Dust swirled from the cratered ground where Naruto had landed, feet skidding through packed earth. His body pulsed with golden-red energy, tails of flickering chakra dancing behind him like living flame.

  Slitted orange eyes locked onto his opponent.

  “You're not even breaking a sweat, Ryuu-nii!” Naruto barked, a grin tugging at his lips even as sweat poured down his brow. “Let’s see you dodge this!”

  He vanished in a golden blur, reappearing mid-air above his target. Chakra coiled in his palms, condensing into a concentrated Rasengan streaked with Nine-Tails Chakra.

  "Take this—Rasengan!"

  But Ryuu didn’t move.

  Not until the last possible moment.

  Ryuu twisted slightly, just enough to let Naruto's Rasengan pass beside him, the sheer pressure of it carving a shallow trench across the field.

  With a pivot that defied the laws of balance, Ryuu snapped a foot out and caught Naruto in the ribs mid-air, redirecting him violently into a nearby boulder.

  CRACK.

  Naruto coughed as stone shattered behind him.

  “Still rushing in headfirst,” Ryuu said coolly, brushing dust off his sleeve. “You know better than that.”

  Before Naruto could rise, another presence landed behind Ryuu, silent as a whisper.

  Sasuke.

  His Sharingan spun lazily in his eyes, but there was nothing lazy about the precision in his movement. He struck like a snake—one, two, three blows in a blink, his kunai aiming for vital tendons.

  But Ryuu caught the blade between two fingers.

  “Figured you'd show up,” He said, eyes flicking to meet Sasuke’s. “You always did get curious when things get loud.”

  Sasuke didn’t waste words. A burst of lightning exploded from his hand as he activated Chidori, aiming to skewer Ryuu through the chest.

  It landed.

  Or so it should have.

  Ryuu’s body turned to mist for a split second. The substitution technique, executed at a level far beyond Academy tricks.

  He reappeared behind Sasuke, hand flat against the Uchiha’s back before Sasuke could fully turn.

  “Gotcha.”

  A pulse of wind chakra erupted from his palm, sending Sasuke flying forward into the same rock Naruto had just cracked.

  “Again?”

  Naruto groaned, sitting up and brushing debris from his hair.

  Sasuke pushed himself to his feet beside him, eyes narrowing.

  “That wasn’t substitution… his chakra didn’t flare at all.”

  “You’re right,” came Ryuu’s voice again—but this time, from a different direction entirely.

  Both turned sharply.

  Standing a dozen meters away, hands in his pockets and expression unreadable, was another Ryuu.

  No… the same Ryuu.

  Naruto blinked.

  “Wait—how many of you are there?!”

  Sasuke’s Sharingan flared in irritation.

  "He's not using Bunshin no Jutsu. That clone... it has chakra density.”

  Shadow Clone.

  Naruto grinned, despite the bruises.

  “You’re fighting us with a clone?! Seriously?!”

  Neither noticed the faintest shimmer of movement high in the trees above.

  The real Ryuu sat there calmly, legs dangling from a thick branch, watching the chaos below.

  His chakra signature was perfectly masked, as only high-level ANBU could. Not even the Sharingan would find him here unless he wanted to be seen.

  He popped a dried sweet into his mouth and muttered to himself, "Honestly, I expected more from these two.”

  Down below, his clone was still effortlessly handling them both. No Kekkei Genkai. No Shikotsumyaku, no Ice Release. Just fundamental skill, strategy, and control.

  And it was enough.

  Sasuke and Naruto launched at the clone again, this time in perfect sync. Naruto weaved a feint, flickering behind the clone with his chakra-enhanced speed while Sasuke struck low with a feint aimed to pin the clone’s foot.

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  It should have worked.

  Should have.

  But Ryuu’s clone dissolved into bone shrapnel mid-attack, a fake-out clone within the Shadow Clone.

  The bone fragments hardened mid-air, not deadly, but disruptive enough to throw off timing and rhythm. Naruto hissed as a piece nicked his arm. Sasuke had to pivot out of range.

  The clone reformed calmly a few steps away, untouched.

  Naruto snarled, eyes glowing.

  The Nine-Tails’ chakra flared again, the first tail almost fully formed now.

  “I’m not gonna lose to a clone!”

  “Then stop fighting like an idiot,” Ryuu’s voice snapped—from behind them again.

  Another shadow clone.

  Sasuke’s jaw clenched. "Tch. He’s testing us. Not fighting.”

  “Correct,” the original Ryuu whispered to himself from the tree, his voice low and unreadable. “And I’ve already seen what I needed.”

  The clone raised a hand—and both boys felt it.

  A sudden, invisible pressure, like a predator finally choosing to pounce. It didn’t come from any chakra they could sense. It was simply presence.

  "That’s enough for now," the clone said.

  With a soft poof, both clones dispelled.

  Naruto and Sasuke stood panting, bruised, and utterly baffled in the clearing. Neither had landed a clean hit. Neither had been able to even make Ryuu try.

  And neither of them had noticed the real one was never there to begin with.

  Up in the tree, the real Ryuu exhaled.

  “The Nine-Tails’ chakra is unstable but improving. Sasuke’s progress is also steady. Both are reaching their thresholds.”

  Since Ryuu had specifically asked Kakashi to teach Sasuke lightning Jutsu much earlier, he had expected more progress, but it was still a bit lacking for his liking.

  “The favor feels kinda wasted, but it’s fine. It’s investment for the future after all.”

  He stood and began to walk lightly along the high branches, vanishing from sight.

  “I’ll need to act soon.”

  The air in the underground chamber was thick with the scent of formaldehyde, damp stone, and old blood.

  Candles flickered against walls lined with scrolls, beakers, and tomes. Test tubes glowed faintly with unnatural light. The sound of dripping water echoed rhythmically from somewhere in the dark.

