Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode

The longsword shot out with lightning speed, piercing the Third Kazekage's head in the blink of an eye.

"Kazekage-sama!"

The other Sand Ninja around them were immediately filled with rage, thinking that the Third Kazekage had been killed by an enemy sneak attack, and they screamed in anger or fear.

Fortunately, it was all a false alarm for them.

After the longsword pierced the Third Kazekage's head, the Third Kazekage's entire body instantly turned into yellow sand.

At the critical moment, the Third Kazekage used a sand clone to evade the sneak attack and successfully escaped.

Seeing that his sneak attack had failed, the gloomy man decisively retreated, but just as he was about to make a move, a sharp spike made of iron sand pierced through his heart.

"Orochimaru, is it? Your ability to conceal your presence is not bad, but you're still too green."

The Third Kazekage stood behind the gloomy man and sneered.

After seeing the black serpent, he kept a portion of his attention on his surroundings, then pretended to focus on the serpent, which successfully fooled the enemy hiding in the shadows.

As soon as he finished speaking, a large number of iron pellets, resembling tree branches, pierced through Orochimaru's body from various parts, and a large amount of blood immediately flowed out from Orochimaru's body.

Magnet Release: Iron Sand Boundary Technique!

Orochimaru died with his eyes wide open, seemingly unable to believe that he had been killed so easily by his enemy.

After the Third Kazekage dealt with Orochimaru, his attention quickly returned to the black snake he had bound with iron sand. He had to rescue Rasa as soon as possible, otherwise Rasa would be devoured by the snake that Orochimaru had summoned.

However, since Luo Sha is currently inside the black serpent, he must be careful. Otherwise, if he accidentally kills the black serpent, it might take Luo Sha with it.

Just as he was considering cutting the black serpent into pieces, Orochimaru's corpse suddenly showed abnormalities.

He turned his head and saw that a new Orochimaru was rapidly emerging from the corpse's open mouth, covered in disgusting slime.

Seeing this, his eyelids twitched, and without hesitation, he once again manipulated the iron sand to attack Orochimaru.

"Go to hell, you disgusting bastard."

The Third Kazekage roared angrily with a look of disgust in his eyes.

As they spoke, a large amount of iron filings turned into bullets and were fired.

Magnet Release: Sand Rain!

Having just resurrected himself using the Orochimaru-style Substitution Technique, Orochimaru didn't hesitate to use his own corpse as a shield, kicking it towards the Third Kazekage. Then, he slithered rapidly across the sand like a snake, displaying astonishing dodging abilities to avoid a large number of iron sand bullets and other Sand Ninja attacks.

The Third Kazekage, not wanting to be touched by Orochimaru's disgusting body, casually created a wall of iron sand, blocking Orochimaru's corpse, which was almost destroyed by iron sand bullets, less than a meter in front of him.

Seeing that Orochimaru was about to escape and was not heading towards the black serpent, the Third Kazekage simply snorted and ignored him, ordering his subordinates to give chase. He then decisively manipulated iron sand to form several sharp iron sand blades, cutting the black serpent into several pieces.

Saving Rasa is a much higher priority than hunting down Orochimaru.

But to his surprise, when he removed the wall of iron sand in front of him, a blond boy and a girl with white eyes suddenly appeared in front of him, on top of Orochimaru's corpse.

The two were Minato Namikaze and Karen Hyuga.

Their attack was premeditated; the moment they appeared, they plunged their sharp swords into the body of the Third Kazekage.

"Pfft~"

Two blood flowers bloomed from the Third Kazekage's body.

Orochimaru used himself and his dead body as cover, successfully creating a near-perfect opportunity for the two to launch a sneak attack.

"hateful!"

Despite the excruciating pain, the Third Kazekage manipulated iron sand to attack the two.

At the critical moment, he avoided the vital points that the enemy wanted to attack.

But the next moment, the two of them suddenly disappeared.

The Third Kazekage's attack struck mid-air.

"Kazekage-sama!"

When the other Sand Ninja saw that the Third Kazekage was injured, their attention quickly returned to him. They all gathered around him to protect him. One of the medical ninjas hurriedly treated the Third Kazekage's wounds and then shouted, "Lord Kazekage has been poisoned!"

