"Are we really just letting him go like that?"
Scorpion's cold gaze lingered on the direction Orochimaru had disappeared.
Hearing this, Sōmi turned his head to glance at Scorpion. He hadn't expected this guy to lack any sense of contractual spirit either...
Truly, the times were changing...
However, Sōmi's reason for letting Orochimaru leave was indeed because he intended to cooperate with him further in the future. After all, Orochimaru was practically the "Father (or Mother) of Science" in the ninja world.
Many research and development projects required Orochimaru's involvement.
Besides, the culture of Sunagakure wasn't exactly known for its integrity. Betraying enemies was something Sōmi could do without a hint of guilt.
"Yes, let him go. There will be plenty of opportunities to work with him in the future." Sōmi rubbed his face vigorously, trying to clear his head.
After skimming through the Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation technique, Sōmi quickly realized that it was essentially the original version of the technique. If one were to summon the dead using this version, not only would their strength be less than one-tenth of their original power, but they would also be difficult to control.
Orochimaru was likely still preoccupied with his research on Living Corpse Reincarnation, as immortality was his most coveted goal at this stage.
Of course, it was also possible that Orochimaru had already begun improving the Impure World Reincarnation technique but had only handed Sōmi the primitive version.
Obtaining the summoning contract for Ryūchi Cave so easily was an unexpected surprise.
Sōmi estimated that Orochimaru had yet to uncover the true secrets of Ryūchi Cave at this point.
Thus, he had underestimated the value of the summoning contract.
Sōmi recalled that Orochimaru had only discovered Ryūchi Cave later due to the side effects of Living Corpse Reincarnation, which prevented him from mastering Sage Mode.
As for the snake summoning scroll, it might even have been a family heirloom.
After all, no normal family would name their child "Orochimaru," right...?
"Let's head over to Kikyo Mountain for now. I have a bad feeling about this," Sōmi said, setting aside his excitement.
The war wasn't over yet!
"This... truly lives up to the name of the 'Yellow Flash'..."
A group of Sunagakure shinobi stared in horror at the blonde youth before them.
All they had seen were blurred flashes of yellow light zipping past, and then their comrades fell one by one, blood spraying before they even had time to react.
The sharp brilliance of his blade could cut through any defense in the ninja world. The famed Yellow Flash—he could even soar through space-time!
"It seems the Iwa and Kumo shinobi weren't wrong in their assessments... Mass assaults are completely useless against him!" The Third Kazekage, in a fit of frustration, impaled three retreating Konoha shinobi, turning them into sieves.
"Retreat! From now on, if you encounter the 'Yellow Flash,' abandon your mission and flee immediately, no matter what the task is. No one will hold you accountable!" The Kazekage issued the same order that other villages had already adopted.
"Run!"
"Get out of here, now!"
The Sunagakure shinobi scattered like frightened birds, retreating en masse.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Kazekage, flapping his iron sand wings, flew to confront Minato Namikaze.
In just a brief moment, another flash of yellow light had claimed the life of yet another Sunagakure shinobi.
The Kazekage looked down at the dozens of young Sunagakure corpses littering the ground, his teeth grinding in fury.
These were the backbone of Sunagakure!
"Lord Kazekage, why don't we call it a truce?" Minato Namikaze suggested, glancing at the retreating Sunagakure forces.
"Hah! After killing so many under my watch, you think you can just call for a truce?!" The Kazekage's face darkened as he swiftly formed hand seals.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"
A dense wave of iron sand materialized out of thin air beside the Kazekage, condensing into fine needles that shot toward Minato at high speed.
Thunk! Thunk...
Minato's figure vanished in a flash, and the iron needles embedded themselves deeply into the trees behind where he had been standing.
The Kazekage spun around, sending another barrage of iron sand needles in all directions.
The Third Kazekage hadn't been idle earlier; he had already memorized the positions of Minato's specially marked kunai.
After a brief exchange, the Kazekage deduced that Minato's "teleportation" was limited to locations near those kunai.
If that was the case, then the solution was simple: attack all the kunai positions simultaneously.
Clang! Clang! Clang...
Sure enough, Minato appeared to the Kazekage's rear right. Unable to dodge in time, he had to parry the iron needles with his kunai, producing a series of crisp metallic sounds.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Triangular Pyramid!"
The moment Minato's figure appeared, the Kazekage quickly formed hand seals. The iron needles near Minato rose into the air, rapidly expanding in size while trembling slightly.
"Hmm? Is this magnetism?" Minato frowned slightly, immediately sensing the Kazekage's subtle technique.
An increasingly strong magnetic field enveloped Minato, attempting to restrict his movements.
Several half-meter-long triangular pyramids had already formed around Minato. Under the Kazekage's control, they hurtled toward him from all angles.
The cold, gleaming pyramids moved with remarkable speed, accompanied by faint whistling sounds. It was clear that being struck by one of these would mean certain death.
Boom!
Just as the pyramids were about to pierce Minato, his body vanished once again, leaving only the battered ground behind.
The Kazekage's brow furrowed. Not even magnetism could restrict this man's space-time ninjutsu...
His jutsu were powerful and had a wide range, but against someone as agile as Minato Namikaze, the Kazekage couldn't come up with an effective countermeasure.
"Magnet Release: Gold Sand Wave!"
Boom!
Suddenly, from the left side of the forest, a massive wave of gold sand surged forward. The rolling tide, over a meter high, completely transformed the terrain.
Minato disappeared once more, reappearing moments later on the trunk of a large tree untouched by the gold sand.
Bang!
In the next instant, a long black iron spear shot toward him.
The thick tree trunk was pierced clean through, leaving a gaping hole, but Minato had vanished yet again.
The Kazekage, flapping his pitch-black iron wings, seized the opportunity to ascend into the sky.
He clasped his hands together, sending out a subtle shockwave that rippled through the air.
Continuing his hand seals, the Kazekage formed a massive rectangular block of iron sand in midair.
In an instant, he pointed downward, and all the specially marked kunai within a several-dozen-meter radius were pulled together by magnetic force, forming a cluster.
The Kazekage gritted his teeth. This time, he had used magnetism to cut off all of Minato's escape routes.
From his aerial vantage point, the Kazekage quickly located Minato again. With a wave of his hand, the massive rectangular block of iron sand, radiating a powerful magnetic field, hurtled toward Minato with a deafening hum.
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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