Naruto's breathing grew ragged as sweat soaked through his clothes. Every muscle in his body trembled from the strain, yet he still refused to let go. His hands clung desperately to Orochimaru as the Diamond Sealing Chains wrapped around the monstrous serpent-like body, tightening with all the strength he could muster.
The others could only watch anxiously from nearby.
Naruto was risking his life.
But just as Orochimaru had predicted, Naruto's control over the Diamond Sealing Chains was still far too crude. Although his chakra reserves were enormous, his mastery of the technique was incomplete.
Slowly but surely, Orochimaru began finding weaknesses within the chains.
"Damn it… if this keeps going…"
Naruto gritted his teeth. His arms felt numb, and his chakra was draining rapidly.
Orochimaru himself was in terrible condition, yet he still forced out a sinister laugh.
"Hahahahaha…!"
"Naruto… how much longer can you hold on?"
His cold, snake-like eyes gleamed with cruelty.
"The moment I break free, I'll make all of you suffer before I kill you."
His tongue slid slowly across his lips as murderous intent flooded the battlefield.
Naruto's expression darkened.
At this rate… they really might lose.
Of course, he still possessed his greatest trump card—the power of the Nine-Tails.
But he didn't want to rely on it unless absolutely necessary.
And if things truly reached the point of no return…
Then he would have no choice but to use that forbidden power.
Suddenly—
With a violent surge of strength, Orochimaru finally shattered the restraints of the Diamond Sealing Chains.
The gigantic Eight-Headed Serpent roared as its massive body burst free once again.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Naruto, it seems you care deeply for that Hyuga girl."
Orochimaru's smile widened maliciously.
"Unfortunately, she's completely useless to me."
"So I'll kill her right in front of your eyes!"
The mouth of one of the white serpent heads opened wide.
In an instant, the Kusanagi Sword shot forward like a cannon shell, slicing through the air with terrifying force.
Its target—
Hinata Hyuga.
"Naruto-kun!"
Hinata's face turned pale.
Without hesitation, Naruto rushed forward and stood directly in front of her.
He spread his arms instinctively, intending to block the blade with his own body.
"Naruto!"
Even Sasuke's expression changed slightly.
At that critical moment—
BOOM!!!
A deafening sound exploded across the battlefield.
A long black staff shot through the air from the distance and smashed heavily against the Kusanagi Sword, knocking it away with overwhelming force.
Orochimaru's pupils shrank instantly.
"That staff…"
A familiar figure descended from the sky and landed firmly before Team 7.
He wore a fitted combat outfit unlike his usual dignified Hokage robes. Though old and somewhat frail, he stood perfectly straight, his staff gripped tightly in his hand.
His eyes were calm, resolute, and filled with unwavering determination.
The man standing before them was none other than the former Third Hokage of Konohagakure—
Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Third Hokage-sama!"
Hinata looked equally shocked.
"How… how is this possible?"
"Why is Lord Third here?!"
Even Sasuke frowned slightly.
Hiruzen turned toward the three members of Team 7 and smiled warmly.
"Naruto… Sasuke… Hinata…"
"Congratulations."
"All three of you have become true geniuses of Konoha."
"The future of the ninja world will belong to your generation."
Meanwhile, Orochimaru's expression had become extremely ugly.
His shock wasn't simply because Hiruzen had appeared.
No…
At that very moment, a horrifying possibility suddenly formed in his mind.
"Hiruzen-sensei…"
"The fact that you appeared here personally…"
"Does that mean…"
"…this entire thing was a trap?!"
Hiruzen tightened his grip on the adamantine staff and looked calmly at his former student.
"You're still sharp, Orochimaru."
"Unfortunately for you… your cleverness worked against you this time."
Orochimaru's face darkened.
He was already exhausted after the fierce battle with Team 7. Facing Hiruzen in his current state filled him with an unprecedented sense of danger.
At this moment…
He truly wasn't Hiruzen's opponent.
And worse—
Everything Hiruzen said made perfect sense.
Naruto blinked in confusion.
"Third Grandpa… what exactly is going on?"
Hiruzen sighed softly before explaining.
"Jiraiya originally moved to capture Orochimaru after receiving intelligence regarding his whereabouts."
"However, that information was leaked by Orochimaru's spy hidden within Konoha's upper ranks."
"That included information about Team 7's independent mission."
Naruto slowly widened his eyes.
"So that means…"
Hiruzen nodded.
"Orochimaru naturally believed Jiraiya would walk directly into the traps prepared inside his hideout."
"But in reality, Orochimaru abandoned that location and came here instead, intending to capture all of you in one move."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed.
By now, he had already understood the truth.
"You already knew there was a spy within Konoha's leadership."
"And you predicted that the information would reach Orochimaru."
