"How could Dan be dead?" Orochimaru muttered, unable to accept it, "He was in soul form — intangible, beyond the reach of the material world. Ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu… none of it should have been able to touch him."
Danzō's expression remained grim, "I know what happened. When the Fourth Hokage sealed the Nine-Tails, he used a forbidden technique: the Reaper Death Seal. It drags the target's soul into the Shinigami's belly, and the caster pays the same price — his own soul is taken as well. As far as I know, aside from the Spirit Transformation Technique, it's the only jutsu that can directly target a soul."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed, "You're saying Mizuki learned the Reaper Death Seal — and dragged Dan down with him?"
"Exactly." Danzō nodded, "The Reaper Death Seal originated with the Uzumaki clan and is recorded in the Scroll of Seals. Mizuki stole the Scroll of Seals — he had the means to learn it."
Orochimaru frowned. He couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't that simple.
"Whether it was the Reaper Death Seal or something else, confirm it first." he ordered, "Send word to our spies in the Land of Birds. I want Mizuki's status verified immediately."
Danzō's gaze dropped to Dan's corpse on the floor, "Wait. There's no need for that. Use the old Edo Tensei. Summon Dan and ask what happened. Then we'll understand everything."
By now, thanks to the Food Pill, Orochimaru's chakra had recovered to fullness.
"Fine." he said coolly, "We'll perform Edo Tensei once more."
They descended into the basement beneath the Hokage Tower. The death-row prisoner knelt on the stone floor, eyes unfocused, mind numb.
Orochimaru took out a scroll and laid it flat. When he unrolled it, dense sealing arrays and complex formulas spread across the paper like a spiderweb.
He sliced a strip of flesh from Dan's arm, pressed it onto the formula, and began forming hand seals. When the final seal clicked into place, the markings on the scroll surged outward — spilling off the paper and crawling across the ground until they circled the prisoner.
The next instant, an eerie green light erupted from the floor and swallowed the prisoner. Dust and ash swirled up, layering over their body like a second skin. The prisoner let out a piercing scream.
It was almost complete — then the green light shattered, and the dust dispersed.
The Edo Tensei failed.
Danzō's voice snapped like a whip, "Orochimaru — what is going on?"
Orochimaru, however, was smiling, "The summoning failed."
Danzō stared at him, "If it failed, why do you look pleased?"
"Because this is the second time Edo Tensei has failed for me." Orochimaru said, eyes gleaming faintly, "The first was when I attempted to summon the Fourth Hokage — Minato Namikaze. Back then I didn't understand why. But from what you just said… Minato's soul is already bound to the Shinigami."
He turned his head slightly, "And the same failure happening again means Dan's soul is with the Shinigami as well."
Danzō's eyes lit up, and he actually laughed.
"Hahahaha! Excellent. That means Mizuki really did use the Reaper Death Seal — and died together with Dan."
Neither of them guessed the truth — not because it was hidden well, but because their understanding was too small.
They knew nothing of the Rinnegan. Trapped by their own assumptions, they concluded Mizuki was dead.
"Mizuki is dead." Danzō declared, exhilarated, "Then it's time to celebrate. Call the heads of the major clans. We're going to the barbecue place."
The pressure Mizuki had placed on him had been suffocating. As long as that enemy lived, Danzō felt he could barely breathe; now, with Mizuki "dead", relief crashed over him like a wave.
He glanced at Orochimaru, his eyes carrying an indescribable meaning, "Orochimaru, I've uncovered your secret. In your current weakened state, you're no longer qualified to sit as Hokage. Don't blame me for seizing power — I'm doing this for Konoha."
His voice grew colder, steadier, "From today on, I'll step out of the shadows and into the light, and prepare myself to become the next Hokage. With Mizuki dead, nothing can threaten me anymore. I no longer need you standing out front."
Danzō's declaration didn't trouble Orochimaru in the least. He simply instructed the ANBU to invite the clan heads.
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What they didn't know was that Mizuki was already on his way to Konoha.
While Danzō and the others clinked cups and roared with laughter in a barbecue shop, Mizuki slipped into the village.
In the darkness, an inconspicuous puddle of liquid crept through the underground like a living shadow. After entering the Hokage Tower, it flowed straight to the Hokage's office — then rose up, shedding its disguise and revealing Mizuki's true form.
"Who goes there?"
The moment he appeared, the guarding ANBU reacted. Attacks came instantly from three directions — shuriken, kunai, and a blade.
All of them hit.
Three shuriken: one buried in each eye, and one in his throat.
A kunai punched into his left chest, leaving only the handle visible. Even a civilian would know his heart had been pierced.
A katana thrust through his abdomen from behind, its tip protruding from the front by half an inch.
