Chapter 261: The Shock of Misdirection
As two coffins engraved with the characters "One" and "Two" thunderously rose from the ground, the Third Hokage's pupils contracted sharply as he unhesitatingly flung several shuriken! He never expected Orochimaru to have mastered this terrifying forbidden technique that desecrated the dead!
He absolutely couldn't let unknown powerful beings be summoned—he had to stop it immediately!
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Dozens of sharp shuriken swarmed toward the coffins like a swarm of bees, but these attacks only left shallow scratches on the wooden surfaces. The next moment, both coffin doors heavily fell away, revealing the rigid figures standing within—a man in red armor with waist-length black hair, and another stern man clad in blue armor with solemn silver hair.
The instant he clearly saw these two faces, the Third Hokage's breathing nearly stopped, even his fingertips trembling slightly. Before him stood Konoha's founders—the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, and his younger brother, the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju who'd developed countless forbidden techniques!
As consciousness gradually awakened, Tobirama Senju looked down, examining this body constructed from dust. As the technique's developer, he immediately understood his situation.
"This state... is the Impure World Reincarnation? Never thought I'd be toyed with by a technique I created myself."
Hashirama Senju gazed gently at the aged Third across from him. Despite how time had changed his appearance, he still recognized him at a glance.
"Long time no see, Monkey." His tone carried some emotion. "Never thought even you would have grown so old."
"First Lord... Sensei..." Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice carried uncontrollable agitation and anguish.
Hashirama didn't respond directly to the Third, instead turning his head toward his brother. "Tobirama! See, I told you not to develop such dangerous techniques!"
"Elder brother, now's not the time for this!"
Tobirama calmly interrupted him, his gaze turning toward Orochimaru manipulating everything behind them. "It seems you're the one who summoned us. Quite an impressive young man, to have mastered this technique."
Orochimaru's long tongue licked across his lips, revealing a sinister smile as his hands actually began forming seals again!
"It's not over yet, Sarutobi-sensei! The 'surprise' I've prepared for you isn't limited to just these two!"
Immediately after, a third coffin accompanied by ominous tremors slowly rose from the ground! On the coffin lid, a clear character "Four" was prominently carved!
Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart sank heavily! Connecting the "One" on the First's coffin and "Two" on the Second's, a terrible thought flashed through his mind—could Orochimaru have even obtained Minato's remains?!
However, an unexpected change occurred! This third coffin, having risen only halfway, seemed pulled by an invisible force, violently trembling before abruptly sinking back underground and disappearing!
The jutsu's unexpected failure stunned everyone present.
"Did it fail?" Hashirama looked toward the Third, his tone seeming relieved. "Looks like you only have to deal with the two of us."
"No," Tobirama frowned deeply, sensing the residual chakra fluctuations. "The jutsu itself didn't fail, but rather produced a rejection after 'taking effect.' Based on this reaction... I'm afraid it attempted to summon a soul that 'doesn't exist in the Pure Land.'"
"Doesn't exist in the Pure Land?!" Hearing this, the Third Hokage's head shot up, his emotions suddenly becoming extremely agitated, his voice almost losing composure. "Second Lord! What do you mean by that?!"
Facing the Third's unusually intense reaction, though somewhat confused, Tobirama still calmly provided an explanation.
"It's simple. The essence of Impure World Reincarnation is forcibly summoning souls resting in the 'Pure Land' to the present world and binding them within sacrificial vessels. But just now, though the jutsu clearly activated successfully, the summoning process was forcibly interrupted... The only explanation is that the target soul the jutsu attempted to summon simply 'isn't' in the Pure Land."
He stated the most likely inference. "In other words, that deceased person who should have been summoned... has a high probability of still being 'alive' to this day."
Hearing the Second Hokage's calm analysis, the Third Hokage's complexion instantly changed dramatically, all color draining from his face in an instant.
He staggered slightly, his originally upright posture stooping somewhat, his eyes filled with disbelief and deep anguish, as if he'd aged decades in these few short seconds.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru, having received the authoritative explanation from the technique's developer himself, first showed brief astonishment, then his body began trembling slightly, unable to suppress his reaction to this earth-shattering revelation.
"Hehe... haha... HAHAHAHA!" Orochimaru released a twisted yet gleeful laugh, his serpent eyes staring fixedly at his instantly aged teacher. "Sarutobi-sensei! It seems that successor you deemed perfect ultimately felt completely disappointed in you as well! I see now... no wonder that organization's philosophy is peace..."
"However, reminiscing and speculation end here."
As his words fell, two kunai wrapped in eerie talismans appeared in his hands, precisely stabbing into the back of the necks of the First and Second Hokage's Impure World bodies!
The instant the talismans fused with their bodies, Hashirama Senju's originally gentle eyes suddenly became vacant. He seemed to struggle with his last remaining consciousness to issue a warning. "Monkey... the power this body can contain... is limited... be careful..."
His words abruptly cut off as his entire demeanor, as if controlled by invisible strings, completely lost its light, becoming like an exquisite puppet.
Tobirama Senju beside him similarly had his eyes dim, losing all awareness, transforming into a pure killing weapon.
Watching these two previous Hokages he revered as gods being manipulated and toyed with in such humiliating fashion, the Third Hokage's last hesitation and sentimentality were completely severed. He forcibly suppressed the massive shock and chaotic emotions from learning the Fourth Hokage might still be alive, slowly raising his head.
At this moment, his eyes no longer held teacher-student affection, only resolve and killing intent. His gaze passed over those two hollow shells, locking fixedly on Orochimaru behind them wearing a triumphant smile.
"First Lord... Sensei... forgive me."
He murmured softly. What came next would no longer be a teacher's admonishment to his student—his hands slowly joined together, massive chakra beginning to gather and roar around him like an awakening lion.
But rather an unqualified teacher's... purging of a traitor!
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