As soon as Orochimaru left, a massive Four Purple Flames Formation rose, trapping the Third Hokage and Jiraiya inside. The two were locked in battle, struggling to fend off the attacks from the reanimated Hokages.
With Orochimaru's improvements and White Zetsu's help, these resurrected Hokages were much stronger than in the original story.
The Third Hokage and Jiraiya had their hands full dealing with them and had no time to chase after Orochimaru.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru arrived at the secret entrance of the Root headquarters. As Danzo's partner, he was very familiar with this place.
When Orochimaru arrived, he found a few people already waiting for him—Yang Tao and the couple, Minato and Kushina.
Minato, filled with anger, said furiously, "So it's true! Danzo actually worked with the enemy! The village is under attack, and there's not a single Anbu in sight! Damn it!"
Any last bit of hope Minato had was gone. He had refused to believe that Danzo, one of Konoha's top advisors, would betray the village. But the truth was right in front of him—there was no denying it now.
Yang Tao spoke up, "Danzo isn't exactly wrong. Everything he did was for Konoha… his version of Konoha."
At first, Danzo may have played a necessary role in Konoha's hidden operations, but over time, he had become nothing more than a cancer to the village.
Kushina was also furious. She didn't care about what happened to Konoha, but Danzo was the one responsible for her son's miserable childhood!
Right now, she wanted nothing more than to send Danzo straight to the Pure Land!
Orochimaru stepped forward. "Sir, should we go in now?"
Yang Tao nodded. "Go ahead, I'll just watch the show this time."
The group entered Root's underground base. The moment they stepped in, waves of Root ninja swarmed toward them.
Without hesitation, the three charged forward.
"Mandara no Jin!"
A horde of venomous snakes slithered through the tunnels, rushing toward the Root ninja!
Yang Tao got goosebumps just from watching. It hadn't seemed that bad in the anime, but seeing countless snakes in real life was terrifying. He wouldn't be surprised if the enemies died from shock before they were even bitten.
Minato flickered from place to place, knocking out the Root ninja one by one. Many of them recognized Minato, yet they still attacked without hesitation.
Although the Root ninja were skilled, they were no match for two Kage-level fighters and an elite Jonin. It didn't take long for them to fall.
Using his minimap, Yang Tao located Danzo and warned the others.
"Danzo is just up ahead. There are still a lot of ninja inside, so be careful."
They soon arrived at Danzo's hideout. Inside, a large number of Root ninja stood in formation, all wearing standard uniforms and masks.
But two people standing beside Danzo had a different presence—they were Aburame Torune and Yamanaka Fu, Danzo's most trusted subordinates!
Danzo glared at the intruders. "Orochimaru, what are you trying to do?! You dare betray me?!"
Orochimaru smiled.
"Danzo-sama, this was my plan all along. Many people want to send you to the Pure Land—I'm just the one carrying it out."
It looked like the two were about to argue further.
Yang Tao, watching from the back, hurriedly interrupted.
"Orochimaru, stop wasting time! Just get it over with! We're not here to win with talk-no-jutsu!"
Orochimaru felt strangely frustrated, as if something important had just been interrupted.
Without another word, he launched a Hidden Shadow Snake Hand attack, sending snakes to bind his enemies.
But Danzo's men were no ordinary fighters—they dodged the attack with ease.
Namikaze Minato threw a bunch of kunai marked with the Flying Thunder God seal at the Root ninjas, his figure flashing rapidly through the crowd.
Meanwhile, Kushina summoned golden chains from her body, attacking the enemies.
Danzo was completely stunned. His subordinates had reported that Orochimaru had led Namikaze Minato, Kushina, and an unknown person into the Root base, but he hadn't believed it.
Yet now, seeing the unmistakable Flying Thunder God technique and the Adamantine Sealing Chains, he had no choice but to accept the reality before him.
"Minato, Kushina, are you betraying Konohagakure?" Shimura Danzo questioned loudly, not even wondering how the two had come back to life.
Yang Tao, watching from the side, was speechless.
Damn, did Shimura Danzo brainwash his subordinates so much that he ended up fooling himself too?
Then again, considering that in the original story, he kept saying everything he did was for Konohagakure, this reaction made sense.
Minato and Kushina ignored him. Soon, all the minor Root ninjas were taken care of, leaving only Shimura Danzo and his two bodyguards.
Danzo unwrapped the bandages on his arm, revealing a row of Sharingan.
Kushina shuddered at the sight of his arm covered in eyes.
She couldn't believe Danzo actually thought this looked good.
Seeing Danzo's arm, Minato now fully believed what Yang Tao had told him.
"You really deserve to die!" Minato said angrily.
Orochimaru smirked at the sight of Danzo's exposed arm. He quickly formed a hand seal, and in an instant, all the Sharingan on Danzo's arm snapped shut.
"Danzo-sama, did you really think I wouldn't have a backup plan?"
Danzo was in total disbelief. "Impossible! I had my men check this arm thoroughly! There was nothing wrong with it!"
"Heh." Orochimaru just chuckled, offering no further explanation.
Danzo immediately summoned his beast, Nightmare.
But the underground space was too cramped. The moment Nightmare appeared, it smashed through the ceiling, letting sunlight pour into the base.
With the structure collapsing, everyone jumped up to the surface.
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