The su, and as the st ray of sunlight disappeared, the streetlights of Konoha gradually lit up.

  In the North District, the liveliest area of Konoha, crowds thronged about as residents eheir hard-won peaceful lives uhe warm e glow of the mps.

  The lights brightened further, erasing the shadows of the buildings and leaving only human silhouettes. Though darkness and light were often thought irrecible, they coexisted harmoniously in Konoha.

  Throughout the streets, civilian patrols walked their routes, nodding to the occasional ANBU shadow that flickered past overhead.

  Most people wahrough the shops or strolled leisurely, and the North District was filled with ughter and joy. Children chased each other with sparklers while their parents watched from restaurant windows.

  By trast, the West District was far quieter. The lights there were sparse, and the area was calm. The resideher rested at home or went to the North District to enjoy the night's festivities.

  Only the occasional rustle of leaves and soft footsteps of patrolling shinobi broke the silence.

  "Movemeed at point C."

  "firmed. Subject shows signs of transformation," came the reply.

  From the river he forest emerged the head of the ANBU operative amed "Ren."

  His movements were stiff as he crawled onto the riverbank in an uny manner. Apanied by crag sounds, his skin began to loosen, wrinkle, aually peel off entirely.

  A long-haired, pale-faced man with serpent-like pupils stood in the shed skin. Orochimaru had escaped.

  "Maintain distance. Priority is trag," the ANBU ander ordered through the radio.

  "His chakra signature is fluctuating," a scout reported.

  "As expected. He's no longer hiding."

  Gng at the brilliant lights to the north, Orochimaru showed no expressiourned his gaze away and, with a swoosh, darted into the forest, leaving only the pile of human skin behind.

  Not long after, several ANBU ninjas appeared, nding on the riverbank.

  "'Ren' has been located," one of them reported. "Orochimaru has revealed his true form. All persoationed along the perimeter, stay alert."

  "They won't be able to stop him," another remarked.

  "We know. The objective is merely to track Orochimaru's movements. Jiraiya-sama will handle him."

  "Should we notify the Police Force?"

  "No need. Jiraiya-sama has requested to deal with this personally."

  After this brief exge, the ANBU ninjas pursued Orochimaru's trail into the forest. Signs of his passage were evident—he was no lotempting to ceal his movements, heading in a straight line.

  Catg up was out of the question. They wouldn't evehe ce to py the herhey sent their findings back to base.

  Just as they transmitted the message, a thunderous noise erupted from the west. The ground trembled beh their feet.

  As expected of one of the Sannin—quick to act.

  The ANBU groaned internally but quied their paoheless. Whether or not it would help, they had to go.

  ---

  At the same time, in a bar, Masashi paused mid-toast. Something's off in the chakra flow tonight.

  "Masashi-nii? What's wrong?" Tetsuka asked, his face covered in doodles.

  "e on, one more round!" someone called out.

  Havihe butt of tonight's jokes for raising koi fish, Tetsuka was rag his brain for excuses to dodge more drinks—not because he disliked drinking, but because dodging art of the fun.

  "But the colors, the colors!" he waved his hahusiastically, sake cup wobbling. "You should see them when the sun hits just right—"

  "Only you would skip training to watch fish swim in circles," one of the Uchiha snorted, pushing another cup toward him.

  "They're not just swimming! Eae has a utern, a personality—"

  "Personality?" Another officer ughed. " you'll tell us they're using chakra!"

  "Here, here! A toast to Tetsuka's chakra-wielding koi!" Someone raised their cup. "May they protect Konoha better than their master!"

  "I'm serious!" Tetsuka protested, trying to push away the fresh cup sliding his way. "The bd gold one, he actually—"

  "Drink! Every time you say 'koi' you have to drink!" They ted, surrounding him with evil grins.

  "That's not fair! How I expin without saying—" Tetsuka caught himself, but too te.

  "He almost said it! Drink two!"

  "I'll be back," Masashi said suddenly, rising from the tatami and heading to the floor-to-ceiling window, cealed by a curtain. The western sky was dark, showing nothing unusual. But moments earlier, he had sensed a sudden surge of powerful and familiar chakra from that dire

  It was Orochimaru.

  The timing ahod of his defe differed from the manga, and there was no reference value for this reality.

  Judging by the chakra's iy, he deduced Orochimaru had summoned a giant serpent.

  However, the western wall was far from the North District. Orochimaru's rampage wouldn't reach them here. Masashi decided to feign ignorance. Best to let the Sannin haheir own drama.

  The bonds between the Sannin were none of his business.

  Returning to the lively group, he rejoihe festivities. The leefully forced Tetsuka to drink more.

  Their merriment was cut short by hurried footsteps in the hallway.

  Masashi promptly slid into the arms of a hostess, feigning drunkenness, drawing pyful scolds from her.

  The rest followed suit, slumping over theatrically as the door burst open, revealing a white-haired figure peeking inside.

  "Masashi-san, the Hokage—" the newer began, but romptly interrupted by several Sharingan-gres and a unified shout: "GET OUT!"

  The white-haired visitor, caught off guard by the mass genjutsu attack, staggered back but mao steady himself.

