Chapter Four: Might Guy’s Foot

... Konoha Village suffered a sudden calamity. Some, recognizing the changing tides, immediately sent carrier pigeons to notify the wandering ninja outside the village. Jiraiya, for instance. Tsunade, too, who had left in anger. If either of them could return, perhaps there would still be hope for the village! Yet both were elusive, and despite emergency communication methods, they could not be reached in time. Even if contact was made, by the time they returned, Konoha would already be reduced to rubble. Konoha Village could rely on no one but itself.

...

With a resounding crash, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen was shattered by a single kick. Might Guy had opened the Sixth Gate, his overwhelming power impossible to meet head-on. “Guy!” Kakashi had long since revealed his Sharingan, but the bespectacled youth before him, while not his equal, was more than capable of keeping him occupied. He could not break free.

“Once Guy opens the Gates, the strain on his body is immense. And with the village in such dire peril, he’ll have no choice but to stake his life.” Sure enough, Might Guy shattered the Seven Ninja Swordsmen in succession, then turned toward the battlefield between the Third Hokage and Orochimaru. At this moment, the Third Hokage was on the brink of defeat. Without aid, he would be finished.

“Burn, youthful spirit!” Might Guy charged the Four Violet Flames Formation, unleashing a fierce kick—yet it left the barrier unscathed. Even with the Sixth Gate open, Might Guy could not break the Four Violet Flames Formation.

“Brute,” Orochimaru commented, watching Guy’s assault. He recalled how Guy had once nearly kicked Madara Uchiha to death; such power was truly tempting. “An excellent specimen for my experiments,” he mused. Glancing at the struggling Third Hokage, Orochimaru decided it was time to end things. “Speed it up!” he commanded.

...

The Seven Ninja Swordsmen reformed after being smashed, possessing immortal bodies. All the great clans were held at bay, and the remaining skilled ninja were likewise occupied by the combined forces of Sound and Sand. Only Might Guy was free to assist the Hokage. The battle was shockingly one-sided.

In this war, only the Sand Village remained in the dark. “Where is our Kazekage?” “No idea!” “We saw him issue orders a few days ago, then he vanished.” “Forget it. Unless new orders come, we’ll stick to the Kazekage’s previous instructions—support Orochimaru...” The Kazekage’s disappearance was significant, yet with no way to find him, they followed his last orders.

The confusion was plain on their faces; none truly knew what the Kazekage’s plans were.

...

Sasuke, Naruto, and the rest of the new generation were also caught up in battle. This time, the Sound Village had brought numerous ninja, especially those bearing curse marks on their necks—each one capable of transforming with overwhelming power. Fortunately, once transformed, they became mindless berserkers, and the village’s core forces could just barely hold them back.

Sasuke did not go all out. Instead, he kept glancing toward the fight between the Hokage and Orochimaru. The Third Hokage was truly about to lose! Hope surged within Sasuke’s heart. “The one who couldn’t do it before—Orochimaru has accomplished it. Orochimaru is stronger! I must learn from him!”

At this point, with Edo Tensei at his disposal, Orochimaru truly could surpass Itachi Uchiha. Orochimaru could not die; he was inherently unassailable. Of course, battle is not merely a contest of brute strength; many other factors can tip the scales. That is the allure of combat—you never know what the next moment will bring. Yet in terms of sheer power, Orochimaru was indeed stronger. With Edo Tensei, he alone rivaled multiple Kage.

...

Many foreign ninja had come to participate in the Chunin Exams. But with such catastrophe befalling Konoha, who cared about the exams? They fled at once. Konoha had no time to stop them, so soon enough, word spread throughout the shinobi world that Konoha was on the brink of destruction.

Each of the Four Great Shinobi Villages had spies in Konoha, who likewise reported the situation to their home villages. Even the Stone, Cloud, and Mist Villages, uninvolved in the current events, found themselves seized by both exhilaration and fear. Exhilaration that Konoha would fall, reducing the Five Great Shinobi Villages by one, and that the prosperous Land of Fire would become their spoils. Fear that if Konoha could be destroyed, could they escape the same fate?

