Whether a "New Konoha" would ever truly come to be remained uncertain. For now, what was clear was that the "Old Konoha" seemed genuinely headed for disaster.
If victory and defeat were the only measures, then the Third Hokage was undoubtedly the winner of this battle fought far from the village walls. However, this confrontation wasn't about winning or losing—it was about life and death, making the situation entirely different. After fighting for so long, the Third Hokage was deeply fatigued, his stamina nearly depleted.
He faced Orochimaru, infused with the fully activated cells of the First Hokage, seemingly impossible to kill no matter the attack. As his own spirit and combat strength waned, the Third Hokage made his final decision. He would use the Uzumaki clan's ultimate secret sealing technique to eliminate this monstrous threat once and for all—he resolved to use the Reaper Death Seal.
Hiruzen could have continued the fight, but prolonging the struggle was meaningless. He needed to act decisively while he still possessed the strength to resolve the situation. It was, without question, the correct choice.
The Third Hokage prepared for a mutual kill, a "one-for-one" exchange that would exact a heavy toll on him personally, and indeed, on all of Konoha. Yet…
Such is life. Approaching the end, he felt a profound sense of regret, but strangely, found nothing truly pitiable about his current circumstances.
If left unchecked, Orochimaru would only grow more monstrous, inevitably unleashing a catastrophe upon the entire shinobi world. Believing this, the Third Hokage knew he had to bear the responsibility, to clean up the horrifying mess created by his own past moment of weakness.
Perhaps Hiruzen slightly overestimated Orochimaru. While a world-threatening cataclysm was looming in the near future, whether Orochimaru would be its architect was another question entirely.
As the Third Hokage solidified his resolve, Orochimaru immediately sensed the shift in his former teacher's determination.
"It seems our reunion must end here. It's time to settle things, Sarutobi-sensei." Orochimaru's focus sharpened intensely. He recognized that Hiruzen was preparing a final, desperate gambit—an attack where failure meant death, and success... also meant death.
The Third Hokage offered no further words. He released the Adamantine Staff he had wielded, and his hands began to weave a complex series of seals.
One by one, the seals imprinted themselves with chilling clarity in Orochimaru's vision: Serpent - Boar - Ram - Hare - Dog - Rat - Bird - Horse - Serpent... concluding with hands clasped together. Yet, Orochimaru couldn't identify the technique. He had never witnessed this jutsu before; even during his extensive pilfering of Konoha's most secret arts, he had found no record of it.
A pained grunt escaped Hiruzen as his head slumped forward weakly. Time seemed to stand still. After several agonizing seconds, he inhaled sharply, a ragged, desperate gasp like a drowning man breaking the surface at the very last instant.
Holding that final breath within him, the Third Hokage raised his head once more. His appearance was profoundly unsettling. His posture radiated fierce determination, brimming with latent power. Yet, Orochimaru simultaneously felt as though Hiruzen's very essence—his vitality, spirit, and consciousness—had already been stripped away.
The man standing before him seemed little more than an empty vessel.
"Could it be…"
A flicker of horrifying recognition crossed Orochimaru's features, his face instantly contorting with dread.
Before he could fully process the thought, the Third Hokage closed the distance with impossible speed. Forsaking any complex maneuvers, Hiruzen simply seized Orochimaru's shoulders in an unbreakable grip, pinning him in place.
The Third Hokage wasn't so ancient and frail that he couldn't manage basic movements, nor was he distracted by battling resurrected Kage far stronger than himself, as in other tales. Thus, having invoked the Reaper Death Seal under these conditions, failure at the final moment was unthinkable.
A spectral arm, covered in eerie, glowing runes, erupted from the Third Hokage's chest and plunged deep into Orochimaru's abdomen. Its movement possessed a chilling expertise, like a seasoned veteran performing a deep, invasive violation.
Orochimaru felt something alien forcibly grafting itself onto his spirit. Immediately following this violation came the terrifying sensation of his soul being wrenched outward by an irresistible force, bringing a pain entirely distinct from the initial physical trauma.
Instinctively, Orochimaru looked up. Floating behind the Third Hokage loomed a colossal, terrifying shadow—the Shinigami. Clad in flowing white robes, its form was splayed in a grotesque posture. White hair cascaded over its shoulders, twin horns jutted from its head, and a ritual tanto was held firm within its teeth.
"The Reaper Death Seal…"
His dawning horror was confirmed.
So, this was the price. To be struck by this technique was to behold the face of Death itself. No wonder… Orochimaru had never personally witnessed the jutsu, but its fearsome reputation preceded it. Connecting the rumors with the chilling reality before him, he understood: the so-called "unending seal" meant having one's soul utterly consumed by the Shinigami.
He could not allow the technique to reach completion. Fighting desperately against the immense spiritual pull, Orochimaru grit his teeth, opened his mouth, and regurgitated a large serpent. The snake instantly spat forth a longsword—the Sword of Kusanagi. Coiling its body, the serpent swung the blade in a wide arc, aiming to sever the Hokage's arms.
CLANG!
The attack was intercepted. The Third Hokage's loyal summon, Monkey King Enma, materialized just in time to block the legendary sword.
