[TL/N: New Book -
Anime Group Chat in a Doomsday World!]
-------
Seeing the strange figure suddenly standing in front of him, Tobirama's expression froze.
Even though he had little desire to assist Orochimaru—a man who toyed with the dead—he couldn't help but feel a pang of embarrassment. After all, as the Second Hokage and a proud member of the Senju clan, having his full-strength attack casually blocked by someone was humiliating.
"Hmph!"
With a swift motion, Tobirama retreated, landing gracefully on a sturdy tree trunk.
He raised his gaze once more, staring at Landorus standing protectively in front of Rasa. His sharp eyes betrayed a hint of confusion.
"Who are you?"
"Roouuss~!"
Landorus responded with a sound whose meaning was incomprehensible.
Tobirama: ? ? ?
Tobirama blinked in surprise.
At that moment, Hashirama descended from the sky, landing lightly beside his younger brother. His eyes also locked onto Landorus.
"It's not human... Is it a summoning beast?"
Hashirama frowned deeply.
Even though their strength after being resurrected was a shadow of their former glory, the fact that a mere summoning beast had effortlessly withstood Tobirama's full-force attack left even the "God of Shinobi" momentarily stunned.
"It seems the world has become much more interesting," Hashirama remarked, his expression shifting to one of rare amusement.
Unlike Tobirama, who was inwardly furious at being summoned back to life by Orochimaru, Hashirama viewed the situation with detached curiosity.
To him, returning to the world of the living and witnessing its changes was a rare pleasure, even if it was under such bizarre circumstances.
After all, the target they were sent to kill was the Kazekage, not someone from Konoha. What did the affairs of Sand Ninja Village have to do with two Hokages of Konoha?
As the saying goes…
"Life is like the wind, and if you can't resist, you might as well enjoy it."
---
Meanwhile, Rasa stood frozen in shock behind Landorus.
He couldn't believe his eyes.
The Pokémon he had traded for—a creature he thought would merely improve the fertility of his land—actually possessed formidable combat abilities?
Two benefits for the price of one!
Dimensional trading truly lived up to its name!
Feeling a sudden surge of confidence, Rasa straightened his back and whispered to the Pokémon protecting him,
"Landorus, I can use my Magnet Release to hold these two off for a while. Can you help me escape from here?"
"Huh?"
Landorus turned its head toward Rasa, its expression one of utter confusion. Then, with a disdainful glance at the two Senju brothers, it seemed to say:
"Run? Against these two? You must be joking."
Without another glance at its trainer, Landorus focused on the battlefield. Knowing Rasa had yet to grasp its true strength, the Pokémon decided to put on a display that would leave him speechless.
Without any warning, Landorus raised its arms, and an awe-inspiring energy began to gather around it.
Boom!
A thunderous noise echoed across the barren desert.
Moments later, the sunlight above their heads vanished, replaced by an ominous shadow that slowly spread over the battlefield.
Move: Power of the Earth!
As the leader of Ground-type Pokémon, Landorus's mastery over ground energy was beyond human comprehension.
A massive surge of sand erupted from the desert, forming into four colossal, terrifying hands in mid-air, each aimed directly at the two Senju brothers below.
"Hey… are you kidding me!?"
"The strength of this summoning beast rivals that of a tailed beast!"
"When did ninjas gain the ability to command tailed beasts freely?"
As the massive palm loomed overhead, blocking out the sun, an incredulous voice escaped from Hashirama.
But beside him, Tobirama silently shook his head, also speechless.
"Ah, what a pity."
Turning to his younger brother, Hashirama sighed and remarked,
"Tobirama, there's clearly something wrong with that jutsu of yours."
"It's only managing 60% of your full strength."
"Maybe you should refine it a bit more, and then teach it to that pale kid?"
"Otherwise, we're going to get our butts kicked today~"
"…"
This idiot brother!
Tobirama groaned inwardly but replied in exasperation,
"That brat has already improved my jutsu."
"If not for his tweaks, we'd probably be using even less than 60% of our strength."
"Ah? Is that so?"
Hashirama's face fell with disappointment.
"It seems there's no escaping today's beatdown, then."
Despite his lighthearted tone, the control tags placed on them by Orochimaru forced the two brothers to keep fighting, their bodies moving against their will.
Hashirama's hands moved with blinding speed, weaving seals as though he were performing an intricate dance.
Suddenly—
Multiple water dragons, each tens of meters long, materialized behind him and charged toward the colossal sand palm hanging in the sky.
At the same time, Hashirama pressed his hands firmly to the ground.
The barren desert landscape responded instantly, erupting with a surge of vibrant green plants.
