"Kabuto. You finally showed up." Obito managed to get back on his feet again.
"Heh. Of course I came. This is the Fourth Shinobi World War—something this lively, how could I not take part?" Kabuto said with a smile.
"Good. We're short-handed right now." Obito's expression made it clear: get your people moving, immediately.
But Kabuto wasn't in a hurry. He was a "good boss." Before making his employees work, he let them catch up with their families.
And besides, he wanted to see what the four Hokage would say to the allied side.
Yes—at this moment, that was exactly what he was thinking.
Just then, Raikage A, Tsunade, Ōnoki, and Mei converged—four Kage gathering in one place. Natsuki, Tenten, Neji, Shino, Kurotsuchi, Chōjūrō, and the other younger fighters naturally refused to be left behind.
Kakashi, Darui, and the others remained silent, drifting toward the enemy's rear.
As expected, what came next would be a brutal fight.
Hashirama greeted them with a broad grin. "Yo! Tsunade—look at you, all grown up now. How's the village these days?"
Tsunade's face darkened. "Grandpa, Great-Uncle… the village is doing fine. But the shinobi world isn't. You've become the enemy's tools."
Tools?
"Next will be a nightmare that ends the world!"
The end of the world? Was it really that serious?!
It was a shinobi war—people had fought those before. "Ending the world" sounded excessive.
But the current situation really was different from the first three wars. Back then, it was village against village. Now it was the Five Great Nations united against a single overwhelming enemy.
Maybe "end of the world" wasn't impossible after all.
Hiruzen, meanwhile, spotted Jiraiya and smiled. "Jiraiya, you came to help too. That puts my mind at ease."
Jiraiya scratched his head, helpless. "This is not a situation that lets anyone feel at ease."
For a moment, the atmosphere dipped into something low, awkward, and heavy.
Kabuto, however, watched with relish—like he was savoring the pressure right before a storm, and it delighted him.
Then Tsunade's gaze snapped like lightning onto Orochimaru. "Orochimaru. You really are hard to kill, you venomous snake—revived again. And now what, you're going to stand against the entire shinobi world?"
Orochimaru's voice rasped. "In truth, I'm not interested in the war itself. But I am interested in the Sage's eyes. Neji's Tenseigan (Reincarnation Eye)—I want it for research. So I can only join the opposing side."
Neji stiffened. He hadn't expected to be targeted.
But he wasn't afraid. He fixed his eyes on Kabuto instead and spoke with stern force. "Kabuto, you're still clinging to the wrong path. Back then, you accidentally killed your own foster mother—after all these years, you still haven't awakened to it?"
Hm? That happened?
Everyone turned to look at Kabuto, suddenly curious about his past.
Kabuto narrowed his eyes. "What do you know?"
"Heh. I know far more than you'd like."
Natsuki stared at him coldly. "Yakushi Nono. Head of Konoha's orphanage, and the foster mother you respected most. But she was also a member of Root, forced to work for Danzō. For the orphanage, you became a spy too. Then on a mission, you killed her by accident—because she had been sent by Danzō to assassinate you. You both knew too many secrets. Danzō couldn't allow either of you to live!"
Tobirama's expression shifted in surprise. He immediately understood: that was his "good friend" doing his usual work again. He couldn't help wondering what state Danzō was in now.
Natsuki's words hooked Kabuto's memories, and for a moment Kabuto looked distant—remembering the panic and helplessness when the counterattack landed, and he realized he had struck his foster mother.
And the cruelest part was that she couldn't recognize him anymore.
"Yakushi Nono was such a gentle person," Natsuki continued. "She treated everyone in the orphanage like her own children—including you, Kabuto. You recognized her, but she couldn't recognize you. That hurt, didn't it? But you only inherited her glasses—you didn't inherit her gentleness. Have you ever considered that among the people you've harmed, some of them were also from the orphanage? Just like you, they were Yakushi Nono's children—your brothers and sisters. When you die, what face will you have left to meet your mother?"
"You…! Shut up!" Kabuto cracked.
His mind turned into a tangled mess.
He hadn't expected Natsuki to rip open the wound so suddenly. Having that pain dragged into the open made him erupt in fury.
"Here comes a Coke!"
But Natsuki had no intention of shutting up. He opened his mouth and fired a laser.
He didn't believe "talk-no-jutsu" would make Kabuto repent. The optimal solution was to kill this snake outright.
Whoosh!
Natsuki's light-speed kick slammed in, reaching Kabuto in an instant.
But in the next moment, Hashirama caught Natsuki's ankle. The laser skimming off Natsuki's foot grazed past Kabuto's scalp and blasted into the distance, exploding a small mountain.
"I didn't expect you to know Storm Release too," Hashirama said, even more impressed. Then his expression turned apologetic. "Sorry. I don't want to fight you, but I can't control myself. You'll have to defeat me quickly—otherwise I don't know what I'll end up doing."
The battle resumed the moment Natsuki made his move.
Orochimaru decisively lunged for Neji—his target was the Tenseigan (Reincarnation Eye).
Neji immediately shifted away, refusing to cluster into a single brawl. Orochimaru pursued at once.
And with Orochimaru came Guren, Suigetsu, Jūgo, and Karin.
They had originally been Orochimaru's people. Later, they simply followed Kabuto because they had nowhere else to go.
Now that Orochimaru had returned, they naturally continued fighting at Orochimaru's side.
But Neji's special ability was instantaneous displacement.
Just as he stabilized his footing, Hiashi rushed in with several Hyūga elites to block Orochimaru's path—clearly intending to protect their clan's "Heavenly Ninja" leader.
Even Hinata was there.
Hinata's strength was average, but her resolve to protect her brother was real, so she stepped forward despite the danger.
That alone was enough for Hiashi to approve of her.
Shino, meanwhile, didn't hesitate. He released his insects at Kabuto without mercy. He understood Kabuto was the linchpin, which was exactly why Shino chose him as his opponent.
He even suspected—
A kunai flashed to Hiruzen's position. In the next second, someone flickered over and kicked him hard, sending him flying.
The speed was so fast it drew shock and admiration from everyone watching.
(End of Chapter)
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