Boom—!
Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed from the eastern side of the village.
Seizing the mont, Seii activated his Mangekyō Sharingan and triggered the power of "A no Mi". With a few quick body flickers, he appeared atop a nearby building.
He looked toward the forest to the east.
From the distance, he saw a massive white-scaled serpent slithering through the trees—it had to be enormous, considering he could make out its shape so clearly even from this far.
The massive snake plowed through the forest like a bulldozer, wreaking havoc as it tore through the trees. Konoha shinobi were being flung about helplessly, struggling to contain the destruction.
Although Seii couldn't make out the shinobi's details, he could see small black figures darting around under the moonlight like flies swarming the snake.
And a creature of that size? No doubt about it—it had to be one of Orochimaru's summons from Ryūchi Cave.
For Orochimaru to suddenly create this much commotion, it could only an one of two things: either his experint was complete, or it had failed.
In any case, there was no longer any need to stall.
With that thought, Seii quickly activated the Telepathic Communication Technique, linking with the shadow clone he had stationed near Orochimaru.
As the ntal link stabilized, Seii asked, "What's the situation over there?"
The shadow clone responded promptly, "Orochimaru has left the lab. Not sure if the experint succeeded."
"What's his goal now?"
"Judging by his actions, it looks like he's trying to break through and escape."
"I see…"
Seii fell into thought before giving instructions, "Stay hidden. Don't get caught up in the fighting. But if the opportunity arises, raid Orochimaru's lab for any research materials."
Clearly, he wasn't ready to give up on Orochimaru's research just yet.
"Got it," the clone answered. "I'll improvise as needed."
"Good."
With that, Seii cut the telepathic connection.
Although he had the chakra and ntal strength to maintain it for longer, both he and the clone had their tasks ahead. Better to avoid unnecessary interference.
Refocusing, Seii shifted his attention from the distant battlefield to the brightly lit Hokage Tower.
If his assumptions were correct, now was the perfect ti to act.
Why? Simple. With Orochimaru causing such chaos, Minato Namikaze would have no choice but to send reinforcents.
As the number of personnel in the tower decreased, it would beco easier for Seii to make his move.
Ti ticked by.
Just as expected, several teams departed from the Hokage Tower—so heading directly to the battlefield, others dispersing toward various parts of the village.
Judging by their movents, Minato was clearly mobilizing the clan forces.
But…
"Why isn't Minato moving personally?"
Seii found this odd.
Given what he knew about Minato, once the Hokage decided to act, he wouldn't just sit back and observe. He understood well the difference in power between a Kage-level shinobi and the average ninja.
In this situation, it would make sense for Minato himself to intercept Orochimaru to minimize casualties.
And Minato wasn't soone who feared death.
Which ant…
"He has no choice but to stay put!"
Suddenly, Seii thought of Hiruzen Sarutobi.
In another tiline, even when Orochimaru's experints were fully exposed and things had gone too far, Hiruzen had still hesitated to act, ultimately letting Orochimaru go.
Could it be the sa here? Was Hiruzen stopping Minato from stepping in?
The more Seii thought about it, the more it seed possible.
And not just Hiruzen—perhaps Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, the elder advisors, were also present in the tower.
That thought sparked the urge to activate his Byakugan to check the situation inside.
But after so hesitation, he gave up on the idea.
Last ti he used the Byakugan to peer into Orochimaru's lab, he'd been detected. There was no reason to believe that Minato or Hiruzen—both Kage-level shinobi—wouldn't notice it too.
No need to alert them unnecessarily.
Still, this ant he'd have to be extra cautious once he made his move.
If he wasn't careful, he could end up facing two Hokage at once.
As for retreating?
Out of the question!
Even if Hiruzen and the others were all present, Seii had both Flying Thunder God Technique and A no Mi at his disposal. He could co and go as he pleased—there was no reason to be overly cautious.
After waiting a little longer and confirming no further personnel were exiting the tower, Seii stopped stalling.
He cast a Transformation Jutsu, taking on the appearance of Uchiha Obito, and then maintained his A no Mi state as he approached the building.
Using Obito's form served two purposes: first, it concealed his true identity in case he was seen. Second, since Obito also had a Mangekyō Sharingan, it wouldn't interfere with Seii's ability to cast genjutsu.
Passing through the front gate, Seii entered the first floor's mission hall.
It was late at night, and aside from a few stationed ANBU, the place was deserted.
He ignored the ANBU, heading straight for the second floor.
This floor had several conference rooms used for Hokage etings, and reception rooms for important guests.
As Seii walked down the corridor, he paused briefly in front of one of the conference rooms and turned toward it.
The soundproofing was excellent—despite his sharp senses, he couldn't hear a thing.
Still, that didn't stop him from sensing the powerful chakra signatures inside.
Among them were two he was very familiar with—Minato Namikaze and Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"So they are here…"
He murmured to himself, then continued up to the third floor.
What Seii didn't know was that, at the mont he had stopped, Minato had also paused slightly, a flicker of suspicion in his eyes.
But his attention was quickly drawn back to the conversation with Hiruzen and the others.
anwhile, Seii reached the third floor and walked past a series of archive rooms, heading for a room at the very end.
Over the past few days, while Seii focused on training, his shadow clone had been working in secret to uncover the location of the Scroll of Seals.
After careful investigation, Seii was almost certain it was stored in this particular room.
This room also housed many of Konoha's most valuable secret techniques.
Naturally, such a location would be heavily guarded.
Even with most of the ANBU reassigned, two ANBU still stood guard outside the room.
Additionally, there was a barrier seal inside the room. Anyone who entered without authorization would trigger an alarm, drawing the full force of Konoha's elites—including the Hokage himself.
In other words, this room was extrely dangerous.
For ordinary shinobi.
But for Seii?
That barrier might as well not exist.
As long as he could take out the two guards, entry would be simple.
Without wasting another second, Seii stepped forward, approaching the ANBU guards.
Instantly, the two guards sensed sothing amiss and pulled out kunai, scanning their surroundings with caution.
But they couldn't see a thing.
A mont later, A no Mi was lifted—and Seii's form materialized.
The ANBU's eyes widened in shock. They opened their mouths to alert the others and prepare to strike.
But Seii didn't give them the chance.
His hand shot forward like lightning, seizing one by the throat and cutting off his warning cry.
At the sa ti, intricate fūinjutsu patterns spread from Seii's palm, quickly wrapping around the ANBU's body and freezing him in place.
This was Seii's perfected technique—"Shinra Banshō Fūjin
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