Ninja Ice House

Chapter 580 Wood Release

After finishing addressing the unresolved issues, Shimura Danzo's attention returned to what was in front of him.

"Who do you think is causing trouble for Jiraiya, and why are they acting so decisively? Judging from their actions, it's a bit exaggerated. This isn't something one or two skilled fighters or one or two clans could accomplish..."

Let alone ninja clans, neither the Uchiha nor the Hyuga clans have such capabilities. Even if the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, wanted to make such a big move, he couldn't possibly complete the setup without alerting Danzo Shimura and his "Root" organization.

Moreover, the fact that Jiraiya was helpless and unable to escape, and that even Minato Namikaze, who had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, couldn't directly go to rescue him, shows that the other party had conducted extremely detailed investigations, and had a complete plan and contingency plan for what kind of enemies they might encounter, unexpected situations, and the objectives they wanted to achieve.

Before the other side launched their attack, the entire Hidden Leaf Village hadn't even noticed a single clue, which was terrifying.

Something that should never have happened has actually appeared right before our eyes.

Especially since a mysterious organization has emerged within Konoha Village that is even more secretive than the "Root" organization and has a stronger command ability than the current Hokage, everyone has no choice but to be wary.

"Orochimaru, where do you think those people came from?"

Orochimaru, smiling knowingly, remained silent for a moment before slowly and deliberately replying:

“I sensed someone was watching me earlier… no, someone monitoring the entire Hidden Leaf Village who deserved special attention. I was busy with other things at the time and didn't pay much attention, but two ANBU went to question them, and apparently… the report came back that they were advised to leave by Captain Nara. That's the most interesting part…”

As he spoke, Orochimaru unconsciously stuck out his tongue, licked the corner of his mouth, and continued to explain with a hint of excitement:

"Multiple witness testimonies and physical evidence indicate that our squad leader was busy with other matters elsewhere at the time..."

"Is it a disguise? Or has the secret service's intelligence been completely leaked?"

"No! According to those two young juniors, that person absolutely cannot be a fake; it must be him. One of them is a highly perceptive chakra ninja, a rising star of the Aburame clan, whose chakra perception is never wrong; the other is an informant trained and planted by the Root organization, so he is absolutely reliable. Moreover, there are genuine ninja clan members present, especially from the Aburame clan. You might mistake a person, but you would never mistake a parasitic insect for a parasitic insect..."

"That...that's really interesting."

"Yes! Danzo... Advisor, you are a senior, you should know very well that if a ninja wears a Konoha headband, possesses secret techniques that the village's ninja clans would almost never pass on to outsiders, has a distinctive bloodline limit, knows acquaintances within the village, and knows secrets that outsiders would almost never know, then, after eliminating all the inconceivable possibilities, there is only one truth before us..."

Danzo Shimura agreed wholeheartedly, adding:

“They are genuine Konoha ninja, ‘one of our own,’ but not ‘one of ours.’”

Where they came from, what their purpose is, where they are going, and what impact they will have on the village in the future are all major questions that need to be investigated.

At least from the current perspective, the opponent's first target was Jiraiya, not the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, not the "Darkness of the Ninja World" Danzo Shimura, not even the "quasi-Fourth Hokage" Minato Namikaze or Orochimaru. The last princess of the Senju clan, Tsunade, and the Uchiha clan were simply ignored.

"Orochimaru, judging from the intelligence gathered, that team is very well-equipped, with all sorts of people, except for one from the Uchiha clan. The only one... that white-haired ninja who could barely hold his own against Minato, although he has a Sharingan, isn't of Uchiha blood, but he does seem to be..."

"Kakashi Hatake, right? The genius son left behind by the White Fang of Konoha after his suicide, only older, more mature, and more powerful!"

Near the core pillar of the Starry Sky Reflection, Minato Namikaze, who reacted the fastest and was surrounded, launched a surprise attack at an extremely fast speed. However, his opponent seemed to have known about "Golden Flash's" fighting style all along and had been thoroughly countered, making it difficult to break the stalemate for the time being.

The Flying Thunder God Technique is indeed very powerful, but Minato Namikaze has a weakness right now: he needs to help Jiraiya escape as soon as possible, since there is no way to retreat.

When assassin-type ninjas are forced into a head-on confrontation, their advantage is not so obvious, especially when the opponent outnumbers them.

Fortunately, the Konoha ninjas were also quick to react. The Anbu were not as fast as Minato Namikaze, but they were not particularly slow either. When the incident began, they quickly ensured the safety of key positions, cleared escape routes, rescued the elderly, women and children affected by the incident, and moved them to safe places.

The whole process wasn't particularly complicated, but it still took some time.

Fifteen minutes had passed by the time they regrouped to assist Minato Namikaze in relieving the pressure.

For this trip into the dream space, Tsunade selected well-rounded Jonin known for their survival skills, such as Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, Asuma Sarutobi, and Tenzo.

As more and more shadowy figures surrounded them, the raiding squad, knowing they could no longer hide, revealed all their cards.

"Wood Release: Descent from the Sea of ​​Trees!"

Wearing an Anbu mask, Tenzo wasn't particularly conspicuous among a group of skilled ninjas. Proficient in Earth Release and Water Release, he worked with Kakashi Hatake and others to create a favorable battle environment for their side, making him a support and all-around second-tier ninja.

But when he displayed his amazing Wood Release ninjutsu, the experts who were originally quite at ease and still observing the situation were all surprised.

Danzo Shimura pointed to a grove of trees in the distance and asked:

"Orochimaru, are you sure you haven't been secretly conducting research on your own, or have any findings that you're hiding from me?"

"Who knows! But one thing is for sure, that's not my 'thing.' I really want to capture the person and see how they did it. Wood Release, ah, since the First Hokage passed away, two generations of efforts haven't been able to reproduce it..."

Not only in Konoha Village, but throughout the entire ninja world, the perception of Wood Release as a bloodline limit is exceptionally different. Theoretically speaking, Wood Release, which is produced by the fusion of two chakra nature transformations, is on the same level as Ice Release, Lava Release, Boiling Release, and Scorching Release.

However, the user of Wood Release was the invincible Hashirama Senju, who elevated this bloodline limit, which was a fusion of Earth Release and Water Release, to a whole new level.

Since Hashirama Senju, there has not been a single Wood Release ninja who has awakened it on their own or successfully trained it later in life.

Other bloodline limits formed by the fusion of the five elemental ninjutsu have a few isolated examples, proving that the path of this ninjutsu is open. But Wood Release is different. The more unique it is, the more powerful it becomes.

In particular, the special enhancement effect of Wood Release when facing Tailed Beasts is simply the ultimate bloodline limit that even the greatest ninja villages dream of.

If, during the Fourth Shinobi World War, one's side has a Wood Release user who can restrain the enemy's Tailed Beasts or Jinchuriki, that would be an excellent choice for defeating the enemy.

Furthermore, on a psychological level, the boost that Wood Release provides to the morale of one's own side is immeasurable.

Now, under the watchful eyes of everyone, Wood Release stands on the opposite side, instantly adding a touch of eeriness to the battlefield.