance, his eyelids twitching. Isn't this Lightning Release a little too vicious? Yi really isn't someone to mess with. But he soon brightened.

He was just about to point out that they could recover from these attacks-bodies created through Impure World Reincarnation weren't that fragile-but before he could finish, Uchiha Yi smiled and used Flying Thunder God to flash right in front of him, extending his right hand toward him.

"Wouldn't taking you out settle everything?"

Orochimaru instantly reacted and tried to retreat, but it was already too late.