Three ANBU stepped out of concealment. The swordsman stood closest, less than half a meter behind Mizuki.
Seeing how easily they had "resolved" the intruder, disdain crept onto their faces.
"With strength like that, he dares stroll into the Hokage's office." the swordsman scoffed, "He doesn't even know how to write the word 'death.' Turn on the lights. Let's see what kind of idiot face he has."
At that moment, the office door opened. Another ANBU entered — the squad leader.
In a commanding tone, they issued orders, "Ox, carry the body downstairs. Horse, clean the scene. Boar, open the windows — use Wind Release to blow out the stench of blood."
As they spoke, they reached over and flipped the light switch.
Light flooded the office, chasing away the darkness — and Mizuki's face became clear.
"What?!" The squad leader jolted back to the doorway, instantly drawing a kunai, "Th-this… this is Mizuki?!"
Sweat beaded on their forehead.
"Leader, what's wrong?" the swordsman asked, confused, "So what if it's Mizuki? He's dead — his heartbeat is gone. What are you afraid of?"
"Fall back." the squad leader barked, "Stay on guard — now!"
They obeyed at once, retreating; even the young swordsman abandoned the katana entirely.
Under four pairs of eyes, Mizuki's "corpse" moved.
His neck rolled left and right — crack, crack — as if he were loosening stiff joints.
He reached up and casually pulled the kunai from his chest. Then, with a single slap, he drove the shuriken lodged in his eye socket even deeper — straight into the skull.
He gripped the blade tip of the katana inside his body, twisted it a few times, and smoothly drew it out from the front.
The grotesque display made all four ANBU's pupils contract violently. Orochimaru's techniques were bizarre enough, but this… this was something else entirely.
In the silence, the sound of someone swallowing rang out — painfully loud.
"W-what… what kind of monster is this?"
Mizuki lifted his head. His mouth split into a grin, revealing teeth white as bone.
That wasn't even the worst of it. The corners of his mouth stretched wider and wider, until the grin tore all the way back toward his ears.
Then his facial skin began to peel away like fish scales, flaking off chunk by chunk to reveal raw, red flesh beneath. Paired with his empty eye sockets, the sight was outright madness — like a demon smiling at the door.
"Ah!" one ANBU screamed. Their mind snapped.
Still screaming, they began weaving hand seals.
Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu ▻ Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique
Casting a Great Fireball inside the Hokage's office — what a "talent". They were simply no longer thinking.
"Boar, stop!" the squad leader shouted, "It's genjutsu — don't fall for it!"
Too late. The fireball formed and slammed toward Mizuki.
Mizuki's smile didn't waver. The Rinnegan's Preta Path activated; the moment the flames reached him, they were swallowed whole and vanished in an instant.
"Heh… heh… heh…" His hollow sockets fixed on the squad leader, "Who told you this was genjutsu?"
The squad leader's heart hammered. Their face drained pale, goosebumps rising all over their skin.
"Y-you… what in the hell are you?"
Mizuki had played enough.
He tilted his head, "Tell me — besides Dan Katō, who else did Orochimaru summon with Edo Tensei?"
The squad leader forced down the terror and shouted, "You'll get no information from us!"
Mizuki clicked his tongue, "If you won't tell me, I'll just look for myself."
He raised one hand. Universal Pull activated — and the squad leader flew toward him uncontrollably.
He drove a punch into their abdomen. Pain detonated through their body, erasing all resistance.
"Leader!"
The other three ANBU rushed him together. Mizuki only glanced at them — each of them froze, eyes going vacant as they fell into genjutsu at the same time.
Mizuki placed his hand on the squad leader's head and used the Human Path to rummage through their recent memories.
Soon, he had what he wanted.
"So he only reanimated Dan and Sakumo." Mizuki murmured, "Looks like something went wrong with Orochimaru's rebirth this time — his chakra is seriously insufficient. Otherwise, he wouldn't have stopped at just two."
He tossed the ANBU aside like a broken doll and left the Hokage's office, heading down to Basement Level -1.
Along the way, anyone he encountered was dropped with genjutsu before they could raise an alarm.
At last he reached a sealed chamber. The door was protected by a Fūinjutsu; Mizuki activated absorption again, draining away the chakra sustaining the seal. The barrier collapsed, and he pushed the door open.
Inside, there was only one thing.
A mummy, wrapped in sealing formulas from head to toe.
Within it lay Sakumo.
With a flick of his wrist, Mizuki stored the mummy into his storage ring.
"With Sakumo Hatake in hand, Kakashi won't be far behind." Mizuki said softly, "Next… it's time to take a little revenge on Konoha."
His voice turned sharp, cold, delighted.
"Today, Danzō and Orochimaru will learn that provoking me — Mizuki — is not so easy."
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T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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