The moment Satori burst into the Chunin Exam arena, Konoha was thrown into chaos. Even without Hiruzen Sarutobi issuing a command, Konoha's ninja instinctively rushed toward the monstrous creature. Their kunai, shuriken, and ninjutsu lit up the battlefield like a storm of desperation.
But no matter how fast or how clever the attacks were—even those launched from blind spots—Satori evaded all of them with mocking ease.
Worse still, Satori didn't even need ninjutsu.
With pure physical strength alone, it tore through buildings and bodies alike.
Its massive, obsidian claws sliced effortlessly through stone, wood, and flesh, leaving behind trails of destruction.
"W-what kind of monster is that…?"
A Konoha jonin muttered, his face drained of all color.
But no one answered.
Not even Hiruzen Sarutobi—the Third Hokage, the Professor, the man hailed as the strongest of his generation—had an answer. Unlike the Tailed Beasts, Satori was a creature sealed within the Box of Ultimate Bliss for generations. Its existence had faded from memory. Even the ninja of the Hidden Grass, who were supposed to be its custodians, were ignorant of its true nature.
And now that it had appeared in the heart of Konoha, everything was falling apart.
The peaceful Chunin Exams instantly dissolved into utter pandemonium. Parents shielded their children, civilians were trampled in the panic, and even trained shinobi looked shaken.
Hiruzen's expression darkened like a brewing thundercloud. Whoever had released the monster had chosen their moment with frightening precision.
But speculation could come later.
Right now, the monster needed to be stopped—before the casualties grew even worse.
He cast a quick look toward the Cloud and Sand contingents. Jonin had already surrounded them, preventing any opportunistic movements.
Hiruzen inhaled deeply, shedding his Hokage robe in one swift motion and revealing his battle gear beneath.
"Due to this sudden incident," his voice boomed through the arena, "I advise all of you to remain here quietly. Do not act without orders."
His tone left no room for argument.
He then turned to Konoha's ninjas.
"Evacuate the civilians! Protect the Feudal Lord and the nobles!"
The shinobi saluted and immediately dispersed to follow his command.
Hiruzen leapt forward, leading a squad of elite jonin straight toward Satori.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A puff of white smoke erupted, and standing beside Hiruzen appeared a white-furred monkey wearing a vest and a Konoha forehead protector.
The Monkey King—Enma.
Hiruzen's most trusted summons, said by Orochimaru himself to possess the hardest body among all summoned creatures.
"Enma," Hiruzen commanded urgently, "transform into the Adamantine Staff!"
Without hesitation, Enma shifted into a long black staff, its hardness comparable to diamond. Hiruzen gripped it with steady hands.
He thrust the staff forward.
"Extend!"
The Adamantine Staff shot out, growing dozens of meters long in an instant, aiming to slam into Satori and force it out of the village.
But—
Satori twisted its body and ascended rapidly, its massive wings lifting it high into the sky. The staff whooshed past, hitting only air.
Hiruzen's eyes narrowed dangerously.
That wasn't just speed.
It had dodged before the staff even touched it—almost as if it had predicted the attack.
Earlier, none of the Konoha ninjas' attacks had landed. Now, it had avoided his Adamantine Staff—a weapon fast and precise enough to strike Tailed Beasts.
This monster…
It could anticipate attacks.
Combined with its ability to fly, the situation was rapidly becoming dire.
Satori, now suspended in the air like a harbinger of death, spread its enormous wings. The black feathers adorning them rippled ominously—before being launched in a sudden downpour.
A rainstorm of pitch-black feathers fell from the sky like deadly senbon.
Screams echoed as ninja and civilians alike were hit. The sharp feathers pierced through flesh with horrifying ease, embedding themselves deep in bodies. Blood spurted and splattered across the ground as people fell like puppets with severed strings.
The battlefield was already becoming a massacre.
"Everyone, attack together!" Hiruzen shouted.
