Outside Konoha's defensive perimeter, hidden within the dense forest that stretched across the southwestern approach to the village, hundreds of Sand Village ninja had been lying in wait for hours.
"BOOM!"
The massive explosions and chakra fluctuations emanating from Konoha several kilometers away sent shock waves through the assembled force, and every single one of the concealed warriors felt their hearts skip a beat as they witnessed the scale of destruction being unleashed upon their target.
However, this spectacular display of violence also served as their predetermined signal to commence their own phase of the coordinated assault.
"Move out!" commanded the squad leader, a grizzled veteran whose scarred face spoke of countless battles. With a decisive gesture, he waved his hand forward.
The hundreds of Sand ninja immediately began their advance toward Konoha's outer defenses, ready to strike while the village's attention was focused on the chaos erupting within its walls.
Back within the village, when the Third Hokage observed the specific hand seals that Orochimaru was forming, his weathered features underwent a dramatic transformation as recognition and horror dawned.
"Summoning Jutsu: Impure World Reincarnation!" Orochimaru declared with obvious satisfaction, that characteristic playful smile spreading across his pale features as he slammed both palms against the ground with tremendous force.
"RUMBLE!"
The earth beneath them immediately began to crack and split apart with tremendous violence. Directly in front of Orochimaru's position, three ornate coffins rose rapidly from the depths, emerging into the dim light with an ominous creaking of ancient hinges.
Upon closer examination, the coffins bore distinctive markings - the kanji characters for "Second," "Second," and "Third" were clearly visible on their weathered surfaces.
"Ding! Ding! Ding!"
The protective barrier created by the rising coffins successfully intercepted every single one of the Third Hokage's multiplied shuriken, the metal projectiles embedding themselves harmlessly in the coffin walls with sharp metallic impacts.
"You have actually mastered even this forbidden technique!" the Third Hokage exclaimed, staring at the three coffins with eyes that had become completely bloodshot with a mixture of rage and horrified disbelief. His voice carried the weight of profound betrayal and dawning despair.
"Haha, such an extraordinarily powerful forbidden jutsu should never be allowed to remain buried forever within some dusty sealed scroll," Orochimaru replied with increasingly fanatical enthusiasm.
"Don't you agree, Sarutobi-sensei? Isn't it a terrible tragedy that such magnificent techniques are hidden away from those who could truly appreciate their artistic beauty?"
As these disturbing words left his lips, Orochimaru's hand seals shifted to a new configuration with practiced precision.
"BANG!"
The heavy doors of all three coffins burst open simultaneously with explosive force, crashing to the ground and sending clouds of ancient dust billowing into the air.
Three distinct figures began emerging slowly from within their respective burial chambers, each one radiating an aura of power that seemed to distort the very air around them.
The figure on the far left was almost completely wrapped in pristine white bandages that concealed most of his features, giving him an unnaturally mummified appearance. The individual on the far right stood remarkably tall with dark, weathered skin and a distinctive "Thunder" tattoo clearly visible on his muscular right arm.
However, it was the person in the center who commanded the Third Hokage's complete and horrified attention.
This was a middle-aged man with short, silvery-white hair and wearing distinctive blue armor that marked him as belonging to a bygone era of ninja warfare.
"Second Hokage!" the Third Hokage gasped, his eyes filling with moisture as his voice began to tremble with overwhelming emotion.
Orochimaru approached the three legendary figures he had just summoned from the realm of the dead, observing his former teacher's devastated expression with obvious satisfaction before speaking with deliberate cruelty:
"When you think about it carefully, today's circumstances are remarkably ironic, wouldn't you agree?"
"The Impure World Reincarnation technique was originally developed as a forbidden jutsu by the Second Hokage himself, yet today it is being wielded as a weapon against the very village he helped create and protect."
"How absolutely fascinating!"
The corners of his mouth curved upward in a smile of pure malevolent satisfaction as he formed another series of hand seals with meticulous care.
As the controlling technique took effect, the three resurrected figures suddenly raised their heads in unison, and their previously vacant, lifeless eyes gradually began to focus and gain awareness of their surroundings.
The Impure World Reincarnation was indeed a forbidden technique of extraordinary power - one that could forcibly summon the souls of the deceased from the Pure Land itself and bind them to specially prepared vessels in the world of the living, making them available for the caster's use as unwilling servants.
Through the application of this terrible jutsu, Orochimaru had successfully resurrected three of history's most powerful ninja warriors simultaneously.
The Second Tsuchikage, the Second Hokage, and the Third Raikage.
Former leaders of three of the Five Great Shinobi Nations - legendary figures whose very names had once struck fear into the hearts of their enemies!
As consciousness and awareness were forcibly restored to them by Orochimaru's controlling technique, all three resurrected leaders displayed obvious confusion and disorientation in their expressions.
"Where exactly are we?" the Third Raikage spoke first, his voice carrying the same commanding presence that had once led Cloud Village through its most challenging periods. After a moment of scanning his surroundings, his gaze settled on the Third Hokage standing before them.
"Monkey?!" he exclaimed with surprise and recognition.
However, the Second Hokage was able to confirm the identity of the elderly ninja before them much more quickly than his fellow resurrected leader.
Although the Third Hokage's physical appearance had changed dramatically from their last encounter decades ago, the Second Hokage possessed extraordinary sensory abilities that allowed him to recognize individual chakra signatures.
A person's fundamental chakra fluctuations and patterns rarely changed significantly throughout their lifetime, regardless of aging or physical transformation.
