Tsunade and Kitazawa were the last to arrive.
"Hokage-sama."
Uchiha Fugaku, Hyuga Hiashi, Kakashi Hatake, and others all greeted her.
Tsunade nodded slightly. She scanned the area, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
Even she felt that the lineup Kitazawa had assembled was a bit excessive. One might think they were going to attack Hidden Cloud Village, not Otogakure.
"Never mind, it's better to be cautious."
"I have gathered you all today for one purpose only," Tsunade said, meeting their puzzled gazes. "To take down Otogakure and Orochimaru."
Many people immediately showed shocked expressions. Orochimaru was Sarutobi Hiruzen's student, one of Konoha's Sannin.
Some of them had even fought alongside him before. Now, suddenly hearing that their target was Orochimaru, it was naturally difficult for them to remain calm.
"Orochimaru is a rogue ninja from Konoha, and we must bring him back, no matter the cost!" Tsunade said with full authority.
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Everyone responded in unison.
"This operation requires secrecy. We don't prioritize speed, but no one must discover our whereabouts," Tsunade instructed.
"Ninjas from the Hyuga Clan and Aburame Clan are responsible for this. If anyone is nearby, bypass them."
Although it would be difficult for such a large group to hide their tracks, it wasn't impossible.
After all, they were all top-tier Jonin.
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Hyuga Hiashi and Aburame Shibi quickly responded.
"Move out!" Tsunade waved her hand and took the lead.
Kitazawa and the other Jonin followed closely behind.
With the help of the Byakugan and Kikaichu, the group silently arrived in the Land of Rice Fields.
Not far from Otogakure, everyone stopped.
"There are ninja from the Fuma Clan in that valley, Fugaku. Take your men to control them; don't make any noise," Tsunade said.
Fugaku nodded and led Itachi and other ninjas from the Uchiha Clan to the valley.
"Hiashi, your four squads from the Hyuga Clan are to stake out the four directions of Otogakure. Don't let anyone escape," Tsunade said gravely. "Especially Orochimaru."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Hiashi immediately responded.
"Sealing Squad, when Orochimaru is preoccupied, you will cast the Four Violet Flames Formation on him," Tsunade continued.
One order after another was issued. Tsunade demonstrated her ability as Hokage, setting up an airtight encirclement for Orochimaru.
"Hokage-sama, we have succeeded." A moment later, Fugaku and the others returned.
"The ninja of your Uchiha Clan will follow us into Otogakure," Tsunade nodded and said. "Move out!"
The Jonin, having received their orders, quickly dispersed, heading toward the four directions of Otogakure.
After waiting for a moment, Tsunade leaped up and charged into Otogakure at an extremely fast speed.
"Who's there?" A ninja from Otogakure discovered them.
Itachi flashed in front of him. A crimson light flickered.
The Otogakure ninja fell into a daze. He pulled out a kunai and directly slit his throat.
Tsunade ignored these Otogakure ninja; her target was Otogakure's leader's building. When the target appeared in her sight, she immediately gathered chakra in her feet.
Heavenly Foot of Pain!
Tsunade appeared in front of Otogakure's leader's building and stomped down. The terrifying force immediately shattered the ground, and the entire building seemed to be on the verge of collapse.
"What's happening?"
"Enemy!"
"Run!"
The Otogakure ninja inside the building all ran out.
"Orochimaru, get out here!" Tsunade roared suddenly.
In front of her, the building could no longer withstand it and collapsed with a crash.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself that she truly was a heroic woman.
The next second, a huge roar erupted.
But it wasn't caused by the collapsing building; instead, the ground cracked open, and a giant purple python, whose entire body couldn't be seen clearly, emerged.
It opened its mouth wide and lunged at Tsunade. On its head stood a young man with long black hair. He had pale skin, golden vertical pupils, and blue-green magatama-shaped earrings.
"Orochimaru!"
Tsunade clenched her fist and threw a punch. Her fist landed on one of the purple python's teeth, and that tooth immediately shattered.
"Ah!" The purple python, Manda, let out a cry of pain.
