Chapter 345: Seizure
Inside Konoha Hospital's special care ward, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had already removed all his casts. Though still wrapped in considerable bandages, he'd at least recovered basic mobility.
At this moment, his expression was ashen as he sat at the bed's edge, fingers tightly gripping a somewhat crumpled note.
That note had just been urgently presented by an ANBU ninja.
"Lord Hokage, what should we do now?" The ANBU ninja before the bed carried undisguisable anxiety in his voice.
The Third's gaze locked dead on that line of neat handwriting on the note.
[To ensure what is cherished can endure, we had no other choice. All actions undertaken are to forge foundations for lasting peace—Ember]
Today, the seal cocoon prison originally strictly guarded for confining Orochimaru had been discovered completely empty. Aside from this deliberately left note, the scene bore no combat traces nor triggered any alarms—Orochimaru had simply vanished into thin air.
Orochimaru had been taken by that mysterious [Ember] organization?!
The Third felt a wave of dizziness strike. He had to extend his hand supporting himself against the nightstand to stabilize. What was that organization's true purpose? What did they want with Orochimaru?
Countless terrible speculations churned through his mind—utilizing Orochimaru's forbidden jutsu knowledge? Or wanting to borrow his power for some even more dangerous plan? The uncertain future plus complex worry for that former student made the Third's wrinkled face cloud with concern.
However, as Hokage, he must immediately make decisions.
Silence pervaded the ward for quite a while before the Third finally slowly spoke. "...Return to execute your original mission. No need to organize pursuit or investigation teams."
The ANBU ninja was obviously startled, but he quickly realized his breach of composure, rapidly lowering his head and responding in deep voice: "Yes!" Immediately after, he cautiously pursued: "Then what about Lord Jiraiya? Should this intelligence be reported to him?"
"No," the Third decided decisively. "Don't reveal anything to Jiraiya."
"Understood!" The ANBU ninja said no more. His figure flashed and vanished from the ward.
The Third sat alone on the bed, gaze looking toward Konoha Village outside the window. He hadn't made this decision rashly—first, not sending people to pursue and reclaim Orochimaru was because he fundamentally lacked confidence in directly engaging the Ember organization in battle.
That organization's displayed strength was too mysteriously unfathomable. If the operation failed and that kind of terrifying jutsu capable of instantly destroying the entire village fell upon Konoha... the consequences were unimaginable.
Second, not notifying Jiraiya was because the Third really didn't want further complications. The Hokage succession ceremony's date was close at hand. He must ensure Jiraiya could ascend the Hokage position without any concerns.
"Pardon the intrusion."
Suddenly, a polite male voice cut without warning into the ward's stagnant air.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi violently raised his head, turbid pupils abruptly contracting—in the ward's center, a pitch-black portal opened. A figure leisurely floated out, feet not touching ground, suspended in midair defying gravity's common sense.
The arrival had white hair and pupil-less, completely forest-white eyes—precisely the Hyuga clan's signature Byakugan.
He held a red fishing rod in his hands. Only his peculiarly styled white clothing was currently damaged in multiple places, stained with dust and scorch marks, obviously having recently experienced fierce battle—this added several degrees of dishevelment and danger to his seemingly polite posture.
"Who are you?" The Third seemed to still sit at the bed's edge, but his entire body's muscles had already tensed. "Why do you possess those eyes?"
The Byakugan should be Konoha's Hyuga clan's bloodline limit, absolutely impossible to fall into such a suspicious stranger's possession.
What made the Third's heart alarm bells ring even louder was the opponent's appearance method—this space-time ninjutsu he'd never seen before.
"First meeting. However, there's no time now for mutual introductions." Otsutsuki Urashiki slightly nodded with a smile, only the smile carried no warmth whatsoever. "Very sorry for this abrupt visit during your recuperation."
His voice was steady and his words polite, yet they carried an aloof, indifferent condescension.
"However, could you please... 'lend' me some chakra? Recently, I'm somewhat 'lacking supplies.'"
His tone was relaxed as though borrowing some trivial small item.
"—!!!"
The Third's expression instantly turned ashen. Lend? Using this space-tearing method to break into the Hokage's ward to "borrow" chakra? This was naked plunder declaration!
The Third Hokage instantly formed hand seals. However—
"Too slow."
Urashiki regretfully shook his head, merely extremely casually flicking his wrist.
The next instant, the Third only felt red light flash before his eyes.
Squelch.
The sound of something sharp entering flesh rang out.
The Third's body violently stiffened, all seal-forming movements abruptly halting. He looked down in disbelief toward his own chest. That dark red fishhook had penetrated his hospital gown without obstruction, deeply sinking into his body.
Can't move! Not only was his body restrained by some power, even the chakra within was like a bursting dam—uncontrollably surging toward that fishhook, being madly extracted!
"Urgh...!" The Third grunted, attempting to struggle but unable to raise even a finger.
Only now did he truly see clearly the opponent's transformation. Urashiki's originally pure white eyes had now transformed into bewitching blue, eye pupils displaying rings of profound ripple patterns.
"These eyes... who exactly are you...!?" A terrible association flashed lightning-like through the Third's mind. Not long ago, that earth-shaking roar at Konoha's outskirts, the golden giant beast rising skyward, plus that destructive Tailed Beast Bomb explosion... Combined with ANBU's subsequent vague reports and Naruto's evasive "training accident" explanation...
"Could it be... that day, Naruto... was fighting you?!"
All clues instantly connected. Naruto would never use that scale of power outside the village without cause—unless encountering unimaginably powerful enemies!
"Hehe..." Urashiki emitted low laughter, blue Rinnegan indifferently observing the gradually condensing, massive and colorfully brilliant chakra light cluster on the fishhook—five-nature chakra forcibly extracted from the Third's body.
"Though I don't know who it was, I really must thank whoever injured you to this extent."
"Thanks to your current weakened state—otherwise, things would be considerably more troublesome."
Urashiki satisfiedly examined his "harvest," lightly nodding. "Well then, thank you for the hospitality."
"Old man, do you have time now? About that apartment Minato and I used to have, you..."
Suddenly, the ward door opened. A red-haired figure entered while speaking. Kushina's words abruptly stopped, staring dumbstruck at this scene.