Orochimaru braced one hand against the ground and clutched his head with the other, his disheveled hair making him look hideous and terrifying.
"Uchiha Itachi, I'll slaughter you sooner or later!"
With that, Orochimaru endured the pain in his soul and brought the fingers of his right hand together: Reverse Summoning Technique!
Poof!
Just like that, Orochimaru vanished before everyone's eyes.
The others had not known Orochimaru also possessed the Reverse Summoning Technique, so they had no time to stop him.
The Third Hokage and Danzo, however, did not want Orochimaru to die, so they let him use his ninjutsu.
"He got away?"
Xiaren cried out, "He could still escape when he was practically dead? Wait, how did he escape?"
"The Reverse Summoning Technique!"
Fugaku explained, "It's a technique summoning beasts use to summon people. No summoning beasts outside the Three Great Sage Lands can use it. It seems Orochimaru came well prepared.
"He just didn't have any intelligence on Itachi, which was why he nearly died in Konoha."
The Third Hokage sighed. "Hiashi, Orochimaru was clearly after the Byakugan. Don't let Hinata or Neji leave the village for a while. It's too dangerous.
"Fugaku, the same goes for Itachi. He shouldn't leave the village on missions for now. Orochimaru was ill-prepared this time, but that might not be the case next time."
"Yes!"
"Danzo, I'll leave Orochimaru to Root. Don't let him come back to cause trouble in Konoha. Kill him if you get the chance."
"All right!"
Everyone present understood what the Third Hokage was thinking. They simply refrained from objecting out of respect for his position and because it did not affect their interests.
But Fugaku and Hiashi were different. Orochimaru clearly wanted to kill Itachi and seize the Byakugan. How could they let him keep living