"Hokage-sama!"
The surrounding shinobi froze in shock; Menma hadn't actually expected Hiruzen Sarutobi to put himself in harm's way!
Immediately, Ōkami, the captain of the Anbu, barked orders to the remaining members behind him.
"Go to the Death Forest test site and summon Kakashi, Asuma, and all the Jōnin and elite chunin."
"The rest of you, alert the clans in the village. Tell them the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki has lost control. Bring reinforcements immediately to suppress him!"
Upon hearing the orders, the Anbu members scattered like shadows.
Zō, after his initial shock, finally reacted.
He rushed to the edge of the Four Violet Flames Formation and roared at Menma inside.
"Menma, those Anbu are dead, so be it! There's still room to maneuver!"
"If you dare kill the Hokage, there won't be a single safe place in the entire Konoha—hell, not in the entire Land of Fire!"
Menma tilted his head, looking at Zō pressed against the barrier.
"Didn't you hear what I just said?"
"I'm saving Hiruzen Sarutobi's life."
As he spoke, Menma grabbed the Third Hokage by his collar and tossed him onto the ground like a sack of trash.
Before Zō could continue, Orochimaru started clapping.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
"That's right. His limbs are crippled, but he wasn't decapitated or have his heart ripped out."
"With Sarutobi-sensei's still-strong constitution, he could live another ten years or so in a wheelchair…"
Orochimaru looked down at Hiruzen on the ground, his voice chillingly casual.
"You agree, right, Sarutobi-sensei?"
"Hack… cough…" The stricken Third Hokage, numb from the neck down, looked utterly defeated and regretful.
He couldn't even push himself up now, lying face-down like a dead dog.
"I should have just used Reaper Death Seal to take you down with me and end this farce."
"And you, Menma Uzumaki!"
"Three months ago, I should have had Inoichi use the Yamanaka clan's Secret Technique: Mind Transfer Technique to seal you away!"
"I originally thought you could be useful to the village, bringing prosperity."
"Unfortunately, you're just an ungrateful menace. Cough…"
"Stop blowing smoke, Old Geezer," Menma sneered.
Then he turned and looked toward the Sarutobi Clan compound.
"This is just a warm-up for the main event. Soon, you'll regret not being dead right now."
Simply crippling Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't enough for Menma after all this preparation.
He needed to wait for Minato to bring the files hidden in the Sarutobi mansion.
Then, in front of every ninja and the Daimyo, he would tear down the false image Hiruzen had built.
After his strength and reputation were both destroyed, Hiruzen would no longer be eligible for Hokage.
However, since Hiruzen was still alive, Tsunade would certainly not return to Konoha to become the Fifth Hokage.
Therefore, the only suitable candidates were Jiraiya and Danzo.
Jiraiya definitely didn't want to be Hokage.
And if Danzo became Hokage, the Third, if he didn't want his entire clan wiped out, would certainly not agree.
Then the internal power struggle between Danzo and Hiruzen would be quite the show!
Just as Menma was thinking this, a whistling sound suddenly rang out from behind him!
Menma frowned. His fox tail shot out like lightning.
Clang!
The gleaming Kusanagi sword was blocked by the chakra-infused tail inches from Hiruzen's forehead.
"Oh dear, oh dear. I didn't expect to be discovered after all."
"Looks like you really don't intend to let Sarutobi-sensei die. I thought you were just fooling those idiots outside…"
Orochimaru's sneak attack had failed, but he showed no disappointment. He just shrugged and grinned, seemingly unafraid.
"You want to attack me?"
Seeing Orochimaru's expression, Menma's interest was piqued.
"No, no, don't misunderstand."
Orochimaru waved his hands, his face displaying an expression that practically screamed, I, Orochimaru, am asking for a beating!
"I just want to kill the Third Hokage. Or maybe test if Wood Release can truly counter Tailed Beast chakra."
As he spoke, the First and Second Hokage—Hashirama and Tobirama Senju—standing off to the side rushed toward Menma, hands rapidly forming seals.
Orochimaru leaped back several steps, shouting excitedly.
"Come on! Taste the First Hokage's Impure World Reincarnation, which I deliberately risked losing control of and increased by ten percent!"
When searching for Sasuke, Orochimaru had nearly been killed by Menma's shadow clone using Nine-Tails chakra.
Therefore, when creating Hashirama's Edo Tensei, he didn't use a genin—he used a chunin!
This way, Hashirama could better use Wood Release to counter Tailed Beast chakra, avoiding another Waterloo!
Just as Orochimaru shouted, Hashirama and Tobirama's ninjutsu was completed.
Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!
Wood Release: Great Forest Technique!
In an instant, spreading darkness enveloped Menma's vision.
Simultaneously, on the ground around him, two enormous wooden hands burst forth from the earth, grabbing fiercely toward him.
"To use Wood Release against Tailed Beasts, you first need to be able to grab them!"
Menma was well aware of Wood Release's ability to counter Tailed Beasts, given its connection to the Divine Tree.
However, the effectiveness of Wood Release depended on who used it.
If it were Yamato's Wood Release, Menma could touch it directly with his chakra without issue.
But if it were Hashirama's, he wouldn't dare touch it directly with his chakra.
Even if this Hashirama was resurrected via Impure World Reincarnation, his strength was less than one-tenth of his peak.
Whoosh!
With a cold laugh, Menma dodged the wooden hand instantly.
He appeared behind the two Edo Tensei figures, their expressions dead and blank.
With a mere sweep of his tail, he sliced them into several pieces.
"Hehehe. Killing them a thousand times is useless. They're not living beings."
"On the contrary, you lost the moment you were caught by Wood Release… What?!"
Orochimaru's smug words were cut short as his body floated into the sky.
Menma, who had been behind the two Edo Tensei figures, now had strange green chakra mixed with his golden-red aura.
He appeared beneath Orochimaru and kicked him straight into the air!
"How could you be so fast?!"
"Weren't you at your limit outside?!"
Crack!
The only response Orochimaru received was the cracking sound of knuckles.
Immediately afterward, a barrage of fox tail strikes, like a volley of arrows, came from below.
This brought back memories of the beating Orochimaru received in the Forest of Death!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
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