The Second Hokage's expression immediately became troubled and concerned. He raised one hand to examine his own body, noting the distinctive cracks and unnatural pallor that marked him as something other than truly alive, and quickly assessed their current situation with the analytical mind that had made him legendary.
"Someone has actually dared to use the Impure World Reincarnation technique," he observed with grim understanding.
"Haha, you truly are the brilliant mind who originally developed this jutsu," Orochimaru commented with obvious amusement and respect. "You figured out the nature of your circumstances remarkably quickly."
"Who are you?" the Second Hokage demanded, turning his penetrating gaze toward Orochimaru with a deepening frown of suspicion and growing anger.
"As for my identity," Orochimaru replied with studied calm, "I am the student of your own student - the Third Hokage's most accomplished disciple."
"So you are the one who performed this forbidden reincarnation technique?" the Second Hokage asked, his voice carrying a dangerous edge.
Only then did he become fully aware of the subtle chakra fluctuations emanating from Orochimaru that were somehow connected to his own resurrected form. This man was indeed the one responsible for dragging him back from the peaceful rest of the afterlife.
"What exactly do you hope to accomplish with this blasphemous act?" the Second Hokage continued, his legendary composure beginning to crack as righteous anger built within him.
Glancing around at their surroundings with experienced eyes, he immediately recognized the village that he and his elder brother had worked so hard to establish and protect, despite the considerable changes that had occurred over the intervening decades.
There were numerous powerful chakra signatures currently active throughout the village, and several of them possessed strength levels that genuinely shocked him with their intensity.
The most formidable among them actually approached the incredible power that his elder brother had wielded during the height of his abilities!
Orochimaru's grin widened with malicious satisfaction as he replied, "Of course, I intend to manipulate all of you to destroy Konoha completely and eliminate the current Hokage who dares to stand in my way!"
"What did you just say?!" the Second Hokage exploded, terrifying killing intent suddenly blazing within his eyes like twin fires of pure rage.
However, before he could take any action against this blasphemous betrayer, he felt a strange restraining sensation spreading throughout his entire body, rendering him completely unable to move according to his own will.
Simultaneously, the natural color in his eyes began to deepen and darken until it became completely black and lifeless.
His individual consciousness and free will had been entirely eliminated by Orochimaru's controlling technique, reducing him to nothing more than a sophisticated puppet dancing to the whims of his summoner.
"Orochimaru, how dare you commit such unforgivable blasphemy against our most revered ancestors!" the Third Hokage roared with fury and anguish.
Although he recognized the extreme danger of their current situation, he refrained from immediately launching an attack because he understood that the moment Orochimaru had successfully completed the Impure World Reincarnation technique, this had become a battle that no single ninja - regardless of their individual power - could hope to win alone.
Orochimaru chose to ignore his former teacher's outraged protests entirely, instead turning his attention toward the other two resurrected Kage with calculating interest.
"You two were once enemies of Konoha during your respective lifetimes," he observed with deceptive casualness. "Now I am offering you a unique opportunity for revenge. How would you feel about helping me destroy this village once and for all?"
He had already placed controlling seals within the minds of all three resurrected figures, giving him the ability to completely override their consciousness and free will at any moment he chose.
However, all of the individuals that Orochimaru had selected for this forbidden reincarnation had been truly exceptional warriors during their lifetimes. If their strong-willed spirits and individual personalities were completely erased, their overall combat effectiveness would be significantly reduced from their peak capabilities.
Therefore, if he could exploit their personal grudges and animosity toward Konoha from their previous lives and allow them to act with relative freedom, their potential destructive power would far exceed what he could achieve through direct puppet-like control.
The Second Tsuchikage and Third Raikage had remained largely silent since their initial moments of confusion, but when Orochimaru finished presenting his proposal, the latter's face immediately displayed obvious anger and offended dignity.
"Who do you think you are to command me?" the Third Raikage demanded, his voice rumbling like distant thunder. "How dare you assume that you can order around the Raikage of the Hidden Cloud Village as if I were some common foot soldier?"
He had indeed met his death at the hands of Konoha's Namikaze Minato during the brutal conflicts of the Third Great Ninja War, and just moments ago he had noticed that same man's face carved into the Hokage Monument, indicating that he had subsequently been elected as the Fourth Hokage.
Even though he certainly harbored resentment toward Konoha based on their previous conflicts, those battles had taken place on legitimate battlefields where both sides were fighting for their respective nations' interests and survival.
As a Raikage who had led his village with honor and distinction, the Third Raikage possessed his own unshakeable dignity and pride. It was absolutely impossible for him to allow himself to be manipulated and commanded by someone like Orochimaru.
The Second Tsuchikage also spoke up with similar conviction: "Although you have successfully manipulated our physical forms through forbidden techniques, if our consciousness and free will were to be used as your personal tools, wouldn't that bring shame and dishonor upon the current generations of the Hidden Stone Village?"
Obviously, both of these former Kage leaders were completely unwilling to allow themselves to be manipulated by Orochimaru in such a degrading and dishonorable manner.
Observing their defiant responses, Orochimaru's expression gradually became darker and more sinister. After a moment of cold consideration, he formed hand seals with deliberate precision, forcibly erasing the individual consciousness and personality of both resurrected leaders.
When the expressions in all three figures' eyes had completely lost their natural luster and humanity, terrifying waves of raw chakra began emanating from their bodies with steadily increasing intensity.
Three pairs of pitch-black, soulless eyes fixed their empty gazes upon the Third Hokage with predatory focus, like hunting beasts preparing to tear apart their designated prey!