The plants intertwined, growing rapidly to form an enormous Buddha statue. Its hands pushed forward, as if to contest the oppressive power of the giant palm above.
But it was all in vain.
The power Orochimaru's control allowed them to exert was a pale shadow of their true might.
Facing the two brothers' resistance, Landorus snorted, releasing a puff of white air from its nostrils. Its expression oozed disdain.
With an effortless motion, it pushed its massive arms forward.
"ROUS!!!"
With a thunderous roar, Landorus's colossal sand palms swung downward, unleashing a furious windstorm that tore across the desert.
Boom!
The four sand palms struck simultaneously, slamming into the ground with earth-shaking force.
The impact left a massive crater in the desert. Moments later, the palms shattered, disintegrating into four enormous mounds of sand that poured into the pit.
The Senju brothers, injured and overwhelmed, were buried beneath layers of sand, hundreds of meters deep.
---
On the sidelines, Rasa stood frozen, dumbstruck by the sheer might of his Pokémon.
It wasn't until the sandstorm settled, and silence returned to the desert, that he finally regained his senses.
With wide, sparkling eyes, Rasa stared at Landorus.
He could swear—Landorus's strength had already surpassed that of the One-Tailed Shukaku, the very tailed beast that had once wreaked havoc on Sand Ninja Village!
This dimensional trade had been nothing short of a miracle. He had lost nothing yet gained a combat asset that far exceeded the power of a tailed beast!
And, most importantly...
This power wasn't rebellious like One Tail.
For the first time, Rasa dared to imagine:
If every ninja in the Sand Ninja Village made a dimensional trade...
How strong could the village become?
Forget Konoha!
Even the other four great ninja villages would bow before the Sand Ninja Village!
These thoughts swirled in Rasa's mind, growing wilder and wilder with every passing second.
Seeing that Hashirama and Tobirama were buried under the sand, showing no signs of emerging, Rasa decided to stop worrying about them.
In previous battles, he had already witnessed the incredible resilience of those resurrected through the Impure World Reincarnation.
No matter the attack, it seemed to have no lasting effect on their immortal bodies.
Without mastering a powerful sealing technique, defeating those two was practically impossible.
With this realization, Rasa decided not to linger any longer.
He turned to Landorus and said,
"Landorus, it looks like those two won't be coming out anytime soon."
"I have more important matters to attend to. How about coming back to the village with me for now?"
This was Rasa's first time communicating with a Pokémon. While the dimensional merchant had assured him that Pokémon were inherently kind creatures, the sheer power Landorus had displayed made him tread cautiously, adopting a respectful tone.
Surprisingly, this attitude seemed to please Landorus.
Its eyes sparkled with amusement as it nodded approvingly at Rasa.
Then, Landorus transformed. It shed its imposing form and adopted a smaller, tiger-like appearance.
Landorus turned its head to glance at Rasa.
As its trainer, Rasa instantly understood the gesture—it was inviting him to climb on.
Oh. My. God.
What kind of miraculous creature was this!?
A being this powerful and kind actually existed in the world!?
Rasa was overwhelmed with gratitude and awe.
He could hardly contain his excitement.
He had to return to the village immediately and inform every ninja there…
They must buy Pokémon from the dimensional merchant!
---
Time passed.
A light breeze swept over the desert, stirring a small whirlwind that carried sand and gravel into the distance.
Suddenly—
Puff!
A tiny snakehead emerged cautiously from the sand, scanning its surroundings.
Moments later, as if reassured by the absence of danger, a much larger snakehead burst out, swallowing the smaller one whole before slithering fully out of the sand.
The enormous snake's body twisted and coiled before morphing into a humanoid figure.
It was none other than Orochimaru, the rogue ninja of Konoha, who had failed in his attempt to assassinate the Fourth Kazekage.
"What… was that creature?"
Emerging into the open, Orochimaru's face was pale, a result of the chakra drained by his use of the forbidden Impure World Reincarnation technique. Despite his weakened state, his snake-like eyes gleamed with a dangerous, curious light.
As a disciple of Ryūchi Cave, Orochimaru's insatiable thirst for knowledge and truth had led him to uncover many secrets under the guidance of the White Snake Sage.
But even with all his gathered wisdom, he was certain of one thing—there had never been a summoning beast in this world that could rival, let alone surpass, a tailed beast in strength.
And yet…
What had just transpired before his very eyes contradicted everything he thought he knew.
Orochimaru's curiosity burned even brighter.
"Fascinating…" he muttered, his voice low but tinged with excitement.
"Just moments ago, Rasa had been utterly desperate."
