Yao hid in a deserted corner, released the Transformation Jutsu, and then appeared beside Kakashi, who was fighting Baki.
Seeing him return safely, Kakashi's tense nerves visibly relaxed:
"Yao! That Sand Jinchuriki has gone completely berserk; the situation is bad! Go help Naruto and Sasuke!"
"Understood!"
Yao nodded, sensing the Flying Thunder God mark left on Sasuke.
Whoosh!
The next moment, Yao appeared in the dense forest of the back mountain.
The scene before him was a mess; trees were toppled, and the ground was covered in sand pits and claw marks.
Sasuke was pinned against the trunk of a giant tree by a mass of expanding, heavy yellow sand, unable to move.
"Yao!"
Seeing Yao appear suddenly, a flash of surprise appeared in Sasuke's eyes.
Since leaving the Root base earlier, Sasuke had been worried about Yao.
Seeing him return safely now, he instantly relaxed.
Yao waved his hand, and a wind blade formed of chakra slashed through the air.
The sand ball trapping Sasuke shattered in response, sand falling away with a rustle.
"You're back? Those Root guys..." Sasuke asked.
"What could they do to me?"
Yao waved his hand dismissively, looking in the direction of Naruto and Gaara: "Recover for a bit; I'll go check over there!"
Without waiting for Sasuke to ask more, Yao vanished directly. When he reappeared, he was already atop the canopy of a surviving tree.
Not far ahead.
Gamabunta was wielding his short sword, engaging in a fierce exchange of attacks with the equally massive One-Tail Shukaku.
Naruto stood on top of Gamabunta's head, directing anxiously.
"Naruto, need a hand?" Yao's voice drifted over.
"Yao?!"
Naruto looked up sharply. Seeing Yao, his face instantly lit up with wild joy: "You came at the perfect time!"
"Quick, help me suppress that fat tanuki! This guy is crazy!"
"Mmh!"
Yao nodded, shifting his gaze to the roaring beast of sand: "Hey, fat tanuki, look who I am?"
Shukaku, who was gathering a Drilling Air Bullet, froze. Its scarlet beast eyes immediately landed on Yao.
Seeing him, Shukaku flew into a rage: "Damn Wood Release brat!! It's you again!!!"
"Die for the great me!!!"
New hatred piled on old grudges. Shukaku dispersed the Drilling Air Bullet at its mouth.
It threw its head back, violent chakra gathering madly in its mouth, and a pitch-black Tailed Beast Ball rapidly took shape.
"Refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit!"
Yao snorted coldly, slamming his hands together in front of his chest, shouting:
"Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!"
Rumble!
The earth trembled violently.
Giant tree roots burst from the ground, tangling and growing frantically.
In the blink of an eye, a massive Wood Human rose from the ground.
With an ancient face and clad in wooden armor, it radiated boundless vitality and heavy pressure.
"Die!"
The Tailed Beast Ball shot out explosively like a cannonball.
"Hmph!"
Yao snorted, immediately controlling the Wood Human to open its five fingers and firmly catch the Tailed Beast Ball in its palm.
Immediately after.
Under Shukaku's astonishment and Gamabunta's dumbfounded gaze.
The Wood Human swung its arm in a wide arc and stuffed the Tailed Beast Ball back into Shukaku's mouth.
"Mmph?!!"
BOOM!!!!
The Tailed Beast Ball exploded!
Blinding black-red light burst from Shukaku's teeth, nostrils, and even its eyes and ears, illuminating half the forest in stark whiteness.
A moment later, the aftershocks dissipated, and the dust slowly settled.
A small half of Shukaku's head had been blown into oblivion, scattering as drifting sand.
The remaining part was covered in cracks, looking utterly wretched.
It shook its head, letting out a roar of pain and anger:
"Damn brat!!"
"How dare... how dare you hurt the great Shukaku like this! The great me will absolutely not let you off!!!"
Shukaku's single eye stared fixedly at Yao standing on the Wood Human's shoulder, the hatred in its eye almost tangible.
As the One-Tail, Shukaku was the very incarnation of sand; naturally, he wouldn't die from taking one of his own Tailed Beast Balls head-on.
At the site where half his head had been blown away, countless grains of yellow sand converged from the ground.
In the blink of an eye, it reformed, good as new.
"Bastard Wood Release brat! I'm going to tear you to pieces!!"
The moment Shukaku recovered, he roared again, waving his giant claws and attempting to gather chakra once more.
"Haven't suffered enough yet?"
Yao stood on the Wood Human's shoulder, glancing coldly at Shukaku. with a thought, the Wood Human beneath him moved immediately.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Wood Human charged in front of Shukaku in a few steps. Its massive wooden fist, wrapped in a fierce wind, smashed into Shukaku's face.
Bang!
Sand exploded outwards, and Shukaku's head was knocked askew.
