As nearly a thousand Hidden Leaf shinobi experienced Takamagahara in the massive assembly hall, Tsunade stood atop the Hokage Tower, gazing toward the distant hall.
After a moment, she withdrew her gaze and asked Shizune, standing by her side, "Any new updates from the sensory team?"
Shizune replied, "Don't worry, Lady Tsunade. If there's an alert, the sensory team will notify us immediately!"
Tsunade nodded.
In the current dire situation, the pressure on her as Hokage was something others could scarcely comprehend. So, seeing nearly a thousand Hidden Leaf shinobi gathered in one place, all simultaneously under a genjutsu, it would be a lie to say she wasn't worried.
Thus, every time Shinji activated Takamagahara in the massive hall, Hidden Leaf entered its highest state of alert.
Patrol teams doubled, all sensory barriers inside and outside the village were fully activated, and heavily armed shinobi squads were stationed at key transportation routes and critical facilities to guard against potential enemy attacks.
Yet, despite these precautions, Tsunade couldn't help but feel nervous.
If the Akatsuki chose this moment to attack the village, chaos could erupt—especially at the massive hall, where a riot would be almost inevitable.
Fortunately, Shinji's Takamagahara could manipulate the flow of time. An hour of combat training inside translated to just over ten minutes in the real world, easing Tsunade's concerns somewhat.
Besides Tsunade, another figure was also keeping a close eye on the massive hall—the same one who had eavesdropped on discussions about Takamagahara in the tavern yesterday.
She had planned to leave Hidden Leaf that morning, but due to Shinji's activation of Takamagahara, the village went into full lockdown, prohibiting all entry and exit. Stranded, she was forced to remain in the village temporarily.
Takamagahara… She furrowed her brow, thinking, Could there really be such a miraculous dojutsu?
Initially, she had dismissed the rumors about Takamagahara as exaggerated.
Such things were common in the shinobi world.
But seeing how seriously Hidden Leaf was taking it, she began to suspect that the Takamagahara being hyped up by the Hidden Leaf shinobi was no ordinary technique.
The lockdown didn't last long. Once Takamagahara concluded in the hall, Hidden Leaf lifted the restrictions, allowing merchants, clients seeking to commission missions, and those purchasing intelligence to come and go freely.
Seizing the opportunity, she slipped out of the village.
Some time later, she darted into a secluded forest outside Hidden Leaf and rendezvoused with a group already gathered there.
Upon seeing her, one of them hurriedly asked, "Guren, what's the situation in Hidden Leaf?"
Undoubtedly, the one who had infiltrated Hidden Leaf was none other than Guren, one of Orochimaru's subordinates, wielder of the Crystal Release Bloodline Limit.
With Orochimaru captured and the Sound Village destroyed by the combined forces of the five great shinobi villages, Orochimaru's followers had been fleeing in disarray until now, when they finally managed to regroup to plan his rescue.
Guren shook her head. "There's no chance at all! Hidden Leaf is preparing for war with the Akatsuki. The village is locked down tighter than a fortress. With just us, going in would be suicide!"
"Then what do we do?"
"Give up?"
"But if we don't try to rescue Lord Orochimaru, he'll never forgive us if he escapes!"
"Idiot, that's only if he finds us! Going now is just asking to die. You want to go? Be my guest—I'm not!"
After hearing Guren's account, the ragtag group, barely held together, immediately descended into infighting.
Guren remained silent, her brow furrowed.
When she had been the only one to step forward and propose infiltrating Hidden Leaf for intel, she already knew this group was unreliable.
But she hadn't expected them to start bickering before even taking action.
In truth, their attempt to gather and rescue Orochimaru was already the maximum effort they could muster under his intimidating reputation.
Yet these people weren't Orochimaru's truly trusted subordinates.
Orochimaru's true confidant was Kabuto Yakushi.
Jugo, as the source of the Cursed Seal, held immense experimental value and could be considered half a confidant. Kimimaro and Guren, as potential vessels for Orochimaru's body transfer, each counted as half as well. The rest, even those like the Sound Four, were mere pawns in Orochimaru's eyes, disposable at any moment.
This rabble was even less significant!
The chaotic infighting didn't last long. Soon, the group prepared to scatter and flee, leaving Orochimaru's rescue to whoever was foolish enough to try.
Swish.
But just as they were about to disperse, a figure descended from the sky, landing in the forest.
Startled, the group turned to look and saw a mysterious figure cloaked in a hooded cape.
Guren asked warily, "Who are you?!"
At that moment, the figure slowly lifted their hood and smiled. "Sorry, I'm late!"
Seeing the face beneath the hood, Guren didn't lower her guard—instead, she grew even more cautious. "Kabuto Yakushi, how did you know we were here?"
Kabuto chuckled. "Perhaps I was drawn by your stupidity!"
"What did you say?!"
"Damn it!"
"There's no Orochimaru to protect you now, so you'd better not provoke us!"
Kabuto's mockery enraged the group.
This ragtag bunch, coerced by Orochimaru's power or lured by his promises, were no saints. Plus, Kabuto's usual mild and frail demeanor left many unaware of his true strength.
Among them, only Guren's brow remained tightly furrowed.
She knew how formidable Kabuto was. In a one-on-one fight, she estimated her odds of winning at only thirty to forty percent.
Facing their outbursts, Kabuto smiled. "I thought you lot might have some use, but it seems I was mistaken! Oh well, taking care of you all here saves me the trouble of hunting you down later!"
The group's faces paled.
Even Guren looked shocked.
Though this group lacked top-tier fighters, many were close to the level of special jonin from the great villages, making them a considerable force when united. So she couldn't understand why Kabuto was so brazen.
As she puzzled over this, dark markings appeared on Kabuto's face, and he swiftly formed hand seals. "Sage Mode: Inorganic Reincarnation!"
In an instant, sharp stone spears erupted from the ground without warning, as if alive, surging toward the group.