"Yet, in the span of mere minutes, he summoned a creature of such terrifying power…"
"This is no ordinary summoning. Everything about it is… unnatural."
Orochimaru's mind raced with questions, his thoughts fixated on unraveling this enigma.
Although his assassination attempt on the Fourth Kazekage had failed, and his plans to attack Konoha were temporarily derailed, Orochimaru showed no trace of frustration or defeat.
He calmly dispelled the Impure World Reincarnation, releasing his control over the two Hokages.
Then, with a sly smile and a glint in his eye, he turned to face the direction of the Sand Ninja Village.
A wicked smile curled at the corner of Orochimaru's lips as he set off, heading toward the Sand Ninja Village.
Not long after Orochimaru left...
The sand nearby began to stir, slowly condensing into the figure of Crocodile.
It must be said—if someone ventures out into the world without numerous ways to escape or conceal themselves, they are either a protagonist or a fool.
Often, the line between the two is blurred.
Crocodile, who had resurfaced in the desert, let out a relieved sigh.
Thankfully, Orochimaru hadn't detected him hiding beneath the sand.
It wasn't cowardice—it was simply Crocodile's keen sense of survival that warned him to be cautious of Orochimaru.
Sure, as a dimensional merchant, Crocodile had transcended the status of ordinary beings in this world.
But having only recently arrived here, his strength remained embarrassingly weak.
Unless something extraordinary happened, he wasn't keen on stirring up trouble.
Thus, after instinctively warning himself of Orochimaru's potential danger, Crocodile refrained from acting rashly.
Who could say for certain whether this world had means to counteract his powers of elementalization?
If Orochimaru truly harbored ill intentions, Crocodile would be forced to spend precious points to acquire temporary strength.
But considering how painstakingly he'd been managing his resources as a dimensional merchant, wasting points on a trivial encounter was far from ideal.
Moreover, such an act might tarnish the reputation of dimensional merchants.
So...
Crocodile decided it was wiser to stay hidden, biding his time until his strength was fully restored before initiating any transactions in this world.
In his next deal, he resolved to act with even greater caution.
It was simply his nature—planning meticulously to ensure stable, reliable outcomes.
Of course...
Rasa's case was an exception.
After all, Rasa had been prepared to face death. Individuals like that, when confronted with a dimensional transaction, were bound to offer everything they had without hesitation.
---
One day later.
Rasa, riding Landorus in its spiritual beast form, arrived above the Sand Ninja Village.
"Thank you for your hard work, Landorus," Rasa said softly, gently stroking Landorus's head.
The once-ferocious Pokémon immediately displayed a playful, almost feline expression of enjoyment.
Rasa, having gradually learned how to interact with Pokémon, smiled as he retrieved Landorus's Pokéball, returning it to its orb.
Then, he descended directly from the sky.
---
Meanwhile, inside the Kazekage Building, a secretive plot was unfolding.
The leadership of the Sand Ninja Village was deep in preparations, mobilizing the entire village to exploit the upcoming Chunin Exams as a pretext for launching an all-out invasion against Konoha.
It must be said...
The Sand Ninja Village had seemingly recovered from its previous scars, only to forget the painful lessons of the past.
During the Third Ninja War, Konoha had faced off against multiple villages simultaneously.
With only a fraction of its forces, it had utterly crushed the Sand Ninja Village.
And yet, now they inexplicably believed they could challenge the full might of Konoha in direct combat.
Truly, such confidence could only come from Orochimaru's manipulation.
No ordinary individual could have lured the Sand Ninja Village into such a perilous trap.
Fortunately...
Everything had begun to change with Crocodile's arrival.
——
In a secluded conference room where battle plans were being finalized, the elders of the Sand Ninja Village, Granny Chiyo and Ebizo, were busy discussing how to allocate their forces.
Suddenly—
Bang!
The door to the room flew open!
"Who's there!?"
The occupants hastily concealed their plans, turning warily toward the entrance.
But in the next instant, their eyes widened in shock.
"Rasa? Why are you back?"
Granny Chiyo asked incredulously, her tone sharp.
"Weren't you supposed to leave early, following Orochimaru's plan, to oversee the Chunin Exams in Konoha?"
"Uh… this..." Rasa hesitated, furrowing his brow as he recalled how narrowly he had escaped Orochimaru's schemes.
But just as quickly, a sense of relief washed over him.
After all, if not for Orochimaru, he might never have encountered this unprecedented opportunity.
With a bright smile, Rasa reached into his robe and pulled out a Rotom Phone. Holding it up for everyone to see, he declared with excitement:
"Everyone, I have great news!"