The report detailed the confrontation between Kuzan and Senju Hashirama.
While the specifics only covered the events leading up to Kuzan's activation of Ice Age, the aftermath—captured from afar—described a vast frozen landscape and its dramatic impact on the shinobi world's climate.
After reading it, Sakazuki felt a weight settle in his chest.
Not because of what was shown—
But because of what wasn't.
He understood now, with grim clarity—
Kuzan wasn't even fighting at full strength yet.
At the very least, that technique capable of 'freezing space and time' still hadn't been used.
"Does training in natural energy really lead to such a significant power boost?"
Sakazuki was starting to feel genuinely unsettled.
Previously, he had only made a rough judgment based on the aura Kuzan had casually released—
Sensing that Kuzan's strength had grown considerably, perhaps even rivaling his own.
But now, after witnessing the actual destructive power of Kuzan's attack, he had a far more direct understanding.
Though he was reluctant to admit it, it was clear that Kuzan's Ice-Ice Fruit had now surpassed his own Lava-Lava Fruit in raw effectiveness.
Which is why Sakazuki was eager to begin his own training with natural energy.
Otherwise, the gap between them would only grow wider.
Sakazuki opened a cabinet and pulled out a document titled:
"Report No. 0006: Introduction and Analysis of 'Senjutsu' in the Shinobi World."
This had been sent to him recently from the World Government Headquarters back in Starfish World.
Though officially authored by the Science Division—
Sakazuki suspected this report had come directly from Lord Imu.
It first explained what 'Sage Mode' and 'Senjutsu Chakra' were—
Then introduced the training methods used in Mount Myōboku.
However, the report also mentioned the risks of using this method.
If one lost control—
The body would first begin transforming into a toad, eventually turning completely to stone.
In summary, the report's message to Sakazuki was:
I know you're eager to begin natural energy training—but hold on. We've found a method you can try.
"But how do I even locate these so-called 'Sage Regions of the Shinobi World'?"
Sakazuki muttered to himself.
Still, he had caught a glimpse of hope—
And the weight pressing on his heart began to lift.
As the battle between Kuzan and Senju Hashirama raged on—
The temperature across the Land of Fire began to plummet rapidly.
At this moment, however, Aramaki was in high spirits.
He had taken the form of a thick, elongated tree branch and was tunneling underground.
"Huh?"
He didn't know how long he had been tunneling in the darkness when he suddenly detected several auras far stronger than any wild beast, rapidly closing in on his location at speeds surpassing even those of birds.
He didn't need to guess—they were shinobi.
"Did they already find me?"
Aramaki was quite surprised.
He hadn't expected to infiltrate Konohagakure undetected from the start.
But being discovered this early, and from this distance, was still startling.
...
"Hokage-sama, Jōnin Aburame Chōkan's kikaichū have detected something underground, approaching Konoha at high speed from the northwest,"
An ANBU agent appeared inside the Hokage's office and reported to Orochimaru, who was seated at the head of the room. "However, the exact nature of the target is unclear. The kikaichū indicate it isn't a living being."
Seated on a sofa nearby—Senju Tobirama, Jiraiya, Nara Shikaku, and Uchiha Fugaku—naturally overheard the report.
"That makes sense. It's probably that Aramaki again. He doesn't have any chakra in his body, and he can transform into wood—so to the kikaichū, he wouldn't register as a living organism,"
Senju Tobirama stood and said in a grave tone.
He had previously speculated that Akainu's challenge to Hashirama was actually a diversion—meant to tie down the First Hokage while another force attacked Konohagakure.
It was on that basis that he had recommended to Orochimaru a layered detection system using small squads made up of shinobi from the Hyūga, Aburame, Inuzuka, and Uchiha clans.
Each of these squads would form the core of the defense, supplemented by others, to establish multi-layered detection lines along the western border facing the Land of Wind.
With this system in place, unless someone came flying in from above, it was almost impossible for Konoha not to detect them in advance.
"Since that's the case, I'll proceed according to the original plan—I'll personally lead ten jōnin, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, and the thirty elite jōnin they brought from Kirigakure to intercept the enemy!"
"Very well, we're counting on you, Second Hokage-sama."
Orochimaru stood up with a polite smile as he watched Senju Tobirama leave the office.