The Stone and Mist Villages, with self-awareness, considered forming an alliance—and resolved to make it a priority. The Cloud Village, however, brandished its blades, preparing to strike the Land of Fire first.

...

The fall of Konoha was an event with far-reaching impact on the shinobi world. From underground, Black Zetsu emerged, gazing toward Konoha, his thoughts heavy. White Zetsu’s intelligence on Konoha did not please him. “Orochimaru has gone too far. At this rate, he’ll disrupt the plan to resurrect Mother,” thought Black Zetsu. It seemed eliminating Orochimaru was the next necessary step.

He shared this information with all members of Akatsuki. In a shadowy, rain-soaked place, Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki were together. Upon receiving the message, Itachi turned at once and headed toward Konoha.

“Hey, hey, where are you going?” Kisame called after him, though he pondered inwardly. Never before had he seen such murderous intent radiate from Itachi. “So, even Itachi Uchiha has weaknesses,” thought Kisame. Grinning, he hefted his great sword and followed after Itachi.

...

The undercurrents surged. Orochimaru’s destruction of Konoha truly altered countless futures in an instant. Yet Orochimaru was undaunted.

“Aaaaaah—Daytime Tiger!” Might Guy opened the Seventh Gate, hurling a furious air punch at the Four Violet Flames Formation. The sound of shattering glass resounded in an instant—the barrier was broken. The Four Sound Ninja coughed blood, gravely wounded and on the brink of death. Had Guy’s blow landed directly, they would have died instantly.

Orochimaru looked at Guy in the Seventh Gate, a faint smile on his lips. Waving the Kusanagi Blade before the crippled Third Hokage, he said, “You’re a step too late, and your fists are smaller than mine. I’d be nervous and my hands might tremble.” The Third Hokage was not dead, but his chakra was sealed, leaving him an ordinary old man.

Orochimaru used the Hokage to threaten Guy, leaving Guy at a loss. Unable to attack Orochimaru, he turned and unleashed his fury on a nearby row of houses. The air punches from the Seventh Gate were terrifying; in just a few strikes, an entire row of buildings collapsed. But Guy, spent, collapsed into a scorched heap among the ruins, unable to move for the time being.

Orochimaru gazed at the blackened Guy, licking his lips. “Not bad—he only opened the Seventh Gate, so the damage is acceptable.” He did not want his experimental specimen ruined.

With the Hokage defeated, the situation was beyond reversal. Orochimaru gave the order: the First and Second Hokage, White Fang, and Hanzo of the Salamander charged into the ranks of the great clans. In short order, the clans surrendered.

As for those who refused and the various clan leaders and high-ranking officials, without exception, all were crippled. Orochimaru refrained from excessive killing, instead choosing to leave some alive as ordinary people. “Great clans? Bloodline? Let them marry commoners,” he said.

Konoha’s strength and its abundance of ninja were, in large part, due to the Senju Clan intermarrying with ordinary people. Though the Senju faded through intermarriage, it made Konoha’s foundation strong. To eliminate bloodline ninja, one could not rely on killing—there would always be survivors hiding at the ends of the earth. True eradication required assimilation, letting them disappear on their own.

Afterward, Orochimaru found Naruto. Naruto was Konoha’s war machine, and Orochimaru had already planned to isolate him, fearing he might lose control. Even so, Naruto had reached Three Tails’ power, and if the fight continued, the Nine Tails would emerge.

“Five Elements Seal!” In a flash, Orochimaru appeared before Naruto, pressing five fingers to his abdomen. He reinforced Naruto’s seal, causing him to collapse unconscious.

Thus, Konoha was utterly defeated.

Only Danzo remained. But soon after, he perished within his own “Reverse Four Symbols Seal,” his Sharingan eyes all stripped away.

Konoha became history.