Tsunade seized the opportunity, leaped up, and kicked Orochimaru.
"Tsunade, you're still the same; your temper hasn't changed a bit."
Orochimaru finished speaking and directly spat out a Kusanagi Sword, slashing at Tsunade.
Tsunade quickly changed her move, stepping on the Kusanagi Sword with her toes and rapidly retreating.
Manda had already recovered. Seeing Tsunade in mid-air, it swung its tail at her.
Kitazawa formed hand signs, bit his thumb, and pressed it on the ground.
In an instant, a Slug whose size was not inferior to Manda's appeared. It understood the situation and immediately blocked Tsunade.
Manda's tail struck it, and it immediately transformed into countless small Slugs, suffering no damage. The Slug reformed in another spot.
Tsunade landed on its head and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you, Lady Katsuyu."
Seeing this, Kitazawa also jumped up and stood with Tsunade.
"Why didn't you call Jiraiya?" Orochimaru looked at Tsunade and the Slug, feeling a trace of nostalgia.
While they were fighting, the Otogakure ninja also appeared one after another. Without needing to say anything, they began to fight the Konoha ninja.
Orochimaru glanced around. Otogakure was clearly at a disadvantage.
Orochimaru wasn't surprised. Otogakure had been established for too short a time, and it barely had any Jonin.
His only regret was that Konoha Village had arrived too suddenly, and he hadn't had time to transfer many of his experimental devices.
Otogakure could be rebuilt, but if the experimental devices were gone, buying new ones would be an astronomical sum. This was his accumulation over so many years.
However, it was too late now; this was not the time to think about experimental devices. Escaping was the priority.
"To deal with you, Jiraiya isn't needed," Tsunade shook her head and said. "Kitazawa and I are enough."
"Your student is indeed excellent. I've heard about him even in Otogakure," Orochimaru examined Kitazawa, subconsciously licking his lips.
Kitazawa was a genius who perfectly fit his criteria for a vessel. The only regret was that he didn't have a Bloodline Limit.
The ideal vessel in Orochimaru's mind had to possess a Bloodline Limit.
In the original work, he had two ideal vessels: one was Kimimaro, and the other was Uchiha Sasuke. However, Kimimaro had to be abandoned due to his disease.
Kitazawa couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. He could probably guess what Orochimaru was thinking.
After all, Orochimaru's favorite thing was to collect geniuses and make them his vessels.
"Orochimaru, surrender now, and I can spare your life for old times' sake!" Tsunade said gravely.
"Sorry, I'm afraid I can't grant your wish," Orochimaru said with a faint smile.
"It seems there's only one way left." Tsunade subconsciously clenched her fists.
Manda could no longer endure it and directly crashed into Tsunade and Kitazawa.
The two leaped up, ignoring the battle between Manda and the Slug, and charged towards Orochimaru from left and right.
Orochimaru grabbed the Kusanagi Sword and slashed at them.
A clang!
Kitazawa drew his lightning blade, blocking the Kusanagi Sword. Tsunade twisted her body and swung her fist.
Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!
Orochimaru raised his left hand, and countless venomous snakes crawled out from his sleeve.
Kitazawa reacted quickly. He drew Zangetsu with his left hand and, with a diagonal slash, cut a large number of venomous snakes in half.
Just then, the Kusanagi Sword suddenly extended, stabbing towards Kitazawa's head.
Seeing this, Tsunade twisted her wrist, and her fist, which was originally aimed at Orochimaru, landed on the Kusanagi Sword.
A tremendous force surged through, and Orochimaru felt his right hand go numb as the Kusanagi Sword flew out. Orochimaru didn't panic even after losing the Kusanagi Sword.
Myriad Snake Net!
He retreated, spitting out a large number of venomous snakes from his mouth, instantly occupying all the open ground in front of him.
The snakes crowded and surged towards Tsunade and Kitazawa.
"These annoying snakes!" Tsunade couldn't help but frown.
Chidori Current!
Kitazawa immediately formed hand signs, and a sound like a bird chirping rang out.
