The situation was now crystal clear.
The Konoha ninja had known all along that he would make his move on Sasuke in the Forest of Death. They had set an ambush around Sasuke, waiting for him to walk right into their trap.
And Orochimaru, completely oblivious, had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker!
*What a disastrous start.*
Orochimaru was beyond frustrated. In his entire career, he had never suffered such a humiliating defeat.
*So, where did I go wrong?*
His mind raced as he sank into deep thought.
Only his subordinates from the Sound Village knew about the plan for Sasuke. No one else.
*Could the Sound Trio have leaked the information?*
*Impossible.*
The plan hadn't even been officially set in motion!
*Those three are useless, but surely not THIS useless!*
*If not the Sound Trio, then who? How did the news get out?*
Orochimaru turned the problem over in his mind, but he couldn't reach a definitive conclusion.
He was completely clueless.
"Interesting."
"Truly interesting."
Orochimaru couldn't help but grin, but even his smile sent a chill down one's spine. This was a man who had truly lived his life as a snake.
"It seems you were all waiting for me here."
"You seem to know something."
Though his identity had been exposed, Orochimaru remained as calm as a mountain, unhurried and composed.
"Senior, what's going on?"
Beside him, Sasuke was even more bewildered. He had been stunned before—how could a Genin possess such formidable strength? He had already guessed that this person must have a hidden background. Now it seemed his suspicions were confirmed.
Moreover, judging by the conversation between the two parties, this man named Orochimaru seemed to have come specifically for him. What was going on?
"Leave this place immediately!"
Inoichi Yamanaka didn't offer Sasuke any further explanation, only giving the command in a low, stern voice.
"Let's go!"
Sasuke, naturally, could distinguish between priorities. Without any delay, he immediately called out to Sakura and quickly left the scene. They set off to find the "missing" Naruto.
Only Orochimaru and Inoichi Yamanaka's group remained on the scene, facing off against each other.
"Orochimaru, since you betrayed Konoha, you have no right to return!"
Inoichi Yamanaka refocused his attention on Orochimaru, his gaze turning piercingly cold.
"That's not for someone of your level to decide," Orochimaru replied with complete indifference. "I'm curious—how did you all know I was targeting that brat?"
"There's no rush. I'll tell you all about it in my interrogation room."
Inoichi's voice suddenly turned icy. He swept his hand forward. "Seize him!"
*Swish! Swish! Swish!*
The Anbu ninja all unleashed their Body Flicker Technique, charging toward Orochimaru.
Orochimaru remained impassive. Without a hint of panic, he simply extended a hand toward the oncoming attackers. A swarm of snakes instantly burst from his sleeve, effortlessly blocking the Anbu ninja.
Inoichi knew Orochimaru wouldn't be an easy target. He charged forward himself, his kunai flashing in a seamless blur as he sliced through the snakes in his path.
He was the first to break through the defense, closing the distance to Orochimaru.
*BOOM!*
But a thunderous boom shook the very earth.
Before Inoichi Yamanaka could even get close to Orochimaru, a colossal black snake—thicker than a man's body—burst from the ground. It lunged, jaws gaping wide, snapping fiercely at him.
Inoichi, naturally, wouldn't engage in a direct clash. He used the Body Flicker Technique to dodge the attack with practiced precision. The giant snake's head slammed into the ground, smashing a crater into the earth.
Despite its size, the serpent was incredibly fast. After its first strike missed, it immediately launched a second wave of attacks, temporarily pinning Inoichi down.
"Damn it!"
As he fought the snake, Inoichi quickly scanned the battlefield, only to find that Orochimaru had already vanished. He had retreated with such clean efficiency that not a single trace remained.
By the time Inoichi and the Anbu ninjas dealt with the immediate threat, the last remnants of Orochimaru's chakra had completely dissipated.
Inoichi Yamanaka's abilities were still a few levels short of what was needed to deal with Orochimaru.
"Keep your eyes on Sasuke!"
"In case Orochimaru shows up again."
"Report any suspicious activity to me immediately."
After issuing these orders to the Anbu ninja, Inoichi's body blurred as he used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished.
