Konohagakure.

Zenkichi was in the middle of a conversation with Tsunade when his expression suddenly shifted. A playful smile crept onto his face.

"What's with that look?" Tsunade asked, eyeing him curiously. She could tell something was off.

"Want to see an old teammate again?" Zenkichi said casually, his smile widening.

"Someone who's both your former comrade… and your master's killer."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "You're talking about Orochimaru?"

Zenkichi nodded. "He's returned to the village."

Tsunade's expression immediately darkened, her tone turning cold. "He came back to Konohagakure? Why?"

"I sensed him," Zenkichi said calmly. "My perception abilities picked him up. He's in the outskirts — at the Uzumaki Clan's Namien Hall."

Tsunade stiffened. She knew what was kept there.

Zenkichi turned his gaze out the Hokage Office window, looking toward the hall where masks of the Uzumaki Clan were stored — among them, the Mask of the Reaper. He knew Orochimaru had come to undo the seal binding his arms.

"That bastard," Tsunade muttered. "What's he planning this time? Is he still after Konoha's destruction?"

Without waiting for an answer, she stood and ordered her ANBU to gather the village's elite: Jiraiya, Kakashi, Might Guy, and the others.

---

Uzumaki Clan's Namien Hall.

Orochimaru donned the Mask of the Reaper, summoning the shadow of the Shinigami itself.

In a grotesque ritual, he cut open his own stomach, offering himself as a sacrifice. From within the Reaper's belly, he released his sealed soul.

As the ritual ended, Orochimaru shed his outer skin, revealing his true form — the White Phosphorus Orochi. Slithering forward, he lunged toward a nearby White Zetsu.

Orochimaru had long since uncovered White Zetsu's secret, and he coveted that body — a vessel perfect for his pursuit of immortality. Still, he had delayed claiming it, not because he couldn't, but because he had greater priorities. The Sharingan was a rarer prize. Zetsu could be taken anytime — the Uchiha, not so much.

Now, he intended to take what was his.

---

"Orochimaru!"

Jiraiya's voice rang out as he arrived on the scene, witnessing White Zetsu's body mid-transformation.

"Well, if it isn't Jiraiya," Orochimaru replied smoothly. "What a nostalgic reunion."

Tsunade arrived behind Jiraiya, her expression hardened. "Why are you here, Orochimaru?"

"As Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure, I won't allow you to endanger the village again."

Orochimaru held up his hands in mock surrender. "No need to worry. I don't have hostile intentions… not this time."

"I'll disappear if that's what you want. Frankly, I didn't come back here willingly."

His calm, measured tone only fueled Tsunade's distrust.

"Are you the Orochimaru of this world?" Zenkichi asked as he stepped forward, his tone unreadable. "Then why come here? Why not complete your ritual elsewhere?"

The second Orochimaru — the newly formed one — responded cautiously, "I am indeed the Orochimaru of this world. And you… you must be Arakawa Zenkichi, from another world."

"I've heard the rumors. They say you unified an entire shinobi world. Is that true?"

"If you're so powerful, why not bring peace here too?"

Zenkichi withdrew the Mirrored Flowers and Water Moon from within his cloak, shaking his head. "Not your concern. Just step aside."

Orochimaru's lips curled into a snake-like smile. His tongue flicked out as he whispered, "I've heard about your strength. I've always been curious to see it up close."

Without warning, over a dozen venomous snakes erupted from Orochimaru's body, lunging toward Zenkichi with their fangs bared.

"Bakudō #81 — Dankū."

A shimmering barrier instantly appeared before Zenkichi, halting the serpents mid-air. They crashed against the wall and fell, dazed and confused.

In the blink of an eye, Zenkichi vanished — reappearing behind Orochimaru.

A flash of steel.

He drove his blade through Orochimaru's torso without hesitation.

"Ugh…"

Orochimaru staggered, eyes wide with shock. His modified body and strange substitution techniques usually protected him — but this pain was different.

This strike bypassed all his safeguards. The wound tore at his very soul.

"Move again," Zenkichi warned coolly, "and I'll sever your soul completely."

He turned to Tsunade, gesturing toward the immobilized Orochimaru. "Consider this a gift."

"Konoha's traitor. The man who killed the Third Hokage. Your former teammate."

"Seems fitting, doesn't it?"

Tsunade remained silent for a long moment, then gave a complicated nod. She signaled her ANBU to suppress Orochimaru's chakra and take him into custody.

---

Meanwhile — Kumogakure.

The battle had reached its conclusion.

Hidan's immortality and curse technique were terrifying on paper. But in large-scale combat, they were laughably inefficient.

He was torn apart — literally — by enemy forces. Though still technically alive, his body was shredded into so many pieces that not even the most skilled puzzle master could put him back together. Much of his body had been turned to dust.

Sasori fared even worse. His most prized puppets were shattered, and his core — the very essence of his being — was destroyed.

Their over-specialized abilities had made them easy to counter. They had been out-planned and out-fought.

Unlike Sunagakure, which had been caught off-guard, Kumogakure was prepared. There were no traitors within its ranks, and they had long since studied Sasori's abilities and crafted counter-strategies.

Even his Third Kazekage human puppet couldn't save him.

Kakuzu, with his years of experience and overwhelming arsenal, managed to survive. His wealth of jutsu and adaptability saw him through.

Kisame's Water Release and Deidara's explosives were at a disadvantage against Kumogakure's Lightning Release, but both managed to retreat with minimal losses thanks to their instincts and teamwork.

Still, the cost to Kumogakure was high. The battle had pushed both sides to their limits.

---

Elsewhere on the battlefield, the Fourth Raikage and his team faced the true terror — the Six Paths of Pain.

Despite his strength, the Raikage was defeated. The Naraka Path absorbed the chakra of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, rendering their jinchūriki too weak to continue.

The Raikage, frustrated and unwilling to accept defeat, could only grit his teeth.

But the outcome was inevitable.

---

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