Brilliant and dazzling lightning surged forth.
In an instant, all the venomous snakes were enveloped by the lightning, and crackling sounds echoed.
"Kakashi's Chidori?" Orochimaru felt a sense of familiarity. But this was clearly a variant of Chidori.
Tsunade wasn't idle either; she used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of Orochimaru. She threw a punch.
A whooshing sound echoed, and a terrifying force emanated. But just as she was about to hit Orochimaru, his body softened and twisted, causing Tsunade's punch to miss.
This was Orochimaru's Soft Physique Modification. His body could freely stretch or twist in any direction, and its flexibility and extensibility were no longer human-like.
Orochimaru was about to speak when he noticed Kitazawa was no longer in his original spot. A sharp aura came from behind him.
Orochimaru turned his head and saw a spinning Chakra sphere.
Minato Namikaze's Rasengan? No, Wind Release was also added.
Kitazawa suddenly accelerated, and Wind Release: Rasengan directly hit his back.
The Wind Release Chakra rotated like a sharp blade, cutting through his flesh. His blood splattered, and his body fell backward.
Tsunade subconsciously dodged, then asked, "Is he dead?" She felt a sense of unreality.
"He won't die that easily." Kitazawa stood beside her, looking at Orochimaru's corpse.
"Your student is really good." Orochimaru stood up from his corpse. This was the Orochimaru-Style Body Replacement Technique.
"He is naturally excellent." Tsunade snorted coldly and threw another punch.
Orochimaru moved a finger. The Kusanagi Sword, which had fallen to the ground, stabbed at Tsunade like a senbon.
Uchiha Style: Blazing Sword Meteor!
Kitazawa drew Zangetsu and swung it. A scorching aura permeated the air. A blade of flame flew out, striking the Kusanagi Sword.
Tsunade's fist was upon him.
Orochimaru unhurriedly raised both arms. Snake Bone Hardening!
His arms immediately became extremely hard, and after meeting Tsunade's fist, both of them trembled violently, each retreating a few steps.
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!
Orochimaru formed a single hand sign, leaned back, and exhaled a violent, incomparable storm.
A basic Wind Release Ninjutsu, when unleashed by him, produced power not inferior to most A-Rank Ninjutsu.
Water Release: Water Formation Wall!
Kitazawa clapped his hands together. Water appeared out of thin air, forming a water wall in front of them.
"Tsunade-sensei!" Kitazawa shouted and formed hand signs again.
Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!
A massive amount of Chakra spewed from his mouth, transforming into a waterfall-like stream of water in the air.
The water wall was instantly blown down and, along with the water stream, turned into a tidal wave.
"As expected, Water Release that can rival the Mizukage." Orochimaru, though in a crisis, still spoke calmly.
Tsunade showed a displeased expression. Orochimaru's tone showed great admiration for Kitazawa, as if he was about to steal her student the next second.
Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!
An earth wall blocked Orochimaru. But it didn't last even a second before it broke. However, for Orochimaru, that was enough.
Wind Release: Great Vacuum Sphere!
Orochimaru spat out a giant wind sphere. The wind sphere expanded, creating a huge gap in the tidal wave.
Orochimaru leaped up and stepped onto the water's surface.
A whooshing sound echoed. Before he could steady himself, Tsunade kicked him. Dirt splattered.
Orochimaru's Earth Clone merged into the water. Not far away, his true body reappeared, looking at Kitazawa and Tsunade.
After fighting for so long, he had already realized that taking them down was unlikely. Although he was reluctant, it was time to abandon Otogakure and these experimental devices.
Suddenly, Kitazawa formed hand signs, creating four Shadow Clones.
Orochimaru was slightly stunned. He didn't react immediately until all five Kitazawas formed hand signs simultaneously, at which point his expression changed drastically.
"Hiruzen-sensei actually taught you the Five Release Great Combo Technique?" Orochimaru blurted out.
This was Sarutobi Hiruzen's trump card, Compound Ninjutsu. He thought there wouldn't be a second person, but he didn't expect Kitazawa to actually do it.