He returned to the Sensory Unit at once and ordered them to track Orochimaru.
When he discovered that Orochimaru had already returned to the Kazekage's Reception under the guise of the Kazekage, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
It seemed Orochimaru still didn't know his cover as the Kazekage had been blown.
Inoichi Yamanaka ordered the Sensory Unit to keep monitoring the Kazekage and immediately reported the situation to the Third Hokage.
In truth, the Third Hokage had already learned about the events in the Forest of Death long before Inoichi Yamanaka arrived.
Therefore, he wasn't very surprised by Inoichi's report.
"To think the Kazekage was actually Orochimaru!"
The Third Hokage could only sigh in astonishment.
Though he had suspected the diary's claims might be true when he discovered the Kazekage was an impostor—that the real Kazekage had indeed been assassinated—he never expected Orochimaru to be so brazen. To not only impersonate the Kazekage so openly but to stroll right into Konoha and appear before him in person.
The Third Hokage had assumed that even if Orochimaru were planning some grand scheme like the Konoha Crush, he would surely lurk in the shadows, operating from the dark. After all, Orochimaru was an S-rank rogue ninja wanted by the entire village!
All he could say was that Orochimaru had nerve.
"Lord Hokage, what are our next steps?" Inoichi Yamanaka asked immediately.
"Orochimaru doesn't know his disguise has been blown. For now, we will not expose him," the Third Hokage instructed. "Keep a close eye on him, but do not alert him to our suspicions."
If Orochimaru was truly making a move on Sasuke during the Chunin Exams, just as Naruto's prophecy had predicted, then the Konoha Crush was almost certainly underway.
The prophecy had been powerfully confirmed!
How could the Third Hokage dare to be the slightest bit complacent in such a situation?
The next course of action was, of course, perfectly clear:
First, keep Orochimaru at bay. Then, as quickly as possible, uncover the schemes of Orochimaru and Sunagakure.
This strategy was exactly what Inoichi Yamanaka had in mind. He immediately nodded. "I understand."
"Do not slacken your investigation of Sunagakure either."
"It now seems highly likely that they truly intend to strike Konoha."
The Third Hokage added once more, "We must ascertain the situation as quickly as possible."
This went without saying. Not just Inoichi Yamanaka, but the Anbu had also received corresponding orders from the Third Hokage long ago.
In short, with the Third Hokage's command, an invisible undercurrent began to surge.
However, these matters were not for outsiders to know.
Aside from the Third Hokage and his inner circle, no one else noticed a thing—not Orochimaru, not Baki and the other Sunagakure ninjas, nor the vast number of Genin participating in the Chunin Exams.
Not even Zhou Cheng.
At this moment, he was still enthusiastically exploring the Forest of Death.
Witnessing the terror Gaara, the Great Demon King, inflicted upon other ninjas, and seeing the god-tier plays of geniuses like Neji, Rock Lee, and Sasuke, was genuinely entertaining.
Zhou Cheng found the entire experience fascinating right up until the end of the exam.
"Wait."
"What about the Curse Mark on Sasuke's neck?"
This was the only thing that struck Zhou Cheng as strange.
He remembered it clearly: in the Forest of Death, Sasuke encountered Orochimaru and was branded with the Curse Mark!
*Did that simply not happen in this world?*
Considering Naruto had learned about his true identity so much earlier than in the original story, this world was clearly a parallel universe to the *Naruto* anime.
It had its own unique deviations.
This only piqued Zhou Cheng's interest further. Just how large were these deviations? Would there be some unexpected and intriguing developments he hadn't foreseen?
Zhou Cheng found himself eagerly anticipating what was to come.
Brimming with excitement, he attended the tournament in person, continuing to "watch" the subsequent arena matches.
However, this tournament was exactly as he remembered it.
The group pairings were identical, and every group's performance in the arena was the same.
Yet, Zhou Cheng still thoroughly enjoyed himself.
After all, watching the images on a screen was a completely different experience from being there in person.
Even after the preliminary rounds ended, Zhou Cheng felt he hadn't seen enough.
The Third Hokage immediately announced that the official tournament would be held one month later.
