Sarutobi Hiruzen stood motionless by the window, gazing out at the peaceful village bathed in the morning sun. Yet his mind was anything but calm. A strange unease gnawed at the edges of his thoughts.
Then—
BOOM!!!
A thunderous explosion shattered the silence.
"!"
The blast rocked the Hokage's office. Hiruzen's eyes widened as flames shot into the sky from the village gates. Smoke billowed upward, thick and fast, obscuring the morning light.
Behind him, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane flinched. The detonation had taken them by surprise too.
"An attack...?" Hiruzen muttered, the words more a confirmation than a question. His gut had been right. The ominous feeling he'd ignored had come to life.
Another Konoha ninja burst into the room, panting and frantic. "Lord Third! The village—it's under attack!"
Hiruzen turned sharply. "Who is it?!"
Homura stepped forward. "Did you see the enemy? Who's leading the assault?"
The ninja swallowed hard. "It's Sunagakure... led by the Fourth Kazekage!"
"What?!"
Koharu's voice was sharp. Homura stared in disbelief.
Sunagakure?!
That couldn't be. They were allies. There had been no signs—no warnings.
Koharu turned to Hiruzen, her voice tense. "Hiruzen, what's going on here? Why would Sunagakure turn on us?"
Hiruzen's face darkened. "I don't know. Under normal circumstances, they'd never risk an attack like this. Unless…"
He paused, the weight of the thought sinking in.
"…unless they've joined forces with another hidden village."
A grim silence fell over the room.
If that was true, then this wasn't just an attack—it was the start of a war.
Homura straightened, steadying his breath. "We need to start evacuating the civilians immediately."
Hiruzen nodded. "Agreed."
He turned to the messenger. "Alert all ninja forces. Prioritize evacuation of the villagers. Once that's underway, all available shinobi are to mobilize for battle."
"Yes, Lord Hokage!"
The ninja vanished in a blur of movement.
Hiruzen then turned to his two old comrades. "You two… evacuate with the villagers."
Neither argued. There was no time for pride.
Without another word, Hiruzen strode from the room, heading toward the heart of the village. Already, shinobi were rushing in from all corners—jounin, clan heads, and village defenders, converging toward the Hokage's building.
Among them were the Hyuga clan, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans—Ino-Shika-Cho. Veterans like Hatake Kakashi and Might Guy, Sarutobi Asuma, and others arrived one after another.
The distant tremors of battle echoed louder with each passing second.
By the time they reached the rooftop, Hiruzen was already in his combat attire, his gaze fixed on the smoke rising in the distance.
The group gathered in silence. They needed leadership—now more than ever.
Yamanaka Inoichi stepped forward. "Lord Third—what's the plan?"
Hiruzen didn't respond immediately. Instead, his eyes shifted to the one man known for his strategic brilliance—Nara Shikaku.
"Shikaku. What's your assessment?"
Shikaku folded his arms, eyes narrowed. "This came too fast. We don't have time to launch a coordinated counterattack. Right now, our priority should be the villagers. Keep them safe, minimize chaos. Then—retaliate."
Hiruzen nodded. "Agreed. We'll hold the front while the evacuation is completed."
But before another word could be said—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
A fresh round of violent explosions erupted just beyond the village walls. This time, the tremors were stronger. Fire and ash spilled into the sky. A second later—
BANG!
A massive plume of white smoke appeared on the battlefield, rising high above the rooftops.
Then—
ROOOOOOAR!!!
A monstrous cry tore through the air.
The shinobi on the rooftop stiffened.
A Summoning Jutsu?!
As the smoke thinned, the figure of a gigantic white snake emerged, coiled and writhing, eyes glowing with malice.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart sank. He knew that snake.
He clenched his fists tightly, jaw tightening.
"Orochimaru…"
Could it be… that man?
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened in an instant, a rare flicker of genuine anger rising in his usually calm eyes.
That madman—did he really come back… to take revenge on Konoha?
His jaw clenched, knuckles whitening as his fists tightened. A bead of cold sweat rolled down his temple.
If only I had ended him back then...
Before he could complete the thought, a deafening boom shattered the tense silence.
The outer wall of Konoha buckled violently as a massive white snake—summoned with terrifying power—smashed through it like paper. The mighty fortification collapsed in seconds, rubble raining down mercilessly.
Ninjas near the breach were instantly buried under falling debris, their screams swallowed by the chaos.
Konoha's first line of defense had been shattered in an instant.
And behind that breach surged a flood of enemies.
Thousands of Sunagakure shinobi poured through the opening, charging into the heart of the village with blades drawn. They clashed head-on with the defenders of Konoha, and in the blink of an eye, war erupted.
Steel rang against steel. Roars, screams, and the scent of blood filled the air.
Sarutobi stood tall despite the chaos around him, then raised his voice over the madness. "All units—engage with full force!"
"Yes, Lord Hokage!" the jōnin around him answered in unison before vanishing into the battlefield.
Meanwhile, just outside the broken wall of Konoha…
Orochimaru and Rasa stood shoulder to shoulder, their expressions laced with a twisted excitement as they watched the chaos unfold.
The gates had fallen. Their plan was in motion.
A silence passed between them—brief, but meaningful.
Then Orochimaru's hoarse voice cut through it. "Come, Kazekage. Let's go pay the Third Hokage a visit."
Rasa nodded without a word.
But just as Orochimaru turned to lead the way, his eyes flicked toward a figure leaning lazily against a tree.
A smirk curled his lips.
"Well then… Mr. Zeldris," he said, voice dripping with amusement, "I'll be counting on you next."
