Princess Tsunade

All the ninja were gathered outside the dust cloud, weapons in hand, watching the smoke vigilantly. Many, even in their pajamas, still had their ninja insignia firmly tied to their arms, necks, or waists.

This was considered basic common sense for a ninja.

Even rogue ninja had their own insignia; it was the last thing representing their identity.

But Oguri Hayashi wasn't that kind of person. He lacked the awareness, dignity, or pride of a ninja.

All he had was the desire to survive.

More and more ninja arrived. Golden Flash Minato appeared, and the ninja couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement; the enemy couldn't escape now.

The Sannin arrived, and the ninja cheered. They knew the next Hokage would be chosen from among the three of them.

The Third Hokage arrived, and everyone became solemn, quietly waiting for the Third Hokage to make a decision.

"What's the situation? Who is the enemy? How many are there?" The Third Hokage, wearing light chakra armor and wielding the Monkey King Staff, asked Orochimaru beside him.

"Hiss, the enemy is only one. He took an Explosive Tag, and his condition is unknown. Everyone is waiting for the dust to settle. There's a chakra reaction inside; I told them not to move," Orochimaru said, his tongue flicking out slightly, making him sound a bit airy, as if he were sensing the chakra in the air with his tongue.

"Well done." The Third Hokage nodded, his gaze turning towards the dust cloud. At this moment, the dust from the collapsed building was slowly clearing, gradually revealing the figure within.

A commotion arose among the ninja.

The Third Hokage and the Sannin narrowed their eyes simultaneously.

They clearly recognized the small, thin blue figure emerging from the dust.

Although Oguri Hayashi believed his chakra levels weren't high, becoming a Chunin at thirteen was not due to talent, but to his hard work and unique understanding of ninjutsu.

However, in the eyes of others, becoming a Chunin at thirteen, a High Ninja by twenty, and potentially Kage-level by thirty made him an undeniable rising star of Konoha.

He and Kakashi were both Konoha's most anticipated rising stars.

But these words were never spoken to him by the higher-ups, because for a Chunin, he could only prove his worth by surviving the Shinobi World War.

Yet, he had indeed been noted by Konoha's higher-ups.

Upon seeing him, the Ninjutsu Professor, Hiruzen Sarutobi, immediately recalled his profile.

Oguri Hayashi, Konoha orphan, parents killed in battle as Genin, thirteen years old, Chunin, Taijutsu specialist, also proficient in ninjutsu. Completed 65 C-rank missions, 15 B-rank missions, and 2 A-rank missions. It was precisely his excellent performance in those two A-rank missions that caught the attention of Konoha's higher-ups. During the Second Shinobi World War, he was assigned under Tsunade's command. Later, he defected for unknown reasons, fleeing after killing enemies, thus he was not considered an enemy village spy.

Yes, this was the intelligence war of the ninja, perfectly embodied at this moment. Hiruzen Sarutobi's powerful memory and his formidable intelligence capabilities as the Third Hokage instantly recalled all of Oguri Hayashi's information.

And Oguri Hayashi's defection had occurred two months ago.

Meaning, the time it took for him to undergo such a complete transformation was within these past two months?

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression turned serious. This didn't look like the slightly low chakra reserves from the intelligence reports.

"Lord Hokage, Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, Lord Orochimaru, long time no see." Oguri Hayashi, glowing with a faint blue light, waved gently, sweeping away the last of the dust. He stood there, the Book of Ninja, almost as tall as he was, on his back, his eyes fixed on the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as he spoke.

He didn't know if Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered him, but that didn't stop him from greeting them.

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

He had been her subordinate. During the Second Shinobi World War, it was natural for them to have a rapport and interactions.

As Tsunade's former capable subordinate, his betrayal meant she bore a significant portion of the responsibility.

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

It could be said that any ninja who died here because of him would be Tsunade's fault.

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

Although his chakra wasn't abundant, it was visible to the naked eye, and more importantly, it was incredibly dense. He looked like a living embodiment of Lightning Release.

It made people unable to help but feel surprised and uncertain.

The experienced Third Hokage saw him and thought of the Third Raikage's Lightning Release, but it wasn't quite the same.

Compared to the Third Raikage's crackling, wasteful use of chakra, his blue chakra was more restrained and stable.

However, the Third Hokage, a doctor of ninjutsu, knew that this restrained chakra was actually more dangerous than the released type.

To use a simple example, during the Chunin Exams between Naruto and Sasuke, they clashed on the hospital rooftop. The seemingly fierce Chidori only damaged the surface of the water tower, while the Rasengan directly punched a large hole in the back of it.

Clearly, this was the result of chakra transformation and its power.

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

It seemed things were getting tricky. He hoped the conversation would go smoothly. The Third Hokage's gaze shifted to Tsunade. He knew that a genius who could transform Lightning Release to this extent would likely not be subdued today without casualties.

Furthermore, the enemy's defense seemed extremely strong. If the Explosive Tags had no effect, then at least B-rank ninjutsu or higher would be needed to inflict damage.

"Don't joke with me, you scoundrel!" Tsunade roared. "Are you betraying Konoha for just that reason?!"

"What do you take Konoha for, you bastard!!" She charged forward like a meteor, her entire body filled with explosive power, instantly appearing before Oguri Hayashi and throwing a punch.

Damn it! Tsunade! Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and the Third Hokage moved simultaneously. As they appeared around Oguri Hayashi in an instant, they saw three of Oguri Hayashi's Shadow Clones block their path.

After using the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu, the main body of Oguri Hayashi stood in place, raising his head. He extended one hand.

Facing Princess Tsunade's heavy punch, he caught her right hand with his own. His body paused slightly, not even taking a step back, remaining completely still. The ground instantly cracked in all directions, like an earthquake, making it impossible for the Konoha ninja to stand.