The Third Hokage's battle against Orochimaru had reached its peak. Just as Orochimaru was about to show his sensei the improvements he had made to Edo Tensei and deliver a psychological blow, something completely unplanned occurred.
With all eyes focused on the inside of the barrier—at least those who weren't busy dealing with Shukaku—no one noticed that each of the four Sound ninja maintaining the barrier suddenly had an arm bloom from their lower back. Each fist clenched tightly and came crashing down at an extremely dangerous angle.
"Chadōn: Ankoku-sei Metsugeki! (Chad Release: Dark Star Destruction Strike!)"
"AAAAAH!" —four male screams of tearing agony rang out, but…
"AAAAAH~!" —a fifth voice (female), in a noticeably different tone, made everything even more confusing.
Who attacked them? What had just happened?
"W-Was that a scream of pain?" asked a bird-masked ANBU in confusion to his colleague. "But it sounded like—"
"Shut up, Stork. You're still too young—you wouldn't understand! You haven't even gotten a girlfriend yet!" scolded another ANBU wearing a dog mask. "Focus! The barrier is falling! We need to support Hokage-sama and secure the barrier casters!"
"Uh… I don't think that'll be a problem," Stork muttered as he looked at the unconscious figures foaming at the mouth, their faces flushed a furious red, jaws nearly dislocated from pain and eyes bloodshot.
The only one who looked slightly different was the red-haired Sound kunoichi, whose eyes had rolled completely back until only the whites showed, her tongue hanging out.
While the ANBU organized themselves to support Hiruzen, Chad took the opportunity to withdraw silently, casting an annoyed glance at Shukaku. The One-Tail was already restrained by several sealing formulas and could do nothing but tremble with rage.
"What a useless beast. Couldn't it have fired off a couple of Bijūdama before the sealing team arrived?"
Konoha's losses, in terms of lives, were regrettable.
Be that as it may, it was clear that Suna had just sunk into misery. Their plan had failed completely, and now they would have to face the consequences of their actions. They didn't even know if they would recover Shukaku. Even if they did, the price would leave them in an extremely precarious state…
As for Orochimaru's failure, it couldn't really be blamed on him. For Kumo and the rest of the world—and especially for Kumo—it was better to keep Hiruzen (a man who yielded for the greater good and had grown cowardly) in the Hokage's seat for a few more years than to end up with a self-destructive, gambling alcoholic.
In fact, he was doing Konoha a huge favor!
"Too bad I couldn't steal Shukaku in secret," Chad thought. "Even if it's the weakest of the tailed beasts, it would still be an inexhaustible chakra battery. In the long run, it's more profitable to maintain a cooperative relationship with Suna as long as they keep buying Dance Powder."
Orochimaru's eventual escape and the fate of the Otogakure ninja were of no concern to him. As far as Konoha was concerned, his Kumo group remained uninvolved, simply watching events unfold without supporting either side.
When he approached the group, his clone excused itself to go relieve itself behind the trees. After dispelling it, Chad emerged a few seconds later, adjusting his belt.
"Did I miss anything?" he asked, as if he'd only stepped away briefly instead of conspiring to loot the Senju compound and steal Konoha's Scroll of Seals.
"It looks like they've already contained the bijuu," Guren commented. "I suppose the Suna ninja will surrender or flee soon."
"Should we head back now that it's over?" Ororomoi asked.
"Forget it—let's wait," Chad waved the idea away, deliberately not lowering his voice so the hidden ANBU could hear him clearly. "Konoha's on high alert. I don't want them trying anything by 'mistaking' us for the enemy."
"Yeah, they would do that," Guren agreed.
"We should've brought something to eat," Isaribi said absentmindedly.
Ororomoi stared at her in silence.
Do you think this is a picnic?
"Focus and stay in top condition," Chad reclined against a grassy slope. "Until everything settles down, we can't let our guard down."
"Can't we just leave?" Guren asked. "The chunin exams are completely ruined—there's really no reason to stay. I say we grab our things and head back to the village."
"I disagree," Isaribi interjected. "If we leave during the chaos, they might say we're colluding with Suna or try to blame us for something we didn't do."
"Isaribi is right," Chad pointed out. "We're Konoha's 'guests' right now. Leaving abruptly would cause problems, even if all we did was observe."
