They still had many things to take care of.
While they were talking, the thick mist behind them had almost cleared away, and sunlight shone through from the back.
Drops of water kept falling from the roof.
Hatake Satoru and Hozuki Mangetsu stepped aside to give space for the rescue team that was searching for survivors.
The two of them didn't seem to be badly hurt, so the medical team didn't force them to go to the hospital.
After all, compared to them, the others looked much more seriously injured.
They only reminded them once, telling them to go to the hospital later for a check-up.
"Yeah, yeah—"
Hatake Satoru answered halfheartedly.
This matter involved many people and countries, so the higher-ups of the Leaf would definitely come to them later.
The two of them watched as three bodies were carried out. They all wore Sound ninja headbands, their bodies covered in dust.
"That person... I remember her."
Hozuki Mangetsu sat on a nearby rooftop, looking at another Sound ninja's body being carried away.
He rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought.
Those fourteen girls had fought against Haku, so he had a faint impression of this one.
It had only been about a month since that fight, and now it had ended up like this.
"Why did all three of the ones who came to take the Chunin Exam end up dead...?"
"No matter how many times their bodies were broken, they could come back together. Even if completely blown apart, they would reappear."
"But once the Reanimation Jutsu is released, a corpse is left behind."
This ninjutsu is strange no matter how you look at it, so no wonder it's such a rare forbidden jutsu.
Hozuki Mangetsu scratched his head.
The Mist Village was known for many kinds of bloodline limits. If the Leaf unsealed all its forbidden jutsu and lined them up, it would also be terrifying.
But just like bloodline powers depend on chance, forbidden jutsu aren't something just anyone can use.
"Edo Tensei requires a living sacrifice."
"Those three weren't just unlucky to die, they had already been offered up while alive."
"Using dust, the remains of the dead, and living people, you can form reanimated bodies."
Hatake Satoru stood to the side with his arms crossed, watching the bodies being carried out without much expression.
Those three had been throwaways, used symbolically, then sacrificed right away.
Originally, this jutsu was used by the Second Hokage together with explosive tags — simply put, to turn people into living bombs.
By sacrificing a few people, he could create endless cycles of resurrection and explosions.
Now that Orochimaru had learned it, he skipped the bombs and directly revived the dead to fight the living.
"To even sacrifice his own people... that's exactly the kind of person Orochimaru is."
Hozuki Mangetsu let out a sigh and lowered his head.
Although people from the Mist killed without blinking, they still got along well with Hozuki Mangetsu.
After all, he was still young, with a friendly personality that didn't give off a heavy sense of pressure.
He himself could never treat his own people as tools, offering them as sacrifices just like that.
"Of course you couldn't do something like that..."
"Lord Mizukage, you two were also inside the barrier just now, weren't you?"
Before Hatake Satoru could finish speaking, an old voice cut him off.
Hozuki Mangetsu and Hatake Satoru turned their heads at the same time toward the source of the voice.
On the other side, the medical ninja who had been searching were being pushed out one after another, replaced by Root operatives guarding the area.
"Yeah, that's right. I was just inside with my teacher."
Hozuki Mangetsu nodded without thinking, looking a bit uneasy at the old man in front of him.
An old man with a scar on his chin… Why are there so many old men in Konoha? Mangetsu thought to himself—he had never seen this many elders in his own village.
Teacher? Danzo shifted his gaze to the white-haired Hatake Satoru beside him, whose uncovered eyes seemed to shine with light.
From the Hidden Mist, huh? Well, it doesn't matter who he is.
"Since you two were trapped inside the barrier with the Third Hokage just now…"
"Then I need you to help us find the Third Hokage and answer some questions."
"Root will take over the matter completely after this."
The one eye Danzo had exposed stared coldly at the two in front of him.
Mangetsu instantly felt goosebumps crawling up his skin. For some reason, this guy gave off the same kind of feeling as Orochimaru.
The look in his eyes, his presence—both were eerily alike, and just as unpleasant.
"You say it's about finding him, but it seems more like you just want to question us."
Hatake Satoru smiled knowingly. It had been a long time since he'd seen this old man, and yet here he was still full of energy to stir up trouble.
Danzo glanced at Satoru without comment. It was their first time meeting, but his first impression of the young man was already bad.
An unlikable brat.
"Following procedure, questions like this are unavoidable. I hope Lord Mizukage will cooperate."
Satoru and Mangetsu exchanged a glance, then shrugged like it didn't matter. A moment later, the two of them leapt with Danzo onto the flat surface of what was left of the rooftop plants.
Half-grown plants still stuck out here and there, but everything above had been completely erased by the wide-area attack from Infinite Void.
The cross-section of the plants was unnaturally clean, as if everything had been sliced flat.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's body lay on that bare surface—the only thing visible across the entire flat rooftop.
"This isn't the actual scene of death, is it…"
Danzo quickly noticed something off and gave the two beside him a suspicious look.
"After Orochimaru created that sphere, we were stuck inside it. The bodies around us disappeared as well."
"When the sphere vanished, the bodies all dropped down onto the flat surface."
Satoru answered smoothly, while Mangetsu was only there to nod along.
He made sure to keep both himself and Mangetsu clear of suspicion, explaining that because of Mangetsu's mist he had lost his sense of direction.
By the time he saw Sarutobi Hiruzen again, the old man had already used the Reaper Death Seal and was fighting Orochimaru head-on.
There was nothing they could do then.
Danzo thought it over but couldn't find any flaws in their explanation. He finally waved his hand at them.
"I understand. Thank you for your cooperation. From here on, Root will take over."
Danzo looked down at Hiruzen's body, and for a moment his heart felt heavy.
They had known each other since childhood, and had spent years competing for the position of Hokage.
Whether cooperating on the surface or plotting against each other in secret, they had long been familiar with one another.
"I schemed in the shadows for so many years, always wanting to be the one to kill you myself."
"But in the end, you died at Orochimaru's hands."
"A student killing his own teacher… What a scene of despair. You were still too soft."
Danzo lowered his eye and let out a deep sigh.
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