8 Chapter 8: The Fall of the Ambitious
Initially, Orochimaru had the impression that Hiruzen was about ten meters away, staying extremely vigilant and never letting his guard down. However, in the blink of an eye, Hiruzen found himself right in front of him.
"What?" Orochimaru expressed his disbelief, his face marked by surprise.
The agility and movement technique that Hiruzen exhibited were unknown to Orochimaru until that moment.
Nonetheless, Orochimaru did not stand still and tried to react by jumping back. To his astonishment, hands emerged from the ground, grabbing his feet. And not only that: shadows began to spread over his body, immobilizing him completely.
"Shadow Expansion Technique!?" Orochimaru immediately recognized the technique, but found himself unable to free himself quickly. His sensei's subsequent actions left him not just confused, but also terrified.
Hiruzen created a shadow clone; so far, so good. But then, a dagger made of natural energy materialized in his left hand and a rosary in his other hand, which transformed into a hand marked with seals, reminiscent of the Shinigami's hand, while a sinister mask covered his face...
"How is this possible?" Orochimaru had never witnessed such feats before.
However, this did not lessen the fear he felt, especially upon observing the hand holding the rosary pass through the body of Hiruzen's shadow clone, extract the soul of the clone—making it vanish with a simple 'puff'—and then head towards Orochimaru's mouth.
Reluctantly, the shadows controlled his mouth, forcing it to open. The hand, now carrying the soul of the clone which initially had the appearance of his sensei, began to undergo continuous mutations, assuming various forms such as sword, spear, dagger, staff, among others.
"You..." Orochimaru's eyes were wide open, reflecting a sudden understanding of a brutal truth. His sensei had changed; he was not the same person as before. When this transformation occurred, Orochimaru was not sure.
Perhaps he had noticed during the announcement of Hiruzen's change in appearance, when he mentioned the awakening of a Kekkei Genkai. At that moment, however, the only thing on Orochimaru's mind was the obsession to obtain his sensei's cells to discover the secret behind this transformation and, possibly, to unravel the formula for immortality...
'Was I blinded by my own greed?' Orochimaru questioned himself internally, before noticing the invasive presence in his body trying to consume him. 'I will not be defeated!' He promised himself mentally.
However, even being just a fraction of Hiruzen's soul fighting against him, it was a soul strengthened, fueled both by Hiruzen's own original soul and by the essence of various weapons and the Shinigami itself.
Within himself, the entity with the appearance of his sensei began to merge with his soul. Orochimaru watched, astonished, as the entity constantly changed shape, now taking the form of swords, now spears, daggers, staffs, and so on. The shape never remained stable for long, always reverting to the image of Hiruzen.
"Who are you?" Orochimaru managed to ask, struggling not to be consumed by the entity.
"Me?" The semitransparent figure of Hiruzen answered with a chilling calm: "I've been called many names: legendary weapon, cursed weapon, devil's weapon, god's weapon, savior's weapon, among others. But if there's something common among all these titles, it's that I've always been a 'weapon', at the mercy of someone. However, now it's different. I'm no longer a controlled entity, even being powerful; now, I'm the one who controls!"
Probably, making this revelation was Orochimaru's biggest mistake. The next moment, Hiruzen's soul became even more aggressive and powerful, beginning to absorb and completely dominate Orochimaru's soul, claiming everything that belonged to Orochimaru for itself.
"No!!" Orochimaru shouted, his voice laden with despair and refusal, as he fought against the overwhelming force trying to devour him.
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How could Fugaku have predicted that Danzo would dare to use the Izanagi in such a reckless manner?
Moreover, where could Danzo have obtained such an extraordinary amount of chakra to persist in using the Izanagi, incessantly resurrecting?
Recalling the three valiant brothers who perished facing Danzo and the Anbu accompanying him, Fugaku's indignation only intensified, causing a new change in the pattern of his eyes.
"Danzo... You need to die...!" With these words, the immense power of the Susanoo began to envelop Fugaku, manifesting majestically around him.
"Mangekyo Sharingan... I had suspected you had awakened those detestable eyes," Danzo declared, showing no surprise.
"You try to appear calm even in the face of this, but I know it's just a facade, Danzo," Fugaku retorted, confronting him. "After all, after so many uses of the Izanagi, you must have very few Sharingans left to continue altering reality at your whim."
Danzo remained silent, acknowledging the accuracy of Fugaku's observation.
Danzo was aware of the desperate situation he was in; he explored his options with the Sharingan, seeking a way to escape. However, without any living allies to divert Fugaku's attention and knowing that facing the Mangekyo Sharingan and the Susanoo would be a difficult task; the possibility of escape seemed almost nil.