  Orochimaru moved through it all in silence.

  His once-pristine robes were stained at the edges from weeks of uninterrupted work. The pale skin of his arms was even more corpse-like than usual, his golden eyes sunk deeper into shadowed sockets.

  But his gaze was sharp.

  Focused.

  Alive with purpose.

  Kabuto entered behind him, clutching a clipboard. He didn't speak immediately… he knew better than to interrupt when Orochimaru was like this. But when the silence stretched thin, he cleared his throat.

  “The second sample is ready, Orochimaru-sama. Both are stabilized. I’ve verified the chakra signatures against the preserved DNA.”

  Orochimaru's head tilted slightly, snake-like and slow.

  "Good. Prepare the summoning seals."

  Kabuto hesitated.

  “We’re really doing it, then? The First and Second Hokage?”

  A smile tugged at the corners of Orochimaru’s lips. Not his usual mocking sneer, this one was something quieter.

  Something colder.

  “Their existence is tied to the very roots of Konoha itself,” Orochimaru said, voice a soft hiss. “What better way to test the limits of Edo Tensei than to summon gods?”

  Kabuto bowed low and moved to obey.

  In the center of the chamber, a ritual circle had already been inscribed, intricate and massive, dozens of intersecting seals layered into a perfect matrix of containment, obedience, and chakra flow. Two empty coffins lay side by side at the center, plain and unmarked.

  Orochimaru stepped forward, hands weaving through the air.

  He bit his thumb and smeared the blood into a perfect line across the array.

  “Ninpou… Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei.”

  The coffins rattled.

  Then burst open.

  Dust and smoke exploded outward, and within moments, two figures stood in the summoning circle.

  Their eyes were dull, lifeless.

  Their bodies, reconstructed from donor corpses, bore only vague resemblance to their original forms—but the chakra was unmistakable.

  Even Kabuto took a step back, lips parted in awe.

  Hashirama Senju. Tobirama Senju.

  The First and Second Hokage.

  Orochimaru’s heart did not race, but there was a glimmer of hunger in his eyes.

  He stepped forward.

  Hashirama blinked, slowly. His face was gentle, his features warm, but distant.

  “What is this?”

  Even in this incomplete state, his voice still carried an unnatural calm.

  Tobirama’s expression, on the other hand, was already a scowl.

  “I should have guessed. Edo Tensei…”

  Orochimaru’s smile widened.

  “Your genius lives on through me, Nidaime-sama. Be honored.”

  “I’d prefer it didn’t.”

  The Senju brothers took in their surroundings. They both recognized it as a laboratory. But neither moved to attack. The seals embedded in the floor and inscribed within their souls made that impossible.

  Orochimaru studied them in silence.

  Their chakra was muted, yes. Imperfect vessels. But still… this was power. Power rooted in legacy, in bloodlines, in history. Power that transcended death.

  “You'll remain here for now,” Orochimaru said softly. “I have no use for you in the field just yet. But soon... I’ll need your perspective. On Konoha’s future.”

  Hashirama tilted his head.

  “You wish to destroy the village?”

  Orochimaru’s smile didn’t fade. He decided to completely gloss over the question, sealing the two back in their coffins in the process.

  “Come, Kabuto. We’re done here. Let them rest.”

  The doors hissed closed behind them.

  [POV Shift: The Kazekage’s Office, Sunagakure]

  Rasa stood at the head of a long, sunlit chamber, his expression unreadable beneath the iron mask of his authority. His eyes narrowed slightly as he read the scroll laid before him.

  Across from him stood three figures cloaked in black.

  ANBU, more specifically Konoha’s ANBU.

  The one in front, a tall, broad-shouldered man wearing a hawk mask, stepped forward.

  “We’re not here to make demands, Kazekage-dono,” he said calmly. “Only to offer a solution.”

  Rasa said nothing. The air was tense enough to hum.

  The second ANBU spoke. A woman this time, soft-spoken but firm.

  “Our intelligence confirms Akatsuki is targeting Jinchūriki. Gaara is… vulnerable. We believe Suna lacks the manpower to defend him properly, especially with the recent budgetary strains.”

  Rasa’s jaw tightened.

  “I’m aware of my village’s limitations.”

  “Then you know it’s only a matter of time before someone comes for him.”

  The third ANBU finally added, “Konoha can protect him. We’re offering him asylum—for his safety, and for the strategic alliance it represents.”

  Rasa’s response was immediate.

  “No.”

  The room fell silent.

  The Kazekage stepped forward, each movement deliberate, his presence like iron against silk.

  “You don’t understand what you’re asking. Gaara is not simply a target. He is a threat to his own people. Even now, he is unstable. Uncontrolled. He has nearly killed Suna shinobi in training sessions.”

  He paused.

  “Perhaps… removing him would solve more than one problem.”

  The implication was clear.

  The ANBU didn’t flinch. But the hawk-masked leader stepped forward once more.

  “We’re not asking you to give him up. This would be a diplomatic exchange. He would remain your son, your property, your symbol—however you see him. But we would keep him safe. And in return, Suna will receive medical aid, weapon supplies, and agricultural support.”

  A long silence.

  Rasa turned away, staring out the window toward the horizon.

  The words came bitterly.

  “He’ll go.”

  The ANBU exchanged brief glances.

  “You understand this will be seen as a political move. Your people—”

  “Will believe what I tell them to believe,” Rasa snapped. “They’ll see it as a diplomatic exchange. A show of trust. And if they don't, they’ll stay silent.”

  He turned to face them again, and for a moment, the mask slipped, just enough to reveal the exhaustion beneath.

  “Take him. Keep him under control. And if you can make him useful, then maybe… that will be my last success as a father.”