A jutsu demanding such an ultimate sacrifice couldn't be thwarted so easily. Orochimaru knew this. Even as his snake-sword attacked, his own body began a rapid, grotesque transformation. Within moments, a second Orochimaru was budding, splitting off from the first.
Yet, physical metamorphosis offered no escape from the spiritual tether. The Third Hokage let out a low, guttural cry, focusing every last shred of his chakra into a final, explosive surge. The spiritual suction intensified exponentially, becoming an irresistible vortex. Orochimaru's soul was ripped free in an instant.
In his final moment of awareness within that body, he could only curse the slippery, evasive nature of his own snake-like techniques that usually guaranteed escape.
The Third Hokage had completed the sealing. His body swayed precariously before collapsing beside Orochimaru's corpse. The corpse itself was a nightmarish sight – two distinct upper torsos sprouted from a single waist, complete with four arms and two heads. A truly alien form.
This is the price for meddling with forbidden jutsu, the Third Hokage thought, sighing inwardly. He turned his fading attention away from his fallen student, focusing instead on his faithful summon.
"Enma, listen carefully…"
The Reaper Death Seal was nearing its conclusion; his own soul would soon be claimed. Hiruzen used these precious final seconds to impart his last instructions, making arrangements to safeguard Konoha's future.
Above all else, once Enma delivered this news back to the village, the false accusations against Habara would finally be cleared. Danzo Shimura's role as a treacherous conspirator would be irrevocably exposed. If Danzo had somehow seized power by then, he might have attempted to twist the narrative. But now? The truth was the truth. A dead man offers no defense.
Having relayed his final will, the Third Hokage slowly closed his eyes, never to open them again. Enma stood beside his master's body, motionless, enveloped in a long, heavy silence.
Such solemn mourning should have remained undisturbed. But then, the distinct thump-thump of a heartbeat echoed in the quiet, reaching Enma's ears. He instinctively turned towards the sound. He saw Orochimaru's grotesque corpse, its chest—or rather, chests—rising and falling violently, swelling larger with each grotesque breath.
"Orochimaru!"
Enma swiftly hoisted the Third Hokage's body onto his back and leaped back, putting distance between himself and the horrifying spectacle. He landed warily, eyes fixed on the unnatural movements of the corpse.
Finally, the corpse's unnaturally expanding chest cavity forced its mouth agape. A large, milky-white, pulsating egg was violently expelled.
The eggshell cracked almost immediately. From within, a figure stood up, naked and glistening. It was Orochimaru, though visibly younger—appearing no older than fourteen or fifteen—and slightly smaller than his previous form.
"Sarutobi-sensei," the reborn Orochimaru purred, a chilling smile playing on his lips. "You truly lived up to your reputation. This battle was my utter defeat. However… you ultimately chose the wrong method of sealing me."
Some techniques that appear to be splitting are merely that—division. Others, however, are closer to duplication, a form of 'copying.' Unlike simple division, which primarily consumes chakra, replication that preserves the core consciousness demands a far greater price and entails significantly higher risks.
Consider the Tailed Beasts. When one is split into two entities, it's more accurate to view them not as halves, but as two distinct, identical beings. Orochimaru's current state mirrored this principle.
The Third Hokage had indeed sealed an Orochimaru. But another Orochimaru still lived.
Honestly, Habara had given Orochimaru far too many dangerous ideas.
This reborn Orochimaru began to walk slowly, deliberately, towards Enma. The monkey king didn't retreat further. He was perplexed.
"Orochimaru," Enma growled, "in your current state… I could easily destroy you."
He could sense it clearly. This version of Orochimaru was incredibly weak. It required no deep perception; the vulnerability was plain to see. Logically, escaping the Reaper's grasp must have cost Orochimaru dearly.
"Truly? I wouldn't advise it," Orochimaru replied, his smile unwavering. He stood completely exposed, yet utterly unfazed. "You have a far more important mission now, don't you?"
Though Orochimaru wasn't one for exhibitionism, stopping to find clothes at this juncture might seem… affected. In comparison, striding forward naked possessed a certain candidness that suited his current persona rather well.
Enma's gaze flickered with uncertainty. His hesitation was palpable. The fact that the Reaper Death Seal hadn't entirely succeeded (though, in a sense, it had) was deeply shocking. A part of him desperately wanted to avenge his master, to strike Orochimaru down now. But he feared another trick, another unforeseen contingency. If he attacked and failed, and worse, failed to deliver the Third Hokage's final words back to Konoha… the consequences would be catastrophic.
Orochimaru perceived the summon's dilemma—his fear of endangering his precious charge. Seizing the opportunity, Orochimaru abruptly closed the distance, appearing instantly beside Enma, his hand reaching out towards the Third Hokage's body.
Startled into action, Enma reacted at last. Clutching his master's body securely, he leaped away, vanishing from the scene.
Orochimaru chuckled softly to himself. "In the end," he murmured, "a monkey is just a monkey."
He extended his hand, experimentally attempting to summon the Sword of Kusanagi lying near his original, discarded corpse.
There was no response.