The figure stirred. Zeldris straightened and stepped forward, his golden eyes indifferent.
He spoke slowly, calmly, but there was an unmistakable edge in his tone.
"Orochimaru-san, isn't all this… a bit too slow for my taste?"
?!
Orochimaru's grin faltered. Rasa's eyes narrowed slightly in confusion.
Zeldris stepped closer, hands in his pockets. His tone remained casual, but the weight behind his words was heavy.
"I didn't come all this way just to watch fireworks. Let me handle it…"
"…And end this quickly."
Orochimaru hesitated for a moment. He hadn't planned for this. Zeldris was supposed to act later, on cue—not now.
But then again…
A glimmer of amusement lit up Orochimaru's eyes. He chuckled darkly.
"Very well. Do as you please, Mr. Zeldris."
He stepped back, eager to see what the mysterious outsider would do.
Rasa, however, wasn't as calm. He stared at Zeldris intently, unease gnawing at him.
This guy… Is he really planning to use that move?
Rasa's thoughts flashed back to a nightmare.
Back when Zeldris invaded Sunagakure.
One technique—that was all it took. One terrifying, overwhelming technique that not only deflected Shukaku's Tailed Beast Bomb but nearly reduced their entire village to rubble.
He had seen it with his own eyes. The destructive power was beyond anything he had imagined.
Even now, the memory sent a chill down his spine.
While Orochimaru and Rasa stood rooted in place, Zeldris calmly raised both fists. A soft glow began to form—faint at first, but rapidly intensifying.
Two blinding white energy shells wrapped around his fists.
"…!"
Orochimaru's pupils contracted. His smile vanished.
What is this…?
He had studied forbidden arts most shinobi didn't even know existed—and yet, this was new. Unfamiliar. Dangerous.
Beside him, Rasa felt his throat tighten.
It was happening again.
Zeldris pressed his fists together—and the two glowing shells merged into a single, radiant force.
BOOM!
A wave of pressure rippled out as the energy condensed into a massive, white sphere around Zeldris's right arm. Its brightness was so intense that even the sunlight paled in comparison.
Orochimaru and Rasa shielded their eyes, both caught off guard by the sheer force of it.
All across the battlefield, fighting came to a halt. Shinobi from both sides turned toward the light, confused and alarmed.
"What the hell is that?!"
"Why is it so bright?!"
"What… is this pressure?!"
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen, watching from the rooftop of the Hokage's office, was stunned. His old eyes locked onto the white light in the distance, heart pounding.
That's not Orochimaru's jutsu…
What the hell is it?
An ominous dread washed over him.
A chill ran down his back. His instincts screamed danger.
Back at the breach, Orochimaru and Rasa—standing closest to Zeldris—were reeling.
The pressure was suffocating.
Especially Rasa. He remembered this feeling too well. The sheer destructive power condensed in that single blow…
Zeldris wasn't just fighting.
He was planning to destroy the entire village in one strike.
"Didn't he say he'd only intervene against everyone except the Hokage?!"
"What the hell is he doing now?!"
Orochimaru, standing off to the side, was surprised—yes—but more than that, he was excited. The display of raw, otherworldly power from Zeldris wasn't just unexpected... it was captivating.
To Orochimaru, Zeldris was no longer just a threat or an unknown force.
He was perfection—a living enigma that had to be unraveled.
An irresistible pull gnawed at him like a hunger. The more he watched, the more convinced he became: this boy wasn't just worth observing—he had to be claimed. Taken. Transformed into a vessel.
A twisted smile crept across Orochimaru's face, snake-like and calculating.
"The secrets he holds…" Orochimaru murmured, eyes gleaming. "Even more valuable than the Uchiha's Sharingan..."
Before he could get lost in his thoughts, Zeldris stirred.
His eyes, closed just a moment before, slowly opened—calm and unhurried.
A breath escaped his lips, soft, almost meditative.
Then—he struck.
Zeldris didn't aim at anyone.
He simply threw a punch straight into the air.
CRACK!
A clear, glass-shattering sound rang out through the battlefield.
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen, watching from a distance, felt a chill crawl down his spine.
His sharp gaze snapped toward the source—the punch.
Orochimaru blinked.
That sound…?
He narrowed his eyes—and saw it.
From the point of impact, spreading outward like cracks on a mirror, were fractures in the very fabric of the sky.
The air itself shimmered unnaturally, bending and splitting in jagged white lines.
"...No," Orochimaru muttered.
His pulse quickened.
The sound hadn't been metaphorical. It was literal.
Reality was breaking.
And the cause—was Zeldris's fist.
What… kind of power is this?
His breath hitched.
For all his knowledge, for all his centuries of forbidden jutsu and experiments, this… this was new.
This wasn't chakra. This wasn't kekkei genkai. It wasn't even a dojutsu.
It was something far beyond.
The sky rippled again.
All across the battlefield, shinobi looked up, their expressions turning to dread.
"What... is happening?!"
"Those cracks in the air... is that space falling apart?!"
A jōnin fell to one knee, gasping for air as cold sweat drenched his uniform.
Even ANBU, trained to remain stoic under pressure, found their masks trembling.
Sarutobi's face twisted in disbelief, his jaw clenched tightly.
He had seen war.
He had seen demons.
But this?
This was something else.
The ground began to tremble—slow at first, then violently. Dust flew into the air. Cracks splintered the earth beneath them. The entire battlefield shook as if the world itself were about to be torn in two.
And then—BOOM!
A blinding white halo exploded from Zeldris's fist, firing like a cannonball across the battlefield. It roared through the air, tearing toward Hokage Rock with a power that seemed impossible to stop.
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