Under Orochimaru's control, Hashirama Senju's body began to rapidly form hand signs before slamming his hands onto the ground.
Boom!!
A massive muffled sound echoed as a mound of earth, hundreds of meters wide, appeared out of nowhere before everyone's eyes.
Though it was merely made of soil, under the sunlight, it shimmered with a metallic sheen.
The mound before them showed no trace of chakra residue and was far harder than Orochimaru had ever imagined.
Orochimaru stepped forward, lightly touching it, his eyes narrowing slightly:
"Just made from ordinary Earth and Fire Release? Truly astonishing."
"Ao!"
Terumi Mei's eyes gleamed with excitement, her tone carrying an irrepressible thrill.
Ao nodded heavily, activating his Byakugan to examine the mound. After a moment, his body trembled:
"Found it! There's some kind of sealing technique inside. I can't clearly see the person in the coffin, but I'm certain the coffin itself is made of Wood Release!"
"It seems much simpler than I expected," Orochimaru said, licking his lips, his tone laced with an inexplicable emotion.
"Water Release: Water Shockwave!" Ao quickly formed hand signs, letting out a soft shout.
A torrent of raging water, like a waterfall, surged forward, crashing against the mound.
But to everyone's shock, Ao's technique didn't leave even a single crack on the mound's surface.
A flicker of intrigue crossed Orochimaru's face as he muttered to himself:
"Even tougher than I imagined?" But how will you deal with it? His gaze shifted toward Terumi Mei. "Move aside!"
Terumi Mei stepped back a few paces, shouting coldly at everyone around her.
"Lava Release: Melting Apparition Technique!"
A massive amount of highly viscous, corrosive acid spewed from her mouth, blanketing the mound that spanned hundreds of meters.
The intense corrosion seemed to eat away at the very air itself.
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
The sound of corrosion echoed across the mound's surface.
In a short time, the once-impenetrable surface was riddled with holes of varying sizes.
The Sound Four, standing behind Orochimaru, felt their pupils shrink. This woman is dangerous!
Yet, despite the scene before her, Terumi Mei showed no signs of satisfaction. Instead, her brows furrowed.
The mound was three to four hundred meters wide. Completely dissolving it would take an unknown amount of time.
They didn't have time to waste here!
"Lady Terumi Mei, I can see Lord Yuto's position inside. We can just dig a hole through it." Ao's voice sounded beside her, offering a suggestion.
Terumi Mei's eyes lit up. This approach was far more efficient than her previous method.
"Orochimaru, come help!" She turned to Orochimaru, speaking bluntly.
Orochimaru shrugged but obediently stepped forward, though he couldn't help but think:
"This woman somehow reminds me of Tsunade."
With Ao's Byakugan guiding them, Terumi Mei quickly located a spot close to the coffin inside.
Ao directed their efforts to avoid mistakes, while Terumi Mei used her techniques to dissolve the hard stone, carving out a deep hole nearly three meters tall. Orochimaru assisted on the side.
Even with Orochimaru helping, the Sound Four weren't idle either. They took on the grueling task of clearing out the dissolved debris.
Despite their combined efforts, the mound—casually created by Madara Uchiha's technique—took a full hour to reach its center.
Crack!
As the final stone wall was dissolved, a wooden coffin over two meters tall, covered in intricate sealing runes, appeared before them.
"Finally found you, Lord Yuto!" Terumi Mei gazed at the massive coffin, her voice trembling with excitement.
Not only Terumi Mei but also Ao, standing beside her, was equally thrilled.
Under the watchful eyes of the group, Kidomaru and Jirobo, with grim expressions, dutifully carried the over-two-meter-tall wooden coffin out and placed it outside.
"Is this the sealing technique Hashirama Senju used to seal Lord Yuto?"
Ao's expression grew solemn as he carefully examined the black runes covering the coffin.
"Who would've thought that Hashirama Senju, who personally sealed Lord Yuto, would now personally undo that seal?"
Terumi Mei glanced at the controlled, reincarnated Hashirama Senju, letting out a cold laugh tinged with mockery.
Under Orochimaru's control, Hashirama Senju unhesitatingly approached the Wood Release coffin, his hands forming signs at a rapid pace. As the final sign was completed—
The dense black runes on the coffin faded at a visible speed.
Crack!
Without the runes' reinforcement, the Wood Release coffin, no longer sustained by chakra, shattered into fragments and fell to the ground.
Boom!!
A towering wave of killing intent erupted, its terrifying aura spreading in all directions! Before everyone's eyes, it was as if a sea of blood and corpses appeared.
Kill!
A faint, almost intangible shout echoed in their ears.
Everyone froze in place. The Sound Four, overwhelmed, collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat.
The first to recover were Terumi Mei, Ao, and Orochimaru, all of whom had experienced the battlefield.
Shock appeared on their faces. Just this killing intent alone had drawn them into something akin to an illusion?
Having shaken off the overwhelming killing intent, Terumi Mei and the others solemnly turned their attention to the figure sealed for so many years.
Before them was an extremely youthful-looking man, his Warring States-era clothing so tattered it barely covered his body.
His body was covered in countless wounds, not a single part unscathed. Half of his body was missing entirely.
Yet, despite such grievous injuries, the young man stood upright, his remaining hand raised, defiantly giving the middle finger.
Though it seemed somewhat comical, even Orochimaru, a former Konoha ninja, couldn't find it funny.
The scene alone spoke volumes of the battle's ferocity.
"Lord Yuto…"
Terumi Mei's eyes shone with admiration as she let out a soft murmur.
A mix of greed and fear flickered in Orochimaru's eyes. Though it was merely a corpse before him, for some reason, he felt as though it could spring to life at any moment.
As the sealing technique was undone, no one noticed the sudden surge of black particles emanating from Yuto's body.
Thump!
A faint sound rang out! The sound was subtle, but both Terumi Mei and Orochimaru simultaneously looked toward Yuto's chest.
It was the sound of a heartbeat!
In the next moment, under everyone's disbelieving gazes, Yuto's broken body began to regenerate at a visible speed.
Even the wounds on his body vanished in a short time, as if he had never been injured.
The faint scent of earth filled Yuto's nostrils.
As if awakening from a long slumber, Yuto lazily opened his eyes, greeted by the blinding sunlight.
Raising his head to look at the blazing sun in the sky, he spoke slowly:
"I'm back!"
—