The Wood Human didn't let up.
Its fists rained down left and right like a violent storm.
Every punch was heavy and powerful, forcing Shukaku to retreat repeatedly. His body of sand constantly crumbled and reformed but couldn't keep up with the speed of destruction.
For a time, only the dull sounds of "bang bang" and the "rustling" of splashing sand could be heard in the forest.
"So awesome!"
Naruto watched with wide eyes.
"Hey! Brat! Who exactly is that kid? He actually possesses the First Hokage's Wood Release?"
Gamabunta watched with a tingling scalp, retreating repeatedly for fear of becoming collateral damage and getting swept up by the Wood Human.
"His name is Uchiha Yao, he's my friend! My best friend!" Naruto answered excitedly.
"Uchiha Yao... An Uchiha brat..."
Shukaku was beaten so badly he couldn't fight back, only able to emit angry and stifled roars: "Damn it! Damn it!!"
The violent tremors and pain finally reached deep inside, forcibly awakening Gaara's consciousness.
Feigning Sleep Technique... Release!
"Damn it... that brat Gaara woke up..."
Shukaku roared unwillingly as his massive sand body shrank rapidly, retreating back into Gaara's body.
"Wood Release brat! And the stinking fox's Jinchuriki! Remember this! This isn't over!!"
Leaving behind a harsh remark, Shukaku completely retreated into Gaara's body.
Sand and dust fell from the sky, revealing the pale-faced Gaara below.
...
With the battle in the forest settled, the village gradually calmed down as well.
The joint attack by the Sand and Sound ninja, after losing Orochimaru's command and the "ultimate weapon" Gaara, collapsed rapidly.
The invaders were either dead or had fled. The remaining Konoha ninja began cleaning up the battlefield and treating the wounded.
Yao, Naruto, and Sasuke escorted Gaara back to the village and found Kakashi, who was directing the aftermath.
"Kakashi-sensei, we caught this guy!"
Naruto shouted, his face still showing the excitement from the battle.
Kakashi nodded and waved his hand. Immediately, two Anbu ninja stepped forward and took Gaara away.
What awaited Gaara next was inevitably Konoha's prison.
Until the Sand paid compensation and re-signed the alliance treaty with the village, Gaara likely wouldn't be redeemed.
"Kakashi-sensei, the village wasn't affected too badly, right?"
Naruto wiped the dirt off his face and asked somewhat anxiously.
Yao and Sasuke also looked at Kakashi. This attack was severe; the village hadn't experienced such turmoil in a long time.
Even the night of the Uchiha Massacre 5 years ago couldn't compare.
After all, Itachi, that "filial son," had handled it too well.
Aside from the Uchiha clan being wiped out, no one else was affected.
Kakashi sighed, his voice low: "Although the invaders were repelled, the losses are significant!"
"Many Chunin and Genin sacrificed themselves, along with quite a few villagers. Fortunately, the Jonin-level combat power suffered no losses!"
Kakashi paused. "But... Lord Hokage, in order to stop Orochimaru, sacrificed himself!"
"Wh... What?"
The excitement on Naruto's face froze instantly. His eyes widened, and he looked as if struck by lightning, utterly lost.
Grandpa Third... died?
Kakashi reached out and patted Naruto's shoulder firmly:
"Don't be too sad, Naruto. Lord Hokage fought to protect the village. As a ninja, dying on the battlefield is also an honor!"
After comforting Naruto, Kakashi turned to Yao: "Yao, Root... Danzo didn't give you too much trouble, did he?"
"Do you think that's possible?"
Yao shrugged, his tone carrying a bit of mockery. "That hellhole Root, easy to enter, hard to leave!"
"If my strength wasn't decent, I'm afraid I wouldn't have come back today!"
Although he was the one who killed Danzo, he wasn't going to take the blame for it!
Danzo...
Better just let him "defect"!
Next, he would thoroughly nail Danzo to the pillar of shame!
"That old bastard!"
Sasuke gritted his teeth, his Sharingan emerging unconsciously:
"If I have the chance in the future, I will definitely settle the score with Danzo!"
"It's good that you're back!"
Seeing that Yao seemed unharmed, Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief, then said solemnly:
"Shimura Danzo conspired with the rogue ninja Orochimaru today to assassinate the Third Hokage. The evidence is irrefutable."
"After the high-level meeting, he will likely be officially designated a rogue ninja, and a kill order will be issued."
"In the future, you'll have plenty of opportunities to settle the score with Danzo!"
Kakashi had dealt with Danzo before; back then, Danzo had even incited him to assassinate the Third Hokage.
Honestly, Danzo rushing out rashly to assassinate the Third Hokage today felt a bit suspicious to Kakashi.
That style wasn't very "Danzo"!
But regardless, assassinating the Third Hokage in public was a crime that couldn't be washed away.