Chapter 159: Nagai Hōsai Enters the Fray
Pffft! Orochimaru coldly plunged the Muramasa into Tanigawa's heart.
The evil, blood-sucking nature of Muramasa and the severe, intensifying pain from the wound made Tanigawa instinctively clutch the demonic sword. His eyes, wide with terror and venomous resentment, stared directly at Orochimaru as he spat out large mouthfuls of blood and fragments of internal organs.
Orochimaru stared back into Tanigawa's eyes, his dark-golden gaze filled with mockery and ruthlessness. Too much experience had taught him that the defeated had no right to hate.
Orochimaru slowly pulled Muramasa out and returned it to the sheath at his waist. Blood spurted forth. Tanigawa's eyes dimmed, and he collapsed onto the ground in a pool of blood.
Looking at Tanigawa's corpse, a sharp, knife-like cold light flashed in Orochimaru's dark-golden snake eyes. Only power, and only increasingly powerful strength, was the truth of this cruel world!
Boom! A deafening explosion suddenly erupted from the central battlefield where the Semi-Kage level fighters were engaged.
Following this, a vast, imposing aura, one that left a deep impression on Orochimaru, shot skyward like a towering jade pillar.
That powerful presence—as vast and elusive as the boundless yellow sand and endless desert, yet harboring the terrifying strength of a sandstorm—suddenly rose from the center of the battlefield.
The deep-blue robes of the Wind Shadow (Kazekage) clearly identified the newcomer: the Second Kazekage, Nagai Hōsai.
Orochimaru's heart jolted. He knew better than anyone the consequences of a Kage level powerhouse suddenly appearing on the battlefield. He realized that this large-scale battle must have been planned the moment the Kazekage arrived at the front lines, intended as a sudden, concealed ambush from within the Sand Ninja ranks to utterly defeat Konoha.
At this thought, Orochimaru couldn't help but admire Nagai Hōsai's cunning and daring. For a nation's Kage to leave the village and travel to the front line meant directly stripping their home base of its greatest defense and presenting it to the other great nations on a silver platter.
If the Land of Earth were to receive this news right now, the peace statement issued just days prior would likely be torn to shreds by the Second Tsuchikage, who would immediately march their army into the Land of Wind.
These thoughts only flashed through Orochimaru's mind. Seeing the Kazekage appear, Orochimaru quickly signaled to Jiraiya and the others and urgently bolted toward the central battlefield.
Nagai Hōsai, wearing the robes of the Wind Shadow, stood composedly on the branch of a towering tree, gazing at Uchiha Kagami and the others opposite him. Three Sand Ninja Semi-Kage powerhouses stood respectfully bowed a step behind him.
While Nagai Hōsai appeared calm on the surface, he was actually greatly surprised. His surprise attack, which was meant to be a sure thing, had been jointly blocked by Uchiha Kagami and Uchiha Fushō, and the two had sustained only minor, irrelevant injuries.
Gazing at the blood-red, three-tomoe Sharingan in their eyes, Nagai Hōsai sighed inwardly: the Three Great Eye Techniques truly lived up to their name!
Meanwhile, Uchiha Kagami and the others were reeling inside, their palms sweating despite their years of composure, as they contemplated the consequences. The appearance of a Kage level powerhouse added a massive, heavy weight to the Sand Ninja's side of the scales, one capable of overturning the entire war situation.
Just then, everyone sensed a tyrannical and terrifying aura rapidly approaching the central battlefield.
This aura was arrogant, unrestrained, and malevolently chilling, plunging like a dagger into the combined auras of the combatants in the center.
This evil, dominant aura was heavily laced with the scent of slaughter, making everyone feel as if they were sensing a moving mountain of corpses and a surging, boundless sea of blood. Just by sensing it, they felt a palpable, overwhelming stench of gore.
This powerful and murderous aura startled both sides, and everyone turned to look in the direction it was coming from.
They saw a familiar figure in a moon-white kimono quickly leaping and darting through the treetops, sprinting toward them. It was Orochimaru, no longer concealing his strength.
A powerful Semi-Kage level aura and Chakra fluctuation erupted from his body.
Nagai Hōsai muttered in slight surprise: "Orochimaru? At his age, how is that possible? When did he break through?"
No one could answer. They didn't know that Orochimaru's level of insight and understanding had long been sufficient; all he had lacked was the necessary accumulation of Chakra and the refinement of his physical strength.
Having arrived just in time, Orochimaru suddenly noticed something that both shocked and thrilled him: Nagai Hōsai had a very strange set of dark circles around his eyes!
Orochimaru knew exactly what this special discovery signified.
He was shocked because he now faced not only a Kage level powerhouse but also a Jinchūriki (Tailed Beast Host).
He was thrilled because, since his rebirth, he had never been this close to the One-Tails, Shukaku—the most crucial element of his predetermined plan.
Orochimaru took a deep breath, his gaze solemn and guarded as he looked at Nagai Hōsai. He knew that the current situation was a moment that could lead to heaven or hell.
Uchiha Kagami, looking at Orochimaru as he landed on a nearby tree and focused his mind for battle, was filled with astonishment. He finally understood why Orochimaru commanded such high respect among Konoha ninja: because he was a man who brought miracles, a man who continually forged his own legend.
At this moment, not just Uchiha Kagami, but also Uchiha Fushō, Nara Shikahira, and the others, felt a question arise in their hearts: Facing a Kage level opponent, would a miracle happen again? Was it possible they could win?
Orochimaru had arrived. He brought not only the formidable fighting strength of a Semi-Kage level fighter but also a sliver of hope for victory.
Nagai Hōsai, being a Kage level powerhouse, keenly sensed the sudden shift in the Konoha side's morale. Knowing he could no longer afford to simply watch, he surged the pure, immense Chakra within his body.
Nagai Hōsai's movement served as the signal for battle. The ninja from both sides exchanged looks and moved in unison.
Uchiha Fushō and the three clan heads desperately engaged the three Sand Ninja Semi-Kage powerhouses, buying time so that the strongest of their group, Uchiha Kagami, and Orochimaru, whose true strength was completely unknown to the enemy, could combine forces and move to jointly assault the Kage level opponent, Nagai Hōsai.
Nagai Hōsai cast a dismissive glance. He wasn't concerned; after all, he still held his ultimate trump card.
Without needing to speak, the highly experienced Uchiha Kagami and Orochimaru understood each other's intentions from their movements. They began sprinting at high speed, one on the left and one on the right, taking the initiative and rapidly charging toward Nagai Hōsai.
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