"Don't worry about me, this little bit of poison won't kill me. Go and bring Luo Sha back quickly."

Seeing that everyone else had run back and none of them had gone to save Rasa, the Third Kazekage spat out a mouthful of poisonous blood and shouted angrily.

Upon hearing this, the other Sand Ninja seemed to wake from a dream. They left some people to protect the Third Kazekage, while the rest quickly went to rescue Rasa.

Hundreds of meters away, Orochimaru saw this and a hint of regret flashed in his eyes. Then, without hesitation, he turned and left, no longer trying to attack the Third Kazekage or Rasa.

"It seems my skills still need improvement."

Orochimaru sighed inwardly, a deep weariness showing on his face.

It was purely by chance that Orochimaru's team was able to encounter the Third Kazekage and others here tonight.

Not long ago, his Orochimaru team returned from a mysterious time-travel trip.

The reason for this is that they accidentally stumbled into an abandoned ruin, and Minato inadvertently triggered a mysterious sealing spell inside, which transported them back to the past, embarking on a bizarre and thrilling adventure.

When they finally returned to their original timeline after many hardships, Karen Hinata happened to use her Byakugan to discover the Third Kazekage and others, and witnessed the entire process of Rasa panning for gold.

On the other side, two or three kilometers away, in a sand dune, Minato Namikaze lay pale-faced on the sand. He seemed to have suffered great physical and mental damage and was enduring immense pain.

Minato Namikaze was accompanied by Touya Akido and Karen Hyuga.

Seeing Minato Namikaze's state, Akimichi Todo quickly took out a green pill from his person and gave it to Minato, saying, "Minato, quickly eat this."

This is Akimichi's secret medicine, the Spinach Pill, a pill rich in nutrients that can quickly replenish chakra.

After Minato Namikaze ate the spinach pill, his depleted chakra was quickly replenished, his body stopped trembling, and his complexion regained a rosy hue.

"It was really too much of a stretch. You almost killed yourself by forcibly using the Flying Thunder God Technique twice this time."

Hinata Karen used her Byakugan to clearly see the situation inside Namikaze Minato's body, sighed, and a hint of concern flashed in her eyes.

The Flying Thunder God Technique is a ninjutsu that Minato Namikaze obtained from the Scroll of Seals after completing an S-rank mission. Orochimaru recommended this technique to Minato after discovering his exceptional sealing techniques, space-time talent, and reflexes.

Orochimaru's judgment was correct; Minato Namikaze was indeed a perfect fit for the Flying Thunder God Technique. After more than half a year of training, he had successfully mastered this extremely difficult ninjutsu and was now able to use it.

The drawback is that his current physical condition and chakra are severely insufficient, making each use of the skill extremely risky.

Continuous use could pose a significant risk to one's life.

For example, just now, with the help of Hyuga Karen's Byakugan and the Flying Thunder God Technique seal on Orochimaru's corpse, Namikaze Minato performed the Flying Thunder God Technique twice at long distances, almost exhausting his Jonin-level chakra.

"Although it was a bit risky, the gains were great. The two of us almost managed to kill the Third Kazekage directly. Moreover, our swords were coated with Orochimaru-sensei's special snake venom. Even if he doesn't die this time, it will definitely take him some time to recover. This is a good opportunity for Konoha to defeat Sunagakure."

Minato Namikaze, whose body had recovered slightly, said nonchalantly.

Clearly, he was very satisfied with the assassination attempt he had carried out at great personal risk.

Although the assassination attempt failed, it was still a useful one. If Konoha could use this opportunity to defeat Sunagakure, all members of Orochimaru's team would become heroes of Konoha and the greatest contributors to Konoha's victory over Sunagakure.

"That's true. I really hope that guy gets poisoned."

Hinata Karen said thoughtfully, a smile of excitement on her face.

Like Minato Namikaze, she desperately wanted to prove herself in the war between Konoha and Sunagakure. Only in this way could she climb the ranks in Konoha and possibly escape the fate of being controlled and sidelined by her clan after the war.

Suddenly, she seemed to notice something, and immediately turned her head to look in a certain direction.

Seeing this, Minato Namikaze and Touya Akimichi also followed Hyuga Karen's gaze and looked over.