  Removing his mask, the man revealed a familiar face.

  "Hey!" one of the Uchiha excimed. "It's Kakashi! He didn't fall over!"

  Masashi sighed and rose relutly from his seat.

  "Masashi-san," Kakashi said, ign the se around him. "The Hokage requests your presen the West District to assist Jiraiya-sama with his mission."

  "What mission?" Masashi asked, feigniance.

  "The Hokage said, 'You'll uand.'"

  He's learned some ricks... Masashi mented how much Minato had ged since being Hokage.

  Power truly corrupted.

  "Fine, I get it," he grumbled, getting up. "I'll go, don't rush me."

  "o sober up first?" Kakashi asked, clearly unimpressed.

  Masashi shot him a look.

  Drinking and reading Icha Icha Paradise were equally suspect hobbies, and Kakashi hadn't even started oer yet. No matter—when Icha Icha published, Masashi would personally gift him a copy.

  "Who else is ing?" he asked.

  "No one else."

  "Got it."

  Masashi, muttering about how dull this was, bid his panions goodbye, settled his tab, and teleported home with Flying Thunder God.

  After ging into bat gear, he reappeared at the ruins of a colpsed wall, where a massive serpent was trying to escape into the forest.

  Several ANBU ninjas were futilely trying to stop it.

  "The barrier team is down!" one shouted as another se of wall crumbled.

  They're just getting in the way. Leaping onto the serpent's head, Masashi pressed down with his hand, forcefully dispelling the summoning and sending it back to Ryūchi Cave.

  Landing, he looked over at the disheveled ANBU.

  "Where's Orochimaru?" he asked.

  These operatives were clearly outmatched. Sending them to pursue the Snake Sannin ractically themselves as fodder.

  "He headed north after breag the wall," one ANBU reported. "Are you here with Jiraiya-sama?"

  "No, I was summoned by the Hokage," Masashi replied, turning his attention northward to sense Orochimaru's trail.

  Ah, there he was—and Jiraiya as well. This is going to be messier than expected.

  Without another word, Masashi vanished in a blur, leaving the ANBU behind.

  As he sprihrough the forest, he recalled everything he knew about the three Sannin.

  The retionship between the Sannin—Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade—was arguably the most plex and peculiar bond in the world of shinobi.

  Life ah, philosophy and teique, idealism ay—all seemed to mirror one another among these three.

  Orochimaru, who feared death, delved madly into ninjutsu in an attempt to escape it. Tsunade, who cherished life, valued it above all else. Jiraiya believed that humahe vessels of their teiques and upheld Hiruzen's "path."

  Orochimaru, by trast, saw humans as tools for using teiques, pursuing Hiruzen's "teique." This made him feel no guilt for his as, as he merely sought to uand, develop, and utilize ninjutsu. Teiques, in his eyes, were ily tools.

  Jiraiya embraced the Will of Fire as his ideal, willing to dedicate himself to it. Tsunade, however, was faced with the bloody realities of life.

  The mere phrase "Will of Fire" wasn't enough to make her overlook the pain of losing her loved ones. She chose indifference, even toward Jiraiya's feelings for her.

  These three were far more entahan Kakashi's Team 7 ever was.

  As for Kakashi's Team 7… let's not even bring them up.

  In this timelihey probably wouldn't even form. If there was any sign of them ing together, Masashi would nip it in the bud.

  With the pret set by the Sannin's "derailment," all Sasuke o do was be a normal Uchiha. In this world, no one was going to rush him.

  Indra and Asura's tendency t their desdants into their flict was utterly absurd.

  The tremors of the ground grew more intense as Masashi he battle zone.

  The rumbling sounds became clearer.

  Although they differed in philosophy and teique, both Orochimaru and Jiraiya were powerhouses. Their csh was nothing short of spectacur.

  The forests around Konoha had been taking a beating this year; year's reforestation budget would surely skyrocket.

  Maintainiation was a necessary annual expense for any ninja vilge. After all, forests were the ninja's preferred battleground, ideal for small team operations and advantageous for defenders as well.

  He finally spotted the falling trees in the distahe destru carved a clear path through the forest, marking the trail of their battle.

  Slowing his pace, he began walking calmly. He uood Minato's instrus this way:

  Wait until Jiraiya was knocked out by Orochimaru. Once Orochimaru left, he would step in and protect Jiraiya. From today onwards, Jiraiya would be the only Sanni actively serving Konoha.

  Mission aplished. Perfect.

  If anyone accused him of sg off, he'd argue it out with them.

  Why use violeo solve a problem that words could resolve?

  That would be low.

  Unless, of course, one could redefihe ninja profession with a flick of their ninjutsu, like Hashirama or Madara. At that level, a ck of overwhelming power meant you had no voice.

  Sing his surroundings, he leaped to the top of a tree with a clear vantage point and observed the se.

  On Orochimaru's side was his trusty summon, Manda.

  On Jiraiya's side was Gamabunta, the toad with an unmistakable mobster vibe.

  "You oversized wart, still pying pdog to humans?"

