Truthfully, this was indeed a very good "excuse"...
Of course, from the Third Hokage's perspective, this should be considered a legitimate reason, not an excuse.
Indeed, this argument was very appealing.
Luffy's importance, it seemed, had already become a consensus among the Konoha ninjas.
As long as there was a possibility, they would try their best to maintain a good relationship between Konoha and Luffy.
And if Orochimaru, this Konoha traitor, could be completely resolved with this opportunity.
Then it would certainly be a great thing for Konoha's own reputation.
Every village, more or less, had one or several scoundrels.
Traitors like Orochimaru, whose notoriety spread throughout the ninja world, were actually not that numerous.
If Konoha could completely resolve this hidden danger with its own strength.
Then, in the current ninja world, Konoha's standing and prestige among other ninja villages would truly be unparalleled.
No matter what, the Third Hokage had still delayed too long.
By the time Konoha's higher-ups finally made their decision, dispatching Konoha's elite forces to support Luffy and, in passing, resolve Orochimaru.
The battle on Luffy's side had already begun!
…
Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai were primarily responsible for peripheral support.
Preventing Orochimaru from using other means to escape.
Or using some trick, causing Luffy and themselves not to react in time.
Truth be told, Konoha was already considered the ninja village that understood Orochimaru the most in the current ninja world.
But even so, regarding Orochimaru's current strength, his various ninjutsu and powers were actually still somewhat hard to grasp.
After all, this guy Orochimaru was originally an "inventor."
His intelligence, talent, and accomplishments in ninjutsu research were probably the closest thing to the existence of that great genius, the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, for many years in Konoha.
Orochimaru's power was said to change day by day, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it changed with every passing day.
To fully grasp Orochimaru's capabilities, to comprehensively understand all the ninjutsu he possessed, was probably not an easy task.
Unless… they completely ignored Orochimaru's research direction for ninjutsu and adopted a "you fight yours, I fight mine" approach, that might still have a chance.
Once caught in Orochimaru's rhythm, falling into the various traps he meticulously researched.
Then things would truly be bad...
...Meaning that whether it was a misunderstanding or already seeing through the enemy's tricks.
Luffy's current fighting style just happened to prevent Orochimaru's various sinister schemes from being utilized.
"Gum-Gum… Giant Pistol!"
Armament Haki entwined Luffy's fist.
His fist, enlarged by inflation, directly enveloped Orochimaru and all the surrounding areas!
This was an attack that couldn't be dodged by mere skill!
"Hiss! Hiss!"
Even a powerful and well-traveled ninja like Orochimaru felt somewhat overwhelmed.
"Rashomon!"
However, he was, after all, one of the legendary Sannin.
Orochimaru wouldn't be without methods and abilities to deal with such a sudden situation.
The gigantic city gate, carved with demonic figures, summoned by his summoning jutsu, completely protected Orochimaru behind it!
Assault!
Luffy's fist, imbued with Armament Haki, slammed fiercely onto the Rashomon!
This was an Armament Iron Fist under the power of three gears. The Rashomon, protecting Orochimaru, was actually blasted with a giant dent by this single punch!
The dented city gate, tilting backwards, was almost about to strike Orochimaru's main body.
Orochimaru, who had just returned to human form from a snake form, broke out in a cold sweat in surprise!
The Rashomon was merely a means he used to temporarily block enemy attacks.
But this was also considered one of the more outstanding defensive ninjutsu Orochimaru possessed.
Back then, the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, who founded Konoha, could instantly unleash five-layered Rashomon with just a flick of his wrist!
Five monstrous, demon-like gates stood before him, capable of absorbing almost any attack, protecting the summoner behind them!
Compared to Orochimaru's strength, the First Hokage Hashirama Senju's was still a bit more formidable.
For the five-layered Rashomon, he could at most summon a three-layered Rashomon.
And if he were to cast it in an emergency, for self-preservation, he could only summon a single-layered Rashomon as he did now.
Such defensive power, even in the current ninja world, was already considered quite outstanding...
However, in front of Luffy, this defensive power seemed to be of no avail…
The Rashomon, which was said to absorb all attacks, was actually easily blasted with a single punch by Luffy, creating a dent as large as a basin!
Orochimaru quickly shifted his position, dodging the area Luffy was about to attack next!
Indeed, Orochimaru's experience was still seasoned. Luffy's next iron fist directly slammed into the Rashomon's gate.
Along with this defensive barrier, it was immediately slammed onto the spot where Orochimaru had just been standing!
It was clearly a defensive wall created by Orochimaru to protect himself, but now, it seemed to have become a weapon used by Luffy to attack!
"Rumble!"
The shock caused by the collapse of the gigantic Rashomon made Kakashi and the other two, who were constantly on guard, gasp in amazement.
Truth be told, if they had faced Orochimaru's Rashomon, they would probably have had no other option than to circle around it.
The significance of the Rashomon's existence was to block enemy attacks, making the enemy despair, wasn't it?
"Such a hard gate... Can this thing be summoned too?"
Luffy was extremely excited!
Leaving aside other things, the astonishing strength of the Rashomon was something Luffy had truly never experienced in his previous battles.
After all, this wasn't the enemy's main body, but merely a tool summoned by the enemy to block attacks.
If something like this could be summoned, did that also mean that ninjas in this world could summon other, even more powerful things?
Truly interesting… this world is really interesting!
Compared to the countless bizarre Devil Fruit abilities in the pirate world, the ninjutsu in this world seemed to lack nothing in terms of variety!
Luffy was actually getting excited!
After all, he didn't really understand what kind of person Orochimaru was.
The reason he pursued him so far to act was mainly because Orochimaru showed hostility towards Luffy and disturbed his rest…
"With such defensive capabilities… Gear Three should be no match for you…"
Luffy's eyes glowed.
Ever since he arrived in this world, he felt his body filled with extreme stamina!
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