The Cursed Seal of Heaven Orochimaru had left behind should have been eating away at his body furiously by now. That kind of excruciating pain was more than most people could bear.
Yet the kid had fought on until now without making a sound. That willpower truly lived up to his Uchiha name.
The two of them, along with Naruto, dragged their exhausted bodies to Konoha Hospital.
When they entered the ward, they found everyone doing fairly well. Shikamaru, Kiba, and even Rock Lee, who had pushed his body past its limits, had suffered only superficial injuries.
Ino, Hinata, Shino, and the others were merely a little dirt-streaked and disheveled, with nothing seriously wrong.
After exchanging a few words and confirming that everyone was still alive and kicking, Gekkō Raito felt relieved.
He had barely stepped out of the ward when he came face-to-face with an old man wearing a gloomy expression-Shimura Danzō.
The two passed each other without a word, an eerie, oppressive atmosphere hanging in the air.
A sinister glint flashed through Danzo's single eye. He cast Gekkō Raito a sidelong glance, then headed straight for the intensive care room at the end of the corridor.
Lying in that room was the unconscious Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Hiruzen's face was as yellow as gold paper, and his breathing was so faint it seemed it might stop at any moment.
"What's his condition, exactly?"
Danzo coldly questioned the trusted subordinate stationed at the door.
"Lord Danzo, Lord Hokage's external wounds have been stitched up, and his vital signs have barely stabilized."
His subordinate lowered his voice as he reported, "But the special neurotoxin Orochimaru made is still in his body. Our current medical techniques can't remove it. We can only keep him alive with medication. He can't wake up."