"All three of you, listen up, move out immediately."

Soon, a cold, hoarse voice appeared.

Upon hearing the voice, the three of them were overjoyed. They turned around and saw Orochimaru emerge from the ground unharmed. They then respectfully greeted Orochimaru, saying, "Orochimaru-sensei, you're back."

Orochimaru played a crucial role in their successful assassination of the Third Kazekage.

Orochimaru also orchestrated the assassination attempt on the Third Kazekage. Had the Third Kazekage not avoided a critical moment, they would have successfully killed him, greatly aiding Konoha's victory over Sunagakure.

However, even if they fail to kill the Third Kazekage this time, the fact that the Third Kazekage was poisoned and injured can severely damage the morale of Sunagakure.

Orochimaru looked at the three of them without saying a word, but gave them a cold smile before using the summoning jutsu again to summon a new black serpent.

He had the black serpent swallow him and Minato Namikaze, then burrowed into the ground and quickly retreated, thus avoiding retaliation from Sunagakure, and sped towards Konoha's war camp in the Land of Forest.

Not long after, at a hot spring inn in a small town on the border of the Land of Fire.

Kirito, who was fast asleep in a hot spring inn, suddenly opened his eyes and said in confusion, "That's strange, their soul auras have reappeared."

The "they" he was referring to were the four members of Orochimaru's team.

Some time ago, the soul aura of Orochimaru and others mysteriously disappeared, and now it has mysteriously reappeared, which really puzzles him. He originally thought that Orochimaru had developed a ninjutsu that could hide the soul aura, but it seems that this is not the case now.

"Never mind, I'll ask them when I have time. Anyway, Hua Lian is traveling with them."

Kirito couldn't figure out why, so he decided not to think about it and closed his eyes to rest again.

Because of his Storm Release Kekkei Genkai, his body is undergoing an evolutionary transformation, which has made him somewhat sleepy lately. His body needs to rest well before it can complete its glorious evolution.

……

The fact that the Third Kazekage was assassinated and injured could not be concealed. Even if Sunagakure tried its best to block the news, Konoha would do its best to spread the news in order to damage Sunagakure's morale.

The next day, the news spread rapidly throughout the ninja world. Although the people of Sunagakure were furious about the incident, the fact that the Third Kazekage had been assassinated and injured still made many Sunagakure ninjas on the battlefield uneasy and severely damaged their morale.

Meanwhile, the Konoha ninjas, upon learning that Orochimaru's team had nearly killed the Third Kazekage the previous night, felt a pang of regret but also experienced a surge in morale.

Therefore, at sunset, Konoha launched a fierce attack on Sunagakure.

In a luxurious inn room in Sunagakure Village.

The Fourth Raikage slammed his fist on the table in anger and roared, "Hmph, the Third Kazekage is truly useless; he actually let us down at this crucial moment."

He had been in Sunagakure for several days, and in order to successfully meet the Third Kazekage, he had been patient. Even when the people of Sunagakure were blindly arrogant and pointing fingers and cursing him behind his back, he had endured it all. He had finally gotten the opportunity to meet the Third Kazekage today, but was told that the meeting would be postponed.

The Sand Village offered no reasonable explanation, simply stating that the Third Kazekage was too busy to meet with him.

How could this explanation satisfy the Fourth Raikage? He had been cooped up in this small room for days, and if he kept going like this, he would go crazy if he didn't find a strong opponent to fight or train with.

Their intelligence network in Kumogakure was not useless; they even had spies hidden in Sunagakure, and these spies held considerable positions within the village. They quickly figured out why the Third Kazekage could not meet with them.

"Don't be angry. Even if you are angry now, it won't help. The Third Kazekage is poisoned and injured and is in a coma. The people of Sunagakure will not let us see the Third Kazekage right now, but this may be an opportunity for us."

Seeing that the Fourth Raikage was showing signs of anger and going berserk, Tsuchikage decisively spoke up to stop him.

They, the Hidden Cloud Village, came with a mission to secretly cooperate with the Hidden Sand Village. If the Fourth Raikage couldn't control his emotions and vented his anger in the Hidden Sand Village, thus revealing their whereabouts, it would be disastrous.

"What opportunity? Tell me quickly."