However, Orochimaru no longer had time to think.
Because before him was already a hellish scene.
Fire, Lightning, Water, Earth, and Wind—five types of Chakra mixed together, forming an ocean of Chakra.
The chaotic yet orderly Chakra cooperated with each other, producing a terrifying aura.
In an instant, all that towering Chakra surged towards him. Wherever it passed, sparks flew, water surged, lightning gleamed, wind howled, and the earth shook.
Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon!
Orochimaru bit his thumb and pressed it to the ground.
The sound of tearing air rang out. Three grotesque gates, as if emerging from hell, blocked his path.
Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon originated from Senju Hashirama's Summoning Technique: Five-Layer Rashomon.
Although there were only three gates, it could still block a Tailed Beast Ball to some extent.
The overwhelming impact slammed into the first gate.
The first gate trembled violently, then shattered into dust moments later. The Five Release Great Combo Technique, with undiminished force, crashed into the second gate.
With a boom!
The second gate swayed back and forth uncontrollably.
But it also couldn't hold on, and by the time it reached the third gate, the massive Chakra had already been reduced by more than half.
And the purpose of the third gate was dispersion. The five streams of Chakra spread out in all directions, eventually disappearing.
Tsunade subconsciously bit her lip. She really didn't know that Kitazawa had already mastered the Five Release Great Combo Technique.
Now that he used it, it naturally shocked her.
Orochimaru's gaze narrowed slightly. The power of the Five Release Great Combo Technique used by Kitazawa was already not much inferior to Sarutobi Hiruzen's.
In his mind, Kitazawa's status had risen.
If he were a vessel, he would be stronger than most Bloodline Limit vessels. After all, a Ninja proficient in seven elements was truly rare.
Orochimaru suddenly squinted his eyes. Around them, four Jonin from the Sealing Squad suddenly appeared.
Clearly, they had appeared while the Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon was blocking Orochimaru's line of sight.
Their hand signs were already half-formed. Orochimaru recognized it at a glance: this was the Four Violet Flames Formation. It could create a barrier, and once touched, one would be burned by flames.
In the original story, when Orochimaru fought Sarutobi Hiruzen, he had the Sound Four of Otogakure cast the Four Violet Flames Formation to prevent others from helping.
Now, the Sealing Squad of Konoha Village naturally used the Four Violet Flames Formation to prevent him from escaping.
Without thinking, Orochimaru approached one of the Sealing Squad Jonin at top speed. But Tsunade was even faster than him.
Heavenly Foot of Pain!
With a boom! The ground cracked, and shattered stones flew up, assailing Orochimaru.
Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!
Kitazawa's shuriken arrived almost simultaneously. The shuriken flickered, transforming into a dense barrage of shuriken, sealing off Orochimaru's surroundings.
With this delay, the Four Violet Flames Formation completely took shape, encircling the three of them.
Orochimaru's face darkened, and he immediately formed hand signs with both hands.
Eight Branches Technique!
At this point, he couldn't hold back anymore. Orochimaru's body suddenly swelled outwards, his clothes tearing apart, revealing white snake skin.
The shattered stones caused by Tsunade's Pain Sky Kick and Kitazawa's shuriken landed on his body, bouncing off one after another.
Orochimaru looked at the two, and two more heads emerged from his shoulders, quickly becoming eight heads in total.
"Orochimaru, you actually learned the Eight Branches Technique?" Tsunade's pupils involuntarily constricted, and she subconsciously asked.
The Eight Branches Technique was a forbidden jutsu among forbidden jutsu, extremely difficult, and, in her impression, no one had learned it.
After her words fell, Orochimaru's neck began to stretch. His body also rapidly grew larger with it.
Rumble! The ground sank because it couldn't bear his colossal body.
The Konoha Village and Otogakure Ninja who were currently fighting subconsciously looked at Orochimaru, their faces all showing shock.
They saw a colossal white snake, comparable to a Tailed Beast, standing on the earth. It had eight heads and eight tails, covering the sky and sun, looking utterly terrifying.
