Chapter 15: Chapter 14
Konoha Year 60.
The smoke of the Third Great Ninja War had long dissipated, and in this era of peace, children played ninja games excitedly, dreaming of becoming the next Hokage when they grew up.
The Hidden Leaf Village.
Compared to its early days 60 years ago, it had changed dramatically.
The increasingly bustling streets and buildings were just the beginning.
On the Hokage Rock, three new faces had joined the lone visage of Hashirama.
Below the rock, the former residences of the Senju and Uchiha clans were gone.
The two founding clans of Konoha had dwindled to a few members, such as Tsunade and Sasuke.
The villagers didn't care about past glories and histories.
To them, the Third Hokage was the strongest Hokage Konoha had ever had.
The once-established facts had become unrecognizable after being eroded by time and obscured by layers of cover-ups.
Only those who had lived through that era would laugh and shake their heads upon hearing today's wild claims.
But what did it matter? They were just remnants of a bygone era.
The times moved forward, and past glories, no matter how magnificent, had been swept into the dustbin of history, no longer influencing the present.
The current era belonged to the new generation.
What was the God of Shinobi? Who were the ones who stood shoulder to shoulder with gods? They hadn't seen them.
They had witnessed the Third Hokage, the Ninjutsu Professor, lead Konoha to victory in the unprecedentedly intense First, Second, and Third Great Ninja Wars.
They had seen the Legendary Three Sannin, who had contracts with the three great sacred places.
They had witnessed the speed of the Yellow Flash, who could contend with the A and B duo.
What? Someone stronger than them?
Heh.
Let them come out and show us.
Can't bring them out?
Then stop talking nonsense.
At this point, anyone wanting to argue could only close their mouths in frustration.
Until one day, a gifted rogue ninja from Konoha completed a forbidden technique left behind by the Second Hokage, called the "Reanimation Jutsu."
Finally, the glory of those recorded only in texts reappeared in the present, blinding everyone's eyes.
Times were changing, everything had transformed.
"The winner, Uzumaki Naruto!"
"Yay~~~ Woohoo~~~ Yeah~~~"
As the proctor, Genma, announced the final result, a blond boy named Naruto ignored his exhaustion and, amidst the cheers and applause of thousands of spectators, celebrated wildly on the battlefield, blowing kisses to the crowd.
This was the Chunin Exam site in Konoha.
Genin from Konoha, the Sand Village, the Sound Village, the Rain Village, the Grass Village, and other ninja villages had gathered for the Chunin selection exams.
After two rounds of examinations that eliminated a large number of participants, they had arrived at the final round.
This was a grand competition watched by thousands of spectators, including many prominent figures, nobles, and even the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazekage.
Right from the start, no one expected a boy named Uzumaki Naruto to defeat the favored winner, Hyuga Neji, from the prestigious Hyuga clan.
The crowd erupted in excitement.
Subsequent matches were equally thrilling.
Shikamaru outwitted Temari but ultimately conceded.
Sasuke made a dramatic entrance, engaging in a fierce battle with the One-Tail Jinchuriki, Gaara.
But none of this was as shocking as the moment when feathers from the Nirvana Temple technique began to fall, and the "Fourth Kazekage" placed a kunai at the neck of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen, declaring the start of the plan to destroy Konoha.
Boom! Boom!
Explosions, battles, screams, and wails...
One moment, Konoha was peaceful, the next, it was engulfed in war.
On the roof of the Chunin Exam observation platform.
Within the Four Violet Flames Formation.
Orochimaru revealed his true face, and after a brief exchange with his beloved teacher, he became serious.
"Sarutobi-sensei, don't disappoint me too much."
Orochimaru sneered at the aged Hiruzen.
Removing his Hokage robe to reveal his black combat attire, Hiruzen, with a serious expression, threw shuriken and formed hand signs:
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Instantly, countless shuriken multiplied, covering the sky as they shot toward Orochimaru.
Orochimaru clapped his hands and smirked:
"Summoning Jutsu: Reanimation Jutsu!"
With a rumble, several upright coffins rose from the ground, blocking all the shuriken shadow clones' attacks.
"Reanimation Jutsu? That is..."
Seeing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen's pupils contracted sharply.
As the Hokage, he was well aware of the Reanimation Jutsu recorded in the Book of Seals.
"Summoning the dead?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the two coffins that had risen first, marked with the characters "First" and "God."
Then he saw two more coffins marked with "Second" and "Fourth" slowly rising.
Having a vague sense of the implications and feeling deeply uneasy, his expression changed, and he quickly made hand signs to stop Orochimaru's summoning.
Sensing that the summoning of the fourth coffin had been halted, Orochimaru shrugged nonchalantly:
"The fourth one doesn't seem to work. Oh well."
Ultimately, three coffins were summoned.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, as if facing a formidable enemy, watched everything unfold.
Soon.
With a creaking sound, the lids of the three coffins, filled with shuriken, slowly fell to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Clatter, clatter
The sound of metal clinking came from within the dust cloud.
Hiruzen clenched his fists.
Outside the Four Violet Flames Formation, a team of ANBU watched intently.
Finally, the dust settled.
Everyone present saw three men in old-fashioned war armor, their bodies covered in cracks, step out of the coffins stiffly.
"That's... the First and Second Hokage!"
The ANBU watching from outside quickly recognized the First and Second Hokage of Konoha.
After all, their faces were familiar, having been seen since childhood.
But...
"Who is that young man in silver armor?"
The ANBU looked at each other, puzzled by the unfamiliar figure standing alongside the First and Second Hokage.
The ANBU didn't know, but Hiruzen, as the Hokage, knew very well.
"The man who fought the First Five Kage, causing the death of the First Mizukage and the crippling of the First Raikage, the one who took a great effort for the First Hokage to finally kill, a man said to stand shoulder to shoulder with gods!"
"Hagoromo Gensou!"
Hiruzen, looking at the reanimated Gensou, felt his heart sink as he spoke each word.
"Oh?"
"I didn't expect people still remember me."
Gensou, lifting his head to enjoy the long-lost sunlight, looked at Hiruzen and smiled brightly,
"Not bad, you deserve praise."
(End of Chapter)
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