"Which means…"
"This entire operation was designed from the beginning to lure Orochimaru out."
Hiruzen smiled approvingly.
"As expected of Sasuke."
Naruto finally realized what that meant.
His mouth twitched.
"So the three of us…"
"…were bait?!"
Hiruzen nodded without hesitation.
"That's correct."
Naruto nearly exploded.
"What kind of explanation is that?!"
"Do you know we almost died?!"
Hiruzen sighed deeply.
"If you and Sasuke weren't involved, Orochimaru would never have exposed himself so recklessly."
"Right now, not only is he being hunted by Konoha…"
"But the Akatsuki are also searching for him."
"This was our only opportunity."
He paused before continuing.
"And throughout the entire mission, I was secretly following all of you."
"I would never have allowed you to die."
Naruto looked unconvinced.
"Then why didn't you show up earlier?!"
"I seriously thought we were done for this time!"
Hiruzen laughed softly.
"Naruto… you exceeded all of my expectations."
"Not just yours. Sasuke and Hinata as well."
"The strength the three of you displayed today would shock the entire ninja world."
"Since I was nearby the entire time, I naturally wouldn't let Orochimaru kill you."
"But at the same time…"
"I wanted to see how far Team 7 had truly grown."
His gaze softened.
"You three are the future pillars of Konoha."
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly.
"I thought I already had that bastard pinned down…"
"I didn't expect him to break free by force."
"That monster is terrifying."
Hiruzen nodded seriously.
"Orochimaru has always been a monster."
Orochimaru suddenly let out a cold laugh.
"Hiruzen-sensei…"
"I never expected even you would resort to schemes like this."
"Schemes?"
Hiruzen's expression became indifferent.
"Orochimaru, you of all people have no right to say that."
"You cooperated with Sunagakure and attempted to destroy Konoha."
"And now you criticize strategy?"
Orochimaru sneered.
"After retiring as Hokage, you deliberately acted like an old man enjoying peaceful family life."
"All of that was simply to deceive Danzo Shimura, wasn't it?"
"After all…"
"You were the most important piece in this entire plan."
Hiruzen smiled faintly.
"You're not entirely wrong."
"After retirement, I truly did want to spend more time with Konohamaru."
His expression slowly darkened.
"But unless I personally dealt with you…"
"The guilt in my heart would never disappear."
"Orochimaru."
Orochimaru snorted coldly.
"That fool Danzo really believed every bit of it."
At the mention of Danzo's name, deep sorrow appeared on Hiruzen's aged face.
"If Danzo had not betrayed Konoha…"
"None of this would have happened."
"You and he both became what you are today because of my weakness."
A trace of regret flashed across his eyes.
"And because of that…"
"It's my responsibility to end this."
Silence filled the battlefield.
At that point, everything that needed to be said had already been said.
Only battle remained.
This had been a carefully constructed plan from the very beginning.
Tsunade.
Jiraiya.
Hiruzen.
Kakashi.
And many others within Konoha had all worked together to create this trap.
Their goal was twofold.
First, lure Orochimaru into the open and eliminate him once and for all.
Second, expose Danzo Shimura's betrayal and strip him of his power.
One plan.
Two targets.
But as Hiruzen had said…
If Danzo had not betrayed the village and secretly cooperated with Orochimaru, none of this would ever have happened.
For Hiruzen, this was unbearably painful.
One was his most beloved student.
The other was a longtime comrade who had fought beside him through countless wars.
Yet both had eventually fallen into darkness.
Orochimaru suddenly laughed again.
"Hiruzen-sensei…"
"You calculated everything perfectly."
"But…"
"Do you really think you can kill me?"
Hiruzen smiled calmly.
"Orochimaru…"
"Stop bluffing."
"You are my student."
"No one understands you better than I do."
"If you truly had confidence, you wouldn't waste time speaking nonsense."
His sharp eyes locked onto Orochimaru.
"You intentionally prepared traps elsewhere to distract Jiraiya and the others."
"If I'm not mistaken…"
"You were planning to use Edo Tensei."
Orochimaru's expression shifted slightly.
"That explains why you never used it during your battle against Team 7."
Hiruzen continued calmly.
"But using Edo Tensei against Jiraiya would still leave you fighting alone."
"And more importantly…"
He glanced briefly toward Naruto and the others.
"The strength displayed by Team 7 far exceeded both your expectations and mine."
"I never imagined they would push you this far."
His eyes narrowed confidently.
"You no longer have enough strength remaining to continue."
"At best…"
"You're operating at less than ten percent of your original power."
The atmosphere instantly became tense.
Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata all stepped back slightly as they watched the confrontation between master and student unfold.
One side was the legendary Third Hokage.
The other was the most terrifying traitor Konoha had ever produced.
The final battle…
Was about to begin.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)