Princess Tsunade

All the ninjas stood around the outskirts of the dust cloud, weapons in hand, watching its depths warily. Many of them were still in pajamas, but their ninja insignias remained firmly tied around their arms, necks, or waists.

It could be said that this was basic common sense for ninjas.

Even rogue ninjas had their own insignias. They were the last things representing their identities.

But Oguri Hayashi was not that kind of person. He had no ninja's resolve, dignity, or pride.

All he had was the desire to survive.

More and more ninjas arrived. Golden Flash Minato had come, and the ninjas could not help but feel invigorated. Their opponent would not be able to escape.

The Three Sannin had arrived, and the ninjas burst into cheers. They knew the next Hokage would certainly be chosen from among the three of them.

The Third Hokage had arrived. Everyone became solemn and quietly waited for him to make a decision.

"How is the situation? Who is the enemy? How many are there?" The Third Hokage wore light Chakra armor and held the Monkey King Staff as he asked Orochimaru beside him.

"His... There is only one enemy. He was hit by an Explosive Tag, and it is unknown whether he is alive or dead. Everyone is waiting for the dust to clear. There is a Chakra reaction inside, so I told them not to move." As Orochimaru spoke, his tongue flicked out slightly. He looked as though he was leaking air, but also as if he were sensing the Chakra in the air with his tongue.

"Good." The Third Hokage nodded and turned his gaze toward the dust cloud. By then, the dust from the collapsed houses had gradually dispersed, revealing the figure within to everyone.

A commotion rose among the ninjas.

The Third Hokage and the Three Sannin narrowed their eyes at the same time.

They clearly recognized the small blue figure walking out of the dust.

Although Oguri Hayashi believed his Chakra reserves were not high, and that becoming a Chunin at thirteen had absolutely not been due to talent, but rather his hard work and unique understanding of Ninjutsu—

In the eyes of others, becoming a Chunin at thirteen meant he could become a Jonin at twenty, and a Kage-level ninja by thirty. He was, without question, one of Konoha's rising stars.

He and Kakashi were both Konoha's most promising stars of the next generation.

However, the higher-ups had never told him these things. For a Chunin, only surviving a Shinobi World War could prove his worth.

Yet he had already caught the attention of Konoha's upper ranks.

The moment he saw him, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Professor of Ninjutsu, immediately recalled his file.

Oguri Hayashi, Konoha orphan. His Genin parents died in battle. Thirteen years old, Chunin, a taijutsu-focused ninja who also studied Ninjutsu. Completed sixty-five C-rank missions, fifteen B-rank missions, and two A-rank missions. His outstanding performance in those two A-rank missions was what brought him to the attention of Konoha's upper ranks. During the Second Shinobi World War, he was assigned under Tsunade. Later, he defected for unknown reasons. He defected after killing enemies, so he was not believed to be a spy from an enemy village.

That was right. This was ninja intelligence warfare, displayed in all its fullness at this moment. Hiruzen Sarutobi's powerful memory and the Third Hokage's formidable intelligence network instantly brought up all of Oguri Hayashi's information.

And Oguri Hayashi had defected two months ago.

In other words, the time that had allowed him to undergo such a complete transformation was only those two months?

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression turned grave. This was nothing like the slightly low Chakra reserves described in the intelligence report.

"Lord Hokage, Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, Lord Orochimaru, it has been a long time." Oguri Hayashi, surrounded by a faint blue glow, lightly waved his hand and swept away the last of the dust. He stood there with the Book of Ninja, nearly as tall as he was, strapped to his back, his blazing gaze fixed on Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He did not know whether Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered him, but that did not stop him from greeting him.

"Oguri Hayashi." Tsunade's face darkened. "Why did you do this? Why did you steal the Scroll of Seals?!"

He had once been her subordinate. During the Second Shinobi World War, they had naturally known and worked with each other.

As Tsunade's former capable subordinate, his betrayal meant Tsunade had to bear a large portion of the responsibility.

Moreover, Tsunade had not declared him a rogue ninja after his defection. That was an even greater dereliction of duty.

It could be said that if any ninja here died because of him, it would be Tsunade's responsibility.

"Of course, to become stronger." Oguri Hayashi straightened his body and slowly walked out of the ruins.

Although the Chakra around him was not abundant, it was visible to the naked eye. More importantly, it was extremely condensed. He looked like a human Lightning Release technique.

It made everyone uneasy and doubtful.

The well-traveled Third Hokage thought he resembled the Third Raikage's Lightning Release, yet he was not quite the same.

Compared to the Third Raikage's crackling, Chakra-wasting aura, Oguri Hayashi's blue Chakra was more restrained and stable.

But the Third Hokage, as the Professor of Ninjutsu, knew that this restrained type of Chakra was even more dangerous than Chakra that was released outward.

A simple example was when Naruto and Sasuke clashed atop the hospital rooftop during the Chunin Ninja Exams. The seemingly vicious Chidori had only damaged the surface of the water tank, while the Rasengan had blasted a huge hole through its back.

Clearly, that was the power brought about by changes in Chakra.

It was no longer a matter of quantity, but a change in quality.

Things had gotten troublesome. Hopefully, words could still get through to him. The Third Hokage shifted his gaze to Tsunade. He knew that to subdue a genius who had developed Lightning Release to such an extent, several people would probably have to die today.

Furthermore, his defense seemed extremely strong. If even Explosive Tags had no effect, then at least B-rank Ninjutsu would be needed to harm him.

"Don't joke with me, you bastard!" Tsunade roared. "You would betray Konoha over something like that?!"

"What the hell do you take Konoha for?!" She shot forward like a meteor, exploding into motion and appearing before Oguri Hayashi in an instant as she threw a punch.

This was bad! Tsunade! Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and the Third Hokage moved at the same instant. When they appeared around Oguri Hayashi in a flash, they saw three of his Shadow Clones blocking their paths.

After using the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu, Oguri Hayashi remained where he was. He raised his head and extended one hand.

Facing Princess Tsunade's heavy punch, he caught her right fist with his right hand. His body paused slightly, but he did not retreat even half a step. He stood immovable as the ground instantly split apart in every direction like an earthquake, leaving the Konoha ninjas unable to keep their footing.