Chapter 58: Betrayal of the Reanimated Body
There was no blood splatter, nor was there a violent clash of Chakra.
In the reflection of Orochimaru's rapidly constricting snake-like pupils, the Third Kazekage—who should have possessed an immortal body capable of reconstructing from dust even if shattered—was currently manifesting a bizarre form that would make a biologist's sanity plummet.
His face... had been flipped open.
The moment Konan's fingertips touched him, his body turned into pages of soft-textured paper.
It wasn't physical destruction, but as if this existence called the "Third Kazekage" was itself a book, and now someone had casually flipped it open.
"Is this Genjutsu?"
Orochimaru stared fixedly at the Third Kazekage's body, completely unaware that his nails had pierced his palms.
No!
As a Great Master of manipulating Souls and flesh, he understood the mechanism of Edo Tensei very well. An Edo Tensei body is a killing machine without a sense of Pain or fear; how could it fall under a Genjutsu?
But this bizarre scene completely defied the law of Chakra conservation!
"Kill her!!!"
A distorted roar erupted from Orochimaru's throat—an instinctive fear of the unknown.
Buzz—!
The killing instinct of the Edo Tensei body remained.
Despite half his face turning into book pages, under Orochimaru's forced control, the several tons of Iron Sand suspended in the air instantly went berserk. Abandoning their original attack formation, they transformed into a massive black iron maw, closing in from all directions to crush Konan at the center.
The distance was less than three meters.
At such a distance, even a Kage-level powerhouse would be instantly squeezed into meat paste.
Konan, however, didn't even lift an eyelid.
Holding that illusory paintbrush in her right hand and pressing down on the Kazekage's flipped-open face page with her left, her expression was as indifferent as if she were performing a precise dissection.
Because her teammates were standing behind her.
"Though it's quite expensive..."
In the distance, the Asura Path Pain, who had been on standby, slowly raised a mechanical arm that had been modified by Sasori of the Red Sand at a cost of over a hundred million.
Clack, clack, clack—!
Accompanied by the tooth-aching sound of metal grinding, the Asura Path's original arm instantly split apart, revealing dense, honeycomb-like micro-missile launch ports. The black robe on its back burst open, two large rocket boosters extended out, and blue Chakra flames ignited instantly.
"But at this distance, gunpowder is the truth."
Nagato, controlling the Asura Path, expressionlessly spat out these words he had learned from Kakuzu.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In the next second, the underground laboratory turned into a carnival of thermal weapons.
Dozens of micro-tracking missiles trailed long plumes of fire like the scythes of the Shinigami. Arriving first despite launching later, they slammed hard into the closing Iron Sand barrier.
The light from the explosions instantly swallowed their vision.
It was a saturated strike aimed at breaking through a single point. The seemingly indestructible wave of Iron Sand was forcibly torn open by high temperatures and shockwaves. Shrapnel flew and air currents rolled, but strangely, an invisible barrier seemed to surround Konan at the center of the explosion; not even the corner of her clothes was ruffled.
"Now."
Yahiko's voice pierced through the roar of the explosions.
The brush in Konan's hand moved.
On that book page titled "Third Kazekage," amidst the dense text recording [Died at the hands of Sasori of the Red Sand], [Summoned by Orochimaru], and [Forced Killing Command], a brand-new line of ink emerged out of thin air:
[Immediately form the 'Release' Seal, terminate the Edo Tensei contract, and return the Soul to the Pure Land.]
The moment the final stroke fell.
Heavens Door disappeared.
The pages snapped shut with a rustle, and the Third Kazekage's crack-covered face returned to its original state.
"It's useless..."
Orochimaru watched Konan walk out of the dust unscathed, a sinister sneer appearing on his face as his hands formed Seals again to strengthen control. "Edo Tensei is a Forbidden Jutsu developed by the Second Hokage! Unless the caster actively releases it or the Soul is sealed, otherwise—"
Creak.