He had initially thought Tobirama might be displeased about his decision to strip Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu of all their official duties and place them under house arrest. But surprisingly, after hearing the whole story, Tobirama had harshly berated them instead.
Though the exchange had been brief—
Even Senju Tobirama could see that Orochimaru was more suitable than Jiraiya to serve as Hokage.
With his level of political acumen, how could he not have seen through Homura and Koharu's petty self-serving motives?
"Sigh… Going into a battle we're bound to lose—it's hard to get motivated,"
Jiraiya slumped back on the sofa with a helpless tone.
According to the plan they had settled on,
The elite shinobi of Konoha were to remain behind and protect the village.
After all, no one could predict how many waves of attackers the World Government might send.
"I still don't understand why that Akainu from Rōran refuses to accept our peace talks,"
Now fully recovered from his injuries, Yamanaka Inoichi echoed in confusion.
Everyone knew that 'peace talks' was just a nicer term for surrender.
"Actually, I have a theory,"
Nara Shikaku said, propping his chin on the back of his hand. "What if… that General Akainu doesn't want us to surrender?"
"Hm?"
Jiraiya, Uchiha Fugaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and the others raised their eyebrows in unison.
"In a war, there's a big difference between conquering the enemy stronghold through force and occupying it after they surrender—even if the outcome looks the same, the credit earned is vastly different."
Orochimaru picked up the thread of Shikaku's reasoning and elaborated.
"I see…"
Jiraiya finally understood, but then snapped angrily, "That's disgusting! Sacrificing so many lives just to satisfy personal ambition!"
"No."
Orochimaru shook his head, his expression flat.
"The generals and soldiers under his command might actually support him in doing just that."
"A force that invades and conquers other worlds must be filled with war-hungry individuals."
Still seated on the sofa with arms crossed, Uchiha Fugaku frowned.
"Then why don't we just refuse to resist and let them in? We've already agreed to surrender anyway."
"Ahem. There's still a difference between peace talks and outright surrender," Yamanaka Inoichi replied to Fugaku. "What we want is to accept their rule after negotiating terms."
"Not to be overrun during wartime. That would be far too risky—no one knows what kind of atrocities their troops might commit in the village."
There truly was a fundamental difference between political submission and military suppression.
"But if that General Akainu refuses to accept negotiations, and we clearly can't defeat them—what's the point of continuing this fight?"
Uchiha Fugaku became increasingly convinced he was right.
Given the situation, if they wanted to minimize casualties and bring the conflict to a quick end under new rule—
Non-resistance was the only option.
Though he couldn't guarantee there wouldn't be atrocities committed after Konoha's fall—
Such as enemy soldiers slaughtering civilians—
He didn't believe they would go so far as to persecute the major shinobi clans.
After all, they'd all be on the same side soon enough. Chances were high they'd even participate in future invasions of other worlds together.
And with their powerful kekkei genkai abilities—
They would surely be valued far more than the average civilian.
As for the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans, who only possessed secret techniques—well, their fate would be less certain.
At that moment—
Aramaki had already emerged at the surface.
And he now understood how he'd been detected.
Because wave after wave of black mist was swarming toward him.
Kikaichū!
Dense, countless swarms of kikaichū!
At first, Aramaki didn't think much of it. These were just bugs he could crush with a casual punch.
But as time went on, the swarm only grew larger.
And they were descending from the sky in organized waves—
Giving him no chance to wipe them all out in one go.
It was getting on his nerves.
So he immediately used his Mori-Mori no Mi powers to summon a horde of insectivorous supernatural plants.
The results were decent.
But it still delayed his pace.
That's when Aramaki realized—
He couldn't let his movements be dictated by the enemy.
[Boom!]
Without another thought for the bugs or the plants, he slammed his foot into the ground.
His entire body shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring—black lightning streaking across the landscape.
All that remained at the original spot was a field of cracked earth and a white shockwave that blew away swaths of kikaichū.
Then came a chain of sonic booms that echoed across the plains.
"Rawawawa~!"
"A bunch of stinking bugs—try and catch me! Come on, let's see if you can!"
Aramaki threw his head back in wild laughter, surfing layers of billowing shockwaves.