'Orochimaru, you traitor!' Indignation boiled within Danzo, who regretted his own naivety for trusting Orochimaru. When he learned that Orochimaru had obtained Hiruzen's cells and uncovered the secrets of Hiruzen's Kekkei Genkai, Danzo did not hesitate, lured by the promise of power. Without considering the consequences, he left with a group of Anbu ninjas for a meeting with 'Orochimaru' outside the village, worried that the current Hiruzen might discover his plans and intervene.
Making hand seals, he would not simply give up just because Fugaku had awakened his damned Mangekyo Sharingan. He was Danzo Shimura; even in falling, he would go down fighting!
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Hiruzen gave an evaluative look to the 'Orochimaru' standing in front of him.
As soon as 'Orochimaru' opened his eyes, a flash of malice shone in them.
"Hehe... Not bad, it seems he learned some things hidden from us. Ah, this will be useful," commented the 'Orochimaru', before opening his mouth wide. A snake emerged from it, and from the mouth of the green snake, a sword was revealed.
"Not bad at all," said Hiruzen, taking the sword in his hands for a careful evaluation.
"Kusanagi, a quite peculiar and useful sword," he remarked with a satisfied smile. "But it will be even more advantageous now that it's under my control."
The Orochimaru clone shared the smile, quickly performing a series of hand seals. In response, a shadow clone was conjured by him.
Hiruzen drove the Kusanagi into the ground, and immediately, the dagger and the rosary again appeared in his hands.
The next moment, the hand holding the rosary passed through the body of the Orochimaru clone without encountering resistance, bringing with it the soul of the clone, which dissipated with a 'puff'. Hiruzen then held the soul, which now took the form of Orochimaru, then various weapons, and even Hiruzen. He directed this soul towards the Kusanagi stuck in the ground while 'Orochimaru' performed more hand seals. With Hiruzen's cooperation, half of Orochimaru's soul was sealed in the Kusanagi through the 'Tamashi Kusari no Ken' seal.
Fuinjutsu: Tamashi Kusari no Ken is an advanced-level sealing technique that uses specific chakra to establish a bond between the soul of an individual and an artifact, in this case, the legendary Sword of Kusanagi. The seal not only imprisons the soul within the sword but also enables the user of the technique to manipulate some of the sealed individual's abilities through the weapon.
"Mm, it worked," said Hiruzen, a smile of contentment adorning his face as he felt the even more intimidating presence of the sword. Then, he brought the tip of the Kusanagi to his mouth and began to consume the sword, piece by piece.
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"Damn it!" Danzo exclaimed, his voice filled with hate and despair. "Cursed Orochimaru, cursed Hiruzen, cursed be the entire Uchiha clan, cursed be you, Fugaku Uchiha!!!"
Aware that he had lost all the Sharingans and that his end was near, Danzo did not cease to curse his enemies. However, he refused to face death without trying to drag Fugaku down with him.
The moment he gave up on the arm containing the First Hokage's cells, he also decided to tear off the remainder of his worn clothing, revealing the Reverse Four Symbols Seal technique engraved on his chest. He then began to release four symbols from his body, which converged forming a vast black sphere around him. Everything near the sphere began to be sucked in and sealed within Danzo. The sphere expanded rapidly, threatening to swallow everything around it.
"This damned lunatic?!" Fugaku, despite his strength, felt the strain from having intensely used his eyes, evidenced by the blood flowing from them. He reinforced his Susanoo, determined to distance himself from Danzo.
Danzo saw, frustrated, that Fugaku had managed to leap away with the Susanoo, escaping his reach. The conclusion of his plan was now inevitable.
'In the end, I didn't manage to become Hokage...'
From above, Fugaku watched the scene as he moved away, witnessing the end of Danzo. Although it had been a victory caused by his actions, Fugaku felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He recognized that Danzo, in his last moments, had chosen his own tragic fate.
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Hiruzen finished absorbing the Kusanagi, filling the gap left in his soul by splitting a part of it to incarnate in Orochimaru's body. This process not only completed what was lacking but also strengthened him beyond his previous state.
Emerging from the ground, the figure that had previously captured Orochimaru's feet revealed itself. It was Anko, soon transformed into Hiruzen and disappeared with a 'puff'.
Recovering the portion of the clone and information for himself, Hiruzen created two more shadow clones. Soon, he conjured the dagger and the rosary again, pulling the soul of one of the shadow clones to then carefully seal it in a box adorned with seal papers.
"The time has come for the next step of my plan," declared Hiruzen, determined. "Let's go."
"Yes," responded his clone, Orochimaru.
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"Who's there?" Fugaku immediately went on alert upon sensing someone approaching. However, upon identifying who was approaching, his tension dissipated, giving way to a relieved sigh. "Ah, it's you, Hokage-sama." Fugaku's stern expression softened considerably.
