- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 151
“Third Hokage, grab onto my shoulder. I’ll get you out of this barrier!”
After speaking, Leo quickly performed the hand gestures for his spellcasting again.
The Third Hokage hesitated for a moment, but ultimately placed his hands on Leo’s shoulders.
He had indeed been ready to go down with Orochimaru.
Firstly, to make up for the mistake he made years ago when he showed mercy. Secondly, because if he didn’t sacrifice himself, the outcome today would be his death, with Orochimaru rampaging through Konoha using the reanimated First and Second Hokage.
However, if there was a chance to escape the barrier, he would choose to preserve his life.
He wasn’t afraid to die. If he were, he wouldn’t have stepped forward to be the sacrificial bait when he and the Second Hokage were surrounded by the Gold and Silver Brothers years ago. Dying for the village wouldn’t cause him a moment’s hesitation.
Just as he had done many things against his conscience for the sake of the village’s interests.
But there were still many matters in the village that hadn’t been settled yet. The next Hokage had not been appointed, and the situation with Danzo hadn’t been properly handled. Seeing as neither Danzo nor any of his Root ninjas had appeared during this crisis, he knew Danzo was somehow involved.
If he died and Danzo became the next Hokage, with Danzo’s personality, the village’s peace would be shattered.
He didn’t oppose all of Danzo’s methods; he even cleaned up after him a few times. But the Hokage position must be held by someone who lives in the light.
This was why he hadn’t chosen Orochimaru back then and instead picked Minato Namikaze. In truth, Jiraiya would have been an even better choice, but Jiraiya wasn’t willing.
Moreover, after today, Konoha would be greatly weakened, and other villages would certainly be watching for an opportunity to strike. If he remained alive, he could continue to deter them, so if he could survive now, he would choose to live.
There would be another opportunity to deal with Orochimaru later.
On the other side, Orochimaru raised his hand as if to stop them but then lowered it again.
He knew Leo’s strength; with Leo intervening, it wouldn’t be easy to keep the Third Hokage there. And truthfully, he was also quite wary of the Third Hokage using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.
Deep down, even though he often spoke about killing the Third Hokage and destroying Konoha, did he really mean it?
He had been an orphan from birth and became the Third Hokage’s disciple at six, graduating from the ninja academy and forming a rare friendship with Jiraiya and Tsunade, as well as a mentor-student bond with the Third Hokage.
Later, he witnessed too much death in the wars, especially the deaths of Tsunade’s lover and younger brother, which spurred his desire to research immortality at any cost.
Adding to that, his time spent as Danzo’s guard in Root exposed him to many of Danzo’s dark ideas.
This led to his later actions of kidnapping children from neighboring villages, setting up secret laboratories everywhere, and conducting various human experiments.
As for the Third Hokage not choosing him but instead choosing Jiraiya’s student, Minato, to become the Fourth Hokage, he harbored some resentment, but it wasn’t enough to make him want to kill his former teacher.
In fact, leaving Konoha allowed him to shed all restraints and freely pursue his research into forbidden techniques—something he had to thank the Third Hokage for.
The Konoha Invasion Plan was intended to plant the Cursed Seal on Sasuke and to destroy as much of Konoha as possible in alliance with the Sand Village, thereby weakening both Konoha and Suna and setting the “windmill” of the ninja world in motion.
Konoha could not be destroyed; with Jiraiya there and the hidden Danzo and Root ninjas, the combined forces of Suna and Otogakure could never win. He had even eliminated the Fourth Kazekage of the Sand Village.
As for killing the Third Hokage, rather than wanting to kill him, it was more about showing his teacher the results of his years of research—demonstrating that his pursuit of immortality wasn’t a mere fantasy but a reality he had achieved.
With most of these objectives accomplished, and with Leo saving the Third Hokage, there seemed to be no need for him to stop them.
What he didn’t understand now was why this prince, Leo, suddenly decided to save the Third Hokage and also gave him a somewhat deliberate warning earlier. Was he truly saving the Third Hokage, or was he actually trying to save him? Orochimaru found it hard to decipher his intentions.
…
“He didn’t stop me. Did he understand my intentions, or did he never intend to kill the Third Hokage in the first place?”
As Leo apparated away with the Third Hokage, he noticed that Orochimaru remained standing, making no attempt to stop him and giving no orders to the reanimated First and Second Hokage to attack. Leo was secretly surprised by this.
“Lord Hokage, are you all right?”
As Leo and the Third Hokage appeared on the golden-tiled roof outside, the Anbu guards stationed outside the barrier immediately surrounded them.
The Third Hokage took a deep breath and asked, “I’m fine. What’s the situation in the village now?”
Chakra is a combination of physical and spiritual energy. At sixty-nine years old, his body was aged, and his physical abilities and chakra reserves were far less than in his prime. After the recent intense battle, he was almost out of chakra.
A masked Anbu ninja reported, “There are large numbers of Sand and Sound ninjas attacking from the four gates—north, south, east, and west. The southern gate faces the strongest attack, with a giant three-headed snake summoning beast causing massive destruction. Fortunately, Lord Jiraiya has arrived and stabilized the situation.”
“There are also hidden ninjas from other villages inside the village causing chaos. The jonin have gone to intercept them as well.”
Overall, while the situation was dire, Konoha’s superior strength was gradually turning the tide. It wouldn’t be long before they could repel the invading Sound and Sand ninjas.
Of course, some casualties were inevitable.
“Lord Hokage!”
At this moment, at the Chunin Exam arena, all the Sand and Sound ninjas who had been hiding among the villagers and launching surprise attacks were defeated. Even Baki, the powerful jonin leader of the Sand ninja, had been subdued and brought over by Kakashi and Guy.
“Consider yourselves lucky this time. We’re leaving!”
Orochimaru, controlling the reanimated First and Second Hokage, sneered and left a parting remark before escaping with the Sound Four toward the outskirts of Konoha.
The Sand jinchuriki hadn’t rampaged within the village, and the Third Hokage always had the thought of taking Orochimaru down with him, plus he wasn’t sure if this Prince Leo was a friend or foe.
Most importantly, his summoned snake wouldn’t be able to hold off Jiraiya for long, and Orochimaru didn’t want to deal with him—Jiraiya was someone who greatly annoyed him.
“Don’t let them escape!”
The lead Anbu guard, seeing Orochimaru fleeing, angrily moved to pursue but was stopped by the Third Hokage.
“Don’t chase after them. Focus on supporting the others, driving back the Sand ninjas, and minimizing the village’s casualties.”
The Third Hokage knew that if they focused their efforts on trying to kill Orochimaru now, they’d likely fail and might even fall into a trap set by him. It was better to conserve their strength and first deal with the Sand ninjas, who were supposed to be their allies.
This would also help restore some of Konoha’s reputation, and they might even seize the opportunity to make sure the Sand Village could never pose a threat to Konoha again.
……