A New Snake In The Shinobi World

"Brother! Stay with me!"

In the dense forest of the Land of Rivers, five or six bodies lay scattered on the ground, lifeless.

Among them, a young man was barely clinging to life.

He was covered in blood, his body riddled with stab wounds. He was so grievously injured that it seemed like he had no chance of survival.

Tsunade, clad in her battle attire, was working tirelessly, her chakra pouring into the young man as she tried to heal him.

This man wasn't just a Konoha ninja, he was her younger brother, Nawaki.

"Sister… Sis…" Nawaki's voice was weak, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth.

"Don't… stop wasting your chakra… I'm already… Agh—cough!"

"Stop talking! Just stop!" Tsunade shouted, tears streaming down her face as her hands glowed with the faint green of medical ninjutsu.

Fate could be so cruel and ironic.

Nawaki, who was originally fated to die in the early days of the Second Shinobi War, had managed to survive thanks to Orochimaru's intervention.

But now, in the Third Shinobi War, fate seemed to repeat itself.

Even after becoming a jonin, Nawaki had fallen in battle on the Sand Ninja frontlines.

And the circumstances of his death were eerily similar to what had been written in history.

Back during the Second Shinobi War, Nawaki had fallen victim to an Iwa ninja's explosive tag trap, leaving his body in shreds.

This time, it was a Sand Ninja ambush. After being lured into a trap, he was struck down in a brutal assault.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, two figures landed on the ground nearby.

The Konoha ninja standing next to Tsunade immediately drew his sword, ready to defend her.

But when he got a clear look at the two figures, his expression froze in shock.

"You're…"

"Tsunade… I didn't expect to see you here… Hm? What happened?"

The two newcomers froze as their gaze fell on the critically injured Nawaki.

"Nawaki… is he…?"

---

Meanwhile, atop a mountain in the Land of Lightning, Orochimaru, who had been observing the battlefield through the Second Hokage's summoned body, suddenly stiffened.

Nawaki… was still dead.

Despite everything, his life had come to the same tragic end.

"How could this happen?" Orochimaru muttered, his eyes narrowing in disbelief. "Can the course of fate be changed, but not the ultimate result of life and death?"

He let out a sigh, pressing two fingers against his temple.

"Just what I needed, another headache."

But there was no time to dwell on this. Orochimaru's focus shifted back to the valley below, where the Third Raikage continued to fight.

---

Although the reanimated forces led by the Second Tsuchikage only numbered around 400 to 500, their immortality granted them a significant advantage on the battlefield.

The Third Raikage was a formidable opponent. His raw strength and resilience allowed him to hold his ground against both Mū and the reanimated ninjas.

But Kage-level battles were always drawn out.

The sheer power of the combatants made it difficult to determine a victor in a short amount of time.

In close-quarters combat, the Second Tsuchikage was clearly no match for the Third Raikage.

But Mū had the advantage of flight and devastating ninjutsu, resulting in an evenly matched, prolonged battle.

"In a clash between Kage, ordinary ninjas have no place," Orochimaru murmured to himself, watching from the mountain.

Raising his hands, he formed a series of hand seals.

The reanimated Iwa ninjas below seemed to sense the command and began to reposition themselves, herding the Kumo forces away from the battlefield.

Soon, the Third Raikage found himself isolated, separated from his allies.

Orochimaru's lips curled into a satisfied smile.

As light green markings appeared around the corners of his eyes, Orochimaru swiftly completed another sequence of hand seals.

Summoning Jutsu!

Bang!

In a puff of white smoke, three elegant figures clad in white robes appeared before Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru? Summoning all three of us at once… What's going on?"

"Do you need our help with someone even you can't handle?"

"If this is a false alarm, you'll pay for it," one of the figures said with a sly grin.

The three figures were unmistakably the three great snakes of Ryūchi Cave: Tagitsuhime, Tagorihime, and Ichikishimahime.

Hearing their taunts, Orochimaru smirked but wasted no time pointing toward the Kumo camp in the distance.

"I need to deal with the man down there before the enemy reinforcements arrive."

"The one on the ground or the one in the sky?"

"The one on the ground," Orochimaru replied, his voice calm but deliberate.

Tagitsuhime glanced at the Third Raikage, whose body was surrounded by crackling lightning chakra.

"This… might be a little tricky," she commented, her eyes narrowing.

"Yes," Tagorihime added. "This kind of opponent isn't one we're particularly effective against."

"I think you should summon Manda instead," Ichikishima-hime suggested, smirking mischievously.

"You misunderstand," Orochimaru interjected, his hoarse voice cutting through their chatter. "I can handle him myself. I summoned you to ensure no one else sees this."

"Ah, I see," Tagorihime said, her grin widening. "You want us to create a barrier to conceal your fight, right?"

"Exactly," Orochimaru confirmed.

"Leave it to us," Tagitsuhime said confidently.

Ichikishimahime leaned closer to Orochimaru, her mischievous smile deepening as she pressed against him. "Once this is over, you'll have to spend some time with us…"

Orochimaru responded with an amused, sinister grin. "If you promise not to revert to your true forms, maybe I'll consider it."

"Oh? Are you serious?"

"Not at all."

"Tch, I knew it," Ichikishimahime pouted, but she quickly stepped back.

"Alright, enough flirting," Tagorihime snapped. "Let's get to work!"

With that, the three snakes vanished into thin air, their forms fading into invisibility as they began their task.

---

Below the valley, the Third Raikage was locked in battle with the Second Tsuchikage.

"Second Tsuchikage!" the Raikage bellowed, lightning surging around his body. "If we keep this up, neither of us will accomplish anything!"

From above, Mū responded calmly, his voice carrying over the chaos. "I'm afraid my mission is to keep you occupied, Raikage."

"Mission?" The Raikage frowned. "Who gave you this mission?"

"That's a question you don't need answered," Mū replied cryptically.

Just then, the surrounding environment shifted.

The battlefield seemed to transform, the two combatants now standing in a vast, enclosed arena. A thick haze surrounded them, obscuring the outside world completely.

"This is… an illusion? No…"

The Third Raikage's sharp eyes scanned the arena, his confusion evident. "What's going on?"

Before he could piece it together, a familiar voice echoed from the edge of the arena.

"Second Tsuchikage, please step aside. The Third Raikage is mine to handle."

The Raikage's eyes widened as Orochimaru stepped into view.

"Orochimaru? What are you doing here?"

***

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