Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

"This is also my last dance, so please be sure to watch it until the very end."

He murmured softly, raised the arm that had mutated into a giant bone drill, pressed it to the ground, and poured all his remaining life force into this final blow.

"Secret Technique: Dance of the Early Fern!"

The earth began to groan.

Countless huge and ferocious white bone spikes burst forth from the ground, intertwining and tangling, turning the entire forest into a grim and pale bone forest!

They converged on the center of Matt Kai with an aura that seemed to pierce through heaven and earth.

It was a silent, terrifying, yet exquisitely beautiful scene.

Faced with this devastating attack, a raging fire ignited in Kai's eyes.

He could clearly sense that his opponent had staked everything on this one strike.

In response to this "last dance," he slowly raised his hand, releasing himself from his restraints.

"Burn, youth!"

"Sixth Gate - View Gate - Open!!!"

A massive plume of green chakra steam shot into the sky from his body.

He stepped forward to face the encroaching forest of bones, his hands forming a strange gesture in front of him.

"Let me show you! This ultimate, blood-pumping technique!"

"The Morning Peacock!!!"

The next instant, a rain of burning fists descended from the sky.

One punch.

Another punch.

Hundreds and thousands of punches!

With each punch Kai threw, a raging inferno erupted, the extreme speed of his punches leaving countless fiery afterimages in the air, as dazzling as a peacock spreading its tail.

Flames and bones clashed in a spectacular display.

The massive bone spikes were shattered one by one by the burning rain of fists.

Finally, a huge meteor pierced through the center of the bone forest, and the bone forest completely collapsed.

The smoke and dust slowly dissipated.

Kimimaro's battered figure was revealed.

The hideous curse mark on his body had faded, and the last bone spur emerged from his palm, but he could no longer move forward an inch.

Kimimaro looked up, grinned at Kai, and whispered, "Do I have anything that pleases you?"

"..." Kai didn't speak.

Kimimaro lowered his head, and the light in his eyes gradually dimmed.

He also wanted to greet Lord Orochimaru.

I want to ask him if I've started to have any meaning for him.

But it was too late.

Kimimaro died with a smile on his face.

He was very satisfied that he, as Orochimaru's subordinate, had died while protecting Orochimaru.

Instead of dying in that warm, comfortable hospital bed.

This is the best possible outcome.

Chapter 142 Sasuke: Orochimaru, just consider it as dying for my sake, okay?

Before the sickly flush on Kimimaro's face had faded, his body collapsed.

In the ruins, Matt Kai withdrew his burning fist, his chest heaving violently.

He then looked up sharply and saw a black figure stepping out of the shadows.

The knife in his hand gleamed in the sunlight, radiating an undisguised killing intent.

"Warm-up is over."

Sasuke walked forward step by step, the immense spiritual pressure he had released bearing down on Might Guy without reservation. "Now, it's your turn."

"..."

Matt Kai's expression turned serious.

The aura of Sasuke before me is far stronger than that of the white-haired boy from before.

But soon, the anger that arose from the defeat of his disciple, along with the respect for Kimimaro's lost youth, all transformed into a burning fighting spirit in his heart.

"Oh oh oh—!!!"

He let out a roar, and the green chakra steam around him suddenly became even more violent, causing the ground beneath his feet to crack inch by inch.

"The Azure Beast of Konoha will not fall here!"

However, at this very moment when tensions were high and a major battle was about to break out.

A silver figure appeared instantly and landed between the two.

Let's stop here.

Kakashi Hatake gently pressed down on Kaina's tense shoulder with one hand, while raising his other hand with his palm facing outward, stopping Sasuke from taking the next step.

He first quickly glanced at Neji and the other two lying on the ground. After confirming that they were only unconscious and not in any danger, the tense look in his eyes finally relaxed.

Honestly, if anything had happened to these kids, this whole thing would have been impossible to resolve peacefully...

Kakashi let out a silent sigh in his heart.

"Sasuke, stop."

He slowly turned his head to look at the cold-eyed boy behind him, his voice weary.

Rather than calling him the Hokage, it's more accurate to say he's now more like a mentor, advising his headstrong student.

Then, he said something that stunned everyone present.

"Within the territory of Konoha Village, as long as you do not intentionally cause damage to the village, any of your actions..."

Kakashi paused, his eyes filled with complex emotions that no one else could understand.

"...I can acquiesce to all of this."

These words froze the fighting spirit on Matt Kai's face, and he stared at his best friend in disbelief.

"hehe......"

A hoarse, soft laugh came from not far away, breaking the silence.

Orochimaru and Kabuto slowly emerged from behind a tree not far away, their faces bearing smiles of anticipation.

"He actually became Hokage, that's quite an achievement, Kakashi."

Orochimaru looked at the straw hat on Kakashi's head, his snake-like eyes filled with amusement. "However, just revealing your bottom line to the enemy like that isn't something a qualified Hokage should do."

Naruto...

Orochimaru pondered the word in his mind, a complex obsession flashing deep in his eyes.

The reason he founded Otogakure was not only to conduct research on forbidden techniques, but also, perhaps deep down, a twisted desire to prove to his teacher that he also possessed "leadership talent."

Just as Orochimaru was mocking them, dozens of figures wearing abstract animal masks silently appeared in various corners of the forest, completely surrounding the area.

The secret service has finally arrived.

However, Kakashi gave the order to expel this group of ANBU members who were poised to attack.

"Everyone, step back. There are no enemies here."

"What?!" The leader of the dark forces exclaimed in surprise.

Kakashi looked at the Anbu members who were slightly agitated by his command, took a deep breath, and announced loudly.

"All of Sasuke Uchiha's previous actions, including his defection and contact with Orochimaru..."

"These were all top-secret missions that I personally issued!"

"The objective is to infiltrate behind enemy lines and take control of Orochimaru, the S-rank rogue ninja!"

These words, full of unexpected twists, exploded in everyone's minds.

Matt Kai was completely dumbfounded, his face blank with confusion.

Clearly, he couldn't tell whether Kakashi's words were true or false at this point.

The secret agents outside the encirclement looked at each other, unsure how to react.

A top-secret mission personally issued by the Hokage?

In this deathly silence, Kakashi gazed at the black-haired boy from afar with an almost pleading look in his eyes.

Sasuke looked at him quietly, at the pleading in his eyes.

He certainly understood what Kakashi wanted to do.

But he didn't expose it.

"......snort."

A very soft, cold snort escaped from Sasuke's nostrils.

He sheathed Takemikazuchi again.

Seeing this action, Kakashi's tense body finally relaxed.

He knew that Sasuke understood and cooperated.

"The mission is over."

Kakashi turned back to all the Anbu members and gave the final order: "Send the members of Team 3 back to the hospital for treatment immediately. The rest of you, lift the alert and disperse."