"Who are you people?"
"Please don't hurt Teacher Shinno!"
Hearing the conversation outside, Amarū, who was busy inside the house, opened the door and came out.
Seeing the elite ninjas in dark attire and exuding a murderous aura for the first time, although the little girl was extremely afraid, she saw her most respected teacher with a knife at his throat. She immediately summoned her courage and shouted at Hatake Sakumo.
Orochimaru looked at the little girl who suddenly appeared with some surprise, observed her with interest, and then nodded in understanding, combining her appearance with the color of her hair that was inadvertently revealed.
"Heh heh!"
"Lord Shinno, this little girl named Amarū must be the power source carrier you've prepared for your aerial fortress, the Sky Ninja, right?"
"Red hair..."
"Using the body of a suspected Uzumaki clan member as the power source for an aerial fortress!"
"You're incredibly audacious!"
As soon as Orochimaru spoke, everyone present was shocked.
"What?"
"Is this little girl an orphan of the Uzumaki clan?"
"Damn it!"
Hatake Sakumo instinctively turned his head. When he saw a wisp of red hair peeking out from under Amarū's hood, the same color as Mito Uzumaki and Kushina Uzumaki, he immediately believed Orochimaru's words completely.
Shinno's pupils contracted, and he instantly pieced together the cause and effect of his exposure.
"So, it turns out this little girl's identity was revealed when she went out to gather herbs? Damn it!"
"I should have just sealed the Zero-Tails into her body and kept her in the Ankoro Panten as a power source!"
"Now, this situation..."
Shinno glanced at the purple barrier that had risen around the courtyard, his fists hidden within his wide sleeves clenching subtly.
Amarū looked at Orochimaru with confusion.
"What Sky Ninja? What Ankoro Panten?"
"And what's this about the Zero-Tails carrier and the Uzumaki clan?"
The little girl's questions received no answers. Orochimaru winked at Yūhi Shinku beside him, signaling him towards Amarū. Yūhi Shinku understood immediately, formed a hand seal, and used genjutsu to put Amarū to sleep.
"Don't be scared, you'll be fine after a nap back in your room!"
"Oh! Okay, I'll go back and take a nap!"
Amarū nodded blankly, obediently turned back into the house, locked the door, and lay on the bed, falling into a deep sleep.
"Using a child's emotions to achieve your Sky Ninja ambitions!"
"You deserve to die!"
Yūhi Shinku, who was about to become a father, watched Amarū enter the house before gritting his teeth and saying fiercely to Shinno.
A hint of disdain flashed in Shinno's eyes. He stopped pretending and sneered,
"Hmph!"
"I never expected that after hiding my name in the ninja world for so long, I would be exposed because of a tool that could be discarded at any time!"
"However..."
"Aren't you Five Great Ninja Villages always doing things like sealing Tailed Beasts using children?"
"Hypocrites!"
Shinno mocked casually. While Yūhi Shinku was momentarily stunned by his words, the chakra within him erupted violently. He lunged forward, reaching for the knife at his throat, and with his right fist clenched, he slammed it towards Sakumo's chest.
What kind of person was Sakumo? How could he be swayed by an enemy's few words?
As soon as the chakra within Shinno erupted, Sakumo's short sword instantly darted out, cutting Shinno's throat without hesitation.
"Guh!"
Shinno's punching motion faltered. His left hand, which was reaching for the short sword, missed and instead clutched the wound on his throat that was gushing blood. He staggered backward.
Hatake Sakumo retrieved his short sword and looked at Shinno, who was in pain, with a blank expression. He then turned to Orochimaru with an apologetic look.
"I'm sorry!"
"It was an emergency just now. Following battlefield customs..."
Orochimaru waved his hand carelessly, his eyes fixed on Shinno, who still refused to fall to the ground and die. Under Sakumo's surprised gaze, he reached into his ninja pouch and pulled out a kunai.
"Senior Sakumo, this Lord Shinno isn't that easy to kill!"
"A severed throat might be fatal to ordinary ninjas, but for Lord Shinno, who possesses the secret technique of bodily revitalization, it's nothing."
"Right?"
Hatake Sakumo was shocked and followed Orochimaru's gaze.
Indeed, Shinno, who had appeared to be on the verge of death moments ago, was staring at Orochimaru with murderous intent. The chakra fluctuations on his body, which had gradually subsided, suddenly became turbulent.
Under the influence of this powerful chakra, Shinno's body slowly transformed from a hunched old man into a burly, black-haired man. His left hand, which had been covering his throat, slowly relaxed. To the astonishment of Hatake Sakumo and Yūhi Shinku, the deep wound cut by the short sword was nowhere to be seen.
Might Duy felt a sense of his worldview being shattered as he watched Shinno, who had suddenly returned to his youthful state. At the same time, a deep sense of betrayal washed over him.
"Senior Shinno..."
"You... you've been lying to me all along?"
"Why?"
Shinno glanced at Might Duy, who looked like he was on the verge of collapse, with a hint of mockery in his eyes.
"Heh heh!"
"Useless!"
"I've invested so much in you, yet because you are an utter failure, I could only cultivate the Eight Gates technique to the Sixth Gate."
"It forced me to only succeed in opening the first six gates, and afterwards, I had to find a way to obtain the methods for opening the last two gates from you..."
"But..."
"Fortunately, it's just three Jonin. Opening up to the Sixth Gate should be enough!"
Shinno snorted disdainfully and turned to look at Orochimaru and the other two, who were on high alert. The chakra within him surged even more.
"I know you, Orochimaru, the personal disciple of the Third Hokage, known as the 'Cold Prince'!"
"I didn't expect your intelligence about me to be so thorough!"
"To thank you for forcing me to experience my youthful body and strength again, you..."
"Go to hell!"
Shinno grinned sinisterly, clenched his massive fists, and slammed them towards the three, accompanied by a chakra fluctuation that seemed capable of destroying everything.
"First Gate of the Eight Gates - Opening Gate, Open!"
...
"Sixth Gate of the Eight Gates - Gate of Joy, Open!"
"Active - Bone Shattering Fist!"
A punch full of destructive power, amplified by the berserk chakra of Shinno's activated Sixth Gate, struck towards the three with unparalleled force.
"As expected!"
"The Eight Gates cultivated through the secret technique of bodily revitalization is a world apart from the power cultivated by Might Duy and his son through their steady progress!"
"If it were those two who could unleash attacks like the Morning Peacock in the Sixth Gate state, this fight would be over before it began!"
Orochimaru's heart relaxed as he watched Shinno, who only knew how to use brute force with his berserk chakra. A hint of disdain flashed in his eyes.
He tapped his foot and easily dodged the attack with the Body Flicker Technique.
Compared to Orochimaru's combat experience, Hatake Sakumo was even more seasoned.
As Shinno threw this punch, he instantly sensed how poorly the remnants of the Sky Ninja controlled their power.
"Such immense power, yet the attack is so scattered."
"Possessing strength without knowing how to use it!"
"Practically on par with those novice Genin!"
Hatake Sakumo mocked inwardly, and his figure, along with Orochimaru's, disappeared. They reappeared behind Shinno almost simultaneously.
"Die!"