"This is trouble, this Eight-Headed Serpent possesses near-immortal abilities," Tsunade said with a solemn expression.
She had seen this Eight Branches Technique in the Scroll of Seals, so she knew a thing or two.
Kitazawa recalled the Eight-Headed Serpent's performance in the original work.
Itachi's Susanoo had cut off all of Orochimaru's heads with the Totsuka Blade, yet he didn't die, and ultimately could only be sealed.
From this point alone, it was indeed immortal, possessing extremely potent vitality. There was also an all-around improvement in attack and defense. Aside from that, there were no other abilities.
Even so, for a Ninja, it was already troublesome enough. But Kitazawa was not flustered.
After all, Uchiha Itachi was here. Moreover, he might be able to defeat this Eight-Headed Serpent.
"You can't trap me!"
The Eight-Headed Serpent, which Orochimaru had transformed into, roared with all eight heads in unison. He ignored Kitazawa and Tsunade, directly crashing into the Four Violet Flames Formation.
Flames soared, but they only caused some burns on the Eight-Headed Serpent's body. And these burns quickly recovered and healed.
With a boom! The Four Violet Flames Formation shook violently, and the surrounding soil and plants flew up.
The four Sealing Squad Jonin maintaining the Four Violet Flames Formation turned pale, feeling their Chakra rapidly draining.
"Stop him!" Tsunade clenched her fist and swung it forcefully.
One of Orochimaru's heads immediately turned, opened its mouth wide, and bit at her.
Tsunade abruptly rose higher in mid-air, landing a punch on his forehead. In an instant, skin and flesh tore, blood splattered, and a huge bloody crater was punched into his head.
However, his body was ultimately too large, so his head wasn't blown apart, but the effect had been achieved. His first head was incapacitated, hanging limply from his neck.
"Tsunade!" The intense pain made Orochimaru let out a shriek.
He suddenly crashed again, and the Four Violet Flames Formation was directly shattered. The next second, his seven heads all turned to look at Tsunade.
"Tsunade-sensei!"
Kitazawa shouted, simultaneously activating Senju Chakra Mode.
The Eight Branches Technique was Orochimaru's last struggle. He no longer needed to hold back, going all out.
Tsunade heard him and, with great understanding, used the Body Flicker Technique without a word.
Orochimaru naturally wouldn't let her leave. His massive body shook, and all eight tails lashed out simultaneously.
The tails were enormous, like mountains, and wherever they passed, the air let out a sharp, explosive roar.
Compound Ninjutsu: Hurricane Water Vortex Jutsu!
Kitazawa simultaneously used Wind Release: Rasengan and Water Release: Tearing Torrent.
A powerful tornado, over ten meters tall and enveloped in steam, met it head-on.
Orochimaru's eight tails instantly plunged into the tornado. The blade-like Wind Release on the outside immediately cut through his snake skin, while the high-temperature steam inside scalded his flesh.
Orochimaru cried out in pain, quickly withdrawing all eight tails. Even so, they were bloody and mangled, emitting white smoke as if they were barbecued squid.
Orochimaru felt something was wrong. Why was the power of this Compound Ninjutsu: Hurricane Water Vortex Technique similar to the Five Release Great Combo Technique?
How could two elemental Ninjutsu compare to five elemental Ninjutsu?
This was the boost from Senju Chakra Mode. When Chakra circulation efficiency increased, he could call upon more Chakra in the same amount of time. Moreover, Senju Chakra Mode also had the effect of increasing power output.
But Kitazawa didn't give Orochimaru any chance to think.
Rumble!
Above his head, countless lightning bolts illuminated the sky. Orochimaru's pupils involuntarily constricted. These dense lightning bolts were simply too many.
Lightning Release: Kirin!
Under Kitazawa's guidance, the lightning transformed into an incomparably massive Kirin, leaping down. It crashed into the Eight-Headed Serpent that Orochimaru had transformed into, creating an earth-shattering sound.
A huge crater was smashed into the ground, the earth shook, and Orochimaru was engulfed by the lightning.