"Then how long do we have to stay?" Guren asked impatiently. "After what happened, anyone who isn't from the village will be viewed with suspicion. I'm not putting up with that!"
And by "put up with," she meant beating up anyone who looked at her that way.
"Precisely because of what happened, we'll leave at first light tomorrow," Chad announced. "We'll give them the chance to give us an 'explanation' for the security failure of this exam. Not only did they allow this to happen, they still haven't accounted for the fake scrolls in the second test!" he said with righteous indignation. "Don't worry—we can stop by the Yamanaka flower shop to pick up some seeds before leaving."
"…Fine," Guren dropped the matter.
Isaribi was holding back her laughter with all her strength, even struggling to suppress her shaking.
Konoha's ANBU were still nearby—she couldn't expose her sensei with her behavior!
…
"So the Kumo ninja simply went up to the Hokage Rock and did nothing?" Hiruzen asked as a medical ninja treated him in his office. "They just watched Suna's attack with their arms crossed?"
After Orochimaru's assault, this was no time to stay in bed. He was already reviewing reports of casualties and destruction to estimate the losses.
"Yes," a long–purple-haired ANBU reported, recounting everything that had happened.
When Hiruzen heard the repeated conversation, he grimaced.
"To think that Kumo, of all people, has the nerve to say something like that after what happened with the Hyūga…"
"Should we detain them under some pretext?" the ANBU asked.
"No. The fewer unstable elements in the village right now, the better," Hiruzen shook his head, his weary gaze drifting toward the window. "Let them go. They—"
BOOOOM!
Stunned by what he saw, Hiruzen's pipe slipped from his lips and fell to the floor, scattering its embers.
"T-That was…" the ANBU sounded shocked behind her mask as she stood and approached the window.
The small fires caused by Suna's ninja had already been extinguished, but now a massive blaze was licking at one of the village's most critical infrastructures—right at its heart.
The Senju compound.
"Orochimaru!" Hiruzen clenched his fists as he watched one of the village's historical landmarks—the home of its founder—being reduced to charred ruins.
Was this his revenge for failing to kill him?
Did he really do that to Tsunade's home—his former teammate's ancestral house?!
Hiruzen's expression changed as he hurried to check a hidden seal on his desk.
"The compound's barrier was triggered," he realized. Orochimaru hadn't fled the moment everything turned against him.
Instead, he had pretended to flee to take advantage of Hiruzen's absence and infiltrate the Senju compound!
His objective was clear to Hiruzen: Tobirama's collection!
Did that mean Tsunade's family library was now in Orochimaru's hands?
"How am I supposed to explain this to Tsunade?" His headache worsened.
He had been wondering how to bring her back to the village—and now her ancestral home was gone!
"Uh, Hokage-sama?"
"What is it, Yugao?" Hiruzen asked.
What else could possibly go wrong?
"It seems more than one seal has been activated," she pointed at the desk.
"Hmm?" Hiruzen noticed that another alarm seal was indeed active.
But when he saw which one it was, panic seized him.
He hurriedly opened a secret compartment hidden behind a landscape scroll and examined its contents.
Empty.
He desperately felt around inside, as if hoping whatever had been there might still exist—just invisible.
Nothing.
"The Scroll of Seals! It's gone—the scroll of Tobirama-sensei, the village's scroll… he…" he muttered, going pale within seconds.
"Hokage-sama?" Yugao asked cautiously. "Are you alright?"
His response was a roar that echoed throughout the village.
"O-RO-CHI-MA-RU!"
Hiruzen spat two mouthfuls of blood and collapsed unconscious in fury.
Those present watched as Hiruzen fell to the floor.
"Medic!" Yugao shouted immediately, rushing to his side and tending to the Hokage, who seemed to have aged ten years after that scream.
…
"What was that?" Ororomoi leaned out the window, confused by the shout.
The group had returned to their temporary residence while waiting for things to calm down—and to keep Guren from punching someone.
"Music to my ears," Chad laughed, mentally tallying today's gains.
At the same time, he silently thanked Orochimaru for so kindly taking the blame. What a selfless man!
"Sir, I think I can see the Senju compound on fire!" Ororomoi said from the window.
Isaribi and Guren exchanged looks for a moment.
It seemed they now had their answer as to where their sensei had been. They should have guessed—especially considering how much Chad despised Tsunade.
After all, she was one of the three responsible for the death of Inazuri, the mother of Chad and Mabui!