With that, the Chunin Exams temporarily drew to a close.
"Another month?"
Zhou Cheng couldn't help but shake his head. A month was simply too long to wait.
Although the Konoha Crush would unfold then, and the main event would make its grand debut, he didn't need to just sit around and wait, did he?
Why not visit other worlds to pass the time and come back in a month to watch the show?
After a moment's thought, Zhou Cheng naturally reached this decision.
"Alright, time to go collect from Nick Fury!"
Calculating the time, the mess in the Marvel Ultimate Universe should have been cleaned up by now.
It was time for him to return.
*Whoosh!*
Once his mind was made up, Zhou Cheng didn't hesitate any longer.
He immediately activated his Dimensional Travel ability and vanished in an instant.
The next moment, the scene before Zhou Cheng's eyes shifted, and he found himself back on the familiar streets of New York.
Looking around, the city, which had been ravaged by the Liberators, had now completely returned to normal. The damaged buildings had long been repaired, and the crowds of people were bustling with life once again. It was another picture of prosperity, as if nothing had ever happened.
Considering this was Marvel, and New York at that, where super-powered beings tore the place apart every other day, Zhou Cheng was no stranger to this.
But such matters had nothing to do with him anyway. After a brief sigh of sentiment, he put it completely out of his mind.
"Intellect Body."
Withdrawing his attention, Zhou Cheng summoned the Intellect Body and issued a command: "Create a high-security account for me."
"Sir, it is complete."
As expected of a super-AI, it had finished such a complex task in an instant.
Zhou Cheng nodded in satisfaction. Since that was settled, it was time to go collect his payment from that old bastard, Nick Fury.
*Whoosh!*
His mind made up, Zhou Cheng released his Observation Haki and immediately located Nick Fury.
*Swish!*
The next moment, Zhou Cheng shot into the air, flying straight toward the Sanfeishi Building.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared outside the building.
His super-human vision pierced through the glass walls, revealing the scene inside.
He saw Nick Fury, Captain America, and a Black man he had never seen before, all engaged in a serious discussion.
That man was actually a superhero in Marvel—Sam Wilson, also known as Falcon.
Unlike the retired soldier in the MCU, this universe's Sam Wilson was an active-duty soldier and a jungle warfare expert.
Nick Fury had specifically recruited him for the upcoming operation in Tunguska.
Indeed, the reconnaissance team Egghead had dispatched to Tunguska had returned with definitive results.
A massive alien spacecraft wreck was indeed hidden there.
Nick Fury had been eager to investigate for some time, but the aftermath of the Liberators' mess had left him with a mountain of problems to deal with.
That was why he had been forced to delay until now.
"An alien spacecraft? Nick, is this intelligence reliable?"
Captain America's voice rang out as he pressed Nick Fury for confirmation. After all, the information was truly staggering.
Because Tony had handed the traitor Black Widow over to S.H.I.E.L.D., the truth about the Liberators framing Captain America had come to light, and he had naturally been released.
"I've already confirmed it," Nick Fury said to Captain America, his voice heavy. He was about to say more, but his expression suddenly shifted.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a figure who had materialized in the room like a ghost.
"Who's there!"
Captain America and Falcon sprang to their feet, staring at Zhou Cheng as if facing a deadly foe.
The windows were sealed, and the door hadn't opened. How had this man gotten in?
More importantly, was he friend or foe?
"Zhou, it's you!" Nick Fury recognized him. "I was wondering when you'd show up. I've already got the money ready."
Only then did Captain America and Falcon relax. Judging by Fury's tone, the newcomer was an ally.
"Captain, Sam, let me introduce you. This is Zhou Cheng. I'm sure the rest of the Ultimate Team has already told you about him," Egghead said, briefly introducing Zhou Cheng to the two.
Captain America's expression shifted slightly, and he couldn't help but stare at Zhou Cheng in utter astonishment.
The Ultimate Team had indeed told him about the Liberators' invasion—and specifically about an incredibly powerful mercenary. According to their intel, this man could easily take down the entire team in seconds.
*I never imagined he'd be so young.*
-----------------------
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