"Ah ah ah!" Orochimaru's screams rang out, but they were drowned by the thunder.
Hiashi, Fugaku, and the others widened their eyes.
What kind of Lightning Release was this? They had never seen it before. Judging by its power, it must be S-Rank.
Five Release Great Combo Technique! Kitazawa continued to form hand signs without stopping.
Normally, it would be impossible to continuously use three Ninjutsu and Compound Ninjutsu that consumed such a huge amount of Chakra.
One reason was not having that much Chakra in the body. The second was that even if one did, the speed of mobilizing Chakra couldn't keep up.
But Kitazawa was different. Senju Chakra Mode allowed him to do this.
Gale winds rose, howling and rushing before Kitazawa, and in an instant, there were scorching flames again.
After the flames, lightning surged, merging with flowing water, and finally, together with a mudslide, it transformed into a giant wave of Chakra that rushed out.
Tsunade's face showed disbelief. How did the power of this Five Release Great Combo Technique increase so much?
If Kitazawa's previous Five Release Great Combo Technique was comparable to Sarutobi Hiruzen's, now it surpassed him.
Was that not his full power just now?
Tsunade was speechless for a long time at this thought. She had believed she had seen Kitazawa's full potential—but it turned out she hadn't.
Hiashi, Fugaku, Kakashi, and Shibi Aburame, among others, equated Kitazawa with Sarutobi Hiruzen.
They were all Jonin and clearly understood the value of this Five Release Great Combo Technique. This meant that every elemental Ninjutsu was mastered to an extremely high degree.
Plus, he also knew Medical Ninjutsu and Genjutsu—wasn't this a younger version of Sarutobi Hiruzen?
At this moment, everyone understood one truth. The next Hokage would definitely be Kitazawa; no one could take that away.
Fugaku thought the same. He had previously intended to support Itachi to contend for it, as he was now considered a Konoha elder.
But now, looking at it, he might as well give up—it would likely be impossible to compare with Kitazawa.
Moreover, Tsunade's first choice would definitely be Kitazawa. After all, he was her own student.
Orochimaru's massive body was still enveloped in lightning. The paralyzing effect of the electricity made him temporarily unable to move.
Fortunately, his Eight Branches Technique granted him immortality. Although it was very uncomfortable, he wouldn't die.
Orochimaru subconsciously turned his head and saw the ocean of Chakra formed by the interweaving of the five elements. He felt that the sky had brightened considerably.
Orochimaru's pupils involuntarily shook. There was something wrong with this Five Release Great Combo Technique.
The next second, the five elemental Ninjutsu of Wind, Fire, Lightning, Water, and Earth completely covered him. Together with Lightning Release: Kirin, it left Orochimaru's colossal body bloody and mangled.
But as soon as blood gushed out, it was evaporated by the flames. The Eight-Headed Serpent, originally white, had now completely turned charred black.
"Sealing Squad!" Kitazawa shouted and charged toward the Eight-Headed Serpent.
Orochimaru wouldn't die. Even if the entire Eight-Headed Serpent was destroyed by Kitazawa, he wouldn't die.
Therefore, now was the time to move into the second phase—the Sealing Technique.
Now was the best opportunity. The Eight-Headed Serpent, after three consecutive Ninjutsu bombardments, had temporarily fallen into a weakened state.
Fire Release: Great Fire Heavenly Prison!
Kitazawa used the S-Rank Sealing Technique from Mui of Demon Lantern Castle(Hozuki Castle).
In the original work, it could temporarily seal the Yin Release monster born from the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
Next, Kitazawa used all the Sealing Techniques he had learned.
With his current status, he no longer worried much about people asking about their source; if asked, he would just say he learned them himself.
Four Limbs Weighting Seal!
Evil Sealing Method!
Self Curse Seal!
Four Symbols Seal!
Kitazawa applied one Sealing Technique after another directly onto Orochimaru.
"...?" Tsunade's mouth twitched as she watched.
Orochimaru didn't deserve to be treated like that by you.