At last, the jonin squad joined him. Fire, wind, and lightning jutsu illuminated the sky as Konoha's elite attempted to overwhelm Satori with sheer numbers.
Under their relentless barrage, Satori was finally forced back—retreating beyond Konoha's outer walls.
But that was only a temporary victory.
How could they defeat an enemy whose attacks they couldn't block—and whose evasion seemed nearly perfect?
Every failed attempt chipped away at morale. Even veteran jonin were growing pale. Hiruzen's own face remained grim as steel.
"No ability is without weakness," he murmured, more to himself than anyone else. "We simply lack intelligence."
Without knowing what Satori truly was, devising a counterstrategy was nearly impossible.
Just then—
Boom!
A large shadow fell across the battlefield.
A member of the Akimichi clan had activated the Multi-Size Technique—growing into a giant nearly the size of Satori itself.
With a roar, the giant Akimichi swung his massive fist at the flying monster.
But Satori twisted effortlessly, avoiding the strike as though the jonin were standing still.
"I can't control it!" shouted another jonin—a member of the Yamanaka clan. Sweat dripped down his pale face. "Its mental energy… it's too strong!"
He had tried the Mind Body Switch Technique, only to be overwhelmed instantly by Satori's malevolent chakra. The psychic backlash sent him collapsing to his knees.
"My shadow can't reach it while it's airborne!" a Nara jonin added with frustration.
Their clan's Shadow Binding Technique was powerful, but useless if the target never touched the ground.
Then—
Bzzzz!
Bzzzz!
Bzzzz!
A thick swarm of parasitic insects swarmed from an Aburame jonin's body, darkening the sky as they surged toward Satori.
Hiruzen's eyes lit up.
At last—an airborne counterattack with enough range and persistence to pressure the monster.
Satori turned its head, red eyes glowing with annoyance rather than fear.
It extended a claw and gathered a condensed sphere of crimson energy.
Whoosh!
With a single blast, a massive portion of the insect swarm was obliterated—burned to ash instantly.
But many insects survived the first blast and continued closing in.
Just as they were about to latch onto Satori—
A wave of pure, overwhelming chakra burst from the monster's body.
The remaining insects were annihilated instantly.
"They are nothing but insects," Satori spoke at last, voice deep and cold.
The shinobi froze.
It could speak?
Hiruzen stepped forward, gripping the Adamantine Staff tightly. "Why have you attacked Konoha?"
Satori's head tilted.
Its answer came in the form of another red energy orb launched directly at them.
The battle raged on outside Konoha—
---
Meanwhile — Inside Root Headquarters
Deep underground, cut off from daylight, the Root base remained silent and cold.
The moment news reached him, Danzō Shimura issued a single order:
"All Root operatives are to return. No one is permitted to engage the enemy."
His voice held no hesitation. No concern. No urgency.
"In order to preserve strength," he said, "Root cannot afford casualties. If Konoha suffers heavy losses today, foreign villages may attempt to invade. Root must remain intact."
Any regular shinobi would have questioned this logic.
But Root operatives—conditioned since childhood—obeyed without hesitation. In their minds, Danzō's word was absolute.
If he ordered them to assassinate the Hokage himself, they would do so without blinking.
With Root secured, Danzō turned and made his way toward Orochimaru's lab—a secret facility hidden far beyond Konoha's borders.
The facility was buried deep underground, surrounded only by dense forest and silence. It was here that Orochimaru continued his forbidden research, in defiance of Hiruzen's clear prohibition against further Wood Release experiments.
Inside the lab, Orochimaru was cleaning surgical tools when Danzō arrived.
"Danzō," Orochimaru said, voice low and serpentine, "why come to me now instead of helping defend Konoha?"
Though he remained in the lab, his intelligence network ensured he was fully aware of everything happening above ground.
A faint smile curled on his pale lips.
"You've shown no intention of aiding Hiruzen-sensei, have you?"
Danzō didn't deny it.
His priorities—and his ambitions—lay elsewhere.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)