As he charged ahead, he smashed through every cluster of kikaichū in his path.
He was like a sharpened blade cutting straight through a wall of black cloud.
The Hyūga shinobi stationed farther ahead could only gape in disbelief.
The difference between their understanding of a taijutsu user and this Aramaki was simply staggering.
"What do we do? Do we engage him?"
A Chūnin of the Inuzuka clan, sitting atop his equally nervous ninken, looked to the Hyūga Jōnin leading their squad.
"No. Our mission doesn't include interception—and even if it did, we couldn't stop him. Fall back and relay his position!"
His answer prompted a collective sigh of relief.
Even the typically proud Uchiha present offered no objection.
And it wasn't just this squad—most of the nearby teams reacted the same way.
They watched Aramaki's figure continue his mad dash toward Konoha.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!!!"
But suddenly—
From up ahead, Aramaki saw an enormous wall of surging water crashing toward him like a massive tsunami, engulfing everything in its path.
"Tch, that guy again?"
"Why doesn't he ever learn? I've told him—no matter how much water he brings, it's useless!"
Aramaki immediately halted, slamming both palms into the ground before him.
[Rumble—]
In an instant, towering Yarukiman Mangrove trees burst from the earth.
At the same time, layers upon layers of bubbles secreted from their trunks.
In the next moment—
The cataclysmic tsunami collided head-on with the aligned row of Yarukiman mangroves.
A deafening roar split the heavens as the crashing waves surged skyward—
But they ultimately failed to break through the protective bubbles.
However, Tobirama's aim had never been to destroy Aramaki directly.
This wave was meant to manipulate the battlefield terrain to their advantage.
That's why he had coordinated the jutsu alongside the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and forty-seven elite jōnin skilled in Water Release.
And their offensive was far from over.
"Advance together!"
Tobirama gripped the Raijin Sword.
"Understood!"
Raiga, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, responded promptly and followed as a swift afterimage.
In a flash, Tobirama's Raijin Sword and Raiga's dual Thunder Swords: Kiba plunged into the water.
Golden arcs of lightning surged along the currents toward the mangrove barrier.
Under the barrage of water-conducted lightning strikes,
The bubbles and Yarukiman mangroves alike were violently shattered and torn apart.
At the same time—
Biwa Jūzō, Suikazan Fuguki, Kushimaru, Jinpachi, Ameyuri Ringo, and others surged past Tobirama and Raiga.
Behind them came a spread formation of Kirigakure jōnin.
Meanwhile, the ten Konoha jōnin remained behind,
Forming a defensive perimeter around Tobirama and Raiga.
"Cover me!"
Biwa Jūzō, wielding the massive Executioner's Blade, charged at the front.
"You bastard from another world—I'll take your damn head!!"
With a powerful leap off the water's surface, Biwa Jūzō launched himself high into the air.
Gripping the blade with both hands,
He infused it with surging chakra, wrapping the oversized edge in raw power.
"Huh?"
Standing atop a mangrove branch, Aramaki watched the descending attack with a mocking grin.
The next instant—
His right fist let out a low hum as it turned pitch black.
And he swung.
To everyone's shock, the Executioner's Blade was shattered on impact, effortlessly torn apart.
The broken chunk of the blade spun dozens of times midair before plunging into the depths below.
In that very moment—
Aramaki's fist morphed into a massive hand.
And just as Biwa Jūzō—blood spurting from his mouth—was about to be flung away by the impact,
That massive hand moved with inhuman speed and clamped down on his throat.
The sudden, terrifying scene made Suikazan Fuguki, Kushimaru, and the other Kiri shinobi instinctively freeze in place.
But Aramaki paid them no mind.
He yanked Jūzō's face close and sneered coldly: "Someone as weak as you—where did you find the guts to charge in first?"
"Y-You…"
Biwa Jūzō's face flushed red as he struggled to breathe. He tried to speak—
But his body suddenly convulsed with a sickening series of muffled thumps.
Dozens of razor-sharp wooden spikes burst from his torso, blood spraying into the air.
[Crash!]
Aramaki casually let go.
Biwa Jūzō's mutilated body dropped into the water with a heavy splash.
His cruel, chilling gaze slowly swept across the remaining sword-wielders.
"So… who's next?"
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