  "Better than being a glorified belt, you snake!" Gamabunta tered, his bde whistling through the air where Manda had been moments before.

  The two summoned beasts were engaged in an all-out brawl, flinging trees into the air. Their massive forms crashed through the forest like living natural disasters, each strike powerful enough to reshape the ndscape.

  Activating his Sharingan, Masashi focused owo main figures.

  They were fighting hand-to-hand far away from their summons.

  But if it was a taijutsu test, why summon the creatures in the first pce? Did they think this was still the era of Hashirama, when pnting trees came free of charge?

  No one made things easy.

  Slightly drowsy from the previous night's drinking, he yawned aled on a branch to tig.

  Might as well make myself fortable. He pulled out a small scroll from his vest pocket, unsealing it. A few rice balls and a tainer of tea appeared in a small puff of smoke. Always keep mission supplies handy... especially for long observation tasks.

  Taijutsu quickly proved insuffit for Orochimaru's ambitions. He began incorporating ninjutsu into his attacks, starting with shemed teiques.

  He took a bite of his rice ball, chewing thoughtfully as he analyzed their movements through his Sharingan. At least the show es with refreshments.

  Wind bdes sliced through Jiraiya's earth walls, while streams of fire met water barriers in explosive clouds of steam.

  As the genius of the Sannin and the ior of Hiruzen's "teique," Orochimaru's arsenal of jutsu was undeniably impressive.

  Effortlessly wielding all five elemental chakra natures—wind, water, earth, lightning, and fire—it was clear he had already mastered all five transformations at this point.

  However, it was evident that he favored wind jutsu above the rest.

  Jiraiya tered with a mix of earth and fire-style teiques, holding his ground admirably.

  Both were seasoned Kage-level ninjas who knew each other well, making for a fasating spectacle.

  However, Jiraiya didn't mao activate his Sage Mode. The setup time was too long, and Orochimaru wasn't foolish enough to give him that opportunity.

  To prevent Jiraiya from activating his Sage Mode, he escated to forbidden jutsu.

  In the shinobi world, forbidden jutsu was a dynamicept. Not every teique beled as forbidden was necessarily extraordinary.

  In eainja vilge, the definition varied.

  In Konoha, any teique that ed vast amounts of chakra to the point of endangering the user's life or posed signifit dao others was sidered forbidden. This cssification was inteo maintain pea the vilge and disce reckless pursuit of power.

  But such restris were meanio Orochimaru. Most forbidden teiques didn't affect his modified body, turning them into ordinary teiques for him.

  So, he gleefully unleashed a slew of forbidden jutsu, effectively thwarting Jiraiya's attempts to activate Sage Mode.

  Masashi estimated that most of Orochimaru's teiques could be tered with his skills, while a few troublesome ones could be nullified with the Flying Thunder God.

  However, these teiques were uo be Orochimaru's trump cards.

  After all, her Orochimaru nor Jiraiya inteo kill the other. One wao leave, while the other kept reag out—just like the cycle that might repeat years ter with Naruto and Sasuke.

  In the end, it was Jiraiya who fell. The two exged a "Friendship-breaking Punch," chakra crag around their fists as they met in mid-air. While Orochimaru shrugged it off thanks to his modifications, Jiraiya rolled his eyes and passed out.

  Cool and posed, Orochimaru returo his usual nont demeanor. He exuded the aura of a true master, leaving onlookers vihat even i, he hadn't truly lost.

  After briefly Jiraiya, he turned a without finishing him off.

  In the distance, Manda and Gamabunta's summoning time expired. Uheir bonded summoners, these two creatures couldn't stand each other, hurling insults and threats before relutly disappearing.

  "ime, toad, I'll make a wallet out of you," Manda hissed.

  "Try it, you rown garden hose," Gamabunta retorted before both vanished in clouds of smoke.

  Their retionship was geerrible.

  Leaping down from the tree, Masashi approached Jiraiya.

  Hoisting the Sannin onto his shoulder, he teleported away using Flying Raijin.

  In mere moments, he returo the vilge walls, now bustling with activity.

  At the forefront was Koharu, seemingly waiting for his return.

  In the inal timeliwo Konoha elders pyed pivotal roles in orchestrating the Uchiha massacre: Danzō and Koharu.

  Danzō, of course, took ter stage. Koharu, less so.

  As a child, she had been mischievous, often napping during ninja Academy lessons.

  Now, though…

  Seeing Masashi carrying Jiraiya, she quickly stepped forward.

  "What happeo Jiraiya?"

  "He's unscious," Masashi replied, setting Jiraiya on the ground.

  A group of ANBU rushed over and pced the Sannin on a stretcher. After direg the ANBU to take him away, Koharu turned baasashi.

  "I thought someone of your caliber could've seized the ce to kill Orochimaru," she said casually.

  "Killing Orochimaru? Only the Third Hokage could mahat," Masashi said bluntly. "Does the Third know about this i?"

  "Of course," Koharu replied with a nod. "Thank you for your efforts, Masashi. You should go rest now."

  With a nod, Masashi said nothing more and teleported away.

  Koharu silently stared at the spot where he had stood, her aged eyes narrowing slightly in thought.