A piercing sound of bone friction interrupted Orochimaru's roar.
He watched in horror as the Third Kazekage, who was about to condense the next wave of Iron Sand, suddenly froze in mid-air like a jammed machine.
Then, that Puppet he regarded as his "strongest weapon" saw its hands slowly come together uncontrollably.
Rat－Ox－Monkey－Tiger－Dragon－Boar.
The speed of the hand Seals was extremely fast, so fast that Orochimaru didn't even have time to cut the Chakra link.
"Stop! What are you doing?!" Orochimaru's eyes nearly split from strain as he desperately pumped Chakra to regain control. "I didn't give this order! Stop it!!"
However, it was useless.
In the face of the absolute rules written by [Heavens Door], Orochimaru's pitiful bit of control was like trying to restrain a runaway train with a straw rope.
The final Seal was formed.
The Third Kazekage's originally dark and dull eyes suddenly regained a flicker of clarity. It was a brief moment of lucidity after the Soul broke free from its shackles. He glanced at the cold-faced Konan before him, then at the hysterical Orochimaru in the distance, and his lips seemed to twitch slightly.
Then, a brilliant white light shot up from the crown of his head.
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
Losing the support of the Soul, that immortal body instantly disintegrated, turning into a pile of moldy-smelling ash and dust that pitter-pattered to the ground, revealing the corpse of the Ninja used as a sacrifice inside.
As for the "Minato Namikaze" next to him, who was already an empty shell, Konan followed the same procedure.
The Soul-less husk acted as if a Soul had been inserted; it mechanically completed the release Seals and collapsed to the ground.
Dead silence.
The entire underground laboratory fell into a deathly silence.
Only the exhaust fan was still creaking as it turned, making a mocking noise.
Orochimaru maintained his hand Seal posture, standing frozen in place. He looked at the two piles of dust on the ground, his eyes shifting from shock and fear to a daze following the collapse of his worldview.
He was a scientist.
He could accept failure, he could accept being defeated by a stronger Ninjutsu, and he could even accept being sealed.
But he could not accept this scene.
No intense Chakra confrontation, no tedious sealing formulas. The opponent just... walked over, flipped a face, and wrote a few words.
And then, his proud S-rank Forbidden Jutsu that desecrated life and death just disbanded itself like an obedient schoolboy?
What was the logic behind this?
This wasn't scientific!
This wasn't Ninjutsu at all!
"It seems Senior Orochimaru's charm needs some improvement."
A lazy voice drifted down from above.
Yahiko sat on a protruding rock, looking down at the legendary Sannin from above, a hint of mockery at the corner of his mouth: "When even the dead aren't willing to fight for you, that's quite a failure for a leader."
Orochimaru jerked his head up, his golden vertical pupils bloodshot.
The fear vanished.
In its place was an unprecedented, almost insane greed and desire for inquiry.
He stared fixedly at Konan's fair hand.
What was that?
If he could obtain this... if it was this kind of power... "Interesting... too interesting! Hehehehe..."
Orochimaru suddenly began to chuckle, his laughter hoarse and frenzied, his body trembling violently with excitement. "I thought you were just a few brats who didn't know the heights of the heavens... I didn't expect you to actually hold the key to the door of 'Truth'."
"Key?" Yahiko raised an eyebrow.
"I will have it... whether it's a Kekkei Genkai or something else..." Orochimaru abruptly tore off his tattered robe, revealing a pale chest. "Once I take you down, everything will be clear!"
Orochimaru thought to himself: as long as he dealt with the leader, the rest would be easy!
"Hidden Shadow Many Snake Hands!"
Orochimaru lunged forward instantly. Countless venomous snakes erupted from his sleeves, collar, and even his mouth. Simultaneously, with a flick of his right hand, the kusanagi sword was spat out from a snake's mouth, glinting with a cold light as it lunged straight for Yahiko's throat.
Read 30+ Advanced